Let's start with the basis :
1 - What is a professional photographer ?
It's someone invested in his job, trained for it. There are mainly two profiles. Some photographers followed a classical study program to becom professional, and others, passionate persons follow step by step a reconversion training to be able to live of their passion. In both cases they carry on following specific trainings all along their career to get more expertise on different subjects.
Personally I am part of the second case - the main one I think. I discovered photography in England and when I came back to France, I had the opportunity to work for a big firm specialized in wedding, Beside of that I worked for a postcards publisher - I then followed a training with a school named "Lignes et Formations" to become a professional photographer on my own.
I still follow some training on different topics, all interesting, as well in photography and other subjects that we need to develop, I will speak about that later on in this article.
2 - Why taking a professional photographer ? My uncle has got a great camera !
Wedding photography is one of the most difficult exercices, you must be aware of that. You may as well have a very hard brightness in the afternoon, a very dark church, the evening DJ lights to handle with, some moving persons in very difficult light conditions... A professional photographer will be able to react discreetly, correctly, use the right technic adjustment on his camera, in all circumstances, to have the good result. He's here to work, focused on his job for hours - without weaken - he can't, as he as a work to do for his customers. If you ask a photographer a complete day of reporting, we rapidly have 16/17 hours of continuous work, always checking what's going on to retranscribe the atmosphere of your wedding, everything that will be captured for you to have nice souvenirs. Of course, you are the main subject of the story, but the photograph will also take pictures of everything interesting going on with your guests. Things you even won't see on this day, and that you will enjoy discovering when you will watch your images.
So let your uncle enjoy the wedding of his niece or his nephew. I can tell you by experience, as I have done my sister' wedding as a guest, witness and photographer, that you do not enjoy plainly the day. Note that I wished it like that as I really wanted to offer to her and her husband their wedding book. But... I was not relaxed at all, I was working.
Also, if your uncle has a nice suit, the photographer has a big rucksack to carry, two cameras around the neck, two different lens, some more material in the bag. It's heavy, and we need to be reactive and fast, even in the hottest day in summer !
3 - Click, it's in the box....
Well, a popular belief persisting, but completely wrong ! Click click and click again even... but thinking of the framing, the light, the speed, the iso... in fact all the technical part absolutely imperative to have a nice image, and your uncle may not the knowledge necessary.
Once the day of reporting finished, another one is coming a long and intense.
It means tranfer the images on the computer (which one must be very powerfull otherwise you will be in big trouble for the following work to do), sort out the pictures you will keep and work on. All images selected will be "optimized". The professional photographer has some specific software to improve colorimetry, the shadows, remove a poster that cannot be avoided on a church door for exemple, or a acne spot on the bride getting there because of the stress...
Alla this work, called post-production, take a lot of time as well, but it is imperative for a quality of images.
4 - Photographer services :
The following informations are specific to each photographer. Some of them will provide only numeric files, other ones paper books (traditional album or real book), or both of them.
As for me, I propose both possibilities.
After the wedding, we will agree of a date to view together the pictures (before the guests to which I will have given the access codes on the D date).
We will choose together the photos for your book, with the help of a software specifically configured for it. The style of book would have been chosen before, I will come back on the subject a little further away.
Then, I will work on the design of your book, which take a few hours as well, send it to you for agreement before to send it for print and at last, bring it or send it to you !
5 - Is that all ?
None ! Up to there, I explained to you the photographer' "heart of the job". But craftmen like us have a lot of things to manage. Not only photographers but craftmen in their generality. We are all in the same situation of course ! p
Concerning specifically wedding photography :
- We will organise a meeting to get to know each other, sign the contract corresponding to your choices, check the organisation for the D date in order that everything goes fine and choose the details of the supports vous prefer (book, album, numeric files).
- It is possible to organise a shooting before the wedding and improve them.
- These pictures can be used for the wedding announcing card (I can do that for you).
- As I already explained, the shooting on the D date, post-production and discovering the pictures before the guests.
- Book, greeting cards and final delivery of everything to you.
For your security and mine :
- A respectable photographer must have at least a civil liability insurance.
- But it is recommended to have a material insurance.
- A reliable car which does not risk to break down when going on a wedding. and a good insurance to replace it instantly if needed.
- All materiel in two exemplary.
- Performing computer, specifics softwares.
- A pension in case of eventual health problem.
- Take care by ourselves of our future retirement as the one for the craftmen is far from joyfull...
The hidden side of the iceberg. He is multi caps !
- He must be able to manage his accounting, even if in micro enterprise, must be able to do his forecast, his balance sheet, in order to know if his firm is viable and allow it to progress along the years.
- Create and manage his website.
- To manage the social network, ranking on the web, Google, writing interesting articles, for you of course, but to be seen on the net as well.
Summarize :
Un artisan doit apprendre en plus de son métier, à être commercial, "réseauteur", comptable et très endurant, curieux de tout et volontaire pour avancer, ne pas se décourager dans les moments difficiles mais au contraire arriver à rebondir, se remettre en question, et avancer, toujours avancer !
6 - Et le juste prix alors ?
A few months ago, a lady contacted me and asked me a complete reportage (from preparation of the bride to the evening cake) with all the numeric files, for less than 1000€.
Is it viable ?
You must know than when you give 1000€ to a photographer, he will keep for him half of it. It is the same in a lot of professions. I will not take the liberty to say that all professionals got the same problematic as I don't know everyone' constraints, but generally, the persons I talk to have similar amount ofcharges. Once all charges taken out, it is 50% of the initial amount that disappeared.
In the specific exemple, the reporting all day long, post-production of the photos et all numeric files given to the customer. It is 500€ for about 35 hours work. Which means 14€ the hour's work. Working 16/17 hours non stop, even at nightime... and keeping in mind all the hidden side of the iceberg explained earlier on.
And on what is left, take away the amount you invest for your retirement !
A craftman must sustains to his present and future needs to avoid problems and bankrupt. I think you have all information needed to be able to judge what is a right price for a photographer' services !
For the courageous ones who have read this article up to the end, first of all, a great thank for your interest... and you did not lost your time as I offer on your next family'photo session with Valphotovar 10% discount. And for your wedding (at least ceremony to early evening) 2 leaflets of 20 pages for your parents or witnesses...
Valérie
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