For more than thirty years I have been a photojournalist.  I started working for newspapers as a staff photographer and now work as a freelancer for the media and corporate clients.

Many times, the public relations office is not ready when I show up. Most PR professionals love to show how much free space they got for their company in a magazine. They show this to the company leaders and then show them how much it would have cost to buy that space. This helps with their job security.

The smartest PR people know the value and are prepared. They treat this moment as if they hired an advertising agency to produce an advertisement for them.

Take advantage of this free publicity and invest in it. You will be glad you did.

While a photojournalist is trained to be truthful and unbiased, it is difficult not to respond to negative or positive behavior towards them. If you want the best story on you, then I have some tips for you.

Tips

1. Have your subject ready. Often your photojournalist has multiple assignments during a day. You not being ready and delaying them will have them rush your coverage. If computers and technology are part of the subject, be sure to have them running before the photographer arrives. Too many times I have arrived nothing is setup and ready to go. I have spent 4 hours waiting for a researcher to set everything up.
2. Know where the subject is located. Too often I will show up at a corporation and be led around a building or property while they are trying to find the room, we are to meet the subject. Do this before the photographer arrives. It shows you value their time.
3. Scout for options. Go a few days early and work with the subject. What is the best setting to help tell the story? Are there items that you may need to collect before the photo shoot? Be careful not to remove everything. Photographers are sent to you to capture the subject in their environment.
4. Take a few photos yourself. Evaluate the photos you take for what is in the background and can we clean that up for example. Check to see if you have enough room to move around while taking photos. Too often the subject is in such a small room that photographer cannot move to get a good angle. See if you can take photos without a flash. This may alert you to some lights that are burned out and need new bulbs.
5. Plan for parking. Often magazine photographers will bring lighting gear. Don’t expect just a photographer to show up with just a camera and on camera flash. If they are showing up with a cart of gear, know where the elevators are in the building and where the handicap entrance is located. This will help them avoid carrying material up and down stairs. If you need a key to access the elevator, get the key before the photo shoot is to start.
6. Pay attention to clothing. Solid colors are better than patterns. Avoid white due to the difficulty of reproduction process for printing press. The one time you may want white is where the white lab coat helps add information to the photo. Avoid red if there is more than one subject. Red is such a dominate color that it makes the eye go to it first. This is why it is used for emergency lights and signs. Fine patterns like haring bone can create moiré patterns. (Here is a link to an earlier blog I did on clothing for portraits.)
7. Have business cards or printed names and titles of the subjects to help with accurate spelling.
8. Plan adequate time for the photojournalist. Let the photographer know how much time the subject has for them. Maximize their time if it is very small amount by saying the subject only has 30 minutes and since it is a limited time, why don’t we just let you start and anything I can help you with just ask.  This is better than you talking and taking away valuable time of them shooting. You can always help them with information after the shoot or if you know you have limited time be sure they know they can come a few minutes early and you can help them prepare.

These are just a few of the things that I have noticed over the years that would really help me get the shot needed for the media outlet. 

Think of yourself as a host or hostess in your home entertaining guests. Make the photojournalist feel welcomed and treated as your guest, because they are your guest.

One of the hot topics on SportShooter.com these past few years has been USPresswire. While many are upset with them, they are just like Getty or Walmart. Their business model is working but affecting many professional sports photographers. 

Much of this blog is based on reading Richard Anthony D’Aveni’s book Beating the Commodity Trap: How to Maximize Your Competitive Position and Increase Your Pricing Power. Please read it for a more comprehensive understanding of avoiding being a commodity than I am giving here.

D’Aveni says, “The arrival of a dominant low-end player shakes up the industry’s market power, as Southwest did in the airline industry, Dell once did in computers, or Walmart is still doing in retailing. It is tough for incumbents to compete with these disruptive players using their existing cost structures.”

These are the signs of a Deteriorating Market for D’Aveni

• A dominant low-cost competitor has emerged in your market, disrupting the status quo.
• The economies of scale enjoyed by the disrupting company make it impossible for you to compete on price.
• Customers are less willing to pay for additional benefits such as superior service and industry expertise.
• Your margins are falling, and you are losing market share despite lowering prices and product benefits to catch up with the competition.

We have to concede the low-end price market and step aside. Photographer John Harrington talks about a client who chose another photographer for something he did annually for them and was disappointed. When they returned to John the following year, he realized he had a niche. John got the job and raised his price, knowing they didn’t want to get burned again.

There isn’t a quick fix to the deterioration of prices paid for sporting event coverage.

I do think where there are no spec shooters and lowball photographers, shooting events are places for profit to be found.

 We will become like moths drawn to a flame if we are not careful. Remember the saying, “Don’t fall in love with the car.” It will make it difficult for you to make a sound business decision.

If you have fallen in love with standing on the sidelines of sporting events with your camera, you are likely to contribute even more to the industry’s deterioration. You will also deteriorate your bank account to support your habit.

If your offering (photography) is similar to that of a large group of photographers, then you are just a commodity, and the low price will always get the job. You can’t tell the difference between one company’s product and another’s. The price tag is generally the only difference when something is viewed as a commodity.

If you cannot distinguish yourself from other photographers in a way that customers desire, you will have difficulty making a living. Due to saturation, you may have to leave a specific niche.

My stepson looked at his first paycheck and asked, “Who is FICA?” This was his first hard lesson about where the money goes – the cost of doing business.

Much of the money we pay for a service doesn’t stay with the service provider.

According to Dun & Bradstreet, “Businesses with fewer than 20 employees have only a 37% chance of surviving four years (of business) and only a 9% chance of surviving ten years.” Of these failed businesses, only 10% close involuntarily due to bankruptcy. The remaining 90% close because the business was unsuccessful, did not provide the level of income desired, or was too much work for their efforts.”

So many good photographers have to turn to other ways to make a living, not due to a lack of photographic skills but because of poor business practices.

Two things caused their businesses to fail:

1. They didn’t know the actual cost of doing business and
2. They failed to promote themselves.

In 2001, I left a staff position and started full-time freelancing. Over the past 11 years, my business has averaged a 20% annual growth rate. Many of my colleagues ask me how I do it.

I often speak to photographers about business practices, many of whom are college students. When I teach workshops on the business of photography, we conduct practical exercises to help participants.

First, I require students to calculate the cost of living for a year. I’ve found that even the older students who have been on their own for a time typically do not know what it costs them to live.

Regardless of profession, if you do not know your cost, you cannot estimate your value in the marketplace.

Once you’ve known your cost and decided how much net income you want to earn, it is easy to determine what to charge for each project to reach that goal.

Take a moment and think of everything needed to do your job. Here are some categories from the National Press Photographers’ Association list I use. Just substitute your terms for similar types to figure out your annual cost of doing business.

• Office or Studio
• Phone
• Photo Equipment
• Repairs
• Computers (Hardware & Software)
• Internet (Broadband, Website & email)
• Auto Expenses (Lease, Insurance & Maintenance)
• Office Supplies
• Photography Supplies
• Postage
• Professional Development
• Advertising and Promotion
• Subscriptions & dues
• Business Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Legal & Accounting Services
• Taxes & Licenses
• Office Assistant
• Utilities
• Retirement Fund
• Travel
• Entertainment (meals with clients)

Add your desired net income to your annual business expenses, and divide that total by the number of projects you reasonably expect to do in a year. The answer gives you the average per project you must charge clients to pay those bills, stay in business, and live the way you want.

Now you must determine whether the marketplace will sustain this charge.

On average, you need to charge $1,000 per project to reach your goal. If the services you provide are available elsewhere, people will shop for price. If the going rate in your community is $1,200, you are in good shape. If the going rate is $900, you need to cut your overhead—you’re hoping for income, business expenses, or both.

The key to earning what you want comes down to service. You must be able to demonstrate to potential clients that you offer something more if you want/need to charge more than other photographers do.

I have found that I need to know about the subjects I cover more than other photographers do. In addition, I deliver my images much faster than most others. I also listen carefully to what clients say they want and try to meet their needs and go beyond their expectations.

It was a revelation when I first determined my cost and income goals, just as my stepson’s response to FICA and other deductions from his pay was for him.

I do my best to keep my overhead low, but even close to 50% of my gross goes to business expenses. It was shocking to see what I must charge to pay the bills. This knowledge was the fire I needed to put in the time and effort to identify ways to increase my value to clients and to attract those clients by seriously marketing myself.

Do you know what you cost?