One thing that many photographers (and entrepreneurs as well) deal with is disagreement from clients about cost. Everyone can have a camera these days; phones, tablets and even some professional quality cameras are sold in the consumer market. With this being the case, it can be difficult for people to pay someone to do what they believe they do already. The difference between taking your own photos and hiring a photographer is probably akin to the difference between you driving to work and a stunt driver on a movie set. While the tool may be similar, the knowledge that an expert has can yield a totally different finished product.
When the circumstances are optimal, most of us can take a good photo. A cloudy day (yes, that's better than a sunny day for photography) shade, those things make the job easier. But when things are less than ideal, you need an expert. A pro will have the knowledge to overcome difficult situations and they normally have gear that you don't have to create beautiful images. Weddings are a great example of when you need someone who really knows what they are doing. Let's say the wedding is at noon on the beach. That means that you have to know how to darken the background and simultaneously get that white dress bright without losing detail. You may also have a reception that's normally dark and you need to have a way to create properly exposed pictures without that 'flash in the face' look. If money were no object and you had 2 photographers to choose; one cost $10,000 and the other cost $250, which one would you choose? Even if you hesitate on dropping $10K for wedding photography, you would at least compare the two, and I know I would ask myself why the other guy was charging so little. Can you trust him to get the job done? This day is important and I don't want to miss out on it because I took what seemed like a deal.
Photographers are doing much more than taking a picture, the goal is to create art. You can go to a discount club or store and purchase an 8x10 for less than $3. Knowing this, people balk at a photographer charging $50 for an 8x10 print. Understand that you are not paying for photo paper or a canvas, you are paying for artistic vision. That photographer saw something and nurtured it to immortalize a moment in time; that is what you are paying for. When you look at a painting in a gallery that costs $1,000,000, its not the paint or the canvas or the wood or the metal that costs that much. You pay for where that piece of art takes you, what it does to you, how it makes you feel.
So, you want to know what you are paying me for? You are paying for my ability to portray who you are to the world. You are paying for the fact that I educate you prior to the shoot so that you are ready and confident which makes you shine in front of my camera. Lastly, you are paying for my ability to see you, really see you and how beautiful you are and reflect that back to you in my work. That is what you are paying me for.
Follow me on Instagram/Twitter: @asharpphoto
Website: www.asharpphoto.biz
A Sharp Photo is a Central Florida based (Orlando to Ocala)
photography company specializing in Actor/Corporate headshots, Film
& TV Production photography, Boudoir, Portrait photography and Art.
Michae E. Allen started this company in 2012 and his aim is to use
photography to show people the beauty in themselves and the world around
them.
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