potential concerts

[momoe]

I have been working with a guy who has an online concert magazine. he wants me to shoot a few shows for him this year. I have sent several letters to the PR people for several bands. I have heard from 2 so far, only 2 days after I sent the request, and I have been told to contact them again 2 weeks before the show. now, is this a positive sign or is it polite blow off? I haven't had any experience in this area and do not know the mind set of this type of people. so if any experienced concert shooters can give me any advise on how to talk with them, I would appreciate it

Thanks.

[TeenPhotog]

Probably positive. I mean they bothered to reply to you and say contact us again. Compared to no response it is about 100x better. Then again they didn't just confirm you right then and there.

I would still say you are in decent shape and I would bet you get a pass on at least one of the two shows. Though I will say when I was supposed to shoot Jonsi, they said to send them another email in a week and when I did so they just told me that they forgot about me and ran out of passes..

[momoe]

the first show to respond is in october. they said they cant guarantee my request will be fufilled. it depends on the number of passes requested/available. she said it was to early to tell but to email her 2 weeks before. the second said my request was received but approval will not come until the week of the show. this one is in August. my next question is do they always tell you or do they just put you on a list? I really dont want to drive downtown, pay to park to find out I am not on the list. I dont even know where the "List" is to go see... kinda new to this side of the industry if you cant tell

[skifurthur]

Expecting a guest list/working list at a concert to be run like a real business is usually an excercise in futility. Even with performers that I have deep ties with, I am told not to bother them until 2 weeks before and sometimes not until a week before. Even then I have been left off of a list. It happens but I usually can straighten it out before show time. It happens and if you stress about it, this probably isn't the workplace for you. People didn't go into performance because they were doing so well in the real business world. To think that it's going to work like that all the time is folly.

Concert photography is a garment best worn loose...or in the spirit of rock and roll, not at all.

[scotteisenphotography]

most concerts you don't put in until a week or two before...you're requesting far to early.

[TeenPhotog]

If the publicist or whoever you contacted is at all on top of their job, then they will tell you if they put you on the guest list.
You are probably asking too early, but if you wait to be timely you may find they have run out of passes. Also if a show has sold out- good luck.
If you don't mind my asking, what bands?

[momoe]

everything i have read so far sad atleast 3 months before so they have time to send you a pass. guess not

[scotteisenphotography]

everything i have read so far sad atleast 3 months before so they have time to send you a pass. guess not

what you're reading is false information. I've shot 100+ concerts and all of the information has been put in 1-2 weeks before, sometimes, 1-2 DAYS before. Have not had a problem getting a pass for anything this way.

[narlus]

i like to take the two-stage approach...often times the PR person will send out a press release regarding an upcoming tour (or my publisher forwards it), and the show is 2+ months away. I'll contact them, indicating my interest, and ask when a good time to follow up is. sometimes lists do fill up a couple of weeks before the show, so i find it helpful to get my interest noted.

[momoe]

ok, how does you request go? what do you say? do you just keep it simple and ask for a request or do you give detailed info about who you are? if you could give an example, I would appreciate it

[scotteisenphotography]

ok, how does you request go? what do you say? do you just keep it simple and ask for a request or do you give detailed info about who you are? if you could give an example, I would appreciate it

depends on the publication you're working for. you tell them what you want to do (are you writing a live-review, etc), and if your publication is well known, your editor is probably doing it for you, and the publicist will know of the pub. already, if not, and you're shooting for say, a small newspaper, the name of it is given, the area of publication, and the average weekly circulation...

[narlus]

this is likely covered in the FAQ, but it goes something like this:

hi, i am interested in obtaining media credentials (specify if you just need a photo pass, or also a ticket) for Concert X, which I will be covering for publication Y (photos w/ written review, or just photo gallery). Please let me know when a good time to follow up closer to the show date may be.

most of the time PR people don't give a rat's ass about who you are, but do care about what media outlet you are representing.