The Pro Photo Business Forum

Downtime? Shoot something!
by Bryan Lindsey
BCL Photography – Houston Wedding Photographer

On our desk is a list of ten principles that we adhere to in the operation of our business. Number 8 is “Downtime? Shoot something!” When starting a business and building a portfolio, it means not taking your foot off the gas. There are two benefits to this.

First, by keeping our blog current we show potential clients that we are active photographers. Many modern clients want to see blogs and, more specifically, CURRENT blogs. By continually showing fresh images, potential clients see that we are moving forward (well, hopefully forward…) and passionate about our work. Think about it – if we come across, say, two car dealerships selling the exact same cars at the exact same prices. One dealership is devoid of customers, with salespeople hanging out at the entrance. The second dealership is buzzing with chatter and full of people moving here and there. Whose front door are we more likely to walk through?

Second, we build your skills and body of work. Our potential clients don’t know which shoots we were paid for and which were TFC. And if our quality is good enough, they’ll assume we are booking. It’s all part of “paying our dues” to build a portfolio that will attract people to our business and make them want us to take their picture (and pay us for it!).

So, do you have some downtime? Instead of flipping on the TV, consider finding a halfway attractive person and GO SHOOT!

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Lets face it – wedding photography is a lot like your favorite meal, you love every bite and usually end up stuffing yourself. Before you know it that meal is on the weekly menu. It’s not long before you find that you don’t enjoy it as much as you used to and pretty soon your favorite meal is in the grip of the culinary doldrums. If you’re not careful, the same can be true of your wedding photography.

The problem? Simple, the more events you shoot the more you get into a groove, a comfort zone so to speak. You know what you’re going to shoot and how you’re going to shoot it before you ever arrive. You know the type of light you like and where to look for it. You know how you like your cake framed, the rings placed and what lenses you’re going to use. The brutal truth is you’ve gotten comfortable and for crying out loud why would you ever leave your comfort zone. After all it’s comfortable, it’s safe, it’s what your clients have seen and expect out of you so go ahead and give it to them. But honestly, how many times can you eat spaghetti in one week and still look forward to dinner? Okay, you really like spaghetti – I get that – but do you really want to eat it every day of the week?

Recently I was looking at a series of post on my blog and I noticed that I was really digging the spaghetti, and then I realized. “Hey, all I’m dishing out is spaghetti here.” Suddenly the spaghetti wasn’t sounding so good; in fact it was starting to look pretty boring. The longer I looked at my photos I began to see that I was getting into a rut; that something was missing and it seemed as though I was whirling my spaghetti on the end of my fork. Clearly it was time for a change. As I continued looking at the photographs I remembered that when I was taking them I wasn’t excited or motivated, hence the whirling on the end of my fork. Subconsciously I was thinking, “Didn’t I just have spaghetti last night? Yawn!!”

It’s times like this that I go on the hunt for inspiration. So I search the blogs of the photographers I admire. I study their work and seek to find ways in which to adjust my view of the world in front of my lens. Recently I came across a post that included a pose of the groom and groomsmen in the all too typical “flying V” stance. A spaghetti pose to be sure, but this spaghetti was different, this spaghetti had some Italian sausage thrown in it. Now I’m sure that most of you reading this blog have been to or heard of Strobist.com. If not you need to check it out. Anyways, even though the setup of the shot was all too generic, the lighting was exceptional. This photographer had learned to put something new in his spaghetti and it tasted good, really good…

So the point that I’m trying to make is this, you don’t always have to eat spaghetti, but if you do have to eat spaghetti throw in a little sausage instead of hamburger once in a while. You will find that you can put a new twist on an old favorite and your favorite meal will taste that much better.

Posted by Houston Wedding Photographer: Scott Villalobos

Come one and all to the 2009 PPGH Christmas Black, White, and Red Gala is this weekend!

Come and celebrate with friends at the fabulous Hotel Derek, this Sunday!

Call the Hotel Derek for special room rates. 713-961-3000

RSVP on the PPGH Fan Page:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?ei…903640&index=1

Visit the PPGH Website to purchase your ticket:
http://www.ppgh.org

It’s going to be a great time!

Things That Will Ruin a Great Photo
Bryan Lindsey
BCL Photography – Houston Wedding Photographer

You see the image in your head. You see it through the viewfinder. Time is of the essence. You actuate the shutter. Got it! Afterwards you get the image in post-processing and…crap! No, you didn’t get it. Below are three things to look out for as potential image-crashers. Simple reminders for the vets, pointers for the newbies.

Facial expression: Mainly for posed shots, smiles can look unnatural and your subject(s) can get tired. I have found the best way to keep people relaxed is to talk to them. Crack jokes. Reassure them that they look great. Positive positive positive. Do whatever you can to help them to act/interact naturally. Sometimes this can be very difficult if the subject is nervous or has something else on their mind. I like to use the old “close your eyes and imagine *pleasant experience*.” For unnatural-looking smiles, it often helps to have them look at a spot off-camera or, in the case of two people, at each other.

Over or under exposure: You’re on-location and you get done rattling off a set of 100 shots using 10 different poses, later to find that the images are all under-exposed or over-exposed. The easiest way to avoid this is to always chimp after the first shot (chimp = look at the image on the LCD and say “Ooooh! Ooooh!”). Once you’re confident of your camera settings, continue at that spot. I know this seems simple, but I personally tend to get in a groove and sometimes forget to chimp; this negates the LCD screen as one of the biggest advantages of digital photography.

Blur: Blur usually becomes a factor when you’re trying to catch an action shot or trying to shoot as wide open as possible. Knowledge of appropriate aperture/shutter/ISO/flash combinations is key. Blur can be tricky though, because it doesn’t always show up on the LCD screen – it is sometimes an unpleasant surprise when you get the image on the computer. Of course, the goal is always to get a well-exposed image, but my philosophy is that a slightly-dark-image is better than a slightly-blurry image. So I try to err on the side of a faster shutter speed.

No real revelations here, just some common sense to bear in mind and help keep our fingers off of the “delete” button in post-processing.

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The Business of Marketing your Business

Written By: Houston Wedding Photographer Scott Villalobos

It’s a short yet not so simple statement, infact it’s probably the most complicated aspect of any business and it is especially true of photography. Fact of the matter is it’s probably the first thing that came to mind after I decided to become a professional photographer. How in the world would I make any money with my photography and who would buy it? There is no shortage of information on this topic, to be sure, but with good reason.  If you’ve found yourself struggling in the current economic climate or worse are just starting out in the current economic climate you will benefit by reading the rest of this article.

Identifying the problem – this is easy. You either need to bring in clientele or you need to bring in MORE clientele. Simple right? Not so much. You need to make sales to those clients. Before I go any further I need to give credit where credit is due, many of the ideas I’m about to expound upon are merely the arthritic echoes of those who have come before me.

There is an old proverb which holds true for every aspect of life, and for the sake of this article I’m going to apply it to the business of wedding photography. “There is salvation in the multitude of counselors.“ – Proverbs 11:14. That being said, in my meanderings across the information super highway I have encountered some profoundly interesting personages with much to say on the subject of marketing and success. Rick Brewer is one and his website, getmorebrides.com, is dedicated to the marketing aspects of wedding photography. Another would be Keith Lee of American Retail Supply, Denis Reggie of, well, Denis Reggie, and finally Mark Victor Hansen – coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Soul.

Now that I’ve mentioned the above I can say the following with unobstructed clarity – FOCUS PEOPLE! Over the top, maybe, but keep reading you’ll get the point in a minute. Focus is essential to becoming successful. I like this statement because we are, after all, photographers and we understand how important focus is to our images. However we’re not talking about taking pictures here, we’re talking about bringing business through our doors. So lets focus our imaginary cameras on the inevitable fact that you must become your biggest cheerleader, the star quarterback, the great American hero within.

If you were asked what business you’re in how would you answer? Your first response might be something wild like; oh I don’t know – wedding photography… And this is where you’d be wrong. The correct answer if you want your business to be successful would be the business of “marketing” your photography business”. This is why you must be you’re your biggest cheerleader. Who else cares as much about your business as you do? Who else is going to put in the blood sweat and tears that you do? Who else besides you is willing to sink all that cold hard cash into your baby while its still in diapers? Nada…

So this is where focus really comes into play. All the talent in the world doesn’t mean squat if you can’t make a sale, and you can’t make a sale unless you can attract customers. It’s a lot like fishing; you won’t ever catch fish in a lake where there are no fish. So move to a lake that not only has fish, but also the type of fish you want to attract.

One way to attract the right clientele is by getting people to advertise for you. I recently shot a wedding at an amazing venue, a venue that attracts the type of clientele that I wish to work for. I was invited to send them an album from the shoot and they in turn would show that album to their potential clients. Two great things are happening here. 1.) I’m getting great referrals from an amazing venue to people that can afford me. And 2.) I’m not competing with the 509 other wedding photographers that show up in the Google search for Houston Wedding Photographers. These are qualified leads that are interested not just in wedding photography, but in me personally.

Here’s a well-kept secret that you should already know but that bears saying for those of you who are unaware of it. If you’re not on page one in the web search engine you might as well not exist. Potential customers rarely go past page one when searching for a product or service.  (This is a whole other topic so let’s not go there for now.)

Save yourself allot of frustration and money and make sure that you market to a targeted, qualified audience. Set clearly defined, realistic, short and long term goals for yourself and have them written down somewhere you will see them every day. Think about those goals every day and figure out how to achieve them progressively. You might even write them down on the back of a business card and put them in your wallet to look at during the day. Meet with and befriend people who can help you achieve your goals, weather they be with venues or organizations that cater to the clientele you wish to attract.

Remember Newton’s third law of physics. “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” This law applies to the business of marketing your business. If you’re not exerting force or action there can be no reaction. Force yourself into action. However resistant you are to the idea of marketing, learn to embrace it and it will embrace you. But remember marketing is a process not an event, it doesn’t happen overnight, it may be months before you see results. Think of it as planting seeds, sooner or later something’s bound to grow. Plan now to succeed in the future.

Avoid negative people and negative thinking at all cost. There are no positive side effects to negativity. Instead direct that thinking into creativity. Seek out positive, creative, successful people and allow your thinking to imitate there’s. Be like Thomas Edison when a young reporter who boldly asked if he felt like a failure interviewed him and if he thought he should just give up. Perplexed, Edison replied, “Young man, why would I feel like a failure? And why would I ever give up? I now know definitively over 9,000 ways that an electric light bulb will not work. Success is almost in my grasp.” And shortly after that Edison invented the light bulb. He did not allow negative people to prevent him from attaining his goal and neither should we.

You are 100% responsible for your results. Evaluate yourself from a third person standpoint. Imagine that you’re evaluating a paid employee. Would you be happy with your results? Do you show up for work on time? Do you go the extra mile and are you creative and innovative? Are you bringing in sales or are you unknowingly pushing them away. Take a good hard look in the mirror and be honest with yourself. If you were working for someone else would your job be in jeopardy?

Brides are a lot like Gazelle. If you’ve ever watched animal planet you’ve seen Cheetah stalking Gazelle. Oh occasionally you will see a Gazelle wondering about the tall grass paying no attention to the Cheetah hiding in the tall grass only a few feet away, that never works out well for the Gazelle, but for the most part Gazelle are somewhat paranoid because they know that there are Cheetah near by and they know that Cheetah eat Gazelle. So they tip toe around looking for grass to eat, but they never take their eyes off the tall grass and they are always ready to bolt at the first sign of danger.

Brides are much the same, they are ready to bolt at the first sign of danger, but what are the signs of danger to a bride? There are many, but one of the biggest is when a photographer won’t let them speak. It may be totally unintentional, the photographer may just be really excited to be selling to a bride and telling her all about his new gear or his – dare I say it – photojournalistic approach.  And really there’s nothing wrong with that, nothing that is unless the bride wants to say something and you don’t give her the chance. This is like spots moving among the tall grass to the potential bride. She could care less about your dual digic IV processor or the difference between L series and consumer grade glass. All she’s hearing is that you don’t care about what she has to say. You may not even notice it, but her eye’s have glassed over, she’s checking her watch and is wondering about the studio she passed on the way to see you.

Learn when to speak and when to keep silent and listen. Really pay attention to what your bride is saying and respond positively. Learn what works and what doesn’t. Learn to put out the right message, and learn how to shorten the process by understanding the process in which brides buy. If at all possible never ever say no to a bride. Saying no to a bride is like saying no to opportunity. You never know what good things might happen by saying yes.  Don’t believe me, go out and rent “Yesman” staring Jim Carrey. Although the movie may be an over dramatized example the principle still applies.

Ultimately you want to dig your well before the drought comes, plant your seeds before the harvest has arrived. By doing the marketing you will ensure your continued success. And when the inevitable disappointments come look at them like Thomas Edison. Not as failures but as learning experiences of how not to market your business. In the end you will become what you think about becoming if, and only if, you put those thoughts into actions.