Off-Road Racing Sponsorship 101. Part 6: Photography

There is nothing more powerful than a great still photo. It can sum up an entire race. Great photos can inspire people to click and read more. There are a lot of good photographers in off-road. You can have one of them shoot for your team for reasonable rates. Especially when you consider the fact that they are traveling hundreds if not thousands of miles and trashing their equipment in what I can safely say are the harshest conditions for camera equipment. You need to be clear with the photographer as to what rights you are buying. If you are paying a photographer $500 a race it’s likely that it is just for “Team Promotion” meaning your team website, social media, signature cards, posters, etc. If you want to “transfer” the rights to use a photo for your sponsor or other party you need to make sure you have clarified usage with the photographer. Commercial rates for advertising usage are usually much higher. And yes, if any company selling a product uses a photo in any way it is commercial. So agree on use and costs upfront because good photography goes a long way.

It doesn’t matter whether you race a Class 1, Trophy Truck, Class 10 or a UTV, you can get sponsored! Getting sponsors for your off-road racing program requires time and effort, but it’s not impossible to find a company to sponsor your race car. Check back weekly, we’ll be sharing sponsorship best practices from veteran off-road racers and industry experts.