The photographer Sasha Maslov talks about finding topics for international media, working with heroes for photo stories, and why a good pitch should be a bit like a thriller, and a so-called cold pitch should be like a first date.
Sasha Maslov was born in Kharkiv. He lives and works in New York. His work has been presented at various venues in Europe and the United States. He collaborates with well-known publications, including The New Yorker, The Guardian, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Esquire, Forbes and others. In his spare time, he works on his personal projects, the largest of which is the Veterans project, for which he has traveled to more than 20 countries in five years. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, he has been documenting life in Ukraine and working on his own projects.
Sasha Maslov collaborates with well-known media outlets, including The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, and others, and told us how to best pitch topics and ideas for photo projects to international media. “The types of story pitching depend on what kind of relationship you have with the media. You can write a text message in two to three sentences or send a PDF file of ten to twenty pages. If you are writing to the media for the first time, making a so-called cold pitch, or applying for a grant or award, you need to describe your project in detail,” advises Sasha Maslov. The easiest way to pitch topics is through personal connections. “I offer two to three stories a week, and usually one gets selected. I pitch topics that I find interesting and relevant to the present,” Maslov says.
“I prepare for cold pitches like for a first date. Everything has to be perfect - a great restaurant, candles and a tie,” Sasha Maslov smiles. ”I will never make a cold pitch with two or three sentences, sloppy or via social media. I'll send an email with a lengthy PDF file, a series of sample materials, links to similar stories, etc. This way, the person reading the proposal will be less likely to say that they are not interested and that I treated it unprofessionally.” Cold pitches are always harder to prepare, and you shouldn't expect much from them. Firstly, they may simply not be read, and secondly, a stranger has no moral obligation to respond, because they have not worked with the photographer before or are not currently working with them on a regular basis.
For Ukrainian photographers, the events in Ukraine and various aspects of life during the Russian-Ukrainian war are relevant. “I'm often asked what the Western audience is focusing on in Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale war and over the course of three years, the topics of stories have changed significantly,” the photographer emphasizes. ”At first, there was a lot of interest in the events in Ukraine and it was easy to propose stories and get assignments. After three years of war, the stories start to repeat themselves and the viewer simply loses interest in the topic, especially in viewing the photos. This happens with many wars or events. “Photos from the front, regardless of what's happening, start to look the same. When we look at the front page of, for example, The New York Times, we don't understand at first glance whether these are pictures from Gaza or Ukraine. The editor of the publication understands this and, in order not to lose the viewer, tries to find more visually interesting stories or footage in news agencies,” says Maslov.
“In the first months of the full-scale war, there were a lot of topics like an IT guy became a soldier and a salesman became a volunteer. Then came stories about the liberation of territories, life under occupation, war crimes, etc. At these moments, it was worth pitching stories related to significant events. Especially if you had access to these events. “Access is a kind of bargaining chip that can be used in pitches. For example, you want to tell a story about lost animals, and your best friends have a shelter. In this case, you can emotionally connect the topic with the person. You can say that your friend has a shelter, thanks to which many animals were found,” says the photographer.
Maslov emphasizes that he is now trying to understand what topics resonate with the interests of Western viewers. There was a strong decline in interest in Ukrainian stories after the outbreak of Israel's war with Palestine, the US presidential election, and the events in Syria. “We need to find stories that resonate with events in the world and with people's feelings. For example, you can tell us what is happening to you as an author, as a photographer or a journalist. It's great if you have access to stories with specific people. For example, you hear an interesting story in the team and know that it has not yet been told. I'm always looking for such stories,” says Sasha Maslov. ”You can suggest topics related to the US elections. We can tell what Ukrainians think about it, how the election results are perceived in society, and what the consequences might be. People perceive the US elections as a continuation of their destiny, determining the course of the war and everyone's personal life.” Sasha Maslov is now using this approach in his pitches.
Sasha notes that there are topics that are valuable to him as a photographer and journalist, and he can do them on his own and then pitch them. There are stories that he offers and waits to see if they will be selected for the media. There are cases when Maslov pitches an idea to editors with several shots already taken. It all depends on the story. “If I'm working on a long topic, a grant story, I'll write the texts myself. There is a privilege in doing everything yourself, because then you have the opportunity to publish it in many publications,” explains Sasha Maslov. ”You are not tied to a publication that gives you a task. You develop the story yourself and have full control over what you do. When the story is ready, you can pitch it to many publications.”
When pitching a story to the media, you should have an understanding of how to implement the idea. “No one wants to find themselves in a situation where a story was selected, but the author was unable to shoot it,” says the photographer. ”Sometimes I propose a story and immediately say that I will need support from the publication and that I will not be able to realize this idea on my own. If I realize that the logistics have been worked out and I have access to the characters, then I offer the story on a turnkey basis. If it is accepted, I can go and shoot tomorrow. It is important to be completely honest with editors.”
You have to fight for editors' attention. There is a lot of fierce competition in the photography industry right now. “You need to be visible-attend portfolio revues, photo festivals, show your work on social media. Even when you are often hired, you need to constantly promote your work,” says Sasha Maslov.
According to Sasha Maslov, in 2022, the history of the Russian-Ukrainian war was colored only in black and white: there is absolute evil and Ukraine, which is defending itself. In the subsequent phases of the war, many halftones began to appear. The Western press, which is currently working in Ukraine and will continue to do so after the war is over, especially notices this. “The Western press actually works as a local press, which means that it researches things and notices topics that local media usually work on,” notes Sasha Maslov. ”If you notice local stories that affect the overall picture, you can offer them to the media. For example, injustice or corruption, or, on the contrary, positive reforms and initiatives.” Personal experiences of the hero are always a plus. Sasha Maslov emphasizes that he always tries to reveal a topic through people's private stories.
“I try to add thriller colors to complex long stories. To tell how the characters are connected to each other and to the events,” Maslov says. ”The best pitch is when the editor is left with a sense of hunger and wants to hear the whole story. When you write a pitch, you have to have this feeling of hunger for the end of the story. This kind of pitch is perfect for me.” Sasha Maslov offers stories that can be described in a few sentences and can be filmed tomorrow. However, his favorite format is complex, long-form stories that need to be thoroughly researched.
“Even if the stories don't interest editors at first, they still give the author a kind of trump card for the future. People remember stories, even if they can't use them for their media. For me, pitching is important in this regard as well,” says Sasha Maslov. He explains that it's important to calibrate stories for different media, i.e. to understand what topics certain media outlets work with. For example, a nature magazine won't take a story about tanks, but it will be interested in the story of the environmental impact of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant explosion. “If you are interested in a particular topic, if you have a heart for it, then do research on the media that might be suitable for it. Great stories can go unnoticed in the big media, they just get lost in an incredible amount of other stories,” says the photographer. ”That's why I also try to submit quite specific stories to smaller publications that can pay more attention to them. In smaller publications, such stories find their audience better.”
If you pitch a story to a foreign publication, you should look for common ground between the characters in the story and the country you are pitching to. For example, if you have a story about a French soldier who volunteered to fight in Ukraine, you should try to pitch this story to the media of the city where the soldier comes from. In this case, you need to be sure of access to the hero of your material and enlist the support of the local French media.
In Ukraine, there are topics whose coverage may show Ukraine in a negative light. Therefore, the question remains to what extent these topics should be raised and published during the war. “I often think about this question. However, it is wrong not to tell stories about the ills of society. To think that Ukraine will not be given weapons because of the media coverage of stories that could negatively affect our country is a betrayal of the principles of journalism and why we do this work,” says Sasha Maslov. ”We work to improve society. This is a personal choice for many people, but I believe that we need to tell stories, even if they show Ukraine in a negative light. We are helping people with our work here and now.”
A lot of projects and stories are now presented from the perspective of the personal trauma of the person who proposes the topic. “I guess that such projects may at some point bore the editors and will not be interesting to the audience,” explains Sasha Maslov. ”We are very worried about people in the first moments of a tragedy. It's like running to a car that has just had an accident and helping. We really want to help when events are just starting to unfold, and then we step back and start doing our own thing. This is the human nature. Imagine that the person you helped to get out of a burning car starts coming to you every day with his problems. He starts to bore you. Similar stories happen with pitches that are too emotional. I'm not an editor, of course, but it seems to me that this is the reason.”
The key is to find a great story and then pitch it. “First, find a cool topic that is interesting to you and can be interesting to many people, find good characters, understand why you are going to shoot it, and then offer it to editors,” advises Sasha Maslov.
We worked on the material:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Katya Moskalyuk
Editor-in-chief: Olga Kovaleva
Literary editor: Yulia Futey
Website manager: Vladyslav Kukhar
The photographer Sasha Maslov talks about finding topics for international media, working with heroes for photo stories, and why a good pitch should be a bit like a thriller, and a so-called cold pitch should be like a first date.
Sasha Maslov was born in Kharkiv. He lives and works in New York. His work has been presented at various venues in Europe and the United States. He collaborates with well-known publications, including The New Yorker, The Guardian, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Esquire, Forbes and others. In his spare time, he works on his personal projects, the largest of which is the Veterans project, for which he has traveled to more than 20 countries in five years. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, he has been documenting life in Ukraine and working on his own projects.
Sasha Maslov collaborates with well-known media outlets, including The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, and others, and told us how to best pitch topics and ideas for photo projects to international media. “The types of story pitching depend on what kind of relationship you have with the media. You can write a text message in two to three sentences or send a PDF file of ten to twenty pages. If you are writing to the media for the first time, making a so-called cold pitch, or applying for a grant or award, you need to describe your project in detail,” advises Sasha Maslov. The easiest way to pitch topics is through personal connections. “I offer two to three stories a week, and usually one gets selected. I pitch topics that I find interesting and relevant to the present,” Maslov says.
“I prepare for cold pitches like for a first date. Everything has to be perfect - a great restaurant, candles and a tie,” Sasha Maslov smiles. ”I will never make a cold pitch with two or three sentences, sloppy or via social media. I'll send an email with a lengthy PDF file, a series of sample materials, links to similar stories, etc. This way, the person reading the proposal will be less likely to say that they are not interested and that I treated it unprofessionally.” Cold pitches are always harder to prepare, and you shouldn't expect much from them. Firstly, they may simply not be read, and secondly, a stranger has no moral obligation to respond, because they have not worked with the photographer before or are not currently working with them on a regular basis.
For Ukrainian photographers, the events in Ukraine and various aspects of life during the Russian-Ukrainian war are relevant. “I'm often asked what the Western audience is focusing on in Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale war and over the course of three years, the topics of stories have changed significantly,” the photographer emphasizes. ”At first, there was a lot of interest in the events in Ukraine and it was easy to propose stories and get assignments. After three years of war, the stories start to repeat themselves and the viewer simply loses interest in the topic, especially in viewing the photos. This happens with many wars or events. “Photos from the front, regardless of what's happening, start to look the same. When we look at the front page of, for example, The New York Times, we don't understand at first glance whether these are pictures from Gaza or Ukraine. The editor of the publication understands this and, in order not to lose the viewer, tries to find more visually interesting stories or footage in news agencies,” says Maslov.
“In the first months of the full-scale war, there were a lot of topics like an IT guy became a soldier and a salesman became a volunteer. Then came stories about the liberation of territories, life under occupation, war crimes, etc. At these moments, it was worth pitching stories related to significant events. Especially if you had access to these events. “Access is a kind of bargaining chip that can be used in pitches. For example, you want to tell a story about lost animals, and your best friends have a shelter. In this case, you can emotionally connect the topic with the person. You can say that your friend has a shelter, thanks to which many animals were found,” says the photographer.
Maslov emphasizes that he is now trying to understand what topics resonate with the interests of Western viewers. There was a strong decline in interest in Ukrainian stories after the outbreak of Israel's war with Palestine, the US presidential election, and the events in Syria. “We need to find stories that resonate with events in the world and with people's feelings. For example, you can tell us what is happening to you as an author, as a photographer or a journalist. It's great if you have access to stories with specific people. For example, you hear an interesting story in the team and know that it has not yet been told. I'm always looking for such stories,” says Sasha Maslov. ”You can suggest topics related to the US elections. We can tell what Ukrainians think about it, how the election results are perceived in society, and what the consequences might be. People perceive the US elections as a continuation of their destiny, determining the course of the war and everyone's personal life.” Sasha Maslov is now using this approach in his pitches.
Sasha notes that there are topics that are valuable to him as a photographer and journalist, and he can do them on his own and then pitch them. There are stories that he offers and waits to see if they will be selected for the media. There are cases when Maslov pitches an idea to editors with several shots already taken. It all depends on the story. “If I'm working on a long topic, a grant story, I'll write the texts myself. There is a privilege in doing everything yourself, because then you have the opportunity to publish it in many publications,” explains Sasha Maslov. ”You are not tied to a publication that gives you a task. You develop the story yourself and have full control over what you do. When the story is ready, you can pitch it to many publications.”
When pitching a story to the media, you should have an understanding of how to implement the idea. “No one wants to find themselves in a situation where a story was selected, but the author was unable to shoot it,” says the photographer. ”Sometimes I propose a story and immediately say that I will need support from the publication and that I will not be able to realize this idea on my own. If I realize that the logistics have been worked out and I have access to the characters, then I offer the story on a turnkey basis. If it is accepted, I can go and shoot tomorrow. It is important to be completely honest with editors.”
You have to fight for editors' attention. There is a lot of fierce competition in the photography industry right now. “You need to be visible-attend portfolio revues, photo festivals, show your work on social media. Even when you are often hired, you need to constantly promote your work,” says Sasha Maslov.
According to Sasha Maslov, in 2022, the history of the Russian-Ukrainian war was colored only in black and white: there is absolute evil and Ukraine, which is defending itself. In the subsequent phases of the war, many halftones began to appear. The Western press, which is currently working in Ukraine and will continue to do so after the war is over, especially notices this. “The Western press actually works as a local press, which means that it researches things and notices topics that local media usually work on,” notes Sasha Maslov. ”If you notice local stories that affect the overall picture, you can offer them to the media. For example, injustice or corruption, or, on the contrary, positive reforms and initiatives.” Personal experiences of the hero are always a plus. Sasha Maslov emphasizes that he always tries to reveal a topic through people's private stories.
“I try to add thriller colors to complex long stories. To tell how the characters are connected to each other and to the events,” Maslov says. ”The best pitch is when the editor is left with a sense of hunger and wants to hear the whole story. When you write a pitch, you have to have this feeling of hunger for the end of the story. This kind of pitch is perfect for me.” Sasha Maslov offers stories that can be described in a few sentences and can be filmed tomorrow. However, his favorite format is complex, long-form stories that need to be thoroughly researched.
“Even if the stories don't interest editors at first, they still give the author a kind of trump card for the future. People remember stories, even if they can't use them for their media. For me, pitching is important in this regard as well,” says Sasha Maslov. He explains that it's important to calibrate stories for different media, i.e. to understand what topics certain media outlets work with. For example, a nature magazine won't take a story about tanks, but it will be interested in the story of the environmental impact of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant explosion. “If you are interested in a particular topic, if you have a heart for it, then do research on the media that might be suitable for it. Great stories can go unnoticed in the big media, they just get lost in an incredible amount of other stories,” says the photographer. ”That's why I also try to submit quite specific stories to smaller publications that can pay more attention to them. In smaller publications, such stories find their audience better.”
If you pitch a story to a foreign publication, you should look for common ground between the characters in the story and the country you are pitching to. For example, if you have a story about a French soldier who volunteered to fight in Ukraine, you should try to pitch this story to the media of the city where the soldier comes from. In this case, you need to be sure of access to the hero of your material and enlist the support of the local French media.
In Ukraine, there are topics whose coverage may show Ukraine in a negative light. Therefore, the question remains to what extent these topics should be raised and published during the war. “I often think about this question. However, it is wrong not to tell stories about the ills of society. To think that Ukraine will not be given weapons because of the media coverage of stories that could negatively affect our country is a betrayal of the principles of journalism and why we do this work,” says Sasha Maslov. ”We work to improve society. This is a personal choice for many people, but I believe that we need to tell stories, even if they show Ukraine in a negative light. We are helping people with our work here and now.”
A lot of projects and stories are now presented from the perspective of the personal trauma of the person who proposes the topic. “I guess that such projects may at some point bore the editors and will not be interesting to the audience,” explains Sasha Maslov. ”We are very worried about people in the first moments of a tragedy. It's like running to a car that has just had an accident and helping. We really want to help when events are just starting to unfold, and then we step back and start doing our own thing. This is the human nature. Imagine that the person you helped to get out of a burning car starts coming to you every day with his problems. He starts to bore you. Similar stories happen with pitches that are too emotional. I'm not an editor, of course, but it seems to me that this is the reason.”
The key is to find a great story and then pitch it. “First, find a cool topic that is interesting to you and can be interesting to many people, find good characters, understand why you are going to shoot it, and then offer it to editors,” advises Sasha Maslov.
We worked on the material:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Katya Moskalyuk
Editor-in-chief: Olga Kovaleva
Literary editor: Yulia Futey
Website manager: Vladyslav Kukhar
UAPP is an independent association of professional Ukrainian photographers, designed to protect their interests, support, develop and promote Ukrainian photography as an important element of national culture.
UAPP's activities span educational, social, research and cultural initiatives, as well as book publishing.
UAPP represents Ukrainian professional photography in the international photographic community and is an official member of the Federation of European Photographers (FEP) — an international organization representing more than 50,000 professional photographers in Europe and other countries around the world.
