Projecting a professional image

[Kit]

I've been thinking a lot about my photography business. I'm wanting to take it up a notch now and was thinking about what photographers do to project a professional image.

Some of the things that I've considered are pretty generic:
Have a logo
Professional website (by this I mean one which projects your photographic style)
Blog site
Contract/ model release
Defined pricing structure


But I was wondering what are some other ways that you project a professional image?
I do portrait photography and sometimes shoot from home (unfortunately with no dedicated space), so does having a dedicated studio improve your professional image to a point where you can commmand the larger prices?

What else have I overlooked?

[jdepould]

GOOD pictures of you on the about page. The way you dress when you meet with clients, the way you dress when you shoot. Phone etiquette. Font choices. Email address. How you handle problems.

I certainly hope you're charging more if you have a dedicated space, since that costs you money.

[Jim Bryant]

1. You need to develop a one to five year business plan and stick with it.
2. You'll find out that you'll only take pictures 10% of the time. The rest of your time will be filled with marketing, developing marketing materials, networking and, last but not least, that dreaded paperwork.
3. Get a business license, liability insurance, pay state and federal taxes. (Best to hire an certified public accountant to handle all the necessary paperwork. They normally charge $50.00 and hour.
4. Find a good online printing service (Exposuremanager.com), otherwise a lot of your time will be taken up by putting orders together and tracking orders to sure the prints are all printed correctly and have the correct number of views the customer ordered.
5. Delivery of prints to customer.
6.If you go the off home site for a studio (the olympic photo group) does have a 1100 square foot studio with an 20-25 high ceiling. Make sure you have access to a bathroom for you clients to change clothes in. Make sure you have shelves to store everything on and plenty of space to set up gear. Office furniture: desks, sofa, chairs and table.
7. You'll need high quality studio lighting such as Alien B's, speedatrons, colored backdrops, backdrop stands. Reflectors, softboxes, screen and snoots for the lighting systems.
8. If you plan to print yourself, you'll have to purchase a high quality printer......Epson or Canon. Then get a least a 27-inch screen Mac with maxed out RAM.
9. Acouple of 1.5 or 2 terabyte huge drives (because you need to shoot in RAW format). A Spyder Pro 2 to correct the color calibration of your monitor.
10. Now the fun part, spending tons of money for office supplies everything from paper clips to xerox paper, photo mats, frames, a hot press mounter (to mount photos to the mats) envelops to stuff the 4 x 6. 5 x7, 8 x 10 and larger size photos in.
11. A professional quality camera system, (we're not talking about kit cameras and lens), however, I have known some DPS folks that are doing really well with that camera, because they have the eye, photographic knowledge and have mastered studio and outside lighting techniques (this is a plug for you Susan ).
12.Extending your knowledge by taking photographic classes, lighting classes, and attending photographic seminars.
13. Lastly, you'll need to get Abode Photoshop and master what the program can do for you.

14. Whoops....almost this one. A high quality DVD printers and DVD's to store images on.

This is a start and I've probably forgot something because we covered a state gymnastic meet from Friday to Sunday and I didn't get too much sleep, only to end up dreaming of girls a leaping.

But did offer on site printing service with our five-minute photos system (a really neat system that has a server with monitor and four viewing stands with monitors for customers to view and order 4 x 6, 5 x 7 and 8 x 10 color prints. But, because of high number of people wanting to purchase a thumb drives (for $199.00, not including tax), we opted out on the onsite printing services. And we sold a shit load of them and actually had to go back to Walmart, Office Depot and Staples and purchased all they had in stock.

If I remember anything else, "I'll Be backkkkkk!"

[jdepould]

Originally Posted by Jim Bryant

This is a start and I've probably forgot something because we covered a state gymnastic meet from Friday to Sunday and I didn't get too much sleep, only to end up dreaming of girls a leaping.

Be glad it wasn't competitive eating.

You need a dedicated space, otherwise you look like a hack who's just trying this on a whim. That doesn't mean your prices are any higher, just means you look better to the client.

You will need a professional attitude and some command presence in your area. Everyone knows me as the "car mag guy" in my area. Something I've cultivated over the past year.

But, you know what.... everyone now knows who to turn to get their car in a mag.

~Eric