We’re here to present another #womencrushwednesday with the wonderful, and wonderfully talented, photography agent, Anne Conover. Anne has over 20 years of experience working in the photography world with some of the top photographers around. She is currently working at Goldteeth & Co. in New York.

Anne started as a photographer herself, but soon discovered the best use of her talents were as an agent and representative for photographers. She has helped numerous artists develop their portfolios and connect with clients for that perfect fit and she has worked with some of the best agencies around.

As an agent, Anne works on developing the artists on her roster and, as she says, “the rest is outreach, outreach, outreach”! She works with each of her artists to develop portfolios and fill in holes that are necessary, and then starts pounding the pavement to connect them with clients. She’s worked with so many great clients and has been on so many amazing sets and productions - we’ve even worked with her at Plaid Pony!

With a passion for photography and experience like Anne’s, we are incredibly lucky to get a glimpse into her world and share her advice for all future creatives.

Photo by Gus Powell for Kate Spade Fall 2021

CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR ART AND HOW YOU GOT INVOLVED WITH COMMERCIAL WORK AND BEING AN AGENT? WHAT LED YOU TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW?

I went to school at Pratt Institute for photography and when I finished, I quickly realized I didn’t want to pursue photography as a career for myself. It just wasn’t for me, but I still wanted to stay in the photography world.

I worked in a darkroom throughout college called My Own Color Lab. It was an incredible space to meet people and I can honestly trace back so many of my work experiences and relationships to my initial days there. I did a lot of photography-adjacent roles while there to figure out what I wanted to do; set assistant, studio manager for Sarah Friedman and Leeta Harding, and I worked at Index magazine as a web photo editor.

At one point I thought I was going to pursue being a producer. There was a photo collective of all women photographers, called Brooklyn Photo Group, who I approached with my production capabilities to which they replied, “What we really need is an agent”. They brought me on but it was short lived as their collective fell apart during the housing crisis in 2008. What I took from that experience was that I loved being an agent, as it really matches my personality. I am pretty gregarious and able to connect with people quickly. And of course, I love speaking about and championing photography. It was something that seemingly matched with who I am as a human, and I never looked back.

I got a job with Getty working in their assignment division. It was an invaluable experience, I really learned the ropes and got to work with amazing talent from all over the world. From there I went to Redux Pictures to develop them commercially. Redux owner, Marcel Saba and I had a beautiful run together. He provided me with the opportunity to stretch and grow and be an agency director, developing their boutique roster, Redux Reps. I got to build a roster of artists that I wanted to work with, with the backing of a team. I definitely loved that experience and had many tremendous success stories.

In 2018 I gave birth to my son. I also took on a role as a teacher at Parsons who asked me to come on to teach Business of Photography and I rarely back down from an exciting challenge. What I took from this experience was that I wanted to tone it down and be a true artist agent and no longer be an agency director. I wanted to take everything I loved about what I do and work with a company that had a great roster already built and that was in line with my values and what I wanted to do.

I covered for Chris Ehrmann, founder of Goldteeth & Co., while he was on paternity leave and we really hit it off. We decided to make it official at the beginning of 2020, right in time for the pandemic, ha,ha. In all honesty, I couldn’t have asked for a more supportive team to be with during this time. During the height of the pandemic, the whole roster would get on weekly Zoom meetings, and we would come up with projects to keep people shooting. Many agencies boast of being familial but I can say without a doubt, I haven’t felt this sense of camaraderie since my days working at My Own Color Lab. It’s so refreshing!. And in general, I feel like there are a lot of systems in place at Goldteeth that help me be structured and organized and allow me to be my best. There’s a lot of support and I have a true partner in Chris and of course the roster is amazing! And that brings me up to today.

WHAT IS A TYPICAL DAY LIKE FOR YOU?

I handle all jobs that are either pending or have been awarded or have wrapped, whether that be creating estimates and treatments or handling production or billing, and the rest is outreach, outreach, outreach.

I love how structured Goldteeth & Co is with systems in place that make it so I don’t feel lost in the weeds. I create target client lists with each artist and put together PDFs of work and then pound proverbial pavement to connect clients to that work, be it through brands directly, ad agencies or producers.

And I always try to connect with existing clients just to catch up whenever I can. It’s the best part of the job!

Styled by Emma Pritchard for Absolut Mix Responsibly

WHAT WAS A PIVOTAL MOMENT IN YOUR CAREER?

I would say a pivotal moment was going to Redux and becoming an agency director. It gave me confidence to see what works and what doesn’t and build something that felt very much like my own voice. I remember being at a portfolio show at BBDO NY and an art producer remarked that I had built something really beautiful and that I should be proud. Those are the moments that make you feel like you really are on the right path.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE SET TO WORK ON?

There are really so many and all for different reasons. Of course sets with celebrities are exciting for all the obvious reasons. Shoots with Taylor Swift, Kanye, Common, and John Legend all stand out to me. Or the set for Action Bronson's cookbook, ‘Fuck that's Delicious’. That was memorable...and tasty! But I also love the connections I made on a Dove set when I first started my career, forging relationships with art producers who I consider close friends to this day. Or a Gatorade shoot at Texas A&M with Von Miller stands out in my memory, as I was coaching a seasoned and award winning Italian conflict photographer through a commercial set, which provided a lot of amazing comedy as well as stunning images. And again, the friendships forged were lifelong and amazing.

WHAT IS ONE OF THE PROUDEST MOMENTS IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR?

It’s alway a proud moment when you see something in an artist's work you believe in and are able to create trust and belief in them with clients. Being able to pinpoint clients and go after them and not give up and to have those clients hire artists, (sometimes even after years of persistence), that’s a great feeling. And the thrill of those wins, especially the hard earned ones, never grows old.

WHAT ARE SOME OTHER THINGS YOU ENJOY WHEN YOU AREN’T TALKING BUSINESS?

Definitely my family. My son is my pride and joy! He is three and it’s been wonderful to be a mom. I’m also the wife of a talented musician and I’m often playing the role of a manager in that way as well. Sometimes I have to wear multiple artist management hats - it’s definitely not boring! I like to say I’m a mom and photographer rep, moonlighting as a music manager.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF BEING AN AGENT?

To bring it back to the roots of why I started liking this role in the first place - being able to connect with people. I really love meeting with photographers and clients and talking about work and what’s going on in their professional and personal lives.

WHAT DOES #PONYUP MEAN TO YOU?

I’ve worked with Stacy as a producer and she is a tour de force. She makes sure that not only all the photographer’s and clients' needs are met, but that mine are too. We worked together on a complex multiple day content shoot and we went out to dinner and bonded big time. Stacy spoke passionately about how we could make the shoot even better. She’s really gracious, and has a can-do attitude - there’s nothing you can say that she wouldn’t be able to make happen. I super adore her and would trust her with absolutely any shoot, no matter the budget or complexity.

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?

Thankfully, things picked up to a normal pace again. Gus Powell’s street photography has lent itself perfectly to the fashion world. He shot the Kate Spade Spring, Summer, and Fall campaigns, as well as the Fall Nordstrom and Rachel Comey campaigns. Being able to work with clients who know how to utilize an artist's talent and skill set and let them ‘do what they do’ is always a complete thrill. Andrew Hetherington just shot for Carnival Cruise, which was another perfect match for a client. Rich Gilligan has been working with L’Oreal and Guinness shooting portraits and lifestyle. Jesse Chehak shot really lushish images for Ford and directed a film for Planned Parenthood. Our stylist, Emma Pritchard just worked on Google Pay and FDA and Absolut to name just a few. Kate Warren is a photographer we just brought on and she shot a fun campaign with Dedalus wine. I am super psyched about bringing Kate on. I can already tell she is going to be another success story.

WHAT IS SOMETHING YOUR FANS MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT YOU?

I also have a photographer consultancy business where I work with photographers outside of the rosters I rep, to assist in a multitude of ways. Editing work for websites, or for promos or by working on elevator pitches, coaching for creative calls, or creating target client lists, just to name a few.

Outside of the world of photography,I have a green thumb and love to garden. I speak conversational German, and am picking up Portuguese. (Brazilian husband!) I am taking acting lessons. I love to challenge myself in new ways all the time, and acting is definitely a way to get outside of my comfort zone. And I make a mean Negroni.

WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU PROVIDE FOR FUTURE PHOTOGRAPHERS?

So many things, but first and foremost, having a strong visual voice is at the center of it all. Don’t try to be everything to everyone. Especially in the American market, it’s important to master one specific skill. Once you become more known, you can branch out. Have strong branding, a killer and up to date website and an instagram presence that speaks to you as an individual as much as it does to your work. Build a great team of people that you can call upon to work with - assistants, stylists, makeup artists, producers, etc. Treat everyone super well across the board, from PAs to clients and do everything on time! Do client outreach and keep in touch consistently by sending updates of your work. Research your clients and know what they’re looking for and build out your portfolio as necessary with test shoots. Show that you know what they need and are able to provide it. And practice your elevator pitch and speaking about your work because the moment a client comes knocking, you need to be ready!

WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU PROVIDE FOR FUTURE AGENTS?

I think it’s important to be an outgoing person. Definitely be very personable and be passionate about photography or film or illustration, or whatever medium your artists’ specialize in.

Good writing skills are important as much of what you will do is pitching and being able to write persuasively and engagingly is extremely necessary.

Photo by Rich Gilligan for Parlor Coffee

Be really prepared to be a business partner for all of your artists. You will work with them all closely to create goals and develop paths to meet them.
Tenacity is the most important ingredient of all. You cannot give up, even when you are down for the count or you lose the bid or don’t get answered back...get back up, brush yourself off and begin again.

Check out Anne in action:

Goldteeth & Co

Instagram: @anneconover

Goldteeth & Co’s Instagram: @goldteethandco

The Velvicks (her husband’s band!) Instagram: @thevelvicks

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