Advertising Photography: A Straightforward Guide to a Complex Industry

If you are an aspiring or professional photographer looking to break into advertising, "Advertising Photography: A Straightforward Guide to a Complex Industry" will provide you with an honest and uncensored look at this highly competitive and lucrative business. While working in the advertising photography industry can be glamorous and financially rewarding, it can also be intimidating and difficult to break into, requiring networking savvy, financial know-how, and marketing and business skills on top of photographic talent. Advertising Photography strips away the glitz and presents a candid and complete picture with solid advice to newcomers. You'll learn how to get your business started, including writing a business strategy, successfully negotiating a bid, what to expect during the shoot, post production and delivery tips, and how to properly invoice your clients. The book explores several business management styles supported by the real-world experiences of veteran advertising photographers, illustrated with stunning full-color images of the work that got them where they are today. By examining the methods and strategies used by those who have already made it in the industry, you'll learn smart business practices to apply to your own work, giving you time to focus on the creative aspects of your craft, which is what will ultimately lead you to a successful advertising photography career. Learn from the experiences—good and bad—of those who have been there! -Practical how-to tips, information, and examples from each of the top genres -Learn how to get your business started, including writing a business strategy, licensing and copyright information, creating branding for websites and portfolios, insurance and legal issues, and more -Essential industry resources for estimating and invoicing software, professional organizations, marketing services, and creative consultants

If you are an aspiring or professional photographer looking to break into advertising, "Advertising Photography: A Straightforward Guide to a Complex Industry" will provide you with an honest and uncensored look at this highly competitive and lucrative business. While working in the advertising photography industry can be glamorous and financially rewarding, it can also be intimidating and difficult to break into, requiring networking savvy, financial know-how, and marketing and business skills on top of photographic talent. Advertising Photography strips away the glitz and presents a candid and complete picture with solid advice to newcomers. You'll learn how to get your business started, including writing a business strategy, successfully negotiating a bid, what to expect during the shoot, post production and delivery tips, and how to properly invoice your clients. The book explores several business management styles supported by the real-world experiences of veteran advertising photographers, illustrated with stunning full-color images of the work that got them where they are today. By examining the methods and strategies used by those who have already made it in the industry, you'll learn smart business practices to apply to your own work, giving you time to focus on the creative aspects of your craft, which is what will ultimately lead you to a successful advertising photography career. Learn from the experiences—good and bad—of those who have been there! -Practical how-to tips, information, and examples from each of the top genres -Learn how to get your business started, including writing a business strategy, licensing and copyright information, creatingbranding for websites and portfolios, insurance and legal issues, and more -Essential industry resources for estimating and invoicing software, professional organizations, marketing services, and creative consultants

Daniel Lombardo - Library Journal

Since 1992, Lesko has done fashion and commercial work for Honda, Quest Communications, AT&T, and Microsoft, and his irreverent writing style is regularly featured in Digital Photo Pro magazine. Here he writes for the aspiring or professional photographer looking to break into advertising, taking an honest, practical view of a highly competitive business without promising glamour and wealth. Lesko offers advice on getting the right education and the best practical experience and launching one's own business. He then covers issues from writing a business strategy to handling the billing. Each section ends with a business profile of a successful advertising photographer. Recommended, along with another recent volume from the same publisher, James Carney's Mastering Digital Wedding Photography.

Lou Lesko is a fashion photographer and commercial director based in Los Angeles, CA. He started his career by accident in San Francisco shooting model tests.

In 1989 USC accidently graduated him with a double major in English.
Flush with head full of collegiate knowledge and very little clue about the real world - blind luck, good timing and a bad hangover contributed to Lou landing an assignment as photo journalist in Russia. After two years as journalist, he was well traveled and broke. Fresh with his travel experiences Lou moved back to California 1992 in pursuit of more fashion and commercial work.

He eventually settled in Los Angeles. And just when he thought he couldn't eat another bite of a cheap burrito, Lou caught a break with a regional Countrywide Mortgage ad that went national. Lou broke new ground with his directorial debut of a breast cancer awareness public service announcement in 2000. Lurking around in the TV circles, he made a few TV appearances shooting pictures which included a featured story on his behind the scenes style that was shown on NBC.

Lou is the owner of Blinkbid, estimating software for creative professionals. Currently he finds himself being asked to be contributing writer about the industry he loves. Which has become a wonderful way justify his school loans.
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Bobbi Lane is a commercial photographer specializing in creative portraits in studio and on location. Bobbi's multi-faceted approach to photography incorporates over 30 years of technical experience with innovative artistic interpretation. She shoots primarily people on location for editorial, corporate, and advertising accounts aswell as photographing "real people" and travel for stock. Her stock photography has sold worldwide for ads, posters, and billboards.
Bobbi's clients include: Warner Bros., PricewaterhouseCoopers, Samsung, Bose Corp., Neutrogena, Ricon, Mattel, Maui Music Festival, McDonnell/Douglas, Sears' Tower Skydeck, and the Morro Bay Natural History Museum. She is a regular contributing photographer to both Ridgefield and Bedford Magazines.

As a dedicated photo educator, she brings insight and enthusiasm to her hundreds of students every year. Bobbi's excellent rapport and communication with her students inspires and motivates, while her straight-forward teaching style reaches students of many different skill levels. Bobbi teaches at the Santa Fe Workshops, the Maine Workshops, the Julia Dean Workshops, and the International Center for Photography in New York City. She is the
Chair of the Education Committee for Advertising Photographers of America, and the creator of their Successful Emerging Photographer's program.
Bobbi is a Contributing Editor to Photo Techniques magazine, and author of the book, Creative Techniques for Color Photography, published by Amherst Media. Her new instructional DVD, Portrait Lighting Techniques with Bobbi Lane is available through Calumet.