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When you begin pricing out the requested optional usage prices on your estimate, pad them with the expectation that the client will respond by minimizing with less usage options and you will have to present cheaper rates.

Often on jobs, estimates, or bids, we’re asked about renewal or reuse terms. They might inquire about rates for one year, two years, or additional uses like print advertising. They may also ask about extending usage beyond the initial period—such as for an extra year or five years.

You should be prepared to include some flexibility in your pricing. Quote a bit higher than what you expect they’ll accept, knowing they might come back and request adjustments, such as a shorter term or reduced scope. This way, you’ll have room to negotiate and adjust the prices as needed.

Does that make sense? The idea is to leave some room in your bid so you can accommodate their requests for reductions and still meet their needs.

You look like an amateur if you don’t have an official website email + a signature at the bottom with your website link on it.

Look, there are many photographers out there, and we’re competing with a large number of people contacting our clients. We need to reassure them that we are an established business. In the past, we used to rely on stationery with our business address and information. Now, photographers primarily use Instagram and their website. Therefore, your email signature should convey that you are real, professional, and reliable. It should demonstrate that you know what you’re doing and that clients will be in good hands with you.

Make sure everything about your estimate and your production considers what you are covering and what you are not covering. It is our responsibility to set these boundaries, not the client’s.

When you’re on set and they want more content, how do you handle that?

The best way to handle it is to prepare for it on your estimate. You should have a blanket statement in your emails and your estimate that says, “ This bid is based on the information we have so far and any changes may incur new costs or overages.” Make sure every topic that is even generally touched on is included in the bid. 

Let’s say you didn’t have it in your bid, you would talk to your rep. But if you don’t have a rep, you explain the situation to them. “You didn’t mention that, so I didn’t include that in the bid. Did you want a price for that?” I like to turn things into questions so if they request something that you don’t have you would ask them if they would like that included and, “I can get you a price for that.”

Recognizable mural walls are our responsibility to be legally released + paid for before handing over the images to the client. If not, we are putting our clients in danger of significant legal issues.

Before the job begins there’s so many production details that must be your responsibility to get cleared. The location permits, the location fee, and talent releases. Just like your usage is an artist being paid for what you do, the same goes for mural artistry. If we hand over images to our clients and they use it and we did not get that covered, signed off, paid for by the mural artist, we put them at risk of having to deal with a lot of legal problems, and it won’t look good on you. Find out who the mural artists are. I guess a good question is how do we find out who the mural artist is. Usually it will have their name and maybe instagram. It’s our responsibility to find it. 

Only have one question mark in your email if you need it to be answered quickly.

I’ve found that if I ask two questions in an email, typically only one will get answered. However, if I list out multiple questions, then each one tends to get answered. It seems to be a pattern, though it might be worth studying scientifically. For now, this is what I’ve observed: using bullet points or dashes to list out questions works better. Otherwise, if you include questions in a paragraph format, the second question often gets overlooked.

DEFINITION of

“pho-tog-ra-pher”

/fəˈtɒɡrəfə/

ACCORDING TO ASKSTERNREP:

An artist who is bravely inspired to experiment imagery by virtue of what he/she/they do not yet know.

There’s some confusion about our jobs as creatives. I’m representing creatives and you are creatives. It’s a business but you are also an artist. What does that mean, other than trying new things that you don’t already know? There is this balance of business and artistry that you have to incorporate more into your business if you want to keep going.  You are the ones being hired to be an artist on the set. That’s why they’re hiring you. They want to know you’re going to bring new ideas to the shoot.  Are there ideas and ways that you aren’t yet getting the artist out of yourself into your career? How can you be more of an artist?

Cultivate, develop, flourish. 

Show clients how your maturity will work for them, and not against them. Keep up with the times. 

Established photographers have that challenge because a lot of their work might look like yesterday. We have to keep it fresh and innovative. Photographers are hired by clients to be the innovative thinkers that you are, that inspired you to get into this business. The look of yesterday is not what they want. They want tomorrow’s look. I’d love to know how photographers out there, after you’ve been doing this awhile, keep going beyond the trend of today, and inspire yourself to try new things and show clients that’s who you’re going to be. How do you do that? I’d love to hear.

I had a client who wanted to be on the pulse of someone new. We paid that someone–who had never shot an ad campaign–$25K a day. 

-Guest Post: Anonymous Art Producer

There are definitely many changes in our industry. One significant change is that someone who isn’t yet well-known now has the opportunity to get their images seen, thanks to social media—something we didn’t have before. Another change is that budgets are generally decreasing, but that’s not always the case. You can still get paid well, so sometimes it’s important to be a bit more creative and make the most of the opportunities available. That’s what we need to focus on.

Sometimes it’s best not to show your new work. I know we always want to show new new new work these days of heavy flowing content, but be careful as some work is not consistent, or not appropriate.

Our instinct is always to show new work and stay updated with fresh content. However, sometimes it’s best not to show certain work, whether it’s because it differs from your portfolio or it touches on sensitive topics like current news or political issues. Be cautious about what you publicly post or display on your website—avoid sharing anything that might be inappropriate given current events.

When I say ‘don’t show it,’ I specifically mean avoiding public posts or website updates. However, if you’re applying for a specific job and have written a treatment or need to send additional images, you can include those in a PDF tailored for that particular person or project, especially if the lighting, style, or technique matches their needs. In such cases, they might be more forgiving.

On a job, when stuff goes down, stay steady + handle it like a pro. Being professional means not personally defensively reacting, but listening instead, as you are objectively gathering information. 

Most likely it will blow over even though in the moment it feels alarming. Be objective.

Jobs will always come with some drama. You need to handle it like a pro; it’s your test to see if they’ll hire you again. I understand that it’s easy to take things personally sometimes, but don’t let that show. Be a constant professional and a source of calm. Listen to people, check on them if something seems off, and ask questions to understand what’s going on. Be the person who holds the shoot together instead of becoming part of the drama.