Wife wants to hire a photographer - should I be insulted?

Nothing says you can't have both, let her book the photographer and do your own photo session! Nothing like a little competition to get things going

I looked at some of your pictures and it looks like you are doing a good job already. Are most of your pictures only in digital format or do you have 8x10's printed after you shoot. Maybe she is also after those 30 wallets, 5x7's etc.

In a few more years you will be shooting pictures that can not be shot in a studio - school plays, ball games, birthday parties, etc. Just be sure and have large prints made.

tkbslc wrote in post #9419024
So this morning my wife said she wanted to get some pictures of my girls done at a local professional photographer that specializes in kids photography. Now while I freely admit the photographer she wants to hire is a much better photographer than I am, I can't help but take this as a slap in the face. I try pretty hard to get good shots of my girls and that is mostly what I got my SLR kit for. Now it seems like what's the point if she just wants to pay someone else for the frame-worthy shots.

Am I just being a boob, or how would you take this?

Chin up mate, my wife paid $1,600 for a proper pet photographer to do my sausage dogs (including big canvas printout) - even though she knows that I am a pretty decent photog when it comes to photographing pets (to the point where she even recommended me taking pics of her friend's pet)

djvkool wrote in post #9422795
Chin up mate, my wife paid $1,600 for a proper pet photographer to do my sausage dogs (including big canvas printout) - even though she knows that I am a pretty decent photog when it comes to photographing pets (to the point where she even recommended me taking pics of her friend's pet)

"A prophet finds no favor in his own country."

Okay, I just know there's a clever way to fit an "old wine, new wineskin" reference in here somewhere ....

I would let her have her way (but use it as a learning experience for yourself). We all know that women will have their way eventually (if your wife is anything like every woman I have ever known!).

I think, with the right equipment, studio, time etc, you would easily be able to replicate the photo's but do you really want to buy all that gear?

Another option would be to do an outdoor shoot with some reflectors/flashes (as you dont have the studio, backdrops or lighting) and as someone else has suggested, buy the "dressing up" stuff from a thrift/charity shop. That might even turn out better as your kids will be in a comfoprtable enviroment and at ease.

You can't get back the time. If someone is better at this type of photos - let them do it. Your girls grow and when time comes that you'll say "I'm now good at kid photo" they'll hire wedding photogs themselves

So yeah, support your wife, even drive them to the photog, buy girls new shoes! Take part in that session, look, sneak behind and learn. And next year.. Next year your photos will be hanging all over the place. And if again your wife will insist on taking girls' photos at studio you'll be ready

tkbslc wrote in post #9419510
You've hit it on the head. We have a small house and so it is difficult to do the studio type shots and the photographer she want to visit has lots of spiffy props, etc, that we do not.

And I know it is a bit ego-centric, but I want MY pictures displayed in my house. Plain and simple. I like it when family and friends come over and say "you shot that?!" Does that make me a bad person?

Ask her how much she's prepared to pay for a pro shoot, then go out and spend that much money on new gear.

And shoot your kids so much that you're gonna get amazing shots.

If you shoot enough, you will get stuff that is at least as good as that specialist kid tog will.

nuffi wrote in post #9424749
Ask her how much she's prepared to pay for a pro shoot, then go out and spend that much money on new gear.

And shoot your kids so much that you're gonna get amazing shots.

If you shoot enough, you will get stuff that is at least as good as that specialist kid tog will.

Yeah because everyone knows that all you need to be awesome is a lot of gear and a happy trigger finger.

If someone has a ton of cash invested in props plus a boatload of experience & knowledge, I'm gonna pay them the asking price for their services instead of buying the props. Why? Because I may have the props but I still don't have the boatload of experience & knowledge.

Kinda like how I can replace the starter on my car but when it comes to doing anything that requires it be put on a lift, I'm not gonna be going out and buying a lift. I'll drop it off at a garage.

I still have my kids' photos taken by other photographers, and I do shoots of them too. It's great to have different photographer's viewpoints.

Rick Sammon says "The camera looks both ways." It's totally true. What you get out of your kids will be different from what someone else gets... Just go with it!

cdifoto wrote in post #9424875
Yeah because everyone knows that all you need to be awesome is a lot of gear and a happy trigger finger.

If someone has a ton of cash invested in props plus a boatload of experience & knowledge, I'm gonna pay them the asking price for their services instead of buying the props. Why? Because I may have the props but I still don't have the boatload of experience & knowledge.

Kinda like how I can replace the starter on my car but when it comes to doing anything that requires it be put on a lift, I'm not gonna be going out and buying a lift. I'll drop it off at a garage.

I am starting to agree, and issue #1 is that we literally have no space to set up a home studio. We have 5 people in a 1200 sqft house right now. So maybe after we move...

Even if we had the space, the backgrounds my wife likes (and the photog has) are from drop-it modern. They are $297 each for an 10x9. Add in some props and a studio flooring and I am looking at another few hundred. I also don't have studio lights. I was planning to buy them and probably still will, but add those in right now and I am looking at well over $1000, maybe $1500 to replicate what this local talented photographer can do for a $350 session fee. And then I still have to figure out how to use studio lights and get the damn kids to do what I ask for poses!

I am feeling a lot better now that I am realizing my wife had no concerns about my ability to take good photos of the kids and it was more about not specializing in a certain style. And honestly, I don't want to specialize in cutesy shabby chic portraiture.

tkbslc wrote in post #9425304
And honestly, I don't want to specialize in cutesy shabby chic portraiture.

Haha likewise. I'll leave that stuff to the girls.

Oh and UGH @ BluDomain!

mrfixitx wrote in post #9419150
I wouldn't worry about it, your wife obviously appreciates photography...

Ouch!

TJ

tkbslc wrote in post #9425304
And honestly, I don't want to specialize in cutesy shabby chic portraiture.

I hear you, man. Especially the hats, goddamn they had a lot of hats.