Welcome to the student backpage of my website.

In response to the many emails I receive asking me about my career and advice, I've put together this page to cover some of the most frequently asked questions.

The most important necessity, and the single necessity that you can't navigate around, is to take photos. Frequently. Always. Several times a week if you can, several times a month if you even want to be taken remotely seriously as an aspiring or emerging photographer. No number of workshops, amount of information, degree of talent, time around other photographers, quality of knowledge, marketing, equipment, or anything else you can think of will substitute for time behind the camera making images. You can't get around this one, and you shouldn't try (if you want to do this, why would you try?). That said, most of the people who read this page probably aren't shooting enough. For those you in that group (and for the rest of you as well), I suggest a book called The War of Art. I'm sure you can look it up at Amazon. Now, just to be clear, most of the work you do needs to be strongly related to the kind of work you would like to do professionally. For many of you, that means making images, rather than capturing them. If you want to be a portrait photographer, for example, you need to be shooting controlled portraits, not photographing on the Venice Boardwalk. You need to be working on relevant work; you wouldn't spend the majority of your time practicing piano if you want to be a vocalist. Always be shooting. Nothing is more important than that.

Many people seem to be looking for the secret of my success, or that key tip that will get their career going. There is no secret. If you'd like to know more about how I started out, read my bio page and my capabilities information. We all get a few opportunities, I just used mine well and didn't complain that they were less than ideal or convenient.

Just in case you aren't clear on the market, there are far too many photographers and far too few jobs. The great majority of people who try to make it as a professional photographer will fail, and success takes an unusual combination of talent, business sense, dedication and luck. Becoming successful in the fields of fashion, celebrity and music photography is as difficult as becoming a successful actor. If there is another career path that will also make you happy, take it. Don't even consider becoming a photographer unless you are willing to make it the center of your life and see no other choice. It can be done (hey, I did it), but the only way to go in is eyes wide open to the challenge you are about to face.

First off a few words on schooling. Your degree is meaningless. The only thing that matters at all is the work that you do (sans artist statements, explanations, and notes from your mother - the work needs to stand on it's own). For those of you with art degrees from four year schools, more often than not that means you aren't ready to do anything useful in commercial photography. That's ok, you can still learn. For those of you who expect to learn it all on the job, it rarely works that way (it doesn't work that way for doctors or lawyers either, and there are plenty of people in those fields who would love to do what we do). You will probably need to learn the basics in structured environment. All schools are by no means created equally, and many aren't worth your time (much less your money). The best teachers are usually working professionals who teach part time, not because they need the money, but because they like to teach. They do good work. If you want to be a commercial photographer, your teachers should be commercial photographers (not frustrated artists). Most cities in this country don't have decent resources to learn what you need to know, so you may have to travel or move. Here are my resources for you. Most of my evaluations are based on talking with students and faculty at these places, so realize my opinions are just that.

A great one year crash course in commercial photography, about $27K for the year (ten months), the best true photography school I know of:
The Hallmark Institute
(Note: Since they require a medium format camera, skip the Mamiya they offer and get a Hasselblad H1 on your own and be the envy of everybody else for using your good sense.)

A great community college, $25 a unit for CA residents, and better than many much more expensive programs:
Santa Monica City College

Don't go here. They keep raising tuition and class size ($4200 for one seven week classroom filled with 40 students, last I heard), while they ignore the complaints of many of their students. Formerly a family owned school, they were bought by a trade school conglomerate and from what I'm told don't care about anything except their bottom line. They seem to have the best recruitment of any school out there, too bad they don't back it up. Most students leave before they graduate; those are the smart ones. There was even a student class action suit against the school. If you go to their website and click on the faculty page, I think you'll find that 80% of the instructors don't shoot anywhere near the level of a successful working professional photographer (and/or haven't in enough years that the work is clearly dated).
The Brooks Institute
(If anybody at Brooks has a problem with this, good! Convince me otherwise, little would make me happier. Let me cover myself again and remind you that this is only my opinion, not actual fact. Spend your money however you like. This is a good article on the school's practices and here is another that is worth reading.)

An established name in commercial photography that has a good reputation. I've heard varying reports as of late, but under their new Photography head (Dennis Keely, known for both fine art and commercial work) things are improving. Big money, and a much better choice than Brooks:
The Art Center

Weeklong classes from the best in country (including me!), I also take courses once or twice a year and always have (there's one secret to my success). I can't say enough good things about:
The Santa Fe Workshops

Workshops on the East Coast. I don't know much about their extended programs, but they do have very good insturctors for many of their weeklong workshops. At the time I'm writing this they actually have a still life class on the list, which is otherwise nearly impossible to find:
The Main Photographic Workshops

Good basic workshops in LA (and getting a little better every catalog):
Julia Dean Workshops

A great instructor, wherever she is teaching:
Bobbi Lane

Maria Piscopo does some good basic business classes (at a very reasonable fee through Santa Monica City College) and also has lots of valuable info on her site at:
mpiscopo.com

I also have an apprenticeship that might interest you:
Work for Mark

And, of course, my workshops:
Mark would love to have your money

There's more, no doubt, but this is a place to start.

I just discovered this great resource of advice for photographers who are starting out:
http://www.editorialphoto.com/resources/startingout.asp

OK, lots of you want to know about equipment. The future is digital, live with it. Personally, while my lab no doubt misses the checks I'd write for a few thousand dollars every month, I'm fine spending much less on images that will end up digitized anyway. Starting out. I have only one camera to suggest to most of you. The Canon 20D (about $1500 - it's a deal). Think about getting a 50mm lens and Sigma 24-70 or 24-60 f/2.8 zoom ($400-ish) as a good basic kit, a Lexar 1 gig 80x card ($100), and a firewire card reader. Chances are you don't yet need a system with a five digit price tag if you're getting started, unless you are either rolling in money or like to financially sabotage yourself. Here are a few articles that also apply and will finish out what I have to say on the subject. In the end, you'll have to work your asses off and most of you will still fail. There aren't any shortcuts or easy answers. Your success is something you will have to create for yourself.

Time to add to this. First off, the Canon 5D has a full frame sensor and almost 13 megapixels at around $3,000. It isn't necessary to buy this camera, but if finances aren't at issue then it is a very good value. I'm also happy that Nikon has finally put out what I would consider to be a high quality camera at a reasonable price. The D200 is about $1,700 with ten megapixels. I still favor Canon as they have a track record of staying on the cutting edge and produce full frame cameras (something Nikon is not likely to ever do), but for if you have respectable Nikon glass that makes switching a large expense (as I do) this camera represents what I consider to be an extraordinary value.

Draft Version - Not for Publication

INSIGHTS INTO STARTING A CAREER IN PHOTOGRAPHY
The First Steps

If you’re reading this article, I probably don’t need to tell you how challenging it is to become a working, successful professional photographer. You already know that the odds are against you, and you probably don’t care (or, care a great deal, but intend to beat those odds).

I’ve been working as a photographer for fifteen years, and doing it on my own for nearly all of that time. I have some perspective on the subject and would like to share a few ideas for getting started.

You probably already know that you need a plan of action. And, if you are like most people, you have little idea how to create or implement that plan.

You will need to decide what you want to do and where you want to do it (both long and short term), gain expertise, get your business started, and market yourself.

The first thing to ask yourself is what kind of photography you see yourself doing on a long term basis. A still life photographer generally has a very different career than a fashion photographer. You may not know exactly what you would like your career to look like in ten years time, but having a goal in mind will give you a place to start and a guide for moving your career forward. These decisions will generally influence where you decide to live and work (a generalist may do just fine in a smaller city, but if you want to shoot celebrities you really need to be in Los Angeles or New York).

Smaller cities generally allow you to do a greater variety of work, but often limit you in other ways (such as the type and scale of your assignments). Bigger cites really support specialization, but are generally highly competitive. Photo District News often does city profiles, and would be a good resource to start looking at various areas. You can also call local photographers and ask about the working climate (you will need to call several in any area to get a balanced perspective). You need to make the choice of what you want to do and where you want to do it in tandem.

Now that you have made that decision, it is time to look at what separates where you are from where you want to be. No doubt you will need skills and experience that you don’t yet have. You will also need to make money. Now it is time to explore those experiences that will get where you want to go and, as much as possible, satisfy your desire to create imagery. This will often include being a photo assistant, working with smaller clients, and the editorial market. The question you need to ask yourself is what work is appropriate to your skill level that people are currently hiring photographers for. Sometimes the path is somewhat linear; for instance you want to shoot for Vanity Fair, so you start out by working for the local weekly. You might also choose to do actor’s headshots and move into the editorial market later on. For another photographer, doing portraits of kids for their parents might be an excellent precursor to doing advertising work with kids. Choose what you enjoy, and what you are good at. There are generally a number of roads to every destination.

When you have some ideas about what kind of work to go after in the beginning, it is time to put together a portfolio of that kind of work. That very often means shooting images that look like the kind of assignments you would get. For example, if you want to do editorial portraits and have decided that shooting for business trade magazines is an avenue that you feel comfortable with, it is important to have images of business people. Even though you may only see it as a small leap for an art director to see that your great portrait of a tattoo artist would easily translate into a portrait of a researcher at a biotech firm, that art director generally will hire the photographer who has the work most like what they need. That also means that you should include the simpler images in your portfolio as well. While it may seem obvious to you that if you can shoot a complex, highly stylized image, a simple image on white is easy, your client’s may not feel the same way. There are many beginning photographers who can only work in one style and aren’t able to do the basic things well. Your more creative images might be what get you remembered, but showing the client images as close as possible to what they will hire you for is what will get you the work.

It is important to establish yourself as a business. In addition to the legal ins and outs (business licenses, tax issues, insurance, and the like), a solid image and way of doing business is essential. I suggest you begin with your logo. This is the visual representation of who you are that will follow you for many years. It is worth hiring a good graphic designer (or perhaps a design student who is a the top of their class) to do something for you. It should be good enough that it looks like it belongs to an established company. Keep in mind that your clients handle graphics for a living and can tell a good logo from a simply adequate one. Simple is usually better. Get good business cards printed up (envelopes, letterhead and mailing labels can be done in the same style on your computer - although it is worth it to have those designs done in conjunction with your logo). Begin with the style of your images, then make your logo, your portfolio, and any other materials match. Consistency is important and will make you look more professional and be remembered. Even if somebody doesn’t remember your name, they might remember that bright red square on the top of your logo. I have changed my design a number of times over the last fifteen years, but the logo is exactly the same and people remember it when they see it.

Today, your most important portfolio is your web site. Many beginning photographers make the mistake of trying to wow with lots of flash, music, and complicated graphics. The best sites, I believe, are simple, professional, and allow somebody to see your work easily and quickly. You should also have your own web address (yourname.com, if it is easy to spell, or something else that is versatile enough to work for you over the rest of your career). A simple web gallery created in Photoshop CS is often better than many of the poorly designed sites beginning photographers hire beginning web designers to create for them. As you do new work, update the site. Many clients will never see your printed portfolio (I don’t even have one, anymore) and will make the decision about who to hire off of your web site.

It is also smart to find a mentor. Somebody who is already successful (and well past where you are right now). Don’t ask them for work, just ask them for help. They will know your market, they will know what to charge, they will have more objectivity about your work than you ever could. It is also advisable to join the appropriate professional organization in your area (APA is stronger in some areas, ASMP in others, and family and wedding photographers tend to belong in PPA).

Next, you will need to identify who might hire you. There are many ways to do this, including web searches, resources such as the Red Book (a book for the advertising community), business journal listings, and even newsstands to look for magazines. There are also lists you can buy, but while they are often very good, by their very nature there are also many other people contacting the same names.

When are ready to show your work, the hard part begins; you have to get in front of those people who are in a position to hire you and make them aware of your talents. There are many photographers out there, so just about anything you do will be difficult. The trick here is to find those kinds of promotion that you, personally, do best at. Typical methods include calling potential clients, sending mailings, meeting them at professional functions, and using you personal network. Picking up the phone requires a very special kind of drive and organization (you need to keep a positive attitude, and be very consistent with follow-ups). Mailings require real creativity and great imagery to get noticed, and almost always work better as part of a consistent campaign. Networking groups and chambers of commerce work well for some photographers, but do require a more business like attitude and social skills. Personal networks exist for most of us. Think about who you (or your family) knows, or have known in the past, who might need what you do. For instance, your family attorney may need a headshot, or the religious institution where you grew up might need images for their newsletter. Make a list. Some of the people on that list might not get a call for several years (I had a friend who did an ad campaign she wasn’t ready for and lost what could have been a good long term ad agency connection - wait until you can handle the work before you ask for it). There are photographers who have built careers on meeting people at parties, and personal charm. There are many approaches. Even better yet, consider new ways to contact people. Begin by understanding what methods work for others, and why. Then look at your market and consider other ways to get noticed. While your idea may be a second best to more traditional methods, the fact that you will be one of only a few people working that way could more than offset that difference. Find the way in which you connect with people best and apply that to your marketing.

This is an ongoing process, as you move forward you will find that your long term goals change, and you will need to reevaluate. Success is not a place, it is a journey.

(In the next article we will look at how to handle to bid and win projects.)

SUCCESS

For many of us who are creative professionals, making money (especially lots of money) can feel like a confusing and somewhat schizophrenic process. In fact, much of what we think we are supposed to do for our business runs so against what feels comfortable for us, that we never actually do it, despite the best of intentions.

There is a better approach. For example, chances are you already know five things you “should” do to bring in more business (i.e., cold calling, sending mailings, going to events, developing your website, etc.). Simply choose those things that you are most conformable doing. If you are a party girl, find the parties where your clients tend to be and meet them there. If you prefer to stay home and stuff envelopes, do that. Pick a few things and do those well. It’s very liberating; I gave up cold calling years ago and still do very well in a tough field.

With that in mind, here are a few more ideas to help you run a more solid business that are specifically about changing what you do without adding a lot of work in the process. They aren’t all easy, so begin by doing what you feel you can. A lot of them have to do with managing your money:

• The fact that you have the money, doesn’t mean you can afford it.
If you have $10,000 in the bank, you can walk into your favorite store and buy nearly any item on the shelf. The thing is, you can only spend your money once, and then it's gone. People who have money only have it because they have specifically not bought all of those things that they can afford. People with money almost always ask what it costs; the phrase “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it”, was probably coined by a sales person behind on their rent.

• Live below your means.
Cut your spending by 10% (or more, if you can). If you can’t possibly do that now, then when your situation improves don’t spend that money, save it instead. That means you keep your old car and apartment, even though you can afford better. What you put in the bank will be there for you if things get tough (and if things do get tough, you won’t have that more expensive rent to pay). That savings could eventually put you in a position to purchase a home some day and stop paying rent.

• Opportunities are rarely convenient.
They also don’t announce their presence at the top of their lungs, come knocking at your door, or rearrange themselves to order. Very often they are awkward, poorly timed, require extra work, and you ought to think yourself damn lucky to get them (because they are rare and valuable). I know of a photographer who at one time insisted she wouldn’t stoop to shooting for Target (never mind that she only worked about once a year), she was about Neiman Marcus. As far as I know, she still isn’t working. Your first projects may involve subject matter that isn’t interesting to you, schedules that cost you more in lost time at your day job than they actually pay, and other very real obstacles. See them for what they are; not gold plated opportunities, but oysters with rare pearls underneath the goo.

• Keep your word.
Do what you say, in the way you say you will do it, and deliver it on time and on budget. On the other hand, if your clients change the job parameters, you will need to reevaluate based on current information.

• Get it in writing.
When you thought you agreed to spend one day making six creations for a flat fee, and your client says there are still three hours to go in your day and you’d better do another few creations with the time they paid for, things get complicated. Be very clear in advance about what is and what is not included. Try and cover the contingencies. Be specific. Don’t ever hide what your clients might find important. If things start to go south, be reasonable. Be fair. Don’t allow yourself to be bullied. If the paperwork is on your side, then everything you give them is a gift they will hopefully appreciate.

• If you take the job, do your best.
Smaller jobs and smaller budgets might mean using fewer resources, or using a less complicated solution. They never mean putting in less effort, or caring less about the results. Your name will be on it, that’s the thing to never forget.

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