That’s what would hurt me now if I still wanted to do this work. Today the young art directors want to have the control – they don’t want a photographer who has a relationship with the talent. That’s the last thing they want. For me, the relationships with the talent that I developed were far more important than the relationships with the clients because clients come and go – but the talent are going to be around for a while.
I realized that I was bidding jobs that I wasn’t getting, and I said to myself – this is getting old! I really didn’t enjoy it anymore and there’s people out there that are a lot hungrier than I was by that time.
via A rambling conversation with Greg Gorman | Le Journal de la Photographie.
2 Comments
Interesting that he started out by doing the headshots for $35/day. Even back then that can’t have been much money, making him, by some people’s reasoning, just another young photographer ruining the market at one point, too.
And this, “I was asked by a major wine shop I knew in St. Helena called Acme Fine Wines if I was interested in shooting a wine label. Dave Phinney, a very talented young wine maker, had asked Acme if they knew anyone who might be able to shoot a wine label for him and they suggested me. He didn’t think he could afford me – but Acme told them ’You might be surprised – maybe he’d work for wine!’”
I’m sure some bitter and insecure photographer is cringing. Chasing the brass ring never works out. Make friends. Enjoy life. That’s success.
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