Covid-19 and your business?

Like others, I've had to determine what my absolute lowest acceptable fee is for this period. I can only hope that my clients become comfortable with shooting in this environment and we can move forward.

RDKirk wrote in post #19126962
And in southern California, at that.

SoCal median income $75k in 2018...the work offer $28.5k - $51k
I presume they think they can get away with that offer because there are alot of starving photographers.

ra40 wrote in post #19126938
Been browsing the job ads for work and I'm seeing listings for product photogrpahers with strong skills for social media platforms along with video editing capabilities. These positions are listed at $14-$25/hour.

Employers tend to think that professional photo and video capabilities should be a free bonus to social media marketing skills. While it's true that people who do one of them tend to tinker with the other two, each one is separate in its own right as a professional-level specialty.

Wow... glad this thread finally got back to photography, and not three more pages of debating the pro/con of various mask types! To bad people get so hung-up on their own off topic rants that everyone else has to filter through the posts to find where the discussion gets back on topic.

The gal that cuts the Mrs. hair, her sister is a SM consultant. She worked for Google for a few years then into a telcom SM dept before going freelance. She was telling me that her sister is in the $100K+ range with bonus/incentive for meeting target goals.

The other I'm asked is if I do web pages so that they can have a one stop set-up. My cousin does sites for $15K+ and these are the smaller clients. The grass isn't greener for her in these times. Few are willing to spend the $ in this uncertainty even though they project coming out, just of how long this will take is the unknown. Hard to determine when to take on expenses with reduced incomes. She does maintenance so those clients have a monthly contracted term.

I want to update my online presence but no work means no updates, etc... For all that could potentially help in my circle we're all waiting this out and it feels like a standstill. Very frustrating.

CVGwin wrote in post #19128779
Wow... glad this thread finally got back to photography, and not three more pages of debating the pro/con of various mask types! To bad people get so hung-up on their own off topic rants that everyone else has to filter through the posts to find where the discussion gets back on topic.

The business of photography is actually mostly not photography.

First swim meet in 6 months this weekend. Parents aren't allowed in to watch, so sign up for my services is all online. What should be a $2000 meet is currently $700. It's something but not what it should be. And without parents, I'm still losing the ability to market my underwater work which will hurt me this summer. They are hoping to opened back up at some capacity in the next month or so.

CVGwin wrote in post #19128779
Wow... glad this thread finally got back to photography, and not three more pages of debating the pro/con of various mask types! To bad people get so hung-up on their own off topic rants that everyone else has to filter through the posts to find where the discussion gets back on topic.

But if one's area of specialization in photography entails that the photographer use the proper mask so as to reassure the client they will not be infected via coming to the studio, masks are indeed an essential element of discussing COVID impact on one's photography business. On topic to this thread's subject.

Not sure how it is up there in CA though down here when the county list "re-openings" the people interpret that as no mask necessary. This is in spite of shops that have signs on the doors stating "facial coverings/masks" required for entry. The whole back forth opening, closure, opening has been tough. The moment the positive case increases, the county cuts back to reassess. Glad that the numbers are dropping now. Heading into cooler fall weather enough are scared that the regular flu season is going to mix with Coronavirus and have people fearful. This potential repeating circle and adaptation will be interesting.

ra40 wrote in post #19129105
Not sure how it is up there in CA though down here when the county list "re-openings" the people interpret that as no mask necessary.

It's not like that up here in Northern California, at least in my part.

OhLook wrote in post #19129137
It's not like that up here in Northern California, at least in my part.

I am on the SF Peninsula. Folks seem to generally comply with mask use even on the street and in stores in my town...but the relaxation of things is very, very new here...we just got Red status (next to worst category) in the past week, so things are in the midst of evolution to the new status.
I think an issue is that people particularly relax when dining together at restaurants., even outdoors I see folks who are obviiously NOT of the 'same household' seated as a group at a table, and the masks are off while they dine.

One recent story is that Mother A and 20-something Son A went to a restaurant, after Son A invited 20-something Son B to meet at a restaurant...Son B brought Mother B. Although NONE of the four were symptomatic, one of the 4 was actually a carrier, so Mother A caught the virus and was dead two weeks later!

Authorities do not know with certainty where the virus came from, but both Mother A and Son A had be very cautious and practicing social distancing very stringently up to that get together!
All because guards were down at a resturant. And in spite of actual stories like I related above, now the restaurants are being allowed to serve INDOORS...the risk is higher than dining outdoors. Greater infection rate is assumed by me to be likely.

So relaxation of precautions will permit more activities that permit more photographers to be employed again. And the infection rates will go up again, as a result of lowered guards.


In what seemed to be 'well controlled' countries in western Europe, now there are massive surges of infections; Spain had 14000 new cases in one day about a week ago! And so now they are imposing highly restrictive measures in certain cities, like NOT allowing citizens to go outside their own neighborhood without really good reason. Those strict precautions are not disimilar to restrictions in the SF Bay area from March to May! Then relaxed retrictions lead to increased infections. I have been tracking LA Countyy for months, and new daily cases had been dropping steadily-- until LA County started to have resurgence two weeks ago!

So, yes, things relax and infections surge, and new stricter restrictions need to be imposed again, until things get better and restrictions are relaxed, and the sine wave reverses direction again. Ad infinitum (or until a vaccine that works can be developed and proven safe and effective.

But HOW effective?! I read an article today about another possible vaccine by Johnson & Johnson. The article mentioned that the hope was for 50% efficacy, with 60% on the high side. In other words, vaccinate 1,000,000 and only 50-60% if them will have immunity from one of the evolving strains of SARS2...if they can convince 100% of folks to get a vaccination, but we know there is now an increase of reluctance due to questions about safety when accelerated testing of possible vaccines shortens the development time to less than 4 years (mumps vaccine was previously the fastest ever vaccine, in 4 years)

https://www.washington​post.com …rus-vaccine-approval-fda/

So just how long this pandemic will really be our curse and negatively impact our businesses is greatly uncertain.

Any updates how your local markets are?

I called to some prospective food clients that were on my list from Feb-March. Owners are unsure with the positive case rate up and seeing what Europe is dealing with now. They want the promotion and to entice diners yet if the governor decides on a lock down or cessation of dine in, that drop in revenue will strain them more. So many unknowns in this food service side that they are tight on expenses.

Dining prices have increased a bit due to the additional expense of to-go containers, cleaning chemicals and partition construction for those dine in capable places. As consumers we've not been to a handful of our regular places as our budget has been adjusted for expenses as well. One place was $5.99 for what I used to get in normal times but they bumped to $7.50 due to all this. That $5.99 was an acceptable price then but not now. Portion quantities have shrunk as well. To pay more and get less is less motivating even if I do want to keep $ in the local economy. They aren't returning the favor by supporting me even if I can adjust a price point

Still seeing similar photo job offerings for combined photo, video and social media segments.

Ads for RE photographers are around as well. I was looking at available homes and in normal times our city would have listings from 25-35 available. There were 6 FS listings last week. How is there demand for residential RE home photography? It is a sellers market as my neighbor just sold his recently deceased mothers home for $70K over listed price due to a bidding war among 3 buyers. Maybe people are selling their homes more and they just go fast. Have not seen any in our tract moving in or out. (?) As nice as these prices are for sellers, a buy in elsewhere is equally up.

In my retail portrait business, the major problem is the uncertainty of my customer base.

Along the same lines, there is a nearby costume shop I frequently use for props that is struggling to hang on by a thread. The owner saw daily sales drop from about $2,000 per day to literally nothing. He let go staff down to himself and his wife, and they're hand-making fancy masks, just trying to keep the doors open.

He remarked, "My business is good when people feel festive and are going to parties. Nobody is going to parties right now."

It's kind of the same way with retail portraiture.

huntersdad wrote in post #19128858
First swim meet in 6 months this weekend. Parents aren't allowed in to watch, so sign up for my services is all online. What should be a $2000 meet is currently $700. It's something but not what it should be. And without parents, I'm still losing the ability to market my underwater work which will hurt me this summer. They are hoping to opened back up at some capacity in the next month or so.

I do some shooting for the local paper and I don't know about how the restrictions will play out regarding a press pass for the high school sports. Still sort of up in the air

RDKirk wrote in post #19148064
He remarked, "My business is good when people feel festive and are going to parties. Nobody is going to parties right now."

It's kind of the same way with retail portraiture.

Sadly that's one of the unspoken side effects of the lockdown and masking, a lot of people are just barely hanging on and your business and costumes are nice things to have, but are not essential to life, so they get set aside.

Add to that the government imposed limits of people allowed at gatherings and there go parties, some with costumes and photogs who also go down the drain.

I also believe their is a psychological factor to it, people look forward at their future and don't see anything good or exciting and that causes depression, who needs a family portrait when the family is going to h*ll in a hand basket or a party that might get people ticketed and fined.

This in turn lowers your income so you begin to slide down the same tube, as do the people you support, in the end it's a very bad thing for the entire economy and while there are many people to blame for making it happen, they are people who will never be punished for what they caused.

That is unless the whole dang thing comes off the rails and bullets start flying and I pray that never happens because it will be very ugly and cost many innocent lives in the process.