marketing for photographers

Why would you share commercial work?

‘Commercial work? Why would I want to see commercial work?’ The CD of a large New York ad agency looked thoroughly perplexed when asked about sharing commercial work on a photographer’s website. This was in a private Q&A I ran for my clients, and the answer didn’t surprise me at all. The fact is that

Processed meat and funk

New Zealand. Singapore. Marseille. Arles Photofest. Spain. And the sunny North of England. These are all the places I have been since I was last able to send out an Email to my list. That’s 3 weeks. It was NOT planned that way. I had a nicely organised bunch of Emails ready to send, but

7 crucial reasons to talk about your personal work

If you work for discerning visual people in the advertising world you’ll know that personal work is the marketing back bone of your practice. (If you didn’t know that, now you do. It’s a non-negotiable habit of highly successful photographers). But something that may be missing from your personal work is a well articulated introduction.

The 3 main components of your best work

I’m often asked how I identify the best images when I’m reviewing (or ‘blitzing‘) a photographer’s work. My background is in advertising photography and high end commissions from around the world, so I tend to be drawn to images which will also attract advertising creatives, designers and art producers. Having said that, the top shots

Your clients aren’t buying a pretty picture.

This morning I’ve been Blitzing work by a food photographer. I have been getting hungrier and hungrier as I salivate over the most tasty looking shots (ALWAYS a non-negotiable deal breaker with food photography). Luckily I’m heading out to a lunch meeting soon. When I was an agent I repped 2 food photographers. Wherever possible

Are you working with ‘meatloafs’?

‘Meatloafs’. That’s the word a photographer recently used to describe some of his more frustrating clients who work in the sports world. It’s not surprising really. Many people who book photographers direct are non-visual. And it’s not limited to ex-rugby players. Marketing managers, event organisers and corporate executives are simply not (usually) terribly visually eloquent.

Are you drowning?

Yesterday I pulled a poor woman from the surf, wide eyed and frightened. She’d been tipped off her boogie board and was clutching it weirdly from upside down, like a beached turtle. She was terrified to let go lest she drown, and waves crashed over her face as she strained to keep it above water.