Very Disappointed...

[Carols Clucks]

Kind of late I know, but many of the professionals you see at shows PAY to work there, are insured and usually have exclusive contracts that do not allow for other commercial photographers to be there. Because you are a minor, you would probably have to have a parent be the one to contract and be insured. The professionals that work at these shows often bring $10k in gear with them and need to generate a profit to cover that expense.



FYI, when submitting photos for animals-make sure the eye is tack sharp or don't submit the photo (unless it is artistically meant to have something else in focus)

 

[dracoe19]

hmm alright I'll have to look into it. I may just have to talk to people outside of the shows to photograph their birds.That would probably be the easiest.I don't really have the money to put down to pay to photograph there since I'm guessing it's a few hundred. I won't have to contact my parents since I'm 20 at the moment.

I agree.

 

[Carols Clucks]

Sorry, I read going to school and missed that it was not HS.

Can I ask what you had planned to bring to set up? Going to assume you have lighting and an d-slr

 

[dracoe19]

No problem I probably should have specified college as not to confuse everyone lol. I was planning on renting out some school equipment. Probably at least 3 lights if not 4 and a white stand backdrop. I'd bring my tripod, 2 lenses and a table as well. I don't have the super fancy photo set up yet but I have a great camera (canon EOS rebel). Since the school I go to is an art school I'm pretty lucky I'm able to rent out stuff until I can afford my own. I'm definitely going to try to find people locally to photograph their birds since it will be easier to do and there won't be the complications of the show photo rules and such.

 

[dainerra]

I'd start out by building a portfolio. That way you have something to prove your abilities to the show committee

 

[LittleSticks]

Please don't be put-off by the lady you spoke with on the phone. You never know with whom you are dealing with when you make a cold call. A written proposal to someone higher up in the organization with a follow-up phone call will get better results. A link to a website with your photographs will also be helpful. (If you don't have a website include a representative photo in your letter.)

When you go to the show take a portfolio with you to show prospective clients and business cards with your contact information to hand out. By all means take pictures of the birds in their cages. At this point in your career I would not advise you to enter into contracts that have you paying money to take pictures of chickens.

There is a lot of information on the Internet for artists. Sites with contracts, proposals, pricing estimates, job flow sheets and the like are available. Good luck to you.