March 2007 Archives

Union squared

A good as I feel about last week's NYC trip, and as much fun as it was to hang out and drink beers with friends old and new (Andrew, great to meet you and I'm buying the next round), it was even better to be back home in Miami. Home, sweet home... with the amazing girlfriend, in the already humid and 85+ degree weather, dodging the maniac drivers, still without Internet, packing for a quick trip for ESPN in St. Pete, and in bad need of a shave... life (& home) is grand.

Professionally speaking this quasi-annual gauntlet through the NYC editorial world (my small little piece of it anyway) went pretty damn well. Of the 14 meetings I managed to nail down, only one of them was un-productive and most of them were extremely positive experience and potential-filled experiences. Because I personally believe that a lot of the talk you exchange in a typical meeting is pretty much low-grade bullshit, filled with empty summaries by the photographer and even emptier promises from the editor, I was also really struck and encouraged by several editors who were very honest, open, and engaging with me. Many, many thanks to everyone who made time in their busy weeks to see me and view my work!

Though I've been waxing poetic about the energy of the NYC streets for a couple of posts straight, romanticizing the big editors trip as a coming of age experience, there was an entirely different energy in the air at many of the magazines that I visited (some of which have recently been derailed by a series of cutbacks and firings. My industry, our passion, photography... its all changing and everyone who knows anything is pretty scared. The signs are all there, and even the road to salvation (the Great Online) is also strangely apparent, but how we get from wherever we are now to what must come next is extremely confusing. I certainly don't have a clue.

On the short flight today out of Miami I kept thinking about this idea that if I'm interviewed in 20 years about my early experiences in magazines, that I'll then really know that I was starting just when it was all completely changing gears. To steal a phrase from the beginning of the industrial revolution and the creation of the assembly line... "it is the beginning and end of imagination all at once."

Perma-link | Comments (1)

To NYC, with love

After a great, and very snowy, trip up to Northampton, MA, to see my sister and mom, I boarded the train in New Haven and slowly rolled into the city for a week-long marathon of meetings and beers, meetings, beers, meetings, and ...

It's been a great trip thus far, which has already included a number of fine meetings, and beers, and its only Tuesday! Redux has done a great job of filling up my schedule with interesting appointments at clients, new and old, and showing the book has been successful thus far. My personal definition of success is making a connection with an editor and trying to start, or raise it to the next level, a relationship that can grow over time. I'm never been in this for the short term, and don't ever expect an editor to turn around and show me love immediately with a cool assignment (though I'm not closed off to that, please).

More importantly than clients, being in town is an opportunity to see some really good friends and get into passionate discussions of this thing we love so much, even when we hate it. Some tasty beverages in hand, and some great food on a fork, being around my friends and arguing about almost anything makes me feel alive and reminds me of why I started down this path a long time ago.

I didn't bring a laptop to NYC (freedom!), so the updates will continue to be very sparse over the next few days, while I gorge myself on reveling in the pace and beauty of this city.

Perma-link | Comments (0)

Tax time blues

Sometime late last night, my back sore from more than a dozen hours plugging away on the computer, lost in the world of QuickBooks, and hopped up via my 5th cup of coffee, I found myself back in the college haze of hating myself for gross procrastination. Damn you, Loomis! You fucking moron! Why, oh why, did I take all of those lit classes... would at least one business course have killed me?! (Probably).

That's right, woodchuck-chukers, its Tax day! What? you ask... I thought we have a whole extra month to await that truly disgusting time of spring. Well, right there its obvious that you don't own your very own corporation, Son, cuz if you did, dawg, you'd be trippin' cuz your Inc.'s digits is up 'fore you get your club on to-nizzle.

God, its exhausting trying to talk like that. Anyway, this morning I had an early appointment with my accountant. I like the celebrate that sort of event by staying up really late and waking up insanely early in order to get my shit together enough to appear nearly adult enough to run a LLC in the first place. On top of that, despite my moving to a new city and not working all that much in the first half of 2006, I made about 20% more than the previous year, and have been getting truly terrified at the tax ramifications of it over the last few months... again, I'm an idiot. And that is part of the reason why I've had to reschedule today's meeting 4 times. Me: schmuck.

The short story is that the meeting went smoothly, and my accountant was very helpful (he's used to us bum photographer types). I didn't actually have to pay any money today at all, which I was prepared to do, but am happy to wait on as well. Furthermore, I know have a much better understanding of business tax law (as much as I need for the time being, anyway), and have already made some progress towards putting myself in a better position in the future.

Tip of the month: Last week I opened up a new business savings account that I've ear-marked for use specifically to hole away a percentage (roughly 20%) of all of my deposits, which basically will be doing the normal job that any employer does for their staff (by taking out federal withholding, and Medicare from your paycheck automatically). If I stick to it, next December when I meet again with my accountant to wrap up fiscal year 2007 I'll be away ahead of my liability and perfectly content. Mmmmm... that sounds good. Peace of mind is always well worth it.

Perma-link | Comments (1)

On the town

After you've slapped your 20th, or maybe 50th, visitor’s badge onto your shirt front, and pass through security before stepping into the appropriate bank of elevators in a midtown skyscraper's vaulted marble lobby, hurtling you and your white-knuckle-clutched portfolio skyward towards a current or potential client's offices, its no big deal. Those first 5, or 10 times, though... well I'd like to leave those in my past, for the same reasons as why I won't be attending my high school reunion (next year?!). The fear, the romance, the insanely short meetings and inane questions, the rare bright spark of someone getting it, the expectations and gravity, the mess of papers and back issues, the fumbling, the New York-ness...

In magazine photography, New York City is Mecca. And as a devout believer, it is our duty to make the pilgrimage from time to time, if only to restore our faith in our sound decisions to live elsewhere. (Though really, Miami isn't that fucking different).

Though I was nervous as hell some years back when I made my first rounds through Midtown, meeting with magazines and agencies, it was great. It really was, all of it. The good meetings, the terrible ones, the gang-bangs (3 clients, 5 editors, 1 portfolio, 8 minutes elapsed time), signing with Redux, 40 cups of coffee.

There is this incredible sense of the congruity between past and presence in the city. Armed with your iPod, cell phone, and digital camera, you moved through a giant, old world of commerce, emerging from underground into the daylight, before swooping up dozens of floors to meet with a photo editor or art director, sometimes not that much older than yourself, to have this strange back and forth over your images. It's a strange and wonderful dance. It's sickening and full of unmistakenable hope. It's New York.

On this trip through I'm mostly focusing on potential clients, though will try to see a small handful of magazines I've worked with a dozen times or more. The main reason for the trip, other than the fact that I haven't been to Mecca in a whole year, is to drop off the new portfolios at Redux, say hello, and see and drink with friends. In total I probably won't have more than 10 meetings in the week I'll be there. You can do more than 10, but its a good way to get an ulcer. And for the first time, I'm really putting most of my logistics planning in Redux's hands, arranging for me to head to places that I probably couldn't get in myself.

On a practical level, besides a recent portfolio (or two - one traditional, one a project, or personal stuff, or whatever, because you'll never know what they'll ask for), you need to also have a big stack of business cards. Photographers who don't even have a business card are hilarious to me. Beyond the business cards, its smart to have a selection of "leave behind" cards (simple promos that you let the editors choose from after your meeting, hoping that they may tack one up on their bulletin boards). The added benefit of having promos for them to select from is that you might learn something specific about what type of your pictures they really liked. Lastly, and most importantly, you also need to have answers for the questions that they are going to ask you. Questions? Yes, questions.

Why are you here? What is your favorite kind of subject? What was your worst recent shoot? Where will you be in 5 years? Who are your favorite photographers? Which photographers would you compare your work to? Where are you from? Where would you most like to travel to? Are you exhibiting anywhere in NYC right now? Do you have pictures on Sudanese wedding ceremonies?

The meeting to show a portfolio is not really about the portfolio, its about you. The pictures matter, but so does your passion, sharpness, and ability to think on your toes. I've been asked some strange questions, and some very practical ones, but any question will throw you off if you are expecting to get there, show a book, say thank you, and leave. The entire reason you are there is face time, and the potential conversation that will hopefully cultivate a mutually beneficial relationship. The questions and answers is, in that sense, the whole ballgame. And if there are no questions, which is a bad sign, you should start firing away.

A lot of meetings reinforce the fact that photography is a business, and that photo editors are extremely fucking busy and are often way more interested in the practical (what can you do for me today?) than the philosophical (is photojournalism dead?). You also learn again and again that a lot of photo editors have no background in photography at all and don't care much about it beyond the fact that its their job.

With so much on the line (at least that's how it can feel), its hard to be yourself and not some cliché of a photographer that you put on like a bad suit. The best meetings are when the book is looked through with some thought, maybe 2-3 times all the way through, and then set aside to let a real conversation begin. You learn about the dozens of people you probably have in common with that photo editor, and about their background, and maybe explore the photography that you both are deeply passionate about. In the 3 or 4 dozen meetings I've had, its only happened a few times.

Ultimately the NYC trip is a really good excuse to get drunk with your friends and then write it off on your expense account. The photography world is so damn small, that you'll likely meet a few new friends as well. And that's how it should be because we are all in this together.

Perma-link | Comments (5)

Dead in the cable

For the past 8 days the girlfriend and I have been living without Internet in our apartment (due to an insane contractual dispute between our townhouse association and the provider). Obviously, if only for the fact that I'm writing this post, I've found ways to make due in this extremely dark time (which doesn't yet have an end date), but its been a total pain in my ass. My main method of coping, other than to read a lot and (again) watch the first season of Deadwood on DVD, is to make 2 trips each day to my neighborhood Sbux, and plug in (thanks for letting me use your account, Dad).

My entire business depends on communicating electronically, which I already knew, but its now even further towards the very front of my brain. And it’s depressing. So depressing that upon receiving a real, handwritten letter in the mail a couple of days ago from my good friend Erin in Prague, I sort of felt shocked. A real letter. In a real mailbox. Holy shit.

My problem is compounded by the fact that my main office phone line is VoIP... so no Internet, no phone calls. Lucky me, no one has been calling over the last 2 weeks anyway, except for a small assignment I shot for Newsweek (thanks guys!).

Ultimately this break in connection is a good thing, except for the ridiculous amount of caffeine I'm getting everyday. (Today is a good day because I haven't started twitching yet). Judy doesn't care at all (except for the lack of a couple of our favorite shows that I download through iTunes each week) because she can go weeks without checking her e-mail and not care at all. But I can't... I won't. I need to hear that annoying ding that tells me that I don't have ANY new mail messages. I need to check the NYT homepage at least once EVERY hour!

I need.... to have some quiet time in the corner.

Perma-link | Comments (3)

Ding, dong, its finally done

When my good friend Scott Pryor finally finished his first full, official album, I was most excited for his being able to put away those songs and move forward to expand his music in new directions. The CD was great, and I was proud to be a small part of helping him make it realized, but he had been playing those tunes for years, and upon pressing them into a few thousand round pieces of plastic, I hoped that he could finally break free from their boundaries that he knew, and yet didn't, so well. Having finally finished the new portfolio, probably my most serious and large (hopefully big and beautiful too) undertaking since going freelance in 2003, what I feel most acutely is the same sense of excitement about what lies next.

Though much of what fills the book is actually new, I can't wait to turn my back on all of it and dig deeper into the multiple personal projects I've undertaken. An album or portfolio is, in that sense, more of a permit for the individual artist than a statement. Later the definition is stretched and used in other ways, as a catalog, a warranty, a passport, a collection of ideas, and maybe eventually a subjective memory of the past.

After writing so much about the difficulties about producing a new portfolio, I should at least recount how I was able to finally wrap things up. After my first major draft I sent my portfolio to a group of trusted friends and to my reps, and waited for their feedback. Before I even got any back I already saw several things wrong with the book that I hadn't previously. Allowing a narrow personal vision to be opened up to the air immediately can allow a fresh view on the material. Once I got back feedback I tried to make sense of the giant disparity of opinions and viewpoints. There were a few pictures that some of my friends loved and others hated. But the most important feedback, that about the tone and energy of the book, was only achieved after sending out multiple drafts of the book to the same people.

The completed second draft of the portfolio was eventually eaten by my computer during a round of problems I began having with my hard drives. Losing that record of the changes, and having to rely on the vague impression of them in my memory, along with the looming self-imposed deadline, was one of the key factors in being able to finally create a 3rd draft that suddenly felt fluid and dynamic. Once my G5 was back up and running and I dove back into the process, pieces began to fit together. The last draft of the portfolio was sent out and there were only a couple of small changes needed. Among the feedback there was a critical shift concerning my reps at Redux Pictures, who I needed to really love the book so that they could effectively use it to attract attention and commissions from clients. Marcel, who was not that impressed with the first draft, loved the new version.

Looking back at the revisions, what was really important was paying more attention to the tone and flow of the book. Using the same pictures, but mixing them around so that there were hardly any discernable "sections," the final book feels half as long as the first draft, which means that after flipping through an editor will hopefully feel refreshed, even after almost 60 pages. Additionally, and thanks to Jasmine, the final edit is filled with several more BIG pictures (images printed across a double-truck), which added a much-needed splash to the presentation.

And lastly, and without much surprise, the final critical component was compromising on certain ideas that I wanted to get across with the book which the feedback proved just weren't working. At the onset of each portfolio process I always feel very strongly about including way more bits and pieces from project work than would ever work in an editorial/portrait/documentary book. My project work is always the straw that breaks the camel's back, and by pulling it back a bit, while also adding more portraiture to please Redux, I was able to at last find a better mix of my various styles that still felt cohesive. The final solution for my project fever will only be found when I finally publish a projects-only portfolio; better yet I should just finish a real book!

And that's that. The portfolio is done. My tickets to NYC are purchased (I'll be in the city March 17th - 24th). The final tally is 42 photographs in 54 pages, in 3 11x14 screwpost portfolios. And you can check out a PDF version of the new portfolio here. Enjoy.

Perma-link | Comments (5)

Back in black

DwaDM is now back online after a vacation, a new hosting provider, and some technical issues. Those keen among you will immediately notice that the archives have been zapped; but they'll be brought back to life as well in the next couple of days. What will not be returned are all of your comments, which though I appreciate them, are not worth investing the time to manually enter each one back into the MT system. Sorry, but do feel free to create new ones.

JLPFL headquarters has been experiencing a similar and parallel bit of downtime... a lot of busyness regarding self-promotion (the portfolio is done!!! more on this later), some assignments, a great wedding (congrats Jen & Eric!), and a lot of reading. Beginning late next week I'll be taking the show on the road, new set of portfolios in hand, to make another pilgrimage to NYC to see friends, clients, Redux, and several purveyors of fine dumplings, cheeseburgers, and ales. I hope to see many of you then.

Lastly, the final pieces of Issue 15 of Blueeyes Magazine are falling into place and the new edition will likely be emerging, kicking and screaming, in the next week as well... coming to you live in monochromatic glory! It looks to be a very fine one, indeed.

Perma-link | Comments (0)

© 2006-2008 John Loomis. All Rights Reserved.