Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? How could the best be that cheap? Too good to be true?
So how many times have you been online and googled a certain product or service and typed in “cheap XYZ near me” and you’ve ended up having 2 types of results. Either a really unbelievable “too good to be true” deal or sheer disappointment and frustration.
Well searching for the phrase: “ cheap family photographers near me “ could very likely prove to be the same. But, “Wait!” you say! “You just said that I could end up finding a really unbelievably good deal?” And my answer would be Yes, you might! However, let me share a few details that you might not be aware of.
Now like I mentioned, you most likely will get a disappointing search when you type “ cheap family photographers near me ”. Many of the images shot by this person may be hit or miss, not consistent in their work, not every image matches in style or vary wildly in color, which shows that they lack a lot of experience or they are just starting out. Others might have consistent style but you notice that the colors they chose are simply over saturated hues of one specific color like an orange or brown and like all trends they come and go. I’m sure many people thought the 80’s - 90’s would last forever, yet how many times do we look back of photos we took back then and say to ourselves: “I can’t believe I wore that! Omg, I swore that red jacket and white glove was so cool!”. I personally wouldn’t want to spend my hard earned money on something I’m not going to be excited or happy about, 5-10 years from now.
But what if you do find a decent or good photographer in your area for a crazy cheap deal!? Well that’s awesome! I would go ahead and take advantage of that offer because it won’t be there for long. And when I say it won’t be there for long, I’m referring to the photographers themselves. You see, what ends up happening is that they offer their services for so cheap; that, sure they get people hiring them for many events but what you as a client don’t see is what’s happening behind the scenes with that photographer.
At first they get excited that someone books them, they get some referrals because WHY NOT, they’ve got the best prices in town! Unfortunately, what they didn’t take into account is how to properly manage a business and most importantly how to stay in business because like you and I, they have bills to pay and a family to support. Next thing you know they have 100 referrals, a very limited time and very little money. What happens next? You decide to look them up for that insane deal again next year and you get a “404 Error” on what used to be their website which is the equivalent of a “the number is no longer in service”. Why? Because they burnt out, the hustle wasn’t worth the stress and to top it off, the referrals he/she was receiving, were trying to haggle the price even more for even less.
But, how does this affect you? Well I’m gonna share with you a story that happened to me. You see, I had photographed a beautiful couple a few years back and in those images were their closest friends, so I decided to photograph each of them individually because they all were as close as siblings. 2 years later I get a text from the couple asking for a favor, they stated they would pay whatever was necessary, no matter the price, for a single print. They remembered that I had photographed one of their friends & in that specific image, it captured his personality in the perfect way. Unfortunately, their friend had just passed away a few days ago in a car accident and they wanted that to be the image his family and friends would see at his wake and remember him by.
Now granted, that’s a scenario I hope I don’t have to repeat again in my life but, what would have happened if I had been that cheap photographer? They would have to be hunting me down for that single photo and chances are because I was cheap I wasn’t going to have invested in several back up hardrives to store any of those images for a long period of time. God forbid thats ever a situation you find yourself in but something similar would be you want to print a picture of your kids when they were small and you can’t do that with the files you were delivered because honestly how many digital images or pictures do you take with your phone. Those precious moments would be lost in a sea of digital files.
So, what could help you to find a photographer that’s right for you?
Well the first thing is to ask a lot of questions. Sure you want to know pricing and all but if that’s your main and only concern then I would suggest saving your money and just taking a few pictures with your phone at the beach or one of the gazebos in Tradition Square or head to one of your local Botanical Gardens. There are many places in the Treasure Coast or in your own town throughout South Florida that have beautiful scenic areas. However, if you want something more meaningful and tangible, then asking questions like “what’s included in that pricing and what should I expect” would be important.
With that being said a professional and experienced photographer would in turn ask you a lot of questions. For example, what we do is schedule a free consultation over the phone or via FaceTime, Skype or Zoom and try to figure out what’s most important for you.
One of our first and most important questions is: WHY do you want to be photographed? Are you celebrating an anniversary with your spouse or loved one? Do you have certain milestone you’ve reached and want to celebrate that? Have you achieved a certain weight goal or just turned a specific age and want to celebrate yourself? Or, you simply can’t figure out how to stop your beautiful kids from growing and staying as cute and tiny as they are and despite all your Google searches on some miracle drug you realize a great photograph is the answer. The reasons are endless yet our job is to find out which one is the most important to you. After all you did take the time out of your busy day, to look for someone who can capture those moments for you. So it’s safe to say you are looking for quality work and a quality experience.
The next question would be: HOW you would like to be photographed and this one is just as important and connected to the WHY because it can vary greatly. Are you looking for something simple like a James Dean look with a white tee and some jeans or are you looking for something fabulous where you would rent a gown from Rent The Runway and have images worthy of being on the cover of Vogue or Vanity Fair? Or you want something more corporate to update your real estate headshots or a portrait for the About Me page on your website or some creative personal branding. Again, both these questions are very important and highly unlikely that a cheap photographer would ask, because at the end of the day, they are trying to make the quickest buck and move on to the next client in order to stay in business. So having your best interest at heart & figuring out what you need is not really a luxury they can afford. Unfortunately, they do have to sacrifice quality over quantity. It’s nothing personal but therein lies the problem.
Lastly, The other question you then should be asking is HOW you will receive your final product. A lot of cheap photographers send the final images via email or a Dropbox link which is very impersonal but again they have to sacrifice that quality because their rates are much too low to offer a unique experience. At our studio we strive to have our clients enjoy a luxury brand experience. Even if they just purchase digital image files, the way they receive them is equivalent to the same excitement you get when opening a fresh new Apple product or Samsung device. We want you to have a rush of dopamine and endorphins as you unveil your final products not to mention the extra little gifts we throw in for our clients. And since we are a print focused studio we want all our options to be TANGIBLE; something you can hold in your hands, display on your walls and physically share with others. Our goal is to be referred by you because you had such an amazing experience and an incredible final product that you want to show it off to all your friends and family, just like a new car or beautiful home.
I hope via this blog post, I was able to answer some of your questions and the next time you type in family portrait photographer near me I might show up. And if you feel that my style and my work is something that matches your wants and needs and that im the treasure coast studio photographer for you, then please feel free to get in touch.
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