I am feeling extremely discouraged

[Nekrose]

So...
I am beginning to feel that I completely suck at photography.

Lately I have been really trying to market myself in this area (Oahu, HI). However, it seems that my main competition is the surrounding population of military wife photographers. Don't get me wrong, I support my fellow military wives, BUT...

I am having to compete with ladies charging around $50 for an hour long photo shoot with a disk of all the images.

I have also talked to many people and set up shoots, only to have them follow through at last minute. Because of this, I have lost business. It doesn't make any sense to me. People have even called to confirm the dates, prices, etc., but then they never follow up when I reply, even though they have had previous access to all of that information.

I do not know what I am doing wrong, because I cannot seem to get any shoots, but I see all these people booking up when their images are only decent. I am not saying that mine are great, but I have at least studied photography (for years) and I have had experience outside of doing photo shoots.

I guess what I am asking is:
1. Do my photo's suck, because I cannot seem to compete with these women
2. Should I lower my prices to the insane one's they have?
3. How do you all go about advertising, besides word of mouth (my only paid shoot so far was with a girl from Canada. Definitely not in my area.)

Thank you for any future replies, I am just feeling really down in the dumps.

[windrider86]

Photography is getting harder and harder to make a name for yourself and be successful at it. Since everyone under the sun who owns a DSLR is now a self proclaimed professional photographer and usually charges less than a dime it makes it harder for everyone else who is all ready established.
I wish I could tell you there is some easy cure, but there isn't. A lot of hard work, sweat and tears will get you to where you want to be. Be different, stand out from the rest. Dont cave just keep at it. It takes time, sometimes a lot of time.
I looked at your gallery. They dont suck, but they dont pop out at you as being different from everyone else. Again, you HAVE to be better than everyone else, you have to MAKE people remember you.
You have talent, never doubt that

[Nekrose]

Thank you so much.
I have found my passion within photography, but I do not really have a way to bring it out. I feel like I need to have a model and do more shoots, but the trouble is getting them.
I am more into alternative, darker themes, but I live in Hawaii, so it is pretty difficult.

Do you have any tips to make my photo's stand out? What about them was ordinary to you? I love constructive criticism!

But I do agree with you, I feel like I have a lot that I want to unleash, it's just finding a model willing to explore. I have even been offering free shoots.

[windrider86]

My biggest tip for you is to watch the tiny details. The shadows on your models face, the hair blowing in her eyes. Watch where her dress lands (the one I saw made her look a little poochy)
Maybe try playing with different layers with different blend modes to bring out your colors, or less which ever you prefer. Textures are also a great source for bringing a different look to your photos.
Move your models to poses that are WAY out of the ordinary. Check out Vogue or other magazines for ideas.
Eyes also play a huge part in a portrait. Make sure the eyes are always crisp, clear and maybe even sparkle. One way I manage that is to create a duplicate layer, WAY over sharpen the bottom layer and then on the top layer erase only the eye area. You'll see a big difference in doing that alone

[Murtasma]

A few things that may help you get more clients.

Portraits will be your main money maker, this is what average joes spend money on when hiring a photographer. I would focus on shooting more people right now for free. Looking at your website I really only see two people whom you have taken images for. The website also does not let you easily view the images, instead clients are forced to sit and watch every picture scroll by. Internet users have an extremely short attention span, anything that cause them to waste time is not going to be beneficial to you.

You have some good images but also some images that aren't so good. I would be much more selective about the images I show on the website; only show your strongest work. Your portfolio would also be helped by having more diversity. You have no males, no children, no mature adults and no teenagers. What your site should demonstrate is someone who has the versatility to work with different types of people in different settings. You don't appear to have any studio shots, people will also want images of their family in a studio setting.

I would also invest in a large diffuser to help soften the harsh light that were shot in direct sunlight. If you don't have any studio equipment light strobes, backdrops, light stands thats ok for now but I wouldn't expect to have much success against people who do have these tools at there disposable and most importantly know when and how to use these tools to create their "style".

My advice would be to go out and take pictures for your friends, invest in a diffuser at least to help soften harsh light or start shooting in the shade or over cast days. Try opening an account on model mayhem and see if there are models in the area willing to work with you to help build each of your portfolios.

I think you prices are acceptable, with a more versatile portfolio and some aggressive advertising you should start getting people to follow through with a service purchase from you. If you have excellent customer relationship skills and good work, you should have no problem getting some great word of mouth recommendations from your customers which is where the majority of your clients will be coming from once you become established.

It takes a lot of hard work and sweat to get a business going. The more effort you put toward building yourself up the greater your chances at success will be. I think you have the passion to do this, but I think more time building your portfolio and working with poses and lighting will make this much easier for anyone attempting to sell portrait photography services.

Perhaps there are others on the forum who have managed to get a steady flow of clients that can chime in with what worked for them. I've worked with a few people in the past, usually it's friends or friends of friends who want pictures done. I haven't yet really tried to work for anyone yet so maybe all of this advice is just totally incorrect, take it with a grain of salt.

[Nekrose]

I greatly appreciate both of your replies!
I will be trimming down the photo's on my website now.

I do not have a diffuser, I just recently bought a flash unit.

The thing is, here in Hawaii, it is mainly outdoors shooting, so I didn't want to worry about studio lighting.

My main competition right now is this lady. She charges 80 bucks:
Capture The Moment Photography | Facebook

[elkidogz]

show people what the difference is between a good pro, and a novice. have the comparison of before and after your retouch work is done, that's what can make a huge difference...

in other words, explain why your services are better than the point and shoot novice folks out there. your probably going to have to bend over backwards more so than normal for a good word of mouth to get traveling about your services. The best advertisement is the picture you take that lands on a young ladies social site, all her friends will ask "where'd you get that picture?" so, you need to make sure that you are providing 500% wonderful bend over backwards (maybe take a loss for this client) just to make sure that her/his xp is top knotch. Expect to struggle for a few years, not just one month or one year, but 2 or more years. Most small businesses report losses in the first years.

[LoveDSLR]

We call it positioning in business. You need to find you own niches.

BTW, some of our local freelancers charge similar token fees too (per event instead of an hour) and they have many decades of experience and shoot with three or more pro bodies. They just do it for the fun of photography.

[Jim Bryant]

Originally Posted by Nekrose

I greatly appreciate both of your replies!
I will be trimming down the photo's on my website now.

I do not have a diffuser, I just recently bought a flash unit.

The thing is, here in Hawaii, it is mainly outdoors shooting, so I didn't want to worry about studio lighting.

My main competition right now is this lady. She charges 80 bucks:
Capture The Moment Photography | Facebook

That Capture the Moment photographer is just horrible!

[candidrachel]

I've sent you a pm!

I agree with Jim. I visited her facebook wall and she's waaaaay too familiar with her "clients" its almost as if she's liasing with her best buddies!

If that's your competition then I don't think you have much to worry about there.

For what its worth I feel discouraged too!

Rachel x