How To Sell An Unplugged Wedding

The bride slowly walks down the aisle with her dad. Its one of the happiest days of her life. But as she looks around her, she feels a bit unsure. She expected to see friends and family smiling at her. Yet it feels like a scene from a science fiction movie. All around her is a sea of computer screens. High and low, everyone fighting to get that one perfect shot. They jump out in front of her. Trip over the paid photographer. Talk during the vows. Even get the minister upset enough to send one guest back to his seat.

This isn’t what the bride had in mind when she played dress up all those years ago.

Yet in today’s world, digital is our life. Nobody goes anywhere without a mobile or tablet ready to go.

But is the paparazzi really the way to go for every experience we face?

How To Sell An Unplugged Wedding

Or is it time to pull the plug.

Having an unplugged wedding is definitely a sign of the times. And as a photographer, you can use this to your advantage.

Talk to your clients during the booking process

Unless your clients are CEOs of startup tech companies with mobile devices attached to their hips, they’ve probably experienced the “paparazzi phenomena” before.

Mention an unplugged wedding during the initial meeting. Talk about the benefits of having everyone enjoy the wedding – at least the ceremony if not more – without having a mobile device in their face. If you have horror stories, create mini albums showcasing examples. You can snap a photograph of Uncle Bob rushing up behind them as they have their first kiss. Or snap an image with the majority of hands in the air trying to capture the bride and groom with their phones and tablets. Prove the point – people are receptive when you have proof of bad outcomes. [Read more...]

Why You Shouldn’t Have A Checklist For Your Wedding Clients

Are you a wedding photographer? Do you use a checklist to let your clients tell you what images they want?

Stop handing them out and let your creativity soar. While checklists may seem like a great way to communicate with your client, they actually turn you into a subpar photographer. Here’s why.

It Is Unprofessional

You are a professional photographer. Do you really need a client to check a box telling you she wants a photograph of her and her new husband? As a professional, if you don’t understand the basic images that are needed to fulfill a wedding package, you shouldn’t be shooting weddings.

It Sets The Stage For Failure

Imagine you have a checklist with 200 photographs on it. The bride goes through and starts checking them – check, check, check – before she knows it every boxed is checked. It’s her wedding, she wants it all. Now you have the task of having to fulfill every check. Did you get this image? Yes. Oops, I forgot one, now what? Pretty soon you’re missing a lot of the wedding because you’re so worried about getting all the check marks. And if you miss one, the bride will pull out her checklist and ask you about it. Then she won’t be happy with the images you took; instead she’ll be disappointed in the one’s you missed.

It Limits Creativity

Every wedding is different. Every bride and groom is different. If you’re working from a list that says “close up of the bride”, “profile of the bride”, and on and on, you’re not paying attention to what is happening around you. You move from checklist, to pose, to shot, to check, and to the next image on the list. You’re not watching the groom sneak in to make the bride laugh. You don’t notice the bridesmaids off on the side dancing and twirling. You miss everything that will cause this wedding to be unique.

Why You Shouldnt Have A Checklist For Your Wedding Clients

Instead of working with a checklist, use what we call a wedding worksheet instead. [Read more...]

7 Ways To Find Your Photography Niche

“I know I should choose a niche – I read your advice and it really makes sense to me. But I don’t know how to do it. I’ve been photographing for two years, and so far
I’ve taken portraits – babies, families, seniors, business – weddings, a little commercial work, and a few events, like bar/bat mitzvahs and corporate events. I love
the weddings, but they don’t give me enough income. I like portraits, especially
the babies and seniors. And I’ve even had some fun with corporate shoots – I did
one for a catalog that was a lot of fun. Should I limit myself and “niche” or
should I keep going the way I’m going?”

When you first get into the photography business, shooting a little bit of everything comes natural. Someone calls for a portrait, so you shoot that. They call for a wedding, so you shoot that. Commercial work? Sure, why not?

The problem lies in who you are as a business, how you brand yourself, and how you come across to your clientele.

If you are a generalist, and you take pretty much anything that comes through your door, the people you are out networking with will think of you as a generalist. And as such, you are easily forgettable.

But if you specialize – niche – your business to do one thing, everyone around you learns about that one thing in great detail.

7 Ways To Find Your Photography Niche

Imagine a generalist at a lead networking group. Over six weeks, the people around her would hear: [Read more...]

How To Be A Destination Wedding Photographer In 2013

Think people are skimping on their wedding plans just because the economy has been down the past few years? Think again.

How To Be A Destination Wedding Photographer In 2013Statistics show wedding budgets are still at an all time high, with the average wedding costing around $27,000.

You might be saying “not in my backyard”. And that very well may be true. Because statistics also show that almost one in four couples today don’t get married in their own backyard … they plan a destination wedding.

So if you are trying to be a wedding photographer right there in your home town, and you aren’t having much luck, maybe you need to change the way you approach your clients … and your business.

Destination weddings are on the rise because of a variety of things:

  • People are busy, planning a destination wedding is a way to escape more than the daily grind.
  • Families come from all over the world, so it may as well be a fun vacation for everyone.
  • It’s a great way to keep the guest list in check, and invite only the people closest to you.
  • It’s a way to spend money on what’s truly important – spending time with your loved ones instead of feeding 200+ people.

 

Every bride will come up with her own reasons for planning something far from home. Yet in every case its probably to have a more perfect event with those closest to her.

And that’s where a destination wedding photographer can do well.

A bride and groom don’t plan a destination for the sole reason of keeping the budget down; instead they plan it to spend money on the people that matter most to them. Which means those closest to them will all be in one location – one GREAT location – looking their best and being their happiest. Which means it’s a perfect opportunity for the best portraits possible. Portraits they want and are willing to buy.

Good news for wedding photographers. But how do you go about building your business around destination wedding photography?

Think like a destination wedding photographer.

Yes, it is slightly different than thinking like a wedding photographer.

A wedding photographer thinks about the photographs, the weddings, the packages, and the final products. They write about weddings on their sites and post images from the latest weddings. They create packages for people in their local area.

Then as an after thought, they throw up a one line phrase at the bottom of the service page:

Available for destination weddings.

And they sit back and wait for it to happen.

Very rarely will it happen if this is your strategy.

Instead, a destination wedding photographer thinks about weddings AND where she is willing to photograph.

The concept of being a destination wedding photographer fills people with awe – “oh, what a great life, traveling around the world photographing the best parties in the world”. And the daydreams begin.

But that isn’t the reality of it all. Instead, being a great destination wedding photographer means you are also great at marketing. Its very difficult marketing to everyone around the world. Its hard to gather enough attention to make it work. Which is why it rarely does.

Instead, to be a successful destination wedding photographer, they know the only way to succeed is to focus in on where you want to go.

Maybe you live in the Midwest and are tired of the long winters. You yearn for the opportunity to spend several months of the year in a tropical location. By choosing one location and putting your focus there, you can grow your wedding business by  networking and marketing with the wedding venues popular within your chosen area.

Statistics show that the top US wedding location for destination weddings include:

  • Florida – 18%
  • California – 13%
  • Nevada – 9%
  • North Carolina – 5%
  • South Carolina 4%

Statistics show that the top International locations for destination weddings include:

  • Caribbean – 39%
  • Mexico – 24%
  • Hawaii – 20%
  • Central/South America – 7%
  • Europe – 6%

Out of all those locations, where would you like to be?

Maybe you’ve always desired to go back to your roots. You would love to have a second home in the Tuscany hillside of Italy. Why not promote yourself back here in the states as the premier American wedding photographer for people wanting a destination wedding in Italy? They could rely on you for much more than great photography (although that’s what they’ll get). They can ask questions about marriage licenses, get tips on where to stay, ideas for intimate venues that they would never hear of – and have the advantage of working with someone who understands the language and lives and works out of the US too.

I use this as an example, but it can work in any way. If you live in Spain, why not become the premier Spanish destination wedding photographer who knows and understands the best locations in southern United States?

There is something comfortable about “using someone from home”. You have a distinct advantage because you can relate to your customers on a different level.

And it gives you a marketing advantage over all other photographers who are either residents of the location you are traveling to, or simply state “available for destinations” on their websites.

9 Things You Should Be Doing To Improve As A Stock Photographer

From just starting out to making a full time income, stock photography is one field that many people talk about (and have an opinion about). Is there still a chance of making a full time income at it? How do you get started in this field? And more importantly, what do you need to know to make it BIG? Here are 9 resources you to help you along the way, no matter where you are in your current quest to find success as a stock photographer.

How To Get Your Test Photo Submission Accepted

When you first decide to start building a portfolio on a stock site, you’ll have to start out by creating an initial test submission. And unfortunately, that’s where most photographers go wrong. Here’s a basic guide that will help you understand exactly what they are looking for – and how to improve the appearance of your images as well.

How To Get Your Test Photo Submission Accepted

The Importance Of Keywording Your Images

As you are adding your images to online stock sites, its easy to get caught up in the tediousness of it all. If you’re uploading 50 images that are all about the same, why not do a copy/paste to keyword them all the same? Sounds great in theory, but you may overlook obvious mistakes, forget important key phrases that pertain to individual images, or worse, get your photos eliminated all together. Here’s a great walk through on the importance of keywording.

Start Out Small, Make Money and Grow

Most photographers don’t start out with the thought “I’m going to be a full time stock photographer”. Instead, they work it into their business as they shoot other things. A wedding photographer may have a chance to photograph other things during the week. And so it begins. However you get there, once you begin uploading images, its nice to make money at it too. Here’s a great tutorial on how to get started and what you can expect along the way.

Think Beyond The Photograph

It’s easy to head out into the world and start shooting with the concept of stock in mind. But in many cases its not that simple. What do you do if you capture a great image of a person? Can you use it as a stock image? Here’s a great tutorial on photographing people – and the legalities behind it.

9 Things You Should Be Doing To Improve As A Stock Photographer

Some Things Sell Better Than Others

No matter how you shoot it and what you choose to put online, some things will sell better than others. Becoming a microstock photographer doesn’t mean throwing a bunch of images online and seeing what sticks. It means reevaluating all the time. Here’s a great guide to help you through the evaluation process and determine what is selling – and what you should redo.

Work With Your Models

In many cases you’ll have a great idea for an image … and need people to put your idea into action. Rather than relying on family and friends, hire a pro. Working with models can get you exactly what you are looking for. Here’s a quick tutorial on what it takes to work effectively with a model.

Get Back To Nature, And Sell It Too

Ahhh, the photographer’s dream life. Traveling anywhere in the world, shooting it amazing places, and getting paid for it to. That’s how many people view the enviable career of nature photography. Yet there’s more to it than meets the eye. Here are some great tips on building up your stock business using nature images.

Get To Know The Business

Selling stock is a business first and foremost. If you think of it like a business, you can turn it into a business … a very successful one. Yet there is so many misconceptions about microstock and how it works. One site you should get to know is Microstock Diaries – and here is a great article that talks about microstock in the mainstream.

Learn From The Best … Microstock Millionaire Yuri Arcurs

What does it take to be a full time successful microstock photographer? No one knows better than Yuri Arcurs. This video will give you a quick glimpse into what it takes to be successful at this amazing business.

15 Things You Should Know About Becoming A Fine Art Photographer

1. Never listen to the critiques. With billions of people on this earth, there will always be people that completely get what you do … and people that absolutely hate everything about you. Unfortunately in many cases, the “haters” are louder than the “lovers”. I love getting “hate” emails because it means I’ve touched a nerve. (Not that I don’t like the “love” emails too! ;) ) Never be afraid to let your true personality shine. You don’t have to make the world fall in love with you; only a select few that can keep you in business. The more edgy you are, the more “love” you will find.

15 Things You Should Know About Becoming A Fine Art Photographer2. Always study technique. The most important thing you can do for you career is study what you do. Learn the basics so you could do it in your sleep. You should be able to see and know you have a great image long before you check the file. Once the basics are down, refine everything you do from this point forward. Take a Photoshop class. A Lightroom class. A class on posing. A class from a master photographer. A class from a painter of light. And so on. Even if you don’t know how it applies to you yet, always be willing to learn. You never know how something will profoundly change the way you look at things. And have a huge impact on your business.

3. Forget about things and focus in on feelings. Have you ever stood back at an art festival, a gallery or a museum, and watched people take in the artwork? They don’t say things like ‘great barn”, “love the green” or “nice tiger”. Instead, they get caught up in what the artwork “says” to them. They’ll ponder awhile before saying “the color is so intense, I knew immediately what the artist was trying to convey”. Or they’ll say “I feel like I’m right there in the field with the artist, looking back in time at what this structure, this barn has meant to people over the past 100 years”. Don’t photograph something just because its there. Really capture its essence and put all of your emotion – your feelings – into it before you fire the shutter.

4.Forge your own path.

“If the path before you is clear, you’re probably on someone else’s.” ~Joseph Campbell

While you may think that the people at the top had an easy ride, I can almost guarantee you they didn’t. They followed people, they learned from people, they made mistakes, they failed. The more you do each of these things, the more success you will find. Its only when you give up that you lose it all. Start by mimicking those you love. Use those ideas to come up with new things. And slowly develop into who you are meant to be.

5. Quit undervaluing yourself. As artists, we believe too much in the “starving artist” concept. Did you know the most expensive photograph sold at auction so far has fetched $4.3 million? Yep, million. For a photograph. People love art. They pay for art. And if you view yourself as an artist, you’ll quickly put yourself in an entirely different dimension than just another photographer.

6. Limit your work. What makes a photograph more valuable is how many of them are available. If you want to see your work increase in price, limit the amount you print. Do something special with each image. Make them stand out. Make them WOW! Then proudly display a limited edition with every image and tell them exactly how many there will be. People love things they can’t have or are very rare.

7. Think of your work as a finished product. Are you mounting each image on the finest of materials? Are you framing to compliment your work? Do you carefully sign each piece? Do you provide an easel if you want it to sit in the corner of the room? Are you making each piece an experience to look at from all vantage points of the room? Think of the experience, and work backwards from there. You can learn from an interior decorator as well.

8. Watch where you sell. Are you trying to sell your images from a souvenir shop? Or is it a true art gallery that makes you feel slightly different upon entering? You can’t sell a $1 million image from the back of a Hyundai. You have to have the Jaguar experience – its what they expect before investing their money.

9. Visit every gallery you can. While your goal should never be to copy what is currently being done, by seeing what others are doing, you’ll learn along the way. You’ll come up with ideas for your own work – both what you want and don’t want to do – and can use those ideas and you continue to refine what you do. Here’s a great list of galleries to get you started.

10. Fine art is an online/off line world. People like to see your work. So you’ll have to get your work into galleries and art shows. But once people know who you are, they are perfectly comfortable shopping your website. They want to check out where your upcoming shows are. They want to take a look at your newest pieces. And to do so, you must have a professional website that provides all of this and more. Fine art is not an offline venture anymore. To be successful at it, you have to be as comfortable heading into a gallery to network with the owner as you do networking online with sites like Facebook and Etsy.

11. Visit an art fair – submit to an art fair. The only way to find out how well received your work is will be to get it in front of people. Start with one of the many art fairs around the world. Visit some to get an idea of what to expect. Then choose a handful to join and work. Make sure you have enough work to give a good representation of what you do – and that you have a website and business portfolio strong enough to continue the networking process for months to come.

12. Reverse your learning curve and find out more about art collectors. While its important to become the best photographer you can, turn it around once in awhile and discover what a collector truly looks for in an art piece. Learn how a photograph is appraised, what makes it valuable, and how to handle a piece as it moves from gallery to collector. You may even sit down with a gallery owner and talk about what makes a photograph valuable. Incorporate all you learn into your own business model and you’ll quickly see your value rise.

13. Don’t be afraid to start at the bottom. Everyone – every photographer – started at the bottom. They all took an image or two that wasn’t at top quality. They all cringe at some of their first works. And they all to their very first shows in order to learn and get their feet wet in the fine art business. Its okay to start with something small. Small things lead to big things over time.

14. Use crowdfunding to fund your next project. If you have an idea, there are many followers willing to help you fund it. You just have to ask.

15. Change your plans. The first rule of success is to have a plan. The second rule is to change it along the way. Don’t focus on too many things upfront; instead spend time putting one thing into play. Depending on how well that works, adjust and approach your marketing from a different angle. “No” should never be an option. You should only use that to refine your approach before you try it again.

How To Make Money As A Real Estate Photographer

What’s the one industry that relies on images now more than ever?

Real estate.

People have changed the way they buy real estate. When they are ready to buy, they don’t drive around or spend days going through house after house. Instead, they use technology to their advantage. They zone in on neighborhoods. They look through listings on real estate sites. They watch and look through virtual tours. They find what they think they like online before going with their realtor and physically viewing the place.

In some cases the photography can sell the property. People can be sold before they step one foot into the home, simply by what the photographer showcases in his work.

Yes, you’ll see “amateur” agents who try and do it themselves with their iPhones. But these are the bottom feeders – the realtors that are at the bottom of the industry just getting by.

The true professional knows today’s real estate market is controlled by the photography.

And the bigger the house, the more they are willing to pay for quality work.

Which is where you come in. Can you make money as a real estate photographer? Definitely. Houses go on and off the market every day. People need real estate photography for all sorts of things:

  • A new homebuilder needs promotional images.
  • A custom builder needs to showcase his style.
  • A realtor needs to showcase her current listings – residential and commercial.
  • Interior designers need to showcase the work they do in a room.
  • Home vendors need professional images for their marketing – think custom stair builders, fireplace mantels, mural painters, custom cabinetry, and more

With so much potential, where do you start?

Design your packages

There are many ways to go about creating your pricing structure. Start by surfing. See what other real estate photographers are doing. Think about what will benefit an agent most. Agents are busy people … if they are good at what they do. They understand the importance of paying someone to do it the right way the first time. They will pay for a lot more than just a few images. They’ll pay for:

  • Virtual tours
  • Panoramic images
  • Website creation
  • Individual domains per property
  • Twilight shoots
  • Neighborhood images
  • Video – slideshows
  • Craigslist postings
  • Links to other real estate sites online
  • Custom flyers and DVDs – marketing pieces

Make it easy for your customers to do business with you. And as always, don’t overwhelm. Make it easy for them to choose the right package – the one that ultimately will make your business profitable.

Teach realtors about photography

Just like every other photography niche out there today, many people think their iPhone images are good enough. You have to teach realtors why photography matters and how they can increase their listings and bump up their profits just by spending a little more on their images. You can teach them on your website, your blog, your social sites, by hosting seminars and training sessions, and even though quick infographics that can go viral online. Check out this great one I found:

Professional Photos Net More For Your Home

Source
by Ruxta Realty

Education

Education always makes my lists of “must have”, and this industry is no exception. Head over to sites life Photography For Real Estate or Real Estate Photographers of America and International, and learn all you can. They provide resources, tips and links to everything real estate – improve a little every day and you’ll quickly learn how to make it big within this industry.

Go to where the agents are

Agents are everywhere – its one field in which you can find them just about anywhere. Head to a networking meeting at your local chamber and you can quickly come away with half dozen realtor cards. Stop by and visit broker offices. Join and/or visit real estate associations – Association of Realtors, National Association of Real Estate Brokers, or simply Google your local community – you’ll find them in most cities and counties. Network with them regularly and start up your own mailing list to bring people on board with your packages.

15 Things You Should Be Doing To Improve As A Travel Photographer

So you just got back from your trip and you have hundreds of images sitting on your computer. You know some of them are good. You know some of them are great. And with a little tweaking, they could be phenomenal.

A lot of photographers dream of having their travel images purchases. Wouldn’t it be great to make money while traveling the world? Yet just like any other niche in the photographic industry, becoming a paid, recognized travel photographer takes work. If this is the direction you want to head this year, take a look at these 20 items and see how many you’re doing … and how many you have to schedule in to your to-do list.

1. Organize your photos

Too often our “extra” images get lumped into the bottom of our work stack. Travel images can end up sitting on cards, or in a catch-all file on your computer labeled something non-descript, such as “travel photos”. Then when you find an opportunity, you can’t locate the image you had in mind. Start the organization process now. Start by filing them according to date and location.

2013 Photographers Market

You may also separate the great from the good … from the not so good. The easier access you have to your great work, the more potential you have to work with.

2. Define what travel means to you

The biggest mistake travel photographers make is thinking of themselves as travel photographers. It’s hard to find opportunity as a travel photographer; but it its easier finding someone who needs images from Brazil. What is it about travel that captures your heart? What do you want to do, where do you want to go, and what do you want to sell? Only after you’ve defined your clear picture can you move forward.

3. Invest in 2013 Photographer’s Market

In order to sell things, you have to know and understand who’s buying. Even if you are still unsure, this resource could open up your eyes to hundreds of possibilities. This is a resource you’ll want to keep on your desk and open it up every day to find a source to promote to. [Read more...]

20 Things You Should Be Doing Now To Improve As A Wedding Photographer

1. Redo your samples. If you have a studio, frame some new images for your walls. If you meet with prospects regularly, create some new sample albums to showcase your best work. Remember to create samples based on what you want people to buy. We sold multi-album sets because we presented our prospects with multi-album samples. You will get what you show. So make it good!

2. Find a new album company that improves the look of your final product. You can check out my list of resources, or do a search for professional wedding albums. There are many beautiful options that consumers can’t purchase on your own – which gives them more reason to book you.

3. Get out of the office and meet people. Don’t just hit a Chamber meeting or a local networking group; work to find a wedding group. With places like ISES and ABC in many cities, you should easily be able to find a place where you can talk about weddings with peer vendors.

20 Things You Should Be Doing Now To Improve As A Wedding Photographer

4. Sign up for a bridal expo. From large, nationally organized events, to small expos put on by a few vendors, there is always an opportunity to set up a bridal fair and reach out to potential customers. Check out things like the Great Bridal Expo, or Google your area to find something near you.

5. Attend a photography conference. One of the biggest tradeshows for photographers is coming up in March in Las Vegas. WPPI has been helping thousands of photographers for years. From print competitions, to classes with the best photographers in the world, to a tradeshow that’s miles long and showcases hundreds of vendors, you’ll come away inspired. [Read more...]

7 Myths About Becoming An Artist Late In Life

At some point in your life, you’ll look at the life you’ve created and want something more. It may be as you graduate from college and decide your degree isn’t the path you want to take. It may be in your 30’s as you start your family and want to stay home with the kids. It may be in your 60’s as you retire and find yourself with more time on your hands. In any case, starting over can be a good thing when it comes to being creative and finding your inner artist.

Yet for many, the idea of finding your inner artist at a late age can be intimidating. Here are a few myths and what you can do to move beyond them.

Myth #1 You Have To Have Formal Training To Be A Great Photographer

I recently read a book Between The Lines by author Jodi Picoult and her middle school aged daughter Samantha Van Leer. In her note at the beginning of the book, she gives stories about how her daughter at a young age became a storyteller, and even began to write stories down as early as first grade. She states:

You are either born a storyteller or not, and my daughter – at age seven – seemed to have an intrinsic sense of how to craft literary tension.

Yes, artists can refine, they can learn, they can improve, and they can become better at what they do. But somewhere deep down inside, becoming an artist is inside our souls. Whether we choose to let it out at fifteen or sixty-five doesn’t change our potential. It merely changes the way we approach it and what we choose to do with it.

Myth #2 You Have To Quit Your Job To Be A Real Artist

Many, many people young and old start out on a part time basis. In some cases it’s for fun. In some cases it turns into a part time income. And in some cases, it eventually turns into something more. The purpose of becoming an artist is to fulfill something inside you that wants to let your creativity out. That can take any form you desire. [Read more...]