Every Photographer Will Recognize This

Photographer Cristie asked me some questions about the frustrations we all have about being a photographer, I will share my thoughts with you today.

“I see so many talented photographers in my city (Houston, TX) and I feel like everyone is “now a photographer”. It’s so not motivating for me to continue my business. How are we supposed to stand out from the rest? Also, may I add that new upcoming photographer’s prices/packages are much lower/cheaper than mine. Most do it for free for their portfolio. Since I have more experience (10 years total but 3 years in professional business), I should be able to sell my images at a higher rate. And too, it’s what helps me pay the bills.”

I can understand your frustrations and I think almost every photographer can relate to this topic. That is why I want to share these on my blog. Photography is really populair nowadays and if you are on Instagram it seems like everyone takes amazing photos these days. One thing that you don’t have to forget is that ‘being a photographer’ doesn’t mean everything. You have to do so much more than just takint nice photos.cI posted a blog about Being a Good Photographer Isn’t Enough Anymore where I tell all my thoughts about this topic. And it’s true that photography students or starting photographers are shooting for free or a much lower rate, but I think this is a good thing, because they can’t ask the same as you because you have more years of experience and invested (probably) much more in your gear. If I look back at my rates from 8/9 years ago, they are very low and I would never shoot again for these low rates, but when you think about the experience I had and the gear I was using, it is so different then today. Right now I know exactly what I am doing (with the photography techniques) and why I should invest in expensive cameras, lenses and light etc. Not even to talk about the computer, hard disks, phone, studio equipment and more. If you feel you have the right kind of experience and equipment for your clients you should just ask the rate that you are worth, and not lower your prices to match with the starting photographers. If a clients only wants to work with somebody because they are cheap… well than I feel very sad for that client. And trust me, they will see the lower price back in the results. You should stand out by doing what you love to most and make sure that you can show this both online and offline and connect with new and old clients.

Yes everyone has different prices and I think this is not a bad thing. Everyone should ask what they are worth. And I always try to match my price with the clients and the things they are asking from me. So has every clients their best price. A client should know that there is not only a difference in price, but also in results. I will tell you: I worked with a couple of clients and told me that they already did the shoot where I was working on, but with a cheaper photographer. They were not able to use the photos and they were declined. With other words: now they had to spend even more money to do the same shoot for the second time, but with another photographer. So first they thought they made a cheap deal, but then they ended up with spending more money… Personally I’m ‘happy’ that this happens, because I think these clients will not make the same mistake again. That is why I don’t see the starting photographers as a competition. The ones who I see as a competition are the photographers with a huge following base on social media or the photographers who are friends with the right kind of people (magazine editors, good stylists, people from interesting brands etc). Because your network is very important, and if you are friends with someone who works in the industry at the right place, it will be more easy to get the job.