This is a huge debate in our industry and I hope I don’t ruffle some feathers… which I already think I have 🙂 . I asked on my Facebook Page, “from a client perspective do you value digital images.” I got emails, comments, and even text from clients, friends and other photographers, and I love all the varying opinions. So let me say here I am sharing what I think. I am not going to dive into pricing although that was a huge part of the conversation. Pricing “should” be dependent on your business costs, overhead, experience, supply/demand, etc. Just like everything else there is different quality of photography. And when I say quality to me it comes down to photographer experience and gear. That is all I am going to say on pricing here because that is another topic completely.
Here are a couple notes to add. With clients, the best thing you can do is set expectations, and exceed them. I will touch on this more soon, but my welcome guide does just that. I do not recommend to clients to print anything bigger than 8×10 on their own. As we all know, bigger is better, but bigger shows more. Anything bigger than an 8×10 I recommend ordering through the studio to make sure it is printed in the right way, and so it can be hand touched up. Again, I only sell personal printing rights. I still own the copyright of my images. If you are a photographer that does not sell the digital printing rights and you disagree with this then that is okay. Again no two businesses are set up a like. This is just my opinions and view on the matter. 🙂
xoxo,
KD
The question here should photographers sell the rights to digital images? There are two types of photographers in our industry for the most part: “Shoot and Sell” and “Shoot and Share”. There are benefits to both. Making the best decisions for you and your clients is one of the luxuries of being in business for yourself right? You get to call the shots. If you are a photographer, I am not trying to convince you one way or another but I am explaining why I do.
For me I feel like my business model lies in between the two. First off, I DO sell personal printing rights and other photographers tell me all the time that I should not, but I disagree completely. Note, in my sentence, I said sell, and I still own the copyright of all my work. A lot of photographers do not know the value of one digital image for their business. They look at what other photographers are charging and then charge a similar price. Pricing of products and services has to come from within a business because no two businesses are alike. I see a lot of “Shoot and Share” Photographers that are trying to turn a photography hobby into a business, they get stuck, and eventually have to move on to another career or hobby because they just keep spinning their wheels. I want to help. In a nutshell, here are five reasons why I do sell the rights to printing.
• NECESSITY: First and foremost, as a client, I would never hire anyone that did not sell the printing rights to me. I want the digital images for printing, archiving, and sharing. I do realize I am a photographer, so my opinion is skewed slightly, but take away the fact that I am a photographer. As a mom I would still want the digital images for archiving. I have moved, our families has grown, and my needs for images in different locations of our home have changed drastically. Without a copy of the images I wouldn’t be able to print, reprint, and archive.
• TIME: My business is setup around my family. I typically work five days(sometimes 4) a week from 5:30 am to 2:00 pm while taking a little time to work out, eat, etc. My business HAS to be efficient. I have workflows for editing, emailing, accounting, and everything else! Allowing clients to purchase digital rights gives them the luxuries of printing and doing what they want with the images. I use ShootProof to display and sell all digital downloads for my clients. It is so easy for my clients, and I love it when things are easy. I do sell prints and products. Some clients just want to order on their own while others want a consultation. When I sell products, I am really selling my expertise on helping them pick the best products for their family.
• PRINT: One of the reasons I sell the rights to images is because I want them to print the images at a place that is reputable lab. Again my experience is a personal one with all my clients. In my pricing guide I have 4 pages on printing and products. It outlines prices for products. If digital images are purchased, I tell them where to print. I even recommend my clients to go to BlackRiverImaging.com and print directly if they like… which is a professional printing lab. If they bought the digital images, then my business made the money it needed. Now my goal is to give them opportunities to get their beautiful images off a screen and onto paper and for me I want to point them in the direction of where to print to do my work justice(no Walmarts or Costcos please 🙂 ! I also have created a Print Inspiration Guide HERE that I share with my clients to help give them ideas to get their products up on their walls! Again, a lot of clients want me to order for them, hand touch up images, and help pick so I always offer my full services to help!
• COMPETiTIVE ADVANTAGE: I think selling personal printing rights does give me a competitive advantage. I am a mom, I am young so I feel like I relatable to my brides/moms, and I know what is important. If you are a photographer that sells digital images, you will appear more expensive to clients(and you should). However, at the end of the “selling” process, other photographers can end up being more expensive because of their hidden costs. My prices are clear and transparent, so there are no surprises. My Welcome Guide clearly outlines pricing and sets expectations for my clients. We are a small business so at the end of the day you have to make sure every client gets an amazing experience and any expectations you set go above and beyond! So I think being clear and transparent is important. No two businesses are structured alike, and typically pricing is a reflection of the business on gear, expertise, and talent….. and you get what you pay for like anything else.
• OVERHEAD: I say this last because I do not have a lot of overhead in my business. I do not have a studio that I have to pay rent on, utilities, etc. There are a ton of advantages of having an actual studio space from a marketing perspective, but personally, in this stage of my life, I do not want a studio space to upkeep. Studio spaces can be expensive and selling prints and products for a lot of photographers are imperative for their businesses to stay a float. I am fortunate to have a 700sq + space above my garage(you can see it HERE) that I run my business out of. I have products for clients to see. I also have canvases, prints, and metal prints throughout my home that I can show to clients. My “selling process” is a very personal… and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Here is a video to learn more about how and why I do sell personal printing rights and dives into the topics a bit more.
