Booking, payment, conditions of studio hire and use:

MAKING A BOOKING:

• Contact James Gilberd directly by email  [email protected] or phone 027 444 3899 or 04 382 9502 (10am-3pm only) to make your booking and for any subsequent discussion. Online booking is not available, sorry.
• When you make a booking to hire the studio, it will be regarded as a firm booking unless you state otherwise at the time - see below
• If "penciling in" an booking, you will need to propose an agreed date by which you will confirm the booking
• For some bookings in busy periods we may require a deposit or full payment in advance
  
• If your plans for your studio hire booking change, it is your responsibility to inform Courtenay Studios. It is not up to us to check with you. Failure to inform us of any changes may result in your being charged for your original booking
• If you cancel your booking within 48 hours of its start time, or fail to show up, we reserve the right to charge a cancellation fee up to the full amount of the hire fee. (We really want to avoid doing this, but cancellations often mean loss of revenue from other potential bookings not taken.)
• We aim to make booking and payment trouble-free, and we want to keep the studio hire rates competitive and affordable. The above conditions are intended to help achieve these aims.
  

PAYMENT OPTIONS:

• Pay on invoice (preferably within 10 days, see note below)
• Internet transfer at any stage
• Eftpos terminal available
• Visa or Mastercard - a 3% surcharge will apply to cover bank charges
• Cash is acceptable.

Invoicing
Invoices will be made out to the person or organisation making the studio booking, unless we are advised otherwise. (By arrangement, we can invoice the photographer's client directly. It is then the responsibility of the photographer or hiree to follow up on any requests relating to late- or non-payment.)

Cancellations: see 'Making a Booking', above. We understand that things don't always go to plan with clients, models and product availability. However, repeated cancellations and postponements make running the studio very difficult and usually cost us money from loss of other potential bookings. We want to resolve things as reasonably as possible as your future custom is important to us.

Student discount is available by negotiation, but not for payment on invoice. For discounted hireage, payment must be made on or prior to or on the day of hire to get the discount. Proof that you are a student is required.

Other discounts: if you are doing a charity or fundraising project, or some type of non-profit art project, we can usually offer a discount. Just ask.

CONDITIONS OF USE
In undertaking hire and use of the studio, you have agreed to the following conditions:

Rubbish removal: taking your own rubbish away after a shoot is greatly appreciated. Please leave the studio reasonably clean. You do not need to pack up all the equipment used, just leave things tidy. There is a vacuum cleaner, a broom and a brush & shovel in the darkroom.

Gaffer tape: please don't stick this on the floor or walls, as it tends to remove the surface when it's lifted. Masking tape is easily removed without causing damage.
Please remove any tape you used at the end of your hire session.

Background paper: this stuff is expensive! If your models are going to walk on it for full-length photos, it's going to get marked and will probably have to be discarded after the shoot. Make sure you build this additional cost into your shooting budget. See Hire Rates.

Changing soft boxes and other fittings on the Elinchrom flash units: It is preferable that we do this as it is easy to damage the flash tubes and Pyrex covers when changing light modifiers. Repairs are expensive and take the lights out of use for a time.

Leaving the studio after hours: you can work as late as you want (provided there is no one booked in after you), and the studio and building doors will self-lock. You can have a key if needed. Please see the Studio Checklist document for info. on locking up, etc.

Safety: the photographer or principal person hiring the studio should have experience in operating studio flash equipment, and knowledge of its safe use. If you are not an experienced studio photographer, using the studio during the day when someone is available to help out is the safest option.

Please do not use ladders in the studio; they are for Courtenay Studios staff use only. We will do the things that require the ladders, such as changing background rolls. We want to avoid potential accidents. If in doubt about something, please ask.

Liability: James Gilberd Photography Ltd and Mark Henry Beehre Ltd (trading together as Courtenay Studios) are not liable for any damage, accident or injury occurring on the premises during studio use. While we endeavour to maintain the studio as a safe working environment, users must act responsibly and take due care operating the equipment, and always work in a safe manner.

Breakages: We understand that breakages of equipment may occur during normal use, but please take care and please do not abuse the equipment. Report any damage so we can sort it out it straight away. For safety reasons, please do not attempt to repair anything yourself. We are trying to keep the cost of hiring the studio down and so want to avoid having to charge deposits and bonds.

Also, the studio floor is hard concrete. Be careful of your own camera (use a camera strap), lenses and other equipment, as the floor is unforgiving!

NB: these conditions are provisional only, and were updated in July 2024.
Conditions and other website contents may be updated at any time without notice.

Studio interior with Elinchrom flash units 175cm Octabox, 70cm beauty dish

Studio in use, Elinchrom 175cm Octabox

Shooting widthways - Courtenay Studio interior October 2019 with Elinchrom Pro HD 1000 and 175cm Octabox

Courtenay Studios interior, Elinchrom flash units. Photo links to 3-D Matterport scan view of the studio.