First things first, the main idea of the photo shoot at hand. The big picture. What do you want to photograph? The photographer becomes creative and draws out a plan. Creating the scene. Whether it be locking down the location or locations. Keep in mind that some are not free. If you are doing a studio photoshoot or outdoor photoshoot, are you needing to order props, backdrops, lighting, etc. All this “stuff” comes at a cost! Then you need a model to showcase your idea of the photoshoot. Sometimes it’s easy to find models, but not always. Sometimes you pay for ads to find your models. Or offer a free session to a client to find your models. This takes time and money.
After you have taken pictures of your scene with the model you need to advertise. It is usually about $5 per day, which in one week that’s $35. Once the client see’s this advertisement, whether it be on Facebook, Instagram, Google, or other search engines, they are then directed to a landing page, aka my website. This website showcases my work and all things about me, your photographer. This online website is a monthly expense to keep it all moving smoothly!
Then after the client see’s my ad, goes over to my website, the clients start rolling in. Some message on Facebook, some message on Instagram. It all depends on where they see my ad. Some call, email, or text. Sometimes it’s a ghost town for 3-4 weeks, or more. Sometimes there is no interest after going through all of these steps above.
When booking clients for the photoshoot, I send over the contract and an invoice which comes from a paid service called Square. This is a monthly bill that allows for invoices and contracts to be sent seamlessly to my clients. The client then pays the invoice and signs the contract. I wrap things up by saving the date in the Calendar for the client’s photoshoots.
The week before the photo shoot I try to message the client to remind them the photoshoot is coming up soon. Depending on if it's a staged mini session where the family already knows what their props and backgrounds will be, or if it's a family or senior session where the photoshoot is created towards the client’s needs and wants the day of. Depending on the photoshoot I like to send out a questionnaire to get a better idea on what the client is looking for. Senior sessions I like to find out if they are in a sport, love reading, skateboarding, etc. Then all of these are included, all of their hopes and dreams, what makes them who they are.
After the photoshoot I bring the camera home and place all the photos onto my computer. Then onto my editing software, Lightroom. Many photographers use this to edit and organize their photos. Lightroom is where all the magic happens, but this program is a monthly expense.
Then after hours of editing to make every photo perfect, I upload the photos to an online photo gallery for the client to view the images with my watermark across the photo. This photo gallery is another monthly expense. After they choose their favorites and the number of images they paid for in their photo package, I upload their images to their photo gallery where they can view their images, order prints, or download their images to their own devices.
This is where the real session ends. My usual time frame on sending the client their photo gallery is around 2 weeks. If I am booked out, it may be more like 3-4 weeks. Engagement photos and wedding day photos are more like 3-8 weeks out. So please plan accordingly!