Privacy & Cookies Policy
Last updated: 19 October 2026
In short:
- I only collect what you send me through the contact form or by email, plus basic, anonymous statistics about how the website is used.
- I use your details only to reply to you and, if you ask, to carry out work for you. I never sell them or use them for advertising.
- You can ask to see, correct or delete your information at any time.
- Who I am
- What I collect
- How and why I use it
- How long I keep it
- Who I share it with
- Storage outside the UK
- Cookies and analytics
- People in my photographs
- Your rights
- Complaints
- Security
- Changes to this policy
Who I am
This website, seanaidan.com, is run by Sean Aidan, a freelance photographer based in the UK. For the purposes of UK data protection law (the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations), I am the controller of the personal information described here, which means I decide how it is used and am responsible for looking after it.
You can contact me about anything in this policy through my contact page.
What I collect
Information you give me. When you use the contact form, email me or phone me, I receive the details you choose to share. Through the form that is:
- your name;
- your email address and/or phone number;
- your message, and anything you include in it;
- whether you have ticked the box asking me not to keep your details after I reply.
Information collected automatically. When you visit the website:
- my web host's servers record standard technical information such as your IP address, browser type, the pages requested and the date and time. This is used to run the site and keep it secure;
- if you have not turned analytics off, Google Analytics collects information about how the site is used, such as the pages you view, roughly where you are (to town or city level), the device and browser you use, and how you arrived at the site. See Cookies and analytics.
I do not knowingly collect information from children, and I do not ask for any sensitive (“special category”) information. Please don’t include such information in a message unless it is needed.
How and why I use it
The law requires me to have a “lawful basis” for each use of your information:
| What I use it for | Lawful basis |
|---|---|
| Replying to your enquiry and discussing work you may want | Legitimate interests (responding to people who contact me), or steps before a contract if you are asking about a commission or prints |
| Carrying out a commission or supplying prints or images you have ordered, including invoicing | Contract |
| Keeping business and tax records | Legal obligation |
| Understanding how the website is used so I can improve it | Legitimate interests; the analytics cookies themselves are covered by the statistical purposes rules described under Cookies and analytics |
| Keeping the website secure and stopping spam (including the “tap the truck” check on the contact form) | Legitimate interests |
I do not send marketing emails or newsletters, and I do not use your information for advertising or automated decision-making.
How long I keep it
- If you ticked “do not keep my details” on the contact form, I delete your message and contact details once I have answered your enquiry.
- Other enquiries that do not lead to work are kept for up to 2 years in case you get back in touch, then deleted.
- Records of paid work (such as invoices) are kept for 6 years from the end of the tax year they relate to, as HMRC requires.
- Google Analytics data is kept for 2 months and then deleted automatically by Google.
- Web server logs are kept by my web host for a short period for security purposes.
Who I share it with
I never sell your information. I only share it with service providers who help me run the website and my business, and only as far as they need it:
- my website hosting provider, [name of web host], which stores the website and processes contact form submissions;
- my email provider, [name of email provider], which delivers and stores my email;
- Google, which provides Google Analytics and the jQuery code library used by the gallery pages;
- my accountant and HMRC, for records of paid work.
I may also disclose information if the law requires it, for example to comply with a court order.
Storage outside the UK
Some of these providers, including Google, may process information outside the UK, for example in the United States. Where that happens, the transfer is protected in a way UK law recognises, such as the UK–US “data bridge” for certified US companies, or the UK International Data Transfer Addendum to standard contractual clauses.
Cookies and analytics
Cookies are small files a website stores in your browser. Similar technologies, such as your browser’s “local storage”, work in the same way and are covered here too. This website uses very few:
| Name | Set by | Purpose | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga, _ga_6TN2063D0K |
Google Analytics | Counts visits and shows which pages are used, so I can improve the site | Up to 2 years |
seanaidan_cookie_accepted (local storage) |
This website | Remembers that you have dismissed the cookie notice, so it isn’t shown on every page | Until you clear your browser data |
Analytics. UK law allows websites to use cookies for statistical purposes without asking for consent first, as long as the information is used only to improve the website, the analytics provider does not use it for its own purposes, you are told about it clearly, and you can easily opt out. I have set up Google Analytics on that basis: Google’s advertising features and data sharing are switched off, and the data is used only to see how the site is used.
Turning analytics off. You can opt out at any time by choosing “No analytics” on the cookie notice, by installing Google’s opt-out browser add-on, or by blocking cookies in your browser settings. The site works normally without analytics.
Other websites. Links to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Shutterstock and other sites take you to services with their own privacy and cookie policies. No cookies from those services are set until you visit them.
People in my photographs
Much of my work is press and documentary photography of news, public events and protests. Photographs taken for journalism are covered by a specific exemption in UK data protection law (the “special purposes” exemption for journalism, academic, artistic and literary purposes), which means some of the rights below may not apply to them.
That said, if you appear in one of my photographs on this website and have a concern about it, please contact me. I will look at every request individually and take it seriously.
Your rights
Under UK data protection law you have the right to:
- access the personal information I hold about you and receive a copy;
- ask me to correct information that is wrong or incomplete;
- ask me to delete your information;
- ask me to restrict how I use it;
- object to my using it on the basis of legitimate interests;
- receive information you gave me in a portable format (data portability), where this applies.
To use any of these rights, contact me through the contact page. There is no charge. I may need to confirm who you are, and I will reply within one month (this can be extended by up to two more months for complex requests, in which case I will tell you why).
Complaints
If you are unhappy with how I have handled your personal information, please tell me first through the contact page or by email. I will acknowledge your complaint within 30 days, look into it promptly, keep you updated and let you know the outcome.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or on 0303 123 1113.
Security
The website uses an encrypted (HTTPS) connection, and the contact form is protected against spam. I keep personal information on password-protected devices and accounts and only for as long as described above. No website can be completely secure, but I take reasonable steps to protect the information you send me.
Changes to this policy
I will update this page if the way I use personal information changes, for example when online print sales launch. The date at the top shows when it was last updated.