Many, many questions for the pros.

LiveLikeLizPhotos

I've recently started my own business. I'm all on my own and I've had no guidance when it comes to my photography. I've done photos for horse shows, but now I'm getting into people as well. So I've been questioning what the professionals do...
Instead of asking Google, I thought it would be more helpful for myself to hear the answers I'm looking for from here.

How much do you guys charge per session? Do you charge by the hour?
Do you have your customers pay for the session, then pay for the photos they want? Or is it all one flat-rate?
What kind of equipment do you use? How much equipment do you pack for an outdoor session?
What kind of props do you use for senior sessions and such? If any.
How much do you really use Photoshop? What kind do you use?
How do you organize and store your photos?
How do you advertise your business?
What about "bright eyes"? Do you use some kind of magic lens or light to make people's eyes pop and so clear? Or is that done in Photoshop? If done in Photoshop, what tool do you use to make them that way?
Would you rather work in a studio, or outdoors? If you own a studio, is it beneficial? Do you get more customers using a studio?

Thank you in advance. I'm looking forward to your answers.

Sam

I am going to respond to your post, but also have a few general comments.

You have posted 10 question / sentences. We could probably write a book on each individual question.

I think it's better to try and be as specific as possible and keep the shear number of questions per post down.

I have noticed a lot of new people on the forum, and I say welcome! I have also noticed quite a few "I am new and starting my own photography business". There is nothing wrong with this, but I seriously recommend you focus on developing your photography knowledge and skills first. It is a huge disservice to your clients as well as yourself.

Lets be selfish here for a minute........... forget the poor client. By jumping into booking a photography client before you have the knowledge, equipment, and skill and then failing miserably you could end a great photography career before it's gets off the ground.

As an analogy lets say you have an interest in wood working and you bought a small lath, a couple of saws and a pile of wood. Would it make any sense to immediately attempt to have clients commission you to build fine furniture? I believe the answer is a resounding no. An alternative would be to take some classes, network with other wood workers, learn what you can do with the equipment you have. Then after you know what you are able to do you could start by selling small pieces and gradually increase your knowledge, skills and products you offer.

I am not trying to discourage anyone from starting a photography business. I am trying get you to think about the best way to go about it that has a chance of success.

Oh and as a final thought it will help if you can post a link to your website if you have one, and list the major pieces of equipment and experience you have. I think you will end up receiving more appropriate answers.

Sam

anonymouscuban

I know Sam personally so I feel I can beat him up a little. Sam, you're making the assumption that the OP is a complete newb to photography. It could be that's he/she has been shooting for a while but is just now thinking of going pro. However, if you're right and they are brand new to photography, then I completely agree with the points you have made.

Honestly, this post kinda, technically belongs in the Mind Your Own Business forum. BUT... since the OP wants feedback specifically from People shooters, I will leave it here and see where it goes.

I'm not a pro yet but I have done paid assignments and I will be happy to answer some of the questions. Don't have time now... going to brunch with the wife.

wolf911

Not that I am a professional or anything, but I agree with Sam on his thoughts. A lot of the questions really can't be answered specifically cause it all depends. Take the question about prices, you have to take a look at your local market. My market here is not the same for you, so my pricing/rate probably won't work for you. You'll have to figure out how much it's costing you to run your business and than give yourself a profit. How much equipment to take along for shoots all depends on what are you gonna be shooting? What is your goal? Plan the shoot and determine what equipment you will need from the plan. Same with props, talk and plan with your senior client to determine needed props. Setup a meeting before hand and go over ideas and feel the client out as to what they want. Generally people have an idea of what they want to wear and stuff like that. Tell them to bring along their own stuff also, such as a favorite item. Photo editors are used all the time for various things and can help with organizing. Advertise any where you can, word of mouth will travel fast if you do good work. I have no idea what bright eyes is all about, but people will touch up the eyes in post processing. Studio time and on location time? All gonna depend on what you want to accomplish. You'll need to use both to provide more options for the client.

Your watermarks on your site are a bit over done, huge turn off if you can't see the picture.

divamum

Semi-pro, here, mostly shooting performer headshots and theatrical stuff (other than the family stuff I do for myself). I have to agree with Sam - this is A LOT of questions to throw out in one post! I would strongly recommend reading through the archives here; many of these questions have been answered multiple times in multiple threads, and you'll probably get more information by reading those than any other way.

However, stuck indoors today with not much else to do while I wait for Irene to land on my doorstep, so I'll gird my loins (?!) and have a crack at it.

How much do you guys charge per session? Do you charge by the hour?
I follow the typical structure for my (headshot) market - flat fee for shoot of X length with X edited, ready-to-print digital images included. If they want more than are included in the package, they can buy extras (per edited image).

Do you have your customers pay for the session, then pay for the photos they want? Or is it all one flat-rate?
See above

What kind of equipment do you use? How much equipment do you pack for an outdoor session?
Trawl the archive - this is 1. an open-ended question (how long is a piece of string?) and 2. You'll get twenty different people giving twenty different answers.

Speaking for myself, I shoot with a Canon 7d, assorted lenses, and two speedlights with assorted modifiers. See my profile for details.

What kind of props do you use for senior sessions and such? If any.
N/A for my market.

How much do you really use Photoshop? What kind do you use?
Not sure I understand the question. Do you mean do I retouch my images? Absolutely - expected for my market. My goal is to make the subject look like somebody is having a perfect hair/skin day, but without looking "airbrushed". The better the makeup artist (if there is one), the less I find I have to do in Photoshop.

How do you organize and store your photos?
Year/month/name of shoot--->subfolder for proofs and final images. Local hard drive for editing (faster on my machine), DVD backup, and external HDD backup. Proofs go into my online gallery which adds redundancy as well.

How do you advertise your business?
So far, word of mouth. I'm already in the performing arts and my clients are usually people have seen my shots and then approach me to do them. I don't seek business at this point, although I may in due course. At the moment, it's intentionally a sideline that I do when I have time rather than my primary income.

What about "bright eyes"? Do you use some kind of magic lens or light to make people's eyes pop and so clear? Or is that done in Photoshop? If done in Photoshop, what tool do you use to make them that way?
Yes, yes and lots of different ways. Read the archives in the People forum, Finishing School, and Weddings where there has been EXTENSIVE discussion of this, including several threads of "before/after" shots.

Would you rather work in a studio, or outdoors? If you own a studio, is it beneficial? Do you get more customers using a studio?
N/A in my situation. I use both indoor and outdoor settings.

wolf911

Youtube also has some great learning vids on post processing of pictures. As divamum says, lots of methods out there, find the methods that work best for you - manually, plugin, action script...

Hackbone

I'm sort of in agreement with Sam.

Liz, you've alot of questions here that to me indicate you might not be ready to open and operate a portrait studio. I'm not trying to be mean but honestly trying to help you. I don't see a big difference between horses and people( Not discussing the back side folks). You still have to have the correct equip, find the proper lighting, establish a good background for your subject and try to get expression. This is totally applicable to humans and animals.

Advertising your business would be the same also. Advertising in the proper news media, word of mouth among horse owners etc.

What to charge for your business depends on your overhead and how you wish to live. Overhead for different photographers will vary drastically. I know photographers who make $300 per session and make a living and those that make $2,000 per session and live very well.

There is a major difference between doing 1 or 2 sessions per week or two and doing 2 or 3 per day. I would always use professional equip. It will break down and YOU are responsible for that. Try to use a professional camera that records to two cards for backup.

Digital photography has made it very easy to get into photography and call oneself a professional. I wonder how many of these folks will be in business in a few years and what is/was their reputation in their neigborhood.

I don't mean to be harsh because I started out as a "Dad With A Camera" myself. You might want to take a few photo classes and especialy business classes first.

wolf911

Hackbone wrote: »

I don't mean to be harsh because I started out as a "Dad With A Camera" myself.

Same here and I started in 2008 and just now getting into paid shoots. I don't see myself doing it full time, but love doing it.

wave01

It is always difficult to answer questions like this when you dont know the persons work or experience. I see questions like this from people who just think its a good idea to be a Photographer, and from those who are really good and want to get started.
I think research is good thing and a business plan wouldnt go a miss. What type of equipment do you have now it will help knowing so that we can help expand it. Pricing is difficult to answer as I live in a different country.

Hackbone

Let me explain my track of "Dad With A Camera". I've been interested in photography since I was 10 or 12. Always taking photos with an old Kodak roll camera. Being a musican I was never home and girlfriends now wife were not really happy with that. All along the musician route I was taking photos of friends. Finally wanted to do more with photography. So I sold my keyboards and purchased a Mimaya Universal with a Rollei flash. Purchased alot of photo books and joined the states professional organization. Back then it was filled with great pros who were williing to help. I took every evening workshop they had and found others that I attended. This went on for several years (but not charging) while I was working as a middle school band director.

Finally I felt comfortable with the technical aspect of photography but I was very clumsy with people. That is not a good place to be. It does effect the outcome. After about 10 years of that I opened a studio on a second floor and worked that after school. I also sought out great photographers and asked them could I watch them for a day and what would they charge. I also purchased backup equipment just in case. I did alot of large group classes and realized I wasn't learning much so I looked for the small classes 10 to 15. I saved and went to these classes wherever they were. Nowdays a class for 2 to 3 days generally costs anywhere from $900 to $1200 for flights, class, room and food. Even though I'm approaching the end of my career I still attend about 2 of these a year. I want to stay ahead of the curve and provide my clients with what they see on TV and other media.

I finally went full time after teaching for 33 years and built and opened a studio on a major hwy. If people are not ready to go that route I don't feel they are serious about becoming a professional photographer and produce a professional product.

It is a different story to snap a few shots and make $5 or $10 or to try to support your family in a way that you are satisified with. It is not fair to the purchasing public when they expect a professional product and it dumbs down the profession.

Can it be done nowdays, definitely but be willing to sacrifice and learn your craft.

This is not meant for anyone in particular but just as general info. It is a hard road to start and has many pitfalls along the way that will trap those with stars in their eyes and feet not planted firmly on the ground. Good luck to all who want to perseverse.

wolf911

Hackbone wrote: »

Let me explain my track of "Dad With A Camera". I've been interested in photography since I was 10 or 12. Always taking photos with an old Kodak roll camera. Being a musican I was never home and girlfriends now wife were not really happy with that. All along the musician route I was taking photos of friends. Finally wanted to do more with photography. So I sold my keyboards and purchased a Mimaya Universal with a Rollei flash. Purchased alot of photo books and joined the states professional organization. Back then it was filled with great pros who were williing to help. I took every evening workshop they had and found others that I attended. This went on for several years (but not charging) while I was working as a middle school band director.

Finally I felt comfortable with the technical aspect of photography but I was very clumsy with people. That is not a good place to be. It does effect the outcome. After about 10 years of that I opened a studio on a second floor and worked that after school. I also sought out great photographers and asked them could I watch them for a day and what would they charge. I also purchased backup equipment just in case. I did alot of large group classes and realized I wasn't learning much so I looked for the small classes 10 to 15. I saved and went to these classes wherever they were. Nowdays a class for 2 to 3 days generally costs anywhere from $900 to $1200 for flights, class, room and food. Even though I'm approaching the end of my career I still attend about 2 of these a year. I want to stay ahead of the curve and provide my clients with what they see on TV and other media.

I finally went full time after teaching for 33 years and built and opened a studio on a major hwy. If people are not ready to go that route I don't feel they are serious about becoming a professional photographer and produce a professional product.

It is a different story to snap a few shots and make $5 or $10 or to try to support your family in a way that you are satisified with. It is not fair to the purchasing public when they expect a professional product and it dumbs down the profession.

Can it be done nowdays, definitely but be willing to sacrifice and learn your craft.

This is not meant for anyone in particular but just as general info. It is a hard road to start and has many pitfalls along the way that will trap those with stars in their eyes and feet not planted firmly on the ground. Good luck to all who want to perseverse.

That is a great background on the reality of it all and part of that is why I don't see myself ever going fully professional.

LiveLikeLizPhotos

Okay, I realize I posted a lot of questions. I knew that when I clicked "post new thread", I don't need to be reminded so many times. Thank you, though. Though I'm capable of relizing my actions. Speaking of realizing actions, I am not new to 'photography'. I'm simply new to the fact of making it into a competitive business.

As for Sam's analogy about wood, my stubborn answer is yes. If they have enough talent to jump right into a business, more power to them and they should go build fine furniture.

Thank you for answering my post like I was expecting from others, divamum. I appreciate it. Specially after reading through everyone else's posts...heh.

I was asking what you guys do personally, I wasn't asking what I should do and how I should do it.
I wanted to know how others did it, maybe I could learn if it was easier or more efficient. How this turned into wanting to critique my stuff and want to know what equipment I was using, I have no idea.

I'm not interested in starting up a studio quite yet, it was a simple question as to if personally you had one, and if you got more business. Just like the other questions.

Perhaps this will clear my questions up for you guys.

Didn't know my post would be so difficult. Ha.