Working or shooting on spec (speculation) means the photographer does all the work first, and pays all expenses themselves, in the hope that the client will like the finished work and will then pay some sort of fee. Even then, there’s rarely any contract covering the work.
Why would any photographer agree to be exploited like this?
When a potential client asks a photographer to work on spec, it shows that the client doesn’t value the photographer’s time or expertise.
Toronto ad agency Zulu Alpha Kilo (which phonetically spells out its CEO’s first name) this week published a video about working on spec. While not aimed at photographers, it certainly still applies.
Working on Spec
