Breaking into commercial photography is hard, especially with so much misleading information out there online in 2020. However, there are a few key aspects that will help to get you the big bookings.
Having spent a decade shooting ad campaigns, I have made pretty much every mistake possible with my portfolio. I have also grossly under valued my portfolio, both in terms of time and finance. However, in more recent years I have put my portfolio before anything else.
Finding a good agent, having your books seen by the right buyers, and getting those big bookings sounds so simple. And having the right eyes on your work has never been easier. Nevertheless, most photographers that I meet, including my past self completely mess up out portfolios. We may well be more than good enough to shoot the big campaigns, but we scupper our chances by showing these folk what the internet tells us we should.
In this video I go over what is most important in your portfolio and how to present it online in order to get those big and important clients. The difference that this change has made to my career is so big and profound that I feel slightly embarrassed for not having had taken action on the advice sooners. In the last few years my career has gone from shooting small campaigns for big brands to shooting big campaigns for big brands and I didn't have to do any additional work rather than changing the emphasis of my portfolio.
Great info. I've always thought that your portfolio should reflect what you care about, which is often personal work (unless you're lucky enough to work with brands that are in line with your lifestyle). As much as I hate to say it, a lot of the products I photography daily don't exactly match up with my personal interests and style, so it makes it difficult to curate a portfolio from that body of work.
Thank you for consistently providing excellent insight and advice, Scott. Most of your videos wind up in my saved videos list, and I'm working to apply many of the principles you discuss into my work going forward.