Rob Haggart at APE has an interesting post today about calling photo editors HERE. I suggest keeping an eye on the comments because an interesting back and forth might develop between the “sellers” and the “buyers”. Both groups read this blog and you can sometimes glean some useful information. This is an age old issue that comes into play with any seller/buyer equation and frankly, one that seems to be especially frustrating for photographers and art buyers. Mostly, I assume, because most people in this business are not really used to a positive buyer/seller relationship. One where the buyer wants and needs the expertise of the seller and sees the direct benefit of their investing capital in the sellers product. With photography, it’s almost adversarial sometimes. Buyers resent you calling because there are so many shooters out there making calls and some photographers take “NO” personally so, resent making sales calls.

The reality is, if you’re on the buying end, there are way more sellers than you can ever give time and business to. More so with photography because most photographers think they can shoot anything (including me:)) and most PE’s look for some specific style or direction so, if they don’t think you fit, they’re even less interested than they would be if you were a fit for the style they like / want.

The problem is, as a photographer, you need to be working the phones/email/marketing of some sort everyday to make a living. Especially if you’re young, new or trying to do something different than what you are doing now. Since most of the PE and Art Buyer types are hammered non stop with email, postcards, calls etc. it’s tough for them to wade through and I feel for them. But, it’s not likely going to stop. Frankly, if you’re a photographer and you’re sitting around waiting to be “found” you better have a trust fund or a wealthy spouse because, you’ll never make a living, especially shooting editorial.

Everyone hates spam, sales calls and the like but, it’s part of the equation. If you’re a buyer, this is one of the things you have to suffer through. If you’re a seller, it’s part of what you have to do to make a living. I try to be as upfront as I can be by saying “look, I realize your time is valuable, so is mine. I’ve looked at your magazine/website/past work etc. and I really think my work is good enough to be there and I’d like a shot at doing something for you. Would you take 5 minutes to look at my book/website/whatever and if you don’t agree, I’ll scratch you off my list of people to call/spam etc. If you do agree but have nothing for me right now, let’s agree on a way to communicate occasionally going forward that’s convenient for both of us.”

It’s not perfect and, if every PE gave every shooter this 5 minutes, there would no mags on the racks to look at but, this works remarkably well for me because, it’s honest and to the point. Some of my best clients are the ones I chased for a while, got them to give me a quick appraisal and then agreed on how to stay on their radar. In short, you have to keep making calls so, be direct, be honest and be confident. You’re not going to hit a home run every time but, you’ll never hit anything if you don’t swing at all.

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