Yesterday I had someone ask me how long a typical photo shoot lasts. Since my main focus is infant portraiture I used that as my example and answered "A minimum of and hour and a half, but I've had shoots that lasted four hours." They were surprised at my answer and told me "I wouldn't be happy if a photographer was in my house for four hours." I was a little taken aback and it got me thinking about what it is I do as a portrait photographer.
A lot of people I have conversations with are used to going to the big box portrait studio at the local mall once or twice a year for family photos. They may have also had a photographer from a large company come to them at the hospital or at home after having their baby to photograph their newborn. They are familiar with the concept of walking into a busy studio, with a variety of props and backgrounds and then sitting for ten to twenty minutes of shooting resulting in a dozen or so images to choose from. It's quick, easy, impersonal and I'd like to say it's inexpensive but that's not always the case nowadays. This is not what I do.
I don't work in a studio, in fact in most cases I don't even use lights, I don't have props and I definitely don't want the experience of working with me to be impersonal. When someone books a sitting with me there is a considerable investment made on both our parts. Not only in terms of money, but also in time and effort. From my side I am taking the time to drive to my clients home, sometimes a fair distance away. Once I am finished shooting I take the time to edit the resulting images to a level that I feel satisfied with and when a client places a order I go back and optimize their images so that I know they will look as good as they possibly can when those images are printed. All of this takes time, more time than most people realize. I only book one sitting per day so that I know I have the time set aside should I feel I need it. I don't always need four hours, but I'd hate to be looking at my watch every few minutes and then tell someone I have to leave when I know I haven't 'got' everything I could have. I wouldn't be doing the job I've set out to do to the best of my ability.
When I arrive at someone's home I understand that they are making a considerable leap of faith by letting me into their lives, their homes and their personal space. They are putting their trust in me not only as a photographer but also as a person. This is why I believe that it is so important that potential clients consider not only whether or not they like a particular photographer's work but also if they feel comfortable with the photographer as an individual. When you are sitting in a studio for fifteen minutes being photographed by someone who may not even know your name, it's not all that important to know whether or not you'll get along with the photographer. What's most important is that they take a flattering photo of you and your family.
When you invite a photographer into your home, to spend an extended amount of time with you in your personal space it's not an insignificant thing. I feel quite honoured that clients put their trust in me in such a way. When I'm at someone's home for a shoot, I have the privilidge of becoming an honorary family member for the day. I'm becoming a part of their history, telling their story, living their life alongside them for the express purpose of telling that story to others through my photographs. If a client is not comfortable enough around me to relax in front of the camera, if they're ill at ease having me wandering though various rooms in their home looking for the best light and settings, if conversation doesn't come easily and they feel they can't open up and chat in breaks between shooting then I won't be able to do my job and in the end my clients won't be happy with the images I have captured.
My job, as I see it, is not just to capture an accurate representation of what a client's child look like on the particular day I am with them. Yes it's important that I capture images that represent them in a flattering way but more important to the experience I am trying to provide is that I capture the essence of who they are as an individual, what makes them special and unique . When a mother sees the proofs from her infant's portrait sitting and says to me "That's totally Ethan!", when they laugh at an expression or notice a particular gesture or in some cases get a little teary-eyed, I know I've done my job. I was able to capture those little personal nuances that only a parent would recognize and that makes me feel a great deal of satisfaction. Baby's grow and change so fast that gestures, expressions and habits that seem commonplace to parents when they are happening change and evolve or are left behind as the child gets older. When I am able to capture these moments for people I am also giving them a way to look back years down the road and say "I'd forgotten about that" or "Remember when they used to do that?".
In the end what I do as a photographer is more about expressing who my client is, not just what they look like. Yes, the investment can be significant but the end product of our collaboration can be even more significant. I certainly want that to be the case. What you get out of the experience is directly related to what you put into it, this is true on both our parts. If a potential client shares my vision then there's a good chance we'll be a good fit and what we create will be well worth the time spent, however long that may be.
A lot of people I have conversations with are used to going to the big box portrait studio at the local mall once or twice a year for family photos. They may have also had a photographer from a large company come to them at the hospital or at home after having their baby to photograph their newborn. They are familiar with the concept of walking into a busy studio, with a variety of props and backgrounds and then sitting for ten to twenty minutes of shooting resulting in a dozen or so images to choose from. It's quick, easy, impersonal and I'd like to say it's inexpensive but that's not always the case nowadays. This is not what I do.
I don't work in a studio, in fact in most cases I don't even use lights, I don't have props and I definitely don't want the experience of working with me to be impersonal. When someone books a sitting with me there is a considerable investment made on both our parts. Not only in terms of money, but also in time and effort. From my side I am taking the time to drive to my clients home, sometimes a fair distance away. Once I am finished shooting I take the time to edit the resulting images to a level that I feel satisfied with and when a client places a order I go back and optimize their images so that I know they will look as good as they possibly can when those images are printed. All of this takes time, more time than most people realize. I only book one sitting per day so that I know I have the time set aside should I feel I need it. I don't always need four hours, but I'd hate to be looking at my watch every few minutes and then tell someone I have to leave when I know I haven't 'got' everything I could have. I wouldn't be doing the job I've set out to do to the best of my ability.
When I arrive at someone's home I understand that they are making a considerable leap of faith by letting me into their lives, their homes and their personal space. They are putting their trust in me not only as a photographer but also as a person. This is why I believe that it is so important that potential clients consider not only whether or not they like a particular photographer's work but also if they feel comfortable with the photographer as an individual. When you are sitting in a studio for fifteen minutes being photographed by someone who may not even know your name, it's not all that important to know whether or not you'll get along with the photographer. What's most important is that they take a flattering photo of you and your family.
When you invite a photographer into your home, to spend an extended amount of time with you in your personal space it's not an insignificant thing. I feel quite honoured that clients put their trust in me in such a way. When I'm at someone's home for a shoot, I have the privilidge of becoming an honorary family member for the day. I'm becoming a part of their history, telling their story, living their life alongside them for the express purpose of telling that story to others through my photographs. If a client is not comfortable enough around me to relax in front of the camera, if they're ill at ease having me wandering though various rooms in their home looking for the best light and settings, if conversation doesn't come easily and they feel they can't open up and chat in breaks between shooting then I won't be able to do my job and in the end my clients won't be happy with the images I have captured.
My job, as I see it, is not just to capture an accurate representation of what a client's child look like on the particular day I am with them. Yes it's important that I capture images that represent them in a flattering way but more important to the experience I am trying to provide is that I capture the essence of who they are as an individual, what makes them special and unique . When a mother sees the proofs from her infant's portrait sitting and says to me "That's totally Ethan!", when they laugh at an expression or notice a particular gesture or in some cases get a little teary-eyed, I know I've done my job. I was able to capture those little personal nuances that only a parent would recognize and that makes me feel a great deal of satisfaction. Baby's grow and change so fast that gestures, expressions and habits that seem commonplace to parents when they are happening change and evolve or are left behind as the child gets older. When I am able to capture these moments for people I am also giving them a way to look back years down the road and say "I'd forgotten about that" or "Remember when they used to do that?".
In the end what I do as a photographer is more about expressing who my client is, not just what they look like. Yes, the investment can be significant but the end product of our collaboration can be even more significant. I certainly want that to be the case. What you get out of the experience is directly related to what you put into it, this is true on both our parts. If a potential client shares my vision then there's a good chance we'll be a good fit and what we create will be well worth the time spent, however long that may be.
No comments:
Post a Comment