MugsyU

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHERS

Q: How did Mugshots start?
A: Mugshots Photography was founded in 1993 by portrait and wedding photographer Linda Russell.  As Mugshots grew it quickly became apparent the school photography industry model of photographing as many heads as possible was counter intuitive to producing the best photography.  She envisioned a new kind of school photography company where a local photographer could provide their neighborhood school with the services it required, without burdening themselves with all the production needed to fulfill volume orders.  Mugshots highly branded marketing and experience provides schools with the security of working with a large proven company.

Q: Who owns the copyright to the images I might shoot for you?
A: We do. Though we are happy to share images for your portfolio.
 
Q: So you send us schools and we just shoot them, is there anything else involved?
A: It's almost that simple. While the Mugshots concept and marketing is very affective, ultimately the school makes their decision based on the individual photographer. Since you are a "local" we count on you to help us identify the schools you are most interested in photographing.  We then work with you to gain entry to those schools.  After a school contacts us we help set up a meeting with the photographer. Photographers must be prepared to meet with the school administration or parent committee and to impress them with their personality and photography.
 
Q: What kind of photographers are you looking for?
A: We are looking for excellent portrait photographers who are well networked in their local community.

Q: I'm a school photographer and I for a large national company, can I work with you?
A. Only if you have a strong portrait portfolio that shows a variety of poses and environments.  Mugshots is looking for creative talents that versatile in regards to studio and outdoor lighting.  You must also meet our website and reference requirements.
  
Q: Can I continue my own photo work and work with you as well?
A: Certainly. We are looking to enhance your business not compete with it.  In fact we are happy to provide you with the email addresses and in some cases mailing addresses of the families that order your school photos.  We do however, require that you understand the potential conflict of interest that might occur.  We ask that you do not attempt to solicit work from any client we send you. We also ask that any word-of mouth work that you might get from a client we send you be referred back to us. We also ask that once committed to one of our jobs, you not accept work that would conflict with your commitment to us. We do not work with photographers who work with other school photography companies.
 
Q: Do you hire more than one photographer in a city?
A: In smaller cities we do not. In larger cities we may wish to work with more than one photographer.  If you are interested in introducing Mugshots to a new large trade area it may make sense to join with another local photographer and work together to help gain market penetration.
 
Q: What is the process for applying to work with Mugshots Photography.
A. Send us an e-mail and tell us about yourself, be sure to include the address of your website if you have one. We are slowly building out the Mugshots network and do not need photographers in all cities. If we are interested we will request an application, resume and promotional material. If we are still interested we will request a list of references and a complete portfolio.
  
Q: How picky are you about choosing photographers?
A: We're very picky. Most of our photographers join us via invitation. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions. We prefer e-mail as a method of communication. Linda is in charge of photographer contact so please direct your communications to her at Linda@mugshotsphotography.com.