I went by a stage name when I was doing comedy that was unrelated to the name I use now, and most of my comedy was done in Portland and Chicago so I’m not quite sure if we had met at that time. There is a comedian who used the name “Mike Donovan” but he is unrelated to me (I went by “Cool Mike” and had an entire performance where I was basically the worlds biggest asshole.)
But as for your questions about clients and representation:
The clients are all word of mouth. I do VERY little marketing. Usually it’s a referral from someone I’ve worked with, or someone sees my work online and contacts me. I shoot quite a bit and share the results so word gets out.
For representation: I’ve been called up by several photo reps who found my work through word of mouth or online. I have been offered representation by a couple agencies but they didn’t feel right for what I’m doing so I turned them down. I was meeting with one photo rep recently when they suggested I get a syndicator… they introduced me to Josef at The Licensing Project and we clicked. Having an image licensor made much more sense for the time since it meant I could continue to focus on my art so I took his offer.
As for my art rep - one of the models/friends I shot (Abby Brothers) is opening a gallery with 3 partners in LA. They asked if I would be represented and I jumped on the chance.
I’m still looking for the right photo rep in NY to help me with commissions and I’m looking for the right gallery in NY to rep me for that portion of my work.
It’s an ongoing process but basically you just have to do what is right for you and your art, your business, and your situation.
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