carmina (Photographer)

There is always going to be someone cheaper than you. Even free! You can't compete based on that. You can only compete based on being better, or delivering what you deliver, etc.

I think you will find that you are losing money at the rates you have posted there. This stuff takes time, and your gear costs money too. Look here > http://www.nppa.org/professional_development/business_practices/cdb/cdbcalc.cfm Filling it out will be good for you.

Trying to educate people on why you should cost money is absolutely the wrong approach to take. No one cares. And in that vein, maybe you should not care about their sob story either. Its not like you're withholding water from a dying man. Photography is a luxury service that not everyone can afford. There are people who will do it for free (hobby guys & people who don't mind losing money to do something they like), you need to decide on a case by case basis if you want to be one of those people.

As far as empathy goes, there will come a time where enough people 'use' you that you get sick of it and it gets easier to say no. There are a lot of broke people out there that can still afford to party every weekend, its all in the priorities.

Big topic, no easy answers. Hope that helped.

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Last edited by carmina 5 months, 3 weeks ago

CalvinWallace (Photographer)

I appreciate that so much, thank you! and yes... I've been slowly working myself to debt and losing money. Things aren't good.

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Last edited by CalvinWallace 5 months, 3 weeks ago

carmina (Photographer)

Its a tenuous time for photography right now. I'm not sure what the profession will look like in 5 years. My overall take is that the BEST will do ok (though not as good as in the past), and the rest will be ground down to a nub in the margins. Essentially the middle class of photography professionals will go away, and we will find 2 categories. 1) Very skilled, highly individualized, great business-people will do ok. 2) Everyone else does it for free/cheap. I don't see much of a middle ground in the future. Either people will value your work with dollars, or they won't.

I'm thinking that as a business model, flighty broke young model girls are not going to provide you with the income that you need. Its best to look to other avenues, and shoot them to work out your technical kinks.

CalvinWallace (Photographer)

Yeah it's kinda scary to think of that happening! I'm definitely not marketing myself to the right clients, and wedding photos are not something I am willing to do.

J.Quinton (Photographer)

I hear ya...I have a hell of a time selling my photo services. It's scary. I started off undercutting the competition, only to get undercut myself. I invested in pro gear and 2 years practicing with it and priced myself within the range of the other locals photographers. I advertise, I'm better then a lot of my competition. I give it everything I got and people just aren't buying. I'm never going to quit photos, but as a career choice it's been very frustration.