Hello friends :)
This will be my last post of the year, and what a year its been! I am ASTOUNDED to report that my website has seen almost 7000 visitors since January! Whoohoo!
I finished the season out by shooting a small wedding at the beginning of the month for R&G, a lovely couple, on a day that turned out to be absolutely perfect! (In YYC, its rare we have a 10C day in December!)
I am spending the next little while doing as much editing as I can before Little Remy comes near the end of the month. This pregnancy has probably been the hardest one yet, for a variety of reasons, but that's for another time, or another blog...
At the end of November, we lost our 20 year old cat, Fenster, after a short but rapid decline in his health. He followed me home when I was just 18 years old, meaning I've had him for more than half of my life. He was the best little kitty you ever did meet, and my heart will never be the same without him. Miss you buddy xo
onto more positive things....
When I made my business 'official' in January, I really had no idea how things would turn out;
Would I crash and burn?
Would I make enough money to buy a new camera and other gear?
Would I fail spectacularly and run away with my tail between my legs?
Would I succeed beyond anything I could imagine?
The answer is yes and no to all of these questions; I certainly did better than I hoped for, and yet not as good as I would have liked. Let me explain;
I booked more weddings and other sessions than I would have expected. My work was ok, I mean I definitely improved over the last 12 months, this I know for sure.
Am I where I want to be?
Not really.
I am an insanely impatient person and I had hoped my skill level would be beyond were I am currently, but I also have to realize that this doesnt happen over night. (Or 365 nights)
The areas I feel like I need to improve in are these;
Delivering more photos for weddings; I am very much a 'quality over quantity' type of person. I want to give out 200-300 AMAZING photos, as opposed to 800 kind-of good ones. I also realize that is limiting me. Some people WANT 800 photos.
So my solution is to meet in the middle; I am going to do my best to shoot more, and NOT BE SO PICKY of what I THINK is good, and what will MEAN something to the bride and groom. When I cull through photos after a wedding, I scrap any photo that is anything less than perfect (in my eyes) If a photo still manages to move me, emotionally, even if its less than 100%, I'll keep it, but realistically, I should stop being so damn hard on the technical aspects of the photos.
My QC might be a little too strict. I realize this. Its because I want everything to be perfect and thats ok, but I need to give myself a little grace. I'm still relatively new at this, and I'm still learning.
I have seen some wedding photographers that give an average of 50-100 photos AN HOUR! What? How can you be delivering that many shots, and they all be stellar? I literally have no idea how its possible.
I prefer to spend my time in the editing process and giving shots that are all swoon-worthy.
I prefer to make sure that all imperfections in each photo are taken care of; I’m talking about giving a nip/tuck to each member of the bridal party, (if asked for) also, brightening teeth and making sure your eyes are sharp and everyone looks flawless. Also, making sure its composed as close to perfect as possible; rule of 3rds, cropping, straight horizons, the contrast/shadows/highlites/saturation for every photo is spot on.
These are the details I focus on more than the number(s).
Maybe its wrong, maybe I need to focus less on the tiniest little details and start putting out higher volume of photos....
This is a balance that I have to find for myself; to keep the integrity of my work at a place where I'm happy, and also to keep clients happy with the product they are purchasing.
Managing my time a little better is the other thing I need to work on.
being a stay at home Mom, with a husband who works out of town 3/4 time, and trying to grind away at building a business (plus hit the gym 4x week, and have a social life) is challenging to say the least. But I’m working on it!
The 3rd thing is that I need to put fair prices out there for myself, and for my clients.
I realized that for every hour of shooting that goes into a wedding, I spend double that on editing. So for an average day, say a 10 hour wedding, I spend an additional 20 editing.
Thats 30 hours of work that goes into the process, not including all the other stuff; marketing, online advertising, blogging, meeting with clients, reading, practicing....
Its a lot right?
Its been good for me to assess these numbers, also including what I spend on gear, websites, business cards, insurance, business license, gas, and MORE gear!
And so, after a year of figuring out the details, my packages will be adjusted after Jan 1st, and I also will be offering more services that have been requested.
So, I DID succeed enough to be able to buy a new full frame camera, 2 new lenses (1 was a gift from my husband, check out my facebook page for that tear jerking post) an external flash, an new laptop for editing, many, many props, back/floor drops for studio work, and pay for all the associated expenses with running this business.
I cannot tell you how happy I am to be able to run this thing, and be able to make enough to have it support itself.
Through all the trials and tribulations this year, this is what I've learned;
Dont be afraid to amend my contract
I had to change things up at least 6 times over the year, learning as I go, and adding things I hadnt thought of when drawing it up. I will probably amend it a few more times over the next year and beyond, to make sure I cover my ass, and my clients asses are covered too!
First come, first serve
I am mortified to admit that I held on to specific dates for brides who inquired, turned others away for the same date, only to have the first bride go with another photographer.
Lesson learned. I will never, ever let that happen again. Period. The first one to put a deposit down, gets the date.
Dont give away work for free
I have been shortsighted. By giving away my work, to friends and family, at little to no cost, it undervalues myself, my work, and my efforts, and it goes under rated. That's the nature of it though; I know my friends and family appreciate it, but when there is literally NO VALUE put on my time and work, people don't treat it as a valued service. By placing a monetary value on my work, and getting friends and family to sign waivers and contracts, they take it more seriously, and they take ME more seriously. I know my friends and family want to help me succeed and do what they can to get me to my goals, so as of next year, everyone pays...(sorry, not sorry)
Do charity work
....Except Charities. A long time ago, I learned from one of my teachers in a completely different industry, that a percentage of everything you do should be for free; to a good cause and/or to someone who needs your services but cant necessarily afford it. Ive never forgotten that, and I have been in touch with 2 charities for the upcoming year. I will be doing some work with one of the many Cancer charities, and some other work for an organization called Pace Kids. Stay tuned for more details in 2018!
Add more services
As of next year, I will be offering photobooth services, separately and included in my deluxe package. I will also be including engagement sessions for the Wisteria package. I will be adding the option of buying prints and albums (along side of the digitals) as well as metal prints, large scale canvases, calender's, and even phone cases! For major holidays, I will be offering cards, and for maternity/newborn sessions, I will be offering birth announcements. I realize that some of these services are easily done at your local Costco, or online, but if you're not tech-savy or concerned about quality, I would love to be able to assist in getting these products, and getting them perfect the first time! I also have been in touch with a few videographers in the area, and have made some connections in that field so if anyone needs a referral for video services, I can recommend a few, at different price points.
I want to be able to provide as much as possible, to make things easier for clients. Honestly if I could, I would offer day-of co-ordination and wedding decor rentals, but alas, one thing at a time.....
Don't be afraid to change up your business plan
Owning a business is not the easiest thing in the world, but holy shit, is it ever awesome! I love being able to do what I want, set my own schedule, go through all the growing pains and learn every day. I love connecting with people and celebrating the big moments in their lives; getting to be even a small part of that is humbling and I never take it for granted. I will be doing things slightly different in regards to images expected/delivered for the new year. I currently have a website that clients can upload JPEGS from, but I'd like to just use that site for sneak peeks, and deliver custom flash drives for every session. I want to ensure that the quality is impeccable, and never compromised. Emailing, sending over FB, and even uploading via online gallery, can leave images compressed and/or degraded, and not always suitable for printing. I want to ensure that clients have TIFF (high res, good for enlarging) and JPEGS for sharing online and social media.
This year has been one of the best in my life; following my dreams in this business, having 2 healthy boys to keep me on my toes, getting the surprise! of another boy on his way, having the most supportive husband (who never fails to show me love and encouragement in all the ways that matter) and being surrounded by friends and family, who also show me unwavering love and support on this journey.
I had no idea, that in December of 2017, I would be blogging, pregnant AF, have a collection of amazing camera gear, have a portfolio that I'm proud of, and be on track to hit my goal of 18 weddings for the upcoming year. (fingers crossed)
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all of you who have been with me through the mistakes, the fumbles, the growing pains, the learning curves, and still stood by to support me and my dreams!
I do this because I've loved photography my entire life, but also because I want to be able to provide an income for my family. My husband has sacrificed a lot over the last 4 years to provide for us and our kids, and the greatest gift I can give to him is to do my best to give back; to contribute something financially to the household so he doesn't have to fly to a different province every month, just to give us a nice life. His dedication to us is unparalleled, and I want to show him the same devotion. If i can do that, and also follow a lifelong dream, than, how can I not?
I look forward to showing you all our new son, as soon as next week, on my SWP facebook page!
I wish you the happiest of holidays, the merriest of celebrations, and all the yummy food you can handle! I myself, cannot wait to have a mimosa on NYE :)
Love, always,
Reens xoxo