things have been busy around here…mini vacation to vegas, spring break + a house full of kids and photo sessions!  all good things and i can’t complain, but it does cause me to get behind here! but things are back to normal today!

when i first started taking on clients, everything was fresh + new.  new faces, new locations, new poses, etc.

well now as time goes by, i don’t want to do the same thing over +  over.  it gets old quick.  and if you want your clients to become repeat clients, you need to switch it up!  yea being in front of the same backdrop is cool, but more than a couple times and it gets a bit repetitive!

so here are a few things i do to keep it fresh…

1) drive around.  yes, this may seem odd, but i seriously buckle up my youngest, throw in yo gabba gabba and drive around.  i look for new areas, interesting backdrops, cool colors, etc.  i would recommend going to the city or urban areas where you can find so many different areas that are unique.  finding 1 cool wall that i can put a family in front of, is success to me!

2) test it out!  when i find something new, i photograph it.  if i have kids with me, i use them.  this helps to really see if this is something that is going to work or not!  i would hate to think i have an ideal spot, but no experience using it.

3) do your research!  i do a little research on all my clients prior to the session to find out more about them and what they like and their personalities.  this saves me a bit of time come the session and i feel that i already know them a little bit already!

4) i always come with ideas for the shoot, but i really try to keep it super relaxed.  i am not into posing, but i will guide my clients into poses.  doing this makes it seem more candid and natural, which is what i always strive for!

5) try new things!  i am ALWAYS trying new things.  sometimes it works great, and sometimes its just not happening!  either way, be willing to go outside your comfort zone a bit.  you will be amazed to find things you thought would never work, turn out awesome!  and if it doesn’t, delete + move on!

when i saw this wall of mirrors, i thought i would try this…now it may not be hung on a wall, but it is new, fun and a fresh perspective!  and seeing a baby discover himself is always cute!

happy tuesday!

xo

last week, i received this message –  “how did you come to the decision to only sell digitals?” from a photographer friend.  she had stated that when she first started in photography, she sold the digital prints (cd/dvd).  after a year and soaking up all the information she could from other photographers, she decided to switch and sell prints.  and like any one of us in the business of photography know, that is where you make your money – selling the prints to your clients.  and that is what the ‘real’ professionals do.  and that is what you do when you are really, really good.  but here was her problem… ” I spent my first year selling only digitals, second pushing print and here I am starting my third. Problem – not a single booking for the year yet. Seriously. Nothing.”

yep, i have read a lot about it.  i know many photographers that only sell prints. and i definitely know…it. is. NOT. cheap for the client.   yes, i understand the concept, ‘why have all these amazing images only to hand over a disk and they may never be printed, hung on the wall, shared with family + friends, etc??’  i totally get it.  the whole process is a ton of work; the photo shoot planning and time, the session itself, ideas and locations for the session, going through each image and deciding what is usable and what isn’t, editing, editing + more editing, sneak peeks, downloading, blog posts, etc.  it is a lot of work and extremely time consuming.  and yes, kind of a bummer if your images never make it off the disk or are even seen…BUT – that is the clients choice, in my opinion!

when my oldest was born and i took her to a studio at the mall, i HATED the fact that i had to pay SOOOO much for each sheet of images.  it blew my mind that what i didn’t buy would literally be tossed in the garbage eventually.  the company had already printed it, (of course so that i would actually hold it in my hand and hate to not have it – brilliant idea!) and i would have to decide based on my budget what i could afford.  honestly, i never spent a ton of money on the prints and ALWAYS had a coupon in hand, because i knew that in 3, 6, 9 months, i would be there again.  i knew my kids would change and that those images wouldn’t hang on my walls for years, but would be changed in the next few months with updated images.  so, i didn’t go crazy but i wanted to capture that time in their life.

i honestly feel that as a photographer, you are always portfolio building.  for me, each session is a chance to improve from the last.  i get so excited every time i get some thing new or unique and that i can add to my portfolio.  i love photography and i love sharing it with others!  i am not the person who is going to sit down with you, go through the prints, make you uncomfortable, pressure you into things, upsell you stuff you don’t need, but benefits my wallet.  i can’t do it.  i am not a salesperson at all, nor do i want to ever put my clients in that situation.  i am the complete opposite.  i am a people pleaser, so even if i made the switch, i would feel so bad about the sales part i would completely lower my price which would lower my value.  plus, my client and i would both have to take time away from our families to meet to pick images, plan and order.  it would be stressful for both of us.  so i just don’t do it.

(she also asked if i educated my clients on proper printing) i would say i more guide them vs educate. this goes back to me not wanting to step on toes and be bossy or snotty, but i do direct them to the sites i use. i get no kick back, but i say ‘if you are looking for professional quality, but very reasonable prices here are my suggestions. they are super reasonable and you get the images in just a few days’.  i do know a lot of my clients use the companies i recommend, which is great! and as important as it is to get your images printed and printed from quality places, i not that long ago had no idea on the difference and to be honest, it didn’t really matter.  my eye wasn’t trained like it is now, so i had no idea what the difference was.  and i lived!  ha!

to sum up –  i just cant wrap my finger around ‘forcing’ someone to buy a print. or a certain size. or from a certain place.  heck, i am guilty of not getting my images printed and hung and shared, so why would i put someone in a position to do what i don’t even do!?  it just doesn’t make sense.  for now, i want my past, current and future clients to just have the images!  i think that is more important than someone not being able to afford the cost of prints and miss out on the memories.  i never started in photography to earn a penny.  i started because i was in love with what i could capture and that i can CONSTANTLY keep learning and improving.  i love a challenge and in photography, the challenges never stop!   i want to be able to share my passion with others in a way that ensures they are documenting life vs spending a fortune!  and since i currently have april + may booked and 6 upcoming weddings, that confirms my decision!

after the conversation i had with my friend, tricia, she switched her business back to selling digital images.  the same day she announced the change, she had 2 wedding inquiries!  congrats tricia!

happy thursday! (images are just for fun – no real relation to the topic!)

got a question, do not hesitate to ask!

for some of us, this is easier said than done.  ok, lets be real here….my camera just isn’t capable of the quality shots i want indoors – it’s a fact.  i have to bump my ISO’s way up, and once i do that…well i get lots of noise.  noise = an uncrisp image that looks grainy and is usually darker than desired.

with the weather getting colder + colder, i have 3 choices…

1) buy a new camera – saving for one!

2) limit myself to day + outdoors – not really what i want to do or ill miss a lot!

3) embrace the obstacles – YEP!

we are all drawn to different things – for me, i love the bright, super crisp + clean images!  so when i study photography, that is what i see over and over, because that is what i like!  with that said, my eye has been trained to aim for that look in my photography.  and the best way to do that is with the natural light and i end up outdoors!  bright light that is natural, minimal shadows on my subjects and a very clean look – like this….(ISO at 100 or 200)

but now i am have mother nature (cold temps + gets dark early) working against me…or do i?!?!  so, i am challenging myself to shoot indoors.  here are a few things i have learned so far.  (i am no expert, just big into learning + sharing!)

1) don’t be afraid to crank up the ISO’s.  it is ok!  give yourself permission…you’re not breaking any laws – i promise!

2) if your images are coming out too orangey?  play with the kelvins (here is a tutorial all about that!) + adjust in your editing software (there are so many fun ways to do this)

3)  shadows actually add effect and ARE natural!

4) get creative!  so what if the image is grainy…the people who look at your pictures probably won’t even see it.  (we are our on worst critics!)

5) pull light from windows, over head light, hall light, etc.

5) experiment + practice.  you will miss out on memories + potential clients if you limit yourself!

check out a few of my indoor images from a recent session – it took me a little time to come around to this, but i surprisingly really like the whole new look i can create with indoor photography!  yay – for another way to photograph!  (ISO at 800)

at first, i was gonna toss the above image since her left side has some shadows, but when my oldest saw it, she absolutely loved it!  she told me i was crazy, so i kept it and now am in love with it!  thanks for the encouragement taylor!

this was same session.  again, wasn’t crazy about the right side of the frame being darker, but how could i toss this belly shot?!

then i opened this and was so happy with it.  you can’t get this dramatic look outdoors!  these images helped me realize it is okay to do things a little different than i had originally planned for!

last night my two guys set up a game to play together…holy cow, who are these two?!?!  so i grab my camera and snap this!  noise, dark, grain and i still love it!  i even shared it on my personal page and got this comment, ‘That’s a great picture….looks like it could be straight from an advertisement encouraging family values and togetherness’ from someone who NEVER comments on my stuff!  hmmmm….okay, i can handle this!

ISO 3200  f/4  1/60 sec

hopefully this helps you step out of your comfort zone too!  and as always, don’t hesitate to ask me questions or even share your images where you have gone against your usual style!

and don’t forget to ‘like’ this post if you found it helpful!