Posts by: A Photo Editor

Louise Hagger

Who printed it? ​
A Carp in the Tub Fold Out Identity Print Booklet Mixam Print,
A Year in Food annuals Mixam Print

Who designed it?
All designed by Owen Evans

Tell me about the images?

A Carp in the Tub: “If you want to take a bath, do it today; I’m bringing the carp tomorrow and it lives in the tub till Easter,” said Natalia helpfully. WAIT. Easter is three months away.

A Carp in the Tub is an artist collaboration by Food Stylist Victoria Granof, Photographer Louise Hagger and Prop Stylist JoJo Li. In words, pictures and recipes, it tells the weird and wonderful story of Granof’s winter-long journey to adopt her infant son in Ukraine.

The work is presented as a set: a folded poster and a booklet. Inside the booklet are a suite of seven photographs with corresponding recipes, and a not funny-but funny essay written by Granof. The poster unfolds into an A3 size to reveal the carp in the tub.

Whole Skinny Chicken from the series was an OpenWalls Finalist and exhibited at Les Rencontres d’Arles last Summer. The work won First Place ‘Professional Personal Work’ at PDN Taste Awards last year and is stocked at The Photographers’ Gallery bookshop, Magma, Mag Culture. Donlon Books, Ti Pi Tin Books and it’s part of Self Publish Be Happy’s library. You can find more info here and hear the song that Victoria Granof chose that compliments the work.

A Year in Food is my food annual which charts my food collaborations, commissions and best eats that year. The majority of my work are personal collaborations with an amazing team of innovative creatives in the food and drink industry from New York to Tokyo, which have been published by brands and editorials around the world. Together we make photographs that are impactful and delicious.

It is stocked in The Photographers’ Gallery bookshop, Magma and Daikanyama Tsutaya Books in Tokyo.

How many did you make?
A Carp in the Tub edition of 200
A Year in Food 2018 500 copies
A Year in Food 2019: 350 copies.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
1-2. My food annual A Year in Food is my main printed promo. I wanted to make A Carp in the Tub into a book to create a more intimate relationship with the viewer. It was the perfect way to share Victoria’s story and create space to share her essay and the recipes she wrote from the photographs we created, which document her memories from that time. I wanted to have an interactive element to the work so that’s why there is a fold-out poster to reveal the carp and also the rotation to see the poster in my food annual.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Absolutely! The response is really positive to receiving something that is considered and in print. It makes people take the time and really look and to ask questions, to share stories, rather that just swipe or scroll. It’s wonderful to hold something tangible that we’ve created from a conversation.

I post out A Year in Food in January with a handwritten postcards to wish my clients, art buyers, agencies and creatives I’d like to collaborate with a happy New Year and hope the work inspires them for upcoming projects that we can work together on. I have had commercial commissions from my food annual, particularly from my personal projects like my kaleidoscope motion work which provided inspiration for Rekorderlig’s online summer campaign.

This year for Chinese New Year I posted out the recipe cards as a preview to the forthcoming Hakka zine Eat Bitter in lucky red envelopes which Roo Williams designed. He made and hand printed the stamp of the Chinese calligraphy (which was designed by Henry Chung). Lydia’s family stuffed the envelopes over the Christmas break in Portland and I met up with her sister in London who brought mine over.

EAT BITTER 吃苦
“Endure pain to taste sweetness.”

A collaboration between two female, half Chinese creatives; Louise Hagger and Lydia Pang, celebrating their love of food and storytelling. Each based in London and Portland, Oregon, this collaboration spanned timezones.

The creative direction was born out of the Hakka spirit. Punk zine references echo the progressive and independent culture, lucky Chinese red tones hero but with a purposeful nod into the blood-red of meat. Bold and blocky typography mirrors Chinese script and is paired with human hand elements, calligraphy by Lydia’s Pawpaw and sketches taken directly from Lydia’s dad’s recipe books. The imagery is visceral, textural and immediately grounds you in a sense of place and time, a feeling. This work is deeply personal, sensorial and aims to shine a light on a culture long ignored.

At Chinese New Year, we want to share the preview to Lydia Pang’s Hakka Zine. A collection of short stories told through recipes that are not for the faint-hearted.

Because it’s time for everyone to know what Hakka tastes like.
I didn’t know Lydia personally but heard her on Creative Director Gem Fletcher’s The Messy Truth podcast and then read her interview on Ladies, Wine & Design talking about her Hakka zine. I’m interested in telling the stories behind food imagery within domestic scenes and around food memories so reached out to her on instagram saying that I would love to photograph her grandmother’s recipes. My work is very colourful and Lydia is a Goth so I wasn’t sure if she would think I would be the right person for the project, but we immediately connected on the story telling aspect, a passion for food and collaboration and sharing similar food memories from growing up as we’re both half Chinese. We met up when she was in London and after sharing ideas online, moodboards and numerous calls, we refined the art direction so we were all aligned before the shoot. I photographed the recipes in London with my team, food stylist Valerie Berry, assisted by Song Soo Kim, stylist Alexander Breeze and photo assistant and retoucher Sam Reeves. As Lydia is 8 hours behind in Portland, we had already photographed some before she had woken up. She loved what we had done and it was wonderful to taste her grandmother’s recipes on the shoot after we had photographed them. My regular collaborators have become friends and so we work very intuitively together. That’s the perfect kind of shoot when each creative is working in perfect synergy to create the work. You can feel the energy, working harmoniously to elevate one another’s work. I can’t wait to share all the images later this year!

Myles McGuinness

Who printed it?
PaperChase

Who designed it?
Me, I used my previous design skills as an Art Director.

Tell me about the images?
Series of images captured for Tahiti Tourism’s “Embraced by Mana” campaign. The ad featured opposing micro and macro photos.

Ad headlines read: MOVE / BE MOVED
As the Cradle of Polynesian Culture, The Islands of Tahiti are alive with expressions of craftsmanship, traditions, and history. Come immerse yourself and discover what it means to be Embraced By Mana.

Lots of great energy with this group of local guys. They all brought it and made for a super fun shoot in Cooks Bay, on the island of Mo’orea. There are many sides to The Islands of Tahiti. Yet they are all connected by Mana. Mana is a life force and spirit that surrounds us. You can see it. Touch it. Taste it. Feel it. And from the moment you arrive, you will understand why we say our Islands are Embraced by Mana.

How many did you make?
500

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Twice

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Yes, it certainly helps to share your all mediums. There isn’t golden arrow, but maybe it’s just me but I think print is special again, and when done right can stand out more than an email blast or social media whatever’s. Measuring and trying to maximize investment is key, I’m always fine-tuning lists to match clients who might actually hire me. Shooting for the stars, ha.

Evan D’Arpino

Who printed it?
Mixam

Who designed it?
I did

Tell me about the images?
The promo consists of 3 bodies of work, printed in separate magazines, and sent together as a single piece. There is an architecture portfolio, a still life portfolio and a book solely of fine mineral specimens. I decided to send out such a substantial promo because I just left a staff photography position I had been at for a decade. I wanted to share something that encapsulates the full scope of my work and get it in front of a new audience.

The work in the architecture and still life books ranges from assignments to personal projects- including assignments for InStyle, Surface Magazine, Rose and Ivy Journal, and Ghetto Gastro. Personal projects of note include a series that depicts symbols and metaphors from The Iliad in surreal still-lifes, and an architecture series of windows seen from NYC’s Highline Park.

The third book, Terra, is a portfolio of fine mineral specimens shot for assignments and exhibitions. A couple of years ago I wandered into a mineral dealer’s gallery and asked if I could shoot some of their specimens. My undergraduate degree is in geology and I have always thought crystals would be a wonderful subject. Since then, they’ve turned into a subject I specialize in. This portfolio is divided into four sections. The first is a collaboration with Wilensky Exquised Minerals, shot for an exhibition of emeralds they had last fall. There are 2 fine art series in the portfolio, Abiogenesis and Nucleation. Abiogenesis depicts specimens contained in bell jars and vitrines, with implied ecosystems allude to the fuzzy boundary between living and nonliving systems. Nucleation, is a black and white series that focuses on the architectural form of the specimens and illustrate nature’s influence over anthropogenic design. The remaining section is made up of photos taken of private collections. Crystals such as these are a subject that I haven’t seen explored very often, so it’s particularly exciting to share this work with the industry.

How many did you make?
I printed 200 of each portfolio. I felt like 200 would be a good balance between keeping it targeted but also allow me to get my work in front of more new faces.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
I tend to send out postcards and smaller mailers a couple times a year. Promos like these portfolios usually go out every-other year.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Absolutely! I still believe there’s something special about printed photography. A printed promo can be an experience, especially when it’s something that’s a little different and stands out. The responses I receive for printed promos back this up. I definitely see a difference in not only the number of responses, but the enthusiasm of the reply.

Alexis Hunley

Who printed it?
Zazzle – it’s a great company similar to Vistaprint where you can create customized products. They often have discounts and deals and for the set of promos I printed, I got a really great price.

Who designed it?
I did! However, I would love to work with a designer in the near future as I expand into more intricate promos.

Tell me about the images?
The first two images (man resting his head and the couple holding hands) are from a project titled Lovers or Friends. This project has allowed me to merge my love for science and art within a body of work that ties in a visual narrative to the psychological facts and figures that fascinate me. Lovers or Friends is a story about the importance of intimate connections via touch in the midst of a national epidemic of loneliness. From a psychological and scientific perspective, physical touch and emotional intimacy are integral to both psychological and physical well-being. Simply put – we cannot live happy and healthy lives without them. This project has been an amazing opportunity for me to build a photographic story around scientific data with the goal of reminding each of us that our needs for touch and intimate connections are normal no matter how or with who we fill those needs.

The final card is a portrait of Miss Hawai’i International 2019/Miss International Oceania, Raquel Basco. Shortly after this shoot, I was asked to travel with Raquel and her team to Honolulu to create still and motion content leading up to her trip to Japan to compete for Miss Universe International 2019.

How many did you make?
For each image, I printed 20 so in total, I printed 60 cards.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
I send promos about twice a year but I typically try to send a card out after a meeting or portfolio review. This year I will probably stick with two promos and a quarterly newsletter and reevaluate my strategy at the end of the year.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
There is something really special about receiving a handwritten card in the mail. One of my amazing mentors, Amy Cooper, really encouraged me to take time to send printed promos consistently. Just over the last year the promos that I have mailed out have landed me meetings, opened up doors, and helped me create connections that I otherwise would have been unable to without that initial introduction from those printed promos. The combination of printed promos, digital newsletters, and social media has vastly improved my ability to market my work effectively.

Jonathon Kambouris
IG: @the_mrjk

Who printed them?
Smart Press. I came across them randomly a year or two ago and found their prices to be very reasonable and the quality I felt was really great!

Who designed them?
I designed the mailer books myself. Being a photographer, I always want the mailers to be really focused on quality imagery and minimalist design. So, I kept the images big and let them speak for themselves.

Tell me about the images?
The majority of my work is focused on the beauty and cosmetic world. It is what I love to shoot the most and also what the majority of my work is. Twice a year I send out a “best of” beauty book and this body of work was from my Fall’19 book. Additionally, I sent out my first conceptual printed mailer. I constructed it in the same way as my beauty books and plan to send this out twice a year as well to build new connections with different clients and potential clients outside of the beauty and cosmetic world.

How many did you make?
I made 250, sent out around 200 and kept the remaining for leave-behinds at meetings and for my agency.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
I consistently send out a beauty/cosmetics book twice a year, in Spring and Fall. I have been doing this for a few years now and it is a great way to show clients and potential clients what I have been up to. Since I am mailing out just twice a year, I feel like it is really important to send out something that is more substantial than a single card of just an image or two. It needs to be something just a bit more special than that. Also, it is a great leave behind after meetings with an art director/creative. A sort of a “best of” portfolio that they get to keep after getting your larger portfolio reviewed. I think it is really important to keep up with a consistent schedule of how/when mailers are sent out to clients and potential clients as it is an effective way to keep new and fresh work out there and in front of the creatives looking to hire photographers.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Short answer yes, but more importantly; I strongly feel that to be successful at marketing one needs to use many different platforms to get their work seen. Printed mailers are just one way of marketing that connects to create a complete marketing platform that needs to be balanced with other marketing methods and tools. Every client is different and will react differently, some love digital posts, instagram and email newsletters while others love receiving a physical piece in the mail. Often it is near impossible to know who will react to what method, but keeping a consistent schedule for marketing is key to making sure your new work as an artist and photographer is getting seen by as many people as possible. Often it is really about timing and catching the right person at that right time. It is all about consistency, keeping up with producing quality work, consistently marketing on several different platforms/methods and keeping up with it year after year.

Peter Yang

Who printed it?
Madison Print Solutions
Printed on with a 4 color process on an HD Indigo 12000

Who designed it?
David Calderley of Graphic Therapy

Tell me about the images?
Andy Samberg: This was shot quite a while back at Sun Studios in NY. It was one of my favorite spots and was sad to see when they closed. During the Andy shoot, I noticed this really cool spot architecturally and thought it would be funny to see Andy’s head peeking around the corner. It kinda reminds me of a moment in an old cartoon. It was actually a pretty tough shot to execute, to get his head that high and that horizontal. There’s a lot of core work and balancing going on behind the scenes. I also recall we had a photo assistant grabbing his belt so he wouldn’t fall over ledge. I could be mixing that up with the many times I’ve shot over a ledge with a hand on my belt. Safety first.

BTS: The graphic treatment on the singles was inspired by old Interview magazine covers. The band was a rad group of guys. You could tell they were exhausted from their travels and their schedules but they were so nice and super pro. On the group shot, I was laying on the ground with a silver tarp draped over me to bounce up light. I had purchased a dozen full apple boxes (I’m always looking for excuses to buy photo equipment) and surrounded myself with these boxes to help the band members stand further above camera. I kept the members walking in the circle, and stopping over once in a while for the still moment.

Maya Rudolph and Fred Armisen: Big ups to Meagan and Kendall Faeth for this awesome set build. Since it was editorial, they built four sets in the am while stills were lighting, and we shot in the afternoon. I don’t recommend it..heart attack city. Fred and Maya were a joy to work with. I’m a big fan of theirs so it was a thrill to work with them.

Jeff Goldblum: What more is there to say, awesome dude in front of a giant painting of himself? The painting is from The Life Aquatic and Jeff actually had this painting at his house. We had to put it to use.

Bill Hader: I wanted to create a Twilight Zone meets film noir kind of vibe where a lot of detail was lost in the shadows. We were able to shoot on the set of Barry just as they were wrapping up the season and there were all these cool corners and wall textures to play with. I’ve shot often with will Bill over the years and he’s super fun to work with. He’s so great with facial expressions and can say so much while doing so little.

Jordan Peele: In this concept, we were speaking to race and the fact that Jordan is biracial. I really wanted to find a subtle and clever approach to illustrate this. We ended up painting this gradation of colors on the cyc and painting Jordan on-site to match the background. I had my camera locked in place so the lines would match. It wasn’t the initial intention to show the edges of the paint but it looked so cool that I shot this wider version. Also, I have a shot of him giving me the bird with a Freddy Krueger glove but it didn’t make the cut.

Kristen Stewart: I did this shoot this in a fairly generic hotel room and this shot came from trying to find interesting spaces within that room. This was a small mirror at the base of a bar. I knew if Kristen would be game to squeeze in this tiny uncomfortable corner we’d get a cool shot. Luckily she was game and when I asked she was fine being all scrunched in there, she replied, I’m cool dude.

How many did you make?
1250

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Not often enough. Probably twice a decade.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I’m not sure honestly. I hope so. I really enjoy the process of curating images and working with a designer.

Lauren Crew

Who printed it?
Newspaper Club – they are a specialty (and award winning) newspaper printer based out of the UK. They’ve been around for over 10 years and their small team of 12 are all art school graduates with expertise in print and publication design. Their goal in creating Newspaper Club was to make newspaper printing accessible for smaller businesses and artists.

Who designed it?
George McCalman and Ali Cameron of McCalmanCo Studio, a boutique design firm that works a lot with photographers and photography.
Website: https://www.mccalman.co/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mccalmanco/

Tell me about the images?
George McCalman: “The philosophy behind the image selection and design was defined before the process started. I wanted to show Lauren a different perspective on her own work. I wanted her to see that aspirational part of her work was there in plain sight. Lauren placed a whole lot of faith in our studio. She said basically: “just do it”. The image selection process was based on selecting avatars, aspects of her cinematic and street-level photography, honest moments that looked like movie stills”

Lauren Crew: This was my first time working with someone other than myself on a promo so letting go of any control of the image selection and sequencing was equal parts terrifying and invigorating. The temptation was to freak out and dispute his selects but it was important for me to be mindful of myself in the process; where do I get in my own way? I took notes where I was holding on, what work I was attached to and why and that helped me let go and trust deeper in the process. My aim was to detach from my work in a way that would allow me to see the images through the edit of someone else’s gaze; someone who has been familiar with work my over the span of 10 or so years more or less. It has been important in my process to learn and do as much as I could with what I had, but at a certain point – you have to outsource your weaknesses so I was really excited to let George do his thing.

How many did you make?
I printed 100. I wanted to be more intentional with who was going to be receiving the promo – people who I have built relationships with as well as people with who I am looking to collaborate with in the near future rather than a huge distribution to a bunch of strangers.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
I am committed to my craft and my personal growth as an artist, therefore, it is important to send promo at least once a year to display that progression. People may not have a project for you at that exact moment that you mail your promo – but when you send aligned work annually, you are educating them on the maturation and evolution of your own visual voice and those are the creative seeds I like to plant in the relationships that I build.
A lil somethin’ somethin’ to remember me by ;)

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Absolutely. Early on in my career, I used to be a photo editor. The promos that stood out to me were printed well and had strong curation even if it was just a simple postcard. However, if you sent me a promo on flimsy paper with shitty inks, that showed me you that you didn’t care that much, so why would I care to hire you? I took that note from that experience and applied it to anything I was making for any sort of distribution, even when the budget was slim to none. If you let it, promo can be an extension of yourself. During my first portfolio review ever, there was a man who flipped through the pages of my book with a quickness and told me I was “not ready”. After that awkward encounter, my ego threw him a handmade zine I made the night before as I walked off. (I had been saving the zine for someone worthy of receiving it so I was reluctant to give it to him but clearly, I had something to prove.) He called me back over and said, “what is this? THIS is you. THIS is interesting. You should have just shown me this”. Ever since then, I have always made sure to make promo that excites me before anyone else. Fast forward to being on a panel in 2018 about inclusivity within the industry – I did my research in advance of who would be alongside me on that panel and learned about a woman named Jigisha Bouverat of Bouverat Collective. I saw that she was an artist rep (something I had long given up on) yet still brought a leave behind promo to plant a seed. After the panel, I handed it to her and introduced myself. A year later, we signed and she is now my rep. So yeah, making printed promos has been very effective within my experience.

Danielle Paul

Who printed it?
The promo was printed by Newspaper Club. Their tabloid format has so many creative possibilities and I felt that the laid-back feel of a newspaper suited my work.

Who designed it?
As I am also a graphic designer, I was excited to take on the challenge of designing a piece for myself that represented both my design aesthetic and my photography. I wanted it to feel fun and approachable.

My experience of being a Photography Director in New York and Atlanta for seventeen years guided my goals for the promo: show Creatives my work and my ability to craft a visual story and also create a piece of work that might be pinned onto an inspiration board in a Creative’s office.

Tell me about the images?
The Wall Street Journal has been a client of mine for many years and several of these stories were commissioned by them. Frequently they send me to shoot for their Mansion section which combines interiors and lifestyle photography. I love the challenge of building a story from whatever I find when I arrive at the location, as there are no stylists involved.

The family and child photography was done for a small magazine here in South Carolina. I adore photographing children because they are so fun and imaginative. I usually give them some basic starting direction and then follow their lead. Ultimately, I’ve realized that they are way cooler than I am and it’s better to just let them do their thing!

How many did you make?
I’m just now making a concerted effort to broaden my client base, so I started with a small print run of 50 pieces. Newspaper Club makes it easy to go back and re-print as needed.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
This is my first time making an organized effort to edit, design and send out a promo. Although I have been shooting regularly, Greenville, South Carolina is a far step from being a hub for photography. After living in New York and Atlanta for so long, I felt out of the loop in a much smaller city and unsure how to proceed with marketing. Finally, I just decided to start with this first piece and decide where to go from there.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Based on my experience as a Photo Director, I definitely think that printed pieces are an effective marketing tool. It’s true that we are deep in the digital age and online marketing and portfolios are efficient and effective, but at the end of the day, I think creative people will always appreciate holding a pretty printed piece in their hands. And if you’re lucky, maybe they will pin it on their inspiration board.

Rodger Hostetler

Who printed it?
PS Print

Who designed it?
I did

Tell me about the images?
I photograph a lot of everyday items. Beauty, electronics, beverages, etc. I wanted to show that there can be beauty in everyday items, they can feel heroic and substantial. Product photography can be exciting.

How many did you make?
My 1st run was 250, I’ve since ordered another 250.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Typically twice a year. Although, I’m planning to increase it with smaller pieces in between.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I think yes. We live in a society of disposable content. We used to shoot everything for print. Now it’s mostly social and web-based. It’s nice to have work produced in a tangible medium. I’ve heard from many art producers that they keep printed pieces on file. I once had a client hire me 2 years after I sent them a printed piece.

Cory Foote

Who printed it?
The booklets were printed by the wonderful folks at Fireball Printing in Philly. Not only was it great to work with creative types who actually care about printed photographs on paper, but there was the added benefit of them being located within walking distance of my studio space. Initially, I thought I wanted a small run of offset mailers; because I’ve never been fond of the digital printing that I’ve seen ( that would be in my price range). After Fireball relocated into a new studio space, I believe they invested in a new digital printer. After getting proofs back and seeing the results, I had to rethink my concept because I thought the print quality and the paper stock was so stunning. Moreover, the team was super gracious and was never annoyed when I kept modifying the asset files for color correction and asking for more proofs.

Who designed it?
Unfortunately, I had to take over the design. It would have been great to collaborate and pay for a professional, but I’m not there yet. I had a few amazing friends in the creative field that I could go to with mock-ups and then get feedback. I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t committing too many design sins. The major thing I wanted to know was “ if this was on your desk would you want to open it?”

Tell me about the images?
The mailer is a small collection of images from client work that I loved over the past two years, mixed in with pictures that were created on the side during shoots or after with the leftover set materials and props. Often at times, creatively you are drawn to the test images and sketches and experiments that happen throughout the shooting schedule that aren’t necessarily appropriate or useful as final client assets. The goal was to create a playful space for those images to exist together in a messy visual pile. I wanted to share a mood board featuring a quirky layout with a luxury image from a jewelry retailer and a product shot for a local artist coexisting on a spread, photographed with the same appreciation and respect due.

How many did you make?
150 were printed. That was what I felt comfortable with cost-wise factoring in mailing expenses. I tried to target specific persons who would hopefully actually open and look at the booklet.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
This is my first promo of any kind. I’m really just starting my solo career. I love the idea of creating more concept-based mailers in the future, but there is always the creative fear of not working on vanity projects and only sharing useful information with clients that I wish to reach.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I sure hope so. I’ve always loved and been inspired by physical prints and bound books. There is a magic to seeing images beautifully reproduced in an interactive way. In sending out a little booklet potentially worth looking through; a conventional means of self-promotion will cut through the digital hellscape of emails and newsletters. As someone who struggles with sharing and social media, the Printed page just makes more sense conceptually.

Lauren Pusateri

Who printed it?
Paper Chase Press. I fell in love with their folded tabloid posters (thanks to your feed) and knew that’s the route I wanted to go. I liked the folded poster because it allowed a lot of real estate for images but folded up to a size that wouldn’t be obnoxious for the recipient to keep on file (and wouldn’t be a headache for me to mail). I like that the posters lend themselves to be designed as cohesive spreads — this allowed for spread 1 to be a mix of work and spread 2 to focus on one project specifically.

Who designed it?
Shelby Maggart, we connected a couple of years ago on a job and since then, we’ve had many opportunities to work together for various clients. This was our first time working on something just for me. I trust her eye and I love the way her brain works. I knew her background in packaging design would be a boon with these posters. I left the image selection up to her but curated the images I wanted her to pick from.

Tell me about the images?
If you’re like me when you’re busy fulfilling client-driven creative you can forget to make work just for you. When 2018 came to a close I realized that 70% of what I’d shot the past two years was animal work…and yes dogs are the best and I enjoy photographing them, but I’d never intended to pigeon-hole myself into a singular specialty. So I made a goal for 2019 to carve out time to make some work for me, to make what I wanted to see — and in the process fill some holes I felt existed in my overall portfolio.

All the images in my promo came from personal projects I shot between March-August 2019 with all-female teams. I challenged myself to create new work in areas I hadn’t played in for a while (kids, fitness, food). I sought out local female-owned small businesses and female creative talent to collaborate with so that the work I was making would have additional use outside of just being portfolio images for myself.

How many did you make?
150

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Up until this fall, I’d never created any kind of promo for my work. I learned a lot through this first promo experience and the process overall feels less daunting now. I’m *hoping* to send out promos twice a year going forward.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Totally. It’s a way to further communicate your vibe/what you’re all about and show people what you have to say. I feel that having a tangible representation of your work has more shelf-life than an email campaign or social media.

Darren Carroll

Who printed it? How many did you make?
Smartpress in Minneapolis. I like them because they can do short runs, and offer a multiple-version option whereby there’s only one setup but, as was the case here, you can swap out multiple images. So for example here I had 100 cards printed of each of the 6 versions, but instead of charging the (higher) price for 100 cards 6 times over, the charge is just for a 600-card run.

I had a small, targeted list of about 150 creatives that I wanted to send these to, and not all of them really needed to get all 6 cards. So there were some who got all 6, but others who got only 2, 3 or maybe 4, depending on who they were and what kind of work I thought I could potentially get from them.

Who designed it?
I designed these myself.

Tell me about the images?

–The female golfer is an image from a shoot for the Dick’s Sporting Goods/Golf Galaxy golf catalog, which I’ve shot for the past 8 years each December. Even though the shoot is highly produced, we try to shoot everything on-location with natural light, using real people (we cast for low-handicap golfers), as the creatives at DSG and I insist on giving the images a realistic feel–when you’re trying to sell $500 drivers to a demographic that’s extremely educated about the product and the game, you don’t want to fake it because there’s no better way to turn off an audience than by insulting its intelligence.

The image of the kid playing basketball is also for Dick’s Sporting Goods, shot for a Christmas online and print ad showcasing the company’s Techgrip line of products.

–The tennis image is of Kei Nishikori at the 2018 U.S. Open; that year was the first year of the new Louis Armstrong stadium which meant that it provided an opportunity for some new pictures and new spots to shoot from. So I went and scouted it on my first day there, before the tournament started, both for positions and to see what the light did as the day went on. (For scouts, I usually take the SunSeeker app with me and walk around to various spots on and off the court to see where the sun is going to be and what potential there is for shadows, backlighting, etc. Same thing for golf courses I’m seeing for the first time.) It turns out that the way the stadium is oriented, there’s about a 5-minute window as the sun crosses the sky that the shadow from the (open) retractable roof parallels the south baseline in the morning, right about when the first match of the day starts. And within that 5-minute window, there are about 2 minutes where the light is just right, slicing in and hitting the player’s upper body and casting a long shadow, while also rendering everything behind the baseline dark. So I would put myself in a position on the concourse to make this frame during the morning match. But then, of course, you have to have a player serving, who has to be right-handed, on that side of the court, precisely during that 2-minute window, to make the whole thing work. I can’t remember how many times I had to go back before it all came together, but I do know for sure that this was not from the first day of play…

–The Tiger Woods shot was photographed at the Dell Match Play Championship this past March, where I was playing around with some new, silent Sony mirrorless gear so as not to incur the wrath of Mr. Woods.

–The black-and-white image of the charro is from a personal project I’m working on about charreria, a Mexican form of rodeo, as it’s practiced in Austin and San Antonio. I’ve had to take a little hiatus from it just because I haven’t had the time to devote to it lately, but it’s probably the most rewarding personal project I’ve ever done and I’m looking forward to getting back into it next year.

–The gentleman with the flag is Jose Luis Sanchez, a retired Marine sergeant who lost his left leg to an I.E.D. in Iraq. He ran and finished the 2017 Boston Marathon, carrying a pole with the flag he has draped around his back, which was given to him and signed by members of his unit. This was shot for the cover of Competitor Running magazine.

–The pit room portrait is of Leamon Parks at Wilber’s BBQ in Goldsboro, North Carolina, where he had worked for over 40 years. If you follow me on instagram you know that I’m a sucker for barbecue, but I’m even more of a sucker for the atmosphere and light in old-school barbecue joints and love to photograph them, just as personal work. My wife and I were visiting her family in North Carolina, and on our way to see her grandfather’s home town she insisted on taking me to Wilber’s, where she had gone with him as a kid. Without telling me, she told the manager about my interest in places like this, and he invited us to come to the back for a little tour. It was there that I met Leamon and asked if I could make his portrait.

–Zion Williamson is the basketball player. He was the top pick in this year’s draft; every year the NBA brings a large group of rookies together for a pre-season photo and video session, where they move from station to station shooting various portraits, league marketing materials, etc. I was there for Panini America, which holds the trading card license with the NBA, shooting portraits for his rookie card.

–The yoga image and the image of the woman in the blue truck are from personal test sessions.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Not as often as I should. This was my only effort this year. This leads me to your next question…

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I think they can be, but I have to be more consistent. I’m shooting for a quarterly effort starting with these, which means my next one should go out in January. I do think that it can be a successful way to get my name and work out there if done regularly.

Cate Brown

Who printed it?
Modern Postcard

Who designed it?
Me! I wanted a more interactive design than a flat postcard and decided on a barrel rolling tri-fold pretty early. I keep a number of photos standing by that I wanted to feature, so when I had the sudden idea for a somewhat minimalist style collage I was able to finish the design in a couple days. I played with laying out mini-groupings based on a combination of both subject matter and color scheme.

Tell me about the images?
The images are a combination of personal work, portfolio building, and client work. They’re all personal favorites and all but one were shot within the last year. The opening silhouette shot is perhaps one of my absolute favorites from a concept shoot this summer with my friend Claire, incorporating stylized posing with her surfboard for a less traditional lifestyle shoot in dramatic sunset light. The first grouping you see upon opening the tri-fold includes client work for a regatta and a boat builder, plus one of my favorite wave shots from swimming in the surf this past spring. The second feature panel is for the boatbuilder again, from a lifestyle shoot we completed in Palm Beach that I’m very proud of. On the very inside is another feature shot from a portfolio fitness shoot with my friend Eliza this past summer. She’s a bodybuilder with personality to boot, and this shot captured her persona perfectly. Lastly is another small grouping of shots, all personal work, including hiking in Acadia National Park, lifestyle on the beach before surfing with my friend Abby, and a delicate flower detail I just photographed in the parking lot of a motel while visiting my brother in California but I absolutely love the soft aesthetic of it. Together they make a much more feminine little snapshot of my portfolio, and in combination with the other ocean or lifestyle shots, both client and personal work, this whole mailer captures my most work from this year very well.

How many did you make?
I send out about 100-120, so I’ll print 150 and use whatever leftovers as takeaways at in-person events like art festivals, lectures, and client meetings. I’ve been using vellum envelopes to give a sneak preview of the photos but still protecting the work during mailing. I do all the assembly and mailing out myself — including accidentally putting the return label and stamps on backward for half the batch one very groggy morning, but hopefully it shows I’m only human hahah!

How many times a year do you send out promos?
The goal is quarterly, but I’m still developing my marketing budget and schedule. The past two years I’ve done biannual — one in the first quarter of the year, and one in the third quarter.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
Yes. They are more personal and targeted than my email list, and even though my design covers a broad range of portfolio work as opposed to a singular project, it can still highlight my creative aesthetic and composition across photographic genres. I actually got a call from a new client within a month of a promo mailer that ended up with a commissioned assignment and will hopefully result in a successful long term partnership. When I asked how the client found me, she said my mailer (even though she had been on my email list for a year). She found it very thoughtful and recognized that I was specifically targeting brands I wanted to work with.

Zack DeZon

Who printed it?
Rolling Press in Brooklyn! In addition to being a green printer, they were great to work with, putting up with a number of annoying revisions from me.

Who designed it?
I did, though I heavily cribbed from a few of my favorite promos on this site…

Tell me about the images?
I made a lot of work this year I was super proud of, so I wanted to make a promo that celebrated that. After a long time trying to figure out what makes me tick as a photog, I’m finally crystallizing around portraits (my original love) and documentary, so I built this promo as a two-cover reversible booklet to emphasize that these are two complementary sides of my personality. The portraits are mostly of performers—I went to school for acting, so they’re my favorite—who are coming up in the scene but not quite yet household names. That’s something of an extension of a self-published book project I did back in 2013. I’m especially proud of the Ben Sinclair shots. This was the second time I photographed him—the first was back when I was making the book, and High Maintenance was just a little web series, and now it’s on HBO (and wonderful as ever). On the Documentary side, I think it reflects my loves of travel and unique, specialized situations (I especially like odd equipment, like you might find in a greenhouse or state fair). The Las Fallas story is my favorite there—I took the initiative to plan a trip to Spain to photograph it and Culture Trip picked it up and helped turn it into an award-winning story.

How many did you make?
50!

How many times a year do you send out promos?
I admittedly am not the most dedicated or successful marketer, but about once a year I make an attempt. This has probably been my most successful, though, and will definitely encourage me to make more going forward!

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I think so! I’ve tried the email-campaign thing and they just feel so spammy. Not helped by the fact that they’re frequently picked up by spam filters, and all the tips they give you on how to get around them just make your messages sound gimmicky. With a printed promo, I try to make something I’d be happy to have on my desk; I really want to feel like I’m giving a gift to these editors, or I’m just going to be too self-conscious to even try.

Nils Ericson

Who printed it?
We used a company out of the UK called Newspaper Club. We had looked locally at a couple of different printers here in the Portland area and they looked amazing but taking into account turnaround and price we ultimately went with Newspaper Club.

Who designed it?
After we went back and forth regarding what project/which images, she designed it and laid everything out. I was in the enviable position of simply taking the photographs and working on the color.

Tell me about the images?
I grew up in Des Moines, Iowa and would get out of school for a couple of days every Spring for the Drake Relays. I was never fast enough to run on the blue oval but did grow up running track and cross country. In any case, I’ve photographed some track and field in the past and for the last few years couldn’t shake the idea of going back home, staying with my folks, walking to and photographing the Drake Relays. It’s a special event. The weather is a mix of amazing and miserable – think snow, rain, wind, and sun – and the athletes range from high school to professional. I called my friend Amy Wolff at Runners World and she pulled a credential in the hopes it might turn into a story. The story didn’t work out but it made for a beautiful promo.

How many did you make?
100 finals plus 3 rounds of proofs to iron out the color.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
Truth be told, this was basically the first. I’d toyed with a promo forever ago but this was my first stab and making something that felt well-conceived and concise and hopefully apropos considering the Olympics coming this summer. In the future, I’d like to send out no more than 2/year. Honestly, 1 per year is probably all I have in the tank with everything else going on.

Do you think printed promos are effective for marketing your work?
I’m undecided, largely because this is my first go around. In my heart of hearts, I want to believe that making something special that conveys real emotion and sending it to a very core group of people is effective but time will tell.

Andrea Fremiotti

Who printed it?
I’m really particular about color and paper quality, and since each postcard is basically a 5 x 7 art print that I hope the recipients will keep, I went the labor-intensive route and printed the promos in my home studio. I used an Epson Stylus Pro 3880 and Moab entrada rag bright 300 gsm double-sided paper. I took turns with my wife, Jeanée (who is also my studio manager and creative collaborator), printing, sealing, and slicing the 17 x 22-inch sheets.

Who designed it?
Jeanée makes my marketing materials; she taught herself basic graphic design and photo editing. The vellum envelopes are from JAM Paper. My brother-in-law Seth Kelly of Helmet Studio designed my logo and website.

Tell me about the images.
We chose 10 images — mostly portraits related by color, lighting, and mood — and custom picked 3 for each recipient. That way, we can remind people of photos they liked before or show them something new that’s relevant to what they’re looking for. Here’s what we sent you: 1) The woman in the orange coat is my former Brooklyn neighbor Amanda Smith, an artist and vintage clothing enthusiast I shot in my home studio. 2) On the sofa is the model/actress/media heiress Lydia Hearst with her collection of horror memorabilia, shot for a “Domino” magazine Halloween story. 3) Starting as a personal project, I photographed the Atlanta fiber artist Sonya Yong James over a year while she worked on a huge sculpture commissioned by the U.S. Embassy in Mauritania. I shared the images with some editors and ended up publishing some in “The Atlantan” and “Uppercase” magazines to illustrate stories about Sonya.

How many did you make?
We made about 200 packets, with half going to editorial outlets and half to advertising agencies and entertainment companies.

How many times a year do you send out promos?
This was my first physical mailing in a few years. I plan to do them twice a year and monitor the impact. I may also make a book for a small number of recipients who are most aligned with my style.

Do you think promos are effective for marketing your work?
I don’t know yet whether physical promos are more effective than e-mails. The last time I sent physical mailers, which was a few years ago, I outsourced postcards and did not write anything personal to the recipients. The response rate was close to zero. This time, I printed the cards myself, presented them as little art pieces, and hand-wrote everyone a note. I’ve had a couple of enthusiastic replies.

I think that whether I’m emailing someone images or snail-mailing them prints, what I say is just as important as what I send. For example, referencing a conversation we had during a portfolio review is more impactful than just saying “here’s some new work.”