Policies & Licensing

Last updated September 2026 · Written by a photographer, not a lawyer

Scheduling & Property Access

Clients are responsible for making sure the property is ready and accessible at the scheduled time. That means a working lockbox code, correct entry instructions, and any owners, tenants, agents or other required contacts actually being there when they need to be. A photographer standing on a porch with a camera bag and no way in is a sad sight, and it also isn't billable in a way anyone enjoys.

If access instructions change, let Propellr Photography know as soon as possible. "The code is on a sticky note inside the house" is not an access plan.

Property Preparation

Properties are photographed as they are presented at the time of the appointment. Cleaning, decluttering, staging and furniture moving are not included in standard photography services, and the photographer is not able to wait while a property is being prepared. We photograph homes, not miracles. Minor retouching is included with every shoot, but extensive editing to remove items that could have been cleared before the appointment (the laundry pile, the dog bed, the 40-pack of paper towels) may be billed as additional work.

Cancellations & Rescheduling

We understand that schedules change. Sellers get cold feet, inspections run long, life happens. Please give at least 24 hours' notice when cancelling or rescheduling an appointment.

Appointments cancelled or changed with less than 24 hours' notice are charged a $50 late-change fee. Here is the honest reason: when your shoot goes on the calendar, that slot is yours, and there is a decent chance another paid job was turned away to keep it open. Fifty dollars does not replace a lost shoot, but it keeps the calendar honest.

For properties more than 25 miles from Milwaukee, a cancellation or change with less than 24 hours' notice is charged the full session fee instead of the $50 fee. A half-day round trip to Kenosha or Fond du Lac cannot be rebooked at breakfast time.

If the photographer arrives at a property and cannot get in because of an incorrect access code, an unavailable owner or tenant, a missing key, or other circumstances outside the photographer's control, it counts as a same-day cancellation and the fees above apply. The camera still had to come along for the ride.

Weather is a different story. Rescheduling exterior or aerial photography because of rain, snow, fog or wind will be handled reasonably and without penalty when conditions prevent the requested photography from being completed safely or effectively. We can do a lot of things, but we cannot argue with a Wisconsin sky.

Third-Party & Vendor Assignments

For assignments scheduled by national photography companies, marketing agencies, real estate investment companies, property management companies or other third-party organizations, the appointment is considered confirmed once Propellr Photography accepts the assignment.

The contracting company is responsible for coordinating access with the property owner, tenant, agent or on-site contact. We are happy to be the ones holding the camera; we just can't also be the ones who know where the key is.

If the photographer arrives at the scheduled location at the agreed time and access cannot be obtained, or the designated contact does not appear, the assignment is considered a completed service call and the agreed assignment fee remains due.

If a return visit is required, it is treated as a separate appointment and additional photography and/or travel charges may apply.

Waiting Time

Reasonable delays happen, and a short grace period will be provided whenever possible. We have all been the person running ten minutes behind.

Extended waiting caused by unavailable contacts, property access issues, ongoing construction, cleaning crews, occupants who are not ready, or other circumstances outside the photographer's control may result in additional charges. The meter is polite, but it is still a meter.

For commercial assignments involving scheduled crews, employees, talent or multiple participants, additional waiting time may be billed when delays significantly extend the scheduled assignment.

Travel

Standard pricing generally includes travel within the normal Propellr Photography service area, which covers Milwaukee and a generous stretch of southeast Wisconsin.

Properties more than 25 miles out may add a trip fee of $25 or more depending on distance. Any trip fee is confirmed before the assignment is accepted, not sprung on you afterward like a resort fee.

Additional travel charges may also apply when a return trip is required because a property was inaccessible at the originally scheduled appointment.

Image Delivery

Residential real estate photography is typically delivered within 24 hours and often the same day. Yes, really.

Delivery times for commercial photography, video, Matterport, floor plans and other specialty services vary depending on the scope of the project. Video, in particular, takes longer to edit than it takes to watch.

Unless otherwise agreed, finished photography is delivered digitally through an online gallery. Delivered images are fully edited and sized for MLS, web and print use. Unedited RAW files are not included with standard photography services and are not normally provided. Think of them as the batter, not the cake.

Payment Terms

Payment terms are provided with the estimate, invoice or assignment. Here is the general shape of things.

New Clients

New clients pay their invoice in full before receiving final, unwatermarked photographs or other completed deliverables. We would love to take it on faith, but we have met the internet.

After the shoot, clients may receive access to watermarked preview images for quality assurance. These previews let you review the completed photography before payment, but they are not licensed for publication, downloading, distribution or any other use. Also, they have our logo stamped across them, which looks great on our marketing and terrible on yours.

Once payment has been received, final unwatermarked images and other applicable deliverables are released.

Established Clients

Established and repeat clients may be eligible for invoicing or payment terms that allow final images to be delivered prior to payment. Trust is earned one listing at a time, and plenty of our clients have earned it.

Payment terms may be established individually based on the client relationship and type of project.

Corporate & Third-Party Payment Terms

When Propellr Photography has accepted an assignment under previously agreed corporate or vendor payment terms, such as Net 15 or Net 30, those written terms supersede the standard new-client payment requirement.

This does not change the Third-Party & Vendor Assignments policy regarding no-shows, inaccessible properties or completed service calls. A locked door is a locked door, regardless of who is paying for it.

Photography Licensing

Here is the part that surprises people. Unless specifically transferred in writing, photographs created by Propellr Photography remain copyrighted works of Propellr Photography. This is how it works for every professional photographer, and it is not a Propellr quirk.

What you are buying is a license: payment for photography includes permission to use the delivered images for the purposes agreed upon when the assignment is booked. For most clients that covers everything they will ever want to do with the photos.

Residential Real Estate Photography

Standard residential real estate photography includes usage by the listing agent or brokerage for marketing the property for sale, including:

• MLS listings
• Real estate websites
• Brokerage and agent websites
• Social media
• Printed property marketing materials
• Online advertising directly related to the property's listing

The license applies to marketing that specific property. It does not automatically transfer to another agent, brokerage, homeowner, builder, designer or other third party. If a listing changes hands, the new agent or brokerage should contact Propellr Photography about licensing the existing images. It is usually a quick conversation.

Short-Term Rental & Property Marketing

Properties used for Airbnb, Vrbo, direct-booking websites, vacation rentals, apartment rentals or other ongoing income-producing uses require a commercial/rental marketing license unless that usage was specifically included in the original photography package.

The logic: a listing photo does its job and retires when the house sells. A rental photo keeps working every single night for years, and it should be licensed like the hard worker it is.

Rental-marketing licensing can be added to a photography package when requested. See our Airbnb and short-term rental photography page for packages that include it.

Commercial Photography

Commercial photography licensing is based on the intended use of the images and may include websites, advertising, social media, brochures, corporate communications and other marketing.

Large advertising campaigns, paid media, national usage, product packaging, resale, sublicensing or other expanded usage may require a separate licensing agreement. If your plans involve a billboard on I-94, let's talk first.

Third-Party Use

Purchasing or receiving photographs does not automatically give another party permission to use them. "The agent sent them to me" is a lovely origin story but not a license.

Builders, architects, interior designers, stagers, property owners, contractors, publications and other businesses wishing to use images originally created for another client should contact Propellr Photography for licensing permission.

Additional licenses are generally available, reasonably priced, and can often be arranged the same day. We want your project to look good too.

Portfolio & Promotional Use

Propellr Photography may display images from completed assignments in its portfolio, on its website and social media, and in its own marketing materials. If you would prefer that a particular property not be shown, or you need images held until a listing or campaign goes live, let us know in writing and we will honor the request. We are not in the business of spoiling surprises.

Copyright

Unless otherwise agreed to in writing, Propellr Photography retains the copyright to all photographs and video produced.

Purchasing photography services buys permission to use the finished work for an agreed purpose, not ownership of the copyright itself. Same as buying a song does not make you the songwriter.

Copyright ownership may be transferred only through a separate written agreement. It is possible, it just requires paperwork and a conversation about price.

Licensing & Payment

Usage rights for photographs, video and other deliverables become effective upon payment unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Watermarked proofs and preview images are provided solely for review and quality assurance and are not licensed for publication or other use.

Unpaid or past-due invoices may result in suspension of image usage rights and/or withholding of future deliverables until the account is brought current. We really do not enjoy this part, so let's avoid it together.

Matterport & Hosted Services

Matterport tours and certain other interactive services rely on third-party hosting platforms. In other words, the tour lives on someone else's servers, and someone else's servers are not free. Keeping a tour active requires an ongoing Matterport subscription.

The way this usually works: you keep your own Matterport account and add Propellr Photography as a contributor. We scan directly into your account, the tour is yours from the first minute, and it stays online as long as your subscription does. No handoffs, no "can you re-send the link," and no tour that quietly disappears because it was living on somebody else's plan.

Don't have a Matterport account, and not excited about adding another monthly fee to your life? CubiCasa is a good alternative. It gives you a 3D walkthrough scan and a floor plan with no ongoing hosting cost, and it is built into our scan-only pricing. We wrote the whole comparison up here: The Matterport bill nobody warns you about, and the free alternative most agents haven't tried.

Applicable hosting terms are confirmed when these services are ordered, so nothing sneaks up on you later.

Floor Plans & Measurements

Floor plans, Matterport measurements, CubiCasa scans and similar services are intended primarily for marketing, planning and informational purposes unless specifically stated otherwise. They answer "does the couch fit?", not "will the beam hold?"

Measurements should not be considered architectural surveys or guaranteed construction-grade measurements. Square footage shown on a marketing floor plan is an estimate, and listing agents remain responsible for verifying any figures published in an MLS listing.

Projects requiring highly precise measurements, architectural documentation, engineering-grade accuracy or measurements intended for construction should use an appropriately qualified measurement, architectural or surveying service. We know some good ones.

Drones & Aerial Photography

Aerial photography is subject to weather, airspace restrictions, FAA regulations and safe operating conditions. All flights are conducted by an FAA Part 107 certified remote pilot, which means the federal government has confirmed we know what we are doing up there.

Propellr Photography reserves the right to postpone, modify or decline a drone flight when conditions or regulations make the requested operation unsafe or unlawful. Airport approach paths, 30 mph gusts and freezing rain all get a vote, and they always win.

When aerial photography cannot be completed during an otherwise successful photography assignment because of temporary weather, airspace or safety conditions, options for completing the aerial portion of the assignment will be discussed with the client. The drone will fly. Just maybe on Thursday.

Questions & Special Requests

Not every photography project fits neatly into a standard policy, and we have photographed enough unusual properties to know it.

If you're unsure whether a particular use, location, assignment or licensing situation is covered, please contact Propellr Photography before the shoot.