Wedding and Portrait photography

Comment

Comment by john douglass on August 22, 2009 at 8:55pm

great idea. especially if you develop business relation ship with maternity shops. one photographer had idea of shop booking sessions and keeping the 20 percent deposit as commission and passing onbooking to photographer. Other marketing idea is for charity related.IE 20 percent of booking went to charity. Doyou have any childrens charities to sponser<. PS budget you need toset aside amount for training. Equipment. suggest you carefully consider on whether you need to buy equipment. If you are running business partime then income stream can be used to ypgrade equipmnet. You need tostart marketing now and plan to shoot two or three seesions a month. After 6 months you will know if yoiu enjoy it and whetheryou photos will sell. look carefully at your catchment area. USA is to dirrent from UK where we have villages and cities in close reach. How much time willit take totraval to clients.etc. Ithing the time elemnet may be important issue oryou.

Comment by onrie on August 22, 2009 at 4:56pm

John what you wrote made me smile. I was talking to a one of the girls that I work with today that knows about what I am wanting to do. I told her that I think I want to specialize in Maternity and infants with weddings and engagements being secondary. That is a great idea about the Maternity classes. I was thinking about going to some of the local OBGYN offices and a couple of the local baby clothing stores. I have already started looking at prices and am working on a plan. I think as it stands now my plan is to shoot for portfolio for the next several months and by feburary of 2010 be in business with enough bookings to maybe cut back on my retail job maybe stepdown and go part time with them.

Anyway thanks for the advise.

Comment by john douglass on August 22, 2009 at 7:14am

look at www.annabelwilliams.com.

She is lady who became UK foremost social photographer using informal portraits.

Shoots on customers site and now teaches poeple ho to shoot using the most simple technical set ups Ie camera on auto and without studio flash. There must be similiar in USA.

Comment by john douglass on August 22, 2009 at 7:08am

may be you need to make a business plan with a proposed target schedule. ie 2,3 portrait shoots per month.

you need to get a target market.
new babies ? always people looking for fist photos of child and once there make parents customers for life.IE portait service of thiser cilh through the early years. If this is of interest to you then can youu et leads through maternity classes. Can you get an in to these classes for prospective mothers. Iy you are screamish on charging prior toestbalish your self then asl for deposit to cover you time and then sell photos on web site such s photobook and set out y our prive list. Customers can order direct. You can make photobook (for about 50 USD and seel on for USD 200. You can see what local photographers are chrging though websites.
If you are really seriouspproduceyor own proce lists noew and also reqired materals for sale.

Comment by onrie on August 21, 2009 at 2:58pm

Thanks you all so much for all the advise. It is just a large step to change your future.

As for working the 9-5 job I don't even know what that is I currantly work retail, as a department manager and don't have any kind of set schedule So transitioning into shooting on other people's schedules would'nt be a problem what so ever. But I am salary with a Guaranteed paycheck. So that is the scary part.

John, I am currantly working on my portfolio. I have a couple wedding's coming up in the next 2 months with engagements, a senior portrait session, a couple family sessions, and an infant shoot at the end of september. All of these I am doing for friends with full priviledges to use in my portfolio or as I need them.
I have been shooting for a long time for friends and relatives, It's just the transitioning into promoting and getting clients that are'nt friends or relatives and start charging them.

Comment by john douglass on August 20, 2009 at 8:30pm

can you try thisat weekends and still carry onyour normal job?

if you want to start wedding photo. there are two or three ways of doing it.

1 save up for 2.3 day phot course/ workshop. here you can build portfolio and also get info on marketing admin.

2. work part time for wedding agency. If you lucky they might give you trainng.

3. start yourself. buld prtfoloi for weddings from attending friends weddings.

or start offer with free wedding to build wedding portfolio until you have portfolioe and them advertise.

portraits.

you you ave network of friends with children. are you involved with schools.? ccan you network withfriends to get booksing for babies and young children. Try taking pictures at there houses. Women have advantage of beeing able towork withyoung children.

re only on chance to capture photgraphs once.
get very familiar withyour camera and shoot lots of pictues.

practice etting them onot computer and then post them using google albums. shoot say ten sets of portrai lessons for friends or other people. You ill get confidence this way. with the good digiatal cameras it is very easy toget right exposure and focus.

you need to be good with peopl and be able to get them relaxed. this is about40 percent of portait photo.

re seeing th picure / framing and style.you can pick this up by looking out other peoples work.

best of luck