Lesson 35: Page 28
When you need to find a photographer, do you prefer to look at portfolios or websites? “It is incredibly important for a working photographer today to have a well designed,…
Lesson 35: Page 27
Is there a self promotion or type of self promotion from a photographer that really jumped out at you? “Yes, I once received a metal first aid kit like you…
Lesson 35: Page 26
Don’t call to early and don’t call to late. You don’t want to catch them before they have their coat off nor when they are putting it back on at…
Lesson 35: Page 25
A self promotional piece landing on a photo buyer’s desk today will have an impression of some sort, especially if it is only one of a few that arrived today….
Lesson 36: Page 23
Social Marketing: There is no doubt about the importance of social marketing. I could certainly write a whole chapter on social marketing and find it obsolete by the time I…
Lesson 35: Page 24
Strategy Now if you feel your head is swimming at this point as what to do and where to start, here are my suggestions; 1) Research. Decide what you like…
Lesson 36: Page 22
Business sucks so what are you going to do about it? I think it is fair to say the business sucks in professional photography these days. I know a lot…
Lesson 35: Page 23
A few tips on art fairs and what you sell: 1) In the beginning , create a wide selection of subjects and test the waters for a few shows to find…
Lesson 36: Page 21
Nature and Outdoor Photographers: Why you are better off being a local hero than an international nobody. The world of photography has changed immensely and if you have been a photographer for…
Lesson 35: Page 22
There are many options here as far as printing companies that you can work with. Keep in mind some of these books are very expensive and are really targeted for…
Lesson 36: Page 20
WHEN ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER Many, if not most photographers are stock photographers, photographing their favorite subjects and then finding markets for those images. Some are stock and assignment…
Lesson 35: Page 20
Blogging Besides a website, you may want to seriously consider blogging. Many photographers are finding the power that blogging can bring to their brand. Blogging started in many ways as…
Lesson 35: Page 21
PHOTO BOOKS Most photographers in the nature and outdoor business dream of publishing a book of their work. When they do it validates their work and they are a qualified…
Lesson 36: Page 19
Props, Models, and Location Scouting Adventure and recreation assignments are common for outdoor photographers. In many cases these assignments require specific locations where the client wants to shoot and whether…
Lesson 35: Page 19
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL MARKETING There are probably more clients for your work in the national and international arena than around your home base. In today’s market, you must find ways…
Lesson 34: Page 18
Invoicing The last step in negotiating your transaction will be the invoice. It is imperative that you state the terms of the sale in your invoice or you could be…
Lesson 36: Page 18
Estimating The Photography Assignment A stock photo client has just called you about an assignment. They like your photography, working with you, and now want you to shoot a project….
Lesson 35: Page 18
One of the best approaches is to let the client set the tone and pace of the meeting. Let them ask the questions and you provide the answers rather than…
Lesson 35: Page 17
Portfolios This might be the most important tool you will use to earn business. Today there is a general feeling that a portfolio is not really needed because clients can…
Lesson 35: Page 16
Networking One of the most important aspects of marketing is networking. Using contacts and clients you work with as a tool to earn more business is one of the most…
Lesson 35: Page 15
Selling Yourself When it comes to marketing your photography business, you need to break down what you are selling and to whom. While many things we sell as photographers are…
Lesson 35: Page 14
I hate cold calling and here is what I do about it: Yes, photographers have to market and sell to stay relevant in this business. There is no way around…
Lesson 36: Page 15
Some additional pricing strategies Many photographers charge digital capture fees. This is based on each image that they capture and I have seen a range averaging between one dollar and…
Lesson 36: Page 14
I constantly discuss with my clients what I think will work and will not work based on what they told me they want. For example, I’m in a manufacturing plant…
Lesson 35: Page 13
You can’t just wait for the phone to ring! Any photography business will not be successful these days if your marketing effort consists of sitting by the phone and waiting…
Lesson 34: Page 13
The following charts provide the base price guidelines and are simple to calculate the base price. From there you consider all other factors. What you will not see in these…
Lesson 35: Page 12
E-mail marketing The real advantage to e-mail marketing is of course the cost. It’s very cheap and cost effective. These days you can track and observe how many were opened…
Lesson 36: Page 13
Nike was a huge client of mine in the 90’s and I shot about 1.2 million shoes for them (really rough guess), actually I just shot a lot of shoes…
Lesson 34: Page 12
Non-Profits You may at some point find yourself negotiating with a non-profit or asked to provide an image pro-bono. Letting images be used by non-profits and whether or not to…
Lesson 34: Page 11
The client came back with a request for more uses as a tourism related advertisement, running nationally in 4 travel magazines with a combined print run of 2.5 million. The…
Lesson 36: Page 12
So what types of clients can you charge usage for? I would say any client willing to agree to pay it. Now the hard part is determining who will pay…
Lesson 35: Page 10
Self-promotion Throughout my career, I have utilized a variety of different approaches to marketing my photography business. I have done source books, including the Black Book for 3 years, Direct…
Lesson 36: Page 11
I was contacted by a former student of mine whom I will call ‘Bob.’ Bob took a commercial photography course from me last year. He is I believe in high…
Lesson 36: Page 10
Other photographers who are working in the high end of advertising photography are not only successful in getting top pay rates, but they also get usage fees, and the client…
Lesson 34: Page 10
If you flew to Africa, hired a safari guide to take you into the outback, you have greater production value than going to the zoo or game park. Be sure…
Lesson 35: Page 09
Keeping clients tuned into what you are doing and on a regular basis helps eliminate that ‘out of sight, out of mind’ problem that will plague every photographer if they…
Lesson 36: Page 09
One photographer friend of mine has a great strategy for dealing with situations like this. The client provides him a list of how many shots are needed and he looks…
Lesson 34: Page 09
How Unique is the Image? Good selling images often are unique in some way, some more and some less. The usage of a one-of-a-kind image is certainly more valuable than…
Lesson 35: Page 08
Finding The Clients You have no business without clients! And how you find them, market to them, and work with them is crucial to the success of your business. You…
Lesson 34: Page 08
Whatever price you establish should be based on your image qualities, the market for that usage, and then input from the client about their budget. Hopefully there is an acceptable…
Lesson 36: Page 08
More on Calculating your fee This is without a doubt the toughest part of your job in trying to earn business. Some photographers charge very little like one half or…
Lesson 35: Page 07
Pros and Cons The good side of either type of relationship is that you get business and hopefully plenty of it. You want to be the first photographer they call….
Lesson 34: Page 06
How is the image going be used? How the image is going to be used is the first important consideration. Will it be used in an advertisement, an editorial spread,…
Lesson 35: Page 28
When you need to find a photographer, do you prefer to look at portfolios or websites? “It is incredibly important for a working photographer today to have a well designed,…
Lesson 35: Page 27
Is there a self promotion or type of self promotion from a photographer that really jumped out at you? “Yes, I once received a metal first aid kit like you…
Lesson 35: Page 26
Don’t call to early and don’t call to late. You don’t want to catch them before they have their coat off nor when they are putting it back on at…
Lesson 35: Page 25
A self promotional piece landing on a photo buyer’s desk today will have an impression of some sort, especially if it is only one of a few that arrived today….
Lesson 36: Page 23
Social Marketing: There is no doubt about the importance of social marketing. I could certainly write a whole chapter on social marketing and find it obsolete by the time I…
Lesson 35: Page 24
Strategy Now if you feel your head is swimming at this point as what to do and where to start, here are my suggestions; 1) Research. Decide what you like…
Lesson 36: Page 22
Business sucks so what are you going to do about it? I think it is fair to say the business sucks in professional photography these days. I know a lot…
Lesson 35: Page 23
A few tips on art fairs and what you sell: 1) In the beginning , create a wide selection of subjects and test the waters for a few shows to find…
Lesson 36: Page 21
Nature and Outdoor Photographers: Why you are better off being a local hero than an international nobody. The world of photography has changed immensely and if you have been a photographer for…
Lesson 35: Page 22
There are many options here as far as printing companies that you can work with. Keep in mind some of these books are very expensive and are really targeted for…
Lesson 36: Page 20
WHEN ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER Many, if not most photographers are stock photographers, photographing their favorite subjects and then finding markets for those images. Some are stock and assignment…
Lesson 35: Page 20
Blogging Besides a website, you may want to seriously consider blogging. Many photographers are finding the power that blogging can bring to their brand. Blogging started in many ways as…
Lesson 35: Page 21
PHOTO BOOKS Most photographers in the nature and outdoor business dream of publishing a book of their work. When they do it validates their work and they are a qualified…
Lesson 36: Page 19
Props, Models, and Location Scouting Adventure and recreation assignments are common for outdoor photographers. In many cases these assignments require specific locations where the client wants to shoot and whether…
Lesson 35: Page 19
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL MARKETING There are probably more clients for your work in the national and international arena than around your home base. In today’s market, you must find ways…
Lesson 34: Page 18
Invoicing The last step in negotiating your transaction will be the invoice. It is imperative that you state the terms of the sale in your invoice or you could be…
Lesson 36: Page 18
Estimating The Photography Assignment A stock photo client has just called you about an assignment. They like your photography, working with you, and now want you to shoot a project….
Lesson 35: Page 18
One of the best approaches is to let the client set the tone and pace of the meeting. Let them ask the questions and you provide the answers rather than…
Lesson 35: Page 17
Portfolios This might be the most important tool you will use to earn business. Today there is a general feeling that a portfolio is not really needed because clients can…
Lesson 35: Page 16
Networking One of the most important aspects of marketing is networking. Using contacts and clients you work with as a tool to earn more business is one of the most…
Lesson 35: Page 15
Selling Yourself When it comes to marketing your photography business, you need to break down what you are selling and to whom. While many things we sell as photographers are…
Lesson 35: Page 14
I hate cold calling and here is what I do about it: Yes, photographers have to market and sell to stay relevant in this business. There is no way around…
Lesson 36: Page 15
Some additional pricing strategies Many photographers charge digital capture fees. This is based on each image that they capture and I have seen a range averaging between one dollar and…
Lesson 36: Page 14
I constantly discuss with my clients what I think will work and will not work based on what they told me they want. For example, I’m in a manufacturing plant…
Lesson 35: Page 13
You can’t just wait for the phone to ring! Any photography business will not be successful these days if your marketing effort consists of sitting by the phone and waiting…
Lesson 34: Page 13
The following charts provide the base price guidelines and are simple to calculate the base price. From there you consider all other factors. What you will not see in these…
Lesson 35: Page 12
E-mail marketing The real advantage to e-mail marketing is of course the cost. It’s very cheap and cost effective. These days you can track and observe how many were opened…
Lesson 36: Page 13
Nike was a huge client of mine in the 90’s and I shot about 1.2 million shoes for them (really rough guess), actually I just shot a lot of shoes…
Lesson 34: Page 12
Non-Profits You may at some point find yourself negotiating with a non-profit or asked to provide an image pro-bono. Letting images be used by non-profits and whether or not to…
Lesson 34: Page 11
The client came back with a request for more uses as a tourism related advertisement, running nationally in 4 travel magazines with a combined print run of 2.5 million. The…
Lesson 36: Page 12
So what types of clients can you charge usage for? I would say any client willing to agree to pay it. Now the hard part is determining who will pay…
Lesson 35: Page 10
Self-promotion Throughout my career, I have utilized a variety of different approaches to marketing my photography business. I have done source books, including the Black Book for 3 years, Direct…
Lesson 36: Page 11
I was contacted by a former student of mine whom I will call ‘Bob.’ Bob took a commercial photography course from me last year. He is I believe in high…
Lesson 36: Page 10
Other photographers who are working in the high end of advertising photography are not only successful in getting top pay rates, but they also get usage fees, and the client…
Lesson 34: Page 10
If you flew to Africa, hired a safari guide to take you into the outback, you have greater production value than going to the zoo or game park. Be sure…
Lesson 35: Page 09
Keeping clients tuned into what you are doing and on a regular basis helps eliminate that ‘out of sight, out of mind’ problem that will plague every photographer if they…
Lesson 36: Page 09
One photographer friend of mine has a great strategy for dealing with situations like this. The client provides him a list of how many shots are needed and he looks…
Lesson 34: Page 09
How Unique is the Image? Good selling images often are unique in some way, some more and some less. The usage of a one-of-a-kind image is certainly more valuable than…
Lesson 35: Page 08
Finding The Clients You have no business without clients! And how you find them, market to them, and work with them is crucial to the success of your business. You…
Lesson 34: Page 08
Whatever price you establish should be based on your image qualities, the market for that usage, and then input from the client about their budget. Hopefully there is an acceptable…
Lesson 36: Page 08
More on Calculating your fee This is without a doubt the toughest part of your job in trying to earn business. Some photographers charge very little like one half or…
Lesson 35: Page 07
Pros and Cons The good side of either type of relationship is that you get business and hopefully plenty of it. You want to be the first photographer they call….
Lesson 34: Page 06
How is the image going be used? How the image is going to be used is the first important consideration. Will it be used in an advertisement, an editorial spread,…