How to promote your work and get noticed as a photographer is one of the more popular questions I get asked on an almost daily basis. I’ll certainly be chiming in on this topic over the next few weeks as we explore this topic more in depth, but in the mean time, I thought I’d curate a few other opinions and asking some of my industry friends to chime in… That should help round out what you can find here.
To that end, this video above is from Heather Morton – Art Buyer. Great stuff from her blog. The question she’s answering here comes from Ryan Rogers. More info beyond the video, including some additional questions and images over at Ryan over at HMAb.
How bout you?
Don’t be shy.
What are you doing to promote your work?
Who would you like to give you feedback on that promo?
I see some of the readers are waiting to market themselves. Waiting to have the right image, the right branding, the right gear, the right client…. While they are waiting someone else is making phone calls, sending promo pieces, networking, shooting more, and most importantly following up. It’s not the best photographers that get the jobs, it’s the ones who are easily accessible to them. It’s the photographers that have followed up and followed through and have given the impression that they will complete the assignment easily.
A hard lesson I have learned is target your marketing. Your promo piece and portfolio should match the type of image that potential client is likely to use. As an example I was recently casting models for a client’s campaign. While there was one model I really liked, it wasn’t until I showed the client an image of her that fit the look of the campaign that they agreed with my choice. They could only visualize the model when seeing her in a similar piece.
Take action. It’s best to just get out there and do it.
Well, my “self-promotion” comes soley from flickr. I’ve had great results and feed back from thousands. I just do not know how, yet, to push myself to the next level. I’m told all the time by non professionals I should sell my work…or..”you can make a lot of money off your work”… I’m still trying to figure out what it is they know that I do not. LOL….
Currently I’m in Afghanistan working as a security contractor saving up to start my own photography business…
The best advice I’ve ever heard is to BE where your target maket is…where they shop, where they spend their free time…BE visible in those places…Recently I asked the owner of a new high end boutique clothing store (exactly where my target Moms/Brides would shop) if I could fill her walls with some beautiful canvases…we negotiated a deal (her clothes/models, photo shoot-images with my business cards-all over her walls) This displays my name in a place where my target market shops…And very little cost.
design business cards online
I thought Heather’s response of targeting those “who’ve expressed interest in your work” is key. Let’s face it, there are more photographers/content flooding us everyday, and standing out is becoming ever more difficult with the popularity of all those red and white stripe sweaters hitting the market. The old adage of, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.” is very true, and I think a focus on personal connections will garner the best results.
Of course, once you have a bit of a reputation built, you can drop the, “I’ve worked for company A, B, and C,” and that will open doors as well, but it doesn’t guarantee anything either.
Find a perspective client, target and personalize, strike, follow-up, be professional, rinse and repeat.
Todd