Presentation

Below is my script for my presentation, and the coordinating slides with simple images to illustrate my points.

'Presentation Script.

1. Good morning/afternoon, I have chosen the editorial brief for the past six weeks and will be sharing with you what I’ve been up to. I chose this brief mainly to take more photos and build my on portfolio, but also to learn about the industry and how to get published. I hope you find some of what I say interesting and I don’t bore you to death!

2. The briefs we were set were very different to my usual style, forcing me to take an approach I perhaps wasn’t comfortable with. I never take photos of people and have done so for each mini brief we were set. Working to set briefs was difficult yet could happen very often within editorial publishing so I was happy to take on the challenge.

3. This series, which could be used to advertise the shop in Affleck’s Palace, was most challenging, as working with the public can be daunting for anyone. However I was pleased to have engaged with the theme as communicating with the public is a very important factor of working as a photographer.

4. This abstract portrait is based on the theme of anarchism, with the intention to provoke ideas of drug use and the glamorisation of it. I would aim for this image to be published in some form of newspaper or magazine article on a subject relating to this, and feel it could reach a wide range of publications.

5. Obviously at this level we have more creative freedom, so I managed to sneak an animal into a fashion based photograph(!), however when researching I came across publications that had very strict submission requirements, limiting the choices for the photographers, something I’m sure many of you may resent the thought of.

6. For example, this is a canon EOS based magazine, therefore understandably only accepting images taken on a canon EOS camera. An article by the technical editor stated that they are very specific when selecting images, due to the content of the publication and the audience, which is important to note when trying to get published.

7. Lindsay Alder, a fashion photographer who took this image, speaks in an article about the importance of planning when trying to get published. It is important to be individual and stand out as a photographer, yet fit into the magazines themes without repeating features within past issues. She also talks about when contacting a publication, the importance to know it well, along with its audience.

8. I bared this advice in mind when I took it upon myself to send emails to photographic editors of wildlife publications. I asked similar questions to all, about how they commission photographers, as I didn’t expect many replies and so thought it best to ask the same question to a few places.

9. Of the four I chose to email, by the very next day I had two replies. Surprisingly, one of these was from the BBC, who didn’t have a lot to answer my question with but supplied me with a link to a page on their website with information on how to try and get your images published for the BBC.

10. The other email was from Cheshire Wildlife Trust. I emailed them mainly because I am from Cheshire, but again didn’t expect a reply. However, choosing to email them turned out to be a good decision, as it may have opened doors for me. The editor who replied told me that they don’t currently commission photographers, for financial reasons, yet went on to say that they often carry features from those willing to work for free.

11. He then suggested that I contact him should I wish find out more about their features and potentially work for them, also asking to see my portfolio. He is a wildlife and conservation photographer himself and this is one of his images that I found on his website, tommarshallphoto.co.uk.

12. I have always been reserved about emailing people, and therefore have limited my own photographic opportunities. This experience demonstrated the importance of communication in the art world.  By simply putting ourselves out there we can develop professional relationships that can lead to published work and our names and images becoming more well known.

13. Another way of getting our images known is through stock photography, which can cover almost any photographic area. At first I thought that stock photography seemed to undermine a photographer’s creativity, due to its accessibility, yet it is so often used within publications that it is an important area to look into.

14. Although there is such a variety available on stock libraries, it is important to remember that there will always be gaps in the market. By keeping an eye on the stock market along with directly contacting publications, the opportunity to fill these gaps may arise. Again this reinforces the importance of communication within the photographic world.

15. I came across an article about how to get your images onto travel image libraries, which gave some tips that could come in helpful. They were quite obvious points such as ensuring to choose the right library and to be ruthless when selecting images, however the simple things can sometimes make the biggest difference.

16. Another thing I researched was photographer rates. It is hard to price ourselves as students, and it is important to gain none-paid work for experience. Yet it is also important not to be taken advantage of just because we are students. We should have set rates for paid work and stick to them.

17. There are cost factors for us all to include such as equipment costs and travel, with even more dependent on your area of specialism, for example if you need to hire models, studios etc. Pricing is obviously very different for everyone, as we all have individual finical needs. Whilst researching, I came across an article with tips on how to set pricing.

18. The main points on this article involved planning, as does every aspect of a photography career. Pricing your work and service takes a lot of thinking about as you take into account your expenses, whilst keeping in mind the audience of your work and the kind of clients you want to reach.

19. Before taking on this brief, I knew little about where I would go after University. All I knew was the kind of photography that I enjoy and that it is quite difficult to get into, which was understandably off-putting. However after this brief I have learnt enough to feel much more optimistic about my photographic career and how to started.

20. I will be looking further into contacting publications and will hopefully remain in contact with Tom Marshall from the Cheshire Wildlife Trust, and may even look into working more with portraiture. On that note, I hope I have shared something new and thank you all very much for listening.'