Wanting To Start Somthing Small

[360°]

so there is a location in in town where the trees turn very nice colors during the fall...

every year it attracts hundreds of people for photos.....

i was thinking of maybe going there and offering photo services, and charging about 20 dollars or so. i would bring my laptop with me and put the pictures on a cd on location....

does anyone have any experience doing something like this?

[Tim Snow]

You'll have to do lots of research to see if this is something worthwhile. Do you need a permit from the town? Are you insured? How will you power your laptop all day?
Also, $20? C'mon....

[bwolford]

You'll have to do lots of research to see if this is something worthwhile. Do you need a permit from the town? Are you insured? How will you power your laptop all day?
Also, $20? C'mon....

$20 per photo, maybe. I think you are better off soliciting clients to meet you there and shoot sessions rather than going spec.

[360°]

i have no professional experience and thats what im mostly trying to attain by doing this.... i wouldnt mind doing 20 photos or so for 20 dollars.... and i can power my laptop off my suv all day, its not a problem

[Karl Johnston]

Just because you get experience, doesn't mean it's "professional experience" :) if you're going to charge..do a good job and do what its worth..20 photos for 20 bucks? That's worse than budget, I'd say at least 10 $ a print ..

I don't know about your SUV but it may cost quite a bit in gas to keep it running all day..what about releases, too? Or insurance...of course...or...well

If you are going to do it I would suggest 9.95$ a photo of doing something (not just a snapshot - get creative). Come up with a concept, man! Anyone can take a snapshot with a cellphone for free ..

Don't get me wrong i encourage you to do whatever you want and i encourage your endeavors but I wouldn't want anyone going out and getting disappointed.
Here's a video for you, you may find it interesting and get an idea from this guy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQHJcmpoAvM&feature=fvsr

Photography isn't free, and it isn't cheap...no matter what you hear...there are photographers out there making a living out of it but the biggest realization a pro makes is that they are worth $$$

they are worth, their work is worth, a lot of money..it's just a matter of getting to that money.

[LeeSC]

i have no professional experience and thats what im mostly trying to attain by doing this.... i wouldnt mind doing 20 photos or so for 20 dollars.... and i can power my laptop off my suv all day, its not a problem

I kinda agree with Karl on this. If you want the "experience", do it for free (or donations to offest your costs) so there is no expectations from the customer. Once you charge a fee, no matter how small, customers are going to expect professional results. To me, putting yourself in this type of situation is going to make it very difficult for this to be a "learning experience".

If you want experience, invite your friends or family out and offer to do shots for them at this park before you decide to open up to everyone.

I started out doing birthday parties for friends' kids (ones that I would be attending with my wife and kids). I let them know I wasn't charging anything but for them to not to expect anything. If they wanted professional photos, then hire a professional. I did the shots with no pressure and got honest constructive criticism from them after the shoot. Plus, they got a CD full of pictures.

[360°]

thanks for the advice everyone