One question that clients often ask is “How many images are we going to get?” When you are starting out, you may also be wondering what is the proper amount of photos to release to your clients. Having worked with a lot of different photographers, everyone has their own final amount. Some may release all the unedited shot images to the client while also releasing a small set amount that have been edited and color corrected. Others may release only a set amount of edited and color corrected images to the client.
When thinking about the numbers, you must keep in mind the variables that come into play such as the amount of coverage hours, number of photographers shooting and amount of events covered. Obviously a three hour elopement wedding shoot will have significantly less images than a two-day Indian wedding celebration. Each event will have a different total to be released to your clients.
I have been working for other photographers for over the past five years. Within that time, I have been able to connect and work with a lot of other photographers in the Bay Area. I have worked both in the studio doing post-production editing and album design as well as second shooting for other photographers. The obvious end result of this is that I have seen and edited a lot of wedding photos. I would guess the total would be in the millions at this point. And while that number might make you dizzy to think, all those photos I’ve seen and edited are a valuable resource as a photographer.
I recently had the opportunity to catch up with friend and fellow photographer Suzy Clement, a San Francisco wedding photographer whose work has been featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, Town and Country Weddings and InStyle Weddings, to name a few. As the author of the recently released book Weddings: From Snapshots to Great Shots , Suzy writes about core shooting basics in a very accessible manner (if you are secretly tech-challenged, you’ll get this). For new photographers considering the wedding industry, this book is a great introduction to the fundamentals of photography within the context of a typical wedding day.
Easter is just around the corner and this is a great time of year to make some extra money running some holiday themed mini-sessions. Here’s some tips to get you started.
Mini-sessions are basically a taster of what you would normally offer in a full-blown session. They are designed to be quick and easy, with less time, less work and a lower cost for the client.
You know by now that networking is important right? It’s one of the best ways the best way to start your photography marketing, period. In the following video, I share the story of how a single networking event (and my first actually) led to our studio landing the job to photograph a major baseball player’s wedding. And that wedding led to us photographing another major baseball player’s wedding. Plus a bunch of other weddings actually.
Networking is the foundation of vendor relationships. It’s where you have the opportunity to meet and mingle, get to know people outside the hectic event day. Networking can be very powerful when done right. It’s why I want you to network for your own business. Attend events, talk to strangers and then follow up. So many great things are in store for your business, but YOU have to get out there and make it happen.
This is the story of how we made it happen-how we launched our wedding photography business. And how networking led to us meeting one of our favorite people in the industry who became one of our biggest fans and supporters. It completely changed the course of our career.
I promised another video soon, here it is. If you enjoy this video, I would LOVE for you to share it. I need that kind of positive reinforcement to keep doing more videos!
If you feel that your business would benefit from more bookings I encourage you to check out my latest ebook, Get Connected: How to Build Relationships to Drive Your Business. It’s only $29 right now, it’s a-step by-step guide to creating powerful vendor relationships that will lead directly to more bookings for your photography business. It’s packed with stories, case studies, examples, tips and as much goodness as I could pack in to 160 pages. From the feedback I’ve gotten, people who bought the guide last week have ALREADY gotten leads from implementing some of the strategies right away.
PhotoMint helps wedding photographers like you get results quickly and efficiently in all areas of your business. We teach photographers at every level how to increase profits, streamline studio operations and get more time for the things you love: shooting incredible images and spending time with those who are most important to you.
Everyone deserves to be successful doing what they love. What’s possible for you?
A guest post by 
, Suzy writes about core shooting basics in a very accessible manner (if you are secretly tech-challenged, you’ll get this). For new photographers considering the wedding industry, this book is a great introduction to the fundamentals of photography within the context of a typical wedding day.
