Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook I would not sabotage my long-term business in order to survive a panic attack or a short-term crisis. Panic attacks — we all have them “My bookings are down.” “I’ve gotta cut my prices.” “I’ve gotta slash my costs.” We all have anxiety attacks, so maybe this chapter’s for you. Anxiety is worrying in advance, worrying without a plan, psychological rather than rational. And the actions you take while you’ve got the cold sweats could affect your business for a long, long To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook There are so many reasons why the printed image matters, but long term accessibility to your most treasured photos is surely a deal breaker. Why printed images matter Back in the ’90s I remember walking back to our trade show booth behind two people from a neighbouring stand. They were into IT. As they approached our booth I heard one say to the other, “I feel sorry for these guys. How long can they last in the modern world?” It’s so long ago I feel like they must have been visionaries — how did they know To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook Social media platforms encourage you to feed them constantly. Fair enough, they have the audience. But you need to feed yourself!  You’re lucky Photographers are fortunate in that their work generates rivers of desirable online content. You need to avoid giving away the Crown Jewels, and you need your clients’ permission to share, but your photography is a wonderful online resource. The ideal Things aren’t always ideal in the real world, but nevertheless… — Real friends are better than Facebook friends. To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook Bad taste takes a while to show up, but as soon as it does it’s embarrassing. How to avoid it? Start by keeping it simple. If in doubt, leave it out. The half life of crap In her book The Mesh, Lisa Gansky talks about “the half life of crap” – about cheap manufactured products and how long they last. Or rather don’t last. Her point is that the half life of crap products is way too short. They get boring or they break. They end up at the back of your garage or as land fill. Our poor planet can’t afford To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook Competing on price is tough when what you’re selling is your time. Your business model is different Visa,MasterCard and Paypal make huge amounts by clipping a tiny percentage off every purchase we make. Lucky them. Microsoft and Adobe make a fortune by charging hundreds for something that costs them less than a dollar to produce. You’re not that lucky. You have to charge hundreds (or thousands) for something that nobody needs, and only a handful of people want. So … what do you do? How much? There are two questions To View More >>

In many markets Covid is likely to limit the size of weddings —  and therefore wedding photography — for some months yet. And with all the restrictions and uncertainty many weddings are likely to be postponed until next season. But there's an upside! Any 2020 weddings delayed until 2021 and 2022 could make those years busier than normal! Which will be a great "problem" to have, as long as you can cope with the extra work. What that means…  • This year albums will be very important as a way to maximise revenue and profit from wedding clients — both current To View More >>

Even with digital images and online galleries everywhere, the most impressive way to show off your work is with a printed portfolio. A printed book shows more than your photography skills. It expresses your design abilities, your taste in materials and your high standards as an artist. If you're thinking about creating your own portfolio, here are some ideas to get you started. They're not like wedding and portrait albums Sample albums normally mimic what you want to sell. They show prospective clients what to expect, and help them visualise their To View More >>

A small village right at the edge of the forest, with backyard doors almost always opened straight into the woods. It was there that Petr from NZICESCAPES IMAGES spent his childhood. It was an everyday playground that would have been a childhood dream. Being out there all the time seeded Petr's love for the outdoors. When he turned 18 he was gifted a camera from his parents – a Russian Zenith with black and white film in it. From then on Petr spent his days taking pictures of anything around him. It was those influences, combined with his urge to show To View More >>

After more than fifteen years in the business, UK photographer Simon Whitten of Firehorse Photography & Filming has covered more than 600 weddings on four continents. He's has been a friend of Queensberry for much of his career. Simon is strong-minded character who believes that the key to success is to find your own way and stand out from the crowd. "Don't follow the latest fads or fashions," he says, "or you will only ever be a follower, and always late to the party." We asked him a few questions about how that's reflected in his life and work… Simon's first To View More >>

Our support team deals with photographers all day, every day. We know how people struggle with technology. And we think the software that professionals use can be part of the problem… making things worse, not better. How does this make sense? - Hosting your images with one provider, but your website somewhere else. Creating customer websites with a third provider, and mobile apps with a fourth. Designing albums with a fifth, and proofing them with a sixth. Branding your blog images with a seventh, but actually blogging somewhere else again! Each time there's another piece of software to To View More >>