First contact you should make is your local largest newspaper; some cities have two large newspapers from competing companies which is a best case scenario for you. It is good for two newspapers to be competing for the same images as this can help you negotiate higher rates when you capture major news events. There are several ways you can make initial contact with photo editors but this method has worked well for me.
Let’s start with your local newspaper for example, you call up the photo dept and speak with the editor and tell him that you are interested in working with the paper as a stringer to shoot breaking news. You introduce yourself and tell him your location as well as your capabilities for filing photos etc.. Ask him to mail or email you the appropriate contracts and tax forms so you can have them on file before you start supplying them with images. Make it clear to the editor that you plan to be actively pursuing spot news and would like to have the proper paperwork on file before submitting images. Most editors will understand and appreciate your professionalism and initiative.. this will make you stand out. Most likely he will put you in contact with the accounting or legal dept. to have you send necessary forms.
It is important to let the editor know you are interested in spot news images to let them know exactly what you will be providing to them. I know of a lot of photographers that call photo editors and simply ask if they are hiring freelancers, most newspapers are not. So specifying that you plan to pursue and shoot breaking news images will let the editor know exactly what you can provide to the paper.
When receiving your forms and contracts make sure you read them thoroughly, and if you do not understand it then have an attorney go over it. Most newspapers are good with allowing you to keep your rights to the photos you take but others are not. Make sure you are allowing the use of the photo for one day with no syndication to wire services especially if their photo rate is low. If you shoot a bad car crash one day and sell it to the local Tribune then 2 days later you find out that the passenger in the car died and was the son of a celebrity then you can make big bucks re-licensing that same photo to national news outlets BUT if you gave away all your rights the newspaper will get all the credit for your photo and you won’t receive another dime. Sometimes the newspaper has a problem with your attorney amending the contract but I am sure most photo editors will understand your concern and accept the contract. I have done that on numerous occasions and have only had a problem once, but a conversation with the general manager of the TV station to explain my reasons solved all the problems.
You should also ask the editor these key questions: [private_pro]
- Where/how do I upload news images?
- What are your caption IPTC requirements and style?
- What are your photo deadlines?
- Who to contact? Be sure to find out who to contact days, nights and weekends too
- What are the rates you pay? Is it per photo or per story?
- Do you pay once published? or once uploaded and approved?
- Are there different rates for the photo being published on the web?
Those are just a few questions that you should ask and log in a spreadsheet for future reference.
Once you make contact with the newspapers in your local area including TV stations you should branch out to the next large market in your state. How do you know where the next large news market is? Just look for where the next TV station in your state. For example I live in Tampa, and the next closest market to me is Orlando and Miami. It is good to make contact with them because sometimes there is a news worthy event in your city that they may need but cannot spare a photographer to go up to your city and cover it. They then call you and you get the assignment all because of a little pre planning. That also goes for out of state media too, I contact all of the major news dailies and let them know who I am , what I do and where I am located just in case they need a stringer in my state. I even go a step further and contact international publications and do the same thing, it pays off because I do about 5 international assignments a year, and they usually pay very well.
Here are some cities I would contact outside of your hometown.
- New York
- Washington D.C
- Los Angeles
- Miami
- Houston
- Chicago
- London , England
- Brisbane, Australia
Those are just some but check back for a new post on contacting international agencies.[/private_pro]