New Zealand

www.lester.co.nz

"What is important in the photographic industry is self-perception. The best thing you can do is to be confident in your ability to take good photos."

All photos © Lester de Vere

Lester, a past President of the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photographers, first picked up a camera at the age of 12. He had asked for a camera to record a family holiday to Westport (on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island), and was given a basic Kodak Instamatic. He vividly remembers the thrill he found in both creation and composition.

When he left school in 1985, he did the ATI photography course and in 1987 he purchased an existing studio on Auckland's North Shore from John Canning (who was moving to Adelaide). With the studio came 10 prebooked weddings and a marketing plan.

Lester considers himself predominantly a 'people photographer', although 20% of his business is commercially based. This work sees him shooting hotels throughout New Zealand and, more recently, in Bali.

He joined the NZIPP (then NZPPA) in 1988, and in 1989 was appointed to the Auckland Committee, of which he is still a member. He was Chairman of the Auckland Committee for the 1999-2000 term, and found himself as President for 2000-2001. Lester has received many different awards from the NZIPP over the years, culminating in his being named an Associate (ANZIPP).

Perhaps the greatest problem facing the industry at the moment, in Lester's view, is a lack of marketing and business skills. Setting up a company may seem relatively straightforward, but there is often little concept of how to operate a business successfully.

As to the opportunities ahead for the industry, Lester sees this as very simple - the ability to fulfil your client's emotional expectations. You are not just supplying a physical product, but rather your clients are purchasing an experience, a memory, and a permanent record. As he sees it, if you are able to meet your client's expectations, it's a total win-win situation. Your client is satisfied, and you are satisfied both emotionally and financially. Lester points out that the higher your expectations are from your client financially, the greater theirs will be of you - with regards to imagery, service, presentation and premises.

Another rather more topical opportunity is, of course, the expansion of digital usage and its resultant implications. It could involve incorporating digital imagery for your clients or supplying photos to them in some digital form. People are now very aware of what you are able to do with imaging - they know the lingo (they know what jpegs are and what file size means), so a professional photographer mustn't appear ignorant in this area. Lester believes that the digital supply of imagery will not replace the current supply of hard copy photographs, but rather work in conjunction with it - after all, most people have access to email and sending digital photos is now just another form of communication. Lester points out that although digital is very much in vogue at the moment, the impact will only get greater and greater, and the sooner people acclimatise to that - the better.