Episodic Design

5 Main Reasons Why You Should Choose Rights Managed Photos

David June 21, 2016

While royalty-free stock offers great value, there are a number of reasons why you should choose rights managed photos instead. This type of photo license holds its respective place in the field. Surely, there is no right or wrong when choosing between royalty-free and rights managed, but the latter provide a higher level of protection that you cannot have with the former. Here are 5 main reasons why you should choose the RM photos:

• Higher Quality. Rights managed photos usually have higher quality than its royalty-free counterparts. Why? It’s because photographers tend to sell their works under RM so they can have control over how their photos are being used. Moreover, the topics and shots are not common and easy with this type of photo license.
• Reduces Imitation. Imitation is a fact of life, especially with industry leaders. Advertisers, editors and designers all follow style and trend closely. Trendy and current styles get a lot of play, putting them at higher risk for overexposure. When it comes to stock photos, buyers in similar fields can search for similar keywords that will lead them to the same search results. This can lead to overall exposure of a specific image, most especially the best ones as they will be naturally selected more often.
• Exclusivity. Purchasing the exclusive rights of stock photos may cost more, but you can justify the higher price by reducing the risk of a similar image being used by your competitors. With an exclusive license, you can gain assurance against duplication as the rights managed photos can only be used by the buyer.
• Protection. RM photos protect you. Since the contributor is aware of your intended use for the image, he or she can make you aware of any likely conflicts in the use of his or her photo. You can bypass the brand confusion by making use of this type of photo license.
• Reuse of the Same Image. Once you purchase RM image, you will be guided on how, where and when you can use the image. You can be assured that no one will cash in by using the same image. Unlike its royalty-free counterpart, there are certain limitations on the number of times the image can be used.

There are many other reasons why you should choose rights managed photos over royalty-free. They have wider range of topics. They are sold by top photographers. They weed out inferior images. They are cheaper than commissioned work. And, they are not always expensive. It is no wonder that rights managed continues to be the number one choice for professionals. Royalty-free generally appeals to small players, but RM offers a number of good advantages that should not be overlooked.