Workflow. We hear it all the time. What is it, and why is it
important? Workflow in the photography world is literally the life cycle of an
image, from pre-conception, to birth, to death, with the possibility of
resurrection. It’s important to establish a workflow no matter what level of
photographer you are. If you are a photographer that deals with a large
quantity of customers, then an extensive and detailed workflow is essential.
The point of a workflow is to stay organized and to make sure that nothing
falls between the cracks. A Basic workflow looks like this.
Take Picture- Download Picture- Print Picture- Burn Picture
to CD and put in Storage box.
Ya see, basic. I told you not to expect anything really
crazy. Workflow is something that should be flexible enough to accommodate
changes, but reliable enough that if it is interrupted, it is very easy to
re-start. For some of you brave enough
to take on the task of the entire workflow, including retouching, printing, and
fulfillment then I applaud you. There are some easier ways to go about it as
well, and personally I would rather be shooting photographs than
troubleshooting a printer, but that’s just me. Here is how I set up a workflow.
Feel free to comment and add in any nuggets of information you think might be
of value. Whether you are working with a client, or your own personal family
photos, you need to have something to shoot. I am going to take the majority of
this workflow from a Family Portrait perspective. The rest of this post will
deal with Step 1, because it is a pretty big step and can lead you to success,
or disaster.
Step 1: The Phone Call- You have done some type of
advertising and a client has contacted you and wants to pay you money to
photograph them. This is a good thing.
Right from that first phone call you need to collect as much info as
possible. You need contact info, which includes phone numbers, address, e-mail,
and of course their name.
You also need to determine what type of sitting this will
be. Since this is a family sitting, you also need to find out how many people
will be in the photograph. Other good questions to ask is if this is a special
occasion, are there different group breakdowns that need to be done, and what
they are wearing. It’s good to ask these types of questions because people in
general don’t think about this type of stuff until the day of. This also gets
them mentally prepared for the length of the session and what prints they are
planning on purchasing. The largest
group that I every photographed at one time was around 120ish, and that
included about 60 kids under the age of 10.
During that shoot there were 3 assistants, and 1 photographer just for
the shoot and we were all exhausted afterwards. Imagine what would have
happened if we hadn’t gotten that information and had planned on a family of 6.
(Shudder).
What also needs to be discussed is the location. Are they
photographing in-Studio or is this an “On-Location” shoot? If the family is
expecting a studio, you better make sure your studio is free and large enough,
or you might have to rent out a studio. Have your calendar on hand at ALL TIMES.
If you are a solo- one- person show you need to get some type of a smart phone
that syncs with your computer back home and that has your calendar, contacts,
and an internet connection (necessary). If they are expecting an outdoor
On-Location shoot, then the address and distance is also a factor.
One more thing to establish is the point of contact. Who is
the Client? Who is making the decisions? In most cases, this is the matriarch
of the family. It’s just good to know
who will make the decisions and who will look at you and say “I dunno”.
Put ALL this information in your calendar on the date of
their sitting. Also set a little alarm to call and remind them about their
session, usually the day before.
There are some specific programs out there to help you with
scheduling, and I will talk about that more in my next post.
Finally, get some type of a Fee. It is a fact that if there
is not a sitting fee paid, then the chances of them showing up decreases
significantly. You don’t necessarily have to charge an arm and a leg, heck you
could even call it a down payment on their order, but get some type of payment
if you want them to show up. Now, what do you do if you are a one-person solo
act, or if you are out and your credit card machine is back at the studio? This
is why you need a smartphone with an internet connection. There are several
great little credit card swipers that you just plug into the audio jack of your
smartphone, and for a very small percentage (which is normal with credit cards)
it will deposit the money into your account. Awesomeness. And here’s the thing,
the card swipers are FREE, and the account is FREE! I put a link below if anyone wants to get one
and set it up.
Next Post: Session Organization Software!!!! (You’re all
thrilled, I can tell)
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