Getting work published?
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Matt Sayle
2017MSA Young Photographer of the Year(Motorsport)
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Send them into publications. Local papers are a great target 
I have had three or four posted in my local one
I have had three or four posted in my local one 
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- Andrew
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Depends.
Easiest is the local newspaper. They don't have much of a budget so don't expect payment. However, there are lots of local causes who can't afford a photographer but need coverage, so you may well be able to find your own niche.
If you want to get paid for it, then it becomes somewhat harder.
Easiest is the local newspaper. They don't have much of a budget so don't expect payment. However, there are lots of local causes who can't afford a photographer but need coverage, so you may well be able to find your own niche.
If you want to get paid for it, then it becomes somewhat harder.
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As has already been said the local press is the usual place to start, they dont pay much (my local only pay £25 per image used). As for magazines it depends what you want to shoot and how good you are? Magazines are unlikely to print anything that isnt of a very high standard these days. Doing stuff for free may seem like a good idea but bear in mind lots of people make a living submitting to publications and I can assure you they are not impressed with people giving away their work free of charge, it makes it harder for them to get a decent price for their own work. Good luck in whatever you decide to try.
Ricky
Ricky
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Head along to a few local events when they happen and submit some of the best shots to the photo desk at the local paper.
I used to work for the Surrey Ad and I know that they were always keen to use local photographers pictures (if they were good enough) when they didn't have a staff photographer at the event.
Things like the Surrey County Show etc. will always be well staffed by the paper, so maybe avoid the "big" events locally, but there are always things going on in the Woking/Guildford area that you can go along to.
Even if the Surrey Ad doesn't use it, their sister freebies the Guildford Times or Woking Review are always on the lookout for good quality content to use. As they are all owned by S&B Media now, you may even find they'll use it in other papers in the local area as well.
At the end of the day you have nothing to lose by sending them in. You'll gain experience of shooting some different events which will help your photography, it gets your name known to the paper if you are submitting regularly and, more importantly, it gets you out there with yoru camera taking pictures.
Go for it!
I used to work for the Surrey Ad and I know that they were always keen to use local photographers pictures (if they were good enough) when they didn't have a staff photographer at the event.
Things like the Surrey County Show etc. will always be well staffed by the paper, so maybe avoid the "big" events locally, but there are always things going on in the Woking/Guildford area that you can go along to.
Even if the Surrey Ad doesn't use it, their sister freebies the Guildford Times or Woking Review are always on the lookout for good quality content to use. As they are all owned by S&B Media now, you may even find they'll use it in other papers in the local area as well.
At the end of the day you have nothing to lose by sending them in. You'll gain experience of shooting some different events which will help your photography, it gets your name known to the paper if you are submitting regularly and, more importantly, it gets you out there with yoru camera taking pictures.
Go for it!
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Hi If you want to get in a local newspaper, each week they might ask for pictures (wildlife, landscape etc), whatever they ask people to send pictures of, you could email them pictures. For a photography magazine send some of your pictures for advice (each magazine has a section where they offer their readers to send in their pictures for advice). Good Luck with getting your pictures published !!!!!
!!!!!
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What difference does that make to anyone who just wants to get a picture published?
Should they not do it simply because someone else somewhere might be upset about the fact that they couldn't sell a picture to the same paper?
This whole "you giving it away for free starves my children" stance makes me laugh!
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A couple of tips from experience:
1) Buy/borrow photography magazines. This month I think Practical Photography and DSLR User (maybe others, too) have a page asking readers to send in portfolios etc to be considered for future articles. I tried something similar a few weeks back and 4 days later I was in Paris on an assignment. Most magazines have sections or boxouts telling you how to send in images.
2) Put your pics on Flickr and tag them. You might get a lot of nonsense requests for use of your images, but occasionally a few gems show up. In the past year I've been contacted by two car manufacturers via Flickr (hard to believe, I know, but it's true!)
3) Local papers are pretty easy, shoot enough interesting/relevant local material and you will be published before you know it. If you shoot sports and can write a fewcoherent words that is often a bonus, as away from the major sports (football, rugby, cricket, motorsport etc) which they probably have a pool of photographers for anyway, papers seem to love local interest articles.
4) Enter competitions. A bit obvious, but put the leg work in and it can reward you quite nicely. I'm by no means a great photographer, but I've won loads in the past 2 years through religiously entering most comps in a couple of magazines each month, and as well as published images you often get the benefit of a nice prize as well.
1) Buy/borrow photography magazines. This month I think Practical Photography and DSLR User (maybe others, too) have a page asking readers to send in portfolios etc to be considered for future articles. I tried something similar a few weeks back and 4 days later I was in Paris on an assignment. Most magazines have sections or boxouts telling you how to send in images.
2) Put your pics on Flickr and tag them. You might get a lot of nonsense requests for use of your images, but occasionally a few gems show up. In the past year I've been contacted by two car manufacturers via Flickr (hard to believe, I know, but it's true!)
3) Local papers are pretty easy, shoot enough interesting/relevant local material and you will be published before you know it. If you shoot sports and can write a fewcoherent words that is often a bonus, as away from the major sports (football, rugby, cricket, motorsport etc) which they probably have a pool of photographers for anyway, papers seem to love local interest articles.
4) Enter competitions. A bit obvious, but put the leg work in and it can reward you quite nicely. I'm by no means a great photographer, but I've won loads in the past 2 years through religiously entering most comps in a couple of magazines each month, and as well as published images you often get the benefit of a nice prize as well.
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editors contact me and ask if I can photograph a car lol
apart from that it can be quite difficult as (at least for me) eidtors tend to use the same people which can be hard to break the link. If you know people it really helps which TBH is how I started
apart from that it can be quite difficult as (at least for me) eidtors tend to use the same people which can be hard to break the link. If you know people it really helps which TBH is how I started
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Simmotino it may very well make you laugh, but does photography pay your mortgage?
I am not sure what you do for a proffesion but all I am saying is if people are willing to do whatever you are employed to do for free you will not be in as much demand as you currently are! I happen to know of a Pro photographer who ended up out of a full time job as 2 very well meaning local photographers started submitting images to the local paper. They meant no harm in it but the paper started using the 2 local guys on a regular basis and then paid of their full time photographer. I am not saying that by Matt submitting 1 free image to the papers he is making someones children starve, all I am saying is please bear in mind by giving away free images to publications that are there in the first place to make profit is not a great idea, you may feel great getting an image printed and I am sure the pic editor will be happy that he is saving his freelance budget but the full time photographer will not be happy.
Ricky
I am not sure what you do for a proffesion but all I am saying is if people are willing to do whatever you are employed to do for free you will not be in as much demand as you currently are! I happen to know of a Pro photographer who ended up out of a full time job as 2 very well meaning local photographers started submitting images to the local paper. They meant no harm in it but the paper started using the 2 local guys on a regular basis and then paid of their full time photographer. I am not saying that by Matt submitting 1 free image to the papers he is making someones children starve, all I am saying is please bear in mind by giving away free images to publications that are there in the first place to make profit is not a great idea, you may feel great getting an image printed and I am sure the pic editor will be happy that he is saving his freelance budget but the full time photographer will not be happy.
Ricky
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Ricky, many people do what I do for a living (I work for a firm of management accountants) for free, because they do it themselves. Indeed, we've had clients in the past stop using us because their wife/neighbour/relative/dog has passed a bookkeeping course and can do it for them.
Does that out us out of business? No. Does it get us off our backsides to find more work or make sure we are offering a better service than they can get by employing free services if others? You bet it does!
I'm afraid those who blame people giving their images away for free for them not earning any (or enough) money hold no water with me.
Offer a product that others can't get for free, or find someone else who is willing to pay for it.
Does that out us out of business? No. Does it get us off our backsides to find more work or make sure we are offering a better service than they can get by employing free services if others? You bet it does!
I'm afraid those who blame people giving their images away for free for them not earning any (or enough) money hold no water with me.
Offer a product that others can't get for free, or find someone else who is willing to pay for it.
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Yeah you are right and thats exactly what the bloke I was reffering to had to do but I am sure he would have been happier staying in the job he had for the previous x amount years. But hey you and I are both entitled to our opinion and we don't need to agree with each other
My own policy is if it is a profit making organisation and they want my shots they pay for them end off. I have had 2 webmasters representing large music groups asking for my images recently both wanting them for nothing! After asking for their bands new CD's sent to me free of charge they got the message and both were told politely where to go. Local charities/volunteer groups get my work for free if I have the time to shoot for them. I was only passing on my own opinion at the end of the day.
Ricky
My own policy is if it is a profit making organisation and they want my shots they pay for them end off. I have had 2 webmasters representing large music groups asking for my images recently both wanting them for nothing! After asking for their bands new CD's sent to me free of charge they got the message and both were told politely where to go. Local charities/volunteer groups get my work for free if I have the time to shoot for them. I was only passing on my own opinion at the end of the day.
Ricky
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Until it's your "children" (to coin your own analogy) that starves, then I assure you, you'll change your view entirely.
I note you say you work for a firm of accountants. I don't know whether you're a partner or simply an employee so I'll phrase my comments accordingly
When you're working for yourself with no safety-net of other people around you helping to bring in the revenue then I might take notice of your remarks.
I have seen real evidence that offering a superb level of service or products makes jack-s**t difference to someone being content with a cheap product or free product. They're just happy they've got a product full stop. Yes, there are some who will pay for higher quality service but they're getting harder and harder to find in a society that appears fixed on getting everything for nothing and getting one over on your fellow man. Competition is fine but when you look at what's happening in society nowadays with respect for fellow-man at an all time low, you begin to wonder if it's a good thing after all.
You also have the mentaility that when the outlets for your work get so used to paying naff-all for "the product", they become oblivious to the higher quality services and brand them all together as "the product".
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Absolultely, and I don't disrespect that at all. Mine's just different
Until it's your "children" (to coin your own analogy) that starves, then I assure you, you'll change your view entirely.
Sorry, disagree. Just because I am in a different profession doesn't mean the goalposts change.
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when you say tag your images on flickr, what kind of tags do you put on them?
There's nothing wrong with healthy competition but where is the competition when you're up against "free" vs paid? I'm with Ricky and the others supporting him on this. I depend on every penny I make from my Photography.
IMHO offering publications free photo's is just as bad as setting your prices so low you have to be operating at a loss or illegally. I'm not out to make a killing with my prices, but I do need to earn enough to cover my modest needs. "Free" doesn't do that eh?
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Absolultely, and I don't disrespect that at all. Mine's just different
Sorry, disagree. Just because I am in a different profession doesn't mean the goalposts change.
Yes it does......You're employed... It might take months of profit errosion before you personally feel the effects and you're out on your a*se, whereas with a self-employed freelancer it'll simply take until his/her next mortgage payment is due.
Gc
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I'm not a full time professional photographer, so I've been stuck in the middle.
I agree that if a publication makes money from their magazine/newspaper they should pay for it. I also recognise that club magazines are often wholly voluntry and survive on a tiny budget.
If a local paper wishes to reserve a page for readers photos, then this is fine. I know that this wouldn't be paid, so I wouldn't necessarily submit pictures unless I had them on file.
I've been careful to target events that don't already have their own snapper, carving out my own niche and not treading on anyones toes.
I agree that if a publication makes money from their magazine/newspaper they should pay for it. I also recognise that club magazines are often wholly voluntry and survive on a tiny budget.
If a local paper wishes to reserve a page for readers photos, then this is fine. I know that this wouldn't be paid, so I wouldn't necessarily submit pictures unless I had them on file.
I've been careful to target events that don't already have their own snapper, carving out my own niche and not treading on anyones toes.