Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook "That process has two distinct stages—before and after the shoot. The first sells the booking, the second is the up-sell…" High-end photographers have been selling albums profitably for as long as we’ve been in business, but for many today it seems a lost art. Why? Obviously the world has changed — "shoot-and-share" and "just the files" are seductive ideas, and so is selling online. And who needs the hassle of getting people into the studio, playing nice, offering them bubbles and selling To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next  Download the eBook Be yourself. Everyone else is taken. Be yourself Heather and I have been friends with a particular couple since our kids were pre-schoolers, which is some time ago. She’s got progressive musical tastes. He likes Simon and Garfunkel. She’s been complaining for forty years about Neil Young’s whiny voice. He’s been complaining that Bob Dylan can’t sing at all. I don’t care. What would they know? Not everyone likes Neil’s voice, or Bob’s, or what they have to say, but everyone knows them, To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook "They’re proud of their family or their new baby. Proud of their farm, cars, horses, dogs. Proud of the party they put on for the wedding..." Pride — personal and professional We’re in the “love” business, yes, but we’re in the pride business too. Professional pride in your case, but with your clients it’s personal… They’re proud of their family or their new baby. Proud of their farm, cars, horses, dogs. Proud of the party they put on for the wedding — the location, the spread, To View More >>

Selling albums online is now common, and for very good reason. If you’re shooting destination or out-of-town weddings, chances are you’ll never see clients except on the big day. Even people who live on the other side of the city can face a big commute every time they come to see you. This becomes more of an issue the more successful you are, as people will be booking you as a result of referrals and your reputation—not because you’re handy and don’t charge too much! But selling online can be more difficult than in the studio. First, it’s harder to get people To View More >>

Ever since digital replaced film as the photographers’ tool of choice, there’s been a rapid rise in reported cases of Photographer’s Herd Instinct Disease (PHID). Like other herd behaviors (buffalo grazing, people drinking Kool-Aid®, etc.) the symptoms of PHID include needing to hang out with the rest of the herd, think the same thoughts and do the same things. PHID is viral and highly contagious, and affects wedding and portrait photographers in particular. Although often transmitted through direct photographer-to-photographer contact, recent studies suggest that software To View More >>

Written by: Cate Scaglione - Life As Fine Art “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”― Aristotle In addition to my portrait photography business I’m a brand consultant to businesses, big and small, all over the world. One could say I grew up in the luxury business. I’ve attributed most of my business practices to a keen understanding of how luxury brands work – and how their loyal followers feel about them. Large or small, from corporate enterprises to sole proprietorships, almost every business struggles with building a solid brand. What might To View More >>

"How much for that album?"If you ask us that, and you have an approved account, we're happy to tell you.But in 40+ years, while we’ve often offered guidance, we’ve never ever told customers how much they should charge.Well I'm going to be brave and make a suggestion. Then I'm going to ask youwhat you think. But first, some background... For decades many photographers charged really high prices for their products (albums, prints, framing etc). They did this to avoid asking a reasonable fee for theirservices. You can see why. Even our wealthiest acquaintances think photographers charge To View More >>

Last week I wrote about the latest David Jay hate war, and said that if a courtroom attorney asked whether I agreed with his Shoot and Share strategy - and demanded a Yes-No answer - I’d have to say, “Yes I do.” Why? Because social sharing is a reality whether we like it or not, because social sharing is a powerful new form of word of mouth, and because Shoot & Share is a big step up the social scale from Shoot & Burn. Also I don't like hate wars. But this is not a TV courtroom drama, so if you're thinking of building a career in social photography, we believe the typical Shoot and Share To View More >>

I wrote this post two years ago and for some reason never published it, but I think it makes some good points about simplicity and not confusing price and payoff. See what you think... We had an interesting email from a client who also deals with a certain other album company (shame on him – LOL). This company makes a big deal about simplicity … and quite right too. Anyway, he asked them if they'd consider introducing some - gulp - options, and to his frustration they said No. Now to be fair, over the years we've got better at saying No to things that compromise either the integrity of our To View More >>

Michael and Anna Costa have been touring the US over the past few months sharing their secrets at PUG conferences and events. We're their preferred album supplier so we designed an 18x12 Duo for them to take on tour. The objective was to demonstrate the value of differentiation: how great presentation can help you stand out and build your studio profile. So how did it go? We received this note from them: "I wanted to tell you the album is drop dead gorgeous. The hundreds of people that saw it absolutely loved it! It couldn't have got a better response.   "There’s just nothing quite like a Queensberry To View More >>