Photographers who are married to their Web sites and
refuse to build a print book into their sales program are con-
vinced that buyers don’t want to see them, but Chris Peters, an
art buyer at Colle+McVoy in Minneapolis, feels it’s essential that
he meet photographers in person.
“I love meeting photographers. It gives me an opportunity
to see who the person is behind the images. Meeting the photo-
grapher gives me the chance to see what their personality is
like. I then have a sense of what they might be like to work with.
This is a huge piece of information for me that I can’t get off a
Web site, no matter how much bio info I read,” he notes.
When asked if it’s hard to get an appointment with him,
Chris laughs. “Absolutely, we have so little time to do all the
many tasks we have. We established a portfolio-drop program as
we always need to see new work and we don’t always have the
time for in-person showings,” he admits. Visits, however, are still
encouraged.
“It’s the photographer who keeps after me and is patient
that gets in,” he informs. “It’s not personal. We don’t try to be
difficult; we just have so much going on. When a book comes in
or a photographer has an appointment with me, it’s really just
luck as to which art director is available at that moment to see
them. It’s really all about timing.”
Many photographers cite the difficulty of getting an appoint-
ment as a reason not to try.
“I rarely have a tough time getting enough appointments,
as I just stay on the phone until I am booked up,” says Bonicelli.
Her opinions are mirrored by those of Susan Austrian.
Austrian, a former rep that has developed and runs a successful
portfolio delivery service for photographers in Minneapolis,
says, “It’s definitely tougher than three and way tougher than
ten years ago to get an appointment, but the appointments are
definitely there. I need to call more people than ever before to
get in, but my calendar is always full.”
Bonicelli adds, “At times some contacts are tougher to
reach than others.” The solution she offers? “Have lots of
people to call and if a contact or an agency seems extra hard to
reach, give them a break and move on. Get back to them in a
few weeks and see if they are any more accessible. And never
take it personally!”PART4 / TOOLSChapter 21.qxd 6/25/07 7:22 AM Page 134