does being paid ever make you nervous?

Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM for Canon

01/06/2008 11:24:42 AM · #1

Lately as my prices for headshots have gone up to an amount which is very reasonable for students, but still a bit of an investment, I have been getting really nervous about my photos. I am scared they won't print well or won't be good enough or make the customer happy but be shunned by their agents or something. Lately my clients have been printing their pictures at walmart a lot...and walmart just isn't good with color shots, they make them look all nasty. I am going to test out other services to see what does best so I can recommend that, but how can I be sure they they are consistent when I am using a not so wonderful laptop monitor to edit my shots....

GAH! It is so much easier to do it for free and if they don't work out just say hey....price was right....

:(

inshaala

Canon EOS-7D

01/06/2008 11:27:09 AM · #2

Buy a printer for complete control of your outputted shots i would say. I havent got one myself but would if i were in your position. If you are charging for shots i'm sure you can get a decent printer which you could pay for from income.

01/06/2008 11:29:30 AM · #3

I am just not in a place where I have the time or the money to do that though, because for headshots it would have to be a REALLY good printer...plus with headshots people can need up to 50-100 printouts of the same shot, I just don't have the time to be doing that for them

edit: there is a printer available at my school where you can print for a dollar a page, i am going to test that out and see how it handles my stuff, I also plan on proofing my shots on several different monitors....

still makes me nervous :(

Message edited by author 2008-01-06 11:31:08.

hanneke

01/06/2008 11:32:08 AM · #4

how are they able to print themselves?

just don't give them the full-res-files, and make them pay for extra prints (at a photolab!). that way you're in total control of the end-results :)

as for the nerves: I think it's pretty normal. people are expecting things now because you ask money, and you're expecting to be able to give quality too (and you CAN!).

it's a fase, you'll get over it soon, really!

Message edited by author 2008-01-06 11:32:32.

01/06/2008 11:35:48 AM · #5

Yeah I could do that but again with the time it is just so much easier to give them a cd with the photos and have them print it that way, plus that is what is most affordable for many of the students who come to me. I will probably switch to a plan like that eventually, but even if i use a lab and make them pay extra the problem of color balance and stuff is still there

Prof_Fate

01/06/2008 11:41:54 AM · #6

If you're charging for your work, and want more work, then quality matters. Go find a pro lab and have all your prints made there.

I laughed once when someone who used costco bragged that 'they calibrate their printer every week!'. My lab does it every day, every time they change the paper, and anytime there is a power outage.

There are many many good labs out there, and the cost to you is usually less than walmart or other consumer labs. mpix is a consumer lab, but owned my millers, and very good. abcphoto is also consumer/pro and consistent.
Other good choices - millers, H&Hcolor lab, profilmet.com, whcc, apollo photo.

PM sent.

Yeah, as your price goes up you begin to wonder what people see in your work, and your stress level rises (at least mine does). Higher client expectations often come with the higher prices, so you feel the pressure to produce better work. I think it's all in your mind. If you can put out consistent work then you'll be fine. At least i keep telling myself that!

hanneke

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

01/06/2008 11:41:54 AM · #7

I think then you should consider "what do I want"?

This way isn't working for you, but the other way isn't either.

Make a plan..

PGerst

Canon EOS-20D

01/06/2008 11:42:05 AM · #8

If you give them a CD, you can watermark the photos with PROOF. Its a little annoying on the receiving end, but you can justify it by saying that its for color control.

The alternative, is to use a hosting site for your photos and have your clients purchase off of there. Color control is generally excellent on your end, as long as you keep in the sRGB colorspace.

Digibug is a free one, and their prints are excellent. The color that came back matched my monitor almost exactly.
You can adjust the prices to something reasonable for your clients, then, start bumping up the price once you get more people.

There are others, but I'll leave it to others to suggest sites they have experience with.

Message edited by author 2008-01-06 11:42:59.

dwterry

Canon EOS-1D Mark III

01/06/2008 11:43:15 AM · #9

I get a lot of customers asking for CDs (in addition to the prints I do for them). I sell them a CD. But then I downsize the images to 1200x1800 and give them a "print permission" form specifically stating that these images are to be printed no larger than 4x6" and that for anything larger they need to come to me.

My main reason for doing this is because, when they print something larger, chances are they will be displaying it somewhere and I want to be sure of the quality of the print that they display. The 4x6s may sit in a shoebox somewhere, and I'm okay if the quality of those images is bad. But the images that they are going to show to friends and say "See, this is what David Terry did for me", I want to truly be representative of what I do.

So take control. Don't let them print the images themselves. Find a local shop... I used to use Inkley's (Ritz Camera) all the time because they were just minutes away and I could send the print job over the internet and then run over and pick up the images in an hour (but first and foremost, I liked their print quality). There are probably more "pro" shops in your area. Or you could go with something like smugmug and order over the internet. But don't just let them print your images, you're losing control of your quality, and you're losing out on potential income as well.

If you go the route of getting your own printer, I really like my Epson 3800. I use it a lot and only rarely have someone print my images for me now. It'll print up to 16x24" with beautiful quality and long lasting prints (archival inks lasting 100 years - but even at that, I still spray mine).

As for nerves... yeah, I still worry! Until they spend $500 on prints and then I go "Wow, they must have really liked them".

You do SUPER good work! I can't imagine anyone being dissatisfied with your headshots. Hang in there. The more you do it, the more comfortable you'll feel. (well, that's the story I keep telling myself)

Jedusi

01/06/2008 11:45:46 AM · #10

I'm with

biteme, don't hand over the images. Also I don't think buying a printer is a way forward - it's simply extra expense and time when you could be taking pictures.

How about standing this on it's head and saying that you won't charge for taking the photo's - but they can only buy the images through you ?

Then you simply find a local (or online) lab you like and add a mark-up to whatever they charge - job done.

hanneke

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II

01/06/2008 11:49:13 AM · #11

Originally posted by dwterry:

Thanks for that advise. Right now I'm dealing with the same situation and I've been wondering how to do that.

EducatedSavage

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

01/06/2008 06:32:41 PM · #12

I'm definitely not a pro and not at your level, but, to answer your question - being paid would TOTALLY freak me out! I have a friend who has been getting paid assignments and I've been helping her out with editing and retouch (I think it's fun) and she actually kicked me some money for it and it TOTALLY freaked me out! If I'd have known that there was money on the line before editing, I'm not sure I could have gotten it right at all!

Apple iPhone 5

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 ED

01/06/2008 06:52:04 PM · #13

If the customer isn't happy then they'll probably complain. The trick is to keep a level head if someone is complaining. Learn how to respond properly and in a calm way and you'd be surprised at the outcome. In fact, if you respond correctly to an unhappy customer more than likely they'll go and tell other people how great you were.

It's the first few ones which are unnerving. But after a while you'll realise that unhappy customers aren't that bad after all. :)

Sunshine86

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4.0L USM

01/06/2008 10:25:10 PM · #14

Claire
I know exactly how you feel. The best thing you can do is to be confident in yourself and your abilities. Your clients have came to you for a reason, and that is they like your work. I agree with everyone else, it will pay off if you handle the printing side yourself... find a professional lab that works for you or take advantage of the many online sites the offer high quality prints and good prices.

One thing I would warn against is providing your full RES images to them on a CD. I have done this myself for the same reasons that you outlined... but I am am in the process of eliminating that as an option. My worry is that some clients, especially younger clients may have friends that are "photoshop pros"... once they get a full res file in their hands your work is open to be manipulated... possibly to your detriment.

Plus, as you establish yourself more and more a good chunk of your profit can be with your markup off prints.

I had a client today tell me that the "norm" is that he would get all the high resolution images on a CD. !!

I have read David's advice previously about providing smaller resolution images on a CD for sale for clients and I think that is a great advice... something I plan on doing myself.

Message edited by author 2008-01-06 22:26:33.

taterbug

Nikon D300

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D

01/06/2008 10:54:16 PM · #15

Claire, it seems the overwhelming majority here are giving the same general consensus, and I will agree! :-)
A couple things to add to it all- think about it, they are still paying for their prints even if you've given them a disc. No reason to think it is putting them out at all to pay you instead of walmart, and in fact, you're probably doing them a favor by ensuring they get top quality.

As people here have mentioned, especially at that quantity of prints, there are good labs that you can probably get pretty decent rates. If you charge them for the shoots, you can, if you desire still keep their price for prints through you at or close to your cost.

Something I've seen some studios at least around here do is, include credit for prints as part of their shot fees. For example, they may charge like $400 for a 2 hr shoot, with $200 print credit, or things like that.

Anyways, yeah, you're in a phase where it is getting kinda scary, but,...I'm really glad to hear that you are adjusting your pricing up. Your work is awesome and well worth it! Your work is great, and you are being smart, and still keeping your clients welfare in mind, I'm sure you're still going to have people lining up to have you shoot them!

idnic

Canon EOS-60D

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM

01/06/2008 11:03:50 PM · #16

You let your clients print at Walmart? I'd be nervous too. There is some good advice above. Hon, you have to control the product. Why would you shoot pro images and then print superstore prints? You shoot, you print, you sell. There is a very good reason why pro printers charge more than Wal-mart..... quality and consistency. Its your reputation..........

geoffb

01/06/2008 11:13:12 PM · #17

Originally posted by Prof_Fate:

I laughed once when someone who used costco bragged that 'they calibrate their printer every week!'. My lab does it every day, every time they change the paper, and anytime there is a power outage.

In their defense, they actually re-calibrate every day, too.