Tom Simpson on being a freelance photographer

Tom Simpson's CV reads like an aspiring photographer's dream: yearly Tour de France shoots, regular stints working for NME, and connections with some of UK photography's biggest hitters. Yet, in late April 2011, one of the hottest on record in England, Tom is sitting in the office alone, busily working away on all the little things that hold his business together. There's no air-conditioning, outside the world is celebrating this rare event with irritating enthusiasm, and right now freelancing seems anything but glamorous…

But sometimes it’s good. Very good.

One of Tom's first breaks came when he had the opportunity to shoot for BMX Rider (a now defunct print magazine). Allowing him full-access to events, the opportunity was both a great way to learn action-sports photography on-the-job, and a way for him to acquire the black and white shots that he needed for his portfolio.

Despite popular opinion about how the kind of success Tom has experienced typically happens, getting to shoot the Tour de France and other such things was anything to do with luck; like other photographers before him, it was a combination of persistence, hard work and talent for arranging composure's that allowed this to happen. Something which, in terms of The Tour, wasn't without its own unique quirks and problems.

“I ended up shooting the Tour de France as I was working as a picture researcher for a cycling magazine. They needed some shots of the journalists who were following the whole race from beginning to end in a camper van. Shortly after this, I decided to draw a line in the sand: if the magazine wanted me to take photos, then they'd have to pay me for them the same rate as a photographer (working for free is never wise: you devalue your own work, and take work away from other photographers). Luckily they agreed on this, and I was away. I've been to the Tour De France most years since 2006. I shoot racing, and the Tour specifically, with a different agenda to most of the 'long lens' sports photographers. My work is more concerned with the spectacle than the racing action, and is generally more on the art side, rather than basic sports photography”.

So, how difficult is it to become a successful freelance photographer?

Speaking specifically from a London perspective, Tom says that “...Firstly there's the recession, which means ad agencies, magazines and photo buyers are all cutting their rates and the expenses they pay, which means there are less places buying photography, and the ones that are still buying it are demanding it cheaper. As well as this, there are more and more photographers entering the marketplace as a result of digital photography making the learning curve steeper and cheaper. In short, it's rather tough out there… It's not impossible, but you have to be damn good at what you do, and have a sound business head on your shoulders”.

In essence, being a freelance photographer in London is, he says, “more difficult than it's ever been”.

Yet, despite all this, Tom admits that, given the choice, he'd do it all again. “My main piece of advice to aspiring freelance photographers,” he says, candidly, “would be to really research what it is you want to get into before you take the plunge. You have to treat it as a business. What do you want to shoot? Who would your competitors be? Why should someone commission you instead of one of the photographers they're used to using?” With blunt affection for what he does, and enough experience to be considered as credible a source as anyone, he goes on to say: “unfortunately, being able to take great photos isn't enough: you need to either take vastly better photos than the next guy, or have another unique selling point that'll differentiate you from the rest”.

Tom also makes a point about the importance of having a visible online presence – something that where this vocation is concerned, is nothing to do with vanity. Quite simply, having a website – as well as a printed portfolio – is crucial and the first thing which any art director is likely to look in to. “You won't be looking at millions of hits a day, but getting the link to your site to the people that need to see it is a vital part of being a freelance photographer”.

To find out more about what Tom's working on right now and what he’s all about, see his website at www.tomsimpsonphoto.co.uk. Or, for inspiration on what makes for an effective slideshow, see the web video at http://vimeo.com/18532907

last time modified: July 15, 2011, 2:30 p.m.