How would one

[Breezy]

get into the small town paper as a freelance photographer?
I am asking cause we are seriously looking at an unacc. tour. We expected it and new that it was a big possibility since dh only has 1 year of sea duty left. But we found out on Thursday that it is now mandatory for his rate to to do a 1yr unacc. tour period.
With that said, my other grandfather is pretty bad off. So I will probably be home as much as i am here (if I decide to stay or what ever).
But I want to keep the business up I just know that it will be really hard there as there is a "photographer" shooting and burning for free or the most I have heard her charging is $30 bucks they had all rights to images to be used on a CD cover and all marketing material. I can't compete with that. And these people don't know good photography all they have ever had is walmart and it isn't even a built in studio it is the traveling kind. I will get some business but my prices certainly can't be what they are here. And atleast the paper would keep me shooting.
So how would I do it? I know the editor and one of the writers was my aunt by marriage. But it seems that most of the images come from the editor and it is a point and shoot at that.
So any suggestions. Obviously not a done deal as we still have a chance of going overseas together but we are still deciding if it is better to get the unacc. out of the way now or in 3 years at his 19 yr mark. Both have pros and cons. So we are still debating.

[CaptainTom]

Go to the paper and find the editor. The editor will likely put you in touch with the photo desk if they have one.
Get them to give you some assignments. Find out what the pay is per published image. It probably will make you laugh.

Keep in mind that newspapers are going out of business every day.
They are firing their photo staff.

There are Pulitzer Prize winning photographers on the streets and shooting weddings, etc.

There are folks who will work for free.

Competition is really tough.

[Breezy]

Thanks Tom, I will contact her next time I am down.
I highly doubt there is any pay, but like I said it would keep me shooting. I am pretty sure that they don't have any staff photographers as the photo tags usually have the Editors name.
I will be totally bored out of my mind if I go down there with nothing to do but school the kids. I will need a break from time to time lol.

[Dobick]

you might be able to trade photos for ad space in the paper.

If you price yourself as a status symbol and have the quality to back it up, then parents with any sort of money at all will gladly spend so that they can say that YOU did the photos.

I bet if you look around that town there is at least one person driving a luxury car (lexus or mercedes) even though there may not be a dealership there. Why? Because they want the status involved with that brand.

If there is no one there selling that sort of luxury good, then your competition is easy.

[Breezy]

Thank Ken, I didn't think about it like that. There are about 6 "rich" families and they literally own the whole county. I went to school with a few of them. I will definitely have to rub elbows with them. Hoping I can break into the sports photos as I know the soccer ones were horrible and the parents even complained. So you know they were bad lol. Appreciate all of the tips/help/info. Please keep it coming. We do have several months before we have to decide. So it will probably be a long few months. haha. We are shooting for Naples Italy (again) and Yokosuka Japan this time as the detailer told dh on Friday that MacDill (didn't want to go there any way but he wanted the job) and Bremerton are out because they are Shore duty. He has one more year of sea. Hopefully I won't have to worry about the paper etc... but if we got Italy I can't have a "business" there any way. So I will be shooting lots of landscapes I guess. I prefer those any way.