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Before setting out in my new photographic career, I talked to photographers who lived nearby and were already successful. What I learned was that I knew very little about taking marketable pictures and less about how to market them. So, while I was, perhaps, headed in the right direction according to my aptitudes, I had a lot of learning to do. Many of you may be much farther along with your photographic skills than I was when I started, but I know anyone who has a strong enough desire to succeed can do so, even with limited skills. Advancing to a full-time career becomes a matter of finding one’s niche. The path to a career may take a bit longer than hobby work, but it may also offer the greatest satisfaction.
Buying Others’ Experiences
Knowing that I didn't have the time or financial resources to learn everything through experience, I sought out educational programs and reference books to accelerate my learning curve - much like on-the-job-training. One book I found most helpful when I was getting started was Sell and Resell Your Photos by Rohn Engh (Writers Digest Books, 800/289-0963). In addition to reading all you can, inquire about workshops and seminars in your area. You may need to bear the expense of out-of-town travel. Invest in knowledge.
Camera Equipment
One priority I learned when determining what camera equipment to purchase still holds true today. The clerk advised me to buy one working lens for now and hold off on other lenses, using that money for film. He told me to expose lots of film. Likewise, you should buy a camera system that has the accessories you'll need as you grow photographically. Some secondary market suppliers offer good quality lenses. Run a test roll of film through before you buy, however. I've had many images published with a Tamron 60-300SP f3.5 - 5.6 lens, but when I purchased the Nikkor 300EDIF f4.5, I found it was worth the extra investment. The sturdier tripod collar and much brighter viewfinder had a very positive effect on my focusing ability. These are considerations that can affect the quality of your work long-term.
Stock Photography
Before I came to the final decision to go full time, one of the photographers
I spoke with felt that stock photography was the thing of the future -
developing a library of images and leasing the use of them. That was in 1986.
For the next eighteen months, I took pictures, filed them, and sent them out in
hopes of making some sales. What I learned was this:
1. About ten percent of the packages I sent out were sold.
2. If I could keep twenty to twenty-five packages out all the time, I could do
okay financially.
3. Most of my images that were published were not my pretty nature pictures.
People pictures were used most.
During that time, a friend of mine suggested that if I took pictures of people, I could do well at stock photography. So, that was what I began doing. Sure enough, images with people in them sold much better than nature alone. I even began to place people in scenics, where before I had kept them out. Then I began taking both kinds of shots--with and without people--to sell to different markets. I was already on location, so why not? If I needed someone to be in a photo, I just asked whoever was there. These images were mostly silhouettes. I was having a good time.
AGENT OR SELF-MARKETING?
Which is better, self-marketing or working with an agency? In the beginning, the requirements of an agency may be too demanding. Harvey Lloyd, noted aerial and travel photographer, suggests it may take a couple of years before your work is in the pipeline, then a number of years more before you begin to see checks. Contacting publications directly can be the quickest route to having your work published and can lead to a satisfying, ongoing relationship with a publisher--which means repeat business.
Using Stock Agents
An alternative to sending work out yourself is developing a relationship with a stock agent. The rule of thumb is one dollar of income per year for each photo with an agency. If you run the numbers, you’ll notice we’re talking about having many images placed with stock agencies. If you've accumulated a large number of images within the scope of what an agency is looking for, you may be ahead of the game. But don’t expect instant sales.
Here’s how agents work. They hold your images and market them to prospective buyers, along with others they have in their libraries. They keep records, send the images out, keep track of them, do the billing, and then send the photographer his cut of the sale--usually forty to fifty percent, often six months after the sale. If you request to have your work returned, receiving it may take months or even years--depending on the contract that’s been signed. The first agreement they send you may not represent their best terms, as reported in Jim Pickerell’s informative newsletter, Selling Stock (301/251-0720). Read the fine print, and remember most clauses can be negotiated. Other trends showing up are higher commissions by some agencies that market via the Internet. In spite of this, many established photographers in this country and abroad are represented by more than one agency. The reason is that agencies do offer one of the few routes available to the higher paying advertising use fees, and do relieve the photographer of the book work required to market images.
Locating Stock Agencies
One good place to look for stock agencies is in The Picture Agency Council of America Directory (800/457-7222). It lists over one hundred agency members who have agreed to a code of ethics for dealing with photographers and clients. Current copies of the directory cost fifteen dollars. The Photographer’s Market (800/289-0963) is another source for agencies, as is the Internet.
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The forgoing is reprinted from Get Published by Bob Grytten, with permission. Grytten also publishes the popular bimonthly newsletter f8 and Being There…
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