If you follow my blog, you've probably noticed that the frequency of posts has diminished. I have not run out of ideas and I have not stopped working. I have a policy that I take seriously: client confidentiality and privacy. While I have a model release built into the contract, it doesn't mean I will post images from client sessions. I respect client wishes. Not everyone wants to be on display for the world. To respect that, I don't post client session unless the client specifically asks me to do so.
As an introvert, I can understand the desire to remain anonymous. However, it is a struggle when all marketing material pushes that you should run a blog, you should be active on social media, blah, blah, blah. Why? I find spending time on social media and writing blog posts time consuming. I love writing, but I don't want to share every aspect of what i do with the entire blogosphere. Neither do I want to market, well, me and my private life. I only want to market my work and the services I can provide for you.
Somewhere over the past few years there has been a change in the landscape. There is a divide between working and talent versus internet celebrity and instafame. It seems the loudest and most controversial get attention. But that attention is only media driven. The moment of fame fades quickly and you either have to produce another controversial click bait post or fade into the aether. The internet's interest is not always in talent, but in what will make people click on the link. Some of the most talented and hard working people get overlooked on social media because they are busy working and not trying to get "likes." And some of the people who get the most attention on the internet get it for being controversial and not from being talented.
The majority of companies and clients work under the internet radar. They may have a presence on the internet, but it's not one that is constantly in the internet world's face. They quietly do their work and don't expect media, social media, or peer accolades. They just get the job done and they do it well.
Exclusivity is another thing to consider before posting work. When getting published in magazines or being accepted into art exhibits, you sign an agreement to not publish your work anywhere else, including your social media.
The final thing to consider before posting: scarcity. When an image goes onto the internet, no matter how hard you try to protect it, there are those who work around security and steal it. Additionally, as a fine art photographer, collectors don't want an image that is perpetuated across the internet...aka...gone viral. It is no longer special. Fine art photographs should only be available in numbered prints. That means when you sell all of the allotted prints, the image gets archived and is no longer available for purchase. But if anyone can just grab it off the internet, why should a collector collect it?
So what do I post? Personal work, collaborations, and an occasional client session (when clients request it). That's about it. Many of my fine art pieces are saved for collections. When they are gone, they will go into (as Disney calls it) "the vault." Client sessions go to the client for them to use per our contract and agreement. My digital copies of that session get archived.
I love to share. Most artists can't wait to show the work they created, but you have to have restraint and show respect for your clients and collectors.
As an introvert, I can understand the desire to remain anonymous. However, it is a struggle when all marketing material pushes that you should run a blog, you should be active on social media, blah, blah, blah. Why? I find spending time on social media and writing blog posts time consuming. I love writing, but I don't want to share every aspect of what i do with the entire blogosphere. Neither do I want to market, well, me and my private life. I only want to market my work and the services I can provide for you.
Somewhere over the past few years there has been a change in the landscape. There is a divide between working and talent versus internet celebrity and instafame. It seems the loudest and most controversial get attention. But that attention is only media driven. The moment of fame fades quickly and you either have to produce another controversial click bait post or fade into the aether. The internet's interest is not always in talent, but in what will make people click on the link. Some of the most talented and hard working people get overlooked on social media because they are busy working and not trying to get "likes." And some of the people who get the most attention on the internet get it for being controversial and not from being talented.
The majority of companies and clients work under the internet radar. They may have a presence on the internet, but it's not one that is constantly in the internet world's face. They quietly do their work and don't expect media, social media, or peer accolades. They just get the job done and they do it well.
Exclusivity is another thing to consider before posting work. When getting published in magazines or being accepted into art exhibits, you sign an agreement to not publish your work anywhere else, including your social media.
The final thing to consider before posting: scarcity. When an image goes onto the internet, no matter how hard you try to protect it, there are those who work around security and steal it. Additionally, as a fine art photographer, collectors don't want an image that is perpetuated across the internet...aka...gone viral. It is no longer special. Fine art photographs should only be available in numbered prints. That means when you sell all of the allotted prints, the image gets archived and is no longer available for purchase. But if anyone can just grab it off the internet, why should a collector collect it?
So what do I post? Personal work, collaborations, and an occasional client session (when clients request it). That's about it. Many of my fine art pieces are saved for collections. When they are gone, they will go into (as Disney calls it) "the vault." Client sessions go to the client for them to use per our contract and agreement. My digital copies of that session get archived.
I love to share. Most artists can't wait to show the work they created, but you have to have restraint and show respect for your clients and collectors.
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