There's a part inside us all that wishes we were getting paid or paid more for our photography work. However, it's often the case that there are some perfectly logical reasons why we're not. Here are some great examples of why you're not getting paid clients.
A few times every year, I sit back and look at the photos on my wall and magazines lying around at home that hold some of my stories and images and wish that I was working full-time as a photographer, or at least getting paid far more handsomely for the work I create. I wistfully daydream about traveling to far-off locales with cobalt blue waters, golden sands, and mesmerizing waves in order to photograph surfers for big-paying brands. Those visions are usually punctuated by my wife asking if I've taken the trash out or my daughters punching me in the gut for taking up too much lounge space, but the truth is, I never went full-time as a photographer mainly because I'm absolutely terrible at putting myself out there and asking people to pay me.
It's a very common reason cited by many immensely talented photographers and artists for not taking that giant leap of faith and cashing in on their creative talents. And that theme brings us to this great video by Laura BC, in which she outlines some of the reasons photographers aren't getting paying clients. I particularly liked the first reason, which was that you're simply not approaching enough people. As a general rule, business is a numbers game, and the more people who see your work and your talents, the more chance you have of getting paid. It's why advertising exists - more eyes on your product or service. As Laura says, simply sending out a handful of emails a week and waiting for the cash to roll in simply won't work. This is just one example she gives, but there are many more that are very helpful, so give the video a look and let me know your thoughts. What have been your biggest obstacles to getting paying clients?
2 Comments
So this is a video which confidently tells me I'm doing it all wrong - but then offers no advice on how to actually action any of my (many), failures.
For example, the bit where we need to put ourselves before more clients - and apparently this isn't done by emails, or I'm guessing phone calls. My markets are all in the commercial world where 30 years of experience tells me only a tiny % of potential commercial clients can be advertised to. (And the small % that can, find me on Google where I'm in the top 3 usually).
So given that this lovely lady is so wise, how do I advertise to a client base that doesn't respond to advertising? Does she realise that different markets require different strategies?
I had an assistant who told me the solution was to "get more clients." I'm surprised this video doesn't have a section entitled "you don't have enough clients because your client list s too small."
Gosh... it's getting easy to be an "expert" these days.
I like this but I have a different, unprofessional opinion. What makes you a better photographer is ignoring new gear and just using your camera. Learn its settings, go outside and take photos. Look at the photos, see what’s wrong, then adjust and take more. Learn your camera’s shortcuts and strengths. Set it up so you can quickly adjust lighting to match the time of day, the weather and the location. When you visualize what you’re trying to capture, understand the focal length (think screen size for your eyes), the aperture (what you want in focus) and then start taking photos. The first one is too dark or too bright? Spin dials and fix it. The rest is up to you. Unless you’re taking photos professionally, you can decide what makes a photo good or boring. You can decide what matters and if your camera was created after 2015, you won’t get anything significantly better by “upgrading”. You’ll get completely unnoticeable improvements, and if you’re lucky, a couple QOL interface upgrades.