Best Business Practices for Photographers [11]
I long ago gave up trying to value my photography based on where it appeared. Instead, I value my images by what's in them; what they convey; and how people respond, react, pause while viewing them, or, perhaps, are enlightened by them.
I wrote Best Business Practices for Photographers not only to help photographers see the significant intrinsic value in the work they produce and to minimize their need for validation by photo credit, but also to help them to see how they can evolve their business model. At best, I hope this book helps photographers so that the work they do becomes a more profitable and personally satisfying experience. At the least, I hope this book helps photographers remain in business so that, in the long run, they hopefully can achieve the former objective.
In the documentary American Masters series on the legendary photographer Richard Avedon, details about his 1966 contract with Vogue were reported. "As the presence of the real world rose into his fashion work...and needing to support his personal work, Avedon accepted Vogue's unprecedented million-dollar offer.... [H]e learned to separate his personal and professional work." Avedon, in his own words, went on to say, "There is no downside to my commercial photography. I am so grateful that I have the capacity and the ability to make a living and support my family—which is the definition of being a man for my generation—and to support my studio, support my special projects by doing advertising."
As you hold in high regard Adams, Newman, Avedon, and others, remember that they held on to their rights and regarded what they do as something worthy of continuing—by having it sustain them spiritually and financially. So let this book guide and encourage you to be as successful as possible in your professional work, if for no other reason than to support your own special projects.
Chapter 1 You Are a Business-Now Let's Get to Work!
When this book was first written, it was written for the professional photographer. Since then, however, countless people have selected it as a resource to start their business right and to use in classrooms across the country and around the world. For the professional photographer, it will serve as a helpful guide where you're looking to improve your business, as well as a refresher and an affirmation of what you are doing right. Although it was not originally written for the aspiring photographer looking to get into the photo business, many people have shared with me as they have started their business that it has been an invaluable resource. So, whether you are a seasoned professional or an aspiring photographer, the message of this book, the second edition, is time-tested and was well received by many of your colleagues already. Rest assured, the topics covered in this book will be crucial to your longevity and staying power.
One thing that's not taught to most photographers graduating from college is the skills necessary to be in business as a photographer. The notion that a photography school would fail to teach its students all the necessary skills to pay back their student loans and remain in their chosen profession seems to me incredibly shortsighted. More recently, some forward-thinking schools are beginning to see the writing on the wall and are instituting a required class or two. I have heard from dozens of schools with a photography program that this book is required reading. If you are a student in just such a class, kudos to your professor. Hopefully, this book is one of several that are required reading on this subject. Throughout