David Hobby, aka the Strobist, recently offered a controversial opinion that photographers should “CONSIDER” working for free. Read his post, then come back for my take on it.
David offers compelling reasons for his argument. His primary point is, that it will make you a better photographer. In the simplest context, that’s always true. Every time you shoot you get better. But there’s more to it.
Some other things to consider…
1. When you get paid, you lose control over the creative process. I think this is true for most, but not all photographers. I know several people, myself included, who often turn down jobs where we don’t have control. This necessitates that clients who hire us do in fact give up control – and a check. If you’re just starting out, you won’t be able to pull this off. So if control is more important to you than money, listen to David’s point here.
2. His point about access is well taken. If you want to build a portfolio, then this is a time-honored way to do it. If you want to get a chance to show some famous or sought-after client that you can do the kind of work they need, this is also a good approach. Again, the more experienced you are, the more successful you are, the less this applies.
3. Karma – I believe Karma is a powerful force in the universe. If you choose to use your art and skill as a photographer to better the world, and you can afford to do it, go for it. This is David’s strongest argument in my opinion. Doing something simply because it will help others is almost ALWAYS a good idea. Even established pros occasionally donate time, prints, etc., to good causes. I try to give away the equivalent of 10% of my income to charity every year, and I sometimes do that with in-kind donations of prints or studio time.
4. There is a counter-argument to David’s point that showing up for free undermines the trade. If you carefully read his post, I don’t think that’s a potential side effect here. In any event, our business is full of bottom feeders undercutting established pros already. Even if you subscribe to the position that this creates more of that, there’s already so much I don’t think it matters. As long as you make it clear that your offer to work for free has serious limitations, i.e., just this one time, you won’t have a problem.
5. One place I disagree with David is his hook that our economy has some influence over why you should consider working for free. I think this is a good idea, especially for emerging pros, any time, recession or not.
Conclusion
I think David’s advice, if carefully read and pondered, is correct, with the caveat that I believe it applies more to emerging pros than established pros. It’s really a simple lesson in marketing that all photographers should explore. We need more talk like this so that our industry can survive the recession/depression. And I’ve always been an advocate of the idea that professional photographers should spend 80 percent of their time on the business of selling their work, and 20 percent on the actual shooting. Discussions like this will help push that ratio in the right direction.
Christmas will mark 2 years since I got my first DSLR (and in fact, my first SLR). I’ve still not taken a photo I find worth selling. Only recently have I begun to have finish products that I would gift.
I’ve been told that if I wouldn’t sell it, then I shouldn’t gift it, but in my opinion there is a difference. I went to my high school Thanksgiving day football game. I graduated there 5 years ago. It was sunny and reasonably warm so I figured I’d give it a shot (or 350 shots as it was). I got 5 or so that I think are great shots.
I have no idea who the players are but they’re good shots. Some are just a good job capturing the action, some are more artistic shots of emotion. My girlfriend suggested I try to get someone to buy a copy. But it just doesn’t seem right to me. First off, only 5 are really good shots. Secondly, it’s $0.20 to print a 5×7. I don’t need to charge for that. I feel as though I owe #27 money for making that amazing diving interception in front of me, while I was ready.
I sent the 5 shots to the Athletic Director. I wrote the best legal-jargon I could, giving free republishing rights to the school (subject to being used in a non-profitable way). I want #27 to have that photo. He’ll appreciate it in 30 years- if he’s still got it. It should be in the yearbook. It should be shown. I don’t need money for it. It was my pleasure.
That said, photography for me is a pleasure. I do it because I enjoy it. I’m a nice wide-angle and a better flash away from having a complete collection. It’s a hobby. As hobby, I don’t want to try to make money, that takes some of the pleasure away.
Perhaps in a few years, or a few Drobo-upgrades, I’ll find my photos worthy of money. But not yet. Not for me.
Vincent Laforet also did post about this matter over on his blog:
http://blog.vincentlaforet.com/2008/12/05/work-for-free/
There are two types of photographers, and both are definitely able to coexist; Professional Photographers and Amateur Photographers.
These posts are obviously targeted toward professionals. I am an amateur, and although I would love to sell a print for $100 or more, it’s not the reason I make photographs. I’m not entirely sure I would want to “bet the farm” on my skills as a photographer, but I’m sure in time that will change.
Thanks for the opinion Scott. I actually tried this approach at a new restaurant in town that is about to open. I offered free publicity shots with only photographer credit as my compensation. The owner was very suspicious at first but then I explained that I only do “free” once a month and that’s to build a client base and expose my work to more people. The analogy that worked for him was giving away free samples of his food to attract customers. He liked that. I’m curious to see how this works out.
I certainly agree with a pondered approach to work for free (or give away) when you do it looking for something specific.
One day a photographer that frequently publishes books of nature photography among other genres (in collaboration or alone), really liked a photo of mine, so I told him that if he was on a current project I could give him a selection of photos he could check, and if he wanted, use for free (this time).
Now the book is about to go out, some of the most prominent displayed images are mine, he said will be in touch for future projects, and told me some themes to keep an eye to in relation to the projects. I’ll have some exposure form the book, and I can now show a selling book with some of my work images. (with just over a year of photographing)
Chase Jarvis also posted on this subject and with a TWIST as only Chase can do. If you send your Project idea to him, he will pick from the emails and actually do the shoot for free.. Check it out @ http://blog.chasejarvis.com/blog/2008/12/will-work-for-free.html
I’m not into photography to make money, though I don’t give any photos to non-family for free other than 480 pixel wide photos on the internet. Even then, I do now charge for prints though it’s a nominal fee to cover my expenses.
Even before doing photography professionally, I was always careful to not work free in lieu of someone else getting paid.
I am shooting the renovation of a local movie theater by a non-profit for free. If I was not there, they might hire someone to show how beautiful it is in the end, but the process of doing the job would be lost forever. They get a valuable record and I get a neat project.
On the other hand, I am doing a lot of non-photographic work with a local architect. The last thing I want to do is undercut the guy that does his architectural shots.
Scott, as usual, a very well balanced and considered perspective. Thanks.
You are right. There is a huge difference between very good amateurs and truly professionals that goes way beyond the quality of their work. It is a professional attitude that treats photography as a business rather than simply excelling at the art. The real transition to becoming a professional photographer is not defined by the equipment or even the photographs but the professionalism in selling and other aspect that necessarily come along with running a serious going concern.
Thanks for putting a bit of sanity into this emotional brouhaha!
you dont ask the baker for free breead to try if it is good
NO! working for free kills the industry
Should everyone who loves their job work for free?
@dash
When David Hobby’s post is read carefully, he is not talking about giving away free bread to paying customers, but coming up with a personal project to do on the side of your paid work.
If a baker decides to try a new recipe and bring it to a friend’s dinner party are they killing their industry?
I have done a lot of working “for free” (TFCD, but also for my portfolio on iStockphoto) and the best thing about it, like Scott mentioned, is that you have full creative control. I’m currently in the process of starting my own portrait business to “test the waters” and see how it goes, but mostly to see if I can actually do it and enjoy my work as a photographer with someone else at the helm. ;)
I have also done charity work. While I was in Hawaii, I was involved with the Special Olympics … they had a need for photographers and I was thrilled to help out. I have also recently found a website called “Operation Photo Rescue” (http://www.operationphotorescue.org/) where people help to restore old photos using their Photoshop skills. Here’s an example of one photo I have done so far: http://flickr.com/photos/nicolesy/2871545626/
Hmm, actually Dash, I used to be a baker and we used to give people stuff to try for free all the time. More often than not, they would buy your stuff and you would build a good rapport with your customers.
Are you saying TWIP’s free podcast is killing the industry as well?
James
Freiburg, Germany
@ Dash: Bakers give out free samples all the time to generate business.
It is important to note that, still when giving out free services to act business like. Invoice your free services with letterhead (name, address, number, etc.) and included the discount with a breakdown of the services. This puts a value on your work and the profession as a whole. Most are unaware of the time and work it takes to get good photos.
I’m an amateur photographer and occasionally have done some paid work as well, but not much since I don’t have much exposure or find myself “on the market” so te speak. The main idea for me is still to keep it a hobby and keep it fun. The money earned on these few side projects is handy to help finance the costs of this hobby :)
[Although that's a red herring reason because after receiving payment I always find a good reason for myself to buy some other gear :)
Anyway, some years back I was contacted by an artist who wanted to use pictures of doors and halways I made in abandoned buildings. At that time I found myself in the camp of wanting to get paid for sure for any little thing I would let here use... In the end the price I stuck on it was too high and it didn't go through. I didn't think about it anymore until some years later... what if I would just have given her these images and simply asked to get credited... depending on what she did with the artwork it could mean certain exposure for me as well and maybe even a collaboration if she wanted some more of this or that for future projects.
I see it now as a lost opportunity, lost because of bad motivations, because of greed [let's call a turd a turd].
Few months later some else contacted me to ask if a picture of mine could be used a new website they were creating for an emerging band. That time however I did agree and I did get the credit for it too! Not that it brought me much after that but it sure was a good feeling and still is. [that site has dissapeared now unfortunately, that's the way of the Internet, domain names expire]
I think working for free can indeed help emerging professional photographers build portfolio [and opportunity] but also amateurs.
I would say just go with the flow and see where it brings you, because we have the fantastic luxury of having no pressure to deliver, having to accept anything to pay this months bills and rent. We amateurs have little if nothing to loose anyway except some shooting time which we would have used … shooting anyway ;-)
BTW: there is a famous belgian photographer Karl De Keizer [member of magnum] who in fact also does this: he has customers and clients lining up, but he shoots assignments during the year until he has build up enough money to take him through the rest of the year and to support shooting his own projects, his own creative ideas, paying the bills himself. Sometimes those can involve also ppl and organisations which then benefit from these picture. So I think it even works this way if you are an established photographer as well!
I agree with most of the people posting. I’ve shot some concerts before of local bands and ave been compensated via a free CD and concert admission (one band even offered drinks after the show but it was already like 2:30AM). This makes the environment very low stress and keeps things fun. In return I edit a handful of the pictures I like and send them to the band.
Now if someone (that I didn’t know) approached me and wanted something that I wasn’t as interested in photographing, I would either reject the offer or charge a nominal amount. Even as an amateur my time is worth something.
The idea of shooting for free for a photographer interested in developing his art and business into something that is truly marketable, is in many ways like networking.
I have a friend that had a vision years ago to become a business consultant. He took every opportunity to put himself “out there” for no cost – lectures, workshops, consulting, small classes, newsletters, Internet courses, and even free books that he published himself. Over time, by paying attention to the feedback he received, he developed into the consultant he envisioned, and one who is well known, respected and in demand.
He credits much of his success to “working for free” in order to network, make lots of mistakes, and learn/develop his craft into something of value.
Scott, I agree with your post. Many seem to have taken David Hobby’s post on working for free way out of context. John Harrington’s blog takes the extreme opposite side with a three part series where he brow beats individual comments posted at Strobist. He also has a link to a video excerpt from Harlan Ellison (I guess he’s a writer) that talks about not doing anything without compensation. What a jerk. I agree with your karma statement. An occasional gift of your services does the soul good. …..Love your blog. Thanks for your time.
I have donated lots of time too. When i launched my website I actually told everyone at work I would do one session for free. I only got a couple takers but it has grown my portfolio and exposure. I still do friends at no cost but the people at work are quite understanding about the one-time thing. I actually just did our christmas party photos on friday. They couldn’t foot a booking fee so but the exposure was good and I made a little after expenses.
I do see how this is a double-edged blade though. I really try to make people understand the limits of the freebies though.
I don’t see this as particularly controversial. This just strikes me as a slightly different version of the advice I’ve read for photographers who are trying to break into the business. Sort of sweat equity for the already established.
David is complaining about shooting to the clients need and so giving up the creative process. Therefore you can’t develop your creative ideas. I thought one of the reasons a client chose a photographer was the body of work. Don’t you improve your opportunities with a portfolio showing a wide range of subjects and styles?
From what I here, if the average photographer makes about $35,000 a year he/she is in the income range that is now considered poverty. So, the average photographer is basically working for nothing….
There really is no debate……
I TOTALLY get it! Before I started charging people I knew that before I could ever expect to get money from people I had to be able to “give it away” first. So I did. I shot friends, family, anyone who would sit for me, not too much later… how much do you charge for _____.
When things get slow for me I seek out my friends who may not be able to afford a family portrait cuz I want to play with a new piece of equipment or I want to experiment in a new location. My blog has more postings and I appear to be busier and a much bigger deal than I really am.
You should, in my lowly opinion, be willing to get out there and do some free work from time to time. I do it by finding something I support, such as the local Habitat for Humanity or some other cause, and going to do some free promotional shots. Write out a little something that says if they print your photo, you have to recieve credit for taking it.
Then, if they publish it somewhere, you get to tell your future clients that you had things published for X organization. Think of it as working for name association.
There’s also been plentry of times where I have a couple who wants wedding shots, seem like really nice people, and don’t have a lot of money to spend. Honestly, if they are a good looking couple, I’ll usually bump my price down to what they can afford. Why? Because in the long run, great photos of good looking people help me out a lot more than great photos of… well… not so good looking people (of which I count myself, just to be clear! :) )
Hello everyone,
Is money the root of all artistic evil? I would suspect that statement is largely accurate not just for the “pure artisit turned art commerce specialist”, but in our greedy society at large. I have been making pictures since I was a kid, so that’s roughly 25 years with a camera in my hand. All of those pictures were taken with the same minds eye that I still use today. Nearly all of my images ended up in a photo album or on the desks and walls of close freinds and family. Further, none of those images, to my knowledge, ended up in magazines or on sale in the local gallery. I would suggest that the three questions every artist should ask oneself regarding why you create within this medium is:
1) Do you create these images for your own satisfaction and the elevation of the medium;
2) Do you create your images to see that rewarding spark in the eye of a person who has expressed an interest in your creation;
3) Is your art simply a business and therefore the “art” is the secondary motivation?
Is doing all three simultaneously is possible? I’m not sure…yet.
For the record, I am, by all definitions, an amateur. However, about a year ago, I made a conscious decision to become far more serious about my photography. My goal was to be able to call myself a photojournalist. I want to use my artistic ability in a provocative and professional manner, more specifically to exact change where I feel change is needed. I did not, however, want to be a marketing specialist (that’s my 9 to 5) and I will choose the causes I deem pertinent. Although I have seen my breadth of knowledge and skill grow exponentially. I dare to even say that some of my work is better than some of the self proclaimed “pros” I have seen and met…there I said it and it felt good. Yet, I give my work away free all of the time, even when people offer to pay me; it just feels good. I am confident that my day of recognition will arrive. Does that mean that my stock value has been lowered because I flooded my market with Tim originals? Trust me, I am not going to worry about that risk!
I dove head long into the this medium and I found it interesting that the only compelling explanation that I could find which attempted to define what it means to be a “professional photographer” is the following: “you are a ‘pro’ if greater than 51% of your income is derived from selling your images/services”. That sounds more like tax code than the a description of a level of achievment. The notion that being a “pro photographer” is defined by how much money one makes is indicative of a very narrow focus (no pun intended) among those involved it creating the definition. Funny side note is that most homeowners insurance policies state that if you sell even one image then you are consider a commercial/pro photographer and the coverage of your gear might be in jeopardy!
Here’s a perspective that I can offer you from my life experience; there are pros and then there are pros. Said another way, there are the big fish in small ponds and there are the big fish in big ponds. How many of you self proclaimed pros would Liebovitz or Soth consider a pro? Here’s the basis of my perspective. I am still a competitive cyclist and many years ago I was a pro mountain biker. I can say I was a Pro, not because I got paid to race my bike (quite the contrary), but rather because the US National Off-Road Bicycle Association gave me a pro license after I performed at a certain level for an established period of time. Does that mean that I could have hopped on my bike and rode with Lance Armstrong (yes, I know he’s a road racer, work with me here)? Not just no way, but no F’n way…he’s a different class of pro. So much so that I could barely call myself a pro in his presence.
I guess what I am saying is that, pro or amateur, paid or free, don’t be so full of yourself. Try to remember why you first became enchanted with the magical process of creating a permanent memory from a fleeting moment. Money seems to be the ominous clouds that cheapens art of photography unlike any other medium; mostly because everyone over the age of 6 has a camera!
Peace.
@Tim while I am sure your post was made with good intentions, I’d say you should take your own advice. (Don’t be so full of yourself.) Not all of us are into photography because we’re beanie-wearing artists. Some of us are pros, and we’re in it for the money. For those of us in that situation, this isn’t about the ethereal goals of an artist, but rather, a more practical situation involving feeding our families. We may create art. We may enjoy art. But we have no duty to art. We have a duty to our profession. As you admit, you’re not a pro, so maybe that point is lost on you?
Stop blaming the people who give their photographs away. If you want make a living being a photographer you are going to have to find a way to do it. And if you a making a living being a photographer you are going to have to change as the market changes. Your success has nothing to do with how many people give their photos away, there are people willing to pay, and that want to pay for photos. You are just going to have to find them, and be better than the other people who find them.
You should be very careful when you work for free. Here’s some advice:
* If you’re doing it for a charity, have them cut you a check for your normal rates, then make an equal (and tax-deductible) contribution to their charity.
* Regardless of who it’s for, always send them an invoice with your normal rates, minus a discount (up to 100%) — just to emphasize that this is a business, and they’re getting something of real value.
* Be sure that you can use the project as a stepping stone to your dream career. Imagine where you want to be in three years. Does this project take you in that direction?
* There is plenty of wisdom behind the “never, ever work for free” message. You need to understand that photography is expensive. LIVING is expensive. There is inherent value in what you do. See the point above about the invoice. This can help your psychology as much as it educates the client.
* BEFORE you do anything for free, decide how much money you want to earn per year, and work up a serious Cost of Doing Business calculation. Factor in replacing your camera bodies every two years (shutters wear out when you’re working full-time), a budget for glass and flashes, insurance (individual medical insurance is very expensive), liability coverage, transportation costs, client entertainment, contingencies… If you do this realistically your annual CODB should fall somewhere in the neighborhood of $50,000+ / year. Now recognize that you might need time off for illness, that there will be slow weeks, or even slow months… consider that you may only work 40 weeks per year.
How many gigs can you really squeeze out per week, factoring in processing time, client discussions, delivery, and your marketing and business activities (many photographers cite 80% business, 20% shooting)?
Multiply the number of gigs per week by the number of weeks you can shoot per year (~40).
Average charge per gig = annual costs / gigs. Let’s call that Average charge per gig number The Big Sacrifice
Now, when somebody asks you to shoot for free, ask yourself, “is this opportunity worth $The Big Sacrifice? Am I willing to pay that much money to work for these people?”
Imagine they’re the girlscouts at your door selling you cookies. Are those cookies worth $The Big Sacrifice?
Something to consider.
I have a day job that pays well enough to pay my bills and let me buy an occasional toy. I don’t want any money for the use of my photos, only attribution.
In the past few months I’ve had two of my photos chosen for magazine ads and one chosen for a new commercial website. For my last photo chosen, the person insisted on paying me, and I asked him to anonymously donate the money to a local cancer society instead. For me, that “payment” went much farther than the money would have gone in my wallet.
For me, photography is about making someone smile, or getting them to stop long enough at one of my photos to realize the quality or appreciate the content. Taking money for my photos would take all the fun out of that, IMO.
true: give aways and samples to generate bussiness ok
but WORKING for free is
different from creating a portfolio
or gain skills
i practice a lot and do not give these shots away; every job has its own requirements so an existing body of work can generate a customer for you
whenever you give your work away
you never have a fair base to build a client-photographer relation on
for once it was free or really really cheap
practice for your own in your own time
work professionally and thats within quality standards and for a fair fitting charge
but that’s my experience; i go with eric on this one
There is some good discussion here. There is also some not-so-good discussion here. Disregarding the reactionary folks who simply said “NO” without defending their positions, and the artsy bicycle-riding photographer who apparently came here to crap all over the thread with some sort of new-age preachy advice, I think everyone else had good points.
To those who said they aren’t interested in photography for money, why comment? This post is all about the business of photography.
And although I am not even good enough to be called an amateur photographer, I can finally chime in on this blog with something that is relevant.
I am an attorney. When I first opened my practice, I often did work Pro bono publico. Scott’s point about karma is very well taken. As for the rest, I did free work for big charity groups and foundations so I could get myself in front of some very heavy hitters. I was hoping exposure to these folk would bring me some business and it did.
Of course, I can’t always work for free, and except for charity work, rarely do pro bono work today. I am too busy with paying clients. Which also goes to Scott’s point that the more advanced you are in your career, the less likely David Hobby’s advice applies.
And as usual, I don’t know why I am the only one who often says things like this here, but Scott, that is an amazing photo. Thanks.
… a philosophy easily preached by two guys with successful, money-making websites. And if not true about yours, Scott, David’s site is a money-maker along with his training DVDs, store items, etc.
And yes, there is a definite distinction between free work for an industry and free work for a non-profit because when done for the later it’s not work… it’s charity. And that’s something we should all be involved in, one way or another.
No. It devalues the industry and the profession.
If you’re going to work for free, do it for charitable reasons for those who cannot afford a professional otherwise. For industries that can pay, let them.
There is work for hire, there is work for love, and there is work you would hope would lead to the combination of both. There is work you might do in hope of getting a shot of value to you, a learning experience,a shot at more opportunity. It could even be argued that those who are photojournalists or shoot concerts sports or other live events may be working on spec.
You could be a money first photographer, and you might be stuck shooting weddings, catalogs or yearbooks, or something else you might hate the rest of your life. There is value to a form beyond the paycheck.
@Bud I am not sure what this has to do with the post – but okay.
And I am living proof that you can shoot for money and be “stuck” doing something you love. There is value beyond a paycheck, but if you need to eat, not much value.
Just to be clear, I’m not the preachy, arty, cyclist Tim who posted above.
@Scott- I love the clarity with which you approach these questions.
I love these topics because they start such lively discussions. My two cents:
Amateurs do it for love; pros do it for money. It’s that simple. That’s not to say that pros can’t love what they do, but if you get paid for it, you’re a pro. That distinction has NOTHING to do with how good your photos are.
I’m not in the habit of giving photos away for free, but I will occasionally. That being said, I reserve the right to give away whatever I want, to whomever I want, whenever I want to. Stop telling me not to because you say it “devalues” the profession or makes it hard for professionals to get work. If you want to sell something that someone else is giving away for free, the calculus is simple: make what you’re selling worth enough that someone will be willing to pay for it rather than get the other product for free. If I’m giving away my photos, and you want to sell your photos, TAKE BETTER PHOTOS THAN ME! If you can’t, perhaps you should find another way to pay your mortgage.