Thanks for posting this ... although I'm surprised that anyone even mildly involved with "photography in the service of commerce" would be surprised by any of it.
Here is a perspective from someone who actually has bought multi-millions of dollars worth of "photography and cinematography in the service of commerce", and still buys a fair amount of visual services ... from the time as a Junior Art director, to Executive Art Director, to Group Creative Director, to an almighty Executive Creative Director in control of $350,000,000. annual billings encompassing global, national and regional advertising for top global and national brands from luxury cars, to food and drink, to clothes, to financial, to retail, to Forbes 100 corporate
To start with, "Art Buyers" is a pretty wide category, and what that means can vary greatly depending on who they are buying for. The "top buyers" mentioned in the article are not defined very well, so it is hard to discuss. What categories did they represent? Advertising, Fashion, Food, Architectural, Magazine, Retail, or what? Were they Executive Art Directors, Art Directors, agency Art Buyers, Production Managers, internet agency Buyers, collateral agency Buyers, magazine Art Directors, magazine Buyers, or what? The process of selection, level of status/age, and level of power is very different for each of these and has changed as communication technology has changed.
Face-to-face Portfolio reviews, or "speculative" shipped bags, are pretty elite activities these days, at least in the USA. This article seems to cover the face-to-face aspect where the buyers are speculatively looking for fresh approaches, and the seller is looking for constructive critique and/or a foot in the door ... a process where a photographer trots their bag around town, or pre-arranges a delivery for review. However, that doesn't always mean the so called "Art Buyer" does the actual buying. In many cases they are just the gate keeper for those who do make the choices. They simply make the "real" buyer aware of a fresh photographic choice based on various categories of imagery their communication company, or companies they represent, may be involved in.
In this economy the real world buying process for most commercial photography is more immediate need driven ... not speculative and longer term. The big campaign thrusts may be effected by Art Buyer influences, but most day-to-day is now oriented ... involving initial internet category searches, flipping through tear sheets an AD may have set aside, networking with others like the buyer, etc. etc. ... then contacting select photographers for their "books" often to present to a client during a presentation ... and often customized to the client category or selected to help clarify a communication idea.
The notion that all this is in the service of "amusement or propaganda" may be partially true, but is a tad cynical and misses the primary purpose of any visual medium in the service of commerce ... to communicate visually. There is a whole other discipline involved in what makes an effective visual communication ranging from Brand stewardship, to how cluttered any given category may be thus requiring startling new visual approaches, and so on. It just isn't that simple, and I found that a number of otherwise talented photographers just didn't get this, where others did get it yet were still highly creative in expressing a fresh approach for any given brand or brand personality ... a brand stance that a company may have spent years and millions of dollars building. Not understanding this collaborative process is what can lead to frustration on the part of some professional photographers ... and that emotional aspect can become palatable during the process of a shoot ... been there, done that, won't do it again ... life is too short, and there are plenty of photographers that do get it.
BTW, craft is NOT the driver ... craft is a given, the professional price of entry. Craft has changed with technology as the communication vehicles changed, and in many cases multiplex applications dictate functional approaches. However, the underlying communication decision process has never changed ... it is about ideas and their expression. I "got" this early in my career, and it made it easy to not only survive enormous changes in the communications field, it helped me thrive amongst what appeared to be chaos.
In short, those photographers that can study a category, understand it, and express a fresh perspective is what buyers are looking for.
I have helped some professional photographers get over this hump, and also found some stubbornly, even arrogantly immune to informed suggestions. I have often thought to teach how this all works since it can be a long road of hard knocks and frustration if you do not get it.
- Marc
Oh, and three cheers for those incredibly talent photographers that aided me in my career :thumbs: ... not only did we collaboratively aid in the success of the companies we made communications for, we shared many prestigious awards for originality and creativity from our peers and colleagues along the way.