Photography and Filming Policy

Last updated: 4 October 2026. Version 1.0.

This policy explains when IRL Ventures Ltd (trading as IRL Oxford, Date IRL and IRL UNI) takes photos and video at events, how we use them, and how you can say no or ask us to take something down. It sits alongside our Privacy Policy, Event Terms and Code of Conduct.

1. The short version and our notices

1.1 In brief

We photograph and film most events, mainly wide shots of the crowd and atmosphere, to show what IRL is like.
You can opt out: wear a red lanyard from the entrance, tell the photographer, or tell any IRL team member.
Close-ups: our photographers ask before taking or using a photo where you're the main focus, where that's practical.
Adverts and sponsors: we ask your permission before making you the focus of a paid advert, poster, or sponsor's material.
Date IRL and LGBTQ+ events: we only publish identifiable images with your explicit consent, and we never photograph dating rounds.
Under-18s: we don't publish identifiable images without a parent or guardian's consent.
Changed your mind? Ask us to remove any image at any time, and we will.
We never use your image to train AI models, or to create fake or altered images of you.

1.2 How we tell you

We tell you that photos and video will be taken:

on the Event page where you book;
in your booking confirmation;
on signs at the entrance and around the Venue; and
where practical, in a short announcement at the start of larger events.

If an Event will have no photography, or extra filming such as a promotional shoot, the Event page will say so.

1.3 Wording to use

Event page and confirmation:

Photos and video will be taken at this event and may appear on IRL's website, social media and promotional materials. Don't want to be featured? Pick up a red lanyard at the door or tell our photographer. You can ask us to remove any image at any time: team@irloxford.co.uk. More in our Photography and Filming Policy.

Entrance sign:

Photos and filming in progress. IRL is taking photos and video tonight for our website and social media. Don't want to be in them? Grab a red lanyard here, or tell our photographer or any IRL team member. Want something taken down later? Message us: team@irloxford.co.uk or WhatsApp 07376 715840.

Date IRL Event page:

We take a small number of wide atmosphere shots before and after the dating rounds, never during them. We won't publish any photo or video where you can be identified unless you've given your explicit consent, which you can choose when you book or on the night.

2. How we take photos and video

Photos and video of people who can be identified are personal data. We take three kinds, and each has its own rules.

Kind of image	What it is	Our basis	What we do
Crowd and atmosphere	Wide shots of the room, dance floor, stalls, crowds or groups, where no one is singled out	Legitimate interests	Notices before and at the Event; opt-out on the night; removal on request
Featured	A photo or clip where one or a few people are clearly the main subject	Legitimate interests for our own channels, after asking where practical; consent for adverts and sponsor material	Photographer asks before taking or using it where practical; never used if you say no
Posed	A photo you deliberately pose for, such as a group photo or photo booth	Your choice to take part; consent for adverts and sponsor material	You choose whether to take part

2.1 Opting out on the night

Red lanyards: we offer red opt-out lanyards at the entrance. Our photographers won't deliberately photograph anyone wearing one, and if someone wearing one appears in a shot by accident, we won't publish it or we'll blur or crop them out.
Tell us: tell the photographer or any IRL team member at any time.
Move away: if a photographer is about to take a crowd shot, you can step out of frame. Our photographers will give people nearby a moment to do so.

2.2 Date IRL and LGBTQ+ events

A recognisable photo of someone at a singles event, or at an LGBTQ+ event, can reveal their sexual orientation, that they're single, or that they're dating. That information deserves extra care. At these events:

no photography or filming during dating rounds or matching, by us or by attendees;
we take only a small number of wide shots before or after, framed so that people can't be identified, unless they have given explicit consent;
we only publish an image in which someone can be identified if that person has given explicit consent, either when booking or on the night, and we keep a record of it;
we never caption, tag or name anyone in Date IRL content without their consent; and
if anyone asks us to remove an image from one of these events, we do it as a priority.

2.3 Under-18s

At daytime or community events that under-18s attend:

we don't photograph under-18s as the main subject without asking the parent or guardian with them;
we don't publish an identifiable image of an under-18 without consent from a parent or guardian;
we never publish an under-18's name with their image; and
any photographer working at these events will have the right DBS check.

2.4 Places and moments we never photograph

toilets, changing areas, cloakroom queues where people are changing, first aid and welfare spaces;
anyone who is visibly drunk, injured, unwell, distressed, or in a compromising position;
anyone being removed by security or dealt with by police or medics;
private conversations where people have obviously stepped away from the crowd; and
anything that could reveal someone's health, religion or other special category information, unless they've given explicit consent.

2.5 Private and corporate events

At private and corporate events we plan or run for a client, we only take photos and video if the client asks us to, and the client decides how its guests are told and how images are used. We follow this policy unless the client's own policy is stricter.

3. How we use images

3.1 Uses that don't need your separate permission

Unless you've opted out, or the image is from an Date IRL, LGBTQ+ or under-18 setting (see section 2), we may use crowd, atmosphere and featured images in our own organic content:

our websites;
our Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts, our WhatsApp channel and community, and our Meetup group;
event recap posts, highlight reels and galleries;
our emails and newsletters;
our partnership and sponsorship pitch materials, shown to businesses we're working with; and
press releases and articles about IRL.

3.2 Uses that need your permission

We ask your permission, in writing (an email or message is fine), before we:

make you the main subject of a paid advert, boosted post, poster, flyer, billboard or printed promotion;
use your image in a sponsor's or partner's own material, or in a way that suggests you endorse a product, brand or venue;
use your name, quote or social handle with your image, beyond tagging you where you've tagged us first; or
publish any identifiable image from an Date IRL, LGBTQ+ or under-18 setting.

The UK advertising code (the CAP Code, rule 6.1) urges advertisers to get written permission before featuring members of the public in adverts, and we follow it. A crowd scene where no one is singled out may be used in an advert without individual permission.

3.3 How we treat images

Editing: we may crop, colour-correct and lightly retouch images. We won't alter an image in a way that misrepresents you, changes your appearance materially, or puts you in a false or embarrassing light.
Captions: we don't name people without their permission. We don't make claims about anyone in a caption, such as their relationship status, unless they've agreed.
No AI misuse: we will never use your image to train AI models, create synthetic or deepfake images, or generate content that depicts you doing or saying something you didn't.
Location: we tag the venue, not individuals' locations.

3.4 Venues, partners and reposts

Venues, performers and partners sometimes repost our content. We give them images on the condition that they follow this policy and remove any image we ask them to. Once content is public, other people can share or save it in ways we can't control, which is why we take extra care at sensitive events.

3.5 Who owns the images

IRL owns, or has a licence to use, the photos and video taken by our team and photographers at our events. This doesn't affect your data protection rights over images of you.

4. Asking us to remove an image, and your rights

4.1 How to ask

Send us the link or a screenshot of the image, and tell us whether you want it removed, cropped or blurred:

email team@irloxford.co.uk with the subject "Photo removal";
WhatsApp 07376 715840; or
message any of our social media accounts.

You don't need to give a reason.

4.2 What we do

Situation	What we'll do	How fast
Image from an Date IRL, LGBTQ+ or under-18 setting, or anything you say puts you at risk	Remove it from our channels	Within 24 hours, faster where we can
Any other image on our websites or social media	Remove, crop or blur it, as you prefer	Without undue delay, and within one month at the latest
Image in a paid advert or sponsor's material	Stop running it and ask the partner to remove it	Without undue delay, and within one month at the latest
Image already printed (for example, a flyer)	Stop using it and won't reprint it	We can't recall copies already handed out
Image reposted by a venue or partner	Ask them to remove it, and follow up	We'll tell you when we've asked
Image posted by another attendee	We can't remove it ourselves, but we'll help you report it to the platform, and we may act under our Code of Conduct	—

We'll also add a note so we don't use other images of you from the same event, and, if you ask, we'll delete unpublished images of you from that event too.

4.3 Your data protection rights

Because identifiable images are personal data, you also have the rights set out in section 8 of our Privacy Policy, including:

the right to object to our use of images based on legitimate interests. We'll stop unless we have compelling reasons, which for event photos we almost never will;
the right to withdraw consent where you gave it, such as for an advert. Withdrawing doesn't affect use before you withdrew, and we can't recall printed material already distributed, but we won't use the image again;
the right to erasure and to access images we hold of you; and
the right to complain to us, and then to the ICO.

4.4 If something more serious has happened

If an image of you has been taken or shared in a way that is intimate, sexual, or without consent in a private setting, tell us straight away. Taking or sharing intimate images without consent is a criminal offence. We'll help you report it to the police and the platform, and we'll act under our Code of Conduct.

5. Photographers we hire, and attendees filming

5.1 Photographers and videographers working for IRL

Everyone we hire to photograph or film our events must sign our photography agreement before they start. It requires them to:

follow this policy in full, including red opt-out lanyards, Date IRL rules, under-18 rules and no-photo zones;
assign copyright to IRL, or grant us an exclusive, perpetual, worldwide licence, in writing. Under UK copyright law the photographer owns the copyright in commissioned photos unless they assign it in a signed document, so this must be in writing;
waive their moral rights in writing, so we can crop and edit images and publish without a credit on every post (we'll credit them where practical);
handle images as our processor: use them only to deliver the work to us, keep them on encrypted, password-protected devices, transfer them through a secure method we approve, and delete their copies within 7 days of delivery;
not use images for their own portfolio, social media or other clients without our written permission. We will never give permission for images from Date IRL, LGBTQ+ or under-18 settings, or for images of anyone who has opted out;
tell us immediately about any loss or leak of images;
behave professionally, ask before close-ups where practical, respect anyone who says no, and wear identification so attendees know who they are; and
hold a valid DBS check if the event may include under-18s, and suitable insurance.

The full terms are in the Data Sharing and Processing terms.

5.2 Attendees taking photos and video

You're welcome to take photos and video for your own memories and to share on your personal social media, as long as you:

don't photograph or film dating rounds or matching at Date IRL events;
don't photograph or film anyone who has asked you not to, or who is wearing a red lanyard, as the main subject;
don't photograph or film in no-photo zones (toilets, changing areas, first aid and welfare spaces);
never take or share intimate or sexual images of anyone without their consent, which is a criminal offence;
don't post content that mocks, harasses or exposes anyone, or reveals someone's sexual orientation, health or other private information; and
remove content if the person in it asks you to.

5.3 Content creators, press and livestreaming

If you want to film, photograph or livestream at an event for anything beyond personal use, including as a content creator, influencer, journalist, or for a business, you need our permission in advance. We may ask you to agree written terms with us and follow this policy. Professional camera equipment, lighting rigs, gimbals and drones are not allowed without permission.

5.4 If you break these rules

We may ask you to delete content, stop filming, or leave the event without a refund, and we may act under our Code of Conduct. Where content breaks the law, we'll help the person affected report it.