Question two comes from Marchet, who writes:
Dear Shannon,
I have been watching your blog for most of this year and have been delighted and amazed by your work. I’ve admired not only your photography but also your captivating narrative. Thank you for being an inspiration and a role model for me. I am just venturing out into the photography business and would love your best business advice for beginning entrepreneur.
Congratulations on your business venture, and thank you for the compliment! There are three things that I believe are critical for any photographer hoping to build a business around their passion. Some of these things can be a little sensitive to talk about, but you asked! 
The first is simple and obvious … know your craft and your tools. Especially with location photography, you are going to find yourself in a huge variety of settings and situations. You might end up shooting in a house with no light to be found. Or maybe you will be shooting 4 year old triplets with dirty clothes and a sugar high. You might be standing in the rain racing to get that one last shot before the downpour really starts. (Yes, I’ve done all three of these.) The variables in this business can really cause some stress during a session. The elements you can control in the midst of chaos - your mastery of your camera, your ability to find and manipulate light properly, and your own creative vision - will be the keys to your success. That’s not to say every session will be stressful. But there will be a few, and you will want to come through those smiling just like the non-stressful ones. Know your camera, your light modifiers, your lenses, and your photo editing software. Know them like the back of your hand.
The second is probably the most critical … be a business person. Any successful photographer (not the starving artist, but the photographer who can actually afford to pay their bills and still pay themselves, too) will tell you that success in this industry is 20% talent and 80% business skills. You absolutely must understand what it takes to run a business and do so legally. Be prepared for the money and time required. Your cost of doing business is not just your camera and your prints. Your business time is not just your time behind the camera. Consider all these additional and important expenses (and more that I haven’t even listed here):
- Back up cameras and lenses. Ideally, you should have at least two of everything you might need during a shoot. And plan on upgrades yearly. I typically replace my cameras once per year. I have invested close to $40,000 in equipment since starting my business four years ago. You’ll probably need twice that if you plan to shoot weddings. And that doesn’t even include studio lighting and equipment, since I don’t shoot with those things. Add another $20-30K if you plan to shoot in a studio environment. And that is also not including money to be spent on props.
- Business registrations, city occupational taxes, sales tax, etc. You must understand how to file all of these, how to stay up to date, and budget to pay them.
- Professional services. Budget for consultations with legal and accounting professionals, especially as you are getting your business and policies established. You’ll want to work with a professional accountant at least once or twice per year in addition to tax time, to keep yourself on track.
- Insurance. You MUST protect yourself and your clients, not to mention your equipment. Plan on about $500-$2000 annually for property, liability, and other business insurance. I also carry a short-term disability policy in case I am unable to work for more than 3 months.
- Computer expenses. Like cameras, I upgrade my computers annually. I have two computers, two monitors, and a bunch of other little gadgets that help me run my business. Time is money, and a slow, unreliable computer will eat up your profits quicker than you can imagine. Losing a client’s images to a faulty computer will be your worst nightmare.
- Education. Unless you are Ansel Adams or Anne Geddes, you will probably have a wealth to learn about photography even after your business is well off the ground. I know I do! Attending workshops and conventions, joining professional organizations and forums, taking classes, buying books, subscribing to magazines … these are all business expenses and time investments you should plan for.
- Marketing. You need a way to help people find out about you. Maybe it is print advertisements, maybe it is direct mail, maybe web marketing. Even word of mouth marketing costs money and time.
Along with all these and other expenses, you need to get paid! How much is your time worth? And not just your shooting time … your driving time, your editing time, your ordering and packaging time, your bookkeeping time, etc. After my first year in business, when I was charging $25 for an 8×10 and a $75 session fee, I thought I was doing pretty well. Then with a trusted business advisor, I did a little math. In that first year, I made, on average, $4 to $6 per hour for my time. BEFORE taxes! With some sessions, I actually lost money. OUCH!! I was paying my babysitter more than I made for myself! And so, while it was hard to raise my prices after that first year, and hard to lose some of the clients who could no longer afford my work, clients whom I liked very much personally, it was necessary. I had to either price myself so I could earn a decent salary or I had to shut down my business.
Third, be YOU. Find out who you are as a person, as a wife or a friend or a mother or a child of God. That will be one of the first steps to finding your voice as an artist. And in doing so, make sure it is YOUR voice, and not a copy of another artist you admire. Inspiration is a wonderful thing … let it be the launching pad for YOUR art, not the foundation for art you lay as a thin veneer over it. Let new ideas from other artists feed your creativity, but don’t let them bog you down in trying to keep up with all the latest trends. Be honest, be bold, be genuine, be loving, and be humble. Your clients will appreciate you more for it.
That was a great post.
Very well written Shannon!
wow, fantastic advice…..
you truly are an inspiration!
thank you!
abbey
This post came at just the right time. I laughed out loud at your “$25 for an 8 x 10 and $75 session fee” comment because that is exactly where I am. I am 11 months in and learning many business lessons the hard way. Over the past 2 months, all of the “added” expenses have become more evident to me and I am in the painful process of restructuring my growing business. I know I will also lose some loyal customers but right now, I know full well that their happiness is coming at the expense of my own family. I greatly admire your honesty and willingness to let others in your shadow learn from you. You did scare me a tad with the “add more for shooting weddings” because I was just hired as an assistant photographer to an established local wedding photographer. Better start budgeting now for the extras.
My best! Julie
Thank you Shelby, Alisha, Abbey, and Julie. Julie, I know so well how you feel. My first year in business was an overwhelming learning curve for me. I was thrilled by the flood of clients who helped my business launch, but also learning quickly (much the way one learns French when one finds oneself stranded in the middle of Paris) that I had to find balance. I could not continue to sacrifice so much critical time with my family, and most certainly could not do it for free. It was a very emotional decision for me though, because I’d become good friends with so many of those clients, and I was so thankful for the support they’d offered me. That’s when “Shannon” had to step out of the decision, and the “Business Owner” had to make the tough call. God helped me a great deal, too. He also gave me a few pops on the head when I didn’t listen to Him.
Please don’t think I’m knocking you or anyone with lower rates than me. I just offered mine as an example. Because I am a Google Addict, and because I like to stay tuned with my market, I’m often stumbling upon websites of new photographers in my area. I see the rates they are charging, some that aren’t even half what I was my first year, and I KNOW they are not making enough to survive at those rates. Sometimes I feel compelled to email them and offer some friendly unsolicited advice, but I usually refrain. It’s their business, not mine.
And I don’t shoot weddings, so don’t panic at my advice. Seek the insight of your respected wedding photographer colleagues for more sound financial advice there. I just know what my wedding photographer colleagues have gone through, and the expenses they have mentioned. Good luck with your new shooting job!
You’ve officially scared the c**p out of me.