Ultimately a photographer’s goal is to deliver images that their client will love. Building a client base is important and photographers work very hard to establish a strong relationship with their clients. Whenever an established client needs photography services they will most likely go back to the photographer that did a great job the first time, someone they’ve already established a relationship with.

With every session a photographer should learn and grow where they will be able to recognize opportunities for improvement. Learning from mistakes, trying new methods or ideas can all lead to growth.

“Am I hiring a photographer and paying a high price for them to just press a button? ”

— Prospective Clients

Let me explain.

Some people think a photographer’s job ends at the session. However, the session is the least amount of time that goes into your photos. Pressing a button is not the beginning and end to a photographer’s responsibilities. With every client there is a number of items that need to be taken care of.

Transfer Photos to computer.
1. Photographer selects the images that came out best.
Upload to an online album
1. Some photographers have you choose your photos directly after a session and others send you proofs with watermark for you to choose later.
2. Whichever way your photographer chooses it is still a step that needs to be counted since it relies on the customer to provide feedback of the photos to be edited.
Once photographer receives feedback about the photos you would like to purchase, the photographer begins to edit your preview.
1. Photographers can take anywhere from 2 days up to a whole month to deliver all of your images.
2. Typically I set the expectation for all photos to be delivered to client no later than 2 weeks. Most of the time they receive their photos before that time.
3. At times, they usually provide a preview gallery of 3-10 photos.
4. It really depends on the job. For example, Weddings take longer than any other category of photos.
Editing or Re-editing
1. Some clients request special type of edits where they want acne removed, some request to be made thinner, and other various requests. These special requests will take longer.
2. Some photographers spend 3-5 hours just on one photo. This is the reason photographers charge by photo even if it is an electronic photo (not print).
3. At times, clients may see the photo after it’s edited and they will ask for something to be adjusted. This type of re-edit consideration is welcome but may delay finalized album.
4. A photographers job is not finished until they edit the photos. Very rarely will a photographer give you photos that they did not complete. This is unfinished work.
  1. On another note regarding the photographer’s finished work, having clients edit the photo by hiring a separate photographer to do it or by applying filters for social media this is highly offensive to photographers worldwide. It’s similar to taking a canvas painting from a world-renowned artist and adding your own paint to a finished masterpiece.
Delivery of photos.
1. If you order prints with your photographer it depends on when the prints will arrive at their studio for you to have them delivered to you.
2. If you purchased electronic album, depending on the third party provider of the photographer, you will be given a link to your online album and you will be able to download it after payment and order your own prints in the size you desire.
3. Other ways for photographers to deliver your photos depends on the method purchased:
  1. flash drive, photo album, canvas or large sized prints, etc.

Regardless of the photographer you choose, it is important for you to educate yourself on everything that goes into the process. Photographers serve more purposes than to just press a button. They are revered for their artistic ability to see moments in pictures and to grab them the way that their mind sees them in order to capture that rare and timeless moment with their camera. All photographers want to increase their skills by researching best equipment, best poses, best locations, and best editing styles and rising to the challenge to meet the next level in abilities.

Photographers invest their hard-earned money into the expensive equipment that will produce the best quality images from the camera, all the way to the post-processing software and the external lighting options. A photographer can put in as many as 30 hours on your family portraits session that only took 30 minutes on site. That is something that is worth the prices for their services.

Learn to appreciate and respect the process and abilities of your photographer. Trust their prices and pay them what they are worth. Full-time photographers are running a business as their primary source of income.

The goal of a family photographer is to provide a finished product that their clients will be happy with and will in turn, come back every time their family reaches a new milestone.