These are just a few photos from a photo shoot of a couple who's wedding I am shooting in the Fall. We spent 5 min at my house shooting down by the lake and then they followed me in to town and we shot for 5 min at a loading dock around the corner from my favorite restaurant. I was not keeping track of the time but Garen set his stopwatch just to see how long it would take. Total time including travel was 32 min.
So, I set the stopwatch to see how long it would take to download, edit, color correct and crop the photos. Also I timed the retouching and artwork and out put a 20x24 on watercolor paper and then tore the edges to make it look cool. Total time after the photo session was 4 hrs and 18 min. Almost 5 hours total. Over one half of a normal work day for the average person.
I am giving all of these time details so that people can see just how much goes into making a piece of photographic art work. This photo session had the purpose of just making one print to hang at the wedding reception. Imagine the amount of time that will go into photographing the wedding and producing a wedding album that will knock peoples socks off.
Basically what I am saying is that if you really want something different. If you want quality. You have to hire a REAL PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER. The key word here is REAL. Not someone with a decent camera and a lot of time on there hands that will shoot some photos and burn them to a CD. It takes so much more to make something different.
The equipment used in the session was as follows:
1 Nikon D200 with 70-200 2.8VR lens. Lexar Compact flash card. 1 juiced up computer and monitor. Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop software. Epson 9800 printer and watercolor paper. Total value of equipment used was $ 10,500.00
Now I am not saying that the 4 photos in this post are just the best thing in the world of photography. It is just my style of photographing 2 people. What I am saying is that it takes a lot of time and equipment to produce the best results. That is why REAL photography is so expensive.
Does anyone have any comments ? If so PLEASE post them or e mail me.
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10 comments:
Thanks for the timing comments and equipment list. Good things to know! I am seeing that I should spend a little more time on the editing side ;)
On a side note... what do you think of textures?
Hey Kansas !
One of the reasons that it took a little longer on the editing is that I was monkeying around with various textures for that first image of them sitting on the loading dock.
I like textures and will be talking about them alot in the DVD that I am working on.
How is business ?
I loved your engagement shots...I wondered, with so many "soccer Mom's out there shooting with their "decent" cameras....what did you mean truly by "guerilla" marketing? I know marketing in this business is everything especially during these times where EVERYONE is now a "professional photographer?"
Guerilla marketing is anything that you can do to create an intrest or buzz about your work. The e mail I sent you. It costs me about 100 dollars a month to use the service Constant Contact. But , I can send as many e mails as I wish. I will not flood people, I send out about 1 e mail a month. To 4000 photographers. I invite them to my blog where they might read about my DVDs and buy one. Or refer another photographer. OR refer a customer when they might not be avalible for the job. PPA has a great confrence in Memphis at the end of July "Making More Money with Your Photography" it has a lot about unique marketing. If you can, check it out. Also, scroll down my blog. There is a great little thing about these composite 8x10s that I give away to event sites.
Guerilla marketing is anything that you can do to create an intrest or buzz about your work. The e mail I sent you. It costs me about 100 dollars a month to use the service Constant Contact. But , I can send as many e mails as I wish. I will not flood people, I send out about 1 e mail a month. To 4000 photographers. I invite them to my blog where they might read about my DVDs and buy one. Or refer another photographer. OR refer a customer when they might not be avalible for the job. PPA has a great confrence in Memphis at the end of July "Making More Money with Your Photography" it has a lot about unique marketing. If you can, check it out. Also, scroll down my blog. There is a great little thing about these composite 8x10s that I give away to event sites.
Hello Scott: The portraits look great. I live in McDonough, were the shots taken near the square?
Thanks,
David Makkers
Yes they were. Right behind Gritz.
What is amazing, if you people only knew what it really looks like behind those buildings. Its probably the last place you would pick to shoot a couple. But the pictures are great.
Scott, every time I visit your site I am impressed with your work. These engagement photographs are wonderful. I've been taking photos as a hobby for over twenty five years and have just started a small part-time photography business in Richmond Hill, Georgia. Like you I spent thousands of dollars on an Apple computer with lightroom and photoshop. Over the last year I have learned so much about photoshop but still am not able to produce photographs with the quality that you produce. Is there a photoshop course you could recommend? Is it possible to send you a photograph or two I've taken for you to critique? Thanks so much, Don. (dpallone@coastalnow.net)
Hey Donald,
You are more than welcome to send some photos. Send the untouched versions stright from the camera and I will do some things to them and send them back. If you like what I did, I will tell you how to do it. Use this service to send the files to me. www.mailbigfile.com it is super easy and FREE.
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