Why Choose Professional Photography?
What is Professional Photography?
“Professional Photography” is the #1 home based business right now. (2011) You shouldn’t be surprised. We are sure you know at least one person who is a hobbyist photographer part time and you may even know a few that have a website running or at least a Facebook page. Unfortunately, there is nothing stopping the average Jane from investing in a decent camera and labeling herself a “Professional Photographer”. Anyone can purchase a predesigned website, grab a camera, print a few business cards and start promoting themselves as a “Professional.” So YOU, must be very discerning in your search for the right photographer for your family. We ask that you consider all of the following when choosing between an amateur photographer and a true professional photographer.
1- Photographic Skill
Photography is an art. Just as in any other art medium, one must know how to use the tools correctly to control the outcome of their art piece. One must know how to use their camera correctly to produce those custom images. If your photographer is using all the “auto” settings on their camera, then that means that the camera is making all the artistic decisions. Most hobbyist are using the “auto” settings. If all you do is zoom in and out and press a button, then that is not custom photography. A true professional will prefer complete control over all camera settings. How do you know if they are skilled? Look at their portfolio and ask yourself these questions:
Are the images consistently in focus or do some images have a fuzzy subject?
Are the images composed well, with a distinct center of interest or is the subjects face in the exact center of every picture?
Are the images flat? Meaning they don’t have any variation of highlights and shadows.
Are there distracting backgrounds in the images or do the backgrounds fade away or are non-existent?
2-Artistic Vision
Again, photography is an art. And like all good artworks, good photographs will meet a few artistic criteria that will set them apart from the average pocket camera images. Think: Crayola verses Van Gogh.
That includes painting, drawing, ceramics, photography, and even the culinary arts, fashion design, and cinematography.
If your photographer says they got into the business because they “love to take pictures,” then beware. Just because they took way too many pictures of their own kids with their own camera, doesn’t mean they are any kind of professional. And owning a camera does automatically make one an artist.
How do you know if your photographer is an artist? Look at their portfolio ask yourself these questions:
Do you see a variety of posing, props, and color schemes or do all their the images use the same 2-3 poses with the same blanket or basket used over and over? A true professional can provide you with the variety of props and poses that will make your session unique and not just a carbon copy of the last one.
Do you see anything unique or are the images just plain ordinary?
Do you see anything creative or did the photographer ‘play it safe’?
3- Digital Editing Skills
The digital photography revolution is marvelous. But don’t be fooled into thinking that all it takes is a nice camera to create those award winning images. When you thumb through a fashion magazine, all the ads contain images that have been expertly edited, airbrushed, enhanced and perfected…with a computer! Nothing comes out of the camera perfect. Nothing! Our skin has blemishes, scars, and uneven color all expertly captured with that high end digital camera. In fact, about half of the work we do is with that expensive digital camera and a selection of top quality lenses. Half! The rest is the result of a few hours in front of a desktop computer and a hand full of programs designed specifically to make you and I look our best. All that software takes a tremendous amount of time to master. Vanessa, your photographer, is working on more than 12 years of experience in this one area. This means blemishes are erased, under eye circles are removed, wrinkles are reduced, colors are enhanced, skin is smoothed, and colors are almost always corrected. Does it matter? What you see in a flat 2 dimensional image is much more obvious than in the real life 3D view. Maybe you don’t mind all your little imperfections showing, but as for us, we want the star treatment, the ‘custom photography’ treatment…not the quick shoot and burn me (and all my forehead wrinkles) to disk for me to print at Walmart on the cheapest paper you can find. This includes birthmarks, newborn scaly feet, zits on high school seniors, that little under chin bulge, and erasing that green glow reflected from the grass. Yes, it’s true. And we’ll show you a few of your own before and after images so you can appreciate it all.
4- Products Offered
There are many innovative photography products on the market today. Many of them allow for complete customization. In order for your photographer to offer such products, they will likely need a tax ID number and some advanced digital editing skills. If the only thing your photographer is offering is paper prints or a disk of images, then chances are, they are still honing in their craft or are not interested in offering any type of custom products. This says something about the level of service they can or cannot provide. It’s pretty easy to set a digital camera to ‘auto’ mode, press a button, take a few dozen shots, and then up load them to a computer and burn to a disk. There is nothing ‘professional’ or ‘custom’ about that. If that is all you are getting, you shouldn’t be paying too much for it. And in our opinion, you shouldn’t want it. If they are doing little more than you can do yourself, then why are you paying them to do it? You may be wondering why it matters that they offer products you might not even want. Why? Because knowing that they CAN, means you are getting a more highly skilled photographer who is more knowledgeable about the industry and are more invested in their own education. You can get a canvas wrapped print at many discount stores now, available for you to purchase using your ‘disk of images’, but what you might not know is that the quality of materials and inks used on those consumer grade products are not long lasting and will likely result in yellowed, cracked, and faded surfaces within a few short years. Again, a true professional will have sought out professional grade products to offer you. The best, for the best.
5-Prices
Remember that old saying…”you get what you pay for”? It very strongly applies to the photography industry. A true professional must include in their pricing the costs for things such as…a business license, taxes, education, equipment (camera, lenses, computer, software, etc. to the tune of at least $20,000), marketing, website hosting, electricity, a million other things, and their TIME (usually about 15hours per client). Add in the costs of renting a studio, hiring an employee, and paying an accountant to keep up with the receivables and payables, and you have quite a lot of expenses to run a legitimate business.
Part time hobbyist will surely have lower prices. They also have less experience running a business, which is why they usually burn out within two years and why only 7% of part time photographers survive past that time frame. Lower prices are usually directly related to the customer service they can provide AND more importantly, the quality of images they will create and the products they can provide. Again, nothing is customized for you. Think hot-dog-stand verses your favorite high end restaurant. We have had more than one mom call us, tears in her voice, begging us to squeeze her 3 week old baby in for a newborn session. Why? Because the $150 disk she got from the part time photographer didn’t contain anything she thought she should have gotten from a ‘professional.’ The photography industry is very much like a Name Brand verses Dollar Store shopping experience. You can always, always, find a cheaper photographer. You will have to research to find a really great one.
Why choose Custom Professional Photography?
1- Customization. A customized photography experience can produce images that match your décor, create a mood, are used as art, and have an heirloom quality. Portrait art that is truly personalized.
2- Images. Custom photography produces images that are well lit, well composed, and expertly enhanced.
3- The Experience. A more pleasant, less rushed, experience. One to one attention during your 1-2 hours of session time with an experienced professional who has spent several years learning their craft.
4- Posing. Posing high school seniors, adults, kids, and especially newborns takes knowledge, creativity, and a basic understanding of what is flattering on the human body. Better poses = better you.
5- Products. Professional photographers will have access to quality products. And will have the ability to customize that album cover, storyboard, or birth announcement.
6- Service. When in a customer service business, like photography, a custom experience also comes with excellent customer service. Think Lexus vs. Hyundai, think Nordstrom vs. WalMart
7- Credibility. Expect a contract/model release form when working with a true professional photographer. You are hiring someone to do a professional job.
8- Dependability. A professional is dependable. You know what you are getting from the first phone call or email.
9- Reputation. When a professional photographer is doing a great job, people talk about it. Every client is important to the true professional.
10-Investment. Custom photography is an investment of your planning, your time, your future, and your money. Your family should be your most precious investment. Quality images will last a lifetime and beyond.
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Are you a Professional Photographer who wants to share this information with your clients as well? Copy and paste this direct link to your site:
http://blog.vanessagphotography.com/why-choose-pro…al-photography/
Want to get another opinion? Visit another professional photographer’s website to see what she has to say:
http://www.jillvelicer.com/blog/2011/07/23/how-to-choose-a-photographer/