Lessons learned from the NPPA Business Blitz

The nuts and bolts of running a business is he most important thing you need to be a successful independent photographer. When you first start your business more than 95% of your time will be doing things like marketing, estimates and negotiating with clients.

National Press Photographers Association has been putting on business seminars not just for their members, but for anyone who is interested.

The entire event was giving photographers information to help empower them in business practices. At no point did any of the speakers show their award winning photographs and talk about how they made their pictures.

Greg Smith, independent photographer, NPPA board member and chairman of the business practices committee.

A few years ago under Alicia Calzada's time as the NPPA president, she along with Greg Smith worked on business practices for the membership. Greg is the one who created the NPPA Business Calculator, which is referenced by everyone teaching today photographers how to run their business.

Greg walked everyone through the different fields of the calculator helping to explain why each of these fields needs to be considered to come up with a working budget for the "Cost of doing business."

Beer Money or Rent Money

One of the problems many staff photographers continue to have is that they are often thinking of doing side jobs for "beer money." The problem is the following week many of these staff photographers are being laid off and their business model of working for "beer money" and using company gear will not work when they have to buy their own gear, pay for all the costs of running a business and then have enough money left for now their basic needs like "rent."

Mickey Osterreicher, NPPA Attorney

Mickey Osterreicher told us over and over "its complicated." He helped to give us a better understanding of copyright, contracts and how to negotiate with clients. He helped to clear up that we need to register our images every three months and not every ninety days. Come February when you have less than ninety days you can get caught where some of your images are not protected.

We learned that their are four issues that need to be addressed for a photograph to meet the "Fair Use" requirements.

1. Purpose
2. Nature
3. Amount and Substantiality
4. Effect of the use

We learned that the caps of per image violation was $150,000 which will be divided by the parties that misused on image, if they are all related.

We learned the differences between copyright and license. Understanding this was how we were able to negotiate more effectively with clients.

We learned what must exist for a contract.

Offer + Consideration + Acceptance = Contract

He even helped us to understand that you can have an oral contract, but this depends on where you live.

Deb Pang Davis, Assistant Professor, Syracuse University

Deb Pang Davis explained that for our business to be successful we had to understand our brand and know how to build it in the community. "You are already a brand," she said. "Do you know what it is?"

She encouraged everyone and especially the students to think really LONG term. This was ten years into the future.  Then you need to present the work to the audience that you want to do.

One of the greatest pitfalls of most business people is getting stuck on a "roller coaster." This is where you do "911 marketing." You have rent due and then you work really hard to market and then get some work. The next time you market is when the work starts to drop off.

Deb went on to give us many different ways you can market and build your brand so that you can avoid those roller coaster rides of the past.

Stanley Leary & Akili Ramsess [photo by Mark E. Johnson]

During a panel discussion on "Finding & Funding a Future for Photojournalism and Documentary Photography" I was able to give my spin on what I recommended. 

I believe we are at an all time high for opportunities for storytellers. However most of those who are working storytellers with the titles of Journalist or Photojournalist will most likely need to pursue other places than the news media outlets to use their skills. The number of those jobs has greatly diminished.

I encourage storytellers to discover their communities. Find where they congregate and then find those who want and need to communicate to those groups. Then become an expert on the subjects that they cover for those audiences.

Where are those communities? I gave them some examples of working for a corporation where they need storytellers to help with the communication in their community. Nonprofit organizations are also communities that need those same storytellers to create community newspapers within their sphere.

[photo by Mark E. Johnson]

While I came to speak, I also came to learn. I took a lot of notes. while most everything presented I had heard before, I did hear new ways of presenting the material. I am always looking for a better way to tell the story and I learned a few new ways to do just that.

I cannot encourage you enough to spend the time to get to know this material so that you too can be a successful independent photographer.

The Most Successful Photographers Spread Ideas

Time and time again, the most consistent comment I get about my photography is my ability to capture the moment that tells a story.

The second thing that started to help define my work was my ability to use light to improve moments.

My photos defined what I could do for clients.

I was even photographing things like lasers that you cannot see with the naked eye, but I was capturing this in photos.

I continued to grow and try new technology to solve the problems of clients trying to connect with their audiences. I added 360º panoramic interactive pieces for the clients to put on their websites.

I then started to add just audio to slide shows that were easy to host on almost any website and more economical to produce over traditional video. [ Click on photo above to see the Slide Show with Audio.]

I added video and mixed this with still images to help an audience really connect to the subject and feel the story.

Am I just a "photographer" any more. I am a problem solver. I am at the core of what I do an expert on understanding an audience and the subject and figuring out a creative storytelling to connect the two.

When potential clients get to see what I do, they hire me. The trick is to lead with visual examples. I want to be "Remarkable" and to do this I must spread ideas. To get the concept of what that means watch this TED Talk by Seth Godin.

Maybe I need to tell people I am a "Communications Handyman" who is there to solve your problems. I not only can come in and diagnose your communications crisis and understand the problem I can fix it.

The downside to "Communications Handyman" is it sounds like you are going to fix your problems the cheapest way.

Maybe I could use "Special Forces Communications Operative" but then you may think I just do war photography.

While I have picked for now "Visual Storyteller" people want to jump and then say so you are a photographer.

Maybe I take a risk and target an audience that I am best equipped to serve and find a title that works with that audience. Maybe with my seminary degree I go after the religious market and call myself "Visual Evangelist" or "The Visual Preacher."

Successful Communication has four components

1. Audience
2. Communicator [photographer]
3. Medium
4. Subject

All four must be addressed for success.  Too many photographers often forget one or more of these. They can get caught up in the medium [gear head] or often emotionally wrapped up in the subject with all their time. 

Your purpose is to connect the audience and the subject and get yourself out of the way.

Now use this same model to address your marketing of you to an audience. You are the subject and the audience are your potential customers.

Now lets go back to those four elements again. Often a photographer is wrapped up in the subject and forgets about that audience. 

So you are shooting picture for a publication that is geared to women in their 40s and 50s and you go and shoot a Punk Rock Band.  How you cover it shows either you understand your audience or you do not.

So taking the photo above shows my emphasis on subject and medium.  Using lights to create just a cool photo.

 This is another example that I have taken a really cool photo.

Here I even am showing how popular they are, but am I connecting with my audience. Why would middle age women be interested in the bands.

But then I take this photo and now I have my hook for the audience. My wife loved this photo so much she used it as her profile photo on Facebook. The story for the publication audience is how these bands who can look scary and make you wonder if you child should be near them is to explain why they appeal to your children. This is of interest to the audience. I would actually lead with this photo before I would lead with what are cool photos first, because this connects to the audience.

You the Subject

If professional team were to work with you and help you be more successful then you become the subject, but who is your audience?  Too many photographers again fall in love with the medium. I like making pictures.

Two Approaches to be Big Fish in a Small Pond

Move.  Lets say you are a wedding photographer in Atlanta, Georgia. It would be easier for you to find another city to move. Atlanta may have as many as a thousand or more wedding photographers. Maybe you look for a place where the number of photographers per the population is lower.

Specialize. It is better to find a subject that few photographers if any are providing services. Mark Johnson, the head of the photojournalism program at the University of Georgia, told me about one of his students that double majored in photojournalism and horticulture. They went to a horticulture company and sold them on why they needed to bring them on board to be their communication specialist. Now that company has a better website showing their product to their audience.

The formula for success is simple. You have a subject and an audience in mind. You need to have ideas worth spreading in this arena. So go out there and be remarkable.

What I learned from Portillo's in Chicago

Nikon P7000, ISO 100, ƒ/2.8, 1/2000

A couple of years ago a friend of mine introduced me to Portillo's in Chicago.  It is an experience for sure.  You come in stand in a line to order. My friend encouraged me to order the the Italian Beef sandwich with everything in it. I also ordered a side order of crinkle fries and a chocolate malt shake.

I enjoyed it more because of all the experience around the food.  I am in Chicago and for my last meal I decided to stop by the Portillo's in Schaumburg.

Before you even go in the door the view from the parking lot is not like other restaurants. Look at all the flowers and the manicured landscaping around the building.

Nikon P7000, ISO 1087, ƒ/2.8, 1/350

Once you walk through the door you are transported back to the 1960's when the restaurant started.  Extremely clean and colorful. Unlike Cracker Barrel restaurant where everything on the walls is from the past, but looking rusted and worn out, here at Portillo's everything looks brand new.

For those of us who remember living during the 1960's this looks even cleaner than my memories, but there is enough memorabilia to take me back to those years.

Nikon P7000, ISO 320, ƒ/2.8, 1/110

The staff is dressed in white shirts with Portillo's in script on the back, ties, black aprons and newsboy style hats definitely creates an atmosphere all it's own. Checker board floor and on the kitchen walls definitely creates a flash back to year's ago.

Neon signs were created in 1910 and very popular between 1920's and 60's. Today designer's use these to create a feel for a business and often create flashback's for their customer's pasts of years gone by.

What about you?

Now when people experience your brand do you transport your customers to another time and place? Does your brand create an atmosphere?

You have a brand whether you know it or not. It might not be so distinctive as Portillo's, but it may be so bland that you are just know as one of the many providers of services in a market.

Photographer's have been known to wear certain types of clothing. Often the world travelers are seen in Khaki's whereas the news photographers are known to be in jeans like the famous news photographer animal on the Lou Grant Show.  If you are too young to know what I am talking about here is a link to a photo of animal.

On the other extreme was the photographer Felix Unger in the TV show the Odd Couple.  Here is the opening for the show that showed how obsessive compulsive was impetuous in every detail.

There is even the super hero Spiderman was a photographer known as Peter Parker. Here you can see his photo. I like him because Stan Lee created him. Hopefully you see the humor here.

Our you the hero to your clients helping them out of binds and saving the day? Are you the persnickety Felix Unger that customers like the attention to detail, but find some of your personality strange?

Maybe you see yourself like National Geographic Magazine fictional photographer Robert Kincaid as depicted in the book Bridges of Madison County. You may like Clint Eastwood's betrayal of Kincaid in the movie version of the book. Kincaid had a way to awaken the soul of a small town woman living on a farm. Do you create excitement with your clients? Maybe not like Kincaid, but in other ways you may create a bit of mystery with your presence.

Ask your friends and maybe some clients to help you know how they think of you now. Then see if there are things you can do to make yourself more memorable and distinctive. Maybe you need a new wardrobe. Maybe you need to take some dance classes to develop better posture.

Know you brand and control your brand. Be intentional and you too can create a following just like Portillo's does for it's customers.

Visual Branding for a local Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A Roswell Town Center

Jim Waddle called me a couple years ago and asked if I could get a good photo of his Chick-fil-A and I assured him I could. 

Just a couple years later, which is this year, Jim asked if we could update that photo. The first photo was so successful in his ad campaign that he wanted to update it since he had done some landscaping and wanted a recent photo.

Now for those of you who only have one Chick-fil-A in your town you might not see why this is important for Jim.  Here in Atlanta you can almost reach out and touch a Chick-fil-A anywhere you turn. 

Each restaurant does their own promotions in addition to working with the market.  The problem through the years is his promotions were not always driving people to his restaurant.  Jim likes working with the area market, but also wanted to have some special events. 

Not all the Chick-fil-A's look alike so having a nice photo of his store helped his customers know which restaurant was doing a promotion or an event.

When you think about it many of the brick and mortar businesses in a town are remembered by their location and looks, so why not use a cool photo of the business to remind folks--it is called branding.