Picture Me This: Super Common Photography Questions #1

There are lots of questions people have about photography.  Some they ask straight out; others, they seem a little shy about.  I tend to be an open book, so I am willing and ready to answer almost any question you could possibly have about photography.  I'm going to start with some of the common ones I've been asked, since, you know, they tend to be repeated a lot. 

So here we go...

1.  Why does photography cost so much? / What do I actually get for that fee?  We all want to know that we are getting a great value whenever we purchase something.  I am a bargain hunter, and I will be the first one to tell you that most of the time I am pretty stingy when it comes to spending money.  Generic groceries?  They pretty much run my kitchen.  So I get why people become very concerned about the price tag attached to a lot of photography services.  When an hour session starts at $100 minimum for someone with experience, it can look a little outrageous.

But it's not. 

You see, when you pay for a photographer's services, you aren't just paying for him or her to show up and click a button a couple hundred times.  You are really paying for all of the following:  getting to and back from the shoot, taking the pictures (time), editing, cropping, balancing, and adjusting the photos (more time), use of that photographer's work (we own those photos we send you), use of the photography and editing equipment, the supplies needed to burn you a DVD/USB drive or print out the photos (which costs even more), and the cost of getting the final product to your hot little hands.  For every hour of photography, I typically take somewhere between 300 to 500 pictures.  I go through each photo, edit the ones that have come out well and are not just repeats of others, and revise the color balance, clarity, sharpness, and tone of each photo.  Each one could take around 15 minutes to perfect.  That is a lot of time.  When you're a photographer full time for a living, you have to get paid a decent wage per hour.  Just because you don't see your photographer sitting at a desk in front of you doesn't mean that the work doesn't happen.  You know it happens when you receive the finished product.  And it should be clear that it was worth the money.

2.  Why does it take so long to get photos back?  It's touch to wait and see how your photos came out.  You're excited, and you want them. Right. Now.  The length of time it takes depends on a lot of life situations.  Does your photographer do this full time?  I'm a teacher as well, so I have to balance photo editing time with grading papers and lesson planning.  You may not know this, but how many other photo shoots has your photographer done in the last two weeks, or even a month?  If there are other shoots in the editing queue, yours comes after theirs.  First come, first serve.  How long/big was your photo shoot?  An hour-long family session is much faster to go through than a full wedding.  The bigger the event or shoot, the longer it may take.  Hopefully, your photographer is good at balancing time between the photo shoot and returning photos.  My typical turnaround time is about a week to a week and a half.  I just get too excited to see how the photos came out!  But everyone is different.

3.  When should I have my photos taken?  This could be answered two ways:  time of year and time of day.  Time of year is completely up to you.  There are so many natural features you could take advantage of that would make for gorgeous backgrounds, you can't go wrong!  Pick what you like and go for it.  Time of day is a little more specific.  You do NOT want to take your photos in the middle of the day during a bright, sunny day.  The light will be harsh, and you will either look super squinty, washed out, or in very harsh shadow.  Not so great.  Yes, as a photographer, I should know how to prevent these problems, but if you have control over when you book a shoot, don't you want to know when you'll have the best shot at getting fantastic images?  If you love the golden, sun flare look, I would book something just after sunrise or just before sunset.  It's called the "golden hour."  It's simply magic.  Otherwise, go for something at the beginning of the day or towards the end.  The light will be a little more gentle.

4.  Doesn't your camera do most of the work?  Couldn't I just buy one and be a photographer, too?  Sure, just like your stove does most of the work when you cook.  Everyone who buys a stove can be Top Chef!  Fancy equipment can help with some quality, but a photographer is so much more than a person behind a camera.  It takes a great deal of knowledge, practice, patience, and an eye for detail.  Don't confuse talent for equipment.

What other questions do you have?  Leave them in the comments!  I will be happy to answer anything you like!  Nothing is off limits.