There is nothing more sexier to a photographer than when a clients wants to pay them with exposure. After all photographers love exposure. I mean who wouldn’t? Forget cash or Bitcoin. Give me some exposure!
When I get requests or proposals for my services, I have to wade through all the generic offers for getting paid by check, credit card or cash, but when someone offers to pay me for my experience and time with exposure I feel like Vanilla Ice. I have to stop, collaborate and listen. Nothing gets my heart racing like the thought of someone wanting to go above and beyond and pay me with exposure. I have goosebumps just thinking about seeing that email where the potential clients offers exposure for my time and services. Forget paying what my services cost or at least trying to negotiate a lower fee, they just come out and give you their best offer of exposure right from the jump.
Nothing wets the whistle like walking into your landlord’s office and tossing aside the checkbook, and busting out all that exposure to pay this month’s rent. Want to impress that certain someone? Take them out to the most expensive restaurant in town. Hell go clubbing and order an Ace of Spades bottle of champagne and when the bill comes, you throw that exposure on that check. Talk about the fastest way to get someone to sleep with you; just throw that exposure around like you’re making it rain at the strip club.
Just to clarify not all exposure is the same. Some exposure is indecent and it will get you arrested. Just make sure you know what type of exposure you’re getting paid with upfront to help mitigate those potential, pesky lawyer fees. I heard they’re not a fan of being paid with exposure.
The Myth that Photographers Love Exposure
Nobody likes to get paid with a false promise of exposure. Want to insult an established photographer fast, tell them you’re having a $40k wedding and flying in Beyonce to secretly sing and then tell the photographer that you want to pay them with exposure because there will be other influencers there who will also repost your photos. And these types of requests happen every day.
Photographers, and creatives in general, are treated like anyone can do what we do and that we should be honored that someone wants to pay us with exposure. Do you understand how insulting that is? Some of equipment costs more than you wedding and you want us to work for free? Didn’t your cousin Billy just get a camera for Christmas? Offer him exposure for his work and hope you get a couple of decent shots as he shoots in P Mode and sprays and prays for a good shot or two.
It’s not just people looking for wedding photographers that do this; it’s in almost every genre of photography. I’ve had people offer to use exposure by saying they’re friends with so and so and if they repost my work it will be seen by a lot of people. That’s great that your friend has that type of reach on social media, but the problem is that reach isn’t paying me for my time, the upkeep of my gear, my insurance, my travel etc.
Exposure doesn’t pay for a damn thing so stop offering to us as if we’re some lap dogs drooling with anticipation of someone ringing that exposure bell. Do you walk into a car dealership or hire an electrician and offer to pay them with exposure? Come to think about it some people are so ignorant and arrogant they probably do. For the less ignorant you don’t pay with exposure; you pay with cash or card. Photographers are the same way; we like getting paid with real money. Hell even a DogeCoin or Shiba Inu coin has more value than exposure; but not by much these days.
So if there is ever a thought that you might want to offer the payment of exposure because you think photographers love exposure as a for of payment; don’t. Respect us as if we’re anyone else whose service you pay for with money because at the end of the day exposure doesn’t pay a damn thing.
Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash