Evening star., 1951-04-01
Camera Angles
Serious Side of Free-Lonce Photoqrophy
By Alexander ]. Wedderburn
curoter Of Photography
The Smithsonian institution
FIRST of a Series. j

fFtTSL OF q SefteSJ
Free lancing with the camera i
one Of photographs most lucra-
tive fields. Amateurs and profes.
|sionals alike swell the ranks Of
those who make a full or part
time living with their cameras
Making pictures for sale to news
and advertising agencies can be
fun as well as profitable. But
there Is no easy formula that acts
as an '.open sesame" to photo edi-
tors. Painstaking work and an
active imagination Is the only
answer.
The free lance photographer
differs from the usual profess
sional cameraman in that he does
not work on a salary basis. He
sells his pictures to one and all
although. on occasion, he may
take an assignment for an agency
to do specific job on a contract
arrangement. A top-flight free
lancer is, of course, in a better
position to make big money with
his camera than the average pro-
fessional. He keeps his negatives
as a rule and can resell the pic
lures. On the other hand, 1t may
take years for a photographer to
reach the point where he is SO
well known or has become q rec
ognized specialist in some branch
of photography that he is assured
Of a steady and adequate income
You can break into this field
only If you possess the requisites.
First, you must be able to make
really good negatives. Without
this basis. you have nothing to
work with. Having a good mega
tive. you must further be able to
make a print that is snappy and
sharp and of otherwise good
quality. BY this we mean that
the print should be suitable for
engraving. It should have a full
range Of tones all the way from
black to white with sufficient con-
trast to enable an engraver to
make cut that will reproduce
on newsprint and magazine paper
Spot-Free Prints.
In addition to these require
ments, your prints will have to be
ferrotyped glossies that are pro-
fessionally handled and free from
spots and other blemishes COM
mon to most amateur work.
For ultimate success as free
lance photographer. you will have
to be well equipped. This will
call for a better than average
camera. such as the type used by
newspaper photographers or a
reflex camera. The camera
should be synchronized for flash
and, more than this. be equipped
for multiple fash shots. Most OF
the magazines and agencies that
pay the big prices for pictures are
not satisfied with the fiat shots
that come from the use of one
flash bulb fired from the camera
position. And they can afford to
be choosy because most photogra-
piers nowadays use more than
the single flash to illuminate pic
lures they expect to sell.
! AS YOU may have suspected, just
about everything under the sun
has been photographed at one
time or another. This does not
mean, however, that there is moth
ing left for you to accomplish
with your camera. You can, as
others will, photograph the same
subject matter again. The trick
OF making the pictures salable is
simply to add an original twist
or slant that will make your treat
ment of the subject original or
different. If you are willing to
learn and try out new ideas for
new angles and a different ap-
proach, you will have little trouble
In selling your pictures.
Fine Pictures Are Grabbed.
It will take you a while to
learn exactly what will sell and
what won't. When you start out