A couple of years ago I took a picture at a fashion show and I recently got contacted by a Cosmopolitan magazine picture editor who found the picture online and said they wanted to use it in an article on the model. They offered me $50. Now I'm nowhere near to being a pro and I've never sold anything to a magazine before, but is $50 reasonable for one time print use in a publication like Cosmopolitan? Here's a similar one pic: oraine barrett It's been on flickr for a while so anybody could have got it for free...
Pricing is a pain in the neck, for sure. I clicked the link to your photo and in my mind, immediately heard the noise my wife would've made if she saw it.... something like, "Uunghyaa..."
I would think that an outfit like Cosmo would have the guy show up to be shot by their own photographer, so I'm baffled as to why they'd hunt down someone else's shot.
Sorry, I'm no help for advice. In situations like this I probably think the same thing as just about everyone else at DPC... Skip Rowland. Maybe he'll sign in and drop you a gem. I know I owe him a few beers, as do many others here.
Personally, as far as business in general, I like to get things done fast. The longer a deal takes to close, the more likely it is to fail. There are also things to consider like, how much would you like to see your name in Cosmo. If it's the same Cosmo I think it is, and they offered to put my name in it, that's a huge bonus.
Most people who contact me, I could care less. Screw them, I think, so I go balls to the wall and ask high. But if Cosmo, National Geographic, or the like contacted me, I be thinking of the notch on my bedpost.
thanks. I should have said on the original post that this is not US or UK Cosmo so probably not super big time but big for me ;-) I think maybe this is an article and they just want some editorial shot rather than a feature.
It really depends on your perspective.... Did you expect to get any money at all out of the image? Will your grandkids know about it if you hold out for money and lose the sale? Is the money more important than getting your image in a publication like Cosmo?
It's a decent shot, but if it's just going to be a sideline image for history's sake, it may not really be worth much more than that. His legs are cut off in that shot....
When I go o Medieval Times with the kids for a night of dining entertainment, everyone gets a photo with the princess on the way in. During diner they offer prints for ~$30. I always buy at least two, one of each of my daughters.
I do product photos for a catalogue. I literally line up dozens and cycle them past my lens and lights, click, click, click,..... $25, $25, $25,....
To kind of put things in perspective for you.
Money makes no difference to me unless there are a few zeroes at the end, as I have a pretty decent day job at the moment. But I'd give my left nut to be on the cover of National Geographic... for free.
thanks. I should have said on the original post that this is not US or UK Cosmo so probably not super big time but big for me ;-) I think maybe this is an article and they just want some editorial shot rather than a feature.
I'm thinking I'll take the $50 and the notch...
Take the notch and put it in your "Memory Bank" for future. Get it done, w00t!
I also noted Jeb's comment RE legs cut off, so not tech perfect shot, but his body is well represented.
Strikeslip, I hope you get paid. I'm like you - I've got enough to eat that I don't really need the $50, one thing I think about, though, is what I read about people giving images away free (or near free) making it hard for the true professionals to make a living...
Jeb, you're right about the technical aspects of the shot - it's not the greatest though they are using another one which is half body.
Skip's link in the other thread will calculate editoral prices as well. You can get most of the information you need by looking at a magazine's media kit. They all have them. Here's Cosmos. Notice, they charge a pretty penny to advertise on their pages. You should think about that when you contemplate that $50 insult.
i hear you Yanko, but to be honest, I think they only asked for my pic because it comes up on the first page if you google oraine barrett. And that's probably because it's been available for free on flickr for more than 2 years. Maybe $50 dollars is an insult but I reckon if I said I wanted $500 say, that picture editor would have just contacted the next person on the google page. and so on until someone took the 50...
i gave away a photo once, to verizon, to put on a phonebook cover. 1.1 million copies printed. 15 years ago, they used to hire photogs to the tune of 10k a day to shoot the covers. not any more. but i more than made up for it in large print sales. i also exploited it from a marketing standpoint. to me, in that instance, it was worth it. would i do it again? that is, give verizon another phonebook cover? absolutely!
but i don't give anything else away to commercial publications. they have money. they pay for everything else. they sure as hell can pay for their content.
my recommended course of action is to use any of the stock calculators to come up with a baseline price. then, if you haven't been given a number, ask for one. once they give you a number, it's up to you to decide if it's worth it. if it's close and/or reasonable enough, go with it. otherwise, ask for more. be a salesman and justify why they should go on and get it done and pay you. otherwise, i recommend taking a pass, just on principle. but that's just me.
good luck!
[honestly, i don't think it matters if you are a working pro, semi-pro, or bona fide hobbyist. i don't think it matters what your intention was when you clicked the shutter. what matters is that you created something and if someone else wants to use it, they should pay a reasonable fee for it.]
i hear you Yanko, but to be honest, I think they only asked for my pic because it comes up on the first page if you google oraine barrett. And that's probably because it's been available for free on flickr for more than 2 years. Maybe $50 dollars is an insult but I reckon if I said I wanted $500 say, that picture editor would have just contacted the next person on the google page. and so on until someone took the 50...
True, but at the same time you'll never get $500 if you don't ask for it. You can always adjust down in your negotiations. If you start out low then the other person IS going to treat you like a nobody and won't pay a dime more. If you don't value your work, its craftsmanship and marketability, then who else will? Just so you know I've sold photos to magazines for more than $500 and none of them has the circulation anywhere near Cosmopolitan.
Great advice, Skip and Yanko. I wish I had seen it last night before I replied to the person at Cosmo. Oh well, I'll know for next time - if I ever get that lucky again!
