I’m going to run through my hard-earned strategy to delight customers with their photos. In the past six months, 100% of my clients have been pleased with their photos. I can assure you it wasn’t always this way. When I started out, I discovered the many factors that come into play when you’re trying to deliver results which match expectations.
I’ve learned the hard way but now feel confident I’ve got the right strategies to mitigate risks and have the optimal chance of success for every shoot. What’s the saying? “Success teaches you nothing. You learn from failure.”
This is the longest article by far on this site as there’s many learnings here. I hope you find this article an illuminating window into the working life of a professional photographer.
I work according to the six golden rules below.
Easily the Number One reason why shoots go wrong is a discrepancy between what the client wants and what is delivered. This is an insoluble problem as the shoot has already happened. The photos are what they are. So they ask for a refund or a reshoot. What are the causes and how do I mitigate this risk? This is actually more complicated than it sounds for several reasons so lets unpack these.
Clients often don’t have a clear idea of what they want. This idea can only materialise after the shoot and the photos have been delivered – at which point they complain that the photos aren’t what they need.
It’s my job as the photographer to get clarity on the photos which will make you look your best and portray you in the way you’d like to be seen – before I pick up my camera. I do this with a call before the shoot and send a written shoot plan so it’s completely clear to everyone what will be delivered. This will vary between a few lines of text in an email for a headshot to a document spanning several pages for a corporate client, incorporating a shot list, call sheet with the contact info for everyone involved, mood board and branding guidelines.
Some clients are resistant to the idea of having a call as they don’t see the need for it or are simply pushed for time. In this case, I sit them down when they come into the studio and chat about what they want. Only when I have total agreement and clarity will I pick up my camera. This is a last resort; I much prefer to have a chat beforehand.
Even a simple headshot is a bespoke service requiring careful planning to get the best results. There are all kinds of ways I can portray you so I need to have a conversation to uncover what’s going to be right for you. Backdrops, clothing, lighting, how I direct you in terms of your pose … we need to talk!
Shoots without a written shoot plan often run into problems, mainly around the client changing their minds during or after the shoot about what they want. Committing words to paper forces you to think clearly to define the deliverables.
This is another item which is actually trickier than it sounds as I may not have easy access to all the stakeholders before the shoot.
The person contacting me to make the booking is often not the final arbiter on what the photos should be. For example a PA might contact me to take a photo of their CEO. I have a call with the PA and send a written shoot plan but make a point of very quickly (there won’t be a lot of time with most CEO’s) running through my understanding of the brief with the subject to check.
Actors book me , I do the shoot and then their agents weigh in, wanting something completely different! I try to involve agents if I can prior to the shoot, depending on my rapport with the actor. If they have a completely different viewpoint from the actor, it’s useful to know this so it can be resolved.
Corporate clients are in a way easier as there will be brand guidelines, a written brief and formal process for selecting a photographer.
A shoot is a partnership – everyone needs to work together well to get good results.
It’s said “The customer is always right” but you hire a professional photographer for their expertise – otherwise you’d do the job yourself. In my early years, I was too accommodating. Rather than explaining clearly why something was not a good idea, I allowed myself to be pushed into unworkable ideas. I’m always positive – if something won’t work in the way the client imagines, I explain why and suggest practical alternatives yielding a similar result for you to choose from.
I’ve not had a bad reaction yet to being more assertive as I try to be clear and logical in my explanations but I’m sure it will happen one day.
At a friend’s party, I happened to start chatting to the Group Marketing Director of one of the UK’s best-known brands. She was still annoyed two years later that a photographer they’d wanted to hire told her another photographer would be better suited.
I told her I thought that showed impressive integrity. I’m not sure she understood or agreed. I think she saw him as difficult. The photographer in question is one of the world’s most famous photographers. He evidently sensed a mismatch that could not be bridged. I’ve been lucky to have always found workable solutions. If this isn’t the case, I hope I’d have the courage do the same in similar circumstances.
I’ve also learned to be assertive in obtaining the right conditions for success. So for example if I’m being allocated a tiny meeting room for shooting a team, I’ll ask if there are any alternatives. Clients always think I’ll need natural light but I bring my own lights so natural light is a “nice to have” way down the priority list.
This is a game-changer and almost completely mitigates risks of photos not meeting the brief. I show the client the photos as we are doing the shoot. This is a brilliant coaching tool to work with the client to direct them to best advantage. The tiny screen on the back of the camera is not a good substitute. In the studio, a cable links my camera to my laptop so the photos pop up on the laptop screen as I take them.
For location shoots where having a laptop connected is not practical, we break for coffee every so often and load the shots onto the laptop to check if we’re on track.
For each shot on the shotlist, I will ask the client to mark pictures they like with four stars on the screen. We then review the four stars to pick a five star picture which is the one to be retouched. Involving you in the process throughout makes everything run more smoothly with better results. The question is “Have we nailed it?” Only if the answer is a definite “Yes” do we move on to the next shot on the list. Normally it takes around 20 -30 minutes (sometimes 10 seconds!) to nail each shot although this varies.
If you wait to review the shots at the end of the shoot, it’s too late. You’ve run out of time.
I ask customers to pay a small deposit to confirm their booking in the diary. This means that 90% of the clients show up on time (and the other 10% call to reschedule). The final retouched images are shared on settlement of my invoice.
I spend between 10 minutes and two hours on retouching a portrait. I retouch every photo as everyone’s appearance can be improved. That is really everybody, 100% of the people I photograph, including professional models. Years ago, I shared the original unretouched RAW photos along with the retouched images with a client, thinking I was delivering more value. The retouched images were fine but the unretouched images were much less flattering. Never again.
My golden rule for retouching is that it should be invisible and look completely natural. I’m trying to find a retoucher who shares my viewpoint. A retoucher I trialled recently who had great online reviews generated results which to me looked a bit fake. I do all my own retouching at the moment to preserve realistic skin tone and texture while removing blemishes and giving my subjects a healthy glow.
I do however share small thumbnails of unretouched RAW photos so clients can select their favourites. Although even with these I often make minor quick adjustments to colour, crop and exposure before sharing.
