Summertime
Written on June 26, 2008
Summertime is normally a good time in our business to reflect and set up for the fall.
Update the books, put new pages in, make sure the website is up to date, get in touch with old clients and seek new ones (hello breakfast meetings…nothing gets your foot in the door like the promise of bringing food).
Anyways, in this down economy, this summer has taken a slightly different tone on. Generally speaking, people seem to be a bit slower and it’s not entirely just because it’s summer.
I was in a conversation at an event not too long ago, where one of the people speaking (whose opinion I respected), said that this down economy would really put the squeeze on the mid-tier photographers, more than anything. It was a sobering thought (and my first thought after that was..how do you define a mid-tier photographer?)
Slate has its own ideas on how one sector of our business can avoid a downturn, but for the rest of us what can we do?
Stay organised, stay focused, shoot what you love and moreover, be nice.
I had drinks recently with someone in the ad business, and while discussing some recent projects they had worked on they mentioned the pleasure of working with a huge photographer for a big campaign.
My first question? “Was he nice?”.
And more likely than not, that’s the first question people will ask about people in this business. “Are they pleasant?” “What are they like to work with?” and so on and so forth.
All things being equal, in a down economy, between 2 photographers, creatively similar and similarly expensive, that may be the tiebreaker.
Filed in: Talent, Photo Agency, Word on the Street, Advice.
I’ve certainly noticed that small/med sized mags are trickier to deal with this summer, could be me, could be the economy… The usual trying to get letters to shoot for the Fall issues has turned into just trying to get people to pick up the phone or return e-mails.
“Stay organized, stay focused, shoot what you love and moreover, be nice.”
It works.
Dear AVS…. As you may know, in addition to running the agent forum at yahoo groups, I also run one for Art Buyers, Art Producers and Photo Editors. We have almost 200 members from across the country and canada, and the information i can gather there echoes exactly what you are saying.
The buyers there are constantly asking for talent referrals (and naming names, btw). Beyond the first request, i.e., “can anyone recommend a portrait/fashion/still life photog in x location”?, the responses from their colleagues are almost uniformly NOT about the photography or illustration. They talk consistently about what kind of person the talent is (or in some cases their agent!), what it is like to be with them for an extended period of time on location, and how buttoned-up their production is.
Moreover, they are very clear also about the true nature of the pre-production conference call. Of course there are logistics to work out, but if they have never worked with you, that call is really about one thing only - - that the talent is not a jerk, and is someone they can work with seamlessly and will actually like being with.
We know that the experience of working with someone they like definitely is the soul of repeat business. What is interesting to me is the opportunity reps and talent have in trying to communicate that experience BEFORE they get hired so that the buyer can imagine what it’s like to work with them, giving them an edge over others who are somehow more “anonymous” and increase the likelihood of them getting the job.
Most talent and agents in my view do not capitalize on this opportunity vis a vis their website and promotion, which could, i think, dramatically affect their chances of success. Chris Buck has been a historical example, as has Sacha Waldman… Both have injected their personalities into their websites in a very strong way, and besides the great work, I am pretty sure that has informed some of their success.
My .02…
Allegra
Dear AVS…. As you may know, in addition to running the agent forum at yahoo groups, I also run one for Art Buyers, Art Producers and Photo Editors. We have almost 200 members from across the country and canada, and the information i can gather there echoes exactly what you are saying.
The buyers there are constantly asking for talent referrals (and naming names, btw). Beyond the first request, i.e., “can anyone recommend a portrait/fashion/still life photog in x location”?, the responses from their colleagues are almost uniformly NOT about the photography or illustration. They talk consistently about what kind of person the talent is (or in some cases their agent!), what it is like to be with them for an extended period of time on location, and how buttoned-up their production is.
Moreover, they are very clear also about the true nature of the pre-production conference call. Of course there are logistics to work out, but if they have never worked with you, that call is really about one thing only - - that the talent is not a jerk, and is someone they can work with seamlessly and will actually like being with.
We know that the experience of working with someone they like definitely is the soul of repeat business. What is interesting to me is the opportunity reps and talent have in trying to communicate that experience BEFORE they get hired so that the buyer can imagine what it’s like to work with them, giving them an edge over others who are somehow more “anonymous” and increase the likelihood of them getting the job.
Most talent and agents in my view do not capitalize on this opportunity vis a vis their website and promotion, which could, i think, dramatically affect their chances of success. Chris Buck has been a historical example, as has Sacha Waldman… Both have injected their personalities into their websites in a very strong way, and besides the great work, I am pretty sure that has informed some of their success.
My .02…
Allegra
thanks for the amazing comment…sadly it’s the photographer of course that fails to grasp this most of the time.
I couldn’t agree more with Allegra and AVS’s sentiments about the importance of the agreeability of a collaborator. Thanks to both of you for bringing this to the masses.
But I want to take it one step further. How about some enthusiasm for the project? Warning, rant ahead: I see so many hungry (young and not-so-young) photographers out there, killing for the chance to work on something good. So when that comes around, why aren’t shooters hustling or at the very least, just letting me know they are excited about the work? I think this attitude will have ramifications, especially as competition gets increasingly fierce.
Yes, it’s helpful to be a Mr. Agreeable type (or Ms.) for sure.
Enthusiasm is definitely key as well! Or at least, fake it till you make it…