I wanted to share a story with you about good Karma.
I was recently out for dinner with a close friend. Co-incidentally, my family dentist happened to also be in the restaurant, a few tables away. As he was leaving, he came over to say hello and ask after my family.
Shortly after he left, one of the restaurant staff came to our table and informed us that he had not only paid for our dinner but ordered us a dessert as well!!!!!!!!!!!
I was SO touched by his generosity and selflessness that I just had to share this beautiful experience.
I'm always inspired by stories of people going out of their way to be kind and considerate and whenever I hear of a story or have an experience like that, I always try to find a way to pass it on.
As a way of passing on the good fortune, I would like to give away two (2) portrait session packages. If you are interested, email me at info@staceyfphotography.com with your name, phone number and email address before midnight Sunday 16 May 2010. I will draw the winners on Monday 17th May at 8am and post the winners' names at 9am.
Even if you don't wish to enter this little competition, please be inspired by my experience and do something good for someone in your life!
Stacey
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
March Studio Update!
March is the first month of spring and already we are anticipating spring’s gorgeous colors. In the meantime, we’ve got some fresh, fun campaigns in full bloom to celebrate the season!
Birthdays
It’s your birthday and the fun has just begun! May this day find you full of laughter, free spirit, and cheeks covered with cake and kisses! Happy Birthday! Please accept a gift from your friends at Stacey Flurscheim Photography for a complimentary birthday session and
8 keepsake wallets.
Maternity
Expecting or know someone who is? We specialize in maternity portraits. The journey into parenthood is filled with milestone moments. Let us capture life and the beauty of pregnancy with a maternity session. Call 925-330-7130 today to schedule some tummy time.
Headshots
Freshen your look this Spring! Look great in your business cards, networking sites, brochures, and newsletters with an updated professional portrait. You work hard to build your business. Now it’s time to improve your own ROI with a professional headshot.
Join us for a “power lunch” session for only $150. Take images, instantly review the session, select your image order, and be out the door in under an hour!
Lastly, check out these wedding portraits!
Birthdays
It’s your birthday and the fun has just begun! May this day find you full of laughter, free spirit, and cheeks covered with cake and kisses! Happy Birthday! Please accept a gift from your friends at Stacey Flurscheim Photography for a complimentary birthday session and
8 keepsake wallets.
Maternity
Expecting or know someone who is? We specialize in maternity portraits. The journey into parenthood is filled with milestone moments. Let us capture life and the beauty of pregnancy with a maternity session. Call 925-330-7130 today to schedule some tummy time.
Headshots
Freshen your look this Spring! Look great in your business cards, networking sites, brochures, and newsletters with an updated professional portrait. You work hard to build your business. Now it’s time to improve your own ROI with a professional headshot.
Join us for a “power lunch” session for only $150. Take images, instantly review the session, select your image order, and be out the door in under an hour!
Lastly, check out these wedding portraits!
Till next month!
Stacey
Monday, November 23, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
Certified Professional Photographer
Back in January of this year, I joined a group of like-minded photographers and we began studying for a certification qualification issued by Professional Photographers of America (PPA).
There are two parts to attaining this qualification:
1 - a rigorous theory exam, testing all facets of photography
2 - a 20-image judged by specially trained and qualified PPA judges who look at each and all of the images and mark them against a number of technical and artistic categories. Each and every image must meet these criteria in order to pass.
In June, I sat the theory exam, and passed. :-D
At the beginning of August, I submitted my 20 images for the image review process. After a tedious 5-week wait, I received my result today....I passed! :-D
I am now very proud to announce that I am a Certified Professional Photographer!
I will post, shortly, some of the 20 images I submitted for the image review. Look for them soon!
Best to all of you!
Stacey
There are two parts to attaining this qualification:
1 - a rigorous theory exam, testing all facets of photography
2 - a 20-image judged by specially trained and qualified PPA judges who look at each and all of the images and mark them against a number of technical and artistic categories. Each and every image must meet these criteria in order to pass.
In June, I sat the theory exam, and passed. :-D
At the beginning of August, I submitted my 20 images for the image review process. After a tedious 5-week wait, I received my result today....I passed! :-D
I am now very proud to announce that I am a Certified Professional Photographer!
I will post, shortly, some of the 20 images I submitted for the image review. Look for them soon!
Best to all of you!
Stacey
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Fun Images
One of the best things about my job is that I can use, practice and hone my skills on my own kids and get some great images! These three were taken within the last month. My big boy is almost 5 and my little one is nearly 18months.
I love my kids! :D
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Why Professional Photographers are so Expensive
I came across this article through my Facebook account. It really lays out in Layman's terms what goes into creating a portrait and why professional photographers command the fees they do.
In this digital age where everyone has digital cameras, scanners and home "photo printers", when people upload their photos to a local drug store website and pick them up a few hours later, we hear this all the time - How in the world do Professional Photographers charge $55 for an 8x10 when they cost just $1.50 at the drug store?
Here's why.
Simply put, you're not just paying for the actual photograph, you're paying for time and expertise. First, let's look at the actual time involved. If you don't read this entire page, at least read this first part.
For a two hour portrait session:
- one hour of travel to and from the session- two hours of shooting
- 30 minutes of setup, preparation, talking to the client etc.
- 30 minutes to load the photos onto a computer (2 - 4 Gb of data)
- 30 minutes to back up the files on an external drive
- 3 - 4 hours of Photoshop time including cropping, contrast, color, sharpening, saving a copy for print and a copy for the internet and backing up the edited photographs
- 2 - 3 hours to talk to the client, answer questions, receive their order and payment, order their prints, receive and verify prints, package prints, schedule shipment and drop package off at Fed Ex.- For local customers, we also print a set of all of their photos, and meet them at our studio to review the photos and place their order. Meeting and travel time averages 2 hours.
You can see how one two hour session easily turns into more than ten hours of work from start to finish. So when you see a Photographer charging a $200 session fee for a two hour photo shoot, you are not paying them $100 / hour.
For an eight hour wedding:
- I won't bore you with the details, but an eight hour wedding typically amounts to at least two to three full 40 hour work weeks worth of time. Again, if they are charging you $4,000 for an eight hour wedding, you are not paying them $500 / hour.
Now for the expertise.
Shooting professional photography is a skill, acquired through years of experience. Even though a quality camera now costs under $2,000 taking professional portraits involves much more than a nice camera.
Most Professional Photographers take years to go from buying their first decent camera to making money with their photography. In addition to learning how to use the camera itself, there is a mountain of other equipment involved, as well as numerous software programs used to edit and print photographs, run a website etc.
And let's not forget that you actually have to have people skills, be able to communicate, make people comfortable in front of the camera - and posing people to make them look their best in a photograph is a skill all by itself.
Think of it this way - the next time you pay $X to get your hair done, a pair of scissors only costs $1.50. But you gladly pay a lot more to hire a Professional.
What about the cheap studios at the mall?
Please don't compare us to the chain store studios. But if you must, consider all of the time and work that we put into our photographs, compared to what they do. Good luck getting a two hour photo shoot at a chain store. Not to mention they won't come to the beach! And of course, look at our work compared to theirs. You get what you pay for.
The truth is, most of the mall and chain store studios lose money. In fact, in 2007 Wal-Mart closed 500 of their portrait studios because of the financial drain they were putting on the company. What the chain stores bet on is that you'll come in for some quick and cheap photos, and while you're there, you'll also spend $200 on other things. They don't have to make money, they are just there to get you in the door.
Conclusion
We hope that those who have taken the time to read this page will have a better understanding of why professional photographs cost so much more than the ones that you get from your local drug store.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Shawn, Pamela & Gavin Richter
Caught on Film Photography
So, the next time you balk at the cost of a professional portrait, remember it's not just the time behind the camera that photographer is charging for! ;)
Stacey
Why are Professional Photographers so expensive?
(This article has been very well received by the photography community, and is now referred to by countless Photography websites, blogs and forums (such as LDPT, ILP and DWF)around the world).
In this digital age where everyone has digital cameras, scanners and home "photo printers", when people upload their photos to a local drug store website and pick them up a few hours later, we hear this all the time - How in the world do Professional Photographers charge $55 for an 8x10 when they cost just $1.50 at the drug store?
Here's why.
Simply put, you're not just paying for the actual photograph, you're paying for time and expertise. First, let's look at the actual time involved. If you don't read this entire page, at least read this first part.
For a two hour portrait session:
- one hour of travel to and from the session- two hours of shooting
- 30 minutes of setup, preparation, talking to the client etc.
- 30 minutes to load the photos onto a computer (2 - 4 Gb of data)
- 30 minutes to back up the files on an external drive
- 3 - 4 hours of Photoshop time including cropping, contrast, color, sharpening, saving a copy for print and a copy for the internet and backing up the edited photographs
- 2 - 3 hours to talk to the client, answer questions, receive their order and payment, order their prints, receive and verify prints, package prints, schedule shipment and drop package off at Fed Ex.- For local customers, we also print a set of all of their photos, and meet them at our studio to review the photos and place their order. Meeting and travel time averages 2 hours.
You can see how one two hour session easily turns into more than ten hours of work from start to finish. So when you see a Photographer charging a $200 session fee for a two hour photo shoot, you are not paying them $100 / hour.
For an eight hour wedding:
- I won't bore you with the details, but an eight hour wedding typically amounts to at least two to three full 40 hour work weeks worth of time. Again, if they are charging you $4,000 for an eight hour wedding, you are not paying them $500 / hour.
Now for the expertise.
Shooting professional photography is a skill, acquired through years of experience. Even though a quality camera now costs under $2,000 taking professional portraits involves much more than a nice camera.
Most Professional Photographers take years to go from buying their first decent camera to making money with their photography. In addition to learning how to use the camera itself, there is a mountain of other equipment involved, as well as numerous software programs used to edit and print photographs, run a website etc.
And let's not forget that you actually have to have people skills, be able to communicate, make people comfortable in front of the camera - and posing people to make them look their best in a photograph is a skill all by itself.
Think of it this way - the next time you pay $X to get your hair done, a pair of scissors only costs $1.50. But you gladly pay a lot more to hire a Professional.
What about the cheap studios at the mall?
Please don't compare us to the chain store studios. But if you must, consider all of the time and work that we put into our photographs, compared to what they do. Good luck getting a two hour photo shoot at a chain store. Not to mention they won't come to the beach! And of course, look at our work compared to theirs. You get what you pay for.
The truth is, most of the mall and chain store studios lose money. In fact, in 2007 Wal-Mart closed 500 of their portrait studios because of the financial drain they were putting on the company. What the chain stores bet on is that you'll come in for some quick and cheap photos, and while you're there, you'll also spend $200 on other things. They don't have to make money, they are just there to get you in the door.
Conclusion
We hope that those who have taken the time to read this page will have a better understanding of why professional photographs cost so much more than the ones that you get from your local drug store.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Shawn, Pamela & Gavin Richter
Caught on Film Photography
So, the next time you balk at the cost of a professional portrait, remember it's not just the time behind the camera that photographer is charging for! ;)
Stacey
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