Does Less ££ mean less respect...?

[Yeoer]

Been reading this forum for a while and it seems alots of you have been asked to take pictures as a favor or for little or no reward...

I was just wondering does this make taking the pictures on the day harder?

My thinking is... if a couple pay someone £1500-£2000 for thier wedding photos and the photograher asks them to sit/stand a certain way or assist assemble a group etc etc... do you think the couple and the family will be more co-operative, try harder to please the highly paid photographer than if he/she was taking shots for free?

[tim]

Yes. Same thing when you shoot for friends, less respect than you get from customers you don't know.

[RobKirkwood]

Taking pictures for friends or family sounds dead easy, but in fact it's one of the hardest things you can do - because you're trying to achieve 2 things:- being a quality service provider, and remaining a close friend (or relative). It's difficult in this situation to carry the same authority that you would as a complete outsider, and if things go wrong, you're going to have to live with it for a very long time.

People who pay more for their wedding photos generally do so because they see it as an important thing, and therefore place a higher value on getting it right - and that has a knock-on effect in who they employ to do the job, and how they respond on the day.

Ann and I have a very relaxed approach anyway, and trying to cajole people into positions they're not happy or comfortable with is not something we would ever attempt. In our view, the relationship between photographer(s) and client begins the moment they make that initial enquiry - how you deal with everything from there will, to some extent, determine how easy the client is to work with.

Making a success of wedding photography is more about people skills than photography.

Rob

[Yeoer]

Thats what i thought...! hum... Seems sad really... people (friends) want your best pictures for nothing and are not willing to give you a fair chance... no doubt they would be the first to moan if the shots were not professional looking after too...!

[Yeoer]

Rob. Beautiful girl and image on you home page.

Do you find your clients perfer differnt shots to yourselves... maybe more traditional... what i mean is, have you ever had anyone say 'if she/he was stood upright that would be a lovely picture...'

[RobKirkwood]

Originally Posted by Yeoer

Rob. Beautiful girl and image on you home page.

Do you find your clients perfer differnt shots to yourselves... maybe more traditional... what i mean is, have you ever had anyone say 'if she/he was stood upright that would be a lovely picture...'

Never had that said, and general answer is no - people come to us in the first place because they like the shots we produce, and then hire us because they like us.

Rob

[tim]

Originally Posted by RobKirkwood

Never had that said, and general answer is no - people come to us in the first place because they like the shots we produce, and then hire us because they like us.

Well said Rob. Sometimes it's as simple as them liking us as people, not just as photographers.

[Yeoer]

Originally Posted by RobKirkwood

Never had that said, and general answer is no - people come to us in the first place because they like the shots we produce, and then hire us because they like us.


Rob

I think thats hit the nail on he head...


If your doing it as a favor, in other words its not what you usally do you don't have any previous examples of what you can do... or examples of your photograhic style/interpritation of a wedding are... so the expectations of the photograher are even higher again... second guessing your friends taste..!

[RobKirkwood]

Originally Posted by Yeoer

I think thats hit the nail on he head...

If your doing it as a favor, in other words its not what you usally do you don't have any previous examples of what you can do... or examples of your photograhic style/interpritation of a wedding are... so the expectations of the photograher are even higher again... second guessing your friends taste..!

No I don't think it's that - in most cases you're doing it as a favour simply because your friends don't see the value or importance in spending money on the photography - after all with digital cameras why should it be so expensive? ...if they did see the value they'd make sure they hired a photographer who could deliver what they expected ...and that's not meant as any slur on your own abilities - it's actually a slur on the friends concerned.

Rob

[RobKirkwood]

Originally Posted by Yeoer

... so the expectations of the photograher are even higher again... second guessing your friends taste..!

Forgot to answer this bit - this is where sitting down with your client (or friend) comes into play ...that's where you find out what their expectations are, and figure out how you can satisfy them ...if they won't sit down and talk, run away very fast - it'll be nothing but trouble - in my experience the clients who express little or no view beforehand on the photography are the ones who become most demanding after the fact.

Rob

[*Mike*]

Originally Posted by Yeoer

photograher asks them to sit/stand a certain way or assist assemble a group etc etc... do you think the couple and the family will be more co-operative, try harder to please the highly paid photographer than if he/she was taking shots for free?

YES! In our experience price and respect go hand-in-hand. And the bride will skin her guests if they make it so her top of the line photog can't get the photos she wanted. We actually have a point-man to talk to if that happens during our weddings - its usually a loud person.

Anyway, we usually do it as a gift or charge full price. Stuff in the middle typically brings a headache with it.

[Scott_Quier]

As with most professions, respect tendered is proportional to the $$$ expended. If you pay someone big bucks (pounds) for their advice, you are going to respect that advice - you would look a fool otherwise. I believe the same holds true for photographic clients. They know they paid for the service and the expect that the service provider (that's us folks) know what we are doing and that there is a reason why we ask for certain things.

When we do it for family, they know us, the devalue our opinion because of that. Remember the saying, "Familarity breeds contempt?" There's truth there!