Tips on using social media tools and image-sharing sites for news photographers. Originally presented for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, March 2012.

1. Social Media for
Photographers
Mandy Jenkins @mjenkins
mjenkins@digitalfirstmedia.com
March 2012 LANG Extravaganza

2. What Social Media Does
for Photogs
• Gets your work out to a wide
audience quickly
• Post photos on the go
• Increase your SEO for freelancing
• Provides a portfolio space online
for free

3. Social Media Tools

5. Slide on copyright

6. On every social network you post
photos….
Read the Terms
of Service!

7. Watermarking

8. From PhotoShelter:
• Regularly sharing your photos, adding
captions, and filling out photo details including the
dimensions of your photo, the specific camera you
used, exposure, ISO speed, and focal length, adds
to your credibility as a professional photographer.
• If you are frequently posting new and interesting
photos, it will be a constant reminder to your
network that you are an active photographer with
current work to show.

9. • Send your photos quickly to the
newsroom
• Become a source of breaking
news
• Get your photos spread fast
• Instant feedback

10. It's All About Who You Follow

11. Muckrack.com

12. Find Who to Follow
• By subject/location:
Twellow.com, Wefollow.com
• Follow photo hashtags
(#photo, #dailyphoto, etc.)
• Look at others’ follows/followers
• Spy on Twitter lists
• Listorious.com

13. • When tweeting a photo, say
where it is and what is happening
• Note the time/date if not today
• Tweet followups
• RT reporters who are with you to
give context
• Share newsy photos with relevant
hashtags

14. Profiles Pages
• One place to manage • Completely separate
everything presence from profile
• Control your privacy • Completely public
• Timeline design with • Timeline design with
large image large image
• Could mix • Detailed analytics to
personal/professional see who visits
• Can sell there, if you’d
want

15. Facebook Page Analytics

16. Target Your Updates

17. Create An Engaging
Presence

18. • Use Facebook page or profile as a
portfolio space for your favorite
photos
• Use Timeline to highlight your best
recent photos
• Attach older photos to dates on
your Timeline with milestones

19. FB Tips from Photoshelter
• If you aren’t comfortable posting
images to Facebook, post a link to
them (make sure the thumbnail works)
• Update often and mix it up with links,
photos, albums, etc.

20. • Use Creative Commons licensing
• Many mobile options
• Can prevent downloads
• Lots of storage, with upgrade
option for more
• Join groups to share photos
around a theme, place

21. • Circles: Post updates, photos and
albums to certain groups (or public)
• Upload photos and albums (using
Picasa)

22. G+ Tips From
Photoshelter
• Have a good profile pic
• Post regularly and mix it up with links, photos,
albums, etc.
• Interact on others’ pages too, share others’
work
• Share newsy photos with relevant hashtags
• Participate in daily Digital Photography
themes using G+ hashtags (search to find
them)

23. • Create pinboards of your photos
• Grouped by subject, location
• Pin others’ photos for ideas

24. • Make your slideshows into videos
• Embed in stories, blogs

25. • Connect with other photographers
• Help your SEO
• Show your work via apps

26. Tumblr

27. Instagram/Hipstamatic

28. About.Me

29. More Advice
• Photoshelter.com’s tips for
photographers on social media
• “Twitter tips for journalists” & a listing of
Twitter resources on:
stevebuttry.wordpress.com
• These slides (and many more) at
slideshare.net
• Zombiejournalism.com (my blog)

30. THANKS!
Mandy Jenkins
mjenkins@digitalfirstmedia.com
@mjenkins
Blog: Zombiejournalism.com
These slides & more at
slideshare.net/mandyjenkins