School Event

[KatG]

Ok here is my set up and questions:

I have been asked by an elementary school to set up shoot to take Holiday pictures at their Winter Carnival. They have the Santa, I have the camera and lights, computer and printer. The logistics are what I am getting stuck on. It will be me and 1 helper and then an aide from the PTA.

A few questions:

They want onsight printing. Is there a program that will let me shoot...send to computer...push print...4x6 print prints and hand to customer? Is there a program that will allow me to print multi pics on 8x10 page of same pic?

Have you found it better to offer more prints or just the 1 size?


I have the canon ZoomBrowser (never really used this program)

I am sure I will have more questions...little fuzzy brained right now. Any help would be much appreciated!

Kat

[Dennis_Hammer]

I believe the zoom browser will let you print from it. Just set the defaults for the pic size you are doing. Bring extra ink and being as an elementary school event will probably be very hectic I would stick to one size and do others when requested.

[WMS]

Adobes PhotoShop LightRoom will let you do picture packages and prints from the program once you have the photographs in a can in the computer. I'm not sure whether Adobe PhotoShop LightRoom .will allow you to shoot tethered or not. It would be possible however with multiple memory cards to shoot a few pictures change I memory cards and have your assistant load the photos you just shot into light room from the memory card jujitsu move from your camera while you are shooting additional pictures on a second memory card. Light room would also allow you to make your basic adjustments that you might want to make quickly and easily. I'm sure there are other programs which would also allow you to do on-site printing.

Wayne

[breal101]

What other software do you have? EOS utility will allow for shooting tethered to the computer and nearly any version of photoshop has a picture package option that would print multiple pictures on one sheet of paper.

[amfoto1]

Hi,

I've done similar shoots.

To print onsite you must have an assistant who is very familiar and comfortable with the software and the entire workflow. If you are busy enough to make a profit, you will not have time to consult with the client or assistant on workflow or image optimization during the event. Ideally the assistant also needs good people skills, to work with the customer.

Really just about any software will do. I've even seen folks using the free software that came with their $100 Epson inkjet. Just practice a little with it beforehand.

Limit the paper sizes you use to two or three (say 5x7 and 8x10/8.5x11) and only offer glossy paper. It's very expensive to try to stock a lot of choices.

Whatever the smallest size is that you offer, that's what you will mostly sell. If you offer 4x6, that's what 90% of your customers will buy. I stopped offering 4x6s. Too cheap to make it worth my while ($5 at the time). By offering 5x7 as the smallest, I probably lost a few sales, but my average sale per customer immediately doubled.

And, can you say "copyright infringement"? One time a lady who bought ONE 4x6 from me later bragged to me that she'd scanned it and used it for all her Christmas cards, then showed me the button she had made with it, then showed me the tote bag she'd printed it on. She absolutely loved the photo I made (of her dog in a Christmassy setting), but obviously was clueless about copyright infringement, didn't think about or care whether I - as a business - made sufficient sales to be able to survive to take more great photos for her in the future. Wasn't worth arguing or pursuing... Most of these cases aren't. The photographer who tries to enforce their copyright in these types of shoots just ends up looking greedy and mean... downright Grinch-like!

For that reason, part of your workflow should be to add a "signature" to your images. It should be pretty subtle (not a full size and dominant watermark), just something on the image itself, down in one corner or the other. This is enough to mark the image as professionally done and many retail printers will refuse to make copies of the image without something in writing from the photographer. The assistant will need to add this to each image before printing. In Photoshop, for example, you can prepare a few semi-transparent signatures on a layer in a file and have it open on your desktop, drag and drop onto each image. Or you could set up an action in Photoshop that adds it. Other softwares you might need to use other methods. I've also seen people actually sign their images by hand, with one of those gold pens... but be careful about smearing.

This "signature" certainly won't stop all infringements. I'm sure some people will sneak a few by the retailer, or some retailer's staff is untrained and won't stop it... Other people just used their own scanners at home. But it will help with some. An alternative might be to put a small copyright notice on the back of the print... However many inks will not dry properly on the back side of many inkjet/dye sub photo papers. Stamp pad inks often continue to smear for hours or days, if they dry at all. A way around this is to pre-print small labels to stick on the back of the print (including your URL to help people purchase more online later). However these are pretty easily removed, so might not help much preventing infringement.

A nice extra to offer are inexpensive mat/folders that you put the photos in to protect them. These are available from a number of sources in various sizes and finishes. I bought a supply in several sizes from Papermart.com and have used them at various events for years. I also add a label to the back of these, with my name, URL and phone number. Plain envelopes to fit the various sizes are a good idea, too.

Have plenty of extra ink. You can't run out. It's happened to us at events and means scrambling to find ink close by (and argument for using a very common type of printer that's easy to find supplies for)... You usually end up paying extra for it too, since there's no time to shop around an unfamiliar territory for lower prices. We were fortunate at one event that a store manager was kind enough to let us in a half hour before opening to get an ink cartridge, when someone bought sets and didn't realize they didn't include black!

Your best and most cost effective type of printer is a dye sublimation. However, to do 8x10s or 8.5x11s you are looking at a very pricey piece of equipment. You might be able to rent one in your area. But if you rent you will have to calculate your supply needs very carefully so you don't end up with a lot of unused materials that you've paid for.... Work with a store with a good return policy.

An inkjet printed can be used, but often isn't any better than most people can do themselves at home and is relatively slow. The cost of ink and paper, over the long run, is high, too.

Believe it or not, one of your biggest problems could be people bringing their own cameras and using your Santa set to take their own shots, any time you turn your back. I had that happen a lot at one event. I'd step away to swap memory cards so shots could be done printed out for waiting customers, then return to find Santa with a crowd around him and one or more people taking shots of their friends with their phones or P&S cameras they'd brought. I ended up having to wait until they finished, before I could take the next customer who was patiently and politely waiting for me. Be prepared for this! It would be best to have your set roped off and carefully control access to it. It's another situation where if you try to put your foot down and tell people to stop, the photographer ends up looking like the Grinch!

If using studio lighting, you almost need to have a radio slave or hard wired setup. People will be shooting over your shoulder and their camera's flash will set off optical slaves if that's what you are using in a multi-strobe setup. This will often screw up your shots, because only the slaved strobe(s) fired and is still recycling when you take your shot.

You should probably shoot JPEGs, or perhaps RAW + JPEG. The JPEGs are needed to speed up the process, but mean your exposures and color balance need to be pretty much on the money. Post the pictures online afterward, some people won't stick around long enough to get a print made or will want to think about their choices, or might come back and buy a different one from you to make Christmas cards or something like that. This is when it's handy to have RAW files, in case more post processing is needed.

Will you be collecting payment? Check local laws about sales tax and such. You'll need a cash box, some change and a calculator, at least. You'll have to decide whether or not to accept personal checks. Many businesses in my area no longer do. To accept payment via debit/credit/check card you'll need a full setup... talk to your bank. It ain't free! Sometimes you can get around it with PayPal or similar, if you have a wireless Internet connection.

Oh, and I charge extra for printing onsite. The reasons are mostly the cost of the assistant and the higher cost of printing supplies. Where a 5x7 costs $10 ordered online, it costs $11 onsite. An 8x10 is $20 online, $22 onsite. The print quality (inks, paper, image post-processing, working with calibrated system, etc.) are always better when handled later, online, compared to rushing to get the print out to the customer onsite. Online shoppers also get to choose from over 100 print sizes, finishes and printable products, instead of the 2 or 3 we are limited to onsite. So the customer actually ends up paying more for lower quality onsite, and has far less selection. On the other hand, the onsite buyer isn't being sharged for shipping and handling. Some people "just gotta have it now" and it's best to offer both onsite purchases as well as online sales, to be sure not to leave any money on the table, so to speak.

I'm actually set up now and will be doing Beta testing of a "Kiosk" arrangement through my printing service vendor, where people can view images on a computer onsite, place their own orders immediately and make payment with a credit card or arrange to send payment by check later... I'm not collecting any actual payment or doing any actual printing onsite. The order is uploaded securely later, along with the images files and all their shipping/billing info, and the prints are sent out to them within a few days. Much easier and less labor intensive, it's a compromise that still allows them to make that immediate purchase while they are still excited about the event, and it gives time for their images to be properly and much more professionally finished, and they have choice of all the same products I'm able to offer online. Might be the best of both worlds.... we'll see. The hangup has been that the images still need to be loaded into the computer and go through at least a minimal sorting and editing process, which still means an assistant. And, I'm no IT expert and have been struggling to get wireless image file transfer to work. (All this is just food for thought.... possible future enhancements. It's not stuff I'd recommend anyone try until they have a few similar jobs done successfully and the bugs out of the rest of their workflow.)

I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting. Frankly I try to avoid Santa gigs now. It's been a few years since I've done one. Bah! Humbug! ;)

[geofftelforduk]

KatG - this software (www.expressdigital.com/darkroom) was demonstrated to me when I was looking at the Sony Dye Sub printer! Very very impressive!!

amfoto1

Great post! I did a formal (black tie) even a couple of weekends ago! It was my first such gig! I believe it was a success and the feedback I have been getting is all positive.

I rented a Sony UP-DR200 Dye Sub printer and did all my printing on the night! I offered an 8x6" in a strut mount for the equivalent of about $18. Extra prints were $10 (not in a strut mount). Out of the evening I had 80 unique sittings which I was really pleased about!

I am now thinking of investing in a Dye Sub!! Its something I would like to do more off in the future!

Anyway, thanks again for your post!

Geoff

[Tigershark]

Express digital Core and renting a Shinko or a Sony would be they way to go. Several companies rent the shinko for 300 a weekend
I own a shinko and looked very hard at the new Sony but was not impressed with the results so I went with the 8x10 shinko great results in both matte and glossy in 30 seconds per print

[bnorm27]

Glad I stumbled upon this thread. I am in a similar situation to the OP. Asked to do Santa pics for the PTO. Where could one possibly rent one of the aforementioned printers? Also, if I am unable to find one, what are some other printer options? Has anyone used any of the portable printers, like those from Epson?

Thanks for you help!

[WMS]

Glad I stumbled upon this thread. I am in a similar situation to the OP. Asked to do Santa pics for the PTO. Where could one possibly rent one of the aforementioned printers? Also, if I am unable to find one, what are some other printer options? Has anyone used any of the portable printers, like those from Epson?

Thanks for you help!

Just a quick Google search and I found this, and there were other listings I did not investigate;

http://www.fotoclubinc.com/equipment-rentals.aspx

Wayne

[bnorm27]

Thanks Wayne! Think I may need to find someplace on the east coast. I will find out if they ship though!

[WMS]

Have you talked to B & H and/or Adorama in NYC?

Wayne

[asysin2leads]

I do several Santa sessions every year. I have a post card that the person fills out. It has the standard name, address, email, blah, blah, blah on it. I have a little box on the bottom that allows me to write in the file #. I shoot tethered to my laptop so they all get dumped into a folder. My clients are all there for parties, as will yours. I will open the files in Photoshop and then crop according to what they order. I offer 4x6, 5x7 and 8x10. I have an Epson R280 and I am impressed with the quality of print. I don't buy cheap, crappy paper either. I also have the images on my galleries so that they can order custom cards or other print sizes, as well. I've gotten a few extra orders from doing that. I have small envelopes to put the prints in. Nothing ruins a photo like a crap-ton of little Johnny's fingerprints.

There may be a better way to do it, but it's worked for me in the past and I'll be using it again this year. The bottom line is making it worth your while.

[TheMissouriShooter]

Check on a retail sales license as you might be require to collect sales tax. County and City license. Also make sure they don't have a contract with another photographer that does student pictures. I'd hate to see you have to hire an atorney.

[WMS]

Jon has a point about Sales Tax, however I would be inclined to include it in the stated price rather than adding it on as a surcharge. that is unless the State Sales Tax department has a problem with this, I have never encountered a Sales Tax Department who objected to this as long as I made myself clear in the price postings. I also would use Even Dollar amounts to limit the amount of coinage I would need.

Wayne

[bnorm27]

Just a quick Google search and I found this, and there were other listings I did not investigate;

http://www.fotoclubinc.com/equipment-rentals.aspx

Wayne

Printer Rental would be $200 for a weekend. Shipping would be another $100 round trip. I'm seriously consdering buying the Snap Lab 10L. I can get it with enough ink and paper to do around 800 4x6's for aound $1200 shipped.

[WMS]

There are many times where the price of rental is very near the price of purchase. Especially if it is a piece of equipment that you would use more than once or twice.

Wayne

[bnorm27]

OK. So originally, we estimated there would be a possible 400 customers at this event. Now I am being told about 250. I planned on charging $5 for a 4x6, and kicking $1 per photo back to the PTO. I was going to rent the Snap Lab printer (about $300), some strobes (about $125), and have to buy the media (about $80). So if we do 200 sales, after my kickback and paying off the rentals, I'd make about $300 for around 7 hours work. I'd like to establish a relationship with the PTO. My question is, do you still think it is worth renting the Snap Lab, or should I look to pick up two of the portable dye sub printers? At least after all is said and done, I have a printer or two. Due to the number being substantially lower then originally anticipated, I don't want to drop a grand on that printer....yet. Any thoughts??

[WMS]

If you only plan to print 4 X 6's It sounds like buying a portable printer or two might be the best way to go. Don't they sell for less than $150.00? And you would have them for the next time you did one of these events.

Wayne

[nuke789]

Looking at either buying or renting a sub dye printer to print 8 x 10 photos.
Which brand has the best quality for the price?
Thanks in advance

[WMS]

Looking at either buying or renting a sub dye printer to print 8 x 10 photos.
Which brand has the best quality for the price?
Thanks in advance

If I were in the market for a printer for photographs I would probably call B&H photo and ask for their advice. I know that they let have several dye sub printers available. One thing that I would consider is the cost of use in terms of paper and any supplies needed in addition to the initial cost of the printer.

Wayne

[kenwood33]

I used sony snaplab to do on site printing of 4x6 and 5x7. It is very easy to operate and it prints in 30sec. The print quality is quite good. You can do minor adjustments such as brightness, contrast and color on the machine before printing.