*HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

[Ancientmovement Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ancientmovement]

Hey there everyone,

I've been thinking a while about how I'm not progressing at all in what I truly love doing the most.

I'm a 19 year old Self-taught fashion/beauty photographer and with a lot of hard work my pictures had grown a lot.

I'm just utterly confused... confused because of the fact that I try so hard and see things change to a certain peak that it's okay to be noticeable at such a young age. But still not even a little pitch.

HOW can you get the exposure you want of your work ? because i'm so young I might not see the opportunity's somebody else might..

It's all still very new to me so every kind of advice is very welcome!!

If you're wondering how my work actually looks like you can visit my page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IK/309986439121680

And if you like the content you're seeing you might as well like it to support me!


Again, I'll appreciate ANY kind of advice given to me!

Thank you all.

[wmchauncey Member Find all posts View Profile Close wmchauncey]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

I am going to rain on your parade, in spite of being accomplished at a relatively young age...
have you considered the economic ramifications of wanting to turn Pro?

Turning a hobby into a job very quickly becomes quite tedious , as well as, not very financially rewarding.
Being a top quality photographer/retoucher is but the first step, being a good business person is necessary as well.

I tend to be a pessimist at heart...sorry about that.

[franko60 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close franko60]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

Frankly I don't think you're ready yet to get commercial assignments from magazines or brands. If I were you I'd do what I did when I was starting out and go round the established pro's in the genre seeking work as an assistant. I'm primarily an advertising still life photographer and I spent 7 or 8 years working with some of the best pro's in the business at that time (and that was 30 years ago) before I branched out and opened my own studio.

If you really want valid opinions of your work, put together a portfolio and schlep it around the model agencies, magazines and manufacturers in your marketplace. You'll soon find out whether you're ready or not.

[Michael_Anthony Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Michael_Anthony]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

Some good advice but also negative comments without explanations as to why. I liked your page, you have a lot of potential i think!!

[wmchauncey Member Find all posts View Profile Close wmchauncey]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

also negative comments without explanations as to why.

Aah...I musta missed something. What negative comments?
Franko and I simply explained the facts of what it takes to turn Pro.

facebook is not where the serious wannabes go for feedback...she should post
one image at a time here or someplace like http://www.luminous-landscape.com/index.shtml
Then start schlepping that portfolio around to the agencies.
The "I want it now" folks need to learn patience.

[Michael_Anthony Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Michael_Anthony]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

Don't want to start anything here just that comments like this without explaining why i think can be a bit mean!. "Frankly I don't think you're ready yet to get commercial assignments from magazines or brands" <--- why is that ?

Though I'm thankful for your posts i learned some things too.

[Repairman Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Repairman]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

I would echo what the other guys have said. There is no substitute for 'pressing the flesh' so get your bag and start knocking on doors. There are loads of talented young photographers out there - it's not the best that get's ahead all the time, it's the one who perseveres. Wacky effects are all well and good but try adding a few 'normal' images to demonstrate you have the core skills. A prospective employer wants to see stuff they can sell now - you can develop your own style as you go along. Good luck in your endeavours!

[Ancientmovement Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ancientmovement]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

Thanks all for the great advice, in the meantime I have grown so much I got in Vogue Italia etc... , I'm still working on my portfolio at the moment.

But still my work doesn't get seen by the brands.

How do you expose yourself?

I live in a small country called holland and here I test with the biggest modeling agencies here like Elite international model management, tony jones, touche etc..

for an update of my work:

www.ancientmovement.tumblr.com

[Aladdin Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Aladdin]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

There is an old saying, here, in the US, that goes something like this:

"It is not what you know, It is who you know!"

Meaning, It doesn't matter how good you are, you need to know someone who knows someone that gets you "in" gets you started. It is called Connections & Networking!

In this business, "good" is not good enough, unfortunately

Now that I got you depressed, go have some beer on me, happy holidays

[voidsource Member Find all posts View Profile Close voidsource]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

hi there, just saw ur post and ur page, seems to me like you have a good understanding of photographs and whatnot and i like what ur doing with it. However i think as far as getting exposure for urself you might want to buff up some more of ur work. Its good but i think it can be better. If u pick up any leading magazine in fashion and compare their images to yours you will find quite a few things that you need minor stuff to focus on before going up to the next level. Once you reach that level create a portfolio and like someone said before, send it out to agencies whom will give u an honest feedback. Dont be afraid to hear what they have to say as to why they will not take u. Use that information to better yourself. That's assuming they dont want you. If the response feels like u need more work then i would suggest to try and aim for an assistant so u know the market better and can cater your future services much more efficiently. If the response is giving the vibe that ur ready i suggest u apply at agencies as a freelancer so that you can come across several companies and cater to their needs as this will give u a greater insight as to what the industry is like. Do this for a good period of time before u decide to go solo as this will help u to know several companies, individuals and help u make new friends whom might have friends that can get u into other companies.
But for the time being always work on improving ur work and even if u beleive u have a really good portfolio, never be satisfied with it! always find a way to improve on ur work. It will only make u a better person in the end. I hope this has helped and sorry for the long message.

[lurch Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close lurch]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

@voidsource: People will pay much more attention if you stop communicating in text-speak . . .

[voidsource Member Find all posts View Profile Close voidsource]

Re: *HELP* HOW to? Exposure your work?!?

lol yea sorry about that; next time ill fix it. Whats important is the value of the message.