# Senior Portraits



## Blissning (Jul 28, 2011)

I am pretty new with senior portraits.
Well, lately I have been asked by a few people if I would do senior portraits for them. I have everything figured out other than pricing & how to go about getting pictures printed for a client. I don't know if I should find a printing place for senior portraits, or should just give the client a CD with their edited photos and direct them in the right direction.

I really need advice on this whole thing, as I am new to senior pictures. (Sorry if this is one big ramble, by the way.) =P
What are some good online printing places?
And what would be a good pricing range if I am shooting on a location?

I also am not sure what to add into the total cost of pricing. I am so confused on all of this and really need some pointers.  Thank you for anyones help!


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## RauschPhotography (Jul 28, 2011)

Blissning said:


> I have everything figured out other than pricing & how to go about getting pictures printed for a client.



..finding this to be very contradictory.


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## tirediron (Jul 28, 2011)

RauschPhotography said:


> Blissning said:
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> > I have everything figured out other than pricing & how to go about getting pictures printed for a client.
> ...


Little bit!  

Put the camera down, walk away from the camera.  Pick up the course list for your local adult-ed facility and register for all of their small-business and entrepreneurship courses and try again later.


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## CCericola (Jul 28, 2011)

Ok, so from what I read you are comfortable with taking the photos and just need advice on the printing and business side right? First, you need a business plan. Then you need to register your business with the state you live in and get a resale certificate for sales tax. You will have to be familiar with when and how you make tax payments for your state and when you do and don't have to charge sales tax. Then you need business insurance. If something happens to the high school grad you are photographing the parents will go after you for restitution. Also, it will protect you and your equipment. You need a portrait contract and model release forms. As far as how much to charge, you need to figure out your costs, profit margin etc...

If you would like to offer digital files remember it is a lot of work and should charge accordingly. If you are printing them then you are only retouching the images that are printed. If you are selling a disc you have to spend the time to make sure ALL the photos you put on the disc are up to your standards and print ready. 

If you would like to offer prints I recommend Millers or Collages. They offer online services and an online shopping experience for your clients. Basically you load the images, you set the prices ( the printer takes a % + the cost of printing and hosting so make sure you calculate that into the price). Once you upload the photos you have a link and a password to send to your client. They review them and order what they want and pay via credit card. The printer prints the pictures, sends them to the client and sends you your money via check or direct deposit. 

It's a lot of work. If you have the means you may want to look into a business manager to help out on a part time basis.


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## dnavarrojr (Jul 28, 2011)

Find out what the best photographers in your town charge and charge the same price.  You can search for photography printing in Google.  I personally use MPIX.com when they have a special, otherwise I use NationsPhotoLab.com; the quality between them is the same.  If you decide to offer a disc, limit it to between 10 and 25 images and output them to 5x7 at 300dpi and watermark the corners.  If they want larger or unwatermarked prints they have to buy them from you.  Always include at least 1 large print in every package and offer to mail their favorite image to the school for the yearbook.


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## Blissning (Jul 28, 2011)

tirediron said:


> RauschPhotography said:
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> > Blissning said:
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Was stating that I have locations, posing, etc. figured out.

Thanks to those who actually have posted helpful information and opinions, and not something completely pointless.


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## gsgary (Jul 28, 2011)

Blissning said:


> tirediron said:
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> > RauschPhotography said:
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What about lighting ?


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## KmH (Jul 28, 2011)

Blissning said:


> tirediron said:
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> > RauschPhotography said:
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See, that's a big part of the problem with so many new to the photography business. They don't know good advice when they get it.

The *#1* reason photography and other small businesses fail, is because the business owner lacked business acumen.

Good luck with your new 'business'. :thumbup:


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## photogir2002 (Aug 8, 2011)

The attitudes on here are why I would never post my work. They'll say things like "art is subjective" and then when you post your work they shred it and tell you it's wrong because you don't do it the way they do. Contradictory much themselves? Yeah, I think so. But I do agree with some of the comments that you need to have this planned out before you get yourself into shooting a lot of senior photos. I speak from experience because I didn't plan the way I should have when I started out and learned some hard lessons. SO, even though some on here do not put things in the nicest way, they do have some valid points that should be considered. Their other points should be poured in the toilet though.


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## photogir2002 (Aug 8, 2011)

Of course, don't forget that my above comment comes from a "girl" who couldn't hit the "l" when she registered her name and so it says photoGIR instead of GIRL. Der!


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## brandibell (Aug 8, 2011)

You may be ready to take peoples pictures but it doesn't sound as if your ready to have a business. Get everything in order on the business end of things first and then figure out your pricing. 

Nobody can't tell you what to charge, only you can decide how much your time is worth. You also need to decide if your going to only sell prints, sell images on disc,  charge per time or a sitting fee, are you going to edit and if so how many images, etc etc etc. As previously mentioned check out other photographers prices in your area to see what the average rate is and go from there. Also when choosing prices keep in mind the quality and presentation of your work. If your just going to write on a disc with a sharpie and put it in a jeweled case where as another photographer with similar prices will have the disc custom made with the clients photo in a fancy case that is something to take into consideration as well as do you have studio space, are your photos good, do you have proper equipment etc. 

But firstly before you start taking peoples money get everything business wise figured out first.


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## Authorized (Aug 11, 2011)

Read this: it should put some things in perspective. Great article.  The 7 Deadly Sins Of Emerging Pros « PhotoCynic


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## Diddy2theJJ (Aug 11, 2011)

Welcome to the forums Blissning! I can understand that it's a bit frustrating with some of the comments here. Even though it may sound a bit harsh/not worthwhile, I know that people are trying to help. I was in the same boat as you a year and a half ago. I just sat down, figured out what my expenses were, and what I wanted to make and went from there. I also checked out some of the competition and came in well below them, since I was fairly new to shooting weddings and portraits.

I feel alot more confident in my work now, and have raised my prices accordingly. It has been going well for me, and I have just rented some studio space and may raise my prices again slightly to compensate for that extra expense.

My point being that you should just check out what other people are doing, sit down and figure out a business plan, income vs. expenses etc. Just start somewhere and even if you run into problems, you will learn alot along the way and you can adapt your methods and pricing etc as needed.

Is this going to be your full time job or is this a side-business for you?


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## Diddy2theJJ (Aug 11, 2011)

Oh and this blog is INCREDIBLY helpful too.

The Part Time Photographer


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## James Taylor (Aug 14, 2011)

Blissning, congrats first on deciding to take the leap into professional photography! It's a wonderful adventure (complete with trolls and all!), but the rewards are a real blessing both creatively and financially.

To answer your actual questions:

- Print at Mpix.com, drop ship straight to your client.

- Charge $10 per image for prints up to 8x10, or a hi-res file on CD. No session fee, no minimum order. Let clients just buy what they love.

There you go! Go forth, and don't let paralysis by analysis set in - Ready, Fire!, Aim. Despite the catastrophic predictions of the grognards in this thread, neither your community nor your clients will tar and feather you for not being born with perfect business knowledge.

We all have to start somewhere.

That said, a bit of prudence is certainly warranted:

- You want to make sure you're legal. Sales taxes, DBA if you need one, etc. Just search the Googles for this info within your state. You can certainly dig into a Dummies book on starting your own business, but 90% of the advice inside is just a distraction from what you should actually focus on. Use discretion.

- You want to make sure your portfolio matches what you can perform for your client. Don't show them a Mercedes if you can only deliver a Kia. Lots of people buy Kias, though - show what you can do consistently, and you won't have to stress about under-delivering later.

- Once you have some photo shoots under your belt, you can reevaluate your pricing. Unlike advice you'll read elsewhere, you are actually the master of your destiny, and in control of your own business. You can change prices any way you want, any time you want. Measure expenses against revenues against time invested, and adjust until your per-hour, in-pocket profit makes you grin like a cheeky monkey.

- Apply Pareto's Law, the 80/20 rule, to every decision in your business. Here in the beginning of the senior side of your business, perfection is the greatest enemy of momentum, the latter of which is what you need to break into a new market. Research what you're about to get into, certainly, but then take tangible, public action. As my father would say, "Do something, even if it's the wrong damn thing!"

Lastly, here are the four books I'd suggest you dive into post haste: John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing; Michael Port, Book Yourself Solid; Seth Godin, The Dip; and Steven Pressfield, The War of Art.

Persevere, don't give up the day job just yet, but don't let the haters stop you in your tracks - there are innumerable paths to success in the photography industry. Enjoy the adventure!


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## jake337 (Aug 14, 2011)

Blissning said:


> tirediron said:
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There comments were not pointless, they want you to succeed.  Their opinions reflect that.  Business and photography are two seperate things.  There are many great photographers who make no money because they don't understand business, and vice versa.


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