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| Posted on November 2nd 2007 by Bryan |
 
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All I have been thinking lately is about concert photography. I'm at the point with my photography where I'm confident enough now and willing to try to start getting really serious about it. I don't think I can make a full-time career out of my photography but it would be a nice freelance, side job to have. I could always get hired as a staff photographer for a magazine or become the house photographer for a venue. But seeing the photos I take and then seeing photos that end up in magazines NME or Rolling Stone are just flat out mediocre. I'm not saying those magazines per say, are the ones with crappy photos but just music magazines in general. Sure there are a lot of great photographers out there but the majority of the stuff I've seen in magazines and other website, I'm just not that impressed. I don't claim to be the king of photography or something, but out of all the art I've done over the years; my concert work is what I feel most strongly about.
I can't believe I have been shooting shows for over 10 years now. It hasn't been on a consistent basis but I've come along way since shooting my first hardcore/punk show @ Sea Seas in Moosic, PA. That very first show was interesting because this singer/guitarist ended up lighting his American flag guitar on fire. I had to quickly get my camera out and snap away. After that, I've only been shooting shows as a hobby and to get on the guestlist. Now I want to get paid for it! ReadJunk.com will only get me so far with photo passes, and only getting to shoot certain smaller bands. I want to be able to shoot in big concert arenas and shoot big time bands. The site isn't THAT big, and also a lot of the bigger bands want to only deal with print publications. I don't know why these publicists are stuck in the old ages because the era of print is dying and the web is the future. It's more reliable and is seen with more eyes. But I guess people still like to read a magazine in the bathroom, I know I do.
Just like in any field, it's all about who you know. If you know someone that works for a magazine or website, it makes things easier to get more exposure. I started to make connections and talk to other photographers (or photogs as some people call them..which is dumb by the way). Flickr.com has so many photographers on there, and they all offer advice and help each other out. I love checking out the forums several times a day. I've actually learned a lot from reading on those forums. So if you're just starting out with concert photography or any photography, flickr is a great place to read up on things.
So now that I feel confident in my work, I started to make a list of photo agencies, magazines and websites that regularly use concert photography. I e-mailed 2 or 3 companies and websites so far but only one responded back saying "their roster is full for concert photographers." So there's not much else I could do except shrug my shoulders and move on to the next agency or magazine. At least they might have me on file now, unless they just deleted my e-mail. But the only way I'll probably be able to get into a magazine like Rolling Stone is if I apply to work for photo agencies. I don't mind getting assignments from agencies; I think that would be a lot of fun. My only concern is ownership of the photos. Would I be able to post my photos on my photography website and ReadJunk.com? I guess these are questions I'll have to ask if an agency actually picks me as a photographer. Well wish me luck and hopefully you'll see my work in magazines and other websites soon. |
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