Terms of Service

When These Terms Apply

These terms apply to you once you accept a quote, pay us (including a deposit), or place an order - in the studio, by email, or online through our store. We link to them on our quotes and at checkout, and ask you to confirm you agree, and in the studio or by email we'll point you to them before you commit.

If a written quote we've agreed with you says something different from these terms, the quote applies to that project.

Copyright

We are serious about protecting the copyright of created works. We will only digitise, reproduce or print your project if you are the copyright holder, have written permission from the copyright holder, or are claiming provisions under Australian Copyright Law.

We are unable to make any representation of how the law applies to your specific project. By initiating a project with us, you confirm that you have the right to have the work done, and you indemnify us if what you've told us turns out to be wrong, on the terms set out under Your Indemnity below.

We will not knowingly digitise or reproduce copyrighted works without permission from the copyright owner. We reserve the right to request additional documentation or to cancel a project if we reasonably believe the copyright status of the provided work is uncertain. If we cancel for this reason, we'll refund what you've paid, less the cost of any work we've already completed - the same as if you'd cancelled yourself.

We do not take ownership of any works provided to us by our clients.

Copyright in the work we create

Everything you already own stays yours - bringing us a photograph, artwork or file doesn't change who owns the copyright in it.

When we retouch or restore something for you, the new creative work we add belongs to us. (A straightforward scan or copy of your original usually isn't new creative work, and if it isn't, there's nothing for us to own.) Once your project is paid for, you get a licence to use our work that never expires, can't be taken back and costs nothing more: you can use, reproduce, print, share and adapt the files for any personal or business purpose, and let other people (like another printer or a designer) use them for you. If a project is cancelled part-way, you get the same licence for the work you've paid for.

If you need to own the copyright outright - for example, for a publishing deal or because you're selling a business - just ask. We'll assign it to you for a fee we agree with you in writing before you commit.

Owning the copyright in our work doesn't mean we'll use it. We won't publish, sell or share work we've done for you without your permission - see Sharing Your Work in Our Marketing.

Our team won't stand in your way on moral rights either. You don't need to name us or the person who worked on your files when you use them, and you're free to crop, edit or alter them however you like, including having someone else work on them.

Work we may decline

We may decline a project, or stop one that's already under way, if it involves material we reasonably believe is unlawful, or that exploits or harms someone, or that would be unsafe for our team to handle. We won't decline work just because we don't share your taste or views. If we stop part-way, we'll refund what you've paid less the cost of any work we've already completed, the same as if you'd cancelled, and return your originals - unless the law requires us to hold on to them.

Where the law requires us to, we report illegal material to the police or other authorities, and we'll hold on to it rather than return it if they ask us to or the law requires it.

Payments and Deposits

Payment of the estimated project cost is due before we start work. For large or complex digitisation projects, we start work once we receive an 80% deposit.

The prices we publish and quote include GST - it's the full price you pay, and we never add it on top.

• Pay online by Visa, Mastercard or American Express. We don't charge a card surcharge.
• Pay by bank transfer, using your quote number as the reference. Please allow 1-2 business days for us to confirm your payment before your project is booked.
• We accept cash in the studio, but carry limited change.
• Cheques incur a $5 processing fee and may delay your project by 3-5 business days while they clear.
• In special circumstances, we may offer credit terms to approved businesses and government agencies. All credit accounts except government departments and agencies pay an annual account-keeping fee. See Trade Credit Accounts below.

Invoices for final payment or additional work are due within 7 days of issue. If an invoice is overdue, a late fee of 2% of the overdue amount per month may apply. Late fees on any one invoice are capped at 10% of the overdue amount in total, however long it stays unpaid. If you need more time, contact us before the due date and we'll work something out. Please make sure all invoices are paid before you collect your project.

Our first reminder about an overdue invoice is always free. If we then need to follow up by phone, email or text message, we may charge a $15 administration fee - at most once per invoice.

If an invoice is still unpaid after our final notice, and we haven't agreed a payment arrangement with you, we may refer it to a debt collection agency. We'll write to you at least 14 days before we do, so you have a chance to pay or talk to us first. If we refer it, you'll need to pay the collection costs we reasonably incur.

What we charge you - late fees, the follow-up fee and the collection costs we pass on - will never add up to more than 25% of the overdue amount - for example, no more than $125 in total on a $500 overdue amount. If our costs are higher than that, we absorb the difference. If the matter goes to a court or tribunal, it decides what legal costs are payable.

If you change your mind before we've started any work on your project, we'll refund what you've paid in full. Once we've started - including time spent on consultations, proofs or file preparation - cancelling means we refund what you've paid less the cost of the work already done. See Refunds below for how this works once your project is under way.

Our Service Fees

We believe in transparent service fees, and we publish all our service fees on our website. We aim to ensure all of our pricing is correctly published. If we notice an error before you accept a formal quote, we'll let you know the correct price. Once you've accepted a formal written quote (with a valid quote number, accepted before it expires), we'll honour the prices in it.

Our retouching, restoration and collaborative print services are billed hourly at the rates set out under Our Consulting Rates below - the same rates apply whether it's part of your original quote or additional work you ask for later.

Before we start, we'll give you a written estimate of the time and cost. When we reach 80% of that estimate, we'll let you know where things are at and how much more we expect it to take. We won't go over the estimate without your written approval - a reply by email is fine.

If your project needs more revisions or conversations than we allowed for, we'll give you a revised written estimate. If you'd rather not go further, we'll stop at that point and hand over what we've done, and you'll only pay for the time we've spent, up to the original estimate. Whenever the work comes in under what you've paid, we'll refund the difference.

Handling & Storage of Original Objects

While we take great care of original artworks and objects, some items are delicate enough that damage can occasionally happen even with reasonable care. This doesn't affect any right you have if damage happens because we didn't take reasonable care - see Your Consumer Guarantees. If we damage your original while it's in our care, we'll always let you know straight away and talk through repair, restoration or compensation.

Recording the condition of your originals

When an original arrives - whether you bring it in or send it to us - we record its condition, including photographs, and attach the record to your drop-off receipt.

Albums, boxes and larger collections are recorded as a single lot rather than item by item: we note how many items there are and record the collection's overall condition. If there's anything in it you'd like recorded individually - a particularly valuable or fragile piece, say - point it out when you drop it off and we'll record it on its own. For digitisation projects, our scans also show each page or item as it was when we scanned it.

You can help us - and keep your own record - by photographing your original before it leaves you and emailing us the photos with a short note of anything you've noticed. We'll check them against the item when it arrives and note anything we see differently.

If you drop off in person, you'll see our notes and sign the receipt at the counter - tell us then if you disagree with anything, and we'll note your view on it. If you post or courier your original, we'll email you our arrival record - let us know within 7 days if anything doesn't look right. If you don't reply, that isn't taken as you agreeing.

The arrival record is the starting point we both use for what your original was like when it reached us. It doesn't stop either of us relying on other evidence, such as photos you took beforehand. It protects you as much as it does us: it shows what was already there, and what wasn't.

Extremely delicate objects and artworks, including cracked photographs, pastels and unfixed works, are more susceptible to damage. We add additional handling fees on fragile objects to cover the extra time and care they need - we'll assess this at your initial consultation and include it in your quote up front, so there are no surprises once we've started.

If an original or collection is especially valuable, you can ask us to insure it for its full value while it's in our care. You'll need to give us documented evidence of its value - for example, a recent valuation, an appraisal or a purchase receipt. Our insurer then needs up to 14 days to approve the cover, and it starts once they do. We'll let you know of any cost before you commit. If you'd rather not leave the item with us until cover is approved, you're welcome to hold on to it until then.

Uncollected & Abandoned Objects

Original and printed objects are stored free of charge for two weeks after your project is completed. We have a small studio, so a storage fee of $10 per week may apply after that.

We'll let you know when your project is ready for collection. If it isn't collected, we'll write to you asking you to collect it within 7 days, and let you know of any amounts owing. We may hold your project until any outstanding invoices are paid.

If your project is still uncollected three months after it was due for collection, and we've made genuine attempts to reach you - at least two, using the contact details you've given us, including by phone or in writing - it will be treated as uncollected under the Uncollected Goods Act 1996 (ACT):

• Photographs, documents and personal memorabilia won't be sold. We'll make one final attempt to reach you, then securely destroy them, so your personal information stays private.
• Other objects, including original artwork, will be dealt with as the Act allows. An item worth $500 or more (after the costs of selling it) can only be sold at public auction, and we'll advertise the auction publicly at least 7 days beforehand. An item worth less may be sold or disposed of. If an item is sold, we'll keep the reasonable costs of storing and selling it, and any amount the law lets us recover from the sale for the work we did on it. Anything left over is paid to the ACT Government, as the Act requires, and you can claim it from them for three years after the sale.

Warning: This includes original objects (including artwork, film, photographs and documents).

Any outstanding invoices for work completed, late payment fees, storage fees and the reasonable costs of disposal remain payable.

Handling and Storage of Digital Assets

We use industry best practices to manage the security of our clients' digital files. This includes the use of encrypted laptops, computers and backup services.

We work to protect your intellectual property and will only use your files to complete your project as instructed. See Sharing Your Work in Our Marketing for information about how we might use your work for promotional reasons.

Backups of your digital files

For the first 30 days after your project is completed, your files are ready to download at no charge - this is the best time to grab your copy. After 30 days, we move your files into longer-term backup storage, where we keep them for a minimum of 12 months; a retrieval fee of $80 applies if we need to pull files back out.

We take real care of that backup - encrypted storage, redundant copies - but no backup system is bulletproof, and this doesn't affect any right you have if a file becomes unavailable because we didn't take reasonable care of it. Because this matters so much, please download and keep your own copy of your finished files as soon as your project is complete - think of our backup as a safety net for the first year, not a permanent archive.

Colour, Proofs and Approval

Every screen shows colour a little differently, and no printer can exactly match what you see on your phone or monitor. Paper stocks and ink batches also vary slightly from one run to the next. Restoration can only work with what's left in the original - detail that has faded or been lost completely can't always be brought back, and we'll tell you at the start if we expect that for your project.

If colour matters for your project, ask us for a physical proof on the paper you've chosen - we'll let you know if there's a cost. Once you approve a physical proof, that proof is the colour standard we match your final work to. Without one, we print using our calibrated colour workflow. Small differences from how an image looks on your screen are expected, but if a print is clearly off - not what a reasonable person would expect from the file and paper you chose - we'll put it right.

Approving proofs

When you're happy with a proof, let us know in writing - a reply by email is fine. We produce your final work from the proof you approve.

If you'd like changes after you've approved a proof, we'll bill them at our hourly rates (see Our Consulting Rates), plus any reprinting, and we'll tell you the cost and get your go-ahead before we start. If the problem is an error we made - the work doesn't match your approved proof or what you asked for - we'll fix it free of charge, even after you've approved.

Refunds

If you change your mind before we've started work, see Payments and Deposits above - you're covered. Once work has started, our products and services are highly customised, so we don't offer refunds for a change of mind or for errors in files you provided as "print ready". Outside of those two situations - for example, if we've made a mistake - get in touch and we'll redo the work or refund you. Where the Australian Consumer Law gives you the choice between those, it's yours.

If something's wrong with our work, please tell us within 14 days of delivery or collection, so we can look at it while the details are fresh and put it right quickly. If you tell us later, your rights under the Australian Consumer Law still apply, and we'll consider your claim fairly.

The editing and restoration work we do can be highly personal and subjective for each individual. We use digital and physical proofs to keep our clients in the loop, ensuring we've got confirmation to progress to the next step.

Our goal is always to meet our client's expectations to the best of our ability and within the budget allocated. In instances where additional costs are anticipated, we will always get your written approval before we proceed with the work.

See Your Consumer Guarantees below for how the Australian Consumer Law applies throughout these terms.

Turnaround Times and Delays

The turnaround times we give you - on our website, in a quote or in person - are our honest estimate of when your work will be ready. We work hard to meet them, but they're estimates, not guarantees. If we're running late, we'll tell you as soon as we know and give you a new date. See our turnaround times for typical timeframes.

If a delay is significant - more than 14 days past the date we gave you, or long enough to miss a deadline you told us about when you ordered - you can cancel. You'll only pay for completed work you choose to keep, at the prices in your quote, and we'll refund the rest and return your originals. If you want to know how we worked it out, we'll give you an itemised statement.

Events outside our control

Sometimes things happen that neither of us can reasonably control - fire, flood, storms, pandemics, widespread power or internet outages, or a supplier or carrier shutting down. If one of these delays our work, we'll tell you promptly and keep you updated, and the delay won't be a breach of these terms. We'll keep taking reasonable care of your originals and files while it's going on. The same applies to you if an event like this stops you doing something these terms ask of you, other than paying for work we've already done.

If the delay lasts more than 30 days, either of us can cancel the affected work by telling the other in writing. We'll return your originals and refund what you've paid less the cost of any work we've already completed.

Suppliers We Work With

Some parts of a project may be done by trusted suppliers - for example, specialist printers, framers or conservators. When we use one, we stay responsible to you for their work, just as if we'd done it ourselves. We only share what they need to do the job, and they're bound to keep your work and information confidential. Carriers that deliver parcels are covered by Shipping - Loss or Damage instead.

Sharing Your Work in Our Marketing

We enjoy showing the work we complete for our clients, but we'll only share your work with your permission. That applies even if you've posted it publicly yourself.

When you give us permission in writing - an email is fine, and so is saying yes when one of our forms asks - it covers sharing images of the work we've done for you:

• on our website, including our portfolio, blog and product pages;
• on our social media accounts; and
• in our printed marketing material, such as brochures, flyers, advertisements and displays in our studio or at events.

If you'd rather we only use some of these - say, our website but not social media - just tell us and we'll stick to that. We won't name or tag you unless you ask us to, and we won't sell your work or license it to anyone else.

You can change or withdraw your permission at any time - just let us know by email or in the studio. We won't use your work in anything new from then on. If you ask, we'll take it down from our website and remove posts of it we've already made, and we'll leave it out of any printed material we produce after that. We can't recall printed copies that have already been handed out.

Visiting our Studio

Our team works flexibly, and our studio is staffed for booked client consultations, collections and drop-offs.

This ensures you aren't waiting for service or interrupting other clients when you arrive.

You can book studio appointments online.

Our Consulting Rates

We work hard in our initial consultations to ensure that we quote appropriately for the work you anticipate for us to complete. We estimate project costs based on the average time spent on similar projects; however, your project may be more detailed or specific. That's why we check in with you when we reach 80% of your written estimate, rather than going over it - see Our Service Fees.

We understand that editing, restoring and retouching your photos can be a personal experience, and we aim to get the best possible result within the quoted budget.

We bill retouching, restoration, collaborative printing and consultation time at our hourly rates, which range from $160-$280/hr depending on who's doing the work and its complexity - general consultation and coordination sits at the lower end, senior retouching or colour work at the higher end. We'll always tell you the rate that applies to your project, and get your written approval for any additional costs, before progressing your work.

You can help us keep your project within budget by providing your requirements concisely and in writing, helping reduce the time we spend collaborating on your project.

Shipping - Loss or Damage

Fine Art Prints: We pack all our fine art prints with care. On the rare occasion that your prints are damaged during shipping, we'll replace them free of charge or refund you - your choice - once we have proof the damaged print has been destroyed. Please let us know within 7 days of delivery, so we can lodge a claim with the carrier in time. If you tell us later, your rights under the Australian Consumer Law still apply, and we'll consider your claim fairly.

Please provide the following photographs so we can process your replacement or refund:

1. A Photo of the damaged parcel
2. A photo of the damaged print as it's come out of the parcel
3. Once we've lodged any claim with the carrier, a photo of the damaged print torn in quarters - this just stops the same print being used for a second claim.

Original Objects: We pack original objects carefully to reduce the risk of damage in transit. Whether your original objects are posted or couriered, once they're with the carrier they're out of our care, and you take on the risk that they're lost or damaged in transit - our transit insurance doesn't cover original artworks or precious documents. This doesn't affect any right you have if loss or damage happens because we didn't pack or handle your object with reasonable care before it left us.

If you'd like your original objects fully insured in transit, you can book your own courier - such as IAS Fine Art Logistics - to collect them from us, and arrange cover for their full value with them.

Shipping - Returned Parcels

Australia Post charges a fee for returned parcels (currently $14.50). If your parcel is returned due to it not being collected, or due to an incorrect address, this fee will be passed on to you. Re-delivery is charged at current postage rates for the service you choose (Standard or Express).

We're humans too and if we have made a mistake on our end, we will cover the cost of the return fee and re-delivery.

Trade Credit Accounts

We ask most clients to pay upfront, and that's how we work by default. We only open a trade credit account in special circumstances - usually for an established business or government agency with regular or large ongoing work, where paying for each job upfront isn't practical. Opening an account is at our discretion, and we consider each request individually. Credit is for business purposes only - we don't offer it to individuals for personal use.

Trade pricing and trade credit are separate: you can have trade pricing with us without a credit account.

Disputes About Ownership

Sometimes more than one person claims to own an object, a file, or the rights in a work we're holding - family collections, deceased estates, separations, and businesses that change hands. We're an imaging and framing studio, not a court, and we can't decide who is right.

What you're telling us

When you give us an object or a file, or ask us to make something, you're telling us that:

• you own it, or you have the owner's permission for us to do the work;
• you're the copyright owner, you have the copyright owner's permission, or you're relying on a provision of the Copyright Act that allows the work to be done;
• as far as you know, nobody else has a competing claim to it; and
• you have the authority to give us instructions about it and to collect it.

You're in the best position to know where your items came from and who has rights in them, so please check before you bring them to us. We rely on what you tell us and can't verify it ourselves, which is why the indemnity below applies if what you told us is shown to be wrong - that is, a court or tribunal upholds a claim against it, the claim is settled in the way the indemnity describes, or you agree it was wrong.

If that changes while we're holding your project - an estate is contested, a co-owner objects, a partnership separates - please tell us straight away.

If someone else claims your project

If someone other than you claims an object, file or finished work - in writing, or in a way we reasonably consider genuine - we'll keep it safe, stay out of the dispute, and won't investigate who's right, take a side or pass messages between you - though with your agreement, we can give the other person your contact details so you can deal with each other directly. Holding it isn't a breach of these terms or any timeframe we've quoted. We may also pause work on your project, or decline to start.

We'll only release it when:

• everyone claiming it tells us in writing who should receive it; or
• a court or tribunal directs us.

There's no other way for it to go to a claimant, however convincing their evidence looks - we're not positioned to judge between you. If nobody reaches an agreement and nobody gets an order, your project goes back to the person who gave it to us, as set out under How this ends. We may ask a claimant for evidence, including a statutory declaration, before acting on an agreement, and hold on until we get it.

We'll let you know as soon as we reasonably can if we receive a claim like this, unless the law prevents us from doing so.

Your Indemnity

In short: if someone else claims rights over what you've asked us to work on, or claims our work infringes their copyright, and it turns out they're right, you cover what it costs us - including any amount we have to pay the other person, our reasonable legal costs, and defending a claim if it comes to that. The dispute is really between you and them, so wherever we can we'll step back and let you deal with them directly, and if you'd rather deal with a claim yourself, you can take it over - as long as the person making it releases us. This doesn't apply if the problem was caused by our own mistake, or if your claim turns out to be the right one. Here's exactly what that covers:

You indemnify us against losses, damages, liabilities, claims, costs and expenses we incur because a representation you made to us under Copyright or Disputes About Ownership turns out to be wrong - for example, a genuine third party successfully establishes a competing copyright or ownership claim.

This indemnity includes the legal costs and disbursements we reasonably incur - what our lawyers reasonably bill us, which can be more than a court would normally award. It covers advice we take about what to do with your project, an application to a court for directions, and defending a claim if one is brought against us. It also covers the time we reasonably spend dealing with the claim, charged at $240/hr.

It doesn't cover loss caused by our own negligence or our own breach of these terms, and it doesn't apply just because someone makes an unproven claim against us - it applies once a court or tribunal upholds a claim like that, it's settled in the way described below, or you agree in writing that your representation was wrong. It continues to apply after your project is finished, for as long as a claim like that can still be made against us.

How we handle a claim

If we receive a claim this indemnity could cover, we'll tell you promptly and pass on the details we have. Wherever we can, we'll ask the person making the claim to take it up with you directly, and, if you agree, give them your contact details.

If the claim is made against us, you can take it over and deal with it yourself, at your own cost and with your own lawyers - but only if the person making the claim agrees in writing to release us from it and deal with you instead. If they won't release us, the claim stays with us. You can't admit fault for us, or agree to any settlement that doesn't fully release us, without our written agreement.

Once you've taken a claim over and we've been released, it's between you and the person making it: you pay your own costs and whatever you're ordered or agree to pay. This indemnity still covers our reasonable costs up to our release, but only if the claim is later upheld against you, you settle it, or you agree your representation was wrong.

If the claim stays with us and it can be settled, we'll send you the proposed settlement and our reasons for it, and we'll only propose one we reasonably consider fair and, where the claim is insured, our insurer has approved. You can agree to it, or arrange with the person making the claim to take it over and release us, as described above.

We'll send the proposed settlement by email, to the address you've given us. If, within 14 days of our first request, you haven't agreed to it, or taken the claim over with a written release of us, we may settle it on the proposed terms as though you'd agreed. If you think a settlement we made was unreasonable, you can challenge the amount - this indemnity only covers a reasonable settlement. Please keep your email address up to date with us, and check your spam folder, so our messages reach you.

We hold the benefit of this indemnity for ourselves, and on trust for our directors, employees and contractors. If our insurer pays a claim, it can enforce this indemnity in our place, on the same terms. See Your Consumer Guarantees below for how this fits with the Australian Consumer Law.

Limitation of Liability

This section works together with Your Consumer Guarantees below. Nothing in it takes away a right you have under the Australian Consumer Law.

Your originals

We don't cap our liability for your originals. If one is lost or damaged because we didn't take reasonable care of it, we're responsible for its value, as the law provides. For anything especially valuable, we recommend insuring it for its full value while it's with us.

Business clients

If you're acquiring our work for a business, rather than for personal, domestic or household use:

• neither of us is liable to the other for indirect or consequential loss, such as lost profits, lost revenue, lost opportunities or damage to reputation - this doesn't affect what you owe us for work we've done, or Your Indemnity; and
• our total liability to you for a project is capped at the fees paid or payable for that project. This cap doesn't apply to loss of or damage to your originals.

Neither limit applies to loss caused by our negligence, wilful misconduct or fraud, or to any right you have under the Australian Consumer Law that can't be limited.

Remedies for services

Where the Australian Consumer Law allows it - for services that aren't of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use - if we fail to meet a consumer guarantee, our liability is limited to supplying the services again, or paying you the cost of having them supplied again. This doesn't apply where it wouldn't be fair or reasonable for us to rely on it.

Your Consumer Guarantees

Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies any right or remedy you have under the Australian Consumer Law - including the guarantee that we provide our services with due care and skill. Where we've described something above as not guaranteed, or as a risk you take on, that's about things outside our control, like a very fragile original or a carrier losing a parcel in transit - it's never about excusing us from taking reasonable care in the first place.

If Lucent Imaging ever closes, changes hands, or stops trading, we'll do our best to return any of your original objects still in our care, and give you a window to download your files, before that happens. If we're not able to arrange that ourselves, the standard legal process for winding up a business applies, and any administrator or new owner would need to deal with client property in line with the law.

Governing Law and Disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the Australian Capital Territory. You and we submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the ACT and the courts that hear appeals from them.

If something goes wrong, please talk to us first. Most things are sorted out with a phone call or an email, and we would much rather fix a problem than argue about one. If we can't work it out between us, either of us is free to take the matter further, and nothing here stops you from contacting Access Canberra or the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

Updates to our Terms & Conditions

We update these terms from time to time, and the current version is always on our website. Changes apply to new projects from the date we publish them. If we make a change that materially affects a project you've already started with us, the terms that applied when you started that project keep applying to it, unless we agree otherwise with you.

Last updated: 30 September 2026