Representation and directory for photographers

[PolaroidSky]

I found this site... looks really good and the folks running it are really helpfull!

So thought I'd share it with my fellow Photoradar-ers!

Hope it interests some of you and helps you too if you post up your details : )



www.creativeboom.co.uk

My page @ Creative Boom

http://www.creativeboom.co.uk/direct...rs/jim-mortram

"Launched on the 24th July 2009, the site is run on a completely voluntary basis, covering everything from music, design, photography and fashion to film, PR, marketing, media and animation.

The magazine includes 12 main regions - also known as 'Hubs' - as well as a national UK home page, to bring you creative industry news, features and events no matter where you're based.

Our entire ethos for Creative Boom is to offer free support and help freelancers and businesses both large and small to be inspired, raise their profiles, attract new business and effectively cause a creative industry boom across the UK.

So if you're keen to collaborate, network, get noticed, attract business, learn new things, be inspired or find out what's happening in your creative field.

Creative Boom is an organic e-zine that has been designed especially for you and will continue to adapt and improve to suit your needs. Thanks for stopping by!"

[karenoliver]

Helpful link, Jim. I wonder sometimes if I don't use enough sites to post my photography. I only really post on here or upload photos to my flickr account. You have a huge web presence, my presence is a bit obscure lol. Do you get feedback from them all? On flickr for example it seems I only get responses if I post to a group and then its just some badge that people post in your comments and is meaningless.

Do you think its important to post in a lot of places?

Karen

[AndyStevens]

Exposure is key Karen - the more people who see your work, the more chance you'll get recognition. Having said that, I'm not keen on posting on every site - just a select few... www.1x.com for example, I have no images in the gallery (a long convaluted procedure where you have to have your images critiqued before they go public - but you need to critique 3 others before yours can be critiqued) - but I have made a sale out of it! Found a publisher in the forum (not a million miles from PR's publisher ) - sent a link to my website and a few months later we're in print with cash in the bank I've also tried www.myshutterspace.com but didn't really get much out of it - lots of 'awesome' type comments...

Thanks for the link Jim. Initial look seems interesting - will have a proper delve later.

Cheers
Andy

[PolaroidSky]

Thanks guys!

Karen :

In my opinion, all you have in your ability to do for yourself you should.

If you (like me) live outside a community or social world that has a big presence of industry photographers or opportunities to exhibit in a gallery etc - how do you get an in? or make contacts?... the only way I've seen to get forwards, especially outside having studied (I studied Fine Art Painting) and having made contacts there is to DIY online.

As for response... I can't really speak for Creative Boom yet as my images/details have only been there for 48 hours but I can say that those working there were really really helpful to me. Fingers crossed I hear something soon!

Other sites... I get around 2500 - 3500 hits a week... I have made some great friendships with other photographers, editors and publishers through forums and commenting on work myself... and that's really of value to me and I have been approached many times for images for magazine feature through Flickr etc and also I'm constantly submitting work all the time... having multi platforms helps when linking to your own work, maybe one time I will link to a slide show.. another my website (free and not so great but still a web site ; ) or sometimes to my Flickr...

What an on-line presence has absolutely done is lend weight to submissions to magazines... and also when approaching organizations when in discussions RE projects.

I can mail off a .pdf portfolio with website features, images, magazine features, links to videos, screen grabs and links to sites prior to meeting people in person with a printed portfolio... all the work I do is for free and I want to try to get images that I do for charity groups to reach a wide audience on top of what any organization will do with any of the images.

More importantly, for me, it's been a way of getting my images out there and been a platform to share the stories I pursue. Most all of the people I photograph really WANT there story heard... so I do all I can to get the images seen myself.

One note RE Flickr... stay away from the groups that give out the sparkly giff crap!!!... if you want comments of any merit it's best to search for work you really have a kinship with or really admire and leave decent comments yourself... relationships build that way and then you find a situation where you can get some really great feedback and discussions on your images : )

[karenoliver]

Thanks, Andy, Jim.
Some good advice there. I think the difference is you're both good photographers with exhibitions and published work etc... I will look into all of these when I have something decent to show or when I am producing more interesting work when I eventually get to uni :-) I do agree about having to work for yourself though, the people who do well do so by knocking on doors and getting themselves known. I might put some photos up somewhere else and see what sort of feedback I get. You're right about the sparkly gif crap, Jim. Its worthless and a waste of time really. One group that is good though is the " I love martin parr" group. Martin Parr posts there quite often and has given me a few answers on stuff before now.

Karen

[PolaroidSky]

That's interesting to hear Karen! I might just post there myself! ; )

[karenoliver]

Originally Posted by PolaroidSky

That's interesting to hear Karen! I might just post there myself! ; )

Its called Martin Parr WE love U :-) the love is a heart icon that doesnt show up on here!

Address is : http://www.flickr.com/groups/martinparr/

Forgot to say, he posts under the name of Parrpolygon and its genuinely him because he picked one of my shots for channel 4 under that name when they did picture this.

Karen

[PolaroidSky]

Thanks Karen... it's the group Lomokev is an admin for? : )

It's great you got on to Picture this... well done you!

You may like this site :

http://www.pictorymag.com/

: )

[karenoliver]

Originally Posted by PolaroidSky

Thanks Karen... it's the group Lomokev is an admin for? : )

It's great you got on to Picture this... well done you!

You may like this site :

http://www.pictorymag.com/

: )

Yeah, lomokev is the admin. The picture this was nothing big, he liked one of my shots and it was shown when the credits were rolling at the end of the show.
Thanks for the link, off to look now :-)

Karen

[PolaroidSky]

I'm linking to a lot of places I post on my blog Karen... take a peek, it's in the sites I like part, to the sides of the images : )

http://thebodypolitic.posterous.com/