Connecting with venues

<p>Hi,<br>

I Just moved to NYC and started my wedding photography here but I feel need to be connected with venues around here to have more costumers .. I like to know how should connect them? By email? What should I ask?<br>

Thank you for all suggestions </p>

<p>Move out of New York and set up elsewhere, preferably in a smaller regional city. This will fast track your business start up plans and you will preserve your sanity.</p>

<p>I am not being facile or silly in saying this. I tried this when I moved to Sydney, Australia, many years ago when the going was much better for photographers starting up. In retrospect, relocating to Sydney, Canada, would have been a better business decision for me. In New York you will face a massive uphill battle in front of you. In time you may succeed and I truly hope you do, but by then you may be too old to want to carry camera gear to weddings. Seriously, you must be prepared for a long and often difficult uphill struggle to establish yourself in the business. The local competition is keen, often very aggressive, and way ahead of you. </p>

<p>Notwithstanding my less than positive comments, please accept my best wishes for your future success in the nuptials trade. I recommend, however, that you refer to your clients (a much better term, as it denotes a measure of respect and not a consumerist attitude) as "customers" and not "costumers" which is an entirely different term, but may open up possibly another good photo business opportunity for you. </p>

<p>Food for thought only, respectfully offered. </p>

<p>JDW</p>

<p>The above response is one reason people get frustrated on photography forums.</p>

<p>First of all, it doesn't answer the question asked, which is how to connect with venues. </p>

<p>Second, it doesn't recognize that someone may have little choice where they move. For example, one could move to New York to take care of a sick parent. One could move there because a spouse job change required it.</p>

<p>Third, it doesn't recognize that everyone isn't trying to be an instant success.</p>

<p>Fourth, the comment on a typo is totally unwarranted and comes across as nasty.</p>

<p>Wow, Jeff's right. That comment on the typo was really uncalled for - seriously! :-)</p>

<p>SLWP:</p>

<p>I'd use any and all means at my disposal to get your face and company in front of those who operate the venues you are targeting. Personal visits, email, snail mail ... anything that works. Don't forget about meeting people and using connections to get somebody to recommend you to a venue. You'll need business cards and a Web site, too.</p>

<p>There are a lot of free sources of marketing ideas for photographers just starting out. (Ex: http://www.elizabethhalford.com/the-business-of-photography/how-to-build-your-photography-portfolio-and-when-to-open-for-business-2/)</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

<p>Well, Jaydann may have not answered your question but he did make some true points. The old small fish in a big pond scenario. Anyways, I won't go down that path. <br /> How many weddings have you shot here in NYC since you moved here? <br /> Connecting with venues is not the best thing for a new photographer on the block to do. They simply don't care about you. Your best bet is to seek out the party coordinators. They might not give you the time of day either. Everyone care's about there own good name and reputation. They will choose the tried and true photographers. If you are a talented photographer you should do fine. It may take some time but keep at it!<br>

You also need a good website. I see a couple people with the same studio name as yours. Not sure if one of them is you or not. You will also need to charge a higher price.</p>

<p>If I have offended the OP in any way, I offer her my apology. My Sagittarian black sense of humor does get me into trouble at times.</p>

<p>The costumer/customer remark was sincerely meant. Along with the suggestion offered entirely in good faith, that many if not most customers would really prefer to be called clients. "Customers" is too close to "consumers" for my liking, and in offering a personal service such as photography, "clients" seems to me the most respectful term.</p>

<p>Michael Mowery has, as always, offered by far the best suggestions.</p>

<p>An old saying on pots calling kettles black comes to mind in all this. At times there is entirely too much of this on APUG, and I am as guilty as the rest in doing this. I will take heed of this in future, as I hope some of you others also will.</p>

<p>My very best regards to all,</p>

<p>JDW</p>

<p>I should never, ever, ever post first drafts. On rethinking the above, my amended version follows. It was not meant to offend yet more, but I fear it has done exactly that.<br>

What I really meant to say is the following. <br>

If I have offended the OP and others on this forum in any way, I offer the OP and you all my apology. My Sagittarian black sense of humor does get me into trouble at times. I also sometimes type faster than I think. </p>

<p>The costumer/customer remark was sincerely meant. Along with the suggestion offered entirely in good faith, that most who employ a photographer will really prefer to be called clients. "Customers" is too close to "consumers" for my liking, and in a personal service such as photography, "client" seems the most respectful term.</p>

<p>Michael Mowery has, as always, offered by far the best suggestions.</p>

<p>Now let us be truthful to this OP as well as polite, and try to appease the malcontents by saying in the nicest possible way, that there is really no good advice we can give her about how to succeed in business in NYC. Michael has in fact covered it all very well and far more succinctly than I am able to do. If we eliminate the well-meant but basically sugar-coated suggestions, the truth is that she is competing with thousands, even tens of thousands of other photographers, amateurs and professionals, and no amount of well-meant fussing over customers, costumers and clients, pavement pounding, emailing, personal visits, drinks and lunches will produce fast and easy results in a heavily oversaturated business market.</p>

<p>I hope she has the mental endurance and the physical stamina to hang in and persevere in the hope of some day perhaps securing a small place in a very big pond. This may seem harsh, but it is real world advice. If she is in the business of photography and not committed to staying in NYC for other reasons, she can look sideways and consider relocating to a better market. I would. If she is otherwise employed and photography is a part-time venture, she will have to persevere and work diligently and try everything she can to improve her market share. From her post it did seem that she already has some photo work. If this is so then she has done very well.</p>

<p>Enough said. I have written more than enough about this and I will be silent from now on. My very best regards to the OP and to you all,</p>

<p>JDW</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Thank you so much ALL for your responses. <br>

Actually, I moved NYC because of my husband. Before that we lived in san Francisco and I shot as a fashion photographer for great client over there. I shot more than 100 wedding during 5 years in different countries. <br>

I know there are lots of competition in NYC but I Love to work here. I noticed NJ could be good choice to start. They are many Venue over there. <br>

I need your help because I am persian (an Immigrant ;)) so I need to know more about business in United State. How to connect with venues or way that I can improve my business.<br>

also, This is my website :<br>

http://www.simplylacephoto.com/<br>

http://www.saeide-karimi.com/<br>

I always happy to know your suggestions.<br>

Best,<br>

Saeide</p>

<blockquote>

<p><strong> I like to know how should connect them [wedding venues]?</strong> By email? What should I ask?<br /> ...<strong> moved NYC because of my husband</strong>... Before that we <strong>lived in san Francisco</strong> and I shot as <strong>a fashion photographer for great client</strong> over there. I shot <strong>more than 100 wedding during 5 years</strong> in <strong>different countries.</strong></p>

</blockquote>

<p>I don't think email cold calling will do you much good, nor do I think that you need to "ask" them much nor do I think that a scattergun approach and seeking every and any means possible to make contact with venues will have much influence and if anything might give you a name as a pest, novice, unprofessional or even untalented ... What I think you do need is an <strong>introduction.</strong></p>

<p>If you have been working hard on your business, then during those five years you have made many contacts; use those contacts because there must be quite a few who know people in NYC.</p>

<p>Your Husband must know people in NYC too.</p>

<p>I haven't worked in NYC, but have conducted four successful businesses in Sydney, (mentioned previously as a seemingly tough city in which to work), and although a native of Sydney I still find that networking is a very superior business mechanism.</p>

<p>As one simple recent example of networking and asking for an introduction: Malcolm Turnbull secured a fifteen minute conversation with Donald Trump, simply because Malcolm has a colleague who is friends with Greg Norman who apparently had Donald’s cell telephone number.</p>

<p>I take it on face value that NYC would be a tough city to crack, but if I were to move to NYC I would have a list of everyone I know who <strong><em>might know</em></strong> someone in business in NYC and I would be asking my Wife for her list, too.</p>

<p>WW</p>

<blockquote>

<p>that there is really no good advice we can give her about how to succeed in business in NYC</p>

</blockquote>

<p> <br>

First of all, since you say you there isn't any good advice, it would be better to be quiet because you must be giving bad advice. Second, she has said she isn't there because she moved there to start a career. Third, she didn't ask how to succeed, she asked how to hook up with venues, which is much more limited in scope.</p>

<p>Ask your San Francisco fashion client if they have contacts in NY. Possibly other past clients too, other than that do what you did to get started in your old location.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>as "customers" and not "costumers" which is an entirely different term<br>

</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Recently in a hotel in Honolulu, I saw a business which seems to be a wedding photography studio. They supply all the suits and gowns, such that clients can dress up for a wedding photograph, even if they don't have suits or gowns. I am not so sure what they use for a background, though. <br>

<br>

I suspect that some ethnic groups would have more need for studio wedding photography, but don't know which ones. </p>