DNP, Alaska. Denali and float plane.
Another situation similar to model releases are property releases. And many of the same rules apply. Take a look at this image of a float plane in front of Denali. It is a classic Alaska scene, and has a lot of publishing potential for many clients. Beautiful day, iconic mountain and lots of negative space for text. But the airplane presents a question. This is a private air service, and they own the plane. While Denali could be used for any use including advertising, the image with the plane could not unless I had a property release. Luckily in this case this was an assignment for a tourism bureau and the air service was happy to get exposure in anyway including advertising uses. If the shot was going to be used for editorial (magazines, newspapers, books…) then these uses wouldn’t require a release.
Some images may contain trademarked logos, which also require a release. The bottom line is don’t use an image in any form of advertising unless you have both the subjects and property released. I once had a terrific mountain bike image that an advertiser wanted to use. But there was a farm house in the image. I contacted the owner, and he didn’t want any publicity and would not sign a release. Fair enough, I was glad I asked before I licensed the image.