Editor’s note: This is part of a series highlighting member stories on SkillPages.  Chris Demott is a photographer from England who is using SkillPages to help grow his business.

chris demott thumbnail

Photo by Chris Demott, model Frankie Bolger

Planning To Go Pro

As I have been expanding my photography company over the last 6 months I’m always looking for opportunities to generate new business.  A friend recommended Skillpages so I looked into how it could work for me.  Set up was easy and once I had got the hang of wording my posts correctly I quickly made contact with local models which I needed for a project at the time. One of which I’ve featured in the images here.

As my network grew I found more opportunities and made some very useful contacts.  With this I have built my business faster than I ever thought I could.  Being semi-professional I am fortunate not to be solely reliant on photography for my income but with the plan being to go fully pro, any contacts I can utilise to make this transition smoother is a great boost for me.

Collaboration Brings New Opportunities

I have taken on free projects when the subject matter has interested me and used these images to improve my portfolio.  What I have also found is while working on location on these free projects I have networked and picked up opportunities for future paid work so it has been very worthwhile.

With SkillPages I have managed to build a bigger network of professionals I can call upon, increased the diversity of my portfolio and generated some extra business.  With competition in this industry as tough as it is now any tool I can use to do that is a good thing!

- Chris Demott, Photographer

Editor’s note: This is part of a series highlighting member stories on SkillPages.  Brian McReynolds is a photographer from England and he sums up why SkillPages can work for people of any skill.

SkillPages for me is a neat tool for four reasons;

1. It allows me to showcase what I’ve been working on and I can broadcast it quickly to my LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter profiles.  Uploading photos to SkillPages really saves me time and it’s great to have a portfolio built up in one place.

2. It’s where I prefer to find people to collaborate with.  If I need a graphic designer or a model for a fashion shoot I know where to find someone. If I don’t have a suitable candidate in my direct connections I can see if any of my connections know someone.

3. I can find skilled people outside of my existing connections by creating an opportunity asking people to apply for a position.  This has the added advantage of finding many people who are interested in working with you and if they’re not suitable for that opportunity you have them in your network for future projects.

4. Then finally, it allows me to expand my network more actively.  First on a local basis arranging one to one’s to see if there is synergy of working on projects together, then branching out to the rest of the UK and expanding on business franchise operations I want to launch.

Bringing these four features together is a very powerful resource for me. Currently I do a lot of photography for local calendars and now with the help of SkillPages I plan to bring this to a national and even an international level.  On this project alone I’ve created opportunities for sales people and models.  I think SkillPages has something to offer people of all skills and that’s what is most exciting – the collaboration possibilities with all of these other skills.

- Brian McReynolds, Photographer

How do you use SkillPages? Let us know in the comments.

Editor’s note: This is part of a series highlighting member stories on SkillPages.  Sam McFarlane is a free runner from Scotland, he tells us how he used SkillPages to find photographers.

A friend recommended I join SkillPages after seeing the benefits himself.  As a gymnast, free runner and all-round sports enthusiast, SkillPages is the ideal way of showcasing my variety of skills.  I’ve been practising free running for seven years and involved in a free running company called Axis Freerun for the last three years.  I recently decided I wanted some high quality images to increase my profile in the sport.

The next step was posting an opportunity for free on SkillPages searching for a sports photographer in Glasgow.  After a few weeks I had lots of replies and was able to set up numerous meetings.  Since then I have been working with one photographer in particular on a weekly basis.  It has worked out great for me, I couldn’t be happier with the new action shots for myself and for the company.  Through working with Barry I have since had the confidence to send my pictures to various parkour and free running magazines.

I would recommend SkillPages to anyone, I love how easy it is to set up your profile and look for job opportunities.

- Sam McFarlane, Free runner

Photos by Barry Cairns

|