As a photographer forging her way into the world of lifestyle, portrait, and family sessions galore, there are a lot of mistakes to be made. Lots of bumps in the road!! Thankfully, we recover and learn from them. And thankfully (most) clients are gracious. Whether you are just beginning to toy with the idea of grabbing your dusty camera hidden at the top of your closet or are heading into your 2nd, 3rd, or 4th holiday season as a photographer, here are some mistakes I made so you (hopefully) don’t have to!
1. Always Turn On Your Camera BEFORE a Shoot… And Always Bring a Backup
Check your battery, your SD card, and that it actually takes a visible photo!
Storytime: A little over a year ago, I was parking my car and walking up to meet a client at Lido Marina Village. I greeted them with a big smile, chatted for a bit, and then got to shooting. I found the right location and lighting, then set her up with her first set of posing directions and began to click away. As always, I checked my screen to take a look at the photos and lighting and adjust accordingly. I noticed that my screen was black. Yes, you read that right, black. My heart stopped for a second and I panicked. I had to think on my feet and didn’t want them to notice anything was wrong yet. So I lifted my camera back up to my eye and began to shoot some more. Still black… I told them I needed to fix the lighting and quickly scoured every setting I could possibly look at. I removed my lens and put it back on. Nothing. At this point I couldn’t hide the fact that something was off so I had 2 options: Continue to shoot and pretend everything was good and then say that something happened to the SD card (keep reading for the storytime on THAT subject) or tell them that something was wrong with my camera and that the photos weren’t capturing. I went with option #2 as that was the most honest, even though it was harder, and started explaining to them that I had no idea what was up with my camera, that I checked every setting and had no solution for the problem at that exact moment and needed to take my camera to the camera shop. I offered to take some iPhone photos for her so that she at least had a little bit of content from that day and assured them I would send back their deposit as this was completely out of their (and my) control. She and her husband were very gracious even though I could tell they were obviously very disappointed. I assured them that once my camera was fixed, I would reach out to them and offer a discounted session price to make up for this inconvenience. Clients prepare for shoots whether that be a hair appointment, taking off of work, buying a new outfit, or making a drive to the location you are meeting at. It is very important to give value to their time. It turned out that they did not end up wanting to reschedule, which is completely understandable. That was definitely a negative result of a beginner photography mistake! I didn’t beat myself up for it, mistakes help us grow and become better, but it was definitely a major lesson for me.
Moral of the story: Had I checked my camera prior, this situation could have been completely avoided. I would have seen that something was off with my camera and simply rescheduled or just started the shoot with my backup camera. Had I had my backup camera, none of this would have happened. I would have simply switched to my other camera, changed over the lens and SD card, and kept the session moving. ALSO, never put your camera in overhead storage on an airplane. š
I now ALWAYS check my camera before leaving the house. Does the shutter close all of the way? Does the image appear on the screen? Do I have enough room on the current SD card living in my camera? How is my battery level? I also never go to a shoot without a fully charged backup camera with a blank SD card inside. I never want to freeze on the spot like that again or lose a client’s faith in me!
2. Protect Your SD Card At All Costs
SD cards are like tiny, easily destroyed pieces of gold. Carry them with the utmost respect or they will indeed revolt.
Storytime: I was heading back from a super creative and fun shoot with a client who I had shot with one time prior. A blogger whom I LOVE and got to capture lifestyle shots for (Hey Nikki!). I had other shoots to edit before I got to hers so once I got home I stuck my SD card into my computer and booted up good ol’ Adobe Lightroom! I got distracted and started doing other things… for days. Meanwhile, toting my camera around with me. In my workbag. From my room to the living room, all while having my SD card STILL IN MY COMPUTER. Yes, I kept it in there the whole time. Never ejected. Just sitting in the side of my computer. But at the time I didn’t see a problem with it. When I finally got back to looking through Nikki’s photos, they were nowhere to be seen. SD card had a major error with no solution. I tried getting into that thing every way I could. Asked friends, professionals, no one could get the photos, so I had to reach out to her. Thankfully I had sent a sneak peek (always send a sneak peek when possible!!) so she had some of my favorites already but I had to profusely apologize, over and over, and explain the situation. I obviously refunded her money and gave her a discount on her next shoot. Thankfully, she was gracious, kind, and understanding and we have shot many, many times since then. Here is one of my favorite shots with her, and here is another. But not every client will be so gracious and extend a second chance.
Moral of the story: Had I understood the delicate nature of SD cards (like, duh) I would have never left my card in my computer and treated it like an indestructible object with no precautions and would have been able to deliver her full gallery and also wouldn’t have lost any money from being careless. Working for yourself has LOTS of benefits, but in the end, it all comes back to you: your bank account, your character, and your reputation. It is important to treat every situation (any piece of equipment) with the utmost care and respect. Now I never so much as move from my desk to my bed with my SD card in my computer. I eject it every time that I can and always back up the photos when necessary on my hard drive. SD cards are the gold of your business, treat them like such so you don’t make this same mistake!
3. Check. For. Sunset.
When changing up your shoot time or location, ALWAYS check your weather app for storms… and the time of sunset.
Storytime: This mistake was the most recent. I was hosting a round of headshot minis at one of my favorite locations in Atlanta, Ponce City Market. Such a great location for shooting!!! But, little did I realize, as the seasons change the sun sets sooner (ummm, yea Madison). I always shoot in the morning. Very rarely will I set up a session in the evening. But for these headshots I wanted working ladies to be able to get their headshots in after a full day of work! (Always be accomodating when you can, great rule of thumb.) So I scheduled my shoots well into 8 PM. All of the shoots were going great until I started to realize a shift in lighting. My heart started racing as I realized the grave mistake that I had made… scheduling shoots too late into the fall evening. By the time I had realized, it was too late. My headshot sessions were only 10 minutes and I didn’t have enough time to reach out and reschedule before they arrived. My final 3 shoots I was able to complete, but they were nowhere NEAR my best work. I had to reschedule all of them, all 3 of them! I showed them the photos, apologized profusely for my grave mistake and error, and told them they absolutely did not have to pay the remainder of their fee, I would simply keep the deposit (as long as they were able/willing to reschedule) and take that as the final payment. Thankfully, all 3 women were kind and gracious and we rescheduled. They ended up loving their headshots AND one of those clients went on to do an engagement session with me as well as become one of my very mentees in my Madison Crowley Photo mentorship program. Be humble when you make a mistake. It is your only option. If you want to salvage the relationship between you and your client, you must remove all of your pride and recognize your error.
Moral of the story: If I had thought ahead about sundown, I would have never scheduled those shoots so late in the evening. I am still trying to grasp the actual time of sundown and have had to move a few of my shoots in the coming months as I didn’t properly prepare for this fact! So PSA: Once November hits, don’t schedule shoots past 4 PM! It is really unfortunate that in the winter months we lose 4 hours of shooting time, but just be flexible! Schedule shoot times in the morning and start working on being a morning person if you aren’t already (@ myself). Always check your weather app for rain, but also for sundown. It will save you from making this mistake!
I hope that you learned something from my mistakes! Owning your own business is full of ups and downs and always a never-ending stream of valuable life and business lessons. As I begin my mentorship program, I am going to start highlighting and writing down things that I think beginner photographers could really benefit from. Things that I wish I would have known when starting out on this photography journey! We all need each other and we all can use help. Let’s begin to foster and create community with one another and lend a helping hand. It goes a long way!
‘Til next time,
Madison
