Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/08/24
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Alan Hull wrote: > > Donal and Larry > Thanks for sharing those insights into the world of photo advertising. > I couldn't have been more wrong about 35mm and the advertising world. > My learning curve was vertical while I was reading your posts. > > With those dollar numbers nobody can complain about the subject title > of this thread, and in fact, unless my server is on the blink, the > rest of the LUG has been struck dumb. Where can I borrow another life > to spend as an Advertising Photographer? > Alan, I don't if you would like it. Here's the thing, like much of the rest of the culture, in the US there are a few photographers able to bring down the giant dollars, for the rest--dregs. I spoke to friend a couple years ago who works as VP at McCann Erickson in NYC. She told me that the $5000/day phtoographer were starving and the $1000/day people were getting all the work. Of course, the later weren't making much money. The 'clip disc' craze and the growth of stock in general has turned most photography into a commodity in the public's and art director's eyes. Consider that my stock agency had 700,000 images submitted for consideration by photographers in one year. Imagine trying to break through that noise? It has become like television with 100 channels--most everything is loud, corny, superficial, cheap and in your face trying to get attention. There are a few good ad campaigns that come along where subtlety and skill are paramount, but they are far and few between these days. I just found out yesterday that a former client of mine, a multimillionaire who owns largest chain of furniture stores (including all the buildings) in San Diego, and for whom I used to do furniture photos for his full page newspaper ads ($15,000 a week placement cost) has bought himself a RZ67 and some tungsten lights and is now doing all the photography himself because he discovered (so told me the art director who does the ads) that he resented paying me $1200 a day plus expenses. Considering his income from the business, he must now be the highest paid photographer in San Diego! And he is selling the photos to the manufacturers of the furniture, who also resented paying big studio in Los Angeles $125 a image for room sets. Maybe it's horses. Ya' gotta shoot horses, right? donal - -- Donal Philby San Diego http://www.donalphilby.com