(c) Evan Sklar
This week, I got a chance to speak to commercial lifestyle photographer Evan Sklar. Our wives happen to work together at CondeNast's brides.com and Evan was kind enough to spend an hour on the phone discussing his career and offering advice for a budding photographer. While my wife facilitated this introduction, I encourage my fellow classmates to leverage the NYIP name and the professional photography course as a way to reach out to other professional photographers to learn more about the industry.
I'm always interested to learn about one's training and introduction into the photography industry. Evan earned an M.F.A. in Photography from Yale, but as I've quickly learned, a degree alone is not going to open all the doors and launch one's career. In fact, I have heard many photographers talk about how a majority of their fellow classmates either never pursued photography or gave up only a few years into their careers. Persistence, perseverance, and patience are apparently the three P's professional photographers must possess in order to be successful. Note: I just made those 3'Ps up myself right now. Patent pending!
Evan started his career working in galleries and building his network through school and work contacts. Soon enough he was able to get his work in front of a few editors at popular magazines. You can see from Evan's Web site and portfolio that he has shot lifestyle photography for magazines like Food & Wine, Gourmet, Martha Stewart Living, GQ, CondeNast Traveler, and Kraft Foods, to name a few.
And while Evan has worked for a diverse range of clients, he emphasized the need to have a laser-sharp focus on exactly what kind of photographer you are. For example, nowadays, it's not enough to say you are a "lifestyle photographer" - you need to be more specific - are you a food photographer, and if so, do you specialize in photographing drinks? You need to be very niche-specific - you can't be all things to all people. If a client is looking for a photographer to take photos of bedding, they are going to choose the photographer who has the most experience/best portfolio of bedding. It can be that specific and clear cut.
Evan has sold some of his work to stock photography companies. And while this used to provide a modest flow of income for photographers, the advent of digital and online stock companies like istock, has decreased the price earned per photograph dramatically. People can now purchase royalty-free photos for as a little as $1/piece. One would have a hard time earning a living on stock photography alone. It has also become increasingly more cost effective for companies to set up their own digital studios where they can produce what they need in-house for far less than hiring a freelance photographer.
According to Evan, the changes taking place in the industry in the past 5-10 years have transformed the business of photography. Here are a few "a-ha's" I took out of our conversation:
- Technology is changing the landscape. More and more photographers can get professional-quality equipment and produce professional-quality results at a fraction of the price. Accessibility is driving up supply.
- Competition is fierce. There have never been more photographers for less work. Hence, identifying your niche and promoting your brand is critical in this current market.
- Differentiation is key. With a flood of photographers in the market, what will your value proposition be? How are you defining yourself in relation to the limited opportunities in the market? What need can you fill or create in the emerging landscape?
In addition to our conversation, Evan also shared a couple of excellent blogs he follows which include a lot of great information about what's going on in the industry and links to resources for all aspects of photography.
As I stated earlier, I encourage my fellow photo enthusiasts to reach out to industry professionals who can share their wisdom and experience to help guide their own career pursuits.
Thank you Evan!
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