Setting up small photography business

Percy1983

sugarwalsh wrote: »

Hi bigtel,
Firstly I would like to say good luck with your venture. It's a very tough market to be in - I know lots and lots of very good photographers and it's an extremely busy marketplace.
One of the photographers I know recently posted this article she found about making sure you are not undervalued. I hope it makes interesting reading for you.
http://www.elizabethhalford.com/personal/feeling-unappreciated-for-your-skills-youre-in-good-company/

I wish you well in your business - don't underestimate your skills, equally don't over estimate, there are far too many 'I own a nice camera' type photographers out there. The ones who I really rate are those who LOVE their craft, spend a lot of time making sure they are fully trained, insured, have great equipment and are good at putting their subjects at ease. I hope you have all of those in spades!
Megan

I have to agree with this, there is so many people who just think they are good as they bought a camera for a £1000 and took a few nice pictures.

I have consistently out performed these types with much lessor equipment, I remember challenging a friend who had a £500 dslr with my £80 bridge camera and everybody agreed my pictures where massively better.

I suppose equipment can't make up for lack of talent.

I know in other cases when looking through a friends wedding pictures and could tell the camera was in auto the whole time and likewise a few pictures could have done with a touch up ( levels, highlights etc).

As said I don't have the best of equipment but I know how to use it all to the maximum, if like me you are also like this then the first half the battle is won, the biggest problem is trying to get people to pick you over and above these other 'professionals'.

I suppose the market is so saturated as people think all you have to do is buy a camera, I will admit I have had no formal training but I have been working at it for years before I considered selling a product (much like you seem to be doing).

By the way if you want a website send me pm, I may be able to help you out.

bigtel_2

We sound very similar!

I just got back from honeymoon and wanted people with dslr's to take photos of me and my wife when needed as I thought they would know how to compose etc. I think out of 10 separate attempts we got one acceptable photo and 80% of people with mid range dslrs had there's on auto when they asked me to do the same.


My dslr is just a beginners (d3100). I want to get the best out of this first and master it before moving on cause the added bonus of going full frame can only help but like you say having 'the eye' is 90% of the battle than having a decent camera.

I guess I am quite critical of my work as well. I'm not afraid to say this isn't working let's change it and when I've looked back at past work I have been disappointed with some of it yet at the time I thought it was ok.

Thanks for the website idea I'll let you know. My brother who is a graphic designer is doing my branding and mentioned websites etc.

Thanks again.

Percy1983

It seems our similarities have ended I am a canon man :rotfl:

As it is I am using a similar camera if not slightly worse the 1000d, interesting you say about full frame, my next planned camera is the 7d which is also a crop sensor, the 1000d will then become the secondary/emergency camera.

I do find it funny when I spot the auto setting being used, I don't use anything but manual these days.

Got a video you will enjoy if you haven't seen it already:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LApO_BDRE8M

I guess you see these things quite often too.

paddyrg

The guys above, I agree it is all about skill, barely about camera choice. I sometimes work in the movie industry and part of that is counselling aspiring filmmakers who believe their project is perfect and ready to go, of only they could afford a £x0,000 camera rig!

Fact is any camera or lenses you can buy now will outperform prey much any of the kit people made classic movies on. Any stills camera now is technically moor capable than anything Bailey ever touched in the 60's. The kit isn't the limiting factor, it's the skill.

I always remind the aspiring directors that '28 days later', a modern zombie masterpiece by Danny Boyle, was shot on miniDV (an extinct consumer tape format). That wins arguments

Percy1983

paddyrg wrote: »

The guys above, I agree it is all about skill, barely about camera choice. I sometimes work in the movie industry and part of that is counselling aspiring filmmakers who believe their project is perfect and ready to go, of only they could afford a £x0,000 camera rig!

Fact is any camera or lenses you can buy now will outperform prey much any of the kit people made classic movies on. Any stills camera now is technically moor capable than anything Bailey ever touched in the 60's. The kit isn't the limiting factor, it's the skill.

I always remind the aspiring directors that '28 days later', a modern zombie masterpiece by Danny Boyle, was shot on miniDV (an extinct consumer tape format). That wins arguments

I will say my video business uses cameras better than those used in 28 days later but I don't think I could beat that film, another good example is crank what was filmed using rather cheap equipment.

What does upset me slightly is when I see one of the said auto muppets with a camera much more expensive than mine, knowing my lessor camera is working at the limits of all parameters to which a better camera would be useful at times, meanwhile here is said better camera clicking away on auto never realising its full potential.

paddyrg

Absolutely, I have a DSLR which'll technically smash anything DV for video - the camera certainly isn't the limiting factor.

Last feature we shot was on the Arri Alexa - splendid camera in every respect, but the quality of consumer kit is dazzling these days...if only people knew how to use it ;-)

Lenses are better now than ever, glass is optically purer/higher transmission than any time in history and even some of the plastic lenses that come with the camera kits are remarkable quality for the weight/price. Some people though still spend well in excess of their skill level. Funnily, brighter optics and lenses can create problems for amateurs - they want that 'film-like' look with narrow depth of field, but that look was a limitation of the lenses in the first place. It means the fast lens gets stopped down with ND to open up the iris for 'the look'!

Pinkypants

Who's needs an slr?

It's how you use it that counts.

http://jerryghionisblog.com/2012/05/the-wedding-of-josh-amber-select-shots-taken-with-the-iphone.html