Tips for people new to professional photography, from a team that works exclusively with professional photographers.
Having the best camera, taking great photos and building a strong portfolio definitely helps if you’re a beginner in the world of professional photography. But what about the business side? How can you make a living as a beginner photographer learning how to run a business?
We’re going to list some basic skills that we think are essential to learn when entering the photography industry, regardless of your niche. Fair warning, if you’re starting a career as a professional photographer because you think it will be easy, you might be disappointed. But that’s what we’re here for; not only is Folio a pioneer in the print industry, but we also offer advice to professional photographers and stay up to date with all things photography as much as possible.
Remember that even the most famous photographers make mistakes, so don’t be afraid to try new things even as your photography business grows.
Get the basics right on the shoot= Save time later.
You don’t need to go overboard and spend too much time editing if you make sure you have the right lighting, your subjects are in focus etc. Check as you go, it’s important to consider things like exposure and the elements of your post-production routine that you can eliminate by creating the habit of thinking about the final product when you’re behind the camera. An example of this would be to crop your shot when shooting- if you see an ugly bin in the corner that you know you will want to crop out of the final image when you’re editing, why include it in the original shot at all? Change your position and make sure it doesn’t end up in the shot in the first place. Considering small elements like this while you’re shooting can save you plenty of time in post-production.
Get comfortable with your camera.
Using a high-end professional camera won’t necessarily improve your photography, but understanding camera settings and having the knowledge, tools and resources to improve upon existing photography skills is a part of what makes great photographers great.
‘Fake it until you make it’ is a great motto to keep in mind when you want to appear more confident, but understanding your camera is a fast track way to become more confident on your shoots. Start reading about camera settings, look at videos on youtube and listen to podcast episodes about the technical side of photography. People are sharing the information that will help you, you just have to go out and find it.
Remember that it’s normal to not know everything, regardless of whether you are new to professional photography or not, but try not to lose your curiosity to learn as you grow more confident.
Take a look at some of our Youtube channel recommendations for brushing up on your photography skills:
Here’s some of our key tips when it comes to editing and preparing images for print.
Trim Lines and Safety Margins are your friends, stop ignoring them.
If you take a look at your photos in our Folio Spread Checker, you will be able to see what we see when we check over your images. If you have anything you definitely don’t want to be cropped out of your spread, make sure they are kept inside the safety margins. Anything outside of the trim lines will be trimmed off. And anything outside of the safety margins, is at risk of being trimmed. (the closer to the trim line, the higher the risk of it not making it into the final album.
The quicker you can understand the aspect ratio, DPI and PPI, the better.
We know it’s confusing at first but they’re definitely useful pieces of information that a photographer should understand, especially when dealing with print.
Check out the articles in our help centre to learn more about aspect ratio, DPI and PPI.
Check your spelling!
It might be embarrassing to have to double check with your clients how to spell their names, but we’d argue that it may be more embarrassing is when they receive an album with their name spelt wrong, or worse, someone else’s name. (It happens!) More people than you would believe struggle with spelling, especially when they are busy, so it’s important to double check these things.
If you simply don’t have the time to design albums and offering printed products simply isn’t a priority to you at this time, we understand, everyone’s circumstances are different and ever-changing. That’s why we created our Affiliate Programme. It is designed to provide photographers that are low on time the opportunity to still offer albums and make some extra money, but with a hands-free approach.
We’re passionate about supporting photographers, and we know that couples are actively asking about albums. So we decided to offer up to a 25% commission bonus to photographers whose clients purchase an album through our Affiliate Programme. Offering albums through our Affiliate Programme really is a win-win.
Always check your layout before exporting your files.
Although we keep an eye out for any potential mistakes, we can’t catch everything! We encourage every photographer to carefully check their layouts and order details before placing any order. It’s also great practice to send a proof to your clients to make sure they are happy with their album and give them an opportunity to make any last minute changes. Our albums are designed to last a lifetime, so it’s important that all photographers and their clients are happy with their orders before we start to make them.
If you would like to easily design your albums for free, check out our Folio Designer tool, there’s also an option to send proofs to your clients, so there’s no excuses!
How to make more money and increase enquiries.
Contrary to popular belief, it’s not always hard to sell albums. It doesn’t have to be hard work and it doesn’t even have to be super time consuming if you get your steps right.
Step 1: Know what you’re selling. What album do you think would be best for your particular clients? And if you’re unsure, check out our guide to finding the right products for your clients.
Do you have any Sample Albums or Prints to show them so they can see and feel the quality? Why does quality matter? Tell them what you think looks best, they’re likely to value a professional photographer’s opinion, especially if it makes the process easier.
We know it’s not always easy to sell albums, that’s why we like to give back and support photographers when we can. Take a look at our Studio Sample Rewards Programme to earn reward points.
Step 2: Take your clients on a journey. Tell your clients why they should want an album. Why is a physical documentation of their most important moments more meaningful than keeping their photos on their phone? What sort of memorabilia do they want to pass down to future generations? Will they still be able to access their digital photos in a few decades?
Step 3: Sell. Ask your clients to pick their favourite photos and use this to send them a proof of their album before ordering. We offer a free design service or you’d like a little more creative control, you can create the layout quickly and with ease yourself using our Folio Designer and send the proof directly to your clients through there.
Confidence is key.
Guess what? If people are paying you to take photos for them, then you’re a professional photographer. Embrace it, make it official, have you got a website yet? Does your website reflect your style and personality? What first impression do you want to give to potential clients? How do you want people to interpret your work? Are you regularly adding the images on your gallery and assessing your prices? And if there’s not a photo of yourself on there, get one uploaded, in order to get your brand going, you need to include an element of personal touch.
Work out what you charge, and don’t be afraid to increase it.
Does your pricing reflect your expertise, how long you were shooting for, and the hours you put into post-production, or does it reflect a combination of imposter syndrome, fear of prices being too high or comparison with other photographer’s prices? People will pay for your expertise, and we are all aware of the rising costs right now, so what good reason do you have for not increasing your prices? The more photographers that don’t increase their prices due to fear, the more photographers that are losing out on money and the lower the standard price for professional photography shoots will become. A carton of milk will keep increasing in price, so why shouldn’t your prices?
Check out our Album Price Calculator to help you decide what to charge when selling albums.
Join online communities (extra points if you can find some in person!).
Photography is such a rewarding industry to work in, but not so much if you isolate yourself. Meet and talk with other professional photographers. Online groups such as pages on Facebook or even Reddit can be great ways for people new to photography to learn off of your peers, discuss what’s working for them, what the community might be struggling with right now, and get inspired! We actually have our own Facebook Group you can join to connect with other photographers that we work with.
Know your audience, now what are you doing to reach them? You need to help your audience find you, and show them why they should want you. Check out our other articles about marketing to find some inspiration.
Want to learn more? Here’s some other articles you may find useful:
How to design a wedding album: a photographer’s guide
Fine art printing vs high street printing: why quality matters