So today I've got duty covering the White House, and travelled from there to a hotel for the President's remarks on healthcare. I then spotted, in use by the AFP staff photographer - a bonafide Nikon D3, and handsome D3 strap!
The photographer seemed pleased, shooting the 24-70mm and 85mm f1.4 on the Nikon, and shooting with his 70-200 on his Canon.
(Continued, with another photo in the Oval Office, after the Jump)
I've had mine on order (along with my 1Ds Mark III (They've Been Ordered, 9/3/07), and I look forward to having my own, so it was a pleasant surprise though, to see one in the wild.
I was amazed, when I've looked at the various files, at how well they are handling the noise issues this time around. Perhaps next up will be, if history is any indicator, a D3x.
UPDATE: The last event for the day was the President signing the Internet Tax Freedom Act in the Oval Office with a group of Senators and Members of Congress, and there, again, was the D3, hard a work.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
This isn't to say you can't look to signs that point to, say...the demise of Getty. I almost forgot! Let's start again.
This isn't to say You can't look to signs of what the future will bring, but predicting it? Just be ready to respond.
(Continued after the Jump)
How so?
Every time the phone rings, I can see my responses to every question, and follow-up question that will take place. I am not predicting the future, per se, but rather, all the potential responses to what the future holds. I am almost never surprised by an inquiry. Rather, like the branches of a tree, I've travelled from trunk to branch to limb to twig to leaf so many times, along all the possible paths, that I am prepared. Some are short stumps of a limb, like "we want your copyright...". Yoink! Branch ends. We must tread in reverse, to another branch that is more suitable, like " I will extend a license to use the work in all media for the life of the product..." instead. And we then trek further down the branch that is more sturdy, and which is well worn by repeated visits. We arrive at a mutually beneficial agreement.
Just as with a complicated travel plan, from, say, New York City to San Francisco, having a map is your answer book. So too, should you map out how you'll respond to varied questions and inquiries. At first, you'll need to consult the map. After a dozen trips from NY to SF, you'll not need the map. Then again, you'll need it part of the way from NY to LA. Then again, from NY to DC. Lather, rinse, and repeat.
Prepare your responses. When you get stumped, don't cave. Ask them if you can call them back, if you have to. Write down how you'll handle it. Perhaps, instead, you can say "I think I have a solution, let me put it in writing and e-mail it to you..." and do just that. Get out of the hotseat and cool off, consider what they want, and how you can give it to them, reasonably and in a way that you are comfortable with. Then, memorialize it in writing, and send it off.
Which results in another of my axioms - "luck is what happens, when preparation meets opportunity." Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Man, you can't make stuff like this up! Checking the witching hour at Wikipedia, and you learn "the witching hour is the time when supernatural creatures such as witches, demons and ghosts are thought to be at their most powerful, and black magic at its most effective. " And, lo and behold, the double whammy that is Halloween, followed by the fact that we are at the point where, perhaps, Getty's CEO is wishing for some black magic to come to his rescue, since they announce their 3Q financial results tomorrow, 11/1 - a Thursday, after the bell, just in time for them to get sacked all day Friday - a surefire way for JDK to have a really crappy (and well deserved) weekend. To take a page from storybook television..."When we last checked in with our intrepid executives at GYI (GYI - The Downward Full Court Press Continues) things weren't going so well. And, well, that continues. At that point, GYI was trading at the loftly (relative to now) figure of $31.40, and, Wednesday's close was at $28.93, down a net 8%. If it hadn't been for a late day rally, it would have been significantly more than that. Setting themselves up for a fall again, hmmmm?
(Continued after the Jump)
Let's see, When I wrote back on August 4th (I told you so? No, not really. (Well, maybe, sort of)), and then again prior to that on 7/8 (About the only good 'Short'-sighted Idea I can find) about their continued downfall, that brings us up to....yes, today (again). For those of you wanting to know what I might have written about GYI in the past, here's a quicklink search for you. Plenty to read and catch up on as it pertains to all their missteps, so you're well informed for their earnings call. Feel free to dial in and hear the spin on their latest "net revenues are less than expected" spin that I expect out of Seattle - the toll-free call (1-800-432-7890) gets it to you live at 5pm East, 2pm West. Missed it? Call for a replay through Saturday night at 1-888-203-1112. Wanna listen live? Hit http://gettyimages.com. All the details can be found here on the Getty site.
How do I draw the conclusion that "net revenues will be down"? Well, I further expect to hear "...but volume is up...", which sounds remarkably like "we'll loose a little on each sale, but make it up in volume..." to me. Well, when your average sale for online content was around $500, and now it's $49, that's gonna have to be one helluva lot of volume to overcome that slash-and-burn mentality. Or is it "churn and burn?"
Exhibit 1 - The Washington Post reports that "CNet Sells Webshots for $45 Million". Not bad? Actually, it's horrible for CNET, and amazing for Webshot's founder Narendra Rocherolle. How so? Well, let's just say he took the dot-com frenzy to the mountaintop - TWICE - and kicked ass and took names both times. See, he sold Webshots to ExciteatHome for $82M and then, when ExciteAHome went bankrupt, he bought it back for $2.4M (a $83M nifty profit), and then re-sold it to CNET for $70M. Hmmm, that's $153M in the plus-column, after a deuce of a sale. Nice job Narendra. Though, CNET is following ExciteAtHome's lead, selling the Webshots unit for a loss of $25M after three years. Not that I know much about Narendra, but maybe he should be on the short list for JDK's job once there's an opening? At least he would be a wall street darling.
Where does this leave us? My colleague in the blogosphere Dan Heller has posted just three posts following his calling me out on August 6th for my "analysis" of Getty. One on August 8th promoting his appearance on the Discovery Channel, and a teaser and then announcement of his being interviewed about the future of photography on August 30th. That makes it just over two months since Dan's had anything to say. Eerily silent. To make my prediction of another 20% drop in GYI, the stock will have to plummet almost $6 in the next few days. Can it make it by the end of Friday/Start of Monday? Could be. There's chatter over on the Yahoo message boards, about all this, but that's probably positioners trying to make a quick buck, maybe not. I know, and will repeat my previous statement that I have not, nor do I plan to, own any GYI. My 9/18 piece (Getty (GYI) Hit New 52 Week low) had a reference to "...Barbara Coffey, in a client note, cut her rating on the stock to "Sell" from "Hold," citing the company's recently reduced prices for images to be used on the Web. She reduced her target price to $24 from $36...Still, the analyst said sales and profit in the December quarter and 2008 will come in lower than previously expected."
So, perhaps sub-$24 isn't so far off? We shall see. Maybe I'll be all wrong on this one - fine by me. If that brings Dan Heller back, I'm ok with that, because I thought he made some good posts and contributions to the mindset that is business-reality for photographers. Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Yesterday (and that would be Sunday, as I am writing this) I did a family portrait. It was more for a friend than a straight-up client. (Note - they paid the sitting fee). I said it would be a few days for them to see the files, and they'd be able to see the images online. It was also done at the end of the day - you know- golden hour light. Park setting, creek below, family on a bridge. You get the picture.
So, what do they want?
(Continued after the Jump)
The photos now, of course. Yes, they saw them on the back of the camera and were happy. No, they don't need them until the end of November (or so they said), but they do want them now.
What do I do? What do I say?
Of course!
They want the online gallery. I'm working on it right now - the files are processing as I type this missive. By delivering to this client when they want, how they want...what will they do? Aside from place print orders, they'll tell their friends! "Man, this guy who did our portrait, he was so easy to work with, and we got our photos so fast it was crazy!"
Three years ago, I ordered 1,000 custom silk-screened CD's. It was somewhat costly, yet it's amazing how, when a client burns a duplicate of my CD (and few have figured out how to do that on the machine in their cubicle, surprisingly) and hand-writes with a Sharpie on it the information, how, somehow, they call and say "can we get a second CD burned and sent. We like the way yours looks." Sure, no problem. Those CD's have paid tenfold what it cost me, just because of the appearance of the disk. (For a CD output charge that's $175, a second CD runs 50% of that, or $87.50. Check pricing at dc photographer pricing, for more on those charges/fees.)
Yet, we are running short on those, with just a few hundred left, and more and more of our clients are looking for online delivery. No more FedEx/DHL shipments. Clients want them uploaded instead. I foresee a day in the next 12 to 18 months where a majority of my clients will have shifted to online delivery requirements, just as they transitioned from wanting digital over film. I already have over a dozen who want online delivery, and no CD's.
Anticipating what your clients want, and assisting them in getting exactly what they want, how they want it, and, where necessary, hand-holding them through the process in the beginning, will make you indispensable to them. Further, delivering it when they want it too, ensures you can continue to enjoy their good graces, and the longevity of benefit that accompanies them. Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Ten years ago, if I'd offered to wager a dollar that Blockbuster Video would be struggling now, heck, even five years ago, I'd have had a line of people willing to take my "easy bet". Yet today, against innovators like Netflix, iTunes, and so forth, the concept of going to the video store to get a movie, and then paying late fees, seems antiquated and just silly.
Titans of industry - Pan Am, IBM, and Kodak, are but a shadow of their former selves, or gone. I had to chuckle at the repeated presence of Kodak and Fuji hawking film at this past year's PhotoPlus Expo. They're rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
What of previously "hot" photographers? One I recall in particular was photographer Aaron Jones, aka The Hosemaster.
(Continued after the Jump)
Aaron invented an amazing device that allows you to paint with light. After selling it for $6k and up for some time, he sold it to Calumet. Now, I don't know where Aaron is right now, but he's certainly not stayed at the peak he once was, nor anything resembling it. For all I know, he's making a great living doing something else, or shooting magazine work somewhere in the midwest. the point is - he's not repeated his former success as the toast of the town.
I recall a time when the legendary Eddie Adams sought out professional counsel to get his work "rediscovered" by young twenty-somethings who'd never heard of him. The consultant and I discussed the challenges she faced, and how she was able to get people to find him and his talent once again.
Recently, it came to my attention that a highly notable photographer wasn't aware of who Jay Maisel is. The literal master of color who blew people away with his surreal chromes hadn't been a known quantity to someone I consider a major figure in today's photographic community.
Grecco is taking his considerable talents and turning them onto a subject that doesn't get a great deal of attention in "learn-ed" photography circles. I picked up a copy during one of his talks, and, while it's NSFW, it's certainly a fresh perspective done with style and class.
He's even got a documentary video project to accompany it, and is traveling around the country to discuss his work, both from the past, and this current project. If it comes to your town, make it a point to check it out.
On another note, and arguably on the other end of the spectrum, is Jim LoScalzo's book -Evidence of My Existence that I wrote about back in June (" Go Jimmy Lo", 6/27/07), and is now available. (Check the link from June for some amazing videos that are essentially a prologue to the book).
In it, Jim takes another look at his life, and makes changes that are more geared towards a new family lifestyle, and evolves himself to that end.
Evolving, changing, is not about evolving to survive, per se, or evolving to succeed. Instead, it's about evolving to a place in your life that is what you want, and how you want it.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Do you know who your target audience is? Who it is not?
Every so often, I get inquiries about nude/boudoir photography, and I don't do that type of work, for several reasons. However, I do know of an exceptional person who does, and I refer them to my friend/colleague. On occasion, usually in the Spring, I get a call or two asking if I do senior portraits - I do not. Again, I refer these folks to someone I know. Unless you're a boudoir or senior portrait photographer, the above are probably good examples for you too of the type of work you also don't do. From this point, it's about refining your message even further.
(Continued after the Jump)
Editorial? Portraits? Reportage? Commercial?
Sometimes, you have to make choices, other times, no. The above can co-exist, however, each distinct client base needs to see you in your best light, with best examples of that type of work. Perhaps the way you do this is to, for example, have your wedding photography on a separate website from your editorial work. I have talked several times to photo editors who, when I asked how they came to call me said "I did a search, and first eliminated all those photographers who do weddings..." because they had seen weddings as an option on their website.
You also should understand the power of "no". As in "No, I won't shoot your magazine assignment for $100...", or "No, I don't do pro bono work for for-profit companies..." It's these types of requests that come in...."it'll be a great opportunity for you...", or "everyone will see your photo credit....". The next use of the word "no" comes about for types of photography. As in "no, I don't photograph nudes..." or "no, I don't photograph Bar Mitzvahs..." and so forth.
I know many a photographer who should say no when asked about a particular assignment. Yet, they don't. They simply say "sure..." and then muck it up, producing sub-par results. IF you're going to be this type of a photographer, at least hire assistants and production people, and so forth - specialists - who can hold your hand through the technical issues you'll encounter that you've never had to think about, or deal with. This maximizes your likelihood of success. Far to many a New York photographer can't light themselves out of a windowless room, yet can deliver amazing images because they hired the right assistant who actually does understand strobes and softboxes and transfer edges.
By focusing on your target audience, and delivering in your style is the surest way of sticking around. Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
This week's Week In Review takes us on location to the National College Media Convention being held in Washington DC, as well as the first of three stops of the Flying Short Course during it's local Washington DC stop, enroute Chicago and San Jose, CA.
(Continued after the Jump)
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
The value of thank you notes - hand written ones - should not be under-estimated.
You've spent a great deal of effort cultivating that great client of yours, one you've wanted to work with for so long, and they've finally entrusted you with your first assignment. After you've delivered the images, and the invoice, what's next? Thanking them for the assignment!
The Washington Post this morning has a short story that had a huge photo illustration of various stationary types - Putting Your Stamp on the Mail, which starts:
(Continued after the Jump)
"There's nothing quite like sorting through a seemingly endless pile of bills, credit card offers and catalogues and unearthing an unexpected prize: a handwritten envelope addressed just to you."
So true. We send out thank you notes all the time, letting our clients know that we appreciate not only the assignments, but even being considered for the assignments we didn't get.
Find a local stationer in your community, and go in and get some attractive and professionally printed thank you notes done. You could just get generic cards, but why not go the extra step and have them printed with your name - or better yet - your company's name, on them?
Send the card along with a complimentary print, or a book you think a client would enjoy, or even by itself just to express your appreciation for the opportunity to have worked with them. Above is one we sent out this morning - simple, and to the point.
Go ahead, it's really easier than you think, and gratifying as well. Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
It has come to my attention that some readers would rather I not post items about how bad spec is, or what Getty/et al are doing to damage the business, and that, somehow, I should just ignore it, and instead, just do pieces about how we can improve our own businesses.
Not gonna happen. But....
What I will endeavor to do, is whenever I do a piece on an agency, or a piece on spec, or otherwise some form of a criticism, or all-out dissertation on how an organization is bad for photographers, I will post a second piece, at the same time, that fills the requests for "solutions" articles, or otherwise useful information, so, those days will become "two-fer" days, where you'll get two pieces, not just one.
Something for everyone. Everyone benefits. Everyone remains informed.
(Comments, if any, after the Jump)
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
One of the challenges of being self-employed, and especially as a photographer, is the presumption of how our time is spent. Few, if any, photographers know how their day is spent. We can all say, with near certainty, that it's not spent shooting every moment of every day. I would go so far as to say we're not doing nearly as much shooting as we'd like to be.
The follow-on questions become - how do we discern this information, and why would we want to in the first place?
(Continued after the Jump)
To start, grab a notebook, one you can carry around easily. Begin by jotting down everything you do for the next two weeks. 15 minute segments work. Personal items note as such. Categories such as "paying bills, billing clients, paperwork, client conversations, other paperwork, researching online, eating, travel (i.e. in your car/bus/plane), post-production, marketing, networking, and so on. Oh, yeah, include actually making pictures too!
At the end of the two weeks, I think you'll be surprised at the numbers. Anything that takes away from making pictures or activities directly and specifically related to growing your business should be the things you do most. Yet, you will learn that the day-to-day "small stuff" gets in the way of all that. Don't take my word for it - try it on your own and see for yourself.
Learn how to outsource what you're doing that is distracting. Just as we outsourced color printing and slide processing back in the day, and we continue to outsource having our dress clothes dry-cleaned, so to is there value in outsourcing things that are not directly related to growing your business or making photos.
Begin by contemplating outsourcing your scanning of analog to digital files, if you still have any. Consider bringing in someone to do your post-production work, and take calls when you're out of the office - even if that office is a small portion of your home.
You've got a pretty good list of the distractions from your two-week research. Begin by determining what you could outsource immediately, and what you could outsource if you invested time in training someone to do it the way you do.
Then, find the right person - the right fit - to begin to make that happen. You'll be surprised at just how much free time you have now, and how much more focused you can be on your future success.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
It seems that my post "From the 'Are You Kidding Me?' Department" (October 15, 2007) has engaged a great many photographers in the debate over at Sportsshooter, with 75+ people going back and forth on the subject in this and this message series.
Many of the folks who were writing on the subject opposing speculative photography (a.k.a. "spec") had cogent arguments and interesting perspectives, and many of the folks trying to defend it took the attitude that it was a second or third job, or, a "loss leader", for them. I thought I'd write and echo some of the points, and add a few more of my own. Because this will be a long piece, I am going to break it down into several sections, for your ease of reading.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Allowing Spec photographers to clutter the sidelines is not the same as allowing the AP, Reuters, AFP, Gannett, Knight-Ridder/McClatchy to be there. Each shooting position is, and should be considered, an asset by the leagues and maximized. If you have speculative photographers taking positions that could be better monetized by the team to greater coverage by the local papers/outlets, then allowing organizations who's only investment in the coverage is making a phone call to get a credential, is diminishing the value of these very limited locations.
(Continued after the Jump)
All too often, SID's and PR departments turn away legitimate requests for credentials by media outlets because of space considerations. If Sports Illustrated were to complain about not having enough positions to effectively cover a game because of speculative photographers taking up positions...oh, wait - one of their photographers is listed here as the Managing Member of one of those speculative agencies taking those spaces, so that's not likely to happen. Here's their latest annual filing, as of 4/10/2007, and which we also reported on - US Presswire - Introduction.
It stands to reason that these limited locations should be reserved for people who are going to actually publish a photograph, not look at the seats courtside/on-the-sidelines as the camera being a ticket to the best seats in the house, with ancillary revenues as a fringe benefit, rather than the reason to be there. Those are the expensive "super fan" and big donor seats, so pony up if you want to be there.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
A common practice in business is to carry liability insurance. I certainly carry a $2m policy in the event that an incident takes place on an assignment and I am sued to determine liability. Every time there is a major event at the US Capitol, they require me and all other press organizations to provide a Certificate of Insurance, listing them as an "also insured", so, in the event I drop something onto someone from my perch making images, or otherwise injure someone, that the Congress isn't liable. Further, on the occasions that I have done weddings, venues like the Four Seasons hotel have a contract that protects them, that requires me to provide a COI.
The leagues have language that talks about errant fly balls, and so forth, but with photographers so close to multi-million dollar player-assets, the risk of their being injured is significant.
Examples abound of problems that have happened:
(Continued after the Jump)
When John Iacono of Sports Illustrated laid a 600mm lens down on a slanted roof above a seating section during Game 2 of the 2004 World Series, and it slid off, it apparently missed a direct hit onto a fan, but the debris alledgedly was enough to cause one California baseball fan to sue both Sports Illustrated and the photographer, according to the Boston Hearld.
Sports Illustrated reported an incident where, just before a playoff game a TV cameraman tripped up Yankees first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz. "It's not a problem. It's not going to stop me. It's not that bad.. I've played through a heck of a lot worse." But it could have been a lot worse. And who would be responsible for the millions that player is worth, or for the damage to the playing ability of the team, and lost revenues from a shortened post-season run?
An ESPN cameraman was knocked over, as shown here during the College World Series in 2006, and while it could have just as easily been an injury to a player, it was apparently only the cameraman who came away with limited injuries.
Here is a video showing a photographer causing one of the lead cyclists in the Tour De France to crash.
Here is a video showing someone not paying attention during warmups, and getting crashed into by a runner. From the looks of it, she was probably hurt, but what about the athlete?
On a lesser note, ESPN reported "John Daly was injured trying to stop his backswing after being distracted by a fan taking his picture...". While this may be a risk of the game for the player, and not attributable to the professional photographers on hand, for the inexperienced, it could easily happen with hair triggers, especially if those fingers are inexperienced.
If you were a league attorney, you'd want to ensure that those operating a business in your venue has the proper coverage in the event that these things happen to your athletes and fans. Same for Sports Information Directors and team PR staff. WIth all the security on the field protecting the athletes from errant fans, those entrusted to be within the secure perimeter must also be experienced enough to know what they are doing so as to not get in the way, and when an accident does happen, the proper insurance is in place so that damaged assets can have their diminished values recovered.
Further, leagues which allow overhead photo equipment have very specific requirements for safety cables/cords, power, and so forth. They too should be concerned about other things that could affect their player-assets on the side-lines.
Major organizations like Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and the newspaper conglomerates all carry a standard package of insurance, covering their employees' actions while working. Many professional photographers, who earn a living as a photographer, carry insurance covering their loss of equipment from theft, and so forth, and most all of those packages also include either $1M or $2M in liability coverage, standard.
The risk comes when an organization hires a part-time photographer, where they earn their living from another non-photo-related job, and see shooting sports as a way to get better seats, or make a few extra dollars on the side. Most, if not all of these photographers are not carrying standard insurance coverages, if for no other reason than they can't afford it, or they rely on their homeowner's insurance to cover their cameras, and don't carry a separate business policy. If a photographer is producing work at hometown/youth-league sporting games, and carry insurance for that, that coverage will likely not include protections for the photographer working a stadium or other sporting venue on a regular basis.
It would be as simple as those photographers getting season passes to provide a Certificate of Insurance naming the league, venue, and team as an "also insured", or for the media organization to provide the same. The one additional requirement would be that organizations also certify that their coverage covers contractors. One organization - US Presswire, has the following language in their contract, absolving the organization of all liability that results from their photographers:
Indemnification. Photographer hereby agrees to indemnify, defend and hold Agency, its affiliates and subsidiaries, and their respective officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents, harmless from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, causes of action, settlements, damages and expenses (including reasonable attorney's fees and court costs) arising directly or indirectly from: (i)the breach or alleged breach by Photographer of any representations, warranties, covenants or agreements made by Photographer hereunder; (ii)from any erroneous or inaccurate information supplied to Agency regarding the Images; and (iii) personal injury (including death) or property damage caused by Photographer at any event under credentials issued to Photographer by or through Agency. (emphasis added)
The above language in some form or another, is probably also found in other organizations' contracts, so USPW is not alone in this requirement. However, this type of clause would extract the agency from having to pay, in the event of a lawsuit, and place the league/venue/team in the position of suing an individual photographer, who, for the most part, is "judgement proof." Insuring that your remedies are not limited by a contractual clause between and organization and it's sub-contractors ensures that you can obtain relief in the event of an incident where a loss occurs.
Requiring all photographers to have proper coverage and liability limits is just common sense. In speaking with one of the sub-contractors of one of the major sports leagues' photography departments, the league requires all sub-contractors to carry that insurance. With all the incidents reported above, it's only prudent to require the same of the rest of those working on-field. In fact, not doing so is more than likely accepting an unnecessary liability, and thus, irresponsible.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
"... I don´t have to do the assignment if I don´t want or don´t need to...."
"...I never thought of sticking with them in the long term, really...I´m already in the changing process, since I need to shift my focus to more reliable assignments/clients. Time to grow up..."
Gone are the days where your ability to be hired was based significantly on the source of the tear-sheet/clip. Yet, far too many people think that getting established should be easy - or easier. If you've not put in your time covering the non-glamourous work, learning the craft, then being able to make images at "the big game", is going to mean giving up something - revenue.
(Continued after the Jump)
Just because, however, you understand the argument against spec, doesn't mean you have a valid counter to it. The prevailing attitude is a combination of "I make my money elsewhere, I don't have to care if I am hurting others" combined with "it's not really hurting others...". Others then write "Really the bottom line is this. What I do should not affect you.", but it does. If a photographer is willing to shoot for free, that diminishes the value of the work that everyone else is doing. The argument from drunk drivers caught is "I didn't hurt anyone", and smokers opine about how their smoking isn't hurting others, despite reports to the contrary about second-hand smoke risks. It certainly does increase the costs of healthcare to everyone. Shooting spec does affect others as well.
Another photographer suggested that shooting "on 'spec' meaning give back to the community type of work for some small colleges and high schools. I also made money on them from parents and relatives of the players...", which reveals not the magnanimous nature of the photographer, but rather, the profit-making angle, as he then goes on to say "don't brand me as someone who gives away his work. Just ask my kids if I EVER give anything away and they'll tell you NO in an instant." Thus, this photographer is, in fact, operating a business on the sidelines - turning up to local games and making images with the intent to sell prints. If these are semi-pro or youth-sports leagues he's doing this at, there may be limits on earning income from non-professional athletes.
One photographer, who, after 20 years in the business of information technology, suggested that "perception is reality for everyone", and, were that the case, anarchy would rule the day. Reality is not maleable to one's circumstances or perspective. Just because very smart early historians perceived that the earth was flat, didn't make it a reality.
Further, the attitude is that photographs of pop warner football, to demonstrate ability, just won't cut it. This just isn't the case. In fact, at pop warner games, you can actually make arrangements with coaches and staff much easier to get access into the locker room beforehand, and afterwards, to be able to make the same behind-the-scenes great images that an SI or ESPN photographer can get of the major sports leagues of athletes "preparing for battle", celebrating victory, or wallowing in a bad defeat. Showing that behind-the-scenes coverage along with strong game-time imagery will let prospective paying editors know that you can tell the whole story, not just what happens within your narrow purview of your 400 2.8.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
There is a continuum of those needing credentials to cover sports and news events, they are:
Employees of media outlets on assignment - these are actual employees of the company being paid their normal salary to cover the assignment.
Retained Contractors of media outlets on assignment - these are contractors who regularly serve the company, and the work they are doing is covered by their retainer. These contractors usually have a contract which transfers specific rights and also details liability for the company and for the contractor.
(Continued after the Jump)
Freelance Contractors of media outlets on assignment - these are essentially "day laborers", working only when called, for a set rate, often plus expenses, but not always. These contractors always have a contract which transfers specific rights and also specifies that the contractor is liable for all work done on assignment, and absolves the company from all liability.
Speculative Photographers - These are photographers who, in exchange for a credential, have agreed to cover the event for free, absorbing all expenses associated with the work, in hopes of making images that will be sold and generate enough revenue to cover their costs and generate a profit, or to produce images which they can then use in marketing themselves. Further, they're almost always NOT on assignment for a specific publication, but rather, they are there collecting image assets they hope to sell.
Purchased Credentials - These are photographers who have paid a fee for a "press credential", and the service of having letters written on their behalf from an organization set up for the sole purpose of selling press credential kits and the letter-writing service.
For example:
"Lifetime dues are only $74....IFPO gives you the affiliation and back-up you need to get you and your camera where you want to go. To start you off right, you receive a handsome laminated membership ID card and parchment membership certificate..." which then goes on to promote"THE GAIN ACCESS PROGRAM." The Gold Press Credentials will get you and your camera where you could never go alone - behind the scenes at sports, entertainment and breaking news events. The unique IFPO PRESS program which includes the Press Passport and Badge Credentials is available to IFPO members only. The backbone of the IFPO Press Program is Today's Photographer magazine. IFPO member photographers who participate in the program are on assignment for the magazine and often submit their work to be considered for publication.
While coverage of news events includes a 1st amendment right to be present for media in almost all cases, courts have held that these rights do not wholly apply to entertainment activities such as sports, suggesting that, save for a significantly newsworthy event such as a riot, or other major incident, sports is entertainment, taking place on private property, and governed by restrict-able rules of privacy. Many SID's and team PR offices are familiar with the "pay for access" credentialling offered by IFPO, and others, but some may not be. However, it's critical that freelance photographers on assignment not be confused with speculative photographers "on assignment". Freelancers have been paid by a media outlet to be there, and the likelihood is very good that their images will see ink-on-paper, whereas speculative photographers' images often only go as far as the servers that proffer the images.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
The frequent defense of spec photographers' actions is the "intangibles" defense. Some sentiments that might be being expressed could be - "I can get more work if I can just show that I can shoot well in the big leagues", or, it was actually said that " For me it's a great trade off and I have gotten business in my youth sports photography from people seeing images I shot on spec." This suggests that the purpose for their being there is to garner images to be used in marketing. In other words, you feel you're being 'paid' by being able to have these images because you can then use them as marketing/advertising tools for your business. Yet, the idea that shooting on spec is a "building block towards getting paid", is a loosing proposition for almost all providers, and moreover, you're building a foundation on clients who don't pay up front, only when they like your work. That's not a solid foundation, it's one built on sand.
(Continued after the Jump)
One photographer on the Sportshooter thread wrote "...this type of shooting is basically a third job. I have a day job and photography wise my main source of income comes from youth sports..... I don't have the time to work at this anywhere near fulltime at the pro level. I also don't have the time to try and market the images nor do I have the contacts even if I had the time. The last thing I want right now is a $50K job in full time photography. ...it helps my youth sports business because I actively shooting at the pro level", yet, this photographer would no doubt be upset if the DWC and MWC (Dad's with cameras, Moms with cameras) came along on picture day and started shooting over their shoulder, because that is where their livelihoods come from. What's good for the goose is good for the gander, so too are your actions detrimental. When I've photographed a wedding, and family has done this, I'm less bothered because, while it may hit my print sales a few dollars, I am earning all my major revenue from the package fee. this isn't the case here.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Simply put - aside from storage and server space, and a phone call/e-mail, there is little effort required to procure images from a free source. Yes, after the assignment, there may be an edit done of the work, and a rating of the photographer's overall ability - relevant to potential future asignments. But spec agencies - Cal Sports Media, Icon, and US Presswire are not sharing any of the financial risk of having you cover a game - and they are reaping 50% of the profits.
If, on the other hand, the agency said "we'll guarantee you a minimum of $400 against future sales from the game we assign you to", that would begin to be fair. They participate in the costs of coverage, and you don't see any income beyond the $400, unless they sell $800 in images from a game. After that - if you've got a winning shot, both you and they participate in the revenues from the images.
(Continued after the Jump)
One photographer, who reports working in this way, says "I don't think CSM or Icon really expect too much out of you. They pay for my parking pass and other than gas I'm in and out of the venues with very little cost." Really? Why wouldn't you want to work for an organization that has high expectations of you? The reason they have such little expectations is that, A) there's little (no) cost to doing so, and if you mess up, they're not out anything. Where's the commitment to excellence? The drive to be better, or, dare I say, the best?
Cal Sport's Media's John Green, said "I can’t speak for anyone other than CSM", and then went on to say "We decided to invest our capital, our time, and our heart and soul, no matter how daunting the task, and take control of our destinies, instead of have the terms dictated to us by others. If that’s destroying the industry, then industry be dammed." Yet, the the limited capital you've invested is in paying for the Digital Railroad platform, at $800 a month for 50GB of space an all the photographers you want, plus $50-$100/month per 50-100 additional gigabytes, to store all of the photos you're selling, and the rest is your time, and heart, and soul. Where's your "heart and soul", when trying to think about your photographers? You say "we understand, and value, the hard work of the photographers that contribute to us", yet, you're unwilling to compensate them - give them a commitment of payment, for doing so. How is that valuing them? You write "we charge industry standard rates" - of your clients, generating a profit to you in excess of that of a Getty because Getty has to pay it's photographers and their expenses " and we pay the photographers above industry standard rates", but only when you happen to make a sale for them.
Green suggests " I don’t think a lot of places would be in business if they were paying $400 day rates to their photographers, sad but true." Yes, that's correct if you have the wrong business model in place. As Mark Loundy said later on - with an average of 100 assignments for a freelancer in a year, that equates to $40k gross, less expenses and taxes, leaving you with little in the end.
"it’s not our goal to threaten anyone’s livelihood. Unfortunately, we can’t stop pursuing our goals because they affect your goals and vise versa I’m sure", said Green. Try that same reckless sentiment, as referenced in another piece, as a drunk driver - "it's not my goal to crash my car into yours, but I have to get myself home somehow. I can't not drive home because it might affect you." Just as a civilized society has precluded, by law, drunk driving, so too does a civilized photo community look with rightful disdain at anyone or anything that actually or potentially does harm to the profession.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Well, it seems that YouTube likes to CRUSH the audio of some videos when they compress the piece, and they must really be low on storage, for them to have destroyed mine for the Day 2 highlights.
Enter Brightcove. Brightcove seamlessly (and, I might add, with much more control) allowed me to re-process and present a much better broadcast. The downside? Well, for it to be free, they may have slipped in an ad on the front end.
If you'd just like to watch one segment of the broadcast, with my introduction, those links are after the jump (yeah, it seems there's a limit to the number of players that can appear on a web page from Brightcove at the same time.)
(Continued after the Jump)
Jaincotech
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Jaincotech
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Gautam Pai of Jaincotech discussing their analog to digital services.
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Wacom tablets and an explanation of the mouse vs. tablet debate by Karin Silber.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News - Photoshelter
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Photoshelter's Grover Sanschargrin and Allen Murabayashi discussing the Photoshelter Collection and their Personal Archive.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Triple Scoop Music
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Triple Scoop Music discussing their music and how it can solve photographer problems of permission to use music in their presentations and offerings.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Rololights
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Rololights continuous lighting solutions and Lightools soft egg crates for the lights, explained by Terry Woroniak.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Digital Railroad
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Chris Beauchamp and Tom Tinervin discussing the Digital Railroad Marketplace, Research Network, and their Digital Railroad Archive offerings.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Here's a review of the first day of the PhotoPlus Expo, in New York City. If you'd just like to watch one segment of the broadcast, with my introduction, those links are after the jump (yeah, it seems there's a limit to the number of players that can appear on a web page from Brightcove at the same time.)
(Continued after the Jump)
Nikon
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Nikon
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Steve Heiner of Nikon, demonstrating the D3.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, Livebooks
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Tricia Gellman Holmes of Livebooks discussing their new packages.
PhotoPlusExpo 2007 - Photo Business News, PLUS Coalition
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Jeff Sedlik, CEO of the PLUS Coalition discussing their offering.
Highlights from the 2007 PDN PhotoPlus Expo at the Javits Center in New York City. This excerpt features Sharon Gottula of Hensel USA discussing their products.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
I've launced another blog AssignmentConstruct - this time, it's a breakdown of assignments - lighting details, concepts and objectives, and everything that went into the shoot. There's assignments that have been back-filled going back to January of 2006, with over a hundred already online, and more to come, both in the future, as well as past. This blog was inspired by the "3 minutes" breakdown below, that originally appeared here back in February.
There's a lot happening at PhotoPlus Expo this year, and I am very excited about it all. I'll be spending a fair amount of time at the PLUS booth, giving them a hand. My presentation, sponsored by the good people of ASMP, is first thing Thursday morning - "Best Business Practices", where we'll be giving a number of things away, and discussing several case studies regarding assignments - one from this past Sunday. For more details, hit the Jump.
(Continued after the Jump)
Best Business Practices
How do you operate a successful freelance photography business? How do you determine your rates, negotiate contracts and serve editorial and commercial clients? This seminar will answer these questions, and many more, so you can run your business better and more efficiently. Join John Harrington, a 2007 United Nations Leadership award winner, freelance photographer and author of the best-selling book Best Business Practices for Photographers, in this frank and open discussion. All levels.
Track(s): It's Your Business Date/Time: Thursday, Oct 18 09:00 AM - 12:00 PM Format: 3 Hour Session Level: All Levels Session ID: TA6
Make sure to come up and introduce yourself...I look forward to meeting anyone who reads the blog, or is looking for more insights into how to run your business better.Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
There is a general rule of thumb that says that 80% of the money is held by just 20% of the population. For me, I want those people as my clients. In fact, the next rule is that 80% of your business' income comes from 20% of your clients, and that's certainly true for me.
What about customer service issues?
(Continued after the Jump)
Yes, sadly, 20% of your customers are the ones responsible for a full 80% of the problems/complaints/issues that your customers present.
Further, there is another rule - if 20% of your customers are not complaining about your prices, you're not charging enough.
Concentrating on the 20% of the clients you have and you'll be doing all that you can to continue to maintain 80% of your profits.
Simple?
Yes.
Let me state it another way - if I spend all my time focused on handing out my business cards to people at an event I photograph, the net revenue from those prints will be far less than what I could have earned with all the time making prints and billing them, and collecting $20 here, $40 there, than if I took a billable assignment, or worked to cultivate more assignments during that time.
Or, identifying the class/type of clients who, for you, are responsible for that most profitable 20%, and work to grow them. I can't know which type they are within your business, but it's a truism that applies cross-industry.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Cal Sport Media is looking for experienced sports photographers to cover NCAA/pro sporting events in the Louisiana area. All work is paid on a comission basis (spec). Must have 400 2.8 and ability to transmit live from events. Quality and experience a must. Please email portfolio. Thank you.
Translation:
(Continued after the Jump)
POST JUMP TEXT. You must have a $7,000 lens and $3,000 laptop with $60/mo cellular card to work for us, in addition to every other wide to zoom lens and body (bodies), and we're not going to pay you one red cent for all the time you put in both before the game, during the game, and doing post-production and captioning after the game, or for the use of your equipment. You also have to have done this before (which makes you realize what you're giving up when shooting spec, by the way), and, oh yeah, you have to be good at it. Further, your photos will have a brief shelf life until the next game, so there's a narrow window of opportunity to generate revenue, oh, and you'll be competing for those limited dollars with every other photographer there, many of them actually being paid to be on assignment including the covering of their expenses.
And, when you get a photo sold, we'll take - yeah, 50% of what the photo sells for (or a close approximation of that percentage), and if you have to pay to park at the arena/venue, get hungry/thirsty, and so forth, you're on your own.
No doubt, several people have already responded, giving creedence to the person who coined the phrase "there's a sucker born every minute", even two centuries later.
Or, to bring the mentality into the current generation, with thanks to Forest Gump: "Stupid is, as stupid does." Just because these organizations can get you a credential doesn't mean you should be bending over and shooting for them on spec. There are a number of other ways to get great photos and experience without selling your soul. If they give you a guarantee of $X-hundred dollars a game, plus expenses, paid out against your sales, that's another thing - but they're not doing that. They make no commitment to you, and you're the one literally paying for the privledge of working for them because it will definately cost you actual dollars to go to the venue for the day/evening, not to mention all the required equipment.
Still think Spec is ok? Then see a few of my previous posts:
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
Incase you're going to be in NYC for PhotoPlusExpo next week, you might want to make the rounds of two of the evening parties - Thursday is PhotoShelter's, Friday is DigitalRailroad's. Since after each day's activities, your head just wants to explode with new information, ideas, and equipment you "just have to have", winding down is the best way to do it each night.
RSVP sooner rather than later!
(Details after the Jump)
PhotoShelter party - PhotoShelter A Go Go 2 - Drink, Dance, Network and get your groove on with our go-go dancers at the hottest party of the Expo. Open bar all night long. Bring your promo cards. Hang them on the clothesline. Live your life the way you always wanted to. October 18, 2007, 7 to 11 p.m. Lotus Space 122 W 26th St. (between 6th and 7th Ave) reserve your spot at: http://www.photoshelter.com/mkt/rsvp
Digital Railroad cordially invites you to our party, co-hosted with APA National, on Friday, October 19! Come socialize and network with your fellow photographic community members.
Friday, October 19, 2007 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Sandbox Studio 250 Hudson St., 11th Floor New York City
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
We travel a lot, and carry a lot of equipment. Each case, before we go, is labeled with white gaffers tape with it's dimensions, and weight. This saves us a lot of time when, at check in, the gate agent assumes the equipment case is outside their maximum dimensions (it's not, it's designed to not be), or over 100 lbs (we never do do that either, kinda misses the point). Frequently, with excess baggage charges, it's been less expensive to bring along a second assistant and paid their airfare and get their baggage allowance to fill.
When we are packing, we weight each bag with our scale, ensuring that each are either 98 or 99 lbs. I have been known to put a superclamp or Hensel battery in my carryon bag (since they're not weighed) to hit the 98 lb max, to avoid hitting their 100 lb max, with that wiggle room for their scale being off.
We've set up freight accounts with several airlines, and that can be useful. However, what do you do when you're returning?
Other than remember the exact way everything was packed, I found this neat little inexpensive gadget - the Digital Scale, that's only $25, is compact, and weights in at just 8 oz. Check it out!
(Comments, if any, after the Jump)
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
The mystery photo editor over a the A Photo Editor blog writes (Who is this Dan Winters Fellow?) about the challenges of superiors/colleagues being enamoured with Dan Winters work, "...he loves a photograph he once saw. Not, that he will love the photographs he’s about to get....Could a Photo Directors job get any easier then giving Dan an assignment? Right up to the point where you’re told to give him art direction."
Ah. This message is clear - just because you are a phenominal photographer, with a great style, doesn't mean clients will want to work with you. And, if you make it worse, you make it so that you can't take direction. This is a recipe for a lot of one-off clients, with little repeat business.
(Continued after the Jump)
We are in the business of making pictures. Pictures people want, pictures people need. And those they want and need are the ones that actually fit into a story, or a mocked-up layout for an ad. If you want to try something edgy, fill the request, and then shoot your "something different", and offer it up. In this way, the client has what they need, and if they like your second image, they might go to bat for it. Placing a client in a position where they have to take what you've given them, and only that, places them in an uncomfortable position, against deadline, or additional costs for a re-shoot. Apply, instead, the "one for thee, one for me".
We are also in the business of taking direction. Sometimes it's vague, sometimes (overly) specific. To presume that you wouldn't deign to take direction, or, worse yet, you consider direction something to work opposite of, ensures that you will get a reputation for being difficult to work with, or for people to only work with you when their superiors press for it.
I can't know how Dan Winters works. He may well be a fine and responsive photographer. The mystery photo editor may just be miffed at Dan for other reasons, who knows. But, the overarching point is, you have to be easy to work with, and deliver what the client wants. Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
This past weekend, I was at the White House News Photographer's day-long multimedia program, and near the end of the day, on the panel discussion, several photographers were asking about getting the "important" stories told. Now, these were the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, young, eager, altruistic photographers. They believe that all they have to do is propose an amazing story, and if they do it right - if they talk to the right person, why, anyone would be a fool not to hearald the news from the tree-tops. The panel summarily crushed those thoughts.
The message essentially was, news is business. If your story doesn't sell more papers, more ads, more eyeballs on web pages, it's not going to get accepted by these outlets. Period. The "news is business" mentality isn't new, it's just more obvious these days. There are, essentially, three things you can do to get these vital stories out.
(Continued after the Jump)
1) Save and underwrite the story yourself. The reason that the major outlets won't take you/your idea on, is because they have to commit resources (i.e. money/staff/time) to the project, and they're not willing to take that risk. Since you believe in it so strongly, save up, and then take time to go cover the story. One example is Washington DC photojournalist Jamie Rose, who did just that, with her piece "Abandoned: Kenyatta's Orphans". Rose spent two months away from the political grindstone to make this, and other stories. She continues to spread the word on this important subject herself - one example is her presentation at the Travel and Adventure Workshops in Maine, in the beginning of December. You can learn more about that presentation here. But, that's not the only time she's made a presentation about that material. Jamie worked with The Calvert Foundation on the piece as well. Here's a quote from their webpage:
At Calvert Foundation, it is critical that we illustrate the impact our investors’ dollars have in the US and around the world. The best way to do this is through photographs and stories. We have the benefit of working with highly talented partners and photographers that help us bring to life the great work we support in underserved communities.
Following that, a bio of Rose is listed below those sentiments.
2) Produce the content and publish yourself. No longer are the main news outlets the gatekeepers, precluding you from telling your story. The web has democratized, and dare I say, deputized us all to tell the story. The viral nature of blogs and YouTube make it possible for people to get the news, unfiltered, or, better yet, filtered by issue/subject matter. It then becomes your responsibility to go out to other blogs, other discussion forums and listserv's to drive eyeballs and minds to read/watch your piece.
3) Use your more commericial work to underwrite your "stories that must be told" work. If you are generating $4k a month with a mix of corporate/editorial work, change that mix to increase your revenue to $6k a month by taking more corporate work, and then every 3 months taking two weeks and spending that extra $6k (3 months x +$2k) on your project. Or, change the ratio to be $1k extra a month, and then take one month off a year to go somewhere and use the $11k you saved to tell your story. This is a follow-on to the idea #1 above, but is a more agressive approach, and further, will allow you to travel to far more distant locations. #1 above might allow you to tell a story within a few hundred miles of your home (and believe me, there are many a story to be told that close to home), but this approach will allow you to travel several thousand miles from home.
I further submit that the news outlets have an obligation to the community. That, say they apply the ad-driven/eyeball-counting methodology to 8 out of ten stories that are driven by what the marketplace wants, with a revenue cushion that covers the costs of the remaining 2 out of 10 that are driven by a "what the public should see" approach, where the outlets are motivated by doing good rather than making profits. This model is evident for Bank of America in their loans division. I've done work before for them, and they have a seperate division, the Community Development Corporation, where they make loans and work to develop communities in areas that their more strict, profit-centric loaning division would not touch.
In the end, IF you want the story told bad enough, it will get told, come hell or high water. At what sacrifice? That's your call. You are, in this enlightened age, empowered with the tools and potential audience to make a difference. The only question is, how far will you go?
Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If you've got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.
2 ... 2 ...
So today I've got duty covering the White House, and travelled from there to a hotel for the President's remarks on healthcare. I then spotted, in use by the AFP staff photographer - a bonafide Nikon D3, and handsome D3 strap!
The last event for the day was the President signing the Internet Tax Freedom Act in the Oval Office with a group of Senators and Members of Congress, and there, again, was the D3, hard a work. 
Some wise philosopher once said "you can never predict the future, only your responses to it." 
Man, you can't make stuff like this up! Checking the 
. 
that I wrote about back in June ("
The value of thank you notes - hand written ones - should not be under-estimated. 
A common practice in business is to carry liability insurance. I certainly carry a $2m policy in the event that an incident takes place on an assignment and I am sued to determine liability. Every time there is a major event at the US Capitol, they require me and all other press organizations to provide a Certificate of Insurance, listing them as an "also insured", so, in the event I drop something onto someone from my perch making images, or otherwise injure someone, that the Congress isn't liable. Further, on the occasions that I have done weddings, venues like the Four Seasons hotel have a contract that protects them, that requires me to provide a COI.
There is a continuum of those needing credentials to cover sports and news events, they are:
Cal Sport's Media's John Green, said "I can’t speak for anyone other than CSM", and then went on to say "We decided to invest our capital, our time, and our heart and soul, no matter how daunting the task, and take control of our destinies, instead of have the terms dictated to us by others. If that’s destroying the industry, then industry be dammed." Yet, the the limited capital you've invested is in paying for the 
I've launced another blog 
There's a lot happening at 