I have re-found the relevant letter from the NT about photography on its land. It is the response to an email rom a photographer and I hope s/he does not mind me copying it here.
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Dear *****,
Many thanks for your email enquiring about what is and is not permitted with regard to the private and/or commercial use of works produced on National Trust land.
The National Trust is protected from unsanctioned commercial exploitation by a byelaw passed in 1965, which states:
'No unauthorised person shall on Trust Property sell or offer or expose for sale any commodity or article or for the purpose of trade or reward take any photograph'.
This section of the 1965 National Trust byelaws is the basis on which the Trust's photographic policy is based. Our policy is explicit in welcoming people to take photographs out of doors at properties for personal use and research but the Trust does not permit photography for profit or publication without permission. For commercial photography of gardens, architectural exteriors and interiors, permission is required. Please contact the Media and Broadcast Liaison Officer, Harvey Edgington on: 020 7447 6759. If permission is given, the photographers are asked to confirm contractually that the pictures are for one-time use only. We may invite them to consider lodging appropriate images in the National Trust Photo Library on an agency basis. Photography for other photo libraries is never permitted.
This policy has been in place for some years and is accepted by professionals in the photographic world. It was worked out in association with the Historic Houses Association and English Heritage. It echoes the sentiments of the founders of the National Trust who, even then, were concerned that the National Trust should not be exploited commercially.
The National Trust is a charity with the statutory purpose of conserving places of historic interest or natural beauty for the benefit of the nation. It, therefore, has a duty to protect and husband its resources so as to be better able to carry out its conservation work. This conservation remit means that it is vital to have the ability to manage the marketing of Trust property. The Trust must also be careful not to advertise inadvertently or endorse products with which it does not wish to be associated. In addition many of its properties are leased to tenants and their concerns have to be taken into account and respected accordingly.
The byelaw protecting the Trust relates to all National Trust property, including non-paying properties such as coastlines and landscapes. However, the editorial use of images taken on non-paying properties is not something that we are currently enforcing given that the issue of marketing property is not so sensitive. Therefore images you create on, for instance, Snowdon would not be monitored for improper use, whereas images taken at Fountains Abbey would be in breach of our policy.
You also refer to public rights of way. You are perfectly entitled to sell photographs taken on designated public footpaths or highways for editorial use, or any use where a property release is not required by the end user. This only applies to legally defined public footpaths and not to all footpaths. Where boundaries are unclear it is, I'm afraid, the photographer's responsibility to check whether or not s/he is on NT land. This would be true of any privately owned land, including land freely open to the public (such as the Royal Parks in London).
Any form of commercial activity conducted on paid entry National Trust properties must be sanctioned by the relevant department. This would include anyone setting up an easel to paint etc. Access to such activities is commonly granted but permission must be sought, as must evidence of the relevant public liability insurance (currently £6m).
I hope this is helpful to you.
Regards,
Chris.
Chris Rowlin
Rights Manager
t The National Trust Photo Library
www.ntpl.org.uk
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