Self-Proclaimed Hobbying Photog

[blondibeff]

I'm strictly a hobby photographer, save my brother's wedding earlier this year, but an avid one. In the last few months 3 different friends have seen my work and requested I photograph their weddings... Should I say yes???

[blondibeff]

Add'd info. I don't really want photography to become my vocation and I don't want to step on the toes of my professional photog friends. I have already referred 2-3 of the friends who asked me earlier in the year to these professional photogs.

Short answer: No.




Long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooo.


~Eric

[zona5101]

Or tell 'em it will be $5 grand 1/2 upfront, 1/2 on the day of the wedding.

See if they really want you or they want free/cheap/good-enough-so-we-have-more-money-for-booze-and-flowers.

[IABoomer]

Originally Posted by maxharvard

Short answer: No.




Long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooo.


~Eric

NSFW language: The Escapist : Video Galleries : Zero Punctuation : Spore

Originally Posted by IABoomer

NSFW language: The Escapist : Video Galleries : Zero Punctuation : Spore

Yep, seen it.

[JFeinbergPhotography]

Same. I just want to stay in the hobbying realm and not going into the messiness of getting paid. Also, it is more fun when you just take pics for fun.

[UlpilotSC]

Originally Posted by maxharvard

Short answer: No.




Long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooo.


~Eric

I absolutely concur. You came to the right place! Listen to these folks. I once was lost, but now I'm found, was blind but now I see.

I got screwed three times on family/friend weddings.
On the first I was asked to take candids and pre/post wedding shots for a friend. It was fun, and my first time. I didn't get any credit or anything, and they used my pictures in the paper (instead of the pros...).
On the second one - it was a son of my uncles wife. I took pictures with a 35mm film camera. I was told I would get paid. I wasn't worried about right or negatives. And after the wedding I just gave her the film - so I wouldnt have to pay for processing. Oops. My stupidity. I never saw a dime, and I saw the pictures later some of them were actually pretty good. Since the wedding i asked several times for the negatives but was given the runaround. Then I find out she cheated on him, he tossed her out along with the pictures. This was ten years ago. I was a lot more naive.
In June my sister asked me to take some candids at her reception. I agreed, and had some "buyers remorse". The trip was horrible, I drove ten hours both ways and spent around 600$ in gas/food/etc. I got a few I was happy with. The morning after, everyone was asking for CDs. My father even said "let's run down to walmart, buy some CDs and you can burn some for the parents". I didn't consider all that. I was okay with making one for my sister - but suddenly the thought of just giving away my efforts was upsetting.
I did it - with some rules (no selling - no using in the paper, no editing, photo credit on Facebook). I thought of just selling prints, but since I didn't make that arrangement beforehand I thought backing out would be in poor taste. I gave out the CDs.
I kept all those towels I bought though, the cd became the present.

So - new personal rule:
Nothing for free, for anyone. Thankfully most of the people I know that would ask are all married off, so hopefully it won't come up again.

Don't do freebies. Don't give out full res images. Sell em prints

[Izzy]

If you do it cheap or free you will be stuck doing things cheap and free all the time.

The only people today that I would consider doing free work for are my step daughters weddings. Matter of fact the younger one shot a wedding (she was my assistant when I used to do weddings) and ended up paying me for my time in PP because I am worlds faster at PP than she is. In that one she learned he limitations and has decided to not shoot a wedding for awhile until she gets her feet under her better.

As for my other two daughters I would be paying my step daughter her going rate to shoot their weddings. I expect no one to work for free no matter what.

[faeriegodess612]

Yeah,...no. Even when I was using one of my best friends as a subject to practice portraits, I bought prints for her and her Mom, and that was it. They only cost me about $20. If you include the gas that I spent going to and from the location and picking her up, then taking her home, the day that I spent doing PP work, and time shooting. I couldve charged something fierce. But we were doing a favor for eachother. I got a subject to practice with, she got free prints. I was a lil irritated that she saved the photos that I had posted to Facebook, but the good part, is that they were resized for web, then add FB's resize, and they were watermarked. So if she happens to print any of them, even if they look ok,..my watermark is at least there. And I know she wouldnt crop it out. I mentioned in passing something about her stealing my photos from Facebook. Just enough to plant the seed in her head that I was a lil irritated at it, but that I'd let it pass since it was her. If I was getting paid for it, there would be one of those huge partially transparent watermarks across it.

Either you do it and charge something,..or you do it as a wedding present. When you work looks like this,...then you can charge out that wazzoo. You can check out their blog to see what else they can do.