Getting Photo Passes to Concerts.

[Rekd]

Read through parts of the suggestions and they all seem good. Maybe this was said before, but here are my thoughts:
- definately do not sell these images and don't mention that you will. You are building a portfolio. Thats all you are doing.

- until you can get a decent portfolio going, I'd suggest offering them the images for their use, as long as they are ok with you keeping them for your portfolio

- you have to have some work to show if you go after the medium or bigger name bands. Most band publicists get a bunch of requests and only give out a few passes. No name local gigs will usually let you shoot. Hell, I usually pay my $10 ticket and they have no issues with me taking images. I then send the band a link to the images and allow them to use the watermarked images for facebook or other social media. Check out small venues to see their up and coming shows, contact these small bands (can usually be found via facebook or myspace) and offer 5 free shots from the show with the right to shoot the show. Build local relationships. Arcade Fire is a huge band now, but they started really small locally here in Montreal. I did some shots for the members of Hollerado and a month later, they are nominated for best new artists at the canadian juno awards (same as grammies here).

- keep in mind that this is a business. So make your salespitch to them while being in their shoes. What will this give the band. They want to know where the images will be seen, thats what publicity is all about. Unless you come on to a kind soul, it will be a hard sell. So sometimes, just getting the backing of your school paper will help. Or...do what I did and research online magazines in your area that would do some reporting on concerts. Chat with them and see if you can drop their name as to where the images will be seen. Quoting how many hits a month the sites get is a great idea, gives the publicist an idea of scope.

- touching on the above point, do you have any contacts? Networking is huge in this business. Friends of friends. Parents of friends...

- never mention (not that you did, just saying) that you are a fan of the band and would love to take images of them. Publicists will say that if you are a fan, buy a ticket.

- most bands and shows do a 3 songs and out. They might kick you out after 1. Or after 15 mins. Know this. Sometimes saying that you are fine with a 3 song and out will show you know a bit of the business. And FYI, some will kick you out after 3 songs, some won't allow you to shoot from the pit but ok from the venue.

- know how to act when shooting a show from the pit. Dont block the view of the fans, they are paying for tickets. You are shooting for the band and for them, not for you (well, you are shooting for you, but if you piss anyone off, you ain't coming back). Know how to act with other photographers in the area.

So to sum up.... get some starter portfolio shots with no name bands.
Once you have some work to show, get a small web page together with your best shots
Approach the band's management with the "what will I give them" idea in mind
Know how to act, be professional, get ready for alot of rejection


And photopasses are for those who get them. Not for just anyone. But those who get them need to be ok to give something back. This whole "you should shoot for a publication to get them" is BS. If someone can get them without having a publication, it means that either they have something to offer the band (or they have good contacts).

I shot a pro soccer game last year. Had a great time. My in? The local school board. I had done some event shooting for them a few times and they were giving some awards to kids at half time. They asked me to shoot (for free) the giving of the awards. I said sure, but I want a pass to shoot the whole game. They got me that, it was paiement enough.

Excellent post. Lots of very good advice.

 

[bigtwinky]

Why thank you.

Most of it actually comes from reading stuff online. Blogs, videos.... and when you think about it, alot is just coming sense.

 

[Rekd]

Yes, it is a lot of common sense, and you can find it by simply reading it elsewhere. But you put it all together in a nice tidy package.

 

[vfotog]

I think that some of the advice may be good for many people, but not the OP. Reread what he's written. I think most of this information isn't tailored to a very inexperienced high school kid. Stephen, you say you want to put together a commercial portfolio. Portfolios represent your best work. and the KIND of work you do. Do you have an interest in a specific area of photography yet? What do you excel in? That's what should be in your portfolio. A product photographer shouldn't have wedding photos in their port, a fashion fotog wouldn't show concert stuff, etc. Is music photography your career goal? Otherwise, it won't really add anything of much value to your portfolio. Since you say you don't expect to do it for money, perhaps you should concentrate on what you do anticipate earning some income on. Cos if you don't plan on making a living, if it's just a fun hobby, you sure don't even need a portfolio.

Concert photography isn't the same skill set as a product photography or portrait photography, etc. It's not easy. You have to deal with a moving subject, crazy and ever-changing lighting, and a loud and not always pleasant environment. It's not reasonable to expect a space in the pit of a name band so you can learn on the job. If you want to shoot performances, start shooting and learn before you manage to alienate people. The business just isn't that big that you won't get the reputation of being the annoying high school kid. Your school must have concerts and plays; shoot those. It's high school. There have to be kids in bands; offer to shoot them. See if you even enjoy it or whether it's even suited to your strengths as a photographer. A lot of people aren't adept at it no matter how much they love music. Or photography.

There's no point in trying to start at the top. You'll gain more skill and respect by learning first and understanding how things work. You say you're a junior in HIGH SCHOOL. There are age restrictions for even being in a lot of clubs. Have you done the research on the business side of all of this? What do you do if the group or the promoter or the club hands you a piece of paper and wants you to sign it? If it's a rights grab or some other contract, will you understand it? And the bottom line is that unless you've been held back a few years in school and therefore older, you're probably NOT old enough to legally sign it without your parents or legal guardians having to sign it too. If you have to bring your parents along, it's too soon and you certainly won't be taken seriously. It could be a real headache for a club to have a minor in the pit. You need to learn to walk before you decide to run a marathon.

 

[bigtwinky]

I think that some of the advice may be good for many people, but not the OP. Reread what he's written. .

Hmmm...

Well, I'm looking into getting a more commercial portfolio together, and I plan to shoot some concerts with media passes.

Seems to me that the OP wants to shoot concerts. I think it might be a misunderstanding of what a commercial portfolio is, but he clearly did state that he wants to shoot concerts, not products or weddings. I guess my commercial, he means that he would be hired on to do gigs.

Cos if you don't plan on making a living, if it's just a fun hobby, you sure don't even need a portfolio.

Disagree with this. If shooting concerts is a fun hobby, then you still need a portfolio. Getting the good gigs means someone will review your work. Either the band's publicist or the editor of the paper. Either way, you need some solid work to present.

I agree with the not starting at the top part. Work your way up, learn the ropes. I'm not convinced the OP wanted to start shooting top named bands, but that is the goal, right? Like anything else, you need to work your way up, but you still need those goals. Well, I need those goals so I have something to aim for and progress towards. To me, sounds like the OP has a decent head on his shoulders and is trying things out.

Throwing out there that he needs to know what type of photography he wants to do and focus on that is not sound IMO. At the OPs age, experimenting with various types of shooting is great. Who knows, maybe he has already done that and decided that concerts would be great and fun. Hell, thats why I shoot them. I've loved music, love live shows, love photography. I take Joey L as an example. He started shooting shows when he was under 18. Heck, I think he's 20 now. He was shooting with a point and shoot and got noticed. He then progressed to more editorial stuff. Not saying everyone is a Joey L, but if you have a want and a drive to do something, do it. You'll never know unless you dive head first into it.

 

[vfotog]

I think that some of the advice may be good for many people, but not the OP. Reread what he's written. .

Hmmm...

Well, I'm looking into getting a more commercial portfolio together, and I plan to shoot some concerts with media passes.

Seems to me that the OP wants to shoot concerts. I think it might be a misunderstanding of what a commercial portfolio is, but he clearly did state that he wants to shoot concerts, not products or weddings. I guess my commercial, he means that he would be hired on to do gigs.

Cos if you don't plan on making a living, if it's just a fun hobby, you sure don't even need a portfolio.

Disagree with this. If shooting concerts is a fun hobby, then you still need a portfolio. Getting the good gigs means someone will review your work. Either the band's publicist or the editor of the paper. Either way, you need some solid work to present.

I agree with the not starting at the top part. Work your way up, learn the ropes. I'm not convinced the OP wanted to start shooting top named bands, but that is the goal, right? Like anything else, you need to work your way up, but you still need those goals. Well, I need those goals so I have something to aim for and progress towards. To me, sounds like the OP has a decent head on his shoulders and is trying things out.

Throwing out there that he needs to know what type of photography he wants to do and focus on that is not sound IMO. At the OPs age, experimenting with various types of shooting is great. Who knows, maybe he has already done that and decided that concerts would be great and fun. Hell, thats why I shoot them. I've loved music, love live shows, love photography. I take Joey L as an example. He started shooting shows when he was under 18. Heck, I think he's 20 now. He was shooting with a point and shoot and got noticed. He then progressed to more editorial stuff. Not saying everyone is a Joey L, but if you have a want and a drive to do something, do it. You'll never know unless you dive head first into it.

it's not really clear what his intentions are. He says he wants a COMMERCIAL portfolio, which implies making money. OTOH, he says he doesn't want to make money. But he says he wants to sell to stock.It sounds like the goals aren't really defined, so I was hoping to get a clearer picture. He hasn't even said whether he's ever shot any performances. If he really hasn't, it's hard to know if he has the skills to go in that area. A lot of kids (and adults) want to shoot music cos it SEEMS so glamorous. Which of course, most of the time it isn't. Of course, he doesn't have to have a genre picked at this age, but he may have a few areas he's interested in if he wants to go to "a photography school". Unless you live in a town of 100 where pro photographers are going to be scarce, there aren't a lot of photo generalists that shoot everything. Of course, he NEEDS a portfolio if he wants to get work, but if he's asking to shoot shows because it's his hobby, don't know a lot of publicists that are going to go for that. And his initial letter talked about offering the label "a percentage of the profit." He's gotta do the research and learn how this stuff works. And the age is still a big thing. He's offering a financial arrangement that as a minor will require his parents involvement. There's nothing wrong with being young but young and savvy is better. Learning your craft first tends to be a more practical and successful route.

 

[Stephen.C]

BigTwinky, Thanks for the help, your posts are always filled with awesome information.

I think that some of the advice may be good for many people, but not the OP. Reread what he's written. .

Hmmm...

Well, I'm looking into getting a more commercial portfolio together, and I plan to shoot some concerts with media passes.

Seems to me that the OP wants to shoot concerts. I think it might be a misunderstanding of what a commercial portfolio is, but he clearly did state that he wants to shoot concerts, not products or weddings. I guess my commercial, he means that he would be hired on to do gigs.

Cos if you don't plan on making a living, if it's just a fun hobby, you sure don't even need a portfolio.

Disagree with this. If shooting concerts is a fun hobby, then you still need a portfolio. Getting the good gigs means someone will review your work. Either the band's publicist or the editor of the paper. Either way, you need some solid work to present.

I agree with the not starting at the top part. Work your way up, learn the ropes. I'm not convinced the OP wanted to start shooting top named bands, but that is the goal, right? Like anything else, you need to work your way up, but you still need those goals. Well, I need those goals so I have something to aim for and progress towards. To me, sounds like the OP has a decent head on his shoulders and is trying things out.

Throwing out there that he needs to know what type of photography he wants to do and focus on that is not sound IMO. At the OPs age, experimenting with various types of shooting is great. Who knows, maybe he has already done that and decided that concerts would be great and fun. Hell, thats why I shoot them. I've loved music, love live shows, love photography. I take Joey L as an example. He started shooting shows when he was under 18. Heck, I think he's 20 now. He was shooting with a point and shoot and got noticed. He then progressed to more editorial stuff. Not saying everyone is a Joey L, but if you have a want and a drive to do something, do it. You'll never know unless you dive head first into it.

First off, don't make a TPF account, to belittle me because of my age. I may have misused the word "commercial" but what I mean is, I want to do some photography that COULD turn into a career. Take a look at my flickr, is there anything that I could show to a business and say "hire me?" No, obviously not. You focus on my age, which already makes me completely disregard anything that you say.

Stock photography sites..Thats pretty much the only way I can sell the photos I take now, which is why I mentioned it.

Also, I come here, asking about photo passes. Don't try to talk me out of it, stop wasting your time typing.
So many things in your post just piss me off. I know what is in a concert, hot shot. You don't have to tell me that the guy runs around and there are flashing lights.

Man when someone asks a question about an area when someone *can* get paid, it really brings out the nay-sayers.
If you don't have any helpful information about the question that I asked, then don't even bother to post.

 

[vfotog]

First off, don't make a TPF account, to belittle me because of my age. I may have misused the word "commercial" but what I mean is, I want to do some photography that COULD turn into a career. Take a look at my flickr, is there anything that I could show to a business and say "hire me?" No, obviously not. You focus on my age, which already makes me completely disregard anything that you say.

Stock photography sites..Thats pretty much the only way I can sell the photos I take now, which is why I mentioned it.

Also, I come here, asking about photo passes. Don't try to talk me out of it, stop wasting your time typing.
So many things in your post just piss me off. I know what is in a concert, hot shot. You don't have to tell me that the guy runs around and there are flashing lights.

Man when someone asks a question about an area when someone *can* get paid, it really brings out the nay-sayers.
If you don't have any helpful information about the question that I asked, then don't even bother to post.

first of all, it won't be productive to throw a hissy fit. It's a sign of immaturity. I didn't belittle you at all. I did point out some roadblocks that exist because of your age. I gave you practical advice and information based on the real world. If someone is much older and highly experienced the advice is going to be a lot different than if you're underage. Since you're a minor, it's going to be a liability issue for venues to have you in their pit. You can't sign a release or contract without your parents co-signing. Telling you that is not belittling or critical. That's just facts. Playing the victim instead of learning from others who give you information you don't like isn't going to help you. It won't get you where you want to go. If you develop and display an attitude every time someone tells you no, or something you don't want to hear, you've got a rough road ahead. I gave you helpful information that would decrease your chances of looking really stupid and getting your emails, etc thrown in the trash by venues and bands. It's not mean to tell you to research first. Btw, IF the work was good enough to get accepted by a stock agency, again, you need to be of legal age. I looked at your Flickr. Some of these images are very nice but there weren't any concert shots. Even if you weren't a minor, there's nothing there that's going to convince a venue, let alone a corporate venue like HOB, to let you shoot there. I've been shooting concerts for over 25 years. It's a different skill set from what it appears you've been shooting so far. You can choose to be pissed or you can learn from what people post to try and help you.

 

[Stephen.C]

First off, don't make a TPF account, to belittle me because of my age. I may have misused the word "commercial" but what I mean is, I want to do some photography that COULD turn into a career. Take a look at my flickr, is there anything that I could show to a business and say "hire me?" No, obviously not. You focus on my age, which already makes me completely disregard anything that you say.

Stock photography sites..Thats pretty much the only way I can sell the photos I take now, which is why I mentioned it.

Also, I come here, asking about photo passes. Don't try to talk me out of it, stop wasting your time typing.
So many things in your post just piss me off. I know what is in a concert, hot shot. You don't have to tell me that the guy runs around and there are flashing lights.

Man when someone asks a question about an area when someone *can* get paid, it really brings out the nay-sayers.
If you don't have any helpful information about the question that I asked, then don't even bother to post.

first of all, it won't be productive to throw a hissy fit. It's a sign of immaturity. I didn't belittle you at all. I did point out some roadblocks that exist because of your age. I gave you practical advice and information based on the real world. If someone is much older and highly experienced the advice is going to be a lot different than if you're underage. Since you're a minor, it's going to be a liability issue for venues to have you in their pit. You can't sign a release or contract without your parents co-signing. Telling you that is not belittling or critical. That's just facts. Playing the victim instead of learning from others who give you information you don't like isn't going to help you. It won't get you where you want to go. If you develop and display an attitude every time someone tells you no, or something you don't want to hear, you've got a rough road ahead. I gave you helpful information that would decrease your chances of looking really stupid and getting your emails, etc thrown in the trash by venues and bands. It's not mean to tell you to research first. Btw, IF the work was good enough to get accepted by a stock agency, again, you need to be of legal age. I looked at your Flickr. Some of these images are very nice but there weren't any concert shots. Even if you weren't a minor, there's nothing there that's going to convince a venue, let alone a corporate venue like HOB, to let you shoot there. I've been shooting concerts for over 25 years. It's a different skill set from what it appears you've been shooting so far. You can choose to be pissed or you can learn from what people post to try and help you.

Nah,I didn't throw a hissy fit. I already said I didn't have concert stuff..I'm trying to get into it to build a portfolio. The only attitude I have had was towards you, not to everyone critiquing. I've learned from almost everyones posts, because most of them have been full of useful information.
I've signed contracts before, So I'm not too sure about all this liability stuff. When Red Bull came to Boston for an event, I got a photopass and I signed all sorts of things even though they knew I was 16.
Honestly, I'm going to keep trying. I found a website with a list of a bunch of venues. The worst they can say is no.

 

[Rich F]

Some pretty good advice here... I forgot that I joined this forum until I got an email today saying that it had been redesigned....

I just started shooting about a year ago and have really taken a liking to concert photography. Pretty much local bands to this point. But I just got an email response from Epitaph records telling me that I'm on the list with a photo-pass for the upcoming Social Distortion show.

I emailed them and told them that I am interested in shooting the show and will be providing the images to local papers and the examiner.com website. These aren't lies either. I'm going to shoot the show. And when I get home, I'll choose the best six images and email them to a few papers. I also have a friend that is going to write a review of the show for the Examiner website. She will be using my photos for her post.
By shooting a bunch of local acts and sending this link to my Bands and Music Flickr set I was granted the pass....

So, like a lot of people had said - shoot some local acts to build your portfolio. If you send the link to the PR people of a band, they might be more inclined to give you a pass.....

Good Luck,

-Rich
My New Blog

 

[Stephen.C]

Thanks rich.
You have some great shots there!

 

[vfotog]

Nah,I didn't throw a hissy fit. I already said I didn't have concert stuff..I'm trying to get into it to build a portfolio. The only attitude I have had was towards you, not to everyone critiquing. I've learned from almost everyones posts, because most of them have been full of useful information.
I've signed contracts before, So I'm not too sure about all this liability stuff. When Red Bull came to Boston for an event, I got a photopass and I signed all sorts of things even though they knew I was 16.
Honestly, I'm going to keep trying. I found a website with a list of a bunch of venues. The worst they can say is no.

Stephen, you may have signed stuff, but that doesn't mean it was enforceable. Could very well mean someone on their end wasn't doing their job. Actually, the worst thing that could happen is not just their saying no, but that they say no and remember you later on down the road as the underage guy trying to get a pass with nothing to back it up. What's so horrible about shooting at the level you're at first? Shooting high school, maybe some college bands will give you some practice and portfolio pieces. Here's a link to a slideshow of some of my music stuff. You're probably too young to recognize these artists but you can get the idea of my style.

 

[Stephen.C]

I'm willing to take that risk. I'll get good photos, then once that band comes back around to my town, i'll have a portfolio to show them.
Yeah I know most of the artists.

 

[Village Idiot]

Don't offer to give your work away for nothing. Once you do that, you can't go up. And if you're not on assignment from a publication you shouldn't be asking for a photo pass. Shoot a small band at a club that doesn't care. There are only so many passes available for a given show and all a publicist cares about his how many eyeballs will be seeing your images, not helping someone they've never met with his portfolio. I see you're in Boston - I shot two bands last night, George Clinton at House of Blues and Akron/Family at the Brighton Music Hall. There were several people at the second show with cameras and although I was on the list there, I don't think anybody would have cared if I wasn't. Build your portfolio with shows like that. Big name artists aren't impressive in a portfolio - excellent shots are.

News flash, no bar or club that host anyone but mildly known local bands in Baltimore will allow you in with anything more than a P&S, and sometimes you're better off hiding that in your drawers. If I were to try and walk into Ram's Head Live in the Inner Harbor to shoot a band as not so well known as SOJA, OK Go, Bad Fish, or other similar bands, they'd start laughing at me at the door and wouldn't quit until I was outside.

Not getting photo passes means I can't shoot. Hell, even when photographing Shadows Fall at Sonar's club stage, which is tiny and has no pit, they wouldn't have let me in without a photo pass.

 

[Stephen.C]

Don't offer to give your work away for nothing. Once you do that, you can't go up. And if you're not on assignment from a publication you shouldn't be asking for a photo pass. Shoot a small band at a club that doesn't care. There are only so many passes available for a given show and all a publicist cares about his how many eyeballs will be seeing your images, not helping someone they've never met with his portfolio. I see you're in Boston - I shot two bands last night, George Clinton at House of Blues and Akron/Family at the Brighton Music Hall. There were several people at the second show with cameras and although I was on the list there, I don't think anybody would have cared if I wasn't. Build your portfolio with shows like that. Big name artists aren't impressive in a portfolio - excellent shots are.

News flash, no bar or club that host anyone but mildly known local bands in Baltimore will allow you in with anything more than a P&S, and sometimes you're better off hiding that in your drawers. If I were to try and walk into Ram's Head Live in the Inner Harbor to shoot a band as not so well known as SOJA, OK Go, Bad Fish, or other similar bands, they'd start laughing at me at the door and wouldn't quit until I was outside.

Not getting photo passes means I can't shoot. Hell, even when photographing Shadows Fall at Sonar's club stage, which is tiny and has no pit, they wouldn't have let me in without a photo pass.

Yeah. I've been going to different venue's websites and most of them have a strict no camera rule.