Advice to new (photo)journalism grads
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under career, journalism
As a fresh graduate from OU I found Will Sullivan’s post on his Journerdism blog to be an entertaining and informative read. You might need your earmuffs for a few of the points, but you can’t fault his enthusiasm.
Just a taste of what he wrote:
Your coworkers / your environment matters a lot too.
Surround yourself with people that inspire and encourage you that you can learn from.
That’s the exact reason why I felt like my time at grad school was so valuable.
Toxic environments will destroy your life faster than Crystal Meth.
Avoid them like the plague. This isn’t your high school boyfriend that you may think you can ‘fix him and he’ll be a keeper.’ Maybe you can sometimes, but by the time you do you’re finished fixing it, you’ll be going to be bitter and old. Get out as quick as possible and read the No Asshole Rule if you’re stuck in a toxic environment or if you see one forming
Awards don’t really matter. (But they really do.)
They shouldn’t. But if I’ve got dozens of resumes with similar previous experience, skills and portfolio between candidates, someone who’s won half a dozen awards for their work versus someone who’s won none will probably get them put in the ‘to check out further pile.’ Outside of ladder climbing, winning awards just feels good. Recognition for hard work is important. Just don’t stress about it too much, because awards are so random and subjective depending on the panel of judges. (Watch as many contest judging events as you possibly can and you’ll learn this quickly.) One thing to remember: You can’t win awards if you don’t enter. I’ve judged a couple dozen contests, and I gotta say, sometimes people win just because there wasn’t really any competition and they paid an entry fee, so someone has to win.
We all know firsthand how dreadful the contest game can be.
“You need ‘Fuck you’ skills. Like a hand with a raised middle finger, you need to have a bunch of little fingers of skills in many different areas like flash, social media video, writing, audio, programming, CAR or whatever, but one area that you’re really awesome in (the middle finger). So if things are really bad somewhere, you’re awesome at that skill and you can say, ‘fuck you’ and move on.” (Kinda like FU money.) But recently, I unveiled a new theory while rappin’ with some Mizzou j-students: It’s a little risky to put all your eggs in one basket. So I’m thinking, “Peace out” skills are better. (It’s also less vulgar than ‘fuck you’ skills.) So my advice is: Be familiar with as many aspects of journalism as possible — have a little of your fingers in everything — but have two disciplines that you’re really awesome with. Hence, the “Peace out” sign. When it comes time to say “Peace out” it’s best done with the body slightly askew, throw the peace sign rapidly in a downward motion sideways, cock your head, scrunch your lips, blow out your cheeks and enlarge your eyes. Practice in the mirror before actually doing this on the job, to make sure the effect is totally perfect. You don’t want to be “That guy who was really great in Flash and Video Animation, but when he left he awkwardly poked himself in the nose and make a farting sound with his mouth. What was his deal?”
Check out the other 28 great points on Will’s blog and add your own while you’re there.
Only thing I might add is thinking of yourself as a brand.
Tags: career, contests, marketing, selfpromo
Freelance photography and self promotion
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under freelance
If you’re looking to enter the world of freelance photography or are already in that realm this post by art buyer Heather Morton is for you.
We work in a world of paradoxes and conundrums: Send an email blast vs. no one reads emails. Send a nice promo card vs. it will get chucked. Get face time with an AD or AB or PE vs. no one has any time to meet with you.
Every interaction that you and your work have with an agency is a potential to sell or unsell the experience of working with you, don’t let that go to waste.
Tags: freelance, marketing, promo
Thinking of yourself as a brand
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under promo
If you’re a freelancer or ever thought of going freelance you need to think of yourself as a brand and market yourself accordingly. Even if you’re not freelance you should be thinking about this stuff. This slideshow will get you on the right track:
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(Note if you’re reading this by a feed you may have to be on my site to view it. Not sure if the embed from Slideshare works through a feed. It’s worth it don’t worry.)
