Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Choosing the right photographer for you
Picking a photographer ain’t no nursery rhyme. Every photographer will think they are worthy of your business. This is our business and how we make money. To my dismay, I am not the fairest of them all (wink and sigh emoji here). We are worthy to some and not others. We all don’t like Ford’s, we want a Chevy. Choosing the right photographer for you comes down to 3 things: Style, Vibe and Budget.
These days, Google puts a photographer on every street corner practically, so go to Starbucks on the opposite corner and sit down for a search.
STYLE CHECK! Every photographer has his or her own style or vibe. Look through portfolios and ask:
. How is the overall images? What you see is what you will get. If you like tradition, but the photographers style is Bright and Airy, not the photographer for you even if the price is right.
. Do you like their editing style: dark and moody, light and airy, tradition and vibrant or all natural. This goes with overall image. Don’t ask a photographer to photography or edit based on your style. Photographers build up their clientele with that particular style. Again, if the photographer is in your price range, but not you style, move on.
. Are the photos too posed, too candid? This is definitely a photographers comfort zone. Posing is difficult to master. And if not posed correctly can make the subject look award and uncomfortable. Keeping your subject engaged and flowing in a session can prove to be challenging and uncomfortable also. Many clients do not feel comfortable being asked to walk around, skip and twirl for those candid shots. Every client is different, so get a feel for each one.
. Can you see yourself in their photos? If their work isn’t exciting to you, look on…
VIBE CHECK - even though you may not know the photographer before had, get to know them through: reviews, social media or a phone call to see if there’s a connection.
. Review the reviews. FYI: just because one photographer has 100 reviews vs one with 10 doesn’t mean Jack! And doesn’t automatically make them better than the next. Review are acquired differently from photographer to photographer. Incentives are a way for some photographers to gain their multitude of reviews.
. Follow us on social media - we don’t bite. We would like to follow back. Personally, this is great way to pick up on your vibe.
. Old school phone call - a quick call for questions and concerns can set the tone. Tone being, is there pressure?
MONEY, MONEY . . . MONEY! Know your budget and what’s included.
In this day and age the word “transparent” is a fine word! WE ALL LIKE TRANSPARENCY.
Ask what’s included in the pricing:
. Clothing or (outfit changes). In my opinion, clients should bring and wear what they choose, but keep in mind clothing changes take time, so if you have an hour session with multiple changes, you’ve cut your session time in half.
. How many locations? How long is the Session? You really need search this one out. When a photographer says: ‘three location’ for 2 hours. Is that three driving location and is that possible with the time allotted, or is it three separate spot in a “location” where you walk to. There’s a difference. So ask that question if you’re unsure.
. Do you get digital images, prints or both? Most everyone is social these day, so digital is the way to go. And all photographers (I think) go digital. Prints are always available through the photographer or on your own.
. Is editing and special edits included? Editing is where the jam meets the peanut butter. Editing is a whole other skill and takes years to master. This can make or break a photographer. Editing is a whole other blog post. Editing can be the most time consuming for a photographer - it take time and effort to create the finished product. There are always distraction and skin issues when it come to portraits. To make a photo a true portrait we have to tackle these issues. Does the photographer charge extra for removals that matter most in the portrait?
. Some of use like a la cart, others like to be more inclusive. Today, especially for me, I like transparency. I want to know what it will cost me upfront. I don’t like surprises. A la Carte is pay as you go, get what you want, Not what the photographers wants you to believe you want (packages).
Don’t just look at price - look at the value
Janessa - Cherokee Trial High School - 2025
Janessa - what a doll! Sweet as pie! Jayne and Janessa come to see me for their consultation. I did Janessa’s older sister’s senior portraits for the class of 2021? Janessa wanted the natural look, but wanted to be different than the others. Just adding a real pop of color would definitely be different from the usaul white. I went over all my nature location and they chose my favorite nature spot. I usually have this location to myself with the exception of a local walking his goat. Yes, a goat. I absolutely love this spot. The lighting is usually perfect unless you have a cloudy day. I took Janessa to a new spot I found, and oh, man!
Janessa said that she was uncomfortable and didn’t know what to do. Most peeps are and that’s my job to make my peeps feel comfortable. But right out of the gates, Janessa seemed natural and comfortable. As you can see from here photos, she didn’t look uncomfortable one bit! She was a natural!
I loved that Janessa went different with the red and purple long dresses. This was different in my eyes and was very refreshing! I LOVED Janessa’s session! It was perfect!
Sage - Cherokee Trail High School - class of 2025
Sage - girly time with this young lady! Sage knew exactly what she wanted for her portraits. She wanted the natural, tall grass look. At her consultation, I gave them some suggestion for spots with grass. In the end, she chose her spot in the Castle Rock area.
After a run of guy session (hey, I Love my guys), I got my first girl of the season. Yes, I live vicariously through the moms. I am a boy mom, so I love the hair, shoes and all things girly once in a while. Sage brought a few outfit changes which we captured beautifully. The light was perfect, and not always at this location. We lucked out on this day, so our session went a bit longer than expected.
We had to work around a couple of other session going on, but really, it flowed pretty nicely. Locations look different year to year depending on rain and the lack thereof, so the grass was not what I was hoping for - a little dry, like most places this year. You get what you get.
I absolutely enjoyed my time with Sage and Meredith! Sage was so easy and enjoyable to photograph. They were both so easy to work with from beginning to end.
Dax’s senior portraits Whitesboro High School, Texas - Class of 2025
Dax - make it all high altitude for this kid! A kid coming up from Texas - not just any kid, this kid is my nephew. While I headed south to photograph my son in Tulsa, OK in June, my nephew heads north to have photos done with me in Colorado.
I wanted Dax’s photos to be epic. I had some spots I though might be great to try out on him. While I don’t disclose specific locations, I had a couple of mountain locations that featured a 14er or a lake with some gorgeous mountain views in the background. Ultimately, it came down to what they wanted and they wanted Rocky Mountain National Park and Red Rocks. I get it, coming from Texas, these are iconic and photogenic spots. So let’s kill two birds with one stone. Dax’s stepmom and girlfriend have never seen RMNP and his girlfriend had never been to Colorado, so this makes all the sense to see these two locations and do portraits at the same time.
Well, lucky for them, I have spent a lot of time at RMNP and knew of a few good spots. For our first spot, we headed to Morraine Park and found a great spot with absolutely no peeps, just a lot of flies. Our second spot, we headed to Bear lake, mostly because my sister-in-law and Kendall have not seen RMNP , and I had the reservation to get us there. Our last spot was up to Trail Ridge Road, for the epic 14er (Longs Peak) in the background along with weather and wildfire smoke.
For Dax’s second location, they wanted RR. Since it’s concert season, Red Rocks proper wasn’t an option for portraits, but I know of great spot where you can get the whole venue in the background and that’s where we headed for Dax’s second location.
I am super happy with Dax’s photos, even though it’s not what I envisioned, but its not about my vision, it’s about theirs and I am grateful I was able to photograph my nephew in his dad’s home state and have some family time.
Christopher’s Senior Portraits Cherokee Trail High School - class of 2025
Christopher’s session - got that rocky mountain high. Heather came to me in late spring to book Christopher’s session for late July. July is a perfect time to do senior portraits for lot’s of reasons, but one being time. In my blog: ‘How to pick the perfect Location’, is, does the location have special meaning to you? I don’t get these very often, but the Gianella’s wanted their special location in Estes Park at their cabin. In that special location was another special spot for Christopher.
I will admit, the two clients I’ve had with a ‘special location’ have probably been my hardest, just because I am not familiar with the location. New and unexpected locations have their challenges: Lighting for one. What direction is my main light source coming from, and in that directional light, how do I place my subject with compositional value and interest? These are issues I can figure out by scouting out the area before hand. This was not a location I could easily get to for a quick scout out. So, I had to figure it out with a quick walk through before our session.
I absolutely love how Christopher’s photos turned out! I love the touch of the aviator glasses and the ball cap chilling on his cabin deck. And I am pleased I was able to capture him on his very special spot within a special location.
We had time, weather and we were in between plumes of forest fire smoke( clearer skies). We had the most perfect time. July 29th, senior portrait session done. Now we can focus on school check- in and relax a bit until school starting. When I say “we”, I got my son’s portraits done in June. GO us! Christopher has grown into a wonderful young man. He had such a nice smile and was fantastic subject to work with. He was flexible to my suggestion, and our little chats are always a plus too! Congrats on your SENIOR YEAR!
Sebastian’s senior portraits Cherokee Trail High School - Class of 2024
Sebastian is going places - France is their destination. Sebastian has plans to go to France for college.
Stephen (father) booked Sebastian’s session and the one I would communicate with through the process. He was such a pleasant person to talk to, just super nice and so easy to communicate with form start to finish. The moms are always the ones that book. Funny, but we could’ve just hopped the fence for a chat. Yeah, I can see their house from my house. I didn’t realize we were so close until they came over for their showing. I suppose when I get a Cherokee Trail High School student that there’s a possibility we are neighbors. Not complaining, they are awesome neighbors to have!
I held the consultation for Sebastian’s senior portrait shoot with Stephen on behalf of Sebastian. Stephen initially booked Sebastian’s shoot for Red Rocks, but I informed him that there was a concert that night and every night through the summer, so I suggested the next best spot that hosted Red Rocks in the background in Morrison, Colorado. They wanted to capture Sebastian in the Colorado scenery since they would be heading to France after high school.
Of course we had to reschedule their session due to weather. It was par for the course this year for weather. Our reschedule session was even threatening, but they were all happy to get in the hour they thought they only had. I told Stephen we had up to 2 hrs of shooting if he wanted to get that other hour in, but he said he was absolutely happy with what he saw in the first hour. We all bolted for out vehicles at that point with lighting around, but I enjoyed my conversion with Sebastian and Stephen. We talked about the concerts we had been to and Sebastian’s future plans.
