Here's some more questions from a budding photographer... I'm one of your dedicated blog readers and admirer of your photography work. I too am an aspiring photographer and very close to fully launching my business however, I'm still trying to work out some of the technical issues such as web hosting of photos. If you have a moment, would you mind sharing with me the process you use after taking photos, hosting them on a website, having clients view them and then determining what photos you give them on a cd? After taking photos I import RAW files to Abode Lightroom, rate and edit photos, export to JPG file on my desktop, and resize to a small size (400x600) if I use them on the web. All my clients see my fav's on the blog about a week after the shoot, then I upload (weddings 300-400, portraits 100-150) edited images to Pictage.com, then I give a DVD of files including the Blog, Pictage, and others.
Do you give your clients a cd of all of the photos you take including the good, bad and the ugly or just those they choose, that are photoshopped or enhanced? No, I don't. No one wants to see the ugly photos...not even me. Although I do get a good laugh out of peoples expressions. So, I give photos I have retouched only.
Your wedding package states roughly 700 photos or so but I was wondering how many of those you actually enhance? For my 2008 packages, all of the photos will be retouched in some way. I didn't used to do this because I thought more was always better. BUT, then I started thinking about how my favorites may not be the clients favorites and what if they decide to blow up an image that untouched...that's not what I want to represent my art. So, I'll fulfill the contracts for this year and then change it next year.
If you do all of them, how much time are you spending editing each wedding? Wow, this is a tough one. I'd say it depends on how many images I take. It can range from 1500-2000 and that's a big difference! But it takes an hour or more to upload, 5-6 hours to go through rate photos (3 for Pictage, 2 for DVD, and 1 to be deleted), 2-3 hours picking/editing/uploading the blog pictures, 15-18 hours to edit/upload pictures for Pictage, 2-3 hours to retouch the DVD images, and then how ever long it takes to burn the DVD and send it. All in all it usually takes about 30 hours...even if it doesn't add up. It always takes longer then you think. Computers are so helpful but not perfect.Â
I know you're busy but if you could help me understand this piece of the puzzle, it would help me tremendously as it is something I'm really struggling with right now. I hope this helps!
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