Crowdsourced Wedding Photography
StardustPhoto
Registered Users Posts: 16 Big grins
Has anyone seen these sites?
http://www.photounity.com/ecommerce/Scripts/default.asp
http://www.theweddinglens.com/
http://us.olapic.com/index.php
They seem to work on the business model of, get everyone who is at a wedding and taking pictures to put them all on their site, so everyone can see them and order prints.
I actually had this exact idea a while ago, and then found out that such sites exist. Now that I've moved over to Smugmug, I'm wondering if it would be possible to do the very same thing on the site? Rather than get annoyed by all the people taking photos at the wedding, why not encourage them, spread the word that they can put them all on my site, and get both more viewers and possibly more income from them ordering each others photos through my page? Not to say that the professional photographer won't still do all the same work as usual, but I'm debating if we could supplement his work with this system.
I'm still working on the system to get their pictures on to my site, but it seems like a good system. The only thing I'm questioning is the idea of earning money from prints of photos taken by individuals not working for Stardust.
http://www.photounity.com/ecommerce/Scripts/default.asp
http://www.theweddinglens.com/
http://us.olapic.com/index.php
They seem to work on the business model of, get everyone who is at a wedding and taking pictures to put them all on their site, so everyone can see them and order prints.
I actually had this exact idea a while ago, and then found out that such sites exist. Now that I've moved over to Smugmug, I'm wondering if it would be possible to do the very same thing on the site? Rather than get annoyed by all the people taking photos at the wedding, why not encourage them, spread the word that they can put them all on my site, and get both more viewers and possibly more income from them ordering each others photos through my page? Not to say that the professional photographer won't still do all the same work as usual, but I'm debating if we could supplement his work with this system.
I'm still working on the system to get their pictures on to my site, but it seems like a good system. The only thing I'm questioning is the idea of earning money from prints of photos taken by individuals not working for Stardust.
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Comments
Sam
Or are you proposing charging a markup on those photos? I would have a problem with this unless you both acknowledged the photographer and paid the photographer from the profits on the sale.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
Haha, well I hope the frustration is directed at those websites, and not my idea. Anyway, that's sort of my question, do I sell them at cost, and acknowledge the original photographer, or charge a markup and somehow give them the profits? Handing out profits seems incredibly complicated, and would almost entail a business all its own, outside of our current business plan, but it would entice people to participate.
This same model is putting professional writers out of business too as more and more publications are calling for "reader submissions" - poorly written, badly researched piffle - and the same mags are also looking for reader photos.
http://www.imagesbyceci.com
http://www.facebook.com/ImagesByCeci
Picadilly, NB, Canada
No...it's the same on the surface, on the front end, but the consequences are radically different. In the past, all the prints from the disposable cameras went straight to the married couple's photo album; nobody has any problem with that. What happens today is that the pictures that you and the other guests took go a web site and can be sold worldwide for terms you can't control, and the proceeds can go to any number of people (the wedding couple, the coordinating photographer, the website company) ...except you!
Everything is negotiable.
Given his $595, 2 photographers, 8 hours, you get all the originals on disc mentality, not surprising. (see http://stardustphoto.smugmug.com/gallery/11363583_gWxx8/1/798224947_nSopu)
StardustPhoto, your current business model is making it hard for people to make a living full time at photography. It's ruining the industry. You think this new idea is going to help that problem?
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
By that logic you could argue that Wal-Mart/Costco and the like are ruining their respective industries too. Consumers demand lower prices and these companies have complied with that demand as a result, their sales are growing and others are not. This is exactly how it's supposed to work.
Yeah, the GWC's are changing the face of the market and the quality isn't what many professionals can and will deliver but people (customers) are willing to accept that.
So, you think all types of photography should be like sports photography, where there is basically no money to be made by the professional because of the "they're okay" photographs being produced by every one and their dog with a consumer DSLR?
And, yes, I would argue that at least WalMart is ruining its industry. But the WalMart model is different than what these services/photogs are doing (or is it?--guess we'll see over time). WalMart tends to come to town with low prices, drive out local competitors, then raise their prices once the competition is gone. If you haven't seen that with your WalMarts yet, you will. Don't know that we will see that with cheap photogs. We may see it with these crowdsourced Web sites though over time.
What I think doesn't matter. What the person buying your goods and services thinks does.
Photography is a business. Whether it's selling sports, weddings, portraits or fine art. Customers are clearly willing to support a low(er) cost product offering. And they are willing to make trade-offs in quality for that lower price--that's the nature of competition. Customers are choosing low cost over high quality.
With regard to WalMart. Last time I drove past one, the parking lot was full so despite what people say about WalMart, customers must value the products, goods and services for the price WalMart asks--that too is competition.
Hmm. And it's a business that seems to be changing (dying), unfortunately. Or at the very least, shrinking and becoming less profitable. Especially when professionals continue to give in to the lower priced mantra:
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2010/03/31/mariano-pastor-madison-ave-photoraphy-at-common-man-prices/
Or, maybe that's the point. Maybe it's time to rethink business strategies for photography. Or not.