Note: Photo tips are answers to questions asked on our Facebook page. If you would like to submit a question, please click here to submit your question. We will then post them on our Facebook page and let our fans respond to the question. We will then transfer the question over to our blog so we can keep them in an organized way for others to see.
Question from Mollie: ” What do you all think is the advantage to limiting the number of images you provide a client? I don’t see why you shouldnt give them any great shot you got. Or is it a balance between what you charge, session time, and what you provide?”
Christina: Giving them every single shot you take isn’t an issue, as long as you price yourself accordingly. Your time to edit every good shot is worth something.
Pam: Too many images just makes it that much harder for client to make final decisions. Also drags ordering process out longer
Jen: I agree- If I get 30 great shots then I will edit them and give it to them- But my prices are at a point that I feel it is fine to do so. Although I only guarantee them a certain number of photos – that way if a kid isn’t cooperating as well as you would like or it takes a longer then expected time to pose them they aren’t expecting 30 photos and only getting 10
Kim: I tell people that they will get 20 images but I love so many of them I have been giving like 40. If youre not spending tons of extra hours editing I dont see an issue.
Cheryl: Great question….that has been on my mind a lot….I want to be a more is more girl but I find that is just costing me lol
Krystle: and u woukd be the only to kno what they get they wouldnt kno the difference but i always try and give color and bw it only takes a few seconds to make it a bw but thats just me
Jennifer: Kim Dorko Vaccariello – the only problem with giving them extra over and above what you’ve told them that they would get is when/if they come back to you for another session, they will expect those extras, and if this time was less than stellar, they will wonder why they didn’t receive the same amount this time. OP – most clients aren’t going to know if they are really great shots or not, and it’s our job to guide them to the best ones (and those are the ones others are going to see – so you really only want you very best out there), and less really is more. If they have 100 pictures, it’s really overwhelming, even with me showing 30 proofs, I’m rethinking because it’s so much to decide between. If you go to a box studio, they give you about 20 to choose from. Just stuff to think about, obviously, do whatever works best for you.
Justin: I usually give them everything that I want to give them. I want them to be excited about what they see, so I try not to flood them. I do make a few black and whites of similar images to get a feel for what they like. For me, I dont spend a ton of time editing. I do my best to get my settings and everything in order that I can on site, and then I shoot away, and tweak the ones that really speak to me. Sometimes its a lot, sometimes its not. But at the end of the day, I am okay if it takes longer for them to order or decide if I give them extra images, because usually, they order more that way because they cant make up their minds. As the other folks said, they cant tell the difference between garbage and great, so you have to be that deciding factor. But I would say, as long as the images you are editing are not adding too much extra time, and are equally as good as your favorites, it wouldn’t hurt to satisfy the customer. And in regards to them coming back, you have to make that judgement call. There are always factors that are out of your hands on a photoshoot but if you feel you can consistently supply more images than originally agreed upon, then there is little chance of them being disappointed on a second visit.
Michelle: People do know the difference between good and bad, you can not fairly expect they are not intelligent enough to know, the Internet is a wealth of information which I am sure most use for research. Time is money yes, but kindness goes a long way and leaves a lasting impression with many that then will refer, this is priceless. Giving a little extra is not a bad thing, they are their memories not ours, if there are a few more great shots than expected, give them to them, where else are they going to end up, most likely in the rubbish after a little time as they take up valuable hard drive space. I see that as a waste of my time. I would be happier knowing I have given them their precious memories and not been so consumed about “oh it costs me extra to do this”. What’s an extra 10minutes for a few more shots, in the whole picture, nothing because the gratitude is 10 fold when given. Just my humble opinion…
Tony: I used to give less, but now that I’m doing in-person sales I actually show them more. I think it works because I am there to walk them through picking their favorites and thinking about what to do with them – that way they are not overwhelmed with decisions. If they were just looking at an online gallery then I would definitely show less.
Christy: I learned the hard way too many choices=overload=unable to decide=no order or just a bunch of small prints. Now I show less, then go through them quickly at order session to choose “yes, no, maybe” images, then work with those. Then I do as Tony above says, and help them choose the best way to present those faves.
Julio: That is why Professsional photog shoot photos like there is no end to it, so they can make different packages, different pricesn and let the customer pick what he wants,once he makkes up his mind and pays you then give him and extra photo free as thanks for his business, believe word gets around when you treat customers good,
Julio: By the wat there is a free site named Photobucket.com you can download it freeand so are the fotos, you can see them and must tell you how they shoot the, spedd andcamera,pixels etc you really learn a lot remember photographers are like economists they all have their own methods, theories and trick, your best way is trial and error specially nwith the advantage of Digitals, I owe a nikno d90 and just bought the best D5000, love it to point I dont use my other no more,
Feel free to keep responding to this question using our comment section below.