assignment that calls for a lovely, warm family moment, he is
not calling in books of surfer dudes surrounded by sunsets
created with deep saturated postpro colors.
Clients have tons of visual options to draw imagery from
and their job is to call in books that speak (visually) to the
assignment at hand. Make sure your work has a distinct style
and enough depth (many samples) in that area in order for
your contacts to know that your work is right for their clients.Lie: Why Bother Doing Any
Marketing, Assignment
Photography Is No Longer
a Viable BusinessI have heard this statement often in the last several years and
it scares me because it is not true! Our industry, along with
countless other industries, has been hard hit by a poor economy
and shifts in the marketplace. Look at the world of medicine, of
law, and even of civil service. The shifts in each of these worlds
have been tremendous. If you need more evidence that all
industries are always shifting, consider this: When was the last
time you saw a car phone? Not a cell phone, a car phone. Think
fax machines? You think their sales are as strong as when they
came onto the market? The salespeople for those products have
shifted their focus and, if they are smart, they have moved onto
selling other products.
Our market has shifted dramatically. You do not need to
leave photography; you do, however, need to be aware of
the shifting needs of your clients and adjust your processes
accordingly. Clients are demanding more of assignment
photographers.
Relationships do look different and you are competing with
stock and royalty-free images. However, assignment photography
is alive and well. There are shooters doing very well throughout
the country in many different disciplines and across geographic
markets. Shooters are in the black, with many reporting high six-
figure incomes and more than you would think billing over a
million a year. This may not be the easiest time to be a photogra-
pher, but our business is an extremely viable one!CHAPTER20 / TRUTH, LIES, ANDSELF-PROMOTIONChapter 20.qxd 6/25/07 7:22 AM Page 131