How difficult is it to go pro?

uhm Kyle. test the light with your eyes first. If your not blind adter 5 minutes feel free to use your camera.

Look at all the exhibitions youve done. So shaddap.

famx. but uhm I'm bored at work. My minions are doing everything.

Thought this was interesting:


Our prices determine our market – you are not a victim.
Written by: Charles Blakeman | Posted on 11 January 2010.

Don't kid yourself. The market doesn't determine our prices; our prices determine our market. It's our fault, not theirs.

There are two reasons people react to your pricing:

1. Your prices are too high. That almost never happens. Stop thinking you're the one exception.
2. Your prices are too low. This is almost always the problem. When your prices are too low, you attract people who are price-shopping, and worse yet, bottom feeders, and both will spend all their energy beating you up because your prices are too high.

Everyone wants value, not everyone is willing to pay for it! There are only three kinds of buying questions:

1. Price Buyers – How much?
2. Value Buyers – Can you do it?
3. Relationship Buyers – Who do I like best?

If you set low prices, you are selling to price buyers and will always hear "Your prices are too high". If you set value-based prices and are building relationships, you're going to make a good profit, which will let you serve your clients even better.
Pricing Mechanics – Step by Step

How not to do it – history, fear, feeling, my experience, dreams, hunger, client situation/pocket book, convenience, subjective "analysis", or "because it's easy for me to do" (craftperson pricing).

How to do it –

1. Cost+ – This is the worst way to price, but absolutely essential as a starting place for knowing how to actually set your prices. You must know your costs. If you don't you've got no baseline for pricing anything. You need to know your costs by each individual product/service.
2. Markup+ – Desired profit = needed markup/margin (50% markup equals 33% margin – don't confuse the two). Once you know your costs, add a basic profit. This is just the start.
3. Your Differentiator – what makes you different than the next guy? If you have something, you can price in that difference. If you don't, you're a commodity. Don't be a commodity.
4. Expertise+ – are you the best in your world? If so, you can demand a premium. If not you're a commodity.
5. Client perception (market demand)+ – convenience, coolness, etc. No one runs to catch a stopped train. Get your train moving – get your clients chasing you.
6. Scarcity/Competition+ – is what you do unique or is the market flooded? If your unique, you can price that in. If not, you're a commodity.
7. Hazardous Duty Pay+ – turn low profit, high maintenance clients into high profit, high maint., or fire them. The cost of low profit, high maintenance clients is untenable.
8. How busy are you?+ – the 95% occupancy rule. If you are more full than 95%, raise prices. (90% manufact.)
9. Time/complexity+ – are they asking something out of the ordinary? Don't give ordinary pricing!
10. History – are you stuck with past pricing? Use #1-9 + new clients to get out of it. Be courageous – raise prices!

Summary: Move from Cost-Plus to Value-Based Pricing if at all possible! Pricing to VALUE – the ultimate objective! In short, stop pricing based on what you think you're worth and start pricing based on what the market will bear. You'll make a lot more money and people will whine a lot less about your pricing. Be brave, you're almost certainly not charging enough.
No Extra Charge:

The Ten Most Common Pricing Mistakes, by Per Sjofors, Managing Partner, Atenga, Inc.

Here is a list of ten of the most common mistakes companies make when pricing their products and services.

1. Basing your prices on costs, not customers' perceptions of value
2. Basing your prices on "the marketplace"
3. Attempting to achieve the same profit margin across different product lines
4. Failing to segment their customers
5. Holding prices at the same level for too long, ignoring changes in costs, competitive environment and in customers' preferences
6. Incentivizing your salespeople on revenue generated, rather than on profits
7. Changing prices without forecasting competitors' reactions
8. Using insufficient resources to manage your pricing practices
9. Failing to establish internal procedures to optimize prices
10. Spending a disproportionate amount of time serving your least profitable customers

fanks Matt :)

Great stuff Matt!

Now all I need is a client!

"If i look up to them for their professional ability then they are a professional in my eyes

Uhm so if you dont look up to them, then their not professional? Inevitably that would mean that you are not professional since you "look up" tp someone it implies that their standards are higher than yours. if that is the standard by which you measure professionalism then it implies that your own standards are lower."

Uhh, so you do not have a single photographer that you aspire to. I think you are miss reading my whole point here. My standards are not low by any means. (in my opinion of course.) You are changing what i said.
Uhm so if you dont look up to them, then their not professional? No, in your eyes they might be professional. I am not the one to judge that for you. And what you are saying is that the day you have no one else to look up to, you become professional. Im confusing myself here! The point is you misinterpreted me. or i never said it right, whatever.

"I am worth more and so are you.

Now clap your hand, and stomp your feet."

Ha Ha, no thanks, not much of a happy clapper.

Im sorry that you are so disturbed by the industry and what people label you as or that it concerns you so much.

"If your market DOESNT have the money, how are they going to pay for it? Lets test your theory shall we? lets ALL decide that we are ALL going to charge R10 000 for a half day shoot. if your theory is correct then the market will pay it without anybody loosing business. Now lets suppose the camera equipment suppliers decided "Hey if the togs can do they must have more money. lets mark everything up by 75%". Not fun now is it."

Well then we are all doomed I guess. Give Up now.

What is this light meter thing you guys keep talking about?

Thanks mat.

Dude you take this too seriously.

What is this light meter thing you guys keep talking about?

A long time ago in one of the other countless threads dealing with this exact topic (yes I flog dead horses) someone said that only amatures shoot without lightmeters. Or something like that.

I was just poking fun.

Uh, I do realize this Morgaen. Lol. Didn't mean to come across as serious. Difficult showing expression in type i suppose, apologies if you took it that way.

Well, there is the whole "light-meter-versus-histogram" debate.

My semi-pro opinion: use a meter in the studio and a histogram in the field. Unless someone can convince me otherwise, which should be easy.

[quote=]My semi-pro opinion: use a meter in the studio and a histogram in the field. Unless someone can convince me otherwise, which should be easy.[/quote]


Uhm - why use anything? look at the little picture on your screen....and see if that is the effect that you want.......

Light meters are a must if youre shooting film, unless you know your camera, lights and film better than the manufacturers do...which in some cases is entirely possible.

I myself dont make use of them anymore, shooting digital, but I guess thats a personal choice.

use a meter in the studio and a histogram in the field. Unless someone can convince me otherwise, which should be easy.

Both methods will get you the desired image. However, if you understand light such that you can pre-visualise what you want, then the one will allow you to achieve it in fewer shots and with less (amateurish ) chimping.

*sits back and waits*

(amateurish ) chimping.

*stir stir stir*

I've found using a lightmeter in the studio helps me prevent hot-spots if I'm using it correctly and with presence of mind.

On my landscapes, hot-spots arent too much of an ussue, and the histogram will tell me what i need to know. IE: blown highlights and/or shadow clipping.

delete before pressing post is sometimes a wise option. I am so proud of myself.