I'm sure this has happened to you at least once.

[350D_Noob]

Sometimes, I just don't think my friends understand. I do short photoshoots for them when I have free time just so that they have pictures, correct? None-the-less, I do this for free! Now, I also have paid photoshoots for real clients, mind you.

My friends have the nerve to say that I'm taking too long to send their pictures to them! First of all, your pictures? They're my pictures! I took them. Therefore, they are credited under my name. Also, my paid clients always get first priority.

Seriously, friends or not, they can wait for all I care. I tell them that I have paid photoshoots to deal with, yet they seem that they need to tell me I need to give them "their" pictures a.s.a.p.

I'm sure some of you have experienced this before. What did you do in your situation? My friends just don't want to seem to listen! :evil:

[MikeMcL]

Even for friends, I follow my regular pricing structure. I offer them a discount off my normal order form (the percentage varies from 20%-50% off)

The only reason I do something FREE is if I need it for my port. (right now I am looking for a cute, non-white boy around 8-11 years old) I have almost every other kid type covered except this one.

The reason I do this type of relationship is because I have been annoyed to no end by previous problems (much like you are explaining) and have changed my ways... I think people can appreciate if you tell them that you are VERY busy. I never tell them that they are low priority, only that I am VERY busy and my que is long at the moment. (the indirect way of telling them they are last on the list)

Another thing that helped me is to give about 2-5 shots from a shoot. even if it is an hour long. If you give them almost nothing, you will make your time seem more precious and make them ask you for more. then you tell them that you can do more, but "I never work that namy hours on a FREE shoot". Then just tell them if they want to buy a package from you, you will process other poses, lol

It sounds funny, but it is working flawlessly for me.

[cdifoto]

I say stop shooting them. Then they won't have any pictures to wait for at all! ;) :) I don't even give family free pics. I give them discounts, but not freebies.

[zeddy]

I'd just explain the situation to them if i were you. A good would know to stop bugging you.

[GyRob]

before id take there pic's i would say at the time of aranging the shoot it will be 3/4 day's or whatever Then thay know if i did then quicker then there happy its the not knowing that starts people off even friend's.
Rob

[liza]

Charge them just as you would a regular customer, and they'll stop bugging you. That's what I had to do because it was costing me quite a bit of money. They'll either pay your fee or move on to some other "friend" with a digital camera.

[august23]

My friends usually say send me "those" pictures you took. They never say send me "my" pictures, which is probably why I don't get annoyed as easily. It does get annoying when they're constantly breathing down my back for them. I don't get paid to shoot, and I do have free time, but I'll get them to ya when I get them to ya, simple.

[ssim]

How do you want them to ask for "those" pictures. If went and had some pictures taken of me and I called about them I would probably refer to them as my pictures. Do you have my order done yet, how do my pictures look, when are my pictures going to be done.

One must assume that your friends cannot afford to pay you otherwise I would charge them. I do deal with friends and they might get a small break but they pay....period. If they can't then their mantle will have to hold their bowling trophy instead of a picture. This is a lesson that everyone learns, dealing with friends (and relatives for that matter only worse) is a messy affair and the terms and timelines need to be clearly laid out in advance.

[Jon, The Elder]

First off....I don't call people who demand things from me "FRIENDS".

Sometimes I call them relatives, jerks, someone-I-know, PITA etc, but not friends.

If you hold still for this because you think you are obligated to be "one-of-the-good-ol'-boys", you are associating with the wrong bunch.

Stand up for yourself - tell them what the deal is. If they wander away, then the weren't friends to begin with. Betcha...5 years from now they won't remember your name.

[pos]

Be up front with them and tell them you have a paying customer that comes first. I have a friend who is getting his new motorcycle in two weeks and as a favor i will take some shots for him the weeekend he gets his bike, Now i have a paying job to shoot a Rat Rod for another friend the same weekend. Before i could say anything else he said we can do it when i have the time. Now to me this is a friend because he knows i need the money. He will have the bike for a long time but the owner of the rat rod can always get somebody else to shoot the pic's. Like everybody above has said stand up for yourself or you will be doing alot of free shoots. I had to put my foot down because everybody and his brother wants free pic's, and my so called friends don't seem to know my name anymore. no big loss. pos

[Mario.]

My friends have never demanded pictures like that... *shrugs* maybe you need some new friends. :lol:

[MikeMcL]

When we go out, my friends started just assuming I'd show up with my camera... So I stopped. LOL were they pist? YAH... But then i just say "its not so fun when you do it all the time".

So they pass me the crappiest P&s ever, and I am the photographer on the POS camera instead... lol there is no winning.

Consider it flattering that your friends and relatives entrust and rely on your photographic eye. They know their pictures suck, so they want you to handle it. It is an inconvenience, but in a way, it is nice to be needed.

[Sathi]

Last september my girlfriend's cousin got married. They hired a couple of pro photographers, but I brought my camera anyway because...well...I have one..heh. Not a bad time. I made sure I stayed out of the pros way, get some shots from the side and such. It was nice that there was no pressure as I am not a very good photgrapher. So I pretty saw myself fulfilling the role of basically taking a couple of extra snapshots.

Well I guess seeing a large camera/lens/flash raised expectations and now the pictures were being waited on. Been getting comments from the girlfriend's parents about how its been almost a year, and it would be really nice if I could 'finally' turn them in. Man that was annoying. I know how you feel.

Since I am not a very good photographer I try and do as much as I can post processing raw images. Hand editing 150 pics takes a lot of time and I have a day job and a life. I don't think people understand how much work is involved with tryign to get proffessional looking output is really what the problem is.

Here's the kicker though...I am almost done and *just* a few days ago the pros sent the bride her pictures. And that's all they do! Not only that, my pictures were way WAY better and that made me feel real good. Knowing that it took them so long I don't feel bad about my slow workflow anymore. Also after being married for only 4 months her husband was sent back to Iraq for his third combat tour. I feel real bad for the bride so I am glad I can do something nice for her.

[jacobsen1]

I'd make them pay personally.
But if not, get an action set up to do a batch on them to make them "good enough" and then either burn them CDs or post them to a website with a batch uploader.

That will take you maybe 30 minutes tops (intermittent).

[sblais]

If you said you'd do it for free, I'd keep my word. But that would be the last time I would do it. For them or anyone else.