The business side of photography
Following on the previous post that photography is much more influential than text, here’s a quote that might be familiar to some:
In a world which is expanding day by day, literature is no longer enough . . . Our busy age does not always have time to read, but it always has time to look.
Those words are from French writer Theophile Gautier who was commenting on the power of visual arts including the new art of photography. The quote is from 1858.
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More proof about the importance and power of photography especially when it comes to corporate image, portraits and public relations:
Words are about information. Pictures are about emotion. Emotion equals power.
Print folks … like to believe that words matter still. But, mostly, they don’t.
The people who put together TV newscasts, as well as the best news photographers, have known this truism for a long time, but they’ve kept mostly quiet about it. Perhaps they don’t want to hurt the feelings of their colleagues, who still vainly cling to the belief that the written word can move hearts and minds. But the fact remains that for voters, for citizens, words don’t matter nearly as much as pictures do.
– from author Warren Kinsella
Some photo assignments can be challenging in one way or another. But a professional photographer should welcome such assignments as an opportunity to help build customer trust and enhance the photographer’s reputation.
Any corporate photographer can arrive, set-up, shoot a few business portraits and then deliver the finished photos a few days later. Hopefully, the customer receives a professional level of competence and quality but beyond that, the photographer didn’t really “prove” anything to the customer.
But if. . .
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When a car has a leaky tire, the problem is obvious and the solution is simple. The car owner could shop price to find the cheapest, reasonably competent “grease monkey” to make the repair. (Grease monkey is an uncomplimentary term for a low-end car mechanic.)
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Professional photographers are insured but amateurs are not. Why would you hire an amateur to do your corporate photography or commercial photography? How can your business afford such a risk?
Here’s one example, another example and another example that show why an insured photographer is important.
Professional photography is all about reducing customer risk. The risk of problems during the photo shoot, the risk of poor quality pictures, the risk of missing deadlines, the risk that the pictures won’t meet your needs and the risk of wasting your time and money.
Professional photographers are worth more than what they cost.
If you buy a cheap pair of shoes and they turn out to be uncomfortable, you stop wearing them. The money you paid for these shoes was wasted.
If you buy a more expensive pair of shoes and you enjoy wearing them, you’ll wear these shoes often. Over the life of the shoes, the additional money you paid, compared to the lower priced shoes, will be inconsequential becasue the value received is high.
Business portrait photography is a common offering from corporate photographers. Here in Toronto, business portraits can range from $50 to $1000. Even $2000 for a single portrait is not unheard of.
Why is there such a wide price range?
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From time to time, potential customers and photo students will ask, “What’s the day rate for a corporate photographer in Toronto?”, “What does the average Toronto commercial photographer charge?” or “What’s the standard hourly fee for business photography?”
The answer to all of those questions is the same: no such fee exists. There is no day rate, no half-day rate and no hourly fee.
It would be like calling a restaurant to ask, “What’s the going rate for a dinner?”
Does anyone ever ask a dentist, “What’s your hourly charge?”
Can you ask a shoe store clerk, “What’s the standard price for a pair of shoes?”
Professional photographers base their fee on how the pictures will be used, what’s involved in producing those pictures and the photographer’s talent, experience and overhead costs.
Since every job is different, there’s no one-size-fits-all price, no going rate, no standard hourly fee.
