This past week, I decided to invest in my fledgling business by committing to take (and hopefully pass!) the Certified Professional Photographer exam in January. It’s a big step for an infant-pro like myself, but I feel that it is an important step in setting myself apart from the masses of women who have a baby and then buy a DSLR and, ta-da!, call themselves a photographer. In short, I’m hoping to prove to myself, my peers, and most importantly, you, that I am truly a knowledgeable and talented professional. The exam has two parts and I’m equally excited and scared about both the written exam and the image submission approval exam. This step comes in part from my research into what the label “professional” really means to both myself and the photography industry as a whole.
I recently read an insightful article by Scott Bourne about what it is that he, as a professional photographer, is selling. He encourages those just starting out to re-think what it is we are selling, too, and I have to admit, he’s changed the way I’ve started thinking about my growing business. In his words: “I am selling my years of practice and training, the amortized cost of my business license, my employees salary, my salary, my taxes, my professional service and association fees, my insurance, my expertise, my skill and craftsmanship, my good reputation, access to my studio and my gear, my ability to relax a subject, get on common ground with them, make a photo that is flattering and which tells the client’s story, process, edit, re-touch, proof and print that photo, the packaging, presentation, and archiving of that image – to name just a few of the things I sell.”
In other words, he’s not just selling 8×10′s. There is a depth to his business that goes beyond the printed picture. He goes on to mention the word “commodity” when talking about pricing and prints. Wikipedia defines commodity as “a good for which there is demand, but which is supplied without qualitative differentiation across a market. It is fungible, i.e. the same no matter who produces it.” and Mirriam-Webster as “a good or service whose wide availability typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (as brand name) other than price.” – Wow. I can see why he warns against falling into the trap of just “selling prints” — the custom photography industry as a whole takes a hit.
I don’t want to fall into that trap. That’s what department store portrait studios are for: prints (and that’s about it). I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with department store studios; it’s just not my business model. So with the above in mind, I have been re-thinking my approach to pricing. The most common email I get is “What are your prices?” ”How much are your prints?” ”What do you charge for a disk of images?” I know you want a good value – we all do. But I also want to offer you more than merely a straight-out-of-the-camera $1.99 8×10 that took 2 minutes to take. If that’s what you’re looking for, I recommend you head to the mall.
I want to create heirloom quality images of your family that future generations will look at with wonder as they contemplate the sheer love their ancestors had for each other. I want to capture your very best and your most sincere expressions. I want to get to know you and have that show in your images. I want to bring tears to your eyes when you see your proofs and leave you speechless. I want to remind you of how great you are; to give you unique artwork of your kids, your family, your memories … for you to share with your loved ones for the rest of time.
I am striving to provide the very best value I can possibly offer by continuing to expand my education, qualification, organization, and not become a commodity-driven business. With that in mind, new pricing will go into effect July 1st (pending I get enough kidless time this summer to pull everything together). I have not yet made my pricing public but I will have my new investment structure on the portfolio site on July 1, 2010. (Can you believe it’s almost July already?) I won’t say that I’m raising prices – or lowering them – but I am restructuring them.
As a side note, I have been working out of my living room for six months and finally feel the need to claim the toy room as my office, so I will be in a mess of moving soon! Yes, it will only be about 20 feet away, but the room will need to be painted first and the internet situation figured out as well as desk/shelves relocated. I desperately need to be able to close the door and take advantage of my husband having three to four weeks off as I gear up for family sessions this fall, which brings me to my closing thought: I am completely unbooked for this fall! — If you know you want family portraits for holiday cards or gifts or if you’re having a fall wedding or need some gorgeous senior photos, claim your date now! Just take a few seconds to fill out the interest form or call me at 512-553-5653. September and October will be here before you know it! I will be working through the end of November and closed for the month of December, so don’t wait too long!
