Sam is a busy photographer who is spending more and more of his time these days teaching and mentoring other photographers through his online tutorials and workshops. In a Q&A with Re:Create, he told us he runs all aspects of his business on the internet. Sam launched his Patreon feed just over a year ago and now has 900+ patrons who all want the same thing: “to discover and understand new ideas.” His Patreon online “lab” offers exclusive content, photo deconstruction, live hangouts, business and marketing insights and access to his “Epic Podcast.” Sam describes it as a “dynamic portal for photographers to consider new ways of learning and growing” and says he truly loves “educating people and enabling them to be their own creative force in the world.”
We spoke with Sam and asked him to share some of his insights as a new creator who regularly interacts with platforms made possible by balanced copyright laws.
Re:Create: What can you share with us about your business and how you got started?
Sam: I started in 2010. I run everything in my business completely by myself, but I have tried outsourcing various aspects of it over the years (social media, email, editing, etc), but always end up unable to give up any of that control!
Re:Create: How does your business utilize the internet?
Sam: After a few years of photographing high level political events, newsmakers, and celebrity portraits, I decided to put all my efforts into photographing weddings because I value the work so much more. I utilize the internet for marketing, communication, delivery of all my work. I run all aspects of my business on the internet.
Re:Create: What future plans do you have for your business?
Sam: I plan to launch a studio of a few photographers – photographers and in house editors to provide a viable service for all client budgets.
Re:Create: What about your friends and colleagues in this space – do any of them rely on the internet to generate income?
Sam: Yes, many have YouTube channels, editing presets, and other online assets they sell in addition to their photography services.
Re:Create: In this digital age, things are constantly changing and evolving with new tools and capabilities coming online everyday. Are you developing any new plans based on what might be coming next?
Sam: I am pouring most of my resources into Patreon and other platforms that I hope will do an effective and responsible job of creating those tools for me. I believe most of the totally free and open sharing of social networks will be monetized in ways that force creators to actually focus on higher quality content vs volume of posts.