I opened my
photography studio over 10 years ago. I
look back and see how much has changed since that fateful day. At the time, I
had recently completed my transition from film to digital. The future looked
rosy. I joined various photography groups and mingled with some of the greats
and not so great in our industry. We were all sharing ideas of how to embrace
this new paradigm called digital photography.
I learned you had to be a business person first and a photographer
second. Actual photography accounted for
less than 10% of my time.
When I started photography was a niche business. Cameras were expensive and it took real skill and knowledge to take good photos. In order to get good, a photographer had to shoot lots of film and make lots of mistakes. From the time we clicked the shutter button until we saw the image, it could be a couple of weeks unless we had our own darkrooms. In that case it might be a day or so later. In any case, the feedback loop was much longer. Today, we see our images instantly on the back of the camera. We can see if we did it correctly or not.
Another big change was the cost of taking photos. In fact, on many of my vacations, one of my biggest expenses was the film and processing. Sometimes, it was more than my airfare! For wedding photographers we figured a cost per click which was typically around $3/click. This included the film, processing and proofing of the image. Today, we no longer account for that cost. The cost has moved from a direct physical cost to an indirect labor cost as we process our digital images. Many photographers no longer consider their time as something to include in the cost per click. Sadly, I think this devaluation of our labor has contributed to the changes in our industry. After all, there is no money coming out of our pockets.
What many of us didn't realize was the learning curve to use film and the cost to process photos created an entry barrier to the industry. There was no such thing as a "Mom with Camera." She simply didn't have the time to devote to learning the craft and it was easier to leave it to the experts. Newer cameras with more features, allowed anybody to take good enough photos. The technology curve has put cameras on the market at a price many people can afford. Many times, the camera takes a good enough photo without the photographer needing to provide additional brains. Not only that but, photographer can check the image to see if they got what they wanted. No more trusting. Now you can verify. Poor photography became good enough.
As the economy declined, more displaced workers started looking at their cameras and saw an opportunity. There was no barrier to entry so they said, "What the heck!" Suddenly our industry was faced with a multitude of people with cameras. Everybody was a photographer. Any economist can tell you what is going to happen when the supply exceeds the demand. The price is going to drop. And drop it did.
First we saw more being included in packages. Film photographers rarely gave away their negatives. Digital photographers soon had no option but to include the files. Clients were expecting it. Eventually, prices dropped. Today, it is common to see $500 photographers and we even hear of photographer giving it way to build a portfolio. This is a price practically unthought of when I first started. At that time the $1000 was considered cheap. In the film days, you had to pay for your film, processing and proofing. Who knows where it will end?
Our revenue streams changed too. Photographers used to count on the couple, parents' albums and reprint orders. Today, we're lucky to get a couple's album. The parents and everybody else have their own cameras and no longer need the professional photographer to capture memories for them. While we lost our revenue streams, those people were suffering from a tight economy. Once again, causing the supply to far out weigh the demand.
While many continue to deny it, the photography industry has changed. It is no longer a niche specialty. Photography has become a commodity. Photographers are a dime a dozen offering pretty much the same thing. Sure you may claim your style differs from everybody else. However, from the customer's eyes, there is not much difference from one to another.
A while ago, I started my sabbatical. It has given me a chance to step away from the day to day details of photography to take a big picture look. The margins are no longer available in wedding photography. The commodity nature of wedding photography has made it very difficult to convince couples to spend $3000 for a photography package. They can easily get a $500 photographer who will meet their needs. Reprints? Forget it. People are running around weddings with their own cameras.
Recently in the news, we've seen CPI file for bankruptcy protection. In store, photo studios are suffering too. All across the industry, the news is the same. Here in Chicago, some of the big studios have closed locations. All of this points to an industry undergoing a major change. Where will it end? I don't know for sure. But I can tell you it has reached a point, where I can make more money in a standard career working fewer hours than by continuing to be a wedding photographer. If/when the economy recovers, perhaps things will get better. But wedding photography will never recover back to the level of profitability we saw in the film days. Photography has changed from a niche to a commodity.
When I started photography was a niche business. Cameras were expensive and it took real skill and knowledge to take good photos. In order to get good, a photographer had to shoot lots of film and make lots of mistakes. From the time we clicked the shutter button until we saw the image, it could be a couple of weeks unless we had our own darkrooms. In that case it might be a day or so later. In any case, the feedback loop was much longer. Today, we see our images instantly on the back of the camera. We can see if we did it correctly or not.
Another big change was the cost of taking photos. In fact, on many of my vacations, one of my biggest expenses was the film and processing. Sometimes, it was more than my airfare! For wedding photographers we figured a cost per click which was typically around $3/click. This included the film, processing and proofing of the image. Today, we no longer account for that cost. The cost has moved from a direct physical cost to an indirect labor cost as we process our digital images. Many photographers no longer consider their time as something to include in the cost per click. Sadly, I think this devaluation of our labor has contributed to the changes in our industry. After all, there is no money coming out of our pockets.
What many of us didn't realize was the learning curve to use film and the cost to process photos created an entry barrier to the industry. There was no such thing as a "Mom with Camera." She simply didn't have the time to devote to learning the craft and it was easier to leave it to the experts. Newer cameras with more features, allowed anybody to take good enough photos. The technology curve has put cameras on the market at a price many people can afford. Many times, the camera takes a good enough photo without the photographer needing to provide additional brains. Not only that but, photographer can check the image to see if they got what they wanted. No more trusting. Now you can verify. Poor photography became good enough.
As the economy declined, more displaced workers started looking at their cameras and saw an opportunity. There was no barrier to entry so they said, "What the heck!" Suddenly our industry was faced with a multitude of people with cameras. Everybody was a photographer. Any economist can tell you what is going to happen when the supply exceeds the demand. The price is going to drop. And drop it did.
First we saw more being included in packages. Film photographers rarely gave away their negatives. Digital photographers soon had no option but to include the files. Clients were expecting it. Eventually, prices dropped. Today, it is common to see $500 photographers and we even hear of photographer giving it way to build a portfolio. This is a price practically unthought of when I first started. At that time the $1000 was considered cheap. In the film days, you had to pay for your film, processing and proofing. Who knows where it will end?
Our revenue streams changed too. Photographers used to count on the couple, parents' albums and reprint orders. Today, we're lucky to get a couple's album. The parents and everybody else have their own cameras and no longer need the professional photographer to capture memories for them. While we lost our revenue streams, those people were suffering from a tight economy. Once again, causing the supply to far out weigh the demand.
While many continue to deny it, the photography industry has changed. It is no longer a niche specialty. Photography has become a commodity. Photographers are a dime a dozen offering pretty much the same thing. Sure you may claim your style differs from everybody else. However, from the customer's eyes, there is not much difference from one to another.
A while ago, I started my sabbatical. It has given me a chance to step away from the day to day details of photography to take a big picture look. The margins are no longer available in wedding photography. The commodity nature of wedding photography has made it very difficult to convince couples to spend $3000 for a photography package. They can easily get a $500 photographer who will meet their needs. Reprints? Forget it. People are running around weddings with their own cameras.
Recently in the news, we've seen CPI file for bankruptcy protection. In store, photo studios are suffering too. All across the industry, the news is the same. Here in Chicago, some of the big studios have closed locations. All of this points to an industry undergoing a major change. Where will it end? I don't know for sure. But I can tell you it has reached a point, where I can make more money in a standard career working fewer hours than by continuing to be a wedding photographer. If/when the economy recovers, perhaps things will get better. But wedding photography will never recover back to the level of profitability we saw in the film days. Photography has changed from a niche to a commodity.
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