Career

Looking For A Way Forward

By Jim Pickerell | 675 Words | Posted 12/28/2010 | Comments
John Fowler points out that his strategy for running a stock photography business isn't working, acknowledges that he needs to make changes and asks for ideas as to what those changes should be. I added some of my experiences and perspective and encourage readers to suggest positive ways forward.

How To Become A Pro Photographer, Part 5 - Finding Success

By Daniel H. Bailey | 1750 Words | Posted 10/25/2010 | Comments
With this article Dan finishes his five part series on the steps you need to take to become a professional photographer. Today he talks about Finding Success and explores what it takes to achieve success in a very tough, competitive and rapidly changing industry. The previous articles include: Part 1- Making the Jump, Part 2- Getting the Gear and Expertise, Part 3- Marketing and Self-Promotion and Part 4- The Business of Photography.

How To Become A Pro Photographer, Part 4 - The Business of Photography

By Daniel H. Bailey | 2239 Words | Posted 10/21/2010 | Comments
Photographers are primarily right brain people. We’re creative. We focus on the subjective, the random, the visual and the intuitive. We tend to focus on the whole picture first, then focus on the details later. That’s why we bought cameras and chose a career that revolves around creativity. Business, on the other hand, is analytical, sequential, verbal and it focuses on the details. These are all left brain ways of thinking. Often times these clash with what may come more naturally to us, and the result is that we’re just not always the best business people.

How To Become A Pro Photographer, Part 3 - Marketing and Self-Promotion

By Daniel H. Bailey | 1970 Words | Posted 10/19/2010 | Comments
Marketing is where things start to get scary for some photographers. After all, we’re passionate enough about our imagery to want to make this our full or part time profession, and we’re certainly adept with technology and digital imaging gear. However, this is where photography starts enter the business realm, which, unfortunately, doesn’t always come easy to some creative and artistic types. However, photographers are good at creative problem solving, right? Well, marketing is the same thing. It’s solving a very simple creative problem that can easily be summed up in one sentence. “How can I convince clients to hire me?”

How To Become A Pro Photographer: Part 2 - Camera Gear

By Daniel H. Bailey | 1928 Words | Posted 10/13/2010 | Comments
This is the second of five articles where Dan Bailey discusses what it takes to make the jump from amateur photographer to pro and work towards making a living with photography. This article focuses on the types of gear and professional expertise you'll need to gain as you make the transition. In future articles, he'll discuss, Marketing and Self-Promotion, The Business of Photography and how to put it all together and get started in a photography career.

How Unemployment Hurts The Employed Professional Photographer

By Jim Pickerell | 798 Words | Posted 10/11/2010 | Comments
Unemployment in the United States may be affecting freelance photographers in some not so obvious ways. While many photographers and designers have either lost their jobs or are under employed what we often forget is that those who still have viable businesses may now be competing with the unemployed as they produce new images as a way or earning a little extra cash.

How to Become a Pro Photographer: Part 1- Making the Jump

By Daniel H. Bailey | 2190 Words | Posted 10/5/2010 | Comments
This is the first of five articles where Dan Bailey discusses his 15 year odyssey in photography, from being an amateur to making a living taking pictures. He starts out by outlining a number of things you need to consider before deciding to jump from amateur to pro. In future he'll discuss Getting The Gear and Expertise, Marketing and Self Promotion and other aspects of the Business of Photography.

Individual Property Ownership And The Future Of Creativity

By Jim Pickerell | 2686 Words | Posted 10/4/2010 | Comments
In his biography, The Age of Turbulence, Alan Greenspan said, “The presumption of individual property ownership and the legality of its transfer must be deeply embedded in the culture of a society (emphasis mine) for free market economies to function effectively. In the West, the moral validity of property rights is accepted, or at least acquiesced in, by virtually the whole of the population.” I was struck by how this relates to the photography business today. The concept of individual property ownership is no longer deeply embedded in the culture of our society. A large segment of the population believes that certain property should be free to all and that the creators have no rights once the property is shown to anyone. Using the creative works of others without permission or compensation is becoming the morally accepted standard.

Going Pro: Rise Of The Amateur

By Jim Pickerell | 1044 Words | Posted 9/28/2010 | Comments
Many professional photographers are disturbed by the changes taking place in their careers. Photographers who dream of earning their living taking pictures will, at the very least, find that goal much harder to achieve than it was for their predecessors. Amateurs have taken over an increasing share of the business. And their share will continue to grow. The shift from professional control of the market to significant amateur involvement is irreversible and will accelerate. That doesn’t mean that no one will be able to earn a living as a still photographer. But many fewer will do it successfully than was the case in the past. There is no way to predict the amount of the market amateurs will finally control, but it will be significant. 

Going Pro: Video

By Jim Pickerell | 2090 Words | Posted 9/23/2010 | Comments
In theory there should be a major growth in demand in the near future for video. However, people have been making that prediction for more than a decade and the demand still doesn’t seem to be taking off. In fact, videographers who were among the leading sellers of video clips a decade ago are now reporting that their sales are down 50% from what they were just three or four years ago.

Going Pro: The Wedding Option

By Jim Pickerell | 1610 Words | Posted 9/15/2010 | Comments
Many who got into the photography business by shooting stock are finding that relying on stock income alone is insufficient and increasingly unpredictable. In looking for other ways to earn money using their photographic skills, some are exploring the wedding business.

Going Pro: Marketing

By Jim Pickerell | 2620 Words | Posted 9/7/2010 | Comments
If you have decided on a career as a freelance photographer, your vocation will be marketing and your avocation, or sideline, will be photography.

Succeeding as a Stock Photographer: Way Forward

By Jim Pickerell | 606 Words | Posted 8/31/2010 | Comments
Recently on Linkedin Jacintha van Beveren observed that “The old photography business model is gone,” observed and asked if the road to survival and future success is through “creativity and flexibility or stubborn protection.” Neither.

Of Doom and Gloom: Accepting Averages

By Julia Dudnik Stern | 640 Words | Posted 8/30/2010 | Comments
Phrases like “it’s not all doom and gloom” pop up often, but those who offer such encouraging analysis are typically in the top tier of the profession. While their experience is certainly real and laudable if not amazing, is it representative enough to be touted as a roadmap to a successful career? Common sense, economics, mathematics and every available source of statistical information says no.

Pros Stop Shooting: Point/Counterpoint

By Jim Pickerell | 3386 Words | Posted 8/25/2010 | Comments
When I published “Top Pros Stop Shooting” in my other newsletter Selling-Stock received an unusual number of comments from industry leaders. Most of those who commented had some disagreement with the positions I took in the article. Since PhotoLicensingOptions readers will have missed seeing these comments, I have printed them here along with an editorial response.

10 Ways Artists Can Develop Their Brand

By John R Math | 1263 Words | Posted 8/24/2010 | Comments
Today, a lot of businesses get marketing and branding mixed up. They are confused as to what the differences are, what they both mean or they try promoting their business with one and without the other. Simply put, marketing is how you reach your target market with advertising, promotions and public relations. Marketing is showing the world with what you do. Branding is who you are or what the world thinks you are. Every time a prospect or a potential customer makes contact with you in person, print, virally or by other means, they are formulating an opinion of you as a brand. 

Going Pro: The Freelance Challenge

By Jim Pickerell | 1949 Words | Posted 8/19/2010 | Comments
On Linkedin’s Photography Industry Professionals discussion group, Brooke Fagel recently asked: “What’s it like to be a freelance photographer?” These select responses provide a comprehensive picture of what a photographer faces.

10 Quick Rules for Artists Using Social Media

By John R Math | 761 Words | Posted 8/12/2010 | Comments
There is a reason why it is called “social” media and there are rules that you should follow when it comes to employing “social media” to market and brand yourself and your art. Every day I see small businesses that are ruining their brand by abusing social media.  Artists are no different, as they are a “small business” too! Here are some quick rules of social media that you should follow.
 

Going Pro: Are Great Images Enough?

By Jim Pickerell | 960 Words | Posted 8/9/2010 | Comments
When you are a freelance self-employed photographer, getting to the level of earning enough to support yourself and your family is difficult. But you know you can do it, because you are willing to work hard and you produce great, unique images that are better than anything offered by the competition. Here are a few basic principles of the photography business to remember.

Going Pro: Demand by the Numbers

By Jim Pickerell | 1410 Words | Posted 8/5/2010 | Comments
In the last few years there has been dramatic growth in the use of images on the Internet, a market for images that virtually did not exist 10 years ago. Some believe that the potential for growth of the Internet is infinite, and that there will always be an ever-increasing demand for imagery.

Going Pro: Image OverSupply

By Jim Pickerell | 1476 Words | Posted 7/30/2010 | Comments
So far in this series we’ve learned there is declining demand for images that will be used in print, and growing demand for images that will be used online and in electronic formats. Photographers just starting out should be aware of the number of images already in online databases and recognize that any images they produce will be competing against those that already exist.

Going Pro: Photography as a Career

By Jim Pickerell | 982 Words | Posted 7/21/2010 | Comments
More and more people are producing pictures of a quality sufficient to satisfy the needs of many who want to use pictures. Thanks to the Internet—and to a great extent microstock—it is now much easier than in the past for people to earn a little money from the images they have produced and to make contact with customers who might want to use them. The “Going Pro” series of articles targets not the successful professional but the person just starting out, or the microstock photographer who has had some success producing images that sell and believes it is time to quit his or her day job and go into photography full time. What are the things they need to be aware of before taking the big plunge of trying to turn something that is a fun hobby into a career?

Going Pro: The Internet Market

By Jim Pickerell | 1713 Words | Posted 7/21/2010 | Comments
As little as five years ago, approximately 98% of all stock photo revenue came from print uses. There was little or no Internet and small business uses. Today about 20% of industry revenue comes from Internet and small business uses. The needs of these new customers were hardly addressed five years ago, as all traditional sellers focused on the high end of the market. Consequently, when someone wanted an image for these purposes they either took the picture themselves, or copied something off another Internet site and paid nothing for its use. In the last five years the demand for images that will be used electronically has grown dramatically.

Licensing Rights To Film Images

By Jim Pickerell | 735 Words | Posted 6/25/2010 | Comments
I receive regular requests from photographers who want to know how they can license rights to the images they have created over the years on film. Here’s what I tell them. Licensing rights to images is very difficult in today’s market because there is such an oversupply available compared to the demand.

Estate Planning

By Jim Pickerell | 3239 Words | Posted 1/6/1998 | Comments
Putting a value on your life's work can present a major problem for your heirs. Every successful photographer needs to do some estate planning. This major article outlines the steps to take in light of the new tax laws.