digital

WE ARE OPEN! But, what are we doing to keep our customers safe for photo shoots?

by Zelda de Hollander

WE ARE OPEN
enquiries and consultations this week 18th – 24th May
Photo Shoot bookings from 25th May 2020

But, what are we doing to keep our customers (and us!) safe for photo shoots?

We are limiting the types of shoots we are undertaking to ensure that all parties are safe throughout the photo shoot process.

All consultations and pre-planning of photo shoots will be done over the phone or over email, all sales materials including invoices will be send digitally with no hard (printed) copies being exchanged in person. All images sent are digital, sent electronically.

We are currently only offering face to face photo shoots outdoors, and not in our home studio. Photo shoots such as head shots and portraits, so that we can adhere to social distancing rules easily.

Although face masks are not actually government advised for my line of work, I shall be carrying them with me and will be more than happy to use throughout our photo shoot if it would make you, or any member of your team, feel more comfortable. This can be discussed during our consultation. “When managing the risk of COVID-19, additional PPE beyond what you usually wear is not beneficial. This is because COVID-19 is a different type of risk to the risks you normally face in a workplace, and needs to be managed through social distancing, hygiene and fixed teams or partnering, not through the use of PPE”- Gov.uk

Studio Product Photography can still be undertaken, for products that can be dropped off to our Christchurch studio location & be left within our porch, to ensure no contact. These can then be picked up at an agreed later date.

We are also able to undertake all aspects of landscape photography; ideal for businesses to help showcase your local area, to provide updated website banners or to use as part of your social media campaigns.

Lastly, with the new government guidelines for the property market and allowing estate agents to do house viewings “Initial viewings should be done virtually wherever this is possible and property agents should help you to do this” we can provide interior photography to help aid with the virtual viewings.

So…..let’s chat!

01202 432234
info@studioshotz.co.uk

Calling all Brands that are selling online!

by Zelda de Hollander

My photography studio is based in my house! ???? Which means I can help in creating visual content for eCommerce platforms, which can help keep your brand pushing forward.

Selling on Amazon, eBay or your own website shop you’ll need high quality white background product shots to show your products quality, correct colourings, sizes and all uses within a single image. More than ever the images you see online will determine whether you make the sale or not.

If your products can be posted ???? to me then get in touch, lets chat and we can work through this together ????

✉️ info@studioshotz.co.uk

“I don’t need to hire a professional photographer, my iPhone is good at taking pictures”

by Zelda de Hollander

Sure, iPhone (all smartphone) cameras have come a long way in the past few years, but its is worth investing in professional images of your property ?
…. an image says a thousand words, just look for yourself

The photographs of your property most likely provide the very first impressions people have of your business. ?

Did you know that estate agent listings with professional photos sell for more money? Not only that, but they also sell faster! AND 92% of home-buyers use the Internet as part of their home search ? ?

We can help with home staging of your property and showcasing its features through composition and art direction.

 

 

Neutral Backgrounds Still Rule Product Pages

by Zelda de Hollander

In the world of Amazon, product photography is king. You might have a great title or competitive price, but your Amazon product photography is the first thing everyone will see when they’re browsing items in your category.

Neutral Backgrounds Still Rule Product Pages ?
As you probably noticed, most of these approaches are for category pages and their equivalents. Once you get to an actual product page, product images have white, transparent, or neutral backgrounds.
Removing the background makes your images more consistent, removes distractions, and minimizes file size.
Plus, many marketplaces require white or neutral backgrounds for product images, and you really don’t want to reshoot for different channels ?

eCommerce Photography: White backgrounds rule the roost when it comes to eCommerce product photography. But why? It promotes consistency. Contributing to a uniform look and feel throughout the site. Just as it is important to ensure the brand identity of a seller is consistent, the same goes for photography. Emphasising the product with no distractions, shows the quality of the products finish and detail is the point of focus.

The numbers don’t lie: 75% of online shoppers rely on product photos when deciding on a potential purchase, let’s face it, it’s hard to describe some things & just easier to show it. People remember 10% what they hear, 20% what they read and 80% WHAT THEY SEE & DO ??

We offer a drop off service for product photography ? ideal for busy business owners in Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole & surrounding Dorset and Hampshire areas

? Drop your products off to us
? See & approve the images
? Come pick up your products

 

Hoping to get published in the press? You’ll need great PR Photos

by Zelda de Hollander

The importance of photography in PR and newsworthy stories should not be underestimated. We all know the saying ‘a picture tells a thousand words’ and it’s true! Did you know that a recent study showed 90% of what we remember comes from visuals?

Pick up a newspaper or magazine near you and have a flick through — what catches your eye? I would guess that the images are getting your attention, right? Good images are essential when trying to achieve press coverage.

In some cases, the media won’t even publish the story unless there’s a decent image to go with it. In other cases, having a good photo or collection of images can make all the difference between a small, text-based story – which the reader could easily miss – and a longer feature, with lots of eye-catching images for maximum impact

“What a professional. Excellent pics turned around fast with no fuss.” – Darren Slade, Bournemouth Daily Echo

Whether you’re using images on your website, social media or sending them to press, if they are unprofessional or poor quality, it won’t reflect well on your business… Don’t get me wrong, the cameras on smartphones these days are pretty good and in the right light, you can take a half decent shot. ⛔️ BUT ⛔️ you should invest in at least some decent head shots and ‘business in action’ images.

It’s always a good idea to invest in a professional photo shoot. Never underestimate what a photographer can do for your brand visuals. Outside of the business of actually taking the photos, a good photographer can advise on the kind of images you need to show your business to its best advantage, provide lighting and professional backdrops and develop creative ideas to really make you stand out from the crowd

 

Why are Digital Files so Important to Photographers?

by Zelda de Hollander

“Oh, that’s expensive! All you’re doing is burning the pictures to a CD”

You’d be surprised how often I hear this. Clients nowadays seem to assume that digital files are included in all photo shoot packages. I believe this is solely the fault of amateur and hobbyist photographers, I do not know ANY PROFESSIONAL photographer that give digital files away included with packages, or very very cheaply.

It has become the norm to see £40 shoot and burn, but this is because amateurs do not have to make a living from what they’re doing. They have a day job. They believe they are beating the professionals at their own game, being cheap & getting the clients. Probably not realising that what they’re doing is not only losing them money, but irreparably damaging the industry they love so.

Would you be happy if someone with basic knowledge of your industry came into your place of work and offered to do your job for a fraction of the cost?. . . you’d be out of a job. By giving your money to an amateur you are taking my business away from me, the experienced professional & my contemporaries.

Ok, so almost everyone that has a computer will have some form of photo editing software on it, most popular being Adobe Photoshop. This is one of the major reasons why I am so against giving digital files to clients, they will ‘tinker’ with (Photoshop) my images. Especially with the popularity of such phone apps as Instagram, editing photos in just 1 click. That client will then turn the image I have worked hours on into something that I did not intend it to be; possibly losing my photographic style, even the original quality. When you upload that edited image to Facebook & tell all your friends where you got it done – how do you know you’re not now damaging my business? As what your friends are seeing is not what I gave you.  A Photographer’s learned skill, individual style, knowledge and time spent on your set of images should also be considered.

To combat this, I offer both colour and black&white versions of all purchased digital images for my clients, as well as any specific amendments that they wish.

You may see an hour spent taking the photos – but in actual fact that photographer will probably spend on average 8 – 16 hours just on your set of images. This is mainly due to editing of your images; this is not just ‘Photoshopping’ them, it includes uploading, backing up, sifting through & picking out the best images, individually colour correcting, cropping, airbrushing, re-naming and backing up the edited images, this all before I’ve even uploaded them for you to view. So that 30 minute or hour long photo shoot has turned into 2 full day’s work. This time scale comes from preparation time, including checking equipment of setting up the studio, time spent photographing the client, uploading time, backing up original files, editing, uploading to online album, sorting through and checking orders and print quality, as well as any additional time required for ordering, client liaisons and shipment.

“But photography’s free! Taking digital photos doesn’t cost anything!”

Oh boy, how wrong you are! Let’s just do a little maths – That 30 minute shoot, £40 shoot and burn yes? If I worked 6 days a week, 3 shoots a week, every week – I’d be making a grand total of £6240…… Hmm, that’s not quite right now is it? What do you make a year? Let’s say £20,000? That’s already £130 for your shoot – Oh, but wait. I haven’t included my overheads! I have a studio with rent and rates, and a website and a phone, insurance, those cameras, lenses, lighting equipment, sample products and background papers didn’t just buy themselves. . . . . . And, don’t I deserve a week off, maybe even two? (Well…That’s now working out as a minimum of £350 for just your small 30 minute shoot)

Giving away digital files also brings up the question; who owns the image!? The photographer took it, so initially full copyright is with them (or that studio). But giving you the high resolution file, does the customer now own that file, enabling them to do whatever they wish with it. Even sell it for profit? Let’s go back to basics, you browse photographers by their previous portfolio work, check out their photographic style, how they work. Well….if they’re giving away all the digital files, legally they can’t advertise with those images because you now own them. So what are they expected to advertise with?

I do sell my digital files, as there is a strong trend at the moment for this & I’m not prepared to completely deny my customers, but I feel I do price my images accordingly.  I offer Full Usage Rights with my high resolution images which, long story short, means that I still own the copyright to the image so you cannot sell it on, however you do get a high resolution file which you can then print, store,  reproduce, upload to Facebook but I still have the rights to advertise with it – everyone gets what they want!

For any beginner photographers out there, my advice is Do Not Shoot and Burn….or if you do, make sure you price it correctly.