Privacy Policy

Last updated: 11 August 2026

Folkship is a photography studio run by Danny and Annie in Cornwall. This privacy policy explains what personal information we collect, why we use it, who we may share it with and the choices you have.

Who is responsible for your information?

Folkship is the data controller for the personal information described in this policy.

If you have a question about your information or would like to exercise one of your rights, please contact us through our enquiry page or by WhatsApp or telephone on 07946 613723.

Information we collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

• your name, email address, telephone number and postal address;
• details you provide in an enquiry, consultation, questionnaire or conversation, including information about your family, pregnancy, baby, business, event or photography requirements;
• booking, contract, invoice and payment information;
• photographs and video created during a session, including images of children where a parent or guardian has booked or agreed to the photography;
• communications with us by email, telephone, WhatsApp, social media or our website;
• information about how you use our website, such as device, browser, approximate location, pages viewed and referral source; and
• any permissions you give us about using photographs in our portfolio, website, journal, social media or marketing.

Please avoid sending us sensitive information that we do not need. If you choose to share health or pregnancy-related information so that we can plan a safe and comfortable session, we will use it only for that purpose and handle it with particular care.

How we use your information

We use personal information to:

• respond to enquiries and recommend the right Folkship experience;
• plan, photograph and deliver your session;
• provide online galleries, prints and other agreed products;
• manage bookings, contracts, payments, accounts and tax records;
• keep in touch before and after a session and provide customer care;
• improve our website, services and marketing;
• protect our website, systems, clients and business from misuse or fraud; and
• share photographs publicly when we have the appropriate permission.

Our lawful bases

UK data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for using personal information. We generally rely on:

• Contract: where processing is necessary to take steps at your request before a booking or to provide the service you have booked.
• Legal obligation: where we must keep financial, tax or other records required by law.
• Legitimate interests: where it is reasonably necessary to run, protect and improve Folkship, respond to clients and maintain appropriate business records, provided your rights do not override those interests.
• Consent: where you have made a genuine choice, particularly for optional marketing communications, non-essential cookies and public use of identifiable photographs where consent is appropriate. You may withdraw consent at any time.

Photographs, children and portfolio use

Creating, editing and delivering photographs is central to our contract with clients. We may keep a secure working archive and backups so that we can deliver your gallery, fulfil product orders and assist if files are accidentally lost.

We do not assume that booking a session gives us permission to publish your photographs. We will only use identifiable client photographs on our website, journal, social media, portfolio, awards, exhibitions or other promotional material where we have an appropriate lawful basis and the permissions agreed with you. You can ask us to stop future use at any time, although we may not be able to retrieve material already printed or shared by third parties.

Where children appear in photographs, permissions must be given by a person with parental responsibility or another person authorised to act for them. As children grow older, we will also take their views into account where appropriate.

Who we share information with

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only where necessary with trusted service providers that help us run Folkship, such as:

• website hosting, website forms, security and analytics providers;
• email, telephone, WhatsApp and business communication services;
• online gallery, cloud storage, backup, image-production, printing and framing suppliers;
• payment, bookkeeping and accounting providers; and
• professional advisers, regulators, law enforcement or other authorities where required.

These providers may process information only for the relevant service and must protect it appropriately. Some services, including Google, Meta/Instagram and WhatsApp, operate under their own privacy policies when you interact with them directly.

International transfers

Some of our technology providers may store or process information outside the United Kingdom. Where this happens, we use providers that put recognised safeguards in place, such as an adequacy decision, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or approved contractual protections.

How long we keep information

We keep information only for as long as it is reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected, including:

• unsuccessful or incomplete enquiries: normally up to two years after our last meaningful contact;
• contracts, invoices and core business records: normally up to six years after the client relationship ends, or longer where the law requires;
• working photographs, delivered galleries and backups: for as long as needed to provide the service, fulfil orders, manage reasonable client requests and maintain a secure archive; and
• marketing information: until you unsubscribe, withdraw consent or we decide it is no longer useful.

We may keep limited information for longer where needed to establish, exercise or defend legal claims. When information is no longer needed, we delete it or anonymise it.

Website cookies and analytics

Our website uses essential technologies needed for security and operation. It may also use analytics and advertising technologies, including services provided by Google and Cloudflare, to help us understand visits, measure marketing and improve the site.

Where the law requires consent for non-essential cookies, you can choose whether to accept them and can withdraw that choice. You can also restrict or delete cookies through your browser settings, although parts of the website may not work as expected.

Keeping information safe

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information, including access controls, secure services, backups and limiting access to people who need it. No online system can be guaranteed completely secure, but we review the services and practices we use.

Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:

• ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
• ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
• ask us to delete information;
• ask us to restrict how information is used;
• object to processing based on legitimate interests or to direct marketing;
• receive certain information in a portable format;
• withdraw consent at any time; and
• complain about how we handle your information.

These rights are not absolute and may depend on the reason we hold the information. We may need to confirm your identity before responding.

Complaints

Please contact us first so that we can try to resolve any concern. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK data protection regulator, through ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or by calling 0303 123 1113.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when our services, suppliers or legal responsibilities change. The latest version will always appear on this page with the date it was last updated.