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I'd probably charge the rate I would for a wedding. I have a three hour option, so I'd probably do that and then upload the images to an online gallery as well. But really, I don't know if I'd take that job. It's not the kind of thing I'd want to shoot (not saying you shouldn't do it---just that I probably wouldn't want to). No, I don't think you're over-thinking it. You want to be paid fairly for your time. You can think of it like this. How much time will the job really take you, including travel time, time on the phone coordinating everything, editing, uploading images, talking to the client about her order....and any other things you can think of that it will take to do this job. Now, add all that up and ask yourself how much you want to be paid for that amount of time.
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I either charge full price or do it for free. Obviously, there's a very small group of people for whom I'd shoot a wedding for free. In fact, it's only happened once in the last four years. It almost happened twice, but this year, that one person cancelled. Which was so sweet for me, because I ended up photographing Robert Redford's 75th birthday party on that same day I nearly did a free wedding for a relative. Here's why I don't give a discount, and instead do it for free or full price. When you give a discount on a service (this is not the same for a discount on a product) it's very difficult psychologically, to not assume you're also getting a discount on the service provided. In other words, people will think you aren't going to work as hard for them because they aren't paying the same. I don't want people to think that, because it's just not true.
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That's tricky, for sure, but you can only do what you can do. The situation isn't hopeless. If you're talking about the ceremony at that time, then you just shoot it. Nothing else you can do about it. However, once the ceremony is over and you are shooting formal/group shots, you can look for shade for such things, or position the subjects backs to the sun.
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asked by Trefour
That is a great question. I default to black and white and I want the images to look like they might if I was making a hand-made print on fiber based paper so that's the look I'm going for. From time to time I'll tone the image (again, back to the hand-made fiber prints I want the toned image to look like I used selenium toner on them) but it's sort of a gut feeling about what could enhance the actual image, rather than become the subject of the image. For color, I'm kind of a mess, but basically, I want the color to look realistic with a very slight bit of pop and punch. Slight slight slight bit. And in all of this, I'm paying particular attention to the shadow areas. I don't want any of the black areas to block up and become completely black. I always want details in the shadows. Again, just like they teach you when you're making prints in the dark room.
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I always shoot in RAW because it's more flexible and I have more control over the final results. Just do a google search on "raw vs jpeg" and you'll have plenty of ready for a week. I'm not trying to dodge your question by suggesting you google it, it's just that you'll find far better explanations that what I can give. For me, there's hardly any disadvantages that would keep me from shooting in RAW. I process everything in Lightroom and hardly ever open Photoshop.
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There are a lot of great options, so I don't know what's the best, but here are some really great options. The Canon G12, Nikon 1, Olympus Pen E-P3, Leica V-Lux 30.
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I don't do a lot of direction. But first, before I ever take the camera out of the bag, I sit and talk for a while. If I've never met them before I ask them where they grew up, what they studied in college....stuff like that. Then we go into the studio and I kept talking, keep asking questions. I don't want the subject to be nervous, so I ask them about themselves. Everybody loves to talk about themselves. I usually will say, "just stand there how you would if you were hanging out for a while" and then make minor modifications on that stance. If I have them sit, I'll ask them to sit and they may ask me how I want them to sit, and I'll say, however you'd like or whatever is comfortable, and then I may have them lift their head a little or move their arm a little, but that's about it. All the time this is happening, I'm still asking questions, how they met their husband, how many kids are in their family....that kind of thing. I'm talking, and what I'm paying attention to is their gestures and their expressions--the kind that will reveal something about their personality. If they are guarded, don't trust you, or fake smile, then that will shine through. But what I want to show through is a sense of what that person is like to be around, not just what they look like. Other photographers may approach things differently, but that's what I do. It's a good question you ask, and I think the skill of getting people to relax is separate from knowing about good light and proper exposures.
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That's tricky. When I'm going to do a portrait, my first criteria is great light. I know that if the light is fantastic, everything else can be less than perfect and I'll still be pleased with the results. However, if everything is perfect but the light is just so-so, well then, turns out everything is going to be so-so. Do you cancel? I don't know? Is it easy to re-schedule? How many people will you be putting out if you cancel? Are there other options? Move it up an hour instead of cancelling all together? Can you shoot outside? You also asked, How do you make indoor shoots work if you aren't getting enough natural light? This is a really hard question to answer because I have no idea what kind of shoot you are doing and what your style is, and what your end goal is. Again, for portraits, I try to do all I can to make sure the light is great. If you've never shot in that particular location, that's where some planning comes in, as well as some communication with your client. However, at weddings, I'm just given a situation and am expected to make the best of it. And in a lot of cases, the lighting is down-right awful. So, I either shoot a high ISO with a fast lens (1.4 aperture) or, use my flash. When I use my flash, I try to bounce the light off a wall or ceiling, or, have the flash a couple feet from my camera, so it doesn't have that harsh on-camera flash look. You can see what I'm talking about in this picture: http://justinhackworth.com/blog/2010/dispatch-from-the-road-evening-in-san-francisco/ Notice how the light is coming from the side, creating a shadow on the right side of the subject's body, which creates a feeling of depth in the image.
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There's a lot that could be said about that. First, I understand that it can be overwhelming. My first suggestion is to stop comparing yourself (your work and the level you are at) with anyone else. That can't help. Instead compare yourself with where you were last week or the year before, and let that be your gauge of how you are doing, and not what some other photographer is doing. Also, think about what kinds of pictures you want to make and start finding clients that will pay you for making those kinds of pictures. It may be look like a totally different business model than what anyone else is doing. Another thing I'd say is that you must spend as much time improving your business skills as you spend improving your photography skills, if you want to to photography as a business. The biggest problem with new photographers is they have no idea what it takes to run a business, they have no idea what their costs are, and so they end up undercharging for their services and are actually loosing money instead of making money. And the last thing is good advice for anyone and not just someone interested in creating a photography business, and that is, think about what your ideal life will look like. What does success look like to you? Break that up in to small steps and start moving toward that. Ok, so those are all sort of theoretical. Here's some specific things to do to improve your photography. Take pictures every day. Look at the work of the masters of photography and see what inspires you and what make you tick. Some of my favorites are Elliott Erwitt, Lee Friedlander, Richard Avedon, Sally Mann....there's so many. Go to the library and check out their books. And then the last practical thing will make you a better photographer right away. Only show your good pictures. Be very selective of the images you show on your blog. I hope that helps.
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You know that cliche about how it's not about the destination, but the journey? Cheesy, sure, but true. Have fun now, and all that stuff about what other people are doing becomes less important. Here's something else to think about. Any photographer you admire (I love Elliott Erwitt and Irving Penn) at one time in their life took very crappy pictures. Everyone has to start somewhere.
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Interesting. I've never really given it much thought. What I concern myself with is making sure I'm better this year than I was last year and that next year I'm better than I am this year. What someone else is doing doesn't really effect me. I don't have any control over that. Plus, there's plenty of room in this world for lots of people to make great pictures. Good question.
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Hum...good question. Isn't there a law somewhere that you have to photograph lawyers standing in front of leather books that no one ever reads? There isn't a law against it? Sweet. Then that's what I'd do. I'd move them away from all those damn books. Get them out of their office. That's going to make a big difference. And genuine smiles. If they're fake smiling, it's going to look like they are fake smiling.
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Your question cut off, so I hope I'm answering what I think you intended to ask. I like to let them know it's not up to them to make a good picture. It's up to me. It's not up to them to worry about if they are standing the right way or where to put their hands. It's up to me to take care of all that. If they get that, if they trust me, then the pressure is off. And I do chat with them beforehand, but then once we start taking pictures I keep talking to them. There's a very slight transition from when they're sitting on the couch telling me about where they grew up to when they're in the studio and I'm then asking them about what they studied in school. They keep talking, and I just start taking pictures and don't really give them a chance to get nervous or feel like they're getting their picture taken. I also start out by saying, "now I'm just going to fiddle with the camera for a minute, so just relax while I try to get just the right exposure" and I keep taking pictures and then never say, ok, we're starting. Again, it doesn't give them a chance to get nervous, hopefully.
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For now, the rate is $35/hour (2 hour minimum) and $175 for a day rental. Availability is first come, first served. You can call or email to let me know what day(s) and time(s) and I'll put you on the calendar.
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1. Practice. Think of it like hitting a fast ball. It takes some time to get used to. 2. Focus on the eyes. If the eyes are in focus, everything is less important (generally). 3. Try shooting at a different aperture (so you have a wider depth of field) for a bit while you practice this skill of getting accurate focus. 4. Try a wider lens, like a 24 or 28 when shooting busy, energetic kids. Helpful?
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Wait, why would you ever let you license expire? I don't have anything on Etsy but I have three things (wow, huge inventory, dude) here: http://justinhackworth.bigcartel.com/
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That red wall was like that when I moved in to the studio and I haven't ever changed it. For one thing, the wall I always shoot against is off-white. So I never use that red wall or shoot against it (well, hardly ever), but love it, because it's a bright, cheery color.
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We had over 400 people that wanted to be a part of the 30 Strangers exhibit, and we only select 30 of them. That's a lot of people to turn away and I don't like that so much. So, we thought of a way that we could include a few more people that really wanted a mother/daughter portrait even though they weren't going to be part of the 30 Strangers project. So we emailed everyone that left a comment and extended to them a great offer. I think we limited it to 30 or 50 spots. I can't recall the amount. So all summer I'm going to continue doing mother/daughter portraits and I'll put them on the blog. I've photographed quite a few that still need to go on the blog and quite a few that are still scheduled to come in for their session. We did something similar last year.
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I just selected them yesterday and now will get to work printing and framing. Here's how the process works. I select 3-5 from each session and then make small, 4x6 prints of all of those. I lay everything out on a table and begin narrowing them down, paying attention to how things look together. I'll only pick one image from each session so there will be 30 pieces in the show. I look for images that are the strongest, as well as a variety of images from each session. I don't want any that look the same. Then I pay attention to how they all fit cohesively as a group. In the end, you take 30 pictures to make one piece--that is, the group. I'm really excited about how they all are going to look and I hope to see you there on July 15th.
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Loading...Justin Hackworth’s Bio
I'm a wedding photographer. Hurray for love.
