We see something pleasant and capture it in the camera! That’s how easy it is for us now!
Unlike the old times, photography has become much more feasible today. With an extensive use of smartphones or point and shoot cameras, almost everyone can enjoy taking pictures on their own.
Photography has developed as a hobby for people, especially because of such a far-reaching use of social media platforms.
On a family trip or an outing, we can easily take selfies or group pictures through our smartphones or small cameras.
But, even though cameras are readily available anywhere and everywhere these days, professional photography has still not lost its charm. When it comes to photography for your business, you cannot settle for anything less than a commercial photographer.
Photography for business products is done for better promotion, selling, and marketing. So, it is crucial to select the best person for this job.
You cannot ask an amateur photographer to take the pictures of your products. For such projects, you require a person who works professionally, with the right skill and resources.
When it’s about business, trust only the experts!
It can take you longer than usual, but you must be very careful while assigning your product photography project to some photographer. The right person can bring you the right returns but the wrong one can mess it all up!
Here are 7 tips that will help you find the best product photographer for your business:
Define your project clearly –
Create a brief description of your project.
This can include the details of the product, its physical attributes, any handling precautions that need to be taken or the special attributes that you want in your photos, etc.
The description must be short yet detailed. You can create it in the form of bullet points for a clear idea of all the details.
When you’re looking for a product photographer, this handy list of details can give him the idea about your project. After going through the list, the photographer will know what you’re looking for and tell whether he’s the right person for this job or not.
Make sure to be precise while creating a brief description of your project. Do mention things in short and clear sentences. Your description could be like:
Product is made of glass
Product easily shows fingerprints
Product catches dust
Detail shots needed
10 photographs in four different settings
With a description like this, you can pin down the best photographer that you’re looking for.
If he has the preferred knowledge and can perform everything proficiently, hire him!
But, if he lacks expertise in any of the areas required for the project, he is not the right person. For instance, if you want your product photo shoot to be pet-friendly and the photographer has no experience or skill in pet-friendly photo shoots, you can simply ask him to go.
Taking the time out to define your project not only makes it clear for the photographer but it also helps you avoid the rework on your project idea. You can gather the little details about the project through this description and so, nothing is left behind.
This trick can actually make things smooth for you and the photographer.
Ask for a portfolio –
A portfolio tells the whole story.
Before hiring a photographer, you can always go through their portfolios. Generally, photographers have their websites where you can find their work.
You can check the photographs clicked by them and can see if they have that particular skill-set that you’re looking for. If the photographer has already done some projects similar to yours, you can rest assured that he is the man for the job.
To cite an example, suppose you leaf through a photographer’s portfolio that shows his work in wedding photography, or candid portraits. Now, you wouldn’t hire this professional for the photo shoot of your product because he obviously isn’t suitable.
So a portfolio can really back your decision when you’re hiring a professional.
To be extra sure after you’ve gone through the portfolio, have a one-to-one discussion with the photographer about his experience, capabilities or caliber.
The personality of a photographer is also a huge part of his work. Having a face to face interaction with the photographer will tell you a lot about their persona, their professional ethics, working style and the knowledge that they possess.
Understand the persona of the photographer –
Make sure the photographer’s persona meshes with yours.
For product photography, you must look for a photographer that has a persona similar to your product. If your product requires a natural and plain photo shoot, you can go for a photographer whose persona is minimalistic.
On the other hand, if your product is rather vibrant, you can go for a photographer with a colorful persona.
It is important because the persona of a photographer shows what he’s good at.
The photographer’s strong suit can be a great advantage to you. It can help you get the best photos for your product, without much ado.
Not every photographer is the same. They all have their own specialties. You cannot tell your wedding photographer to do a product photo shoot for you. He might be clueless about what you’re looking for.
It can be a little tricky for you but you have to closely inspect their work to know if they can deliver what you need. Knowing the persona of the photographer will make it easier for you to hire a specialist.
The easy technique for this is to go to the photographer’s website or portfolio and take a close look at the pictures clicked by him. Now ask yourself a few questions:
Are the photographs attracting you? Are they inviting you to seal the deal with the photographer? Are you convinced that his work is exactly what you were looking for?
If yes, that means you are able to match the photographer’s persona with your idea of product photography.
It’s all about what impression the photographer’s work leaves on you. If you’re moved to hire him that means you’ve found what you’re looking for.
See if the photographer knows and understands your project –
How Photographer Knows And Understands Your Project
Photography is more of a passion, an art and precisely, it’s a talent.
Photographers usually have a knack for photography. They learn the basics, get enrolled in photography schools and start making money out of their passion.
Without a doubt, a photographer is known for his skills. But when it comes to business, everyone needs expert services. For a commercial photo shoot, you cannot rely on an amateur photographer.
To work on commercial photography, the knowledge about the work is a must.
Make sure that the photographer, who you’re considering, has the required knowledge about their work. If not, things might get screwed up!
With a complete knowledge of their work, photographers can get a good grasp on what is being assigned to them.
Go for a person who has an in-depth knowledge of his genre or forte.
To understand the level of knowledge of a photographer, you can look into his website and see if he has written any educational blogs about his genre of photography. You can search the photographer’s name with Google and see what comes up. You can see if the photographer has published any eBooks or guides to educate others with his skills.
This way, you can find out if your photographer has the apt knowledge about his work or the work you demand.
To check the level of understanding and knowledge of the photographer, you can analyze their skills on how they solve a problem. If they know their work, they know every way around to make your project a hit!
If a photographer knows to play his cards right, it reflects his professionalism and adept manner of work which you require for things to go smooth.
Make it clear if you want printed photographs or digital files –
Before you finalize a product photographer, make sure you know what type of photograph copies you require.
In many cases, the digital files of photos are required. But photographers sometimes have an issue in delivering the digital files. Things cannot work this way!
If the photographer denies delivering the photographs as required, don’t waste your time on him.
Again it is advised to discuss your requirements with the photographer beforehand. Tell him in advance that you need printed photographs, or digital files or both.
In the present day marketing strategies, your product often needs to be put on the commercial websites. So, digital copies of the photographs are required.
It would be a complete chaos if you learn that your photographer will not deliver the pictures in the desired file type after the photo shoot is done. You cannot waste all your money and efforts on a wrong project.
To avoid all sorts of confusion, confer your requirements when you’re meeting the photographer face to face or when you’re defining your project.
With this, the photographer will also be benefited as he can also base his price according to your requirements.
Keep your budget clear –
It’s mandatory that you decide your budget before seeking a photographer. Your budget is one of the factors to consider while you’re seeking the right professional.
Think about the resources you have and how much you are willing to pay for a professional photo shoot.
When you know your exact budget for the project, it will help you hire the right person for the job. Keep your budget clear while you’re considering the services of a photographer. If he is fine to work within the budget, you can hire him.
But if his services turn out to be very costly, you can always drop the option.
You might get stuck in a situation where you’re ready to exceed your budget limit because the photographer is just the right one that you’ve been looking for! Surely there are several other factors that your need to consider, besides your budget.
In situations like this, both the parties can make a little compromise, can’t they? Remember, it is always handy to negotiate.
But make it a point that you cannot spend too much beyond your decided budget. Otherwise, things might get bumpy. So, just keep it balanced and make the right decision.
After all, product photo shoots are more of an investment than expenditure as good product photography can give your long term benefits.
Consider the resources and expertise used by the photographer –
After you shortlist one or two photographers, the deciding point can be their team, resources, and expertise.
In a nutshell, you need to see their way of working. See how they work, what resources they use, what kind of team they have, what their editing skills are, how they solve problems related to the projects, etc.
Through these points, you can compare the work patterns of the photographers and pick the suitable one.
One of the essential factors here is the editing skills of the photographer. Clicking the pictures is one thing but generating the final copies after editing is what gives the professional touch to the photographs.
Commercial photographs need to be right on point!
You can ask the photographer about the editing tools and techniques they’re using. Hiring a photographer, who has an expertise and experience in using Photoshop, can be a lot beneficial for you.
It is important that your photographer has a professional approach, adequate resources, and desired experience to handle your project well.
Only a photographer with credible resources and an upright experience can deliver expert services to you. You can meet the photographer, visit his workplace, or go through different pages of his website. If things are convincing, go for it!
Your product’s photo shoot is an essential part of your digital marketing campaigns, advertisements or commercial websites. With a product photographer who has a professional manner of working, you can rest assured that the photo shoot is going to end as you desire.
Hiring a professional photographer for business must not be taken as a frivolous job. A lot of thought must be put while you hire a professional and make sure you give weight to each and every factor before finalizing the deal.
Be sure to consider all these 7 tips in detail, before you hire a professional for your product photo shoot as you might not want to land with a wrong person and waste it all away!
