How To Support Your Favorite Photographer Friends

Do you know someone who is a photographer? Perhaps a friend or family member. Whether they are established and well-known, or just starting out, there are many ways you can be a true supporter. Here is how you can make a difference.  

---

LIKE, COMMENT, AND SHARE

The three most overused words on Facebook and for many good reasons. If your favorite photographer has a Facebook Business Page, interacting with their page by liking, commenting, sharing, etc. gives the photographer and their content more exposure.  If you're a true supporter then you already "Liked" their photographer page and see their posts on your news-feed (That's awesome!)

With Facebook's algorithms, when you interact on a Facebook post your friends can see what you like, comment on, or share. Ultimately, if your way of providing for your family relied on referrals and exposure you would need for your posts on the business page to reach as many people as possible to keep the revolving door in order to support your household financially. To a photographer, a "like", "share", or "comment" is not taken lightly. Each interaction can reach at least one more person.

I know I speak for myself when I say thank you to the individuals that interact with my posts on Facebook. A big thanks to everyone who comments my business page on recommendation request posts in the mom groups where people post that they are looking for a photographer. Exposure of my work and talent will assist me in reaching a bigger audience which will lead to more sessions. In the end, more sessions means I can support my family.

---

AFTER YOU WORK WITH YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER

You just finished your session with your photographer, you login on Facebook and on your news-feed you see the preview of 5-10 photos posted on your photographer’s page freshly edited and posted. When a photographer posts a session, their regular followers don't particularly know you. The photographer's regular followers can't relate to you in any way. They may like your photos but it doesn't do much for the photographer as far as reaching potential clients via Facebook.

The photos are of you. SHARE THEM!

When you share your photos from the photographer's page not only are you giving credit to the photographer for taking the photos, you're also leading people to their Facebook page for them to be able to contact the photographer for their own session. Plus, everyone that follows you wants to see your photos. They are your supporters. They will like, comment, and share your post when you do this because they will be proud that their family member or friend has amazing photos. One lady I had the privilege of working with shared the preview and it reached over 1,000 views. I received many inquiries for another session from that alone. SHARE, SHARE, SHARE!  

---

LEAVE A REVIEW

Sharing how your session went helps other people know what to expect. It adds to the photographer and their experiences with their clients. It helps others determine if they want to work with your photographer before they reach out to the photographer to schedule. I don't know about you but reviews help me when I'm looking to try a new restaurant or establishment. With reviews on Facebook, unless your photographer was completely unprofessional or their finished product (photos) were low quality, think twice about leaving a negative review (stars 1,2 or 3 can bring down their overall rating. This is their business and one bad review (if it's not earned) can ruin everything they have built. Try discussing with the photographer what you did not like and see if they will work with you and maybe re-edit the photos to your liking or scheduling a re-shoot and trying again. Maybe even before a session send them sample pictures of your expectations that way they know exactly what you want. Most photographers want you to love your portraits so they are willing to work with your vision.

---

TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY

Most businesses achieve success, solely by word of mouth. You are a credible source for your family and friends and they trust you when you testify that you had a great experience. So sharing with them how your session went and showing them the photos you received, can help your friend gain more clients. 

Thank you for reading and I hope this helps you understand why photographers may ask you to share or leave a review. It really boosts our business and helps us tremendously when you are a true supporter. 

Year End Review

I’d like to share my favorite moments of 2018
for me and for my photography.

---

The photography services I provided for the sessions and events of 2018 were all contributions to my growth as a photographer. This along with some personal life changes and I was able to end 2018 as a full-time photographer. That’s right! No more working 9 - 5  investing in other people’s dreams and ideas, but now I spend my time investing in my own dreams and myself overall.

Being a full-time photographer I’ve found myself at the beach on a weekday morning. So good for the soul. I’ve been at Weston Town Center at 11:30 on a Wednesday to offer my video services to one of my clients. Or even the golf course at Weston Hills Country Club at 2:00. All of this would’ve been impossible if I still had the dead-end job that had me stuck inside of a building that was below 60 degrees, trapped in a cubicle, with tasteless music blasting disruptively to the point I could not focus and a place overall where I was not appreciated for 5 years. Year 2018 gave me the gift of not having to be tied to a desk and micromanaged beyond belief.

I believe life can be compared to a book, each year a new chapter and I finally decided to become the author of mine. I no longer allow others to write my story for me. I no longer allow others to dictate what I’m doing or how I’m doing it. If you are unhappy at your job or with anything in your life, you are the author of your life and you have a choice to follow your dreams. Own it. You can do anything you put your mind to. Don’t just allow life to knock you around, build a plan and execute it.

With my photography, I continue to learn. I notice my own growth after each and every session I complete.

Here are some of my favorite images of 2018. They aren’t in any particular order and some of these photos will not be found in my photography portfolio.

I look forward to the growth that lies ahead of me and I hope you are all there to support me in my journey as I will do the same for you.

Professional Photography is a Luxury

How many people want a photo session but feel they can’t afford it?

Let’s face the facts. Everyone has a cell phone these days. Some cell phones take decent pictures. Everyone feels like they have the potential to be a photographer now that they can shoot photos on-the-go with their portable devices. Some people don’t need high quality photos to be happy and satisfied. 

On the other hand, our children are growing older every day. In reality, having updated photos on a semi annual basis is a luxury. We don’t need it to survive. It’s not the same as a light bill or food. We will be fine without professional photos. 

Many photographers are in your area, waiting to be hired for your next event or photo session. This is what they do for a living and most of them love doing it. This is the income they use to feed their families.

As a photographer with my own business, I’ve gotten invited to events where the host only wanted me to  take photos. The hosts assumed I would come and take photos without a formal arrangement. What’s worse is they didn’t offer any compensation as if I should do their session/event for free. 

Taking photos at events and photo sessions isn’t as easy as it appears. We take high quality photos at optimal angles with our trained eyes, using our expensive equipment. We then take the photos home and upload them to a computer for post-processing using a software that is not free. There is a lot of time and effort put into delivering high quality photos. Some photographers even after all of that time invested into a session, they still stress about their work and even convince themselves that their photos aren’t good enough for their clients. 

Here are 4 reasons why you should hire a photographer to have that photo session that you’ve been dreaming of:

• We love what we do. 

  • Photographers love to take photos. Most of them started their profession because of their love for photography. Who wouldn’t want to make a living doing what they love:?

• We are the experts

  • When you hire a photographer you are guaranteed to have high quality photos that will capture memories that will last forever. We will do our best to make sure you are satisfied with your pictures and that you get what it is you want out of each session. Photographers know how to pose their subjects, what the best angles are, everyone can be in the photo. Before delivering the photos to you photographers edit the photos and this enhances the portraits. 

• Affordable 

  • There are many photographers that work with you, have payment plan options, and some that charge fairly while delivering a set amount of photos. For example, $150 for the session and 10 premium edited photos are included. If you only need one or two photos there are photographers that charge a low session fee and who allow you to choose from the photos that were taken and charge by photo.

• A Fun and Awesome Experience

  • Everyone that I work with tells me that they hate taking pictures usually, but our session was fun for the entire family. It is something that helps a family bond or a couple become more intimate. It is something that helps a model or actor get more gigs. If you haven’t had a professional photographer take your photos, you will definitely have a great time. I have countless clients talk about how fun it was and how they loved everything about the session and the experience.

Don’t wait until your children are all grown up, you’ll miss capturing their cute little freckles and missing teeth. Create the memories of your lives over time with all of your loved ones by using a professional photographer. My clients leave their sessions super happy with their purchase because a photo session with your family and friends is more than just taking pictures it’s an experience where you make memories. With the right photographer it is money well spent and it’s all worth it.

A Photographer’s Goal

Ultimately a photographer’s goal is to deliver images that their client will love. Building a client base is important and photographers work very hard to establish a strong relationship with their clients. Whenever an established client needs photography services they will most likely go back to the photographer that did a great job the first time, someone they’ve already established a relationship with. 

With every session a photographer should learn and grow where they will be able to recognize opportunities for improvement. Learning from mistakes, trying new methods or ideas can all lead to growth. 

“Am I hiring a photographer and paying a high price for them to just press a button? ”

— Prospective Clients

Let me explain.

Some people think a photographer’s job ends at the session. However, the session is the least amount of time that goes into your photos. Pressing a button is not the beginning and end to a photographer’s responsibilities. With every client there is a number of items that need to be taken care of.

1. Transfer Photos to computer.

   1. Photographer selects the images that came out best.

2. Upload to an online album

   1. Some photographers have you choose your photos directly after a session and others send you proofs with watermark for you to choose later.

   2. Whichever way your photographer chooses it is still a step that needs to be counted since it relies on the customer to provide feedback of the photos to be edited.

3. Once photographer receives feedback about the photos you would like to purchase, the photographer begins to edit your preview.

   1. Photographers can take anywhere from 2 days up to a whole month to deliver all of your images.

   2. Typically I set the expectation for all photos to be delivered to client no later than 2 weeks. Most of the time they receive their photos before that time.

   3. At times, they usually provide a preview gallery of 3-10 photos.

   4. It really depends on the job. For example, Weddings take longer than any other category of photos.

4. Editing or Re-editing

   1. Some clients request special type of edits where they want acne removed, some request to be made thinner, and other various requests. These special requests will take longer.

   2. Some photographers spend 3-5 hours just on one photo. This is the reason photographers charge by photo even if it is an electronic photo (not print).

   3. At times, clients may see the photo after it’s edited and they will ask for something to be adjusted. This type of re-edit consideration is welcome but may delay finalized album.

   4. A photographers job is not finished until they edit the photos. Very rarely will a photographer give you photos that they did not complete. This is unfinished work.

      1. On another note regarding the photographer’s finished work, having clients edit the photo by hiring a separate photographer to do it or by applying filters for social media this is highly offensive to photographers worldwide. It’s similar to taking a canvas painting from a world-renowned artist and adding your own paint to a finished masterpiece.

5. Delivery of photos.

   1. If you order prints with your photographer it depends on when the prints will arrive at their studio for you to have them delivered to you.

   2. If you purchased electronic album, depending on the third party provider of the photographer, you will be given a link to your online album and you will be able to download it after payment and order your own prints in the size you desire.

   3. Other ways for photographers to deliver your photos depends on the method purchased:

      1. flash drive, photo album, canvas or large sized prints, etc.

Regardless of the photographer you choose, it is important for you to educate yourself on everything that goes into the process. Photographers serve more purposes than to just press a button. They are revered for their artistic ability to see moments in pictures and to grab them the way that their mind sees them in order to capture that rare and timeless moment with their camera. All photographers want to increase their skills by researching best equipment, best poses, best locations, and best editing styles and rising to the challenge to meet the next level in abilities.

Photographers invest their hard-earned money into the expensive equipment that will produce the best quality images from the camera, all the way to the post-processing software and the external lighting options. A photographer can put in as many as 30 hours on your family portraits session that only took 30 minutes on site. That is something that is worth the prices for their services.

Cake Smash session in Hollywood, FL

Learn to appreciate and respect the process and abilities of your photographer. Trust their prices and pay them what they are worth. Full-time photographers are running a business as their primary source of income.

The goal of a family photographer is to provide a finished product that their clients will be happy with and will in turn, come back every time their family reaches a new milestone.