Month: January 2020

You are organizing an event, and you know you will need a photographer. You have done some research, asked around, and got a list of potential photographers whom you would like to contact and see if they can come to your event. In the end, you know you have to pick one, but how do you choose? The selection process might be overwhelming and subjective, especially if you have no experience in the field. Let me guide you a bit on how you can narrow down your selection to the best photographer.

By the way, if you already have someone of trust that takes pictures, get in touch with that person. Given, of course, that you are satisfied and happy with the results. You have a higher chance of being happy again with the results when you work with someone of trust.

1. Check the online portfolio.

Portfolios and galleries can reveal a lot about a photographer. The pictures should speak to you in a way that you would wish to have those pictures for your event. I recommend you check other galleries from the same photographer as well, and even personal projects. Going through the work of a photographer can be an eye-opener experience. If you see things you like and admire, there is a bigger chance for you to obtain the same results for your event.

2. Check the referrals and reviews.

I would strongly recommend that you dedicate some minutes to see what other clients have to say about the photographer you are inspecting. Go through the Google reviews people have left for them, and have a critical eye to evaluate if these reviews are authentic and realistic. You could also check on their website, where they could have quotes and citations from clients, but hey, these could be fake or exaggerated. I believe Google reviews are a good starting point to check what other people think of them.

3. Contact them with enough details.

At this point, you should contact several photographers and see how they respond to you. Some photographers are craving attention, and others regularly busy with work. To be sure you get their attention, take the time to write a clear text about your event. Indicate the time, schedule, place, and any other information you find relevant for the photography aspect. Ask for availability, budget quotation, copyrights, and conditions. Now, the ball is on their court, so sit tight and wait for their response.

4. Communication is key.

Once you start receiving responses, you will better understand how professional and serious the photographers are. The way they communicate with you is relevant. You should pay close attention to the language they use and how clear they express themselves. You should check if they have answered all of your queries and provided you with enough information to close a deal. If the photographer is vague, it may leave an unpleasant and unfulfilled feeling about them, and you might feel you are jeopardizing your event. To avoid this sensation of doubt, ask for clarifications, or move on to another photographer.

5. Manage your expectations.

Everything must be clear before you hire a photographer. Don’t leave details to chance and have everything clear about what you expect from the photographer. Some example questions could be:

• – How many pictures are we going to get?
• – When and how do you deliver the pictures?
• – How can we use the images?
• – In which format do you deliver the files?
• – Do you add watermarks to your pictures?
• – What information do you need from us?
• – Can you send us an invoice?

If a photographer can answer these questions, then you know you are in good hands, and you will have a peace of mind for your event. Remember to clarify as many things as possible before you hire them, and avoid ugly surprises by living on accident.

6. Careful with the cheapest option.

If you are on a budget, you may be inclined to prefer the cheapest solution. Be careful that you don’t fall for the least expensive option, as it may be costly for you and your organization. You should pay close attention to the budget, and manage your expectations around it too. However, if the profile you liked has the cheapest budget, then hurray! Lucky day! Go for it and book your photographer.

Final thoughts.

Hiring a photographer shouldn’t be a painful process, and I hope these tips help you find the right photographer for your event. Ultimately, the most important thing is that you are happy with the results and that you can use the pictures for your communication and marketing campaign.

Do you have other tips for finding the perfect photographer for an event? I would love to hear your advice! Leave a comment below or get in touch with me, and I’d be glad to adapt my article to make it better.

This article is part of a series related to the process of hiring a photographer from A to Z. I’ll be writing a new one every week, so be sure to come back, so you don’t miss what’s next. Thank you for your time!

Thank you!

You have decided to get a professional photographer for the event you are organizing, awesome! Now, how and where do you find it?

There are several options on how you can get some photography profiles for your event. Let’s check them out.

Looking inside, known circles

Check your contacts

If you organize events regularly, then there is a high possibility you have already worked with a photographer in the past, and her/his contact details are known to you. If you are happy with their work and had a good experience overall, get in touch with them as soon as you can to see if they are available.

One of the good things about working with a known photographer is that they probably know your events and how you work as a team, removing friction from first-time engagement.

Ask colleagues and friends

If you have exhausted your contact possibilities, then you may want to ask your colleagues if they know a good professional photographer or someone that has worked with your team in the past. Who knows? Maybe they have the perfect person for your event. Referrals are always an excellent way of finding the people you need. Remember to ask your reference about their experience with the photographer and try to understand if she/he is the right person for your event. Last but not least, be sure to check their portfolio before getting in touch with them. I will talk more about it below.

Hopefully, by this point, you found the photographer you were looking for, and they are available to cover the event.

Looking outside, online search

Let’s imagine you didn’t find someone, so now it’s time to head into the internet and look in the ocean of choices out there. With such a vast array of prospects, how do you even begin? Let’s start with the basics, using a search engine.

Use an online search engine (Google, Bing, Yahoo)

Let’s imagine you are looking for a photographer in your city. I’ll use Brussels as an example. Then, on your favorite search engine type anything like: “event photographer in Brussels,” “photographer near me,” “Brussels photographer,” “professional photographer in Brussels,” or something similar. The way you input your search sentence may vary the results you obtain, of course. So if you are not happy with the results, maybe try a different variation.

Go through the options offered by the search engine and try to open every page that sounds appealing to you on a new tab, even ads if you find them relevant. Leave the search page open, as you may want to check the second page if you didn’t find anything interesting yet.

Use the Google Maps search engine

Google Maps offers a neat way to find a business in a specific geographical area. To do this, open Google Maps and write “photographer” on the search bar. You will get the local listing and will immediately see the rating they have on Google. You can easily access their website from there. Remember to open each site on a new tab on your browser, so you can always go back to the search results. If you want different options, you can move to another area on the map, and the results should get updated.

Check out the websites

Now it’s time to check each website you opened. Some small tips to understand if you are viewing the right person:

• – Do you quickly recognize if they do event photography at all? Sometimes a profile pops-up, but the services offered have nothing to do with what you are looking for, so maybe it would be best to look for someone else.
• – Can you navigate their website with ease? The website should be user-friendly and remove friction and bad navigation experiences. If you find yourself wandering around without getting any information, that’s a no sign.
• – Can you find information about their experience? Ideally, you will be able to understand the level and experience they have by looking at the biography, the portfolio(s), and references. Finding work cases and previously done work is a positive sign.
• – Can you easily spot their contact details, and see their social media profiles? Finding contact information should be super easy; this involves being able to navigate to any linked social media profiles, as you can often find relevant information about them there.

If you answered yes to all my questions above, it is time to move to the next step, checking the portfolio.

Check the website’s portfolio(s)

I will write a different article to talk specifically about this topic; however, let me start by saying that this is a gray and subjective area. A portfolio can leave a very different impression on people. We are all different and have different tastes, so it isn’t straightforward to know what works well and what doesn’t. There are, however, some signs that should help you understand if the portfolio is up to your standards:

• – Do you like what you see? It might seem obvious, but if you find it difficult to like the pictures, then maybe you should move on and check another profile. Don’t waste time looking at pictures you don’t enjoy as you will probably end up getting something similar.
• – Do you see pictures similar to what you would like to get? Maybe you don’t necessarily know what you are looking for, but if you have an idea, and see pictures similar to what you want, then you know you are in the right place. Otherwise, you can always contact the photographer and ask if they have examples resembling what you want. Photographers are creative individuals and could be capable of creating what you like.
• – Check other galleries. You might be surprised. Get curious and investigate a bit further, you might find that extra gallery that allows you to understand if you want to work with them or not.
• – Do you want to see more? Check out their social media profiles. Most often than not, photographers are engaging via social media profiles, giving you the possibility to see more of their work and understand how they interact with their audience and clients. It might sound like a silly thing, but trust me, it can be revealing.

If by this point you are convinced about what you are seeing, the next obvious step is to get in touch with the photographer and tell them about your event.

Online search, other methods

Alternatively, you can use other methods to find photographers. Here are some quick tips:

• – Go to the second and third page of your search engine; your preferred option might be a page away from you. Some photographers are not on the first page, but that doesn’t mean they are not good, they are just not on the first page.
• – Check out online listings that group photographers in your geographical area. These listings are like another search engine, but you might find different profiles.
• – Use your favorite social media platform as a search engine. If you use social media for your organization, you may be able to find more profiles there.
• – Try another search engine. Not all search engines are the same, so there is a chance you can discover someone new.

There are plenty of techniques to get the person you are looking for, and hopefully, after having exhausted all of these methods, you were able to find some impressive candidates for you and your event. Now you can get in touch with them and tell them about your project. Good luck!

Do you know other ways of finding a photographer? I would love to hear your methods! Leave a comment below or get in touch with me, and I’d be glad to adapt my article to make it better.

This article is part of a series related to the process of hiring a photographer from A to Z. I’ll be writing a new one every week, so be sure to come back, so you don’t miss what’s next. Thank you for your time!

Thank you!

You are organizing an event for your company, or a client, taking care of all the details so everything goes well and as planned. Then that question arises: “Do I need a photographer for my event?”

Before answering that, let’s look at other questions that could help you better organize your thoughts around this.

Why do we need pictures of our event?

Photographs are an essential visual asset for communications and marketing. Pictures help us to better engage and connect with past events by creating memories that we can revisit and share. If your organization finds it relevant to talk about the event, then you should take pictures.

Maybe I can take the pictures myself?

If you feel you are quite good at taking pictures and have a decent camera or cellphone, you may consider doing it yourself. You will save some money, and manage to get a couple of shots here and there for communications. Remember, though, that doing all this takes time, and as an organizer, you also have other tasks to take care of, maybe even be on stage or engage with guests. More often than not, you will be involved in the organizational details of the event. The least of your worries will be to snap a photo.

How about having a team member taking pictures?

Definitely, and they can probably do it quite well, given that they have the time, knowledge, and right material to take the pictures needed. If you prefer using someone internally, my recommendation is for you to have them take photos throughout the event, and not interrupt them with other organizational tasks. If an internal person is not something you have, and you need pictures of the event, the best is to go for a professional photographer.

Is a photographer the right solution? 

You can get by and use an internal person or snap away from your cellphone for quick social media communications. However, getting a professional photographer for your event should be the right solution when looking for high-quality pictures that represent the event in its entirety. Some photographers could also offer to give you some photos during the event itself for your communications if that’s something you find valuable.

What is the added value of using a professional photographer?

A professional photographer, in short, should understand how to document the event in the right way, able to follow the schedule and stay out of your way. You, as an organizer, will be able to concentrate on the event itself and not worry about the pictures, thus, removing a burden off your shoulders. At the same time, you will end up with great photos taken by a professional.

What is the role of the photographer?

The role of the photographer is to visually catch the most important moments and help those who were not there feel like they were present. The right photographer will know how to move around without annoying your guests and document everything smoothly and professionally. I believe an event photographer should be an active observer rather than an active participant.

So, do you need a photographer for your event?

• – If you want to have longlasting high-quality visual memories of your event for communication and marketing purposes, and
• – If, as an organizer, you value your time and want to be worry-free throughout the event.

Then, the answer should be YES, get a photographer, and enjoy yourself!

Thank you!