What has prompted this post is a news letter I received from one of the nations top wedding photographers, David Ziser from Cincinnati, OH. I've had the good fortune to study under him about one and a half years ago there in Cincinnati. Some of the photos I took during that training can be found in our gallery. In this news letter David was talking about a "guest blogger" article he was invited to write in one of the leading photography blogs about the state of the wedding photography business. What he had to say was very enlightening but also a little frightening as well. Why? Well what I heard him saying was that because of the development of the digital photography age, the economy, and yes the failure of the professional photographer to make adjustment to match the changes in the industry, the door has been left open for a stampede of new "photographers" entering into the market place. Now here's the scary part. The largest percentage of the "stampede" is made up of people who, because of the digital market, have gone out and purchased a "good camera" and, because of the technology built into those cameras, are take pictures that are exposed well and are in focus. In short, they have taken some nice photographs with their camera and, viola, they are now a photographer. And to encourage that thought, most of the dictionaries have changed the definition of the word photographer to one who takes pictures. Well I can change a flat tire, a burned out headlight, the oil in my car, and put gas in it. Got a Lamborghini you would like me to do some work on? The fact is this, yes, there are a lot of people out there that can take a decent looking photograph and because they are not solely depending on that to pay the bills and put food on the table they can offer their services for very little money. They may even be a friend of yours who you have looked at the photographs they have taken and they look great. Well that's similar to the changing a flat tire thing. There is just a little more to it than that.
A number of years ago, a family I know needed to have some wall papering done in their home. Some how they were told about a guy who could do the work at a real good price. While this was something he could do, it wasn't his main source of income if you know what I mean. Well this family got such a good deal that they had him do almost every room in the house. When he was done the family noted that the job had a few faux pas in the quality but the walls had nice looking paper on them and they got a good deal and besides they weren't that noticeable anyway. Well I was in that home just recently and guess what? There wasn't a room that didn't have major problems going on with the wall paper. Seams were separating and peeling off the wall. I'm not talking just in a few spots either, it was almost everywhere! They are not happy and the good deal isn't quite cutting it any more! I heard a story once where someone called a contractor of some kind and said to them that they want something done good, fast, and cheap. The contractor told them to pick two of those and then call him back! Well folks, here is the truly funny part of this story and it ain't no joke either. I use to be married to a lady who along with her mother was one of the best if not the best paper hangers in the Kansas City area. Top contractors call them for all their paper hanging work cause there was no compromising from them. They only use the highest quality material and when they hung the paper it stayed hung. To get it off the wall the first step was to rent a jack hammer. Seams? What seams? Saying seams to one of them was like saying "bump" to a low rider or "cops" to a thief. When they got done there were no visible seams anywhere. Maybe they were the exception but I don't think so. They took pride in their work and every job was a billboard advertisement. They never had to advertise because they were never without jobs scheduled way in advance. So much so that they finally got burnt out cause they just couldn't let their contracting friends down. This family with the falling wall paper wish they had known them. In short the good deal has mutated into another kind of good deal as in a good deal of problems and headaches.
So how does this relate to your wedding photographs? A lot more closely than you might think. Just because someone has a "good camera" and can take a well exposed, in focus photograph and is offering a "good deal" on their work isn't the whole story. The paper hanger had good tools and used pretty paper with the right type of glue but that wasn't enough in the long term. At first the family though he had done a good job. Compared to what? Just as in wedding photography you don't have anyone or anything else to compare it to and once the job is done, it's done. If the job has a few faux pas it's a little late to change it. And then there is the resulting product you're left with. Will it last? Yes there is a good chance that something will happen and you could have your photographs fall off your memory wall. Unlike the family with the wall paper problem who think they can glue the worst parts back with a little super glue, when photographs peel off they can't be fixed. Law suits have happened more than once involving "wedding photographers" with a "good camera" and disappointed brides. I'm not talking about artistic interpretation or the bride just didn't like many of the photographs she got, either. It was much more to the skill of the photographer that was the issue. My company is very careful about who we use for work on the studio side of the business. We work with those who are interested in learning more and doing more in photography then just taking pictures. We have them sign no compete clauses when they come to work for us. At first it was because we don't want to train our competition but that has changes somewhat after a few interviews we had. One applicant was interested in our training program. They had been taking wedding photographs for numerous weddings over the past couple of years and their references told us that she was a "great photographer" and would take great picture for us and we would be well advised to hire her. Thinking that she had a good working knowledge of the basics at the very least I began giving her an idea of the basic skills that we would most like jump over for her but I quickly realize that everything I was saying to her I might as well had been speaking in Greek. She didn't go to work for us because she was afraid that she would not be able to continue doing weddings and she was right. Because of this and others we now have and additional reason for the no compete clause be signed.
Many of those individuals who are out there doing wedding photography to make some extra money are doing so by doing little more than take a couple of hundred photographs and down loading those photograph many times unedited onto a standard CD or DVD disk. Then they get your $250 to $500, give you the disk, and say thanks and goodbye. You are generally left with the task of going somewhere and having your photographs printed but in many cases that little task is put off. Besides if you ever want to look at them all you have to do is plug it into the old computer and viola (I like that word if you haven't noticed). Here's a bit of homework for you. Search out information about how long information such as photographs stays on standard disks. If you think that you can wait to view your wedding memories say on your 10th anniversary you might find those photographs are only a memory. Ok, so you'll get those pictures saved on your hard drive. Might want to think that over because that hasn't worked out for some folks. Ok, you'll get all of them printed. So you go to one of the more popular cheap places to get them printed, all two hundred of them. So now you have a little chunk of change wrapped up but you got such a good deal on the photographer you can splurge. Remember the paper hanger? Did the whole house right? How will you store that many photographs. In one of those cheap sticky back albums or a shoe box? Have a relative that did that. Wedding was about 5 or 6 years ago and you guessed it, can't find a one of them. But let's say you're good and you keep good track of them. Are they coated? Yes, coated like as in UV and water resistant coating. If they aren't than they are vulnerable to the environment. Oily fingers, acids, light, moisture, and a host of other things that conspire to destroy your memories. Ever looked at a faded picture and wonder what it was taken of? One thing is clear and that is the photograph is not doing the job it was intended to do.
Let's face some reality here. The economy, high unemployment, and reasonably price cameras and ease by which those images can be saved and viewed is making weekend photography a tempting quick money maker for a lot of unexperienced people. I don't believe they want to do any harm, they are just like everybody else who needs or wants a few extra dollars. In fact, many of them will tell you that they think they are doing a great service for those who are getting married, graduating from school, or wanting memories of special events. They would say that in this day and age the prices that the pro photographers are wanting are so high that the regular Joe and Jane can't afford them and in many respects it's a valid point. Some photographers coming out of the film era failed to see the need to adjust the pricing. Before when a photographer would shot a wedding it wasn't out of the question for them to shot between 40 to around 400 rolls of film just for one wedding. They had to have equipment to make sure they were getting the picture right "in the can" because until they had the film developed they didn't know if the shot turned out right or not. So they had to get proofs or contact sheets made so they could go to the newly weds for them to choose and decide how they want those pictures to be edited. Then those were sent back in to the photo labs who would then make the editing changes and process the final photographs. Talk about costly, some of the film was roughly $4 or more per roll and to get the photos edited and developed could be nearly $1000 by some reports I've heard. That was just the cost to the wedding photographer not including their equipment which was really expensive! Then if you wanted those photographs in a wedding album, well let's just say that really went to a whole new level of effort, time, and cost. Any wonder there wasn't that many wedding photographers 20 or more years ago. But that's just it, a lot of people out there in the real world think that it was the expense and the time putting all those photographs in order that made the need for the pro photographer instead of just having someone take pictures with their Polaroid camera. Don't get me wrong because I do know that back then people recognized that a photographer had to have a lot of knowledge to do what they did. But that has been forgotten as of late because todays cameras have built in computers which make taking a descent picture in the automatic settings almost goof proof. Goof proof that is as far as good exposure and focusing is concerned. As a result I think that there has been other factors that has also been forgotten, skill, creativity, craftsman/workmanship to name but a few. The true professional photographer practices their skill and takes pride in the work they do in a profession they love. Photography is there main focus (no pun intended), their principle job that they work at daily to improve their skills. They don't do this for weekend beer money or to add to their vacation fund. It's not a hobby or a sideline. Sure the pro photographer makes a living doing it but they realize that they need to also be concerned about the customers need if they want to continue in their profession. The weekend photographer doesn't have those worries to that same degree.
In Davids' article he made it clear that the pro photographer needs to reevaluate there business. First we have to show to the public at large that there is more to having quality photography done than just getting the picture in focus and descent exposure. For the consumer there is to much at stake and to great a chance for losing those precious and irreplaceable memories. We have made it look too easy and the skills needed are so invisible that like a lot of things there is this thought that anyone can do it. Ever listen to someone talk about how poor of job a sports figure or team did during a game implying they could have done better? Ever listen to someone criticize a decision someone made in a high pressure situation or a player on a game show not able to solve an easy puzzle? When a professional of anything does their magic it will look almost effortless, that's why their pros. When everything is going right and not complicated such as changing the battery or oil in your car, than a lot of people can handle that. You might be able to change a flat tire but have you ever tried to put a new tire on a wheel hub and balance it? How good are you at replacing brake pads or replacing a tie rod? There are a lot of people out there who can work on cars very well and not mechanics, but there's a lot more who think they're mechanics and really not someone you would want to work on your car. Same holds true in photography. There is a wide range of skill levels out there and unfortunately a consumer doesn't know how to identify the level of skills that each potential photographer is at with the exception of looking at a few sample photos out of there vast collection and the price. Maybe one thing to consider is whether they do this as a sideline or full time. Think about it. If you need a doctor do you want one who lives, eats, and breaths being a doctor or one who does it only on weekends?
The next thing that pro photographers need to do is make there service affordable and more in line with the digital age environment. Like our studio, many pros are already doing this. In fact, many are providing more value and services than the weekenders and at nearly the same or better pricing. Let me ask you if you had the choice between a new bicycle or a new car for the same or reasonably close price, which one would you choose? Let me just say that if you are settling on a few hundred photographs taken of you wedding and delivered to you on a standard CD or DVD especially unedited photographs and little if any future options for around $300 to $500 you just might being missing out on something a lot better. Surely it's worth the checking out as most consultations are free. Just how important is your event? Is it worth remembering? If so you just might give this post some consideration. Not only that, but many photographers are now making it possible for you to get "more bang for your buck" due to the extras that those other guy can't or won't do. There's a lot of time and effort that still goes unnoticed and unseen in the world of wedding photography starting with the first consultation meeting. Don't gamble on the thought that none of those will matter at the end of the day. Don't forget the wall paper!
At the end of the day what really matters is you and the quality of service you receive. More and more the cost factor is becoming less of an issue but a new issue is slowing coming into focus (again, no pun intended, just trying to EXPOSE something). The true down side of those weekend non pros is starting to be understood and the changes in the service and value of the pros are starting to be recognized. The non pros may be your friend or a friends friend but your memories are important. Would you trust your friend to do surgery on you simply because they have a knife and a bandage and read a book called "surgery for dummies"? I would hope not. Don't get me wrong. Pro photographers don't walk on water or at least most don't. They are no different from other pros in different fields like the mechanic who bangs up their knuckles or makes some other faux pas. Maybe it's better seen this way. In bowling I doubt that there is very many people who have gone bowling and haven't gotten a strike (knock all ten of the pins down for you who don't know the game) and most likely even picked up a spare. The professional bowler gets more strikes than the occasional bowler but when the pro doesn't get a strike they pick up more spares then the non pro as well. What's the difference between them? Both do basically the same thing, right? The results in the score would suggest that something is different. How about skill, knowledge, and practice, practice, practice! Subtle differences, some not even seen, with a big difference in the results.
I believe you have come to the conclusion that there is probably a lot that you haven't realized about this subject. Hey, the closest that I get to being an expert is being a "has been drip under pressure". But I haven't forgot that the more you learn the less you know, so you'll never learn it all. That doesn't mean you should be content with where you are and not keep striving to push the envelope. Knowledge is power and you need to use it to your advantage in making your life both in the future as well as those memories as time goes by the best you can make them. I know that this post has been extremely long (I haven't covered everything so it could have been much longer) but I wanted you to be aware and have the opportunity to avoid your own wall paper good deal event. So with that I guess I'll peel and separate.
If you have any questions or if we can help you with your photographic needs, contact us. We have new package pricing for weddings, school and senior photos, as well as organizational services available, which will all soon be update on our website. Have a great day everybody!
Richard
