With so many exciting updates and features for business owners on Instagram, now is the perfect time to make sure you have the best strategy possible for your account. More than ever, it’s necessary for you to focus on your engagement with followers to ensure they view and interact with your posts.
In our Instagram Guide, we share quick ways to make optimizations to your Instagram account, as well as tips to help you increase your following and make meaningful connections. To decide if your current strategy works for you, and your account is up to date, here are 9 optimizations you can make for your Instagram business account.
1. Create a Business Username
Similar to your Facebook business page, create a business username for your Instagram account. This makes it easier for people to find your other social pages. So if you are “Jackie Jones Photography,” your business username should reflect that. Something along the lines of @jackiejonesphoto or @jackiejonesphotography.
The beginning of busy season can be an exciting time. You get into the groove of shooting regularly, and you get to spend the summer and fall months doing exactly what you love: creating memories for your clients. After a few months of busy season, though, it can become overwhelming. With long days, and even longer nights, busy season overload begins.
What is the connection between Instagram and booking your ideal venue? We will explain that in a moment, but first, we have question for you. How are you currently using your Instagram account to benefit your wedding photography business? Here at ShootDotEdit, we know the importance of using Instagram to attract followers who you can then convert into clients. So, what techniques do you use on your account to stay top of mind with potential clients?
Your answer might be you are sharing past wedding photos, adding hashtags, and using a program like Iconosquare to help you decide when and what to post for your followers. With the updates to Instagram, like the addition of Stories and the Contact Button, you have to consistently test out new ways to attract followers to your account and lead them to your photography business. In our Instagram Guide for Wedding Photographers, we share tips and tricks to help you stay up-to-date with your account. The more relevant your account is, the easier it will be to attract followers who are looking for a wedding photographer just like you.
Perhaps you want to try new techniques on your account, but hesitate because you aren’t sure of what the turnout will be. Success stories from other photographers in the industry can help you make a decision of what you should do for your account to take it to the next level. Wedding photography duo, Justin and Mary Marantz, are a great example of photographers who have success on Instagram because of techniques they currently use. Just recently, they booked their dream venue because of Instagram. Below, they share the story of how this happened. Plus, they share 5 things you need to do today on Instagram to maximize your account.
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This year we saw something really interesting happen in our business. Let me explain.
During the wedding shoot, you have various moments to capture. Sometimes, it can be difficult to know exactly which photos you should focus on throughout the day to highlight the celebration. Throughout our 127 Shots Guide, we discuss the must-have images your clients will cherish, and ones a publisher will love. Of those important photos are the wedding toast images.
Although they may not be the most exciting images to capture, it is a moment that is anticipated by your clients and those closest to them. Often times, challenges arise when shooting the wedding toast images because of guests and their cell phones, or the speaker is standing in front of the couple as they talk. Here are 4 memorable wedding toast images your clients will love, and a few quick suggestions to help you shoot them with ease.
1. Candid Moments with the Couple
During the wedding day, the bride and groom are already having one of the best days of their lives. The time for toasts is a chance for them to sit down and let someone else take the spotlight for a few minutes. While they listen to the speech, capture candid moments of the couple.
In your photography business, do you know if you will make a profit by the end of the year? Our Pricing Calculator allows you to you list out every expense you have, and the income you will bring home. After you filled out the Calculator, take a look at where your profit comes from. How much of it comes from print sales? Chances are, your answer might be lower than where you want it to be.
Does this sound familiar? After you finalize the wedding details with your clients, and the shoot is over, you send them their images. Because you have so many tasks on your to-do list, and the next wedding shoot arrives, you push print sales aside. When you actually have the time to think about prints, your clients’ excitement about their wedding day has already dissipated.
Although it may seem like selling prints is another task you have to take care of, prints can drastically increase your income. But, print sales have to become a solid part of your workflow from the beginning of the process. Here are 4 simple workflow hacks to skyrocket your print sales.
1. Start from the Beginning
When you and your clients meet to discuss their wedding details, start the discussion of print sales. Many of your clients may not know the value of prints. Let them know what it will mean for them to purchase prints from their wedding day, and the memories they will have for years to come. In your wedding packages, share which ones allow them to easily purchase prints so they can showcase them in their homes with their loved ones.
Have you thought about upgrading your camera lately, but aren’t sure when the best time is? When you purchase gear for your photography business, it’s a big choice for you to make. In our Guide to Camera Bodies, we share the top cameras for wedding photographers. Sometimes, it can be difficult to decide whether you actually need a new camera or if you just want one. Camera bodies are expensive, and require thought on your part. If you think you are ready, or even if you know you won’t be ready for a while, here are things you can ask yourself when you want to know when you should upgrade your camera.
Camera Limitations
Does your camera limit you from photography activities? For example, do you find you shoot in dark locations quite a bit? Shooting in the dark can be a challenge alone, so if your camera lacks the ISO performance to shoot at low light, you may want to consider purchasing a new one.
“If you know you’re going to shoot in low light, you have to have a camera that has high ISO. If you don’t feel comfortable with your camera shooting at 3200 ISO or higher, I give you the right to go buy yourself a new camera. You have to make sure you are going to produce professional quality even in low light.” – Scott Robert Lim
As you build your social schedule for Instagram, what do you use to give you insights into your account’s performance? In our guide about Instagram and how you can best use it for your business, we discuss the many techniques you can use to attract followers and encourage engagement. As a professional wedding photographer, you’ll want to use an Instagram business account to promote your brand and measure your activity. By tracking and measuring your Instagram efforts, you’ll discover what works best for your account, and how you can maximize interaction on your posts. What program is suited to help you evaluate your Instagram strategy?
Iconosquare Review
While there are different ways to analyze and review your Instagram account, Iconosquare is a platform that provides you with the information to monitor and adjust techniques for your photography Instagram account. We’ve put together an Iconosquare review, and here are 8 reasons Iconosquare for Instagram is worth your time.
1. Learn What to Post
For your business account, you may already have a strategy in place for what you post. But what do your followers like the best of the images you post? Iconosquare informs you of what your followers enjoy the best on your account, which allows you to make decisions on what type of posts you should continue to schedule. When you post images your followers love, the photos have a better chance to get more likes, and you can establish an effective account.
As Dorothea Lange once said, “Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” Simply, it means everything you do in an image is saved for the couple to cherish forever after their wedding day. To ensure you create the best photos every time, lighting and posing are two of the most important aspects of photography for you to master.
In our Online Training: Live Posing and Lighting Critique with Jen Rozenbaum, Jen reviewed images submitted by photographers from around the world. Throughout the training, she provided ways for you to constructively critique your images and how to advance your skills in lighting and posing. Here are the top 5 tips from Jen’s training you can use in your upcoming shoots.
“We don’t learn from our good images; we learn from the ones that can be improved on.” – Jen Rozenbaum
1. Focus on the Pose
When you understand what you are looking for when it comes to posing, you can always create a good pose. To know what makes a good pose, Jen has three different rules:
A good pose allows your subject(s) to look as good as they do in real life, if not better. Every time you look at an image, ask yourself if your clients look just as good or better. For you to achieve the best poses possible, communicate with your clients to discover what they envision for their wedding photos, and focus on that to create poses and set proper lighting.
It is no secret that growing your business is no easy task. It is also just as challenging to protect your wedding photography business. One key area in protecting your business is your wedding photography contract. Whether you are thinking about how to start a photography business, just starting a photography business, or are a seasoned pro, your photography contract needs to evolve and adapt. It is vital that you spend the time and energy to solidify your photography contract.
Wedding Photography Contract
No doubt – for the artist, the details of wedding photography contracts are no fun (and not for the faint of heart). Compared to shooting weddings and meeting with clients, an afternoon spent brushing up your photography contract is probably not high on your list.
But, protecting the photography business you have spent so much time building is incredibly important. This is also true for a photography business you are just starting. Whether you start with a contract template or hire someone to write it, it is important you understand what you are setting up.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Wedding Photographer Contracts
That’s why we partnered with Agree, Songfreedom, Fotoskribe, and TheLawTog to bring you a guide filled with suggestions of what you can place in your photography contract. We also discuss why you should have a contract in place and what it can do to ensure your success and longevity as a wedding photographer.
Throughout our guide, we provide suggestions of what you can place in your contract. We also discuss the need to have this legal document, plus Agree’s David Jay and TheLawTog’s Rachel Brenke share their expertise. Keep reading to learn wedding photography contract tips you can use for yours.
*Keep in mind, these are just suggestions for things to add to your photography contract. This is not legal advice.
Info for Your Wedding Photography Contract
Throughout our free guide, we gathered tips from pro photographers about what they think is most important when it comes to photography contracts. Some of the details we share in the guide include crucial pieces of information that should be a part of every wedding photography contract. If you go the route of a contract template, you need to ensure your wedding photography contract has these details.
Basic Information
One of the pieces of information you can add to your contract is basic information, which may include:
Your name and the best way for clients to reach you (whether it be by email, phone, or text)
Your wedding photography business name and address (if applicable)
The clients’ phone numbers, email addresses, and emergency contacts
A short summary of the photography services you will provide and the hours you will shoot
This allows you to easily contact them when necessary throughout the process. Other basic information you could include in your wedding photography contract is your contact information so your clients can reach out to you when necessary.
Locations, Dates, and Times
Other items to consider when building your photography contracts are the specific locations, dates, and times. If you are shooting both their engagement session and wedding day, it can be helpful to include the locations and dates for each. Chances are for many of your clients, the locations and dates will differ for each shoot.
To provide complete clarity, include the address of the locations and the times you will arrive. This will ensure your wedding clients know exactly where you will be and at what time, so there are no miscommunications or issues when it comes to the engagement session or wedding day.
The information in this part of the contract can also be valuable when the locations for the getting ready, ceremony, and reception differ. This is where a detailed wedding day timeline is helpful, so you stay on track and know exactly where you should be at every point of the shoot.
Payment Plan and Dates
Of the information you include in your photography wedding contract, the payment details are one of the most important. As a business owner, you set goals for the profit you will bring in each year. When a wedding client books you, you agree on the payment details and that helps you reach your income goals. To ensure you are paid accordingly and within a specific timeline, it can be valuable to include the agreement and the dates in which the payments are due, into your contract.
In your photography contract, you can feature the amount of the services your clients chose. If you agree upon a payment plan, you can also include the dates each payment is due. This helps keep your wedding clients accountable and allows you to stay on track with your business goals.
Another item you may want to include along with the payment details is if you require a non-refundable booking fee. This is something that protects you if the clients decide to cancel and you are unable to schedule another wedding in its place.
Deliverables
When you and your wedding clients chat during the planning meeting, you decide on the services that best fit their needs. The specifics you discuss with your clients are important to include in your photography contract. It highlights the services and products your clients chose, how much they cost, and how long it will take for you to deliver them once the wedding day shoot is over.
Some of the items you can include in your contract are:
How many images you will deliver (a range or percentage will work)
When the images will be available for viewing on your gallery
The process your clients will follow to order images from your gallery
How long it will take for you to deliver the images
Specifics for album(s); how many pages and images included
The process for ordering and delivering an album or additional prints
How long you will keep their images archived
These are just some of the details you can include. If you provide additional services for your wedding clients, add those into the contract to provide clarity. The best thing you can do is set expectations for your clients, so they know when to expect their deliverables. When you include the specific details into your contracts, you also lessen questions from clients and diminish the chances they will be upset with you.
Cancellation Terms
An additional piece of information to include in your photography contract is cancellation or termination terms. This is especially crucial because your income may be primarily based on the weddings you shoot per year. If you miss out on just one wedding, it can affect you and your photography business financially. In your wedding photography contract, protect your income and place in details about what will happen if a wedding client changes their mind (or something comes up).
Emergency Plan
We’ve talked about what you could do if your clients cancel or reschedule, but what happens if you run into an emergency? Your contract is an ideal place to clarify what will occur if something goes wrong and you cannot perform your duties as their wedding photographer.
When you build an emergency plan and include it in your photography contract, it can give your clients peace of mind that if something goes wrong, there will be a photographer there for them on the day. Along with your emergency plan, you can provide a few “what-if” scenarios and how they will be handled, such as:
What happens if it rains on the wedding day and the ceremony is outdoors?
What happens if you lose their images after the shoot?
What happens if your wedding clients want you to stay longer than the agreed upon timeframes?
The more scenarios or potential questions you can address in your contract, the easier it will be to avoid miscommunications or more serious issues. Plus, you can keep your wedding clients happy throughout the entire process.
Day-Of Specifics
When the day of the engagement session or wedding shoot arrives, you may shoot at a location or venue you have shot at in the past. In those situations, you typically know the requirements and restrictions.
On the other hand, there are locations or vendors your clients may choose that you have never been to and are unfamiliar with the specifics for each. If, say, a venue requires you to have a permit, it can be helpful to clarify in your photography contract whether you or your clients are responsible for obtaining it before the shoot. This is a valuable detail to include so you ensure the day of is free of any issues, especially when it comes to the venue or location.
Another important element you can place in your photography contract is about meals and breaks during the wedding day. Depending on how long the shoot is, you could be there for hours and will likely require food and a few breaks. You can add to your contract what you and your clients agree on when it comes to meals and breaks and whether they will provide you with one after a certain number of hours.
These details are specific but are meant to lessen any issues that will arise during the engagement session or wedding day. Both you and your clients can benefit from these details, which is why they are important to add to your contract.
Why is a Wedding Photography Contract Important?
We mentioned it earlier, and we’ll say it again: a detailed wedding photography contract protects your business. Contracts are essential to communicate clear expectations with clients and to share what products and services you will provide to them.
Copyright Information
An example we share in the guide has to do with the copyright of your images. For instance, maybe you have a verbal agreement about the copyright of your wedding photos. If they incorrectly share those images without credit or a logo, it can be difficult to refer back to the contract. With a contract in place and the details of how to properly share are included, you can quickly reference the contract and make sure your clients are clear on how to share in the future.
Maintain Professionalism
Another reason it is important to have a wedding photography contract for your business is that it shows you are a professional who clients can trust. As a wedding photographer, building trust with your clients will give them the confidence in you and your abilities. The more your wedding clients trust you, and the more clear you are in your photography contracts, the easier it will be to avoid conflicts and miscommunications.
Second Shooter/Assistant Details
Many wedding photographers work with a second shooter or assistant during the wedding day. If this is true for you, it can be valuable to include details about liability in your contract so you protect them from any issues or conflict. Your second shooter or assistant will likely come into contact with your clients and you may not always be around when that happens.
It is important to protect yourself and your business, but also those who work alongside you. If a second shooter or assistant upsets your wedding clients, it leads back to you. The details you place in your contract about liability for second shooters, assistants, or other employees in your business ensure they are protected and your brand remains intact.
Share Images with Vendors
Additionally, vendor relationships are a large part of expanding your reach and meeting new clients. To build a relationship with vendors, and to create valuable referral sources, you may take images of them during the wedding day to capture them in action. If you share images with vendors, they are likely to share them on their website, blog, and social media platforms.
When you have a contract with vendors, you can ensure your images will be properly credited as they are shared. The same can be said for other businesses or companies you work with. A contract makes it easier for you to share your expectations and ensure your business stays protected.
What are the Risks of Not Having a Wedding Photography Contract?
Without a contract in place for your photography business, there are several risks you can run into. We cover a few of the risks in our guide, including facing potential lawsuits.
Potential Lawsuits
As a wedding photographer, you work with different clients every time you book a wedding. You spend a lot of time communicating details and finalizing specifics for their engagement shoot, wedding day, and post-wedding products. Because you are only one of the decisions your wedding clients need to make, their stress levels can often be heightened.
An example has to do with wedding albums. Wedding albums are a fantastic way for your client to remember their wedding day, and they are ideal to help you increase your profit. Even still, there are potential issues that can arise during the album creation and delivery phase.
Say, for example, your clients ask for additional pages in their album. You have the conversation verbally, but forget to update your wedding photography contract. Without the details written in their contract, your couple could be upset with the charges for the additional pages. Even though you discussed it, it is possible that your clients could forget those details. At this point, there is a risk that your couple could be so frustrated, they could take legal action against you and your photography business.
This is why it is very crucial to keep your wedding photography contract updated and as detailed as possible. When you share your wedding photography contract PDF (or print it), it protects you from legal action, which can be very damaging to your business.
Set Realistic Expectations
An updated contract also provides clear expectations for your clients, which keeps them happy. Keep in mind, happy clients refer you to others and share their stories. And just like happy clients will refer you and share their stories, unhappy wedding clients will also share their stories (possibly in a more public and angry way).
Damaged Reputation
With everything you do for your wedding clients, you want to ensure their experience is positive. If a client takes legal action against you, there is a risk of damage to your reputation. Think about it like you would if someone leaves you a negative review. A new ideal client, who is searching for a wedding photographer, could see that comment and decide not to work with you. With your updated and detailed wedding photography contract, you can avoid any damage to your reputation.
Create a Wedding Photography Contract
In our free guide, we also discuss how to create a wedding photography contract. There are several options for this, including having a professional help you with it. Like many things in your photography business (editing wedding photos, album-design, bookkeeping, more), you can get help with the creation of your photography contracts. As a wedding photographer, the specific details of a contract may not necessarily be your specialty (and that’s okay!).
Photography Contract Sample
Sometimes it can be helpful to see a photography contract sample. When you download our guide, you will receive a free wedding photography contract template from Rachel Brenke of TheLawTog®. Keep in mind, this sample contract template is a suggestion of what you can include – it is not intended to be legal advice. Click the banner below to download our free guide to learn more about photography contracts, how they benefit your wedding photography business, and suggestions to help you get started.
