Resources are available to support professional-grade photography for your communications and positive relationship building when gathering student photography.

Professional Photography

Download professional photography for marketing and advertising materials through University Marketing.

Need help coordinating services with a professional photographer? Talk to Student Affairs Communications & Marketing or the marketing professional in your office for guidance.

model release forms

The university requires individuals to sign a model release form when they are photographed, including all Oregon State faculty, staff and students. Read below for information on model release forms. 

  • As a general guide, if you’re taking a picture of a single person or a small group and they’re the main focus of your shot, have them complete and sign a model release form. For information on ways to approach photographing large groups, visit the Contracts and Model Releases page of the university's branding guidelines. 
  • You can download and print model release forms or use Docusign to gather model release forms digitally. Visit beav.es/model to initiate the model release form process using Docusign; detailed instructions are available on the branding site. 

Student photography

Consider the following recommendations to support positive and reciprocal relationship building when taking student photos. Review the division's photography and videography guidelines for more information.  

  • Sharing stories and perspectives from historically underrepresented students is both important and a highly nuanced endeavor. Approach this work with care and in a manner that uplifts student voices and experiences.
  • Do not take, share with other units or publish photos of students without consent.
  • Staff and student workers who are taking or recording student images and retaining this multimedia content with personally identifiable information should have FERPA training.

Web Photography Best Practices

  • To optimize photos for the web, view the Digital Experience's guidelines on appropriate photo sizing for placement on web pages. Visit our web and email resources page for information on compressing images for the web.
  • When uploading an image online, always follow the best practices for alternative (alt) text. Alternative text is used by screen readers and search engines, and also appears on a web page when an image cannot be loaded. By adding alt text you improve accessibility for everyone who visits your site. Note that in Drupal, alt text will not be included for background images, so background images should only be used for decorative purposes.

 

Equipment Rental

You can borrow or rent equipment from a few places on campus, though restrictions may apply. Most mobile phones are equipped with high-quality cameras — consider whether using your phone will serve your purposes.