Terms of Use
Last updated: 24 August 2026
These Terms of Use apply to the Photo Genius website and to photography, studio and rental services requested through it. They are intended to be read with the specific package description, quotation, booking confirmation and session contract supplied to you. Nothing in these terms removes a right or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded under South African law.
1. Business and contact details
Photo Genius operates from 130 St Georges Road, Observatory, Johannesburg. Questions, notices and complaints can be sent through our Contact page. Our Privacy Policy explains how personal information is handled.
2. Website use
You may use this website to view services, submit enquiries, request bookings or rentals, and manage an existing request through a secure link. You must provide accurate information, keep private links and access details secure, and not attempt to interfere with the website, its availability or another person’s information.
Website information is presented in good faith and may be updated. A typographical error or temporary technical fault does not create an obligation to provide a service on impossible or clearly incorrect terms, but we will communicate promptly and provide any remedy required by law.
3. Booking requests and confirmation
Submitting a form creates a request, not an automatically confirmed session or rental. A booking becomes confirmed when Photo Genius confirms it in writing and any required payment or other stated condition has been met. Availability can change until confirmation. Keep the reference number shown on screen and in email correspondence.
Customers are responsible for checking the confirmed service, package, extras, date, time, location, price and contact details. Please tell us promptly if anything is incorrect.
4. Prices, extras and payment
The amount payable is the amount shown in the applicable package, quotation or written confirmation, including selected extras. An extra marked “price on request” is not included in the total until Photo Genius confirms its price in writing.
If payment is required, the confirmation will state the payment amount, banking details, customer reference and deadline. Use the booking or reservation reference when paying and send proof of payment as instructed. A request may expire or be cancelled if the required payment is not received by the stated deadline, subject to any rights you have under law.
5. Cancellations and rescheduling
Please request a cancellation or date change as early as possible. Where South African consumer law allows a cancellation charge, any charge will be reasonable in the circumstances and will take account of matters such as the notice given, work already performed, costs incurred and the reasonable ability to fill the date. We do not apply a blanket “no refund” rule where the law requires a refund or other remedy.
If Photo Genius must cancel and cannot offer a suitable alternative, amounts paid for the undelivered service will be refunded as required by law. A weather-dependent or location session may be rescheduled where conditions make the work unsafe or impractical.
6. Arrival, lateness and no-shows
Please arrive at the agreed time and follow preparation instructions. Late arrival may reduce the available shooting time where the studio has another commitment, and does not automatically extend the session. A no-show or very late cancellation may be treated as a cancellation, subject to the reasonable-cancellation principles above.
7. Studio, location and safety rules
Customers and guests must follow reasonable safety and equipment instructions, supervise children, and treat staff, premises, hired items and other people respectfully. Tell us before the session about accessibility needs, allergies, medical considerations or other circumstances relevant to safe delivery. No person may use studio equipment, enter restricted areas, or create hazardous conditions without permission.
Personal behind-the-scenes photography or recording may be limited where it disrupts the session, affects another person’s privacy, breaches venue rules or exposes protected creative work. Any restriction will be explained reasonably; arbitrary penalty charges do not replace proven loss or a lawful remedy.
8. Photography deliverables and creative decisions
The selected package or confirmation states the expected session duration, number or type of deliverables and any estimated turnaround. Estimates may change for reasons outside reasonable control; we will communicate a material delay. Unless expressly included, unedited or RAW working files are not deliverables.
Photography involves professional judgement. Photo Genius selects and finishes images in its established style while taking reasonable account of the agreed brief. Requests made after the session, additional retouching, replacement backgrounds, extra products or expanded usage may require a separate quote.
9. Copyright, customer use and portfolio permission
Copyright ownership and usage permissions are governed by the session contract, any written licence or assignment, and applicable South African copyright law. The customer may use delivered images for the private or business purpose stated in the applicable agreement. Images may not be unlawfully sold, misrepresented, materially altered for a harmful purpose, or used beyond an agreed commercial licence.
Photo Genius will not treat a booking alone as consent to use identifiable customer images in advertising, social media or a public portfolio. Promotional use requiring permission will be addressed through a separate express consent or model release.
10. Rentals and customer responsibility
Rental availability, collection, return time, condition requirements, deposits and replacement responsibility are set out in the reservation confirmation or rental agreement. The customer must inspect and use hired items responsibly, report damage promptly, and return them at the agreed time. Any charge for loss or damage must reflect the agreement and the reasonable loss caused.
11. Privacy and electronic communications
Bookings and agreements may be created and accepted electronically. Keep copies of confirmations, contracts and receipts for your records. By providing contact details, you agree to receive operational messages necessary to manage the enquiry, booking, payment, contract, rental or session. Marketing is handled separately under the Privacy Policy.
12. Responsibility and liability
Photo Genius will perform services with reasonable care and skill. To the extent permitted by law, neither party is responsible for indirect loss that was not reasonably foreseeable when the agreement was made. Nothing in these terms excludes liability or a consumer remedy that the Consumer Protection Act or another law does not allow to be excluded, including liability that cannot be limited for gross negligence or prohibited conduct.
Events beyond reasonable control—such as serious illness, unsafe conditions, venue closure, power or network failure, disaster or government restriction—may delay or prevent performance. The affected party must communicate promptly and the parties will seek a fair rescheduling, credit or refund outcome consistent with the law and work already performed.
13. Complaints and disputes
Please contact us first so that we can investigate and try to resolve a concern. Include the booking or reservation reference and a clear description. These terms are governed by South African law. A customer may still use any court, ombud, regulator or other remedy available under applicable law.
14. Contract priority, severability and changes
If a signed or electronically accepted session or rental contract contains a specific term that differs from these general website terms, the specific contract term applies to that service, subject to the law. If a provision is unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue. Updated website terms apply prospectively from the date shown and do not silently change a contract version already accepted for an existing booking.