Workbook Client Daniel Bedell is a commercial photographer by day and a podcaster by night. In this Workbook Radio series, Daniel chats with friend and lifestyle photographer, Andy Anderson, about editorial work, personal work, and pro bono work.
DB: “I feel like for a lot of photographers starting out, it is a tricky thing figuring out: if I want to get out of editorial, how do I get out of editorial into commercial? And then once they’re in commercial sometimes it can be tricky figuring out: Well, do I keep doing editorial at all? It doesn’t pay as well, but maybe it’s creatively interesting? And I’m curious how you’ve approached that.”
AA: “Right, well that’s a good question. And I think why I get kind of frustrated with a lot of photographers. They kind of like, they overthink it. It’s like, what are you thinking? I mean, yes, you want to do editorial and you want to do commercial. You want to do them both! I mean, good art directors and good creatives look at good magazines. So why would you not want to do that?
“I mean, to this day I do editorial work. So, the fact they have to ask or they have to think about that? It kind of concerns me a little bit. They should just keep doing it. And they should do pro bono work as well. I mean, I do it all the time.”
DB: “Now when you say pro bono, are you talking about personal projects or something you’re doing for free for a cause or somebody else?”
AA: “For a cause, yes.”
DB: “What are some examples of how you have come across those opportunities?”
AA: “I’ll give you examples of the last two I did. I did one earlier [in 2018] for Chimp Haven. And what it is, it’s a…I was asked by an agency. She [the creative director] had never asked me for a job, [so] she felt kind of bad asking me to do this pro bono job. So, I said ‘Well, tell me a little bit about it.’ So, she told me.
“It was a project for a nonprofit organization that handles [and brings] chimpanzees primarily that had been in these research facilities. Under the Obama administration, [it was ruled] that no longer can a primate or chimpanzee be used for research. So, what they’re doing is they’re [rehoming] a lot of these animals, or primates, [into] sanctuaries. So, the sanctuary I worked on is Chimp Haven down in Shreveport, Mississippi, of all places. I was shooting portraits of these chimpanzees. But also, Jane Goodall was there at the exact same time because she’s part of this organization. So, I was able to do this project and also shoot some photos of [Ms.] Goodall.”
DB: “That is pretty cool. When you say pro bono, what does that mean to you? Does that mean you are paying for everything? That you’re just not charging a creative fee? What does that mean?”
AA: “Well, I mean it can go one of two ways. Like the other project that I did, I did for Sims Fishing products, which was a film about a nonprofit in Portland, Oregon that handles at risk youth with veterans who are suffering from PTSD. So, we did this film. We went out to ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge). We were up there about 10-12 days. It was a 7-day float trip on the Chandalar River for about 150 miles, doing a documentary film about this experience. They paid all my expenses, but I didn’t make a dime. I made sure my DP got paid, but I didn’t. It wasn’t important for me to get paid. And there wasn’t enough money to do it. But you can…for the most part, they’ll pay your expenses, but no creative fee. Which is fine.”
DB: “You know, I think personal projects are obviously a way a lot of photographers I’ve talked to kind of build a lot of their brand…make work that’s creatively satisfying but also, kind of pushes out a narrative of what kind of work they do. I’m curious how you approach deciding on creative projects. Do you just find something that you’re interested in? Passionate about? Do you ever take into mind maybe what an agency will be interested in or just ignore that?”
AA: “Don’t ever just ignore the agency thing. Just forget it. Just do what your heart says to do. Because if you start thinking what the agencies are going to do, you’re not going to be true to yourself; so just throw that shit out the door.
“I look at a lot of documentaries. I mean, I look at probably three or four documentaries a week. You know? And I love non-fiction, so if I get something that’s exciting that I want to do, I go do it!”
DB: “Does it matter to you? Do all those end up on your website? Do you show them all?”
AA: “Uh-huh.”
DB: “Yeah?”
AA: “Yup.”
DB: “How much time do you put into researching the story? Do you approach it like you do a commercial shoot, or is it a different approach?”
AA: “Uh, it’s about the same…about the same. Sometimes, I’ll just get on a plane and fly there and just see what happens. You know? There are a lot of times [when] I’ll do that. I mean…just because I’m inquisitive of what’s going on in the area, in that subject, or something.”
DB: “What are examples of some of those you’ve done [in 2018]?”
AA: “God, this year has been tough because I’ve been working so damn much. Let me see…Oh! I did this drone project down in Vegas. It’s on my website and called ‘Suburbia.’ And basically, it’s just these drone landscape photographs of just how, you know, suburbia’s encroaching upon wild places. So, it’s pretty interesting.”
You can listen to the full episode below!
Check out Daniel Bedell’s Workbook portfolio and Instagram.
Check out Andy Anderson’s Workbook portfolio and Instagram.
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