(EDIT: added a little project description to this post)
Since the first time I’ve posted about my hunting project I’ve not been able to satisfy my curiosity about the subject. On the contrary, attending a couple more hunting days, reading magazines and books and talking to many people, have only sparked my curiosity even more. For a couple of years I’ve been dreaming of doing a long term documentary project and I’ve finally found a subject that fascinates me and could use the delicate personal approach that only a long term book project can offer.
The prospect of really doing this project excites me big time but when I took a good look at the planning, time, budget and scale of such a project I got a bit scared. I fought the urge to scale the project down because if I’d do that, the project would loose the subtlety it needs. I just need to figure out a way to make it possible but I’ll need your help and ideas on how to overcome the practical hurdles.
Read on to learn a bit more about how I see the project and how you can help me.
Project Description
“Hunting in Belgium” is the working title of a photo documentary project in which I use my camera to tell the nuanced story of the complex and often misunderstood ecosystem of hunting in Belgium.
As a modern internet age city boy I never thought much of hunting. If pushed to state an opinion, I would have probably categorized it as an unecessary barbaric tradition that has no place in our modern Belgian society. It was only after a long conversation with one of my best friends, who is a hunter, that I realised how little I knew about something that’s way more complex than I could have imagined. I started to research the subject of hunting and found out that there is very little information available. The hunting community is very discreet and closed, probably under the pressure of the general public opinion.
I decided to use my camera and an open-minded curiosity as my passport to dig deeper into the hunting world in a long term photographic personal project. My goal is to offer an honest unbiased view on hunting. I’m not after changing people’s minds, I just hope to offer a broader view on the nuances of what hunting is about so the reader can form it’s own well informed opinion.
The book will cover the most common forms of hunting in Belgium, wildlife, the traditions and it’s relation to the natural habitat. The chapters will be supplemented with a series of portraits (in pictures and words) of people who have a relation to hunting: hunter, game keeper, chef, taxidermist, gunsmith, … These small personal stories will give the reader a better understanding of the big picture.
The final result of this project will be an exhibition and a coffee table book that combines artistic imagery with text. Covering the subtleties of the subject will require a lot of time and research. So I don’t expect to finish the book before mid 2014.
Let’s make it clear for the start: I don’t have a hidden commercial agenda with this project. It’s all about a complicated story that I want to discover and then translate into a book. It’s also a creative dream challenge for someone who has always seen documentary photography as the most relevant form of photography. To turn the dream into a real book, I’ll have to be realistic: This project is going to take a shitload of time and a considerable financial investment. This will put a lot of pressure on both my business and my family and to be brutally honest, I’m not sure if I can currently afford this project.
I’m perfectly fine with investing the time in this project. It will make me grow as a photographer and that’s all the reward I need. I’m also fine spending some money on it but I’m not sure if I have enough of it to tackle the project the way I want.
I’ll probably be able to recuperate part of the production cost of this project once it’s finished. The problem is that I figure it will only be finished at earliest around mid 2014. In (my) reality that means either slowing down the project in order to fund it with my own means or finding external funding.
You might be thinking: “What costs?”. After all, I already have camera gear, a car, … And that’s exactly what I was thinking … until I did the math on what I’ve spent already on the project and what I expect to spend on it over the next 18 months. It’s not about any big costs, but it’s about a whole lot of small expenses:
- A raincover for your camera? That’ll be 50 EUR please.
- Oh you want a protection filter for your lens too? That’s only 30 EUR.
- The stunning scenery of the Flemish Ardennes offers great photographic backgrounds but driving up and back costs me around 30 EUR in gas per outing.
- So last time you could hardly keep up with the trackers because your feet, were wet and numb from the cold, just get yourself a pair of 150 EUR boots and 25 EUR socks and you’ll be all set.
- Yes the hunting world is very closed but if you can make it to the after hunt diner, you’ll get to meet some people that might be very interesting for your project. But these dinners are a bit more expensive than a Big Mac menu.
- To really understand what hunting is all about, it may be a good idea to follow the official hunting course, 250 EUR is a steal considering you’ll get to spend every Wednesday night for five months learning about it.
I’m only scratching the surface here but I’m sure you get my point.
I’m not going to whine about all the costs, I’m going to do this project anyway. But I am going to try to get some funding for it. I’ll slow it down if I need to but I prefer to try to cover at least the day-to-day expenses by searching for funding. Looking for funding is completely new to me. I have some ideas but no clue if they will work or how to implement them. And I hope you guys might help me out with your opinions on my ideas or even your own ideas. Let me outline the options that I currently see.
Finding (a) Book Publisher(s): The most important end result for the project is a book, a real book. I guess it would make sense to try to find a publisher for it although I’m not sure if I want to go with a traditional book publisher. First of all, I doubt I’ll find a publisher who is willing to pay an advance on the book to cover my expenses. I also want to publish the book in Dutch, French and English which might complicate things for traditional publishers (who are often geographically restricted). And then there’s the question of control, how much of it will I have to give up? But this is all speculation of my part as I’ve never published a book. If any of you has experience publishing a book or works in the publishing business (or knows people in it), I’d be happy to hear your thoughts.
Fine Art Prints for the People in my Pictures: I got very good reactions from the people I shot during my hunting outings so far. Maybe I should try to sell them fine art prints of themselves and their dogs doing what they are so passionate about. There’s a bit of an ethical thing here. These people not only allow me into their world, they are going to extremes to inform me and help me make better pictures even if that means lowering their hunting chances. Giving them the pictures feels like the right thing to do to thank them for their coöperation. On the other hand media coverage about hunting usually doesn’t have space for subtlety or the big picture. And these guys seem to appreciate that someone is willing to invest in telling a more balanced story. I might give them the digital files as a thank-you and offer fine-art prints to the ones who wish to support the project. What do you think, appropriate or not?
Sponsoring: A lot of my expenses are gear related. I might need to rent some specialized gear to capture some images of the game itself. I hope I can count on my friends within the photo industry to help me out with photo gear. I will also need camo gear, better clothing and lots of small bits and pieces in order to work close to the hunters. If you happen to know someone in the hunting gear industry who would like to help, please let me know. Sponsoring will be very helpful but can only happen on one condition: a sponsor has no editorial influence on the project whatsoever. But of course they’ll get exposure and I’d be happy to work with them to create added value for their customers. If you are working for a company that might want to support the project, let’s talk.
Articles and Essays for Other Media: While the project is ongoing, I’ll be gathering content that might be used in articles for magazines. I could do a reportage for a hunting magazine or maybe some kind of “diary of a personal project” for a photography mag. Some of the content could also fit into general magazines or a newspaper’s weekend edition. If you have better ideas or if you could pitch this to an editor, I’d really appreciate it.
Crowd Sourcing: Being a social media minded guy, crowd sourcing might be a viable option. Sites like emphas.is offer a platform to get photo journalism projects funded by anyone who would like to see the project materialize. Funders could be rewarded with prints, pre-order of the book or access to a behind-the-scenes blog. What would it take to make you back this project?
Other Crazy Ideas: I’m sure you guys have other ideas like fundraising pancake dinners or autographed pigeon feathers. Let me know!
I’d really appreciate it if you could think about it and let me know your ideas and thoughts on how I can make this project happen. If you don’t know how you can help yourself, maybe you know someone who can. Hit the comments!
Congrats with starting your first big doc. project! Out of experience I know that the hunting world is very tight and at least in Holland, are very skeptical about letting outsiders in. This is mainly because of their image in society, which is (in their opinion) formed by the media. As far as funding goes, I understand your pain. But the only realistic option in my opinion is crowdfunding and having a long breath. Editors/publishers often want to see the big picture before backing you up in any way. About the selling photo’s to the subjects part; I tend to be really careful with this, mainly because I’m afraid this influences the shooting too much. You wouldn’t want them not to show you the real thing, if it makes them look good on picture, right? But it is a good way to thank them, but indeed offer it after you’re done and even then I wouldn’t charge them, or maybe just to get your expenses out of it. I’ll be following your progress with great interest, because I still feel disappointed that my go at the subject didn’t get me the results I was hoping for. The first images look great!
Good luck!
bert,
veel kan ik je niet helpen vrees ik.
maar ‘t idee van je foto’s lijkt wel dik ok.
low/medium res geven (fb, bureaublad op pc, …) kost bijna niks, prints daarintegen papier en inkt kosten of afdruklabo, …
er zullen wel magazines zijn die dit leuk gaanvinden en wel gaan kunnen gebruiken.
zowel fotomagazines als hunting. (mss een paar contacteren)
foto’s zijn top, jij kan er jou bevindingen als buitenstaander wel bijpuzzelen.
je kijk vooraf, tijdens en de evolutie ervan.
en uiteindenlijk ook wel de pr voor je boek voor een deel .
mvg
david
Thx guys
@Robin: It’s indeed a very tight and closed world. But I seem to get through. Public opinion is indeed what keeps it closed but there also seem to be a lot of people who wish they could to share their passion with non-hunters. Taking pictures seems to be the easy part of the project. The hard part is getting people to trust you and that takes time. I promised myself not to try to force things. And from January on I am following the official hunting course (quite a commitment) to show that I really want to learn about what they do. Thx for your valuable input.
@David: I will indeed have to work on the complete package to get some funding. The goal is to go for a very personal and open approach to the subject.
I would go with a Kickstarter-like project; gather 50 names of people who will back your project and will pitch in at least €10.
Count on the crowds to further fund the project. I would surely back a small amount.
To be honest the costs you talk about sound relatively trivial, the main cost of a project like this would probably be the layout/typesetting and printing of the actual book.
ik ken in alle geval iemand die de lay-out wel zal willen doen!
Crowdsourcing is definitely something to think about – I’m quite certain I’d be willing to preinvest in order to get the book. As a retriever enthusiast and someone who drives all over Finland going to tests etc. I definitely understand the financial burdens associated with the practicalities. Offering prints and/or digital files for the hunters and other people that help you is also a very good option since many hunters do not have good photographs of their passion.
One recommendation that I have is contacting local gundog clubs/enthusiasts and seeing if you can carpool with them and benefit from their experience. They may also often be “outsiders” by not hunting themselves, but offering beneficial services to the hunters and thus be in the circles. And offering them good photographs of their dogs at work will often be ample payment.
Honestly, I’ve often thought about a similar project, but so far time has been much too short to do much more than thinking about it.
Bert
I am not a professional photographer and never published a book but thought I would try to help with some of my thoughts.
1. Start contacting possible publishers and discuss your ideas and test their interest in the project. You could present some of your pictures. But you will need a clear plan on the topics that you will be looking into and covering.
2. This leads to the subjects you will be talking about. Here again you will need to get their trust, collboration before even beginning the project. You will need to discuss what the project will cover in detail. be as transparent as possible to build trust now but also so that mid-project someone does not say, hang on a second, we did not agree to this or that.
3. Once the relationship on both the publishers and subjects have been established, rules of engagement agreed, etc you then start to make plans about logistics and costing.
4. Costing – maybe publishers and the subjects could help?
I would add, right now you may be very much emotionally attached to the idea, very excited. But with time, maybe in a few weeks, your judgement will become more lucid – as you have been observing.
Hope this helps
Regards.
M
You would have to be VERY careful with this one but your looking for oddball stuff so…. How about approaching a support org FOR hunting and sell the idea of documenting the REAL story…. The catch is keeping control of the story and it obviously has risks of bias….. but I would imagine there are some small orgs or rich individuals that feel strongly that the real story is not been told in the general media….
Thx all, this is all very good information. I’ll need a while to ingest and process it all to see how I will approach the funding best. Keep it coming guys.
I think your approach is much different from what many other photographers have done before with hunting. I’m very sure there is a market to this kind of photos; either in getting your work published in magazines (even non-photo related – though we know the pay isn’t always that interesting), or maybe for some nice fine art prints.
Continue the project is a key element to get a collection of memorable photos that bring and support a story. Maybe give the documentary style an art approach (see the most inspring book Chicks with guns by Lindsay McCrum) and try to walk different grounds in ‘selling’ your work that way.
Though, the crowdsourcing technique will probably be more successful – but what you offer should be valuable..
Anyway, I dropped your name at a few hunting related companies that are clients; maybe one of them is open to help you sponsor some gear.