It's late. I should really be sleeping, as I have an awesome portrait session in the morning planned, but once something is in my head, I need to get it out before I forget it. So sleep will have to wait.
During my session with one of my awesome clients and her two daughters she was telling me how she went to a big chain portrait studio and how horrible the experience was. They waited for three hours, even though they had an appointment scheduled, and by the time it was over, she just wanted to get out of there. She didn't even look at the images after they were done. A few months ago, I experienced pretty much the same thing when I took my daughter Charlotte in for pictures. I was offered a free session, I couldn't resist. We arrived 30 minutes prior to our scheduled time, and waited two hours before she was seen. Our session was rushed because of the growing amount of people waiting for their session. So of course there was no time for Charlotte to get comfortable with the photographer beforehand. And the crying, then in turn, made her cry.
So it got me thinking, why do people choose to go to the big chain portrait studios? Perhaps it's because that they have never experienced custom, boutique photography, so they really don't know what they are missing. I'm not saying that those studios are bad, but the experiences differ vastly.
Maybe they don't know that I take the time to get to know my clients and their family before the session. Their names, their ages, their likes and dislikes. Favorite music, favorite colors, things we can talk about during their session. They also probably don't know that my attention goes to my clients 100% during their session. I'm not trying to rush you through to get to the next client, and we have time to get the great shots that you want. More often than not, I actually go over the set scheduled time to make sure we get extra images that they will love.
But maybe they don't realize just how fun a custom photography session can be. Having a photographer that knows and cares about you makes you at ease during your session, and I'm turn creates some amazing images. We laugh, we joke, we swap stories, it's a great time.
And it doesn't end just there. After the session, I go through each image and pick out the best of the best. Images that evoke emotions. They make you laugh, they may make you cry. But they are images that you will love. I create a gallery for my clients so thy can see the story of their session unfold. And even after their session, I am still there for them as a friend. Watching their family grow, staying up to date wit what's going on in their life.
Then some people choose the big chain studios over custom photography based on prices. If you are going to invest into something, invest into someone worthwhile. Do you want an image that you will keep on your desk and glance at every so often? Or do you want an image that evokes a bunch of emotions and you at so eager to share it with everyone you know? You are not paying just for images, but for the experience, expertise, and professionalism and fun that comes with custom photography.
It's basically like eating fast food everyday, then having an awesome home cooked meal with the people you love and your favorite foods.
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