Let’s face it, everyone today is an aspiring photographer whether they are taking pictures of their kids with a camera phone or shooting over your shoulder at a wedding with an entry level DSLR.
Photography tuition and training is a busy marketplace, especially at the semi-pro level (these are the ones with the spare cash after all) but I think some photographers often overlook people that could potentially turn into photography clients as well as tuition clients. It’s all very well training other photographers who want to go pro but at the end of the day what is the likelihood of them asking you for a family portrait session?
Back in the days when I was working as a cruise ship photographer I hosted a series of photography basics classes aimed at people with very little knowledge of their camera other than knowing that the big button makes the picture (that’s not a typo it’s a direct quote).
The first class we offered (which was free) would always attract a full house of up to 200 people. That was about 10% of our rather uniquely captive audience.
Follow up classes, for which we charged a rather modest $20 for, would usually be compromised from about 10%-20% of the freebie crowd.
$400 might have been a drop in the ocean (excuse the pun) when it came to our $60,000 weekly target but it did help us build relationships with our clients in a different way than we had before. Most of the time we were hassling the passengers for pictures on gangways and in the restaurant so this sort of interaction was a welcome change.
We sold cameras and probably more photos than we did before so it did prove a success.
Back in the real world and on dry land it’s unlikely you’ll be able to pull in the same sort of crowd but there are plenty of businesses you can work with.
If you are a family portrait photographer then the idea of teaching parents how to take better pictures might seem a ridiculous concept but it’s one of those factors which cement your label as an expert.
In a 1 hour class you’re not going to take your pupils to the same level as yourself. If you do you’re either an exceptional techer or a terrible photographer.
What you are able to do in these classes is showcase your talents. There is a reason that so many chefs want to be on TV……. It creates bookings for their restaurant. In fact it has been known that a single appearance on the right Saturday morning cookery show can result in a restaurant taking whole month’s worth of bookings.
For photographers these sort of classes do result in portrait bookings and help build your reputation as an established photographer in your area.
Companies to work with
I’m going to stick with the portrait market for this one so here’s a few different types of businesses you might want to consider approaching.
– Play Centres
– Mums/parent support groups
– Child friendly cafes and restaurants
– Children’s clothes shops
– Schools
– Libraries
– Children’s art centres
– Adult Education centres
Hosting your own events
The advantage of having your own studio space is that you can host your own events at a date and time that suites you. It’s also a great way to introduce potential clients to your workspace.
Advertise locally and if you can get mums groups and some of the businesses mentioned above involved somehow. This can be simply offering their members or customers a special discount in return for the promotion.
In the beginning
You might only start off with having a small class but don’t be too discouraged as not only will you be able to give this small group more attention than a much larger one but they will generally work harder to promote you and in turn this will result in more referrals for future classes.
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Michael has been working as a photographer for the last ten years. In that time he has shot over 100,000 peoples’ portraits and worked in four different continents. In 2001 Michael graduated with a degree in photography from Manchester Metropolitan University.