Photographer and Studio Insurance

We place portrait studios, wedding and commercial shooters, and small multi-photographer shops. We do not write drone-heavy cinematography as a silent add, and we do not hide a second shooter who is really a independent contractor inside “assistants.” If you also design and print, the printing and products story belongs on the application.

The equipment floater is scheduled or blanket at replacement cost, including rented lights and a second-body kit you borrow for a destination wedding. Off-premises and in-transit are the whole point of the form. We ask about international shoots and about gear that lives in a car overnight — both change underwriting. A studio BOP’s off-premises extension is usually too small for a working kit.

Professional liability for photographers is a delivery-and-files claim as often as it is a “you missed the kiss” claim. A failed backup, a corrupted card, or a gallery that never went live is an E&O fact pattern. Cyber sits beside it if you store client images and payment data. We want a written backup practice on the application because it is the difference between a claim and a career-ending hole.

Weddings and commercial jobs generate additional-insured requests from venues and art directors. We issue them to the wording the contract actually requires. Hired and non-owned auto covers the personal car that goes to the venue; a dedicated production van needs commercial auto. Washington W-2 staff stay with L&I. Second shooters who invoice you need their own GL and professional and should name you additional insured.

Advertising agencies, art galleries, and personal services are the related pages. If you are really a production company with a camera, say so — the auto and the general-liability story get heavier. If you are a portrait studio with a storefront and a waiting room, this page is enough.

Risks we actually schedule

• Theft or damage of bodies, glass, and lights off premises or in a vehicle.
• Lost, corrupted, or undelivered files — a professional claim, not a property claim.
• Venue additional-insured and damage-to-premises requests on a wedding day.
• A second shooter or assistant whose status was never documented.