I'm only just starting (well, 8 months ago) in the business, but I can definitely say that the yellow pages seems to be the way to go. I was lucky enough to land a real estate photography position (2 days/week on retainer), but for the rest of my time I was building my portfolio. I took thousands of shots of people, their children, their businesses, all for free, and all said "Wow, what amazing work, we'll talk for you". Well I don't believe thats really happened as I'd hoped, people are essentially lazy or forgetful, and you can end up feeling used.
BUT.... my yellow pages ad came out a week or so ago. It cost me $1500, paying it off over 6 months. By the time it came out I had become completely disheartened and thought I should take a job in a photo lab or something. But from the day the book was released, I was booked for a wedding, then another, then a funeral parlour asked me to do a shoot for their website, then a marriage celebrant, then another wedding, and just this morning I was asked to do a HUGE job for the local government, shooting the entire city and attractions for them. I am completely bowled over by the responses to the ad, and its only been 2 weeks since it appeared.
I know that depending on where you live, a yellow pages ad can cost a fortune, but if you can get into a local one, or buy a small ad, do it. Its completely worth it. Then I believe the word of mouth will take over, once you have some good paid jobs and people learn to trust you. Its also snob value - if you've done 'this' job, you'll be more likely to get 'that' job. etc etc.
The only thing I would add as a catch to that is make sure you have your website up and running, and that you have ALL the equipment you need. There is nothing worse than getting caught out believing that you can do a gig, wanting to take it, but realising that its next week and you have no lighting, or reflector, or lens etc. If you don't have it and can't afford to get it, only accept the gigs you know you can handle, the ones you do best - doing a gig badly will really harm your reputation and isn't worth it. You can always get an idea of what they want, identify if it works in your skill set, and say you are unfortunately booked out, then recommend someone else.
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