Chautauqua Park - Boulder, Colorado - Courtney + Nick
Sometimes I see something and it makes me want to create. Recently I started working with an apparel company, which is awesome and takes me on some rad adventures. But anyway, I was driving into Boulder and I always take Baseline Road, because the view of the Flatirons is insane. Anyway on this particular day it was cold and a nature had quietly rested its soft, white flakes on the rocks and pine trees. I knew instantly that I wanted to shoot a winter couples session up there.
So I took to Instagram and in my Insta story I posted for a couple to shoot in the snow. Almost immediately Courtney responded and was so excited for this. But in true Colorado fashion, the next several days were going to be 70 degrees. So we decided that we all would be flexible and wait till the next snowfall.
So last week we saw that there was snow forecasted. Courtney messaged me and said that they were available the next morning if it snowed. So, at 3am I looked out the window and saw that snow was falling.
Boom, we knew we were going to shoot. So here is the results.
Follow me on Instagram (HERE) if you want the opportunity to shoot with me. When I travel I often post for fun shoots out and about!
5 Ways To Destroy Your Photography Business
While there are many ways that you can destroy your business, I have chosen 5 ways that may affect you negatively. These are either things that I have experienced myself, or they are things that I have seen in the industry.
5. Having No Idea What Is Happening
You like making photos. You start with a cheap camera, and then upgrade (maybe). People like the photos you take and some even say
"You have the eye..." and you have no idea what that really means, but you think you might be able to make a few bucks with this gig. So you take your camera, and you start charging money.
Your downfall might be communication or expectations. It might be camera settings or quality. OR it might be business in the long run. But you get started and you get burned out because you did not take any time to learn not only photography, but you did not take the time to learn the business.
4. Trying To Please Everyone
In the beginning we tend to take every job. We don't want to turn down any client because we think.
- Its money
- I need to shoot everything
In my first year, I attempted to shoot a newborn session. It was awful. I had no idea what I was doing, the baby cried for an hour. I realized after that, it was not my thing. I also realized that many things were not my thing. Figure out your brand, and what you want to shoot and work towards that. You do not have to specialize in; Weddings, Engagements, Families, Seniors, Cake Smashes, Birthdays, Commercials, Dogs, Births, Dog Births, and Senior Clown Weddings.
ITS TOO MUCH. Yes, you can shoot other things. But specialize in something. Your accountant is not the same person that fixes your car (unless you are married to that person).
3. Pretending
This follows along with the last part of number 4. Figure out your brand, if you are lost as a brand your customers will be lost with who you are. Yes, you will still get jobs, but over time you will become frustrated as people will ask you for things that you don't want to shoot. If you are defined as a brand you do not have to worry as much about people not knowing what you are. It is like when Coors tried to make "Rocky Mountain Sparkling Water."
2. Dolla Dolla Y'All
There are a couple ways to look at this
- You are chasing money
- You are not charging enough
- You don't care
So quickly lets look at these. If you are chasing money, you have the potential to hurt your clients. Photography is not as about us the photographer as we would like to think. Yes, we have a vision, and that is what we hope we will be hired for. But the clients want us to preserve/provide something for us, and it goes beyond an image. They want confidence, memories, content, etc... This is beyond who we are as artists. If you are chasing money and don't care, that will come off and you will start loosing business because of it.
When I first started I got $50 for shooting an engagement session. I thought I had made it. It took 2 hours and I made what usually took me 4 hours. But then I had to edit them, and it took several hours (at the time I was only using photoshop). As we all know $50 is nothing for a 2 hours session. If you want to last you need to price yourself as such. Remember you will probably have to pay approximately 30% to taxes. If you make $3000 for a wedding that is close to $1000 for just taxes. Price yourself to last.
You are just shooting for the hell of it and your don't care about any of this. Well, if this is the case I am surprised you are reading this.
1. You Focus TOO Much On Others
Teddy Roosevelt once said "Comparison is the thief of joy"
This is probably the one that will kill you faster than anything else. Comparison.
Staying aware of what is going on in the photography industry is good, but comparing where you are at in your journey, your work, and your life will only lead to more failure. Use others as inspiration. But comparing your journey to others highlights is misleading. As creatives we all have rough times, we all doubt ourselves. There will be times where clients will destroy your confidence and times where others will try to tear your down. But focuse on who you are, what you are doing and keep on keeping on.
If you are interested in advertising and marketing tips and Q&A sessions follow me on Instagram where I do AMA's (Ask me anythings) and live broadcasts about marketing and advertising. @newhopephotography
Denver Couples Session - Pumpkin Carving - Amanda + Jason.
One of my goals as a photographer is to do more unique couples sessions. About a year ago I did an in home session with some friends and we shot a food fight. It was so much fun. So I wanted to do more sessions that are fun and unique.
So I posted on my Instagram story that I wanted to shoot a pumpkin carving session for the Halloween season. Of course, now that I am blogging this, Halloween is gone and past, and minds are thinking about shoving breadcrumbs in a dead bird. But, I wanted to share this anyway.
Amanda started following me on Instagram after talking to one of my future brides. She responded to my Instagram story and we got this shindig set up. She was excited as this was the first time that her and Jason had gotten pictures done since they had gotten hitched. So I headed to their apartment in Downtown Denver and documented the fun.
As with any session I wanted to take them out and go some other fun photos. Their apartment complex had a nifty little courtyard that we were able to take some fun photos in.
Thanks you two for inviting me into your house and letting me be a part of your lives for a day!
15 Mistakes That Photographers Make - Complete with The Office Gifs
Everybody makes mistakes. It is part of being human. They say that if you are not making mistakes, than you are not growing. Which is true. I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning of my photography career. But I learned and grew from them. When I am talking about mistakes as a photographer, I am thinking more about those that are operating as a business. Not the hobby shooter.
I still make mistakes, but many times I have set up ways to check myself so that I do not.
I sourced thoughts on this from a couple of Facebook photographer groups and just like myself, the mistakes range from stupidly simple things like forgetting to remove a lens cap before trying to shoot a photo to not backing up images properly and loosing something from a shoot.
Easy Mistakes
As I mentioned above there are several mistakes that we all make, in the beginning. Sometimes we still make them as we grow, but practice and repetition can over come these.
1. Lens Cap - When I start a shoot they come off and never go back on. Especially weddings. I have my lens hood on so the likelihood of my glass getting damaged is small. But that is just how I work.
2. Not shooting RAW - in the beginning I had no idea what this meant. I shot my first few weddings in jpeg. Big mistake. Literally once you shoot RAW and figure out the benefits. You will never go back. Yes, RAW takes up a lot of space, but with how cheap back up is, it is worth it. With RAW you can control/fix so many things on an image.
3. Shooting a large aperture all the time (f 1.2/1.4/1.8) - Yes it looks cool. Sometimes. But shooting a 16 person group photo at 1.4 may not work. Shooting a landscape at 1.2... why? Many times when we start our lenses are not capable of a shallow depth of field, so when we get a 1.4 lens we get all giddy and shoot everything at 1.4 because we can. Use the aperture that is needed for the job.
4. Natural Light (or Auto, or any one specific lighting) - Starting out I think we tend to go with the flow. We shoot auto and if the pop-up flash happens then we roll with it. Once we move on, a speed-light is scary so we think natural light is the best. But, being a photographer is to understand how to control light. I use natural light for 90% of my work. But I also utilize a speed-light when needed. My signature shot at weddings is the backlit portrait. You can only accomplish this with off camera flash. (See the post here.)
5. Learning Gear - This one, I am putting this under the easy category because...it is easy in the sense that you just need to dedicate yourself and your time to learn your gear. Sometimes this feels hard, but do not learn gear on a clients time. Do not try to learn how to use a flash at a wedding. Do not take a new camera body out for the first time when you are shooting a paid session. When you get something new, or when you want to learn a new technique, ask a friend, give a free session to "experiment." Knowing what your gear can do and how to use it is invaluable.
This is my bridge mistake
6. Being Self-conscience - This one is hard, I struggled with it for a long time. being a photographer means that at times you are taking photos during intimate or life changing moments. Robert Capa is quoted as saying "If your photographs are not good enough, then you are not close enough." Getting close can be intimidating. I was scared for so long, but then once I found my voice and my style, I was not scared any longer. As a photographer we have a job to do. Sometimes we just have to get over our fear and make epic images.
Middle Of The Road Mistakes
As we grow and learn as photographers there are still mistakes that we make. I would venture to say that once we move from the "amateur" to the next step we start approaching the business side. We start taking photos, and then either are asked to take someones photo or we start charging. Then we encounter a whole new series of mistakes.
First thoughts on free sessions.
7. Free Sessions - I am not going to say don't do them. Free sessions, when done right are some of the most lucrative sessions I have done. Recently, I did a styled session (slightly different) but as a result, I have booked over $10,000 of sessions and gigs. When all you do is shoot for free, you are not only hurting yourself both present and future, but you are hurting others.
When you want to shoot free sessions for experience or to try a new technique, or a new piece of equipment, state the reason when you ask people. There is nothing wrong with saying "Hey! I want to try something new. Free____ session to the first person that responds."
But what will lead to issues is a post that just says "Free engagement/wedding/family photos." By saying this you are telling others that you do not respect your craft. They will come to expect this and even demand it.
8. Undercharging Sessions - Let me start this by saying You do you. But When you charge $50 for 2 hours for a family session. You may get people that respond, but you will not last at those rates. If you think of that in the bare minimum of hours, that may be
- 2 hours for shooting
- 2 hours for editing
- Driving time
After this you are already at ~$12/hr, that is not including the cost of your camera, supplies, and other time. If you include taxes you might be walking away with $7/hr. You can make more at McD's, and possibly get benefits. Charge what you are worth.
Build a lasting business so that you do not burn out.
9. Being unprepared - This can encompass many things. First there are simple things like, forgetting to charge batteries or not buying/bringing enough Sd/CF cards. This is just a simple mistake, go buy more and bring them.
There are other mistakes like Overall Preparing and training. When I started out I had no file management system in place. I had files everywhere. My first external hard drive is such a disaster that I hate looking at it. My computer used to have images saved all over. There were .tif and copy files on my desktop. I had multiple files and folders all containing the same images. I think a tornado has more order than my file management did.
So I buckled down. I made a system , and I learned it. I now know that my 2015 engagement sessions are in a certain external drive under 2015 engagements> Client name> raw & final folders. It may not be the best way, but it is how I organize and how it works for me.
10. Contracts - Most of the time when we start out, contracts or not something that we think about. Someone asks us to shoot photos for some and money is exchanged and there is no contract. But, no matter what the shoot is, there needs to be a contract in place. If you are just starting out there are a ton of resources to help you get started. But the best option is to check with a lawyer in your area about what you need in a contract, or visit The LawTog
11. Sustainable business - As I mentioned above, to not burn out, you need think long term. Sure when you start out, you think that charging $1000 for a wedding is a ton of money. In my mind when I began I thought
"Damn, 8 hours and $1000, I have made it."
But it is more than 8 hours. You need to include so much more. If you shoot a wedding every weekend at $1000. You will burn out faster than watching Frozen 3 times a day. After taxes and cost of doing business, your profit may even be in the negatives.
This is the bridge mistake
12. Deadlines and Expectations - When I first started, I never really told people when their images were going to be finished. I just thought to myself
"They will be done when they are done."
Clients would then message repeatedly about when the images would be finished. It would stress me out and I would get upset. Then I changed, I started telling people that their images would be done within a week. If I was a day late I would get messages. Then I read somewhere that you should surprise people. As in, tell your clients 3 weeks and deliver in two, or 6-8 weeks and deliver in 5. Make your deadlines reasonable. Don't tell them that you will get them the images in 12-18 months.
This leads to setting expectations. I believe there is no such thing as over communication. I use nearly every client touch point as a way to communicate expectations. That way there are no surprises. I have a whole blog post about this, read it HERE.
Heavy Mistakes
So I say heavy mistakes, because these take time. You learn things as you grow, but some of them are more about a bigger issue.
13. Standing Your Ground - This one is hard, because we want to make people happy. But when a session is supposed to end. It needs to end (this is a personal brand choice as well, if you want to be relaxed about session times then go for it).
Stand by your contract. This is in place to protect you, not to give your client a way around something.
Be bold. This is your business, make it work for you.
14. Photographer/Business Owner - Many of us start out because we enjoy taking photos. Then we fall into a business and learn things the hard way. When I started, I did not have all these Facebook groups to learn from, it was asking friends, and trial and error and more error. I have learned many business aspects due to mistakes. But I have also researched and read and educated myself on the business aspect of this career.
If you want to do photography professionally, take time to learn the business aspect as well as deepening your knowledge about the world of photography.
15. Focusing on others
This one is the last one and it is in bold because it may be one of the hardest mistakes. I am guilty of it, and I am sure that many of you are as well. But with social media it seems that every other photographer is rolling in cash, shooting epic weddings in epic locations, getting featured, and all around not struggling at all.
I read this blog the other day and it said "Do not compare your life to someone's highlight reel."
Social media can portray anything. People can be sitting in their underwear posting an epic image and stating how awesome it is.
So happy to be writing this next to an amazing view.
I can do anything through social media. I can be anyone I want. I can "achieve" self-actualization. But this will support me about as much as a birthday balloon supports an elephant.
When you compare yourself, you experience doubt, you experience failure that has not even happened yet, and you can let jealousy overrun your mind.
I had one photographer friend state "I do not have any competitors because my clients hire me for me".
Jealousy and self-doubt can kill your creativity. Don't worry about what other are doing, but rather look at what you can achieve.
Feel free to comment with other mistakes so that others may learn.
If you are interested in advertising and marketing tips and Q&A sessions follow me on Instagram where I do AMA's (Ask me anythings) and live broadcasts about marketing and advertising. @newhopephotography
#metoo In the Wedding Industry
This is a strange blog post to write. It falls outside of my normal subjects that I usually blog on, but I felt the need to write about this. During the past week the #metoo hashtag has taken over social media. I doubt you missed it. You may have participated, you may have been triggered, and relived painful memories. You may have gotten upset, or angry, or any number of emotions may have come alive within your soul.
Within the photographer communities that I am a part of, people discussed and debated this. They shared their stories, in closed groups. Some of these stories happened on the job, others did not. But I felt that in a way they should be shared with the public. The stories told below have happened, most asked to only have their first name, some asked to be anonymous. But, for both men and women being a photographer (especially a wedding photographer) can put you in situations that plainly suck.
If you are someone reading this that is not a photographer, but have been in a wedding, or are attending weddings, or are just a human, these things happen, they are real. I have heard these stories long before the #metoo came about. I will hear them after this post.
These situations can happen to women and men, gay, straight, bi, transgender. If you witness something speak up, let people know. If you see it, say something. There are no innocent bystanders.
You do not deserve any harassment.
Amanda
"Okay, so I thought about this question a lot before I feel asleep, and in between the tossing and turning I did all night, and in the hours following waking up. The problem is that I have too many stories. And most of them I barely remember because it “wasn’t a big deal.” And maybe that’s flawed. Because it is a big deal, but most of us just take it, because what else are we to do? Especially if no laws are broken? I will give you just a few stories out of the many. People reading this may brush it off, think it’s not big deal, feel I’m being an overly sensitive girl, and just believe I need to get over it because it’s what we should expect being in the wedding industry. I tell myself that all the time. But after thinking about this for awhile now, I realize it’s not okay. Just because it happens does not mean it’s okay and should be deemed as normal.
I have been groped many times while walking through a drunken dancing crowd at a reception, holding my camera high above my head and firing off shots to get some fun dancing photos for the couple. Some may ask, “Well how do you know you were actually groped? You were walking through a crowd of people”. Oh, we know. We know the difference between being bumped and accidentally having your hands graze over us… typically those people will acknowledge it and say they’re sorry more than once. When you are groped, you feel the hand on your butt, your thigh, and sometimes even your breast. And they are pretty good at what they do. You both know what just happened, but you can’t really call it out because they do it subtly and they know it.
The sexual comments, suggestive words , and innuendos are endless. Honestly most of the time I just ignore them because there’s not much else you can do. You want the day to stay as smooth as possible for the couple, and to call someone out and risk the person you’re calling out getting pissed off and not cooperating for anything further is something I never want to deal with. In my personal experiences, calling someone out who is isn’t scared to say nasty things to you never ends well. I have told numerous guys (typically groomsmen), at numerous weddings that I am married, and they still don’t back off, or they’ll say something along the lines of “well he’s not here right now is he?”. It get’s old real fast. I have heard so many comments about my ass from groomsmen who think I don’t hear them. But their whispering comments are usually not so quiet.
One of my last weddings I was standing on the outside of a circle of people dancing at a reception. I was getting some shots, and suddenly I felt someone pressed against me. A male guest was literally dancing all up on my side. Grinding and rubbing on me with his hands high in the air. I didn’t know what to do. Cause a scene? Lash out at him? Draw attention? So I completely ignored it. I continued taking photos as if nothing was happening which I think made him feel stupid. He stopped after about 6 or so seconds, said he was sorry, then went into the crowd dancing.
Earlier this year there was a man probably in his 50’s who kept trying to flirt with me before, during, and after the ceremony, WHILE I was working and taking photos. I was ignoring him, trying to give him a hint. Then randomly during the reception, he walked up to me and covered my face with his whole hand. In front of everyone. Like put his open hand on my face, covering my eyes, nose, and mouth. He then took it off and said “haha I love you!” and walked away. What the hell. No one said anything. No one did anything. He walked over and sat with his wife and his wife was giving me the evil eye the rest of the night. The two specific events I just wrote out may not seem like a big deal. I downplay them to no end, constantly comparing them to other assaults I’ve been subjected to in my life - much more violating, much worse than what I just described. But the comparison is not okay. It downplays events that just aren’t right.
So, how did these events make me feel? My first initial response would have been just to say it made me feel annoyed. And that would be it. But I took the time to really think about these things. To let myself acknowledge how it truly made me feel, without comparing to other life events. And the feelings it brought up are annoyance, anger, fear, violation, apprehension, confusion, and loneliness. And honestly, I am scared walking to my car after every wedding. It’s late, it’s dark, there are drunk guests, and if I am not groped, or assaulted in some way minor or not, I have been eyeballed by at LEAST one man all night, and have had men come on to me. And they’re usually intoxicated. And it’s not just men. There was one woman this last year who went too far with her flirting as well, and I got nervous and had to run out of the room she was in with me. It was just she and I, and she got too handsy. I am always on edge and looking around as I walk to my car. And I lock the doors as soon as I get in. No one should have to feel that way. No one ever said anything to these guys when a room full of people saw these things. Nobody ever talks the groomsmen down when they make sexual comments and gestures to me in front of the whole wedding party - male and female… no one says anything. So I don’t either. And it’s not okay. It is NOT okay.
Leanna
So it was a guest! We were in the middle of family formals, and this gentleman (a bridesmaid's dad) was winking at myself and my second shooter. When his family was finished, I dismissed them, and he stood there and said: "I want a photo with the two of you!" Of course, I said "No we are on a strict schedule!" and he got mad and huffed away. Later into the reception, he was dancing with his wife and maintaining really long eye contact with me. Every time I would glance over at him, he was already starring at me. When I looked at him, he would start aggressively groping his wife. I felt SO uncomfortable and embarrassed. I just tried to avoid him. Then later in the night, my second shooter and I were heading to the ladies room, and he stopped us and said "I just want to let you guys know you are both absolutely beautiful. You know that right?" Finally, I spoke up and told him he was being inappropriate and told him not to approach us again. He never did but my second shooter did tell me how uncomfortable she was with him the whole day. It made it difficult to shoot other candids at the reception because I could feel that he was watching me!
Sarah
It was a wedding guest and a member of the wedding party. I'm assuming his age at the time was in his mid to late 20s. I didn't realize he was flirting till midway shooting the groom prep by myself and at the time I was nervous and focused on the groom. I only realized he was flirting with me when he started calling me "pet names" like 'hey ms beautiful photographer take some photos of me' or 'what a hottie' and it was.. Embarrassing for me.
I would just smile a little or awkwardly laugh. I sped through the groom prep and returned to the bridal room to tell my manager what happened. At first, my manager was making jokes, but he got serious when I said it made me uncomfortable. After the ceremony, when we were riding the elevator with several of the bridal party, he kept close to me, and I looked down throughout the elevator ride. He just kept hovering during the shoot and kept calling me pet names and asked for my number twice till my manager called me to follow him to shoot the couple elsewhere. He didn't touch me till reception when it came to the dancing portion. He was tipsy, and I was getting pictures of people dancing when he saw me and grabbed my wrist to make me dance with him. Because he was a little buzzed, I pulled away and sped walk to my manager to tell him I was done with taking pictures (I was on the dance floor for one song, that's not enough) I told him that /he/ grabbed my wrist. So my manager took over to shoot the remaining, and I stayed with our photo booth technicians. My manager told the couple when they came by on Monday what I experienced, and they apologized for their friend's shit behavior. I was 19, and I felt discouraged... Only because I don't want this to ever happen again. So I started wearing long sleeves, size a little bigger to hide my breast and slacks. I tried all my best to look like a boy. I stopped wearing light makeup to wedding works and just did everything to look masculine. I still do the same up to now.
Kristin
I had an officiant harass me at a wedding but only after giving him my business card for networking purposes. He texted me non stop and sent me love emails. He was 75 and I was 23. At first he just said he liked my dress and that we matched. So it started off fairly normal and friendly. Then he asked three times for my business card, I was just busy and didn't think much of it. And then once he left and I was still working was when he kept texting me pictures and talking about his daughter, inviting me places. It made it hard because they were talking about what a great job he did and how they were so happy they found him and he was blowing up my pocket with uncomfortable and over the line things. It took me out of my work flow and put my mind in a space where I felt uncomfortable and unfocused
Anon (Female)
Whenever I work a big wedding I am constantly getting hit on, Ill tell them thanks but i am working and also married! But they seem to just expect someone to hook up with them. On multiple occasions I have been sandwiched into people who started grinding on me. This makes it super uncomfortable. It made my job hard, I was constantly trying to avoid said person / persons and so I was missing shots because I was constantly trying to find a place they weren't.
Anon (Male)
I have had gay groomsmen grab my ass. That female photographer tell me to wear tighter clothes and go to the gym the day before etc.
At a wedding recently I had an older lady grab my ass in front of everyone, and they just laughed. "No. I don't want your 50yr old aunt grabbing my butt and saying how cute i am. Especially in a room of 200+ people."
Sexual harassment can be from any orientation/gender to another. Hashtags wont change it, actions will. And not just action from the victims either, but from any witness or person they trust to tell. Those people should have the moral obligation to do what they can in their power to help. If its just listening to someone after the fact, mentioning it to the culprit or interrupting it in progress.
These stories are unique, but at the same time. I have seen posts, I have heard the same type of story again and again.
As wedding photographers, there can be times where we are in a room with a bunch or members of the opposite sex as they are drinking, getting changed, and encouraging each other. We have a job to do, but that does not mean that we need to subject ourselves to abuse or harassment in order to get the job done.
What Can I Do?
Make sure that you have a harassment/safety clause within your contract.
New Hope Photography reserves to right to terminate coverage and leave the location of the EVENT(S) if the photographer from New Hope Photography experiences inappropriate, threatening, hostile or offensive behavior from person(s) at the EVENT(S); or in the event that the safety of the photographer from New Hope Photography is in question. Prior to termination of coverage New Hope Photography will notify CLIENT of safety concern and offer them a reasonable opportunity to rectify said concern, avoiding termination.
If clients have questions about this I tell them that before I leave I will allow 2 chances to rectify the situation. I will first bring it up to the bride/groom/ family member. Secondly I will require that the person be removed. If this does not happen, I will leave.
This does not mean that in the event that I leave, I will not have an upset couple. Or that they may not attempt to take me to court. But if you have documented the events, and made and effort to rectify the situation, then you have done what you can.
Unfortunately, just because you work for yourself, does not mean that you may not experience harassment in some form or another. It is not right, but you can set yourself up for success. Speak up, let people know. If you see it, say something. There are no innocent bystanders. You do not deserve any harassment.
A hashtag will not change this.
Posting on social media will not change this.
But on the off chance that good people can stand up when they see something. If people listen and believe people when they hear stories.
AND... if we stop asking questions of the victim, placing the blame on them and shift our mindset to the bigger issue of why people feel like they deserve to do what they want.
Support people who have reported harassment. Let them know that you are with them.
Hold people accountable for their actions.
Boulder, Colorado - Fall Engagement Session - Marissa & Ben
The bell had just gone off and I had a lunch period after the class that I was subbing in, the voice on the other end spoke.
"Hello, my name is Kathleen, you were referred to me by Mary who owns Metalmark Jewelry. My daughter just got engaged and I would love to talk to you about wedding photography."
Well, Ben and Marissa had just gotten engaged and were flying in to see Marissa's parents. Kathleen, Marissa's mother, was doing a whole bunch of ground work. Boy, was she efficient, she had already booked the venue and a few others and was on to the photographer. So, we talked for about 45 minutes and I relayed to her my style and how I operate during a wedding day. Most importantly I talked to her about how I work to create a stress-free experience for my couples.
I was so excited when I received an email from Marissa and Kathleen saying that they wanted to book me. Kathleen loved how prepared I was, how I took the time to talk with her, and how I work to make the experience stress-free.
Weddings are stressful enough, you don't need to have your photographer, the vendor that is with you all day to create a more stressful experience. After the boring paperwork part, we set up a time to shoot engagement photos, and that is where magic happened.
The engagement session location was South Mesa Trailhead in South Boulder. I love this location because it is (usually) quiet and you get an amazing view of the Flatirons. On this particular day, there were probably about 10 other photo sessions happening here, so it is not a secret location by any means. But the colors and the light were killer.
These two met while taking their dogs to the dog park, and hit it off.
Their wedding will take place next year at the Vail Interfaith Chapel with the reception at The 10th Restaurant. I cannot contain my excitement as this will be my first wedding in Vail since moving back home to Colorado. This is going to be epic.
You can see the video from this engagement session below. (All my couples sessions include video!)
{This session was shot with Nikon d750's and Sigma 24mm and 35mm Art Series Lenses)
SMAL Wild Presets Review
SMAL WILD 01
Awhile back I had the opportunity to test some presets for a fellow photographer, Sven Malojlo. He spent a lot of time working and crafting something that was new and unique. Not only did he provide presets, but he also created adjustments and tones as well. I use his presets as a base for my food photography and have started using them as a base for some of my couples and engagement work. Fortunately/unfortunately these were just a preview so it is hard to give specific names and examples for others when they ask. So last week I purchased the SMAL Wild pack so that I could give it a shot.
SMAL WILD 01
Here are my thoughts.
I new from the preview pack that I would like these overall. Sven has taken the time to create some truly unique presets. His colors are different than many of the other packs that are floating around out there.
I tested these on a previous shoot. I shot this one very dark, so I wanted to see how the WILD pack would work with my style.
I really love how great these presets are on skin tones, they do not completely change someones color or texture by making them too light/dark or harsh/soft.
SMAL WILD 01
One of my favorite parts about Sven's preset packs are the extras that you get with them, the Tones and Adjustments. You can really find that color look that you are looking for, and they work on both color and black & white photos. Below is a BW that I applied a tone.
SMAL WILD BW 09 TONE 07
SMAL 01
Here are a couple more SOOC with SMAL 01 applied. The image on the right the exposure was brought up, but that was the only adjustment.
SUNNY
But what about sunny situations? how do these presets work with the bright daylight images? Well you are in luck! I have some examples of that as well.
When I am looking at presets, I love seeing the before and after with no adjustments. Below are examples of several of the SMAL WILD presets with no adjustments.
SMAL 07
SMAL 8
SMAL 04
Single Photo Comparison
Another thing that I like to see when I am looking at presets is an example of a single photo with all the presets applied. That way I can see the various ways that the light reacts to the images.
Here is the SOOC and below is each SMAL WILD preset applied to this image. No adjustments were made.
Starting top left to right 01-05, bottom left to right 06-10 & BW 09 - 10
I am currently editing my most recent engagement shoot with this pack as well. I am really enjoying the balance of the highlights and shadows.
Like I mentioned earlier I really like how well these presets react with skin tones. I would highly recommend these presets to anyone looking to enhance their workflow.
Remember presets should never be a one click solution, but rather a base to speed up the monotony of editing.
If you are interested in purchasing these, check out his site, if you buy all three packs you get a rad discount.
Facebook Ads Part 2 - Thoughts, Strategy, & Ramblings
So I recently published a post about how to create a Facebook ad. You can find that here.
So let's start out with the simplest question. Do they Work? The short answer is yes. In the second quarter of 2017 Facebook Ads brought in $9.16 billion dollars (Adweek). So, yes they work. Digital marketing is taking over as the big player for companies when it comes to marketing. The long is is that they work only if you know how to use them. There are many nuances to Facebook Ads, and I still am learning many new things about the platform. The biggest thing to know to utilize them correctly is to do the background work.
1. Know your target market.
2. Know your objective(s)
Target Market
Your target market is a group of people or buyers that have common characteristics, needs, or buying patterns. If you have not figured this out, there is no point to even starting to create a Facebook ad campaign. If you do, you are just blindly handing money over to Facebook.
Crazy Egg has a great article here, with practical steps to define your target market.
I also have a worksheet that may help. (It is very simple and still needs work) But here it is. Taking the time to define your target market can be one of the most effective steps to building your brand and being profitable in your business.
Think of your target market as if you were fishing for a specific fish, you can throw a net in that catches everything. This includes other types of fish, other types of sea life, rubbish, plants, and maybe a few other items. But if you know the patterns of the fish that you want to catch, you can fish in a way that specifically catches that type of fish.
Do you think Tesla markets to people with a $25-40K income that shop at Walmart and eat at Del Taco? Probably not. On the flip side, do you think that Walmart markets to people who make $500K and Drive Tesla's and regularly eat at high-end restaurants? Probably not. Those would be wasted ad dollars.
I would rather have my ad shown to fewer people with a higher likelihood to buy than have thousands of people see it with no action.
Objectives
Starting an advertising campaign without an objective is nearly as bad as starting one without knowing your market. You will approach the ad and copy within the ad differently if you are trying to build brand awareness vs. if you are wanting to build an email list.
In the marketing world, the best way to build your objectives is to follow the SMART objectives.
- Specific – If your objective is too broad it will be hard to know if you were successful. If you want to build brand awareness, how? What will you do? How will it be measurable?
- Measurable – Can you measure in a quantitative or qualitative way? How?
- Actionable – How will this improve your business.
- Relevant – This the objective relevant? Does it even matter?
- Time – Can you set a specific time frame for your objective.
An example of a smart objective for a photography ad campaign could be.
I will gain 50 relevant email addresses for future mini-sessions within two weeks, and 100 relevant email addresses within 30 days.
By taking the time to figure out your Target Market and your Objectives you can save yourself not only time and headaches but also a lot of money. If you want to make an ad without taking the time to figure these out, then you are just throwing your hard earned dollars away. You can feel free to just Paypal it to me and I will make better use of it.
Stay Tuned for Part 3 on Copy and Strategy
Facebook Ads - How do I create one?
Facebook ads are a beast. There are people that think that they are ineffective. But according to Adweek the Facebook ads brought in $9.16 Billion dollars just in the second quarter of 2017. People don't spend money on things that do not work. Except for the government. (Jk... Kinda).
As a Colorado wedding photographer, there is a large market for photographers, so standing out is key.
Anyway, when you first create your account the Facebook Ads Manager can look very confusing, but when you break it down, the basics are simple. The hard part is all the background work that you have to do prior. By this I mean, identifying your target market, setting up your goals, and writing your ad copy (One of the hardest things).
Before you get started you need to create an account. Find out how here.
After you have the account created, you can begin creating your ads. Below is a video walkthrough for those of you who want to create an ad.
Over the years I have used Facebook ads to build brand awareness and to reach new clients. When I relocated back to Denver, Colorado, and wanted to start reaching more clients for weddings in Denver, I targeted potential clients there. When I wanted to shoot more weddings in Vail, Aspen, and Breckenridge, I started targeting clients there. I have only been back in Colorado for a year, but those ads are paying off.
Stay tuned for a follow up video on Strategy and Ads.
If you have any questions please leave a comment or shoot me an email.
Another great resource is Here
Dear Photographer, What can we learn from the recent $1 million lawsuit?
Over the years there have been a plethora of stories of people feeling slighted, and then destroying a business that people have spent years to build. Cake shops being shut down for refusing service, photographers being sued for coverage, or images, or failure to meet expectations, it is a messy world.
Recently a story that I have been following for awhile has been somewhat resolved. A photographer, Andrea Polito, was sued by her clients over "images being held hostage." I am not going to go into the whole story here, but you can read in the links below.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Before I start writing my opinions on this, let me say that I have not spoken to Andrea Polito or anyone else involved with the situation.
So probably like many of you, after reading these stories about people closing their business after years of hard work due to an upset client, I have had the fear that this may, for some reason, happen to me. If you have been following my blogs for any time, you know that I am a huge proponent of branding (more in the non-visual sense) and communication.
I believe that 99% of issues can be solved with good communication, and most of this comes before the day of the shoot/wedding day. Your email communications, your brochures, your consultation/contract and even any shoots/meetings before the big day are huge as far as what you are saying to the client.
All of your customer touch points are massive when it comes to your brand's identity and image. Some of this is visual, but much of it is in the way it is presented. Now in the recent case, the couple felt like their images were being “Held Hostage.” I recently listened to a podcast where one of the guys was talking about how digital photography has changed when and how people want to receive their images. People don’t want to wait, everyone feels like digital is instant and they want their images ASAP.
With our businesses, we all have the choice of how to make the final delivery of products. I for one value printed photography. Over the past two years, I have delivered all my images as 4x6 prints first before I send the digital delivery. I put a lot of work into my photos, and I know that a client can flip through 500-800 photos in 10 minutes. I want them to realize what their investment is worth and to be able to relive their wedding day over again as they work through the prints. Yes, this process takes time, and I have had impatient clients, but that impatience is good. I have told them before hand that this is how I operate because I value my work and I want them to see the value in what they are paying for.
Communication
Like I mentioned before there is so much you can do before the shoot/wedding day that will help your brand. If you are working with someone for a single shoot, then make sure that you highlight why you do what you do before the shoot. This can be in the initial email, a follow-up email, and even…a phone call. Better yet use several of these methods. Make a PDF or even a hard copy of what they should expect. Set yourself up for success before you even start. If you are working with a client for a wedding, then you have far more opportunities to set your clients expectations.
When a client first contacts me, I send them an email that lines out why I do what I do. This includes why I find printed work important, my style, and what they can expect as far as the experience.
During the consultation, I bring a paper copy of the contract (I send a digital one as well) and as we talk, I touch on key points of the contract, once again explaining why I do what I do. The clients can read over the contract, ask any questions, take it home, mull it over and ask any questions they may have. I strive to be as transparent as possible.
Once they book, I send them a PDF that I created for tips on engagement photos and planning their wedding if they want the same quality of photos that they see on my site. In this PDF I mention things like when the best times are to shoot, what to wear to their engagement shoots, and when they can expect their photos after the wedding and how they will be delivered.
Every business has clients that are unhappy, and many things can be resolved. But there may come a time when it goes to a deeper level.
To Be Professional
As photographers, it is our responsibility to educate our clients. Any professional should educate their clients. There may be a few that know the process of booking a photographer, but each photographer is different. Every type of shoot is different. It probably will not take the same amount of time to process photos from an engagement shoot as it will to edit a wedding. But clients may not know this. Also, they may have had a friend that received their photos within a week, and that will mean that they may assume this is the status quo.
This education is also an opportunity for you to sell your potential client on YOU, not just on photography. Everyone has a unique selling point, the thing that sets you apart from others, find yours and sell it.
The Lawsuit
This lawsuit in a way is a win for the small business owner. We now know there while there is and (hopefully) always will be free speech, there still may be consequences for what is said. Hopefully people in general, not just clients of photographers, but everyone will think twice about if it is really worth it to destroy something that someone has worked so hard to build, just to prove a point.
There will be clients that you will never be able to make happy. They may write bad reviews. They may harass you. They may try and destroy what you have taken years to build. If/when this happens remember several things.
1. Document. Print and save all emails. Record phone calls. Screen shot any text or social media messages. Prove that you communicated professionally and appropriately.
2. Stay level headed. No matter what they say or do remember you are the professional, so act like it.
3. Seek community. It will be a rough road; you will need friends to chat with, to go out with, to have a drink and enjoy life.
You can read Andrea Polito’s open letter
http://www.blogpolito.com/
From what she writes, it seems as though she communicated properly and professionally.
As I said, I have not spoken to anyone involved in the case. These are my opinions, build a strong brand. Know who you are. Doing this will help carry you through anything.
DENVER RINO DISTRICT - ENGAGEMENT SESSION - AARON & TAYLOR
This session was so awesome. I have always wanted to shoot in the RINO district here in Denver and I finally had the opportunity to do so.
It has been a little bit since I have blogged, or really been on social media for that matter. I felt like I needed a mental health break for my own good, and guess what. The world did not fall apart while I was away. But during this time I had a super fun time shooting with Aaron and Taylor in the River North District of Denver here in Colorado. These two just got engaged, and when I put out a call on my Instagram that I was looking to do a shoot with a couple that had visible tattoos, they responded.
Aaron is the Shop Manager at Dedication Tattoo in Denver, and Taylor is a hair stylist. when these two showed up they mentioned that they are super awkward in photos. I can't tell you how many times that I have heard this and the couples are not at all awkward. Aaron and Taylor completely killed it during this session.
I had realized that while I have a good number of tattoos, that my portfolio was quite lacking in couples and people with ink. So I would like to remedy that, if you or someone you know would like to book a couples session, or even an individual session, and you have a good amount of visible tattoos, hit me up. I am offering half price tattooed couples sessions through 2017.
Don't Be Afraid Of The Sun - But Use Sunblock- Tips For Shooting In Full Sun
As photographers we do more than just click a button. I know that will blow many people's minds. Besides all the things that we do in order to keep our business afloat, we are also "readers of light." Meaning that we use what we have to our advantage, we shape it and mold it to create images.
Many photographers, myself included, loath bright sunny days, but rejoice when we have a nice overcast sky, one that acts as a natural diffuser. There have been many a wedding day when I have received a text from a bride who is so excited that it is bright and sunny., or sad that it is overcast. When in the first text my heart sinks knowing the the hash shadows that are to come, and in the second, my heart leaps out of my chest knowing I can shoot wherever I want and will have no shadows.
Many times we try to find shade so that we don't have to deal with the harshness of the sun. When you shoot in the sun your shadows are much harsher, your colors are more saturated, and your highlights are blown out. The above photo is a SOOC (Straight out of Camera) from a styled shoot I had a few weeks ago.
When I woke up in the morning, I knew that we were going to have a bright, super-sunny, Colorado day. It is not often that you get a nice overcast day when you live in Colorado, but I was ready to face the challenge.
As a wedding photographer you don't always have the light, the weather, the subject, or church coordinator on your side, so you have to learn how to work with all of them. So here are a few tips for shooting in bright light. A lot of these involve knowing how your camera works in the post processing like how much or your shadows and highlights can you recover.
Shoot as Close as Possible
When you get close you block out a lot of other elements that can cause issues and may be distracting. Below is a before and after of a close up shot. I use the Nikon D750 and the sensor in that camera is amazing so I underexposed her face in oder to not blow out the highlights. Once the highlights are gone, you cannot get them back.
Expose for the highlights
When shooting digital you want to expose for the highlights. (This is a good rule and a personal preference, it may also depend on your subject). Once the highlights are gone on a digital image you cannot recover them, but you can recover shadows.
For the above image I exposed for the sky, I wanted to keep the texture of the clouds and the blue. I also wanted to keep the texture of the mountains in order to have a recognizable location. I knew that I would be able to recover the shadow in her eyes so i was not worried about loosing that.
Again I exposed for the sky and mountains in the above shot. I also was shooting with a 24mm lens as I wanted to get the whole view. When shooting Colorado weddings, it is a pretty sure bet that you are going to have sun, so knowing how to approach it is key.
Backlight whenever possible
Nearly all the images in this post are backlit. Meaning that the main source of light is coming from behind the model. While this casts the face in shadow, it gives the hair and any other elements (Flowers/dress/veil) a nice glow. Backlighting is one of my favorite lighting techniques. I use it with sunsets, midday light, and off camera flash at night (Read that blog here).
When Backlighting your subjects be aware of a couple things. Lens flare and the shadows. Remember when I said that once the highlights are gone, they are unrecoverable? I hope so cuz it was only a few sentences ago. But an issue that I use to run into before I knew how to control it was that my lens flare would cause an issue on my subject. Sometimes the flare lands on the persons face and it is really hard to remove. The other issue is just the overall shadows and highlights in the image. Just be aware of them.
Be aware of how the ground reflects light
For the above shot we were standing on a dirt trail. While she was in the shade the light was reflecting on her. No I did not use a reflector for this shot. It is all natural light. If you are shooting near water or on the beach those elements act as natural reflectors and need to be balanced when shooting.
Again a huge thanks to these vendor for helping and to Kaysie for modeling
VENDORS
Anna Be www.anna-be.com - www.instagram.com/annabebridal
Evolution Salon http://www.evolutionsalondenver.com/ - www.instagram.com/evolutionsalondenver - www.instagram.com/maggiejeanhair
Metalmark Fine Jewelry - https://metalmarkfinejewelry.com/ - www.instagram.com/metalmarkfinejewelry
Epic Styled Shoot Part 2 - Anna Be Bridal, Evolution Salon, & Metalmark Fine Jewelry - Denver, Colorado
In the previous post there were more words than photos. It is not that I have run out of words (just ask my wife, I never shut up) but I figure you would rather see these beautiful photos than listen to me ramble on and on about the dresses.
I mean they say that a photo is worth a thousand words soooooo........
Dress - Monique Lhuillier - Dulce
Dress - Ines Di Santo - Spicy
www.inesdisanto.com
Dress - Berta - 16-103
Vendors
Anna Be www.anna-be.com - www.instagram.com/annabebridal
Evolution Salon http://www.evolutionsalondenver.com/ - www.instagram.com/evolutionsalondenver - www.instagram.com/maggiejeanhair
Metalmark Fine Jewelry - https://metalmarkfinejewelry.com/ - www.instagram.com/metalmarkfinejewelry
Epic Styled Shoot Part 1 - Anna Be Bridal, Evolution Salon, & Metalmark Fine Jewelry - Denver, Colorado
This shoot was LIT. I think that is how you use that, right? Isn't that what the kids are saying these days? Anyway, ignore my efforts to try and use cool words.
I first found Anna Be Bridal while I was driving for Lyft. (I pick up a lot of passengers in this particular area of Denver. Also if you need some ride discounts use this code MATT067500). You can tell from the outside of the building that the inside is going to be amazing, and it does not disappoint.
I knew that I wanted to try and shoot a styled session with Anna Be; so I walked in and introduced myself to the shop manager, Joy. A few weeks later I emailed asking if they would like to do a styled shoot, and to my amazement and utter happiness, they said yes!
So, the search was on for the rest of the elements for the shoot. I already had a model in mind as I had worked with Kaysie for a brief bit and we had talked about her modeling. Believe it or not, she is not a professional, but she should be. So I asked her if she was available and she said yes!
Berta Dress
I also drive by Evolution Salon in Denver due to them being next door the the Starbucks near my wife's work. So I messaged them on Instagram and asked if they might want to do HMUA for the shoot, and yet again, I received another YES!
Shucks, everything was coming together. So we finalized our date and made the plans.
I was hoping for a cloudy Colorado sky, but the Sun decided to grace us with its presence almost the entire time. We had a few clouds, but this was a challenge to execute the vision I had in mind with direct sunlight.
So we arrived at Anna Be around noon to get the Hair and Makeup done. Maggie, a stylist at Evolution Salon, Kicked A$$ with the Hair and Makeup. You can follower her on Instagram @maggiejeanhair or follow the Salon @evolutionsalondenver.
After the hair and makeup was finished, Kaysie had the opportunity to try on some rad dresses, even a dress from Berta, her favorite designer. Joy got in contact with Mary the owner over at Metal Mark Fine Jewelry and she came over and provided us with some gorgeous pieces for the shoot. Seriously, check them out.
As a guy this was my first experience in the world of bridal dress fitting. It is such an intense choice. I never really thought it could be as hard as brides make it out to be. But, as I watched Kaysie try on the dresses each one looked better than the last.
Anna Be's store manager, Joy, is amazing when it comes to knowing what dresses will look fit well on what body types. She had a few dresses in mind when we arrived and they were all perfect.
(As a side note, while we were talking, Joy told me that they have an amazing retention rate for stylists. They all love what they do and from what I can tell they are all amazing at it. The parent company - a&bé - has bridal shops in Denver, Dallas, Miami, Minneapolis, and Portland. But Anna Be on Denver is a separate collection from the rest.)
After the fittings we headed out to Boulder to for the super sunny locations. If you are a photographer reading this, you know the fear of shooting in direct sun. The harsh shadows, the blown out highlights, and the super saturated colors. But, we scheduled this and I knew that chances are we would have a beautiful sunny day. So I was ready to face the challenge.
I will write a future post for all you photographers about shooting in direct sun and making the most of it.
But without further rambling of words, I will show you the images which you came here to view. Also below is a video that I shot during the experience for fun.
Dress - Made With Love - Hayley
So this was just the first dress/location. Check out Blog number 2 that is filled with all sorts of photo goodness from the other 3 dresses. You can see that here!
Vendors
Anna Be www.anna-be.com - www.instagram.com/annabebridal
Evolution Salon http://www.evolutionsalondenver.com/ - www.instagram.com/evolutionsalondenver - www.instagram.com/maggiejeanhair
Metalmark Fine Jewelry - https://metalmarkfinejewelry.com/ - www.instagram.com/metalmarkfinejewelry
Dear Photographer, Be Bold
My Awkward shooting stance.
For many the wedding season is upon us, for some who are starting out they see photographers posting glamorous bridal photos and want to join the ranks. Many times in order to do this, things are done, that later down the road hurt their business and break down their drive, and they give up.
Many times this is because they want to get to the place of shooting weddings without the hard work and the time to learn the camera, and the business. So they offer to do a wedding for free, or cheap, and they offer to do photos for friends for free, and later everyone wants them to continue shooting for free or cheap. But you cannot sustain a business doing this.
(Now, just for the naysayers, I fully support doing shoots for free or cheap when you get started. Everyone starts somewhere, and many times we suck when we first get started. I look back on my first year weddings and cringe. But the issue that many starting out face is the lack of communication).
First year vs This Year
So there is the purpose of this post.
BE BOLD!
Have a solid contract, get it checked and stick to it. If you agree to shoot for 2 hours. Shoot for 2 hours.
Stick to your guns, this is your business, and your artistic vision. Make sure that the the client is hiring you for that and not because you are free or cheap. If you are starting out, communicate you ability honestly, tell them what they are going to get and stick with that. If you want to shoot longer, or if you want to provide more images, then do it. But make it work for you.
But in all this BE BOLD.
I am sure that you have heard the term, "Fake it till you make it." This is true, there have been times for every photographer that we are faced with a situation that we are unsure what to do, how to pose, where to shoot, and how to pull it all together. But the worst thing that you can do is to show this visibly.
So BE BOLD.
Many of these things can be avoided with preparation. If you know just how far you can push your ISO and still recover an image, you will know what to do when the wedding coordinator decided to turn out all the lights for the first dance, and your flash is across the room in your bag.
Or
If a client keeps demanding the Raw files, or more photos from the session, but you have that covered in your contract, and are able to firmly but politely tell them, "I do not release the Raw files unless the contract has a commercial agreement and the purchase price of the Raw files has been agreed upon in advance." Or "I only give the very best of the photos that are taken. It would not benefit me or you for me to with hold any images that you look amazing in."
So BE BOLD
You can do this. Keep your chin up and be open to learning. You will make mistakes, but learn from them, seek out a mentor, a photographer who has been around and can help. Let go of your ego, it will not serve you well.
So Be Bold
Brand Strategy
McWay Falls - Big Sur
From time to time I like to write on branding. It is something that I am passionate about, something that intrigues me, and you might even say titillates me. (really I just wanted to use that word in a blog post).
But when it comes to business having a solid brand paired with a well thought out brand strategy is something that can set you apart from the competition.
Think about some of the biggest brands. Many of them have worked hard for years to position themselves within our minds. They spend millions of dollars a year on market research, focus groups, product testing, advertising, and marketing in order to control a large percentage of the market share.
All of these elements make up a brands strategy.
As photographers we have several struggles in business. But many of these struggles provide amazing opportunities for us to build our brands. One struggle is that we do not have the millions of dollars to spend on market research, or focus groups, but what we do have is a personal connection with past clients that we can utilize.
Touch Points
Your brand strategy will also encompass all of your communication touch points. What does this mean? It means that from your first email, to your contract, all the way to the final delivery and blog. Every time that you interact with your customers, you are communicating something to them, and if you don't have a solid brand strategy, you may end up communicating the wrong thing.
Other elements that play into developing a solid brand strategy are your purpose, the consistency of the brand, as well as what emotions the brand reaches within the customers and what emotions your brand invokes.
Another thing to be aware of when building your brand strategy is your competition. See where they are, what they are doing, and how you can set yourself apart.
What works for one person may not work for another. As a photographer that may come down to your personality, your region, your style, any number of things.
But knowing what your competition is up too is part of the game. Sports teams will watch videos of another teams to see how they work. Quarterbacks will study an opposing teams defensive line, to read how they move, to learn how they blitz. This helps them to act instead of react.
One of the hardest things to do in business is to blindly market yourself. It is alway helpful to get some outside eyes to assist in any sort of marketing. You know what you want to say, but the meaning may not come across as you envision it.
You may want to evoke a certain emotion, but your message may evoke a one that is opposite.
You may think that you know who your target market is, the client that you want to book consistently, but your targeting is off.
Marketing is a game, one that with a plan one can win. But you have to try things and fail, and then try again till you succeed.
If you need help. I am now offering Brand Strategy and Marketing Mentoring. Check it out here. For a Limited time I am offering 2 sessions for the price of 1!!!
Dopamine: Social Media and the Addiction of Likes
This is a heavy topic, and not one that I may normally approach on my personal photography blog. But there has been a lot going on in my photography groups recently, as well as in the world of photography that has compelled me to write this. I hope that it in some way my meager ramblings are something that provokes thought, something that you can take and mull over and think about as you approach your year in photography. As always in my blogs I attempt to write in a manner that is up-lifting and encouraging. If I am criticizing the photography industry, know that I am a part of it, and I fall prey to these things myself.
Some people may argue that social media has negative consequences, others that it is a positive element in our lives. We can stay connected with friends across the globe, we can make new friends and go and meet them. That really is something incredible. For those of us in the photography business, we have an amazing way to have our work seen. We can post a photo to Instagram and with the right hashtags we start seeing the likes rolling in. That something inside of us feel rewarded. People like our work. Some thing with Facebook and Twitter. We create a post and are instantly rewarded.
Dopamine is the chemical in our brain associate with stimulus and reward/ the pleasure center of our brain. Dopamine is not only about pleasure and reward, but about learning and memory. The reward of having our image or post "liked," shared, or commented on is something that our brain soon learns. It is validating. When we see the little red dots on our phone, or open up Facebook and see the notifications lit up, it does the same thing to our brain we begin to have a conditioned stimulus. We have set the expectation of a reward by posting, and once we see the notifications and likes we are rewarded. Dopamine is released because we seek out the reward. Recent research shows that more activity happens in the brain when we are anticipating a reward.
Dopamine and social media have another relation. Uncertainty/unpredictability.
We create a post, an image, we compose our "Shakespearian" 140 characters. Complete with wit and hashtags. But what we cannot control, what we cannot know is the response that people will have. They may like it and we see that red heart pop up with a number next to it, 10, 60, 200. We see comments, and maybe even gain a few followers. But, what happens if a post only gets 15 likes. What happens if an epic image with a gorgeous couple, a canoe, mountains, flower crowns, and "tones to die for" doesn't reach that 300/ 1000/ whatever amount needed to be featured. What do we get. Dopamine. We always still get dopamine.
According to Mauricio Delgado, an Associate Professor of Psychology at Rutgers University, “The same brain areas [that are activated for food and water] are activated for social stimuli." This means that our brain sees this social media stimuli as a necessity.
As people who are photographers, this is something that we deal with on a daily basis. It starts out with wanting to get our work seen, to promote our business, and to grow as artists. But then the Dopamine sets in, and instead of creating content that lets our creative soul breathe, we work to create content that is accepted that will get featured, and that will get us the likes. Sure it falls in line with part of our vision, but from what I see in the photo groups I am a part of is that people are worried more about engagement, and likes then they are about creating. Just my opinion.
But, think about the recent infatuation with Instagram PODs. For one they are a pain in the A$$ to keep up with just to build engagement, and most of it is fake engagement. But also they feed the dopamine like the ferocious beast that it is, as you use more the brain needs more.
So why write all this? Just to rip on photographers and social media? No, that is not my intent. Events in my life lately have shown me the powerful effect of dopamine on my brain. It feeds a lot of how I have operated in the past 8 years of my life. Most of it not for the good. I have noticed that recently, after re-installing the Facebook app on my phone, that I have become addicted to checking it. I do not have the notification on, but I will open it up multiple times an hour just to check. I deleted the app last year, but then once I moved back to Colorado and booking season started I installed it again so I could try and put my name in for referrals.
The phone and social media is something that I have seen starting to take over my life. I make efforts to leave it behind, or to not take it out in certain settings but it still is there. Like a weight in my pocket.
I guess I wrote this to provoke thought. To hopefully make you aware of what happens, and why, and to maybe reflect on what is happening. You may read this and think that it is ridiculous, or that it is not you at all, and it may not be.
But, just take a moment and don't worry about the likes.
(BTW, I get the irony of writing this and posting it on social media).
Sources
http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/how-addiction-hijacks-the-brain
https://www.ama.org/publications/MarketingNews/Pages/feeding-the-addiction.aspx
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/brain-wise/201209/why-were-all-addicted-texts-twitter-and-google
Shooting Your First Wedding - Part 3 (advice from others)
Well, over the past two blog posts you have listened, or rather read, my ramblings and thoughts about shooting your first wedding. It is an intense gig and there is a lot that goes into it.
Read the Part 1 HERE
And Part 2 HERE
Well, I reached out to some of my photographer friends and asked them to submit some thoughts.
Chris Nelson - http://chrisandbeccaphotography.com
1. What is something you wish you would have known or done differently before you started shooting weddings. (I'm going to give you 2 answers. One with the focus on actual photography and the other on the business of photography).
First, I would just tell myself to practice photography all the time. And by that I mean don't just take pictures of things. Genuinely try to improve photography as a skill. Trying to replicate youtube videos and inspiring pictures on IG. Once I got over being nervous to spend money on education and started regularly practicing different types of photography and techniques is when I started really advancing as a photographer.
Secondly, on the business of Photography I would say "track everything." Keep track of how every client and potential client heard about you. Then learn what is working best, and what isn't. Sometimes your impression, may not be reality. Even if Instagram ads were ineffective its helpful to hold on to that data and use it to compare to in the future. "What gets measured, gets managed."
Chris Nelson
Cara Elizabeth - http://www.caraelizphoto.com/
What is something you wish you would have known or done differently before you started shooting weddings?
For me, I wish I had started shooting weddings sooner and also wish that I had found an amazing photographer to mentor with and learn from in the beginning. There is so much information that I would have gladly paid to learn from someone who I look up to with their work when I was first starting out. And the more I shoot weddings, the more I love them. It has been an incredible journey for me figuring out my niche in this creative industry, and over time, have really figured out my worth, my style, and how to really tell a story through images. Everything I have learned in this industry really has been by trial and error. I had only second shot for another photographer 5 years after starting to shoot professionally, and a few years after starting to pick up wedding gigs. Finding my style, and learning creative techniques that have been taught to me by others really helped me in the process of growing my business. And I feel could have helped me so much sooner if I had taken the time to find someone to learn from in the beginning. As it is not at all impossible to get to an amazing place in your business without the help and time invested with someone else, but it definitely helps to grow your business in ways you might not know, and faster than you may be able to achieve on your own. Not to mention, having other photographers you can go to when you have questions or need advice is the best.
Cara Elizabeth
Bailey Dalton - www.BaileyDaltonPhoto.com
One Thing I Wish I Had Known When I Started Shooting Weddings:
I wish I would have known it was okay to take control. Take control of directing large groups, of keeping the timeline in order, of helping the bride delegate, anything!
When I first started shooting weddings I didn’t want to interfere with what was happening and I wanted to just stand back and let it all unfold. Well, 90% of the time you are dealing with a bride who this is her first wedding. Even if this is her second wedding (or third or fifth…), she still hasn’t even seen close to a fraction of the amount of weddings we as photographers have seen. We have seen all different types of wedding and we have seen all types of wedding disasters. I learned that as soon as I stepped in and helped control what was about to happen, my weddings went way smoother and were way less stressful for the bride! It’s one thing they aways rave about in their reviews; how I played a much larger role than just the photographer. They love me for it!
I am not saying show up and boss everyone around. But show up and realize you are the professional here. They hired you for your expertise. So when something isn’t unfolding in the best way possible, step in and redirect it. A few examples:
- Family Formals — Everyone kind of understands what they should do, but they need a lot of direction. Like, A-flipping-LOT! Don’t be afraid to speak up and tell who to stand where and what TO DO WITH THEIR HANDS! haha I like to start with the largest grouping and work my way down. This way I am not trying to round up the random people at the end. They will have already been in the group shot and then I can start whittling away until I am down to the most important people.
- Details/Getting Ready Shots — I used to be nervous to take the dress out of the bag before the bride was ready. Grab the dress, and take it somewhere. You don’t have to shoot it exactly where it was hanging when you found it. Same with the other details. Step in, take control, and make it all look pretty. Chances are it wasn’t perfectly arranged when the bride plopped them all down.
- Bride & Groom Portraits — There are people waiting to congratulate the bride and groom and people are ready to get the party started. But again, they hired you because you are a professional and they wanted professional photos. Don’t be afraid to set up a shot or take them to the other side of the venue to get the perfect light. Most definitely be considerate of their day though and realize this isn’t only about the pictures. (I try not to take more than 20-30 minutes doing these unless the bride has specifically requested otherwise.)
- Cake Cutting — Tell them which side of the table to stand on for the best shot, have them cut slowly if you need to grab an extra shot, etc. Adding those 5 seconds isn’t going to throw their story off.
These are just a few examples, but there will literally be instances all day long where you might need to step in and help guide things along. I like to think of it as “controlling the chaos”. haha Everything will still happen and there will still be a story to tell. Just make sure you are taking your time and guiding it in a way that you are able to tell their best story and not a story filled with stress and haphazardly captured moments!
Bailey Dalton
Kristen Kaiser - kristenkaiser.com
I wish I would've known that what other photographers think about me doesn't matter. Photographers can be cruel, and I almost quit shortly after starting because of it. I got SO wrapped up in what other photographers were doing. What presets they were using, what gear they were using, what blogs they were being featured on, what locations they were shooting at.. and all the while, comparing those things to myself. I had a 5+ year old camera and a $50 lens when I started out. I so badly wanted to "impress" other photographers with my work, but the reality is, I needed to give myself GRACE. While I was struggling with comparison, I was also discouraged from pursuing photography by quite a few photographers I looked up to. It DEVASTATED me. But looking back, I KNOW this is what I was meant for and I'm so glad I pushed through. Despite my rocky start, I 100% believe it has made me a better/stronger photographer! So much of my passion for encouraging new photographers is rooted in my own experience. So to those of you who are either new to the industry or are considering joining it, my BEST advice to you would be to stay true to yourself, your passion and not let anyone's negativity get in the way of you chasing your dreams.
Kristen Kaiser
So the long story short. BE PREPARED.
Almost every week I see a photographer in a group asking for help because they were not prepared. Take the time to learn, to ask questions, and to practice.
Vendor Highlight - Flora By Nora - Denver, Colorado
So after moving back to my home state of Colorado I wanted to connect with some other wedding vendors in the Denver Metro area. After perusing Instagram for a bit I stumbled upon Florabynora.
Her floral work is amazing. I loved the variety of tones, shapes, and vases that she utilizes for her work.
I love being able to recommend vendors to my couples that I know will give them an experience that they will remember. That and I would love to have Nora's work to shoot at any of my weddings.
Nora originally hails from St Louis, and while she still occasionally provides floral services for brides out there, her focus is here in Colorado. She has a great studio space in the Santa Fe Arts District in Denver. (910 Santa Fe). You can grab coffee and pastries next door and chat with her about her passion for flowers.
She has spent quite a few years in the wedding industry, working for other florists, and stationary/invitation designers before branching out and doing her own thing.
Check her out and book her for all your floral needs.
Shooting Your First Wedding - Part 2
Thanks for coming back! If you have not seen my first post about shooting your first wedding, check it HERE.
Every wedding is different. The only constant is that the timeline will not be followed exactly, and you will run out of photo time quickly. I always tell my couples that two hours will turn into an hour really fast.
7. Creating a Timeline
My I touched on this in #2. Having a plan. The timeline is a specific part of this plan. Below is a sample timeline.
I have my couples check this and email any changes, and at least one week before the wedding we agree to a timeline. This is how I create my master plan for the day. It took awhile for me to realize this, but it makes my day so much smoother. I can communicate with my bride as to where we are at and what choices she would like to make. So take the time and make a timeline. You will have a better experience and you will be more professional. If you need tips on how to do this feel free to email me matt@newhopephotography.com
8. Consider a second shooter
Second shooters are great to have. But they are not 100% necessary. Having a second shooter on a wedding day helps with being in two places at once, providing more photos, and lessens the stress. But, I have shot plenty of weddings without one. If you are shooting your first wedding for free or cheap, ask if someone wants to tag along for experience. Be upfront and be direct with what you need from them. In the end they represent you and the brand that you are building so they need to know what you need before hand. Having a second the day of your first wedding will help you and will also provide your couple with more photos.
9. Be Honest
When booking your first wedding, be honest with yourself and with your clients. This is a huge day and when you are honest and you set the expectations you have less of a chance of failure. Both in your eyes and your clients.
This could mean second shooting for awhile before you take on a wedding of your own. This way you will learn the pace of a day and how to operate. Watch the lead closely and ask questions.
Set up a styled shoot, either with a paid model or a friend. This will give you shots for your portfolio and can help with showing the couple of what to expect after the editing is complete.
10. Shoot in RAW
If you have never done this before it can be intimidating. You also may need to buy larger cards. But you can salvage a photo that may have otherwise been lost. You can shoot at a lower ISO and boost exposure in post if you need to have have a useable image.
Trust me. You will never turn back.
11. Have fun & encourage your couples to have fun
Wedding days are stressful. Like I said before it is the hardest job I have done, but the most rewarding. I encourage my couples to focus on the moments as they happen, don't worry about the other things. The day goes by so fast so enjoy it.
Now if you have you plan and your timeline, you can focus on being in the moment.
If you know how to use your gear you won't be spending your time fiddling with the controls or chimping (looking at your screen after every photo).
You can focus on the things that count. The moments and the people.
Random Tips
- Turn off your camera beep. Nothing worse than a quiet church prayer and the beep of a camera focusing.
- Don't worry about lens caps. Not only do these slow you down, but dropping one on the marble floor of a church during a ceremony is embarrassing. It hasn't happened to me, but I have witnessed it. No Fun.
- Think about backgrounds. When setting up a photo, think about what is in the background. I.E. beer bottles, trash, cars, street signs. Things that make it look like a person has something growing out of their head. Sometimes all you have to do is move over slightly.
- ALWAYS TAKE HAIR TIES OFF OFF THE BRIDESMAIDS WRISTS. Remembering to do this will make your editing so much easier.
Your plan will get ruined, have a backup plan.