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I received a begging letter today. Not from an individual,
but from a fairly well-known commercial website. Here it is:
'My name is ******** and I am the picture researcher at
****.co.uk. I'm in a bit of a bind and was wondering if you could do me a favour.
I found you via the *******.co.uk page promoting ******* beach and castle.
We are promoting the area in an editorial price on Easter breaks at the beach.
I was wondering if it would be possible to use one of the beach shots on the site.
Unfortunately I have no budget to work with.
As we are hoping to go online ASAP please let me know soon. Of course we will
credit you for the pictures. Sorry again for asking for this for free. Look forward
to hearing from you. ****** ******'.
As some of you will know, I run my own business partly as a photographer, and
this person must be aware of that as it mentions it on the site she visited.
Don't you love that phrase 'I have no budget to work with'? I'm going to try that
the next time I need the services of a professional:
'Hi, I found you listed under dentists in the Yellow Pages.
I need a tooth filled as soon as possible. Unfortunately I don't have any money,
but I will put a note in my window saying that you filled my teeth.'
I wonder what the dentist/plumber/mechanic will say to that?
I wrote back that I was unable to offer photography for free as I have spent money
and more than ten years building up my photographic library and I must maintain
a certain price level if I am to continue investing in new pictures. But I hoped
she would consider me again in the future.
But what I really wanted to write was this:
'Are you mad? What kind of joke company do you work for?
Is your business doing so badly that you have to rely on charity? I must tell
all your shareholders. Actually, your company should be *embarrassed*.'
This is far from the first time this has happened to me. Last year the BBC (which
at least has the excuse of being a 'public service' organisation) approached me
to use shots for free. Most companies seem to be on the scrounge these days.
I know of one national magazine where the editor used to steal images from foreign
websites and publish them in his magazine, on the grounds that copyright on the
Internet was a 'grey area'.
Don't get me wrong, over the years I have often worked for free for charities.
But, as far as these blood-sucking commercial companies are concerned, I would
rather be unemployed for the rest of my life than let them use me and my work for
nothing.
I'm sure this person will find an amateur photographer or even a professional
who doesn't value his or her work. But, as it becomes increasingly difficult to
make a living from photography (which is happening in a big way) there will be
an ever-diminishing number of professional images available.
There has to be a change in this freebie culture. Instead of being proud of the
fact, companies that don't pay a fair rate or a living wage should be named and
shamed.
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