exif.nz site rules

exif.nz is a community for photographers in New Zealand and around the world. It exists to share photographs, talk about them, exchange experience and get to know each other's work. These rules keep the place friendly, lawful and about photography. By registering, posting or using the site's features you confirm that you have read them and agree to follow them.

Last updated: 3 November 2026.

1. The basics

  1. Be respectful. Treat other members kindly whatever their experience, equipment, background or opinions.
  2. Keep it about photography. The site is not a place for advertising, political campaigns, recruitment or arguments unrelated to photography.
  3. The administrators and moderators look after the site. You are asked to follow their reasonable requests.

2. Your account

  1. You must be at least 16 years old to register. Sections and contests marked 18+ are for adults only.
  2. Give a working email address. One person, one account: extra accounts used to vote for yourself, to evade a restriction or to mislead others are not allowed.
  3. Keep your password private. You are responsible for what is done from your account.
  4. Do not pretend to be another person, a member of the site team or an organisation you do not represent.

3. Your photos

  1. Post only photographs you have the right to post. You keep the copyright in your work; posting it on exif.nz does not transfer ownership to the site or to other members.
  2. By posting a photograph you allow exif.nz to display it on the site (including thumbnails, feeds, sections, contests and the photo of the day) for as long as you leave it there. You can delete your own photographs at any time.
  3. Editing, retouching, compositing and creative processing are welcome, as long as the photo is placed in a fitting section and the description is honest about what it is.
  4. If an image was generated or substantially changed by AI, say so when you upload it. The site may detect AI-generated images and label them. Presenting generated images as straight photographs is not allowed.
  5. Choose the section that fits best and add accurate titles, descriptions and tags. Do not use them to get around these rules.
  6. When people are recognisable in your photograph, think about their privacy and dignity. Be particularly careful with children, and do not post images that show someone in a private moment or in a way that could harm them. Remove a photo of a person promptly if they reasonably ask.
  7. Credit the other people involved in a joint work (for example the model, retoucher or co-photographer) where that is appropriate.

4. Sensitive content (18+)

  1. Artistic boudoir and fine art nude photography may only be posted in the section made for it, and it is shown behind an 18+ warning. Everyone pictured must be an adult (18 or over) who has agreed to the photograph being published.
  2. Pornographic or sexually explicit material is not allowed anywhere on the site, including material that is explicit in context or in its description. The administrators decide where the line is.
  3. Photographs showing real violence, cruelty or injury without a clear photographic or documentary purpose may be hidden behind a warning or removed.
  4. Material that sexualises or exploits children is illegal. It will be removed immediately, the account blocked and the matter reported to the authorities.

5. Not allowed

  1. Anything unlawful in New Zealand, including objectionable publications, material that infringes copyright, and content that breaches the privacy of others.
  2. Harassment, threats, bullying, hate speech and discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability or similar grounds. Abusive or demeaning language in titles, descriptions, comments, messages or forum posts.
  3. Posting someone else's photographs as your own, or removing or hiding the author's credit.
  4. Publishing other people's private information (addresses, phone numbers, contact details) without their consent.
  5. Spam, advertising, links to unrelated sites and mass unsolicited messages. A link to your own portfolio or website in your profile is fine.
  6. Attempts to harm the site or its members: malicious files, scraping at a scale that affects the service, or trying to get around security measures.

6. Comments, ratings and the forum

  1. Honest criticism is welcome. Talk about the photograph (composition, light, processing, idea), not about the person.
  2. Vote and rate on your own judgement. Vote trading, organised voting, voting from several accounts and asking others to vote for you are not allowed. The site may discount or remove votes it considers manipulated.
  3. You can block members you do not want to hear from. Do not work around a block or keep contacting someone who has asked you to stop.
  4. Private messages are for personal communication. Do not use them for spam or pressure.

7. Contests and the photo of the day

  1. Contests have their own rules, published on the contest page. They add to these site rules and take priority only for that contest.
  2. Photo of the day and section awards are decided by the ratings and thresholds the site publishes. The administrators may exclude photographs or votes that break the rules.

8. What the administrators and moderators may do

  1. Moderators cannot read every post in advance. Content is normally checked after it is published, and members can report problems with the report links on the site or through the contact form.
  2. The team may reject, hide, move, edit or delete photographs, titles, descriptions, comments, messages and forum posts, and may limit or suspend accounts, when this is needed to enforce the rules, to follow the law or to look after the site and its members.
  3. Where practical we will tell you what was done and why. We may act without notice in serious cases. If you think a decision was wrong, write to us through the contact form and we will look at it again.
  4. Removed material and restricted features must not be restored or worked around by other means.

9. Copyright and complaints

  1. If you believe your work or your rights have been infringed on exif.nz, use the contact form and give the address of the page, what was infringed and how to reach you. We may hide the material while we check.
  2. Members are responsible for what they post. Posting something you do not have the right to post may lead to its removal and to restrictions on your account.

10. Leaving the site

  1. You can delete your photographs at any time and you can ask for your account to be deleted using the function in your profile settings. Some short grace period for changing your mind may apply.
  2. Deleting content does not always remove every technical copy at once: backups and records that must be kept for security or by law may remain for a limited time.

11. Your information

What we collect and how we use it is described in the Terms of Registration you accepted when creating your account. In short: we use your details to run the site, we do not sell them, and you may ask to see, correct or delete your information (see the contact form).

12. Changes to these rules

We may update these rules from time to time. The current version is always on this page, and significant changes will be announced on the site. Continuing to use exif.nz after a change means you accept the updated rules. If any part of the rules turns out to be unenforceable, the rest still applies. These rules are written in plain language to explain how the site works and are not legal advice.

Thank you for being part of exif.nz and for being kind to other photographers.