DOCUMENTS & DELIVERABLES
WHAT ARE THE DELIVERABLES TO THE CLIENT ?
Aside from paying someone to take your photos, you must know that the result always depends on how professional the photographer is and that there are just an exciting list how a good photographer can deliver. These are the things you might be interested to know if what you are actually paying for aside from hiring a photographer who can create and meet your standards:
Truth being said, you must understand that you are not just actually paying for the photograph itself but you are also paying for the expertise and time of the one who is creating your photos. For a clearer picture of what is actually being explained here, an example would be the typical 2-hour portrait session:
Apart from those things mentioned above, the living wage of the photographer is another factor for them to pay for food, housing, and all other living expenses and be able to continue their service. As you may also know, digital photography has brought folks as self-proclaimed photographers and some may try to do-it-yourself. One powerful button can help them delete out-of-focus photos and other nonsense photos they’ve made. We must be aware that avoiding bad pictures is one rule in the business.
In fact, bad photography is a lot more expensive than good photography. You see, bad photography wastes your money as well as your most precious time and memories. The fact that you can never redo your wedding just because your wedding album were pretty lame, there is no such thing as wasting money for that one. Learn that good stuffs are always expensive.
Photography is never easy. It may seem that photographers are never seemed to get stressed or that they look like they’re having fun while taking photos but don’t be confused expertise with ease. They are completely different from each other.
Now, how do you hire a good photographer? These days, anyone who carries a decent camera tends to proclaim themselves as photographer. We’ve found few tips you should consider before you hire someone to take photos for you:
7 ESSENTIALS OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
1. Experience.
Anyone can buy a camera and take a picture, so what makes a “professional” photographer so special? Understanding social events, live entertainment venues and weddings and the expectations that clients have only comes with experience. Besides grabbing shots of those emotional first looks, the guitar players ear splitting solo, the tender moment between a man and his fiancée at sunset and your mother’s tear rolling down her cheek after you say “I do,” your photographer has a lot more on their mind. Behind the scenes, they are making sure your timeline stays on track, and liaising with your other participants to make sure things go as smoothly as possible.
2. Time.
The time you’re paying your photographer for is not just the number of hours they’re at your event. It’s their correspondence, booking, preparatory sessions, travel, in-person viewings, importing, editing, exporting and ordering photos, designing samples, delivery and shipping. The average event for us takes 80 hours of work from the first point of correspondence to its completion. Not to mention that being a small business owner entails many time-consuming tasks that we creative types are not huge fans of (yay, accounting!).
3. Creative Brainstorming.
Any photographer worth their salt will take time to get to know your style, personalities, and relationship in order to create moments that will portray you in the best way possible. This includes helping you find locations, making wardrobe suggestions, and helping you pick just the right product to make the photoshoot “pop”.
4. Continuing Education.
Photographers work in a field that is constantly changing. We have to keep up to date on the latest technology, techniques, and trends. This includes participating in workshops and online forums, reading educational books on business and photography, and studying our target market.
5. Gear & Upgrades.
Pro-level digital cameras run from $3,000 to $7,000, and the average pro-level lens costs around $2,000. Now, imagine needing at least two camera bodies, three to six great lenses… it adds up quickly! That’s not taking into consideration computers, editing software, off-camera flashes, radio transmitters, camera bags, diffusers, etc… And then when new and better gear comes out, we buy more.
6. Insurance.
Your photographer should be insured to protect themselves against stolen, lost, or broken gear, as well as liability insurance in case a guest trips over a camera bag and breaks their arm.
7. Redundancy From Start to Finish.
What happens when things go wrong? A professional needs to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. Your photographer should have multiples of everything! A backup camera, several lenses, multiple flashes. Modern pro-level DSLRs shoot to multiple memory cards at once, allowing photos to be backed up from the moment they’re taken. And speaking of backing up files, after the wedding your images are backed up multiple times for safekeeping.
Moloich Photography endorses this list and follows it to ensure our clientele are handling smoothly from our first interaction until the final product is delivered.
Bear in mind that when you are hiring a photographer, you are not just hiring the one with expensive cameras. You are actually hiring someone who deeply knows what he is doing and how to create a usable and presentable product. Considering their talent with an artistic eye, the skill to see and put subjects at ease. Pictures that look awesome are products of artistic vision.
As the famous phrase goes, you get what you pay for and paying for a good photographer should bring your well-crafted photos that you can be proud to display and that you can share for others in the next years to come.
- Camera equipment
- Lighting equipment
- Computer equipment
- Image editing software
- Hundreds of hours of education and training required to operate effectively
- An assistant to help carry and set-up equipment
- Data storage and back-ups
- Studio space or location fees
- Transportation costs
- Office rent and expenses
- Promotion and website costs
- Telephone and internet services
- Income and sales tax
- Business insurance
Truth being said, you must understand that you are not just actually paying for the photograph itself but you are also paying for the expertise and time of the one who is creating your photos. For a clearer picture of what is actually being explained here, an example would be the typical 2-hour portrait session:
- The actual travel to and from the session
- Shooting for at least one to two hours
- Setting-up, preparing, and talking to the client which takes at least 30 minutes
- Loading the images to the computer with up to 32 GB of Data can take several hours
- Backing-up the files on multiple drives
- Photoshop time for three to four hours
- Another three to four hours of time talking to the client for questions, receiving the order and payment, prints order, receiving and verifying prints, shipment schedule and dealing with the package.
Apart from those things mentioned above, the living wage of the photographer is another factor for them to pay for food, housing, and all other living expenses and be able to continue their service. As you may also know, digital photography has brought folks as self-proclaimed photographers and some may try to do-it-yourself. One powerful button can help them delete out-of-focus photos and other nonsense photos they’ve made. We must be aware that avoiding bad pictures is one rule in the business.
In fact, bad photography is a lot more expensive than good photography. You see, bad photography wastes your money as well as your most precious time and memories. The fact that you can never redo your wedding just because your wedding album were pretty lame, there is no such thing as wasting money for that one. Learn that good stuffs are always expensive.
Photography is never easy. It may seem that photographers are never seemed to get stressed or that they look like they’re having fun while taking photos but don’t be confused expertise with ease. They are completely different from each other.
Now, how do you hire a good photographer? These days, anyone who carries a decent camera tends to proclaim themselves as photographer. We’ve found few tips you should consider before you hire someone to take photos for you:
- Talk to your friends first. Word of mouth is one good way to find a good photographer. Another sure move is from a family’s referral that has already experienced hiring same photographer who can vouch for their efficiency.
- Try a search engine. There can be just good selection of good photographers on the internet and this might help you in finding one. Browse through their online portfolios and see their actual works.
- Make sure that your meet your photographer first before you even make the decision of hiring them or give any advance payments for the service. For a large event such as your wedding, there must be presented contract, this will help you for protection as well as the photographer. But don’t worry, most professional photographers often make contract before the project.
- See the actual portfolios and other examples to know their styles and their process of editing. As we know, photography can be different depending on how the person behind the lens perceives things. Hence, it should match your style and preferences.
- Put in mind that once you already accept the contract and done with exchange payment, everything is set and final. Photographers don’t accept refunds for unsatisfied clients.
7 ESSENTIALS OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
1. Experience.
Anyone can buy a camera and take a picture, so what makes a “professional” photographer so special? Understanding social events, live entertainment venues and weddings and the expectations that clients have only comes with experience. Besides grabbing shots of those emotional first looks, the guitar players ear splitting solo, the tender moment between a man and his fiancée at sunset and your mother’s tear rolling down her cheek after you say “I do,” your photographer has a lot more on their mind. Behind the scenes, they are making sure your timeline stays on track, and liaising with your other participants to make sure things go as smoothly as possible.
2. Time.
The time you’re paying your photographer for is not just the number of hours they’re at your event. It’s their correspondence, booking, preparatory sessions, travel, in-person viewings, importing, editing, exporting and ordering photos, designing samples, delivery and shipping. The average event for us takes 80 hours of work from the first point of correspondence to its completion. Not to mention that being a small business owner entails many time-consuming tasks that we creative types are not huge fans of (yay, accounting!).
3. Creative Brainstorming.
Any photographer worth their salt will take time to get to know your style, personalities, and relationship in order to create moments that will portray you in the best way possible. This includes helping you find locations, making wardrobe suggestions, and helping you pick just the right product to make the photoshoot “pop”.
4. Continuing Education.
Photographers work in a field that is constantly changing. We have to keep up to date on the latest technology, techniques, and trends. This includes participating in workshops and online forums, reading educational books on business and photography, and studying our target market.
5. Gear & Upgrades.
Pro-level digital cameras run from $3,000 to $7,000, and the average pro-level lens costs around $2,000. Now, imagine needing at least two camera bodies, three to six great lenses… it adds up quickly! That’s not taking into consideration computers, editing software, off-camera flashes, radio transmitters, camera bags, diffusers, etc… And then when new and better gear comes out, we buy more.
6. Insurance.
Your photographer should be insured to protect themselves against stolen, lost, or broken gear, as well as liability insurance in case a guest trips over a camera bag and breaks their arm.
7. Redundancy From Start to Finish.
What happens when things go wrong? A professional needs to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. Your photographer should have multiples of everything! A backup camera, several lenses, multiple flashes. Modern pro-level DSLRs shoot to multiple memory cards at once, allowing photos to be backed up from the moment they’re taken. And speaking of backing up files, after the wedding your images are backed up multiple times for safekeeping.
Moloich Photography endorses this list and follows it to ensure our clientele are handling smoothly from our first interaction until the final product is delivered.
Bear in mind that when you are hiring a photographer, you are not just hiring the one with expensive cameras. You are actually hiring someone who deeply knows what he is doing and how to create a usable and presentable product. Considering their talent with an artistic eye, the skill to see and put subjects at ease. Pictures that look awesome are products of artistic vision.
As the famous phrase goes, you get what you pay for and paying for a good photographer should bring your well-crafted photos that you can be proud to display and that you can share for others in the next years to come.
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