In case you’re new here, hey! I’m Brent, owner of Fun Sized Photo Co., a lover of tacos and Sour Patch Kids, and a wizard at capturing a child’s personality on camera. I’ve been a professional photographer for over 10 years, and now that I’ve successfully grown my business into my full-time career, I’m sharing what I’ve learned with others who want to do the same.
After picking up my first DSLR, I had many years of embracing photography as a side-gig or a fun hobby, but eventually I began to see it like an actual business – something I wanted to grow and build. Not surprisingly, when I started to approach this endeavor as an actual business rather than a side project, I began to see positive changes in my number of bookings, the quality of my work, and in my income.
If you really want to start or grow your photography business, you have to start treating it like a business. You need to take yourself, and your offerings, seriously.
As a newbie photographer we all likely provided free sessions for the purpose of exposure or to build our portfolios, and while there is nothing wrong with that in theory, many photographers are at risk of getting stuck in undervaluing their services. When you aren’t getting enough paid bookings you begin to assume it’s the price point that is the problem. So you start offering major discounts, you get a couple bookings, and the cycle just continues round and round.
I’d like to suggest a different approach:
View yourself as a serious, qualified (even if still learning) photographer who is ready to provide the very best service and product to their clients. Then price yourself accordingly.
Setting prices and putting a specific value on your services can be intimidating. I’ve been there and have second guessed myself plenty of times over the years. However, when I decided to take myself and my skills seriously and appropriately increased my prices, I exponentially improved my overall income.
By taking yourself and what you have to offer seriously, you are less likely to be discounting and undervaluing your services. Continuously working for low wages will cause burnout, frustration, and most definitely won’t help you reach your goal of being a full-time photographer. Instead, set firm, yet fair prices (research others in your area if you’re unsure of where to begin) and focus on being the best photographer you can be.
Discover how you can elevate your client experience.
Explore ways you can overdeliver on your sessions.
But most importantly, take yourself seriously. If you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect potential clients to?
Note: Pricing is a big topic all on it’s own. I’ll cover it in more detail in my upcoming Photography Business Playbook. Get on my email list to be the first to know when it comes available.
Want more photography business guidance? Read this post and this post.
