Seeking photo for a book cover

SuperUJ · 10-09-2012

A friend of mine works for a relatively smaller publisher. She is looking for a photograph that exhibits team work and mutual trust. The concept that she had in mind was more along the line of one of the following:

1) A team who is climbing a steep mountain. In the photograph, there should have a rope (it should be along the line of this as example photographs from Getty Images), or

2) A team who is doing whitewater rafting. In the photograph, there should have splash and paddles in it. (it should be along the line of this as example photographs from Getty Images)

As stock photo companies charge a lot for book publishing purposes. My friend asked me to reach out to fellow photographers with high quality stuff (does not need to be pro's). I immediately thought of this forum. The use of photograph will be fairly compensated and guess what ... it can be another publishing opportunity to enhance your photography resume as well.

If you are interested in helping, please PM (Private Message) me.

John

jonasv · 10-09-2012

Ah... I'm sure you'll find someone willing to undercut the prices of such overpriced items as (gasp) stock photos!

A friend of mine works for a relatively smaller publisher as well. In child books, which is a much harder business than the team-spirits-books-big-business-consulting your friend is in. She pays artists a fair price.
Though I'm sure a couple of people will pm you.

Edit: the clarification posted below means my reply wasn't very polite or correct... apologies.

MartinP · 10-09-2012

I don't want to be rude, but why do you think a photographer here will not charge a fair market rate (more or less the same as Getty) for work?

SuperUJ · 10-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartinP

I don't want to be rude, but why do you think a photographer here will not charge a fair market rate (more or less the same as Getty) for work?

You have a good point. The original message may have given such impression but it was not the intention. As mentioned, my friend's company is willing to pay a price the photograph deems fair for the right photograph. This is only to see if we can take the middleman out of the equation for a win-win. Also, this can help to connect photographers with a publisher. It is just another channel for marketing for photographers in this RFF.

SimonSawSunlight · 10-09-2012

i know that my photos would be more expensive to have on a book cover than what most stock websites charge... but then, i don't think i have photos of teams with spirit climbing up mountains with a rope.

SuperUJ · 10-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonasv

A friend of mine works for a relatively smaller publisher as well. In child books, which is a much harder business than the team-spirits-books-big-business-consulting your friend is in. She pays artists a fair price.
Though I'm sure a couple of people will pm you.

To avoid assumptions made ... I promised my friend to post her request as her religion/spirituality

publisher company can use some help. Definitely not a big business consulting type that some may have in mind. Thanks!

taskoni · 10-09-2012

It's interesting to see that some RFF members can price their work even without having the shots needed for the task in order to sell!
I hope you'll find what you are looking for, if not here, certainly on the stock sites.

Simon, just curious, what makes your pictures more expensive than the ones on the stock sites?

Regards,

Boris

MartinP · 10-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuperUJ

You have a good point. The original message may have given such impression but it was not the intention. As mentioned, my friend's company is willing to pay a price the photograph deems fair for the right photograph. This is only to see if we can take the middleman out of the equation for a win-win. Also, this can help to connect photographers with a publisher. It is just another channel for marketing for photographers in this RFF.

Oh, that's perfectly reasonable of course. Thank you for the clarification

One of my foolish pastimes is indeed climbing, but my group/team photos are perhaps not completely suitable for a religious or spiritual context though three have been used in climbing periodicals. It is probable that you are looking for photo-shoot pictures with a climbing context, rather than what I have made - and it does appear that Getty has a few pictures for you indeed!

Chriscrawfordphoto · 10-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by taskoni

It's interesting to see that some RFF members can price their work even without having the shots needed for the task in order to sell!
I hope you'll find what you are looking for, if not here, certainly on the stock sites.

Simon, just curious, what makes your pictures more expensive than the ones on the stock sites?

Regards,

Boris

Why is that 'interesting'? Many of us are professionals. We know what we charge people for the different uses we license photos for. I won't sell my work for pennies like the idiots on microstock sites do, and people still buy because my work is unique enough to be worth the cost. So is Simon's.

sepiareverb · 10-09-2012

I won't begrudge anyone who wants to make a few bucks on a picture that. The "publisher" doesn't want to pay fair market and is looking for someone who is ok with that. Willing parties should do what they want. The money is long gone from stock photography.

jtm6 · 10-09-2012

When I read this thread earlier today, I picked one of the more interesting and challenging climbing photos to see what it would cost to license it for the cover of a book for 5 years and 100,000 copies. It came in at just under $2500.

taskoni · 10-09-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chriscrawfordphoto

Why is that 'interesting'? Many of us are professionals. We know what we charge people for the different uses we license photos for. I won't sell my work for pennies like the idiots on microstock sites do, and people still buy because my work is unique enough to be worth the cost. So is Simon's.

That's the spirit mate!

I personally know many professionals having some pictures on the stock sites, and they are definitely not an idiots, but it's all matter of taste of course.

Regards,

Boris

Chriscrawfordphoto · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by taskoni

That's the spirit mate!

I personally know many professionals having some pictures on the stock sites, and they are definitely not an idiots, but it's all matter of taste of course.

Who cares. Their work can be 1000 times better in your opinion than mine, but they're still basically giving it away, and I'm being paid enough to live. I'm not getting rich, but I do not have to work a real job either. Because I'm intelligent enough to charge what my work is REALLY worth (and people are paying, so it is worth it), I am a free man, not a corporate slave. Its called working smart, not working hard.

mfunnell · 10-10-2012

surely something is unique or it is not. There are no grades of "uniqueness". You can, however, be forgiven for thinking there are given some of the usage, passing for English, committed by those who are supposed to know better.

...Mike

Roger Hicks · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfunnell

surely something is unique or it is not. There are no grades of "uniqueness". You can, however, be forgiven for thinking there are given some of the usage, passing for English, committed by those who are supposed to know better.

...Mike

Dear Mike,

Interesting question, this. Something may be unique in one regard, but not in another, i.e. the M3 viewfinder is unique, but it's still a viewfinder. If something is unique in two or more regards, one might make a case for degrees of uniqueness. Thus, an M (with live view) might be 'more unique' than an M9, M8, etc. Strained, but defensible.

(Displacement activity. I should be finishing off my Shutterbug coverage of photokina).

Cheers,

R.

Chriscrawfordphoto · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfunnell

surely something is unique or it is not. There are no grades of "uniqueness". You can, however, be forgiven for thinking there are given some of the usage, passing for English, committed by those who are supposed to know better.

...Mike

When it comes to professional photography, the only thing that matters is that you have the image the buyer has decided he 'must have'. If you do, it is unique and the buyer WILL pay to get it. Guys that give their work away or sell it cheap are all operating out of fear, and ignorance of the market. If you have the one they want, they will pay, because a free image is only useful if it is the one they want.

Roger Hicks · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chriscrawfordphoto

When it comes to professional photography, the only thing that matters is that you have the image the buyer has decided he 'must have'. If you do, it is unique and the buyer WILL pay to get it. Guys that give their work away or sell it cheap are all operating out of fear, and ignorance of the market. If you have the one they want, they will pay, because a free image is only useful if it is the one they want.

Unless, of course, they're willing to put up with an inferior picture just because it costs less.

Cheers,

R.

thegman · 10-10-2012

To the OP. You may wish to check out Flickr, 500px, APUG, istockphoto etc.

If I had such photos, I'd be glad to sell them to you at a price we'd both be happy with, as I think you'd pay more than my filing cabinet does to have them. Unfortunately, I don't, but I wish you luck in finding something.

I do find it peculiar how enraged some people get over the idea that someone may wish to pay less than the "fair market rate". To seek a lower price *is* the fair market rate, it is the nature of all trading in a free market.

If I'm selling a camera, and someone wants to pay less than they would from someone else, I don't get all angry about it, I try to work out a deal that both sides are pleased with.

thegman · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chriscrawfordphoto

When it comes to professional photography, the only thing that matters is that you have the image the buyer has decided he 'must have'. If you do, it is unique and the buyer WILL pay to get it. Guys that give their work away or sell it cheap are all operating out of fear, and ignorance of the market. If you have the one they want, they will pay, because a free image is only useful if it is the one they want.

Respectfully disagree, practically all of us make decisions based on price. My flat, cameras, clothes, alcohol, furniture, vacations, computers are all purchases influenced greatly by price. My purchases/sales as a businessperson are too. You try to price things by what you feel they are worth, but more often than not, you price by what people are willing to pay.

If you're selling your work as "art" then, you may find someone passionate enough about it to pay $1000 or whatever, but I think most photos are sold as magazine filler, home decor etc. and has to be priced accordingly.

Bobfrance · 10-10-2012

jesse1dog · 10-10-2012

The OP had a heading to the post - book cover.

I think this takes the pricing situation into a completely different situation. There can't be just 'any old' pictures selected but one that has to be considered in relation to the lettering to be superimposed. The cover is a major graphics exercise that involves much more than the photograph - it's possibly the most difficult part of the book production - it will be the cover that attracts and makes the potential reader and buyer 'go for it' rather than another on display. I suspect that this very specialised area is one in which most of us have virtually no experience.
I wish the OP and his contact the best of luck but .....

jesse

Roger Hicks · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by jesse1dog

The OP had a heading to the post - book cover.

I think this takes the pricing situation into a completely different situation. There can't be just 'any old' pictures selected but one that has to be considered in relation to the lettering to be superimposed. The cover is a major graphics exercise that involves much more than the photograph - it's possibly the most difficult part of the book production - it will be the cover that attracts and makes the potential reader and buyer 'go for it' rather than another on display. I suspect that this very specialised area is one in which most of us have virtually no experience.
I wish the OP and his contact the best of luck but .....

jesse

Dear Jesse,

We'll, I've quite a lot. And I can assure you that you have an overly romantic view of the skill, intelligence, etc., of the average book cover designer.

Cheers,

R.

skibeerr · 10-10-2012

[IMG]

IMGP0126 by wim_b, on Flickr[/IMG]

Well.....?

Chriscrawfordphoto · 10-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by thegman

Respectfully disagree, practically all of us make decisions based on price. My flat, cameras, clothes, alcohol, furniture, vacations, computers are all purchases influenced greatly by price. My purchases/sales as a businessperson are too. You try to price things by what you feel they are worth, but more often than not, you price by what people are willing to pay.

If you're selling your work as "art" then, you may find someone passionate enough about it to pay $1000 or whatever, but I think most photos are sold as magazine filler, home decor etc. and has to be priced accordingly.

Are you someone who makes his living selling photos, or a person whose job it is to buy them for publication? If not, you simply have no clue what you're talking about. Sorry to be so blunt, but it is what it is.

I have had very few inquiries about licensing my work that didn't pan out because I was too expensive. The fact is, most art directors have already decided they WANT the image before they even contact me, and once that decision is made, price loses most of its importance because most of them have difficulty imaging the project they're putting together with any other image. I have had a number of buyers tell me this. What I'm saying is based on my long experience doing this professionally.

KevinS · 10-10-2012

The photographer gets only a percentage of the fee from a sale through Getty, while they would get the entire fee from a sale direct to the customer. This is a huge factor. When I get an inquiry from a publisher I treat it as an opportunity and respond with my best work. If a license results and there is no agency involved, I'm real happy. If the fee offered is too low, we try and work it out. I've licensed photos for publication for 20+ years and a few have been book covers. Some have been direct sales and some were through an agency.