website My Professional Website

[sfoster]

The password is "password" - It's not live yet, I want some feedback.

https://oriole-orca-pgmp.squarespace.com/

I built it with squarespace and it'll cost me $276/year to have my own domain and email.
What do you think of the name? Sean Foster Studio? or should be it Foster's with an apostrophe s?

Or something else altogether.

 

[Nate North]

Clean, simple, good. I think it conveys the idea well, and is functional for it's purpose. I might add a bit of visual flair, just minor web stuff to make it slightly less minimalistic, but otherwise design is fine. As far as the headshots themselves, it's ok, but I might stagger the images rather than grouping them, and once you have enough, just use one model per picture. Right now just looks like you haven't been in business for long because of the limited number of models. Some framing might add a more designed feel, just minor stuff. All in all, it's good.

 

[sfoster]

Clean, simple, good. I think it conveys the idea well, and is functional for it's purpose. I might add a bit of visual flair, just minor web stuff to make it slightly less minimalistic, but otherwise design is fine. As far as the headshots themselves, it's ok, but I might stagger the images rather than grouping them, and once you have enough, just use one model per picture. Right now just looks like you haven't been in business for long because of the limited number of models. Some framing might add a more designed feel, just minor stuff. All in all, it's good.

I'm filming a video this weekend, then have three photography clients next week, the portfolio will grow.
Not sure what you mean by framing, unless you're saying a border around them like they're framed photos on a wall.

I'm not much of a web designer, usually my best bet is to scope out the websites of other pros for 'inspiration'

 

[Nate North]

Yeah, when I mentioned framing, I just meant literal frames, web style, not picture frames. It looks good though, and more importantly the images themselves look good.

My advice on a next step would be to

A. raise your prices to be more competitive, so if your competition is doing 600 a shoot, maybe 500 or so, rather than 100. 100 is good money for work of that type, but if you're doing it right, there's a touch of overhead, see point b.

B. Run inexpensive and tightly targeted search ads within driving distance only. Start small. 5 dollars a day max limit, only direct search terms. Buy up first place search in your area for "headshot photography" and a few other phrases that can only mean the exact thing you're selling. In example, don't just target "headshot" or you will spend 11c every time a kid is bragging about COD online in your area.

This will be your main source of new customers, and it does work. Start cheap and tight, and when you're getting clients in regularly, making money, then experiment gradually with expanding relevant search terms, always keeping the safety cap on spend. This is how you can grow quickly, assuming that your area has enough relevant clientele.

 

[sfoster]

Yeah, when I mentioned framing, I just meant literal frames, web style, not picture frames. It looks good though, and more importantly the images themselves look good.

My advice on a next step would be to

A. raise your prices to be more competitive, so if your competition is doing 600 a shoot, maybe 500 or so, rather than 100. 100 is good money for work of that type, but if you're doing it right, there's a touch of overhead, see point b.

B. Run inexpensive and tightly targeted search ads within driving distance only. Start small. 5 dollars a day max limit, only direct search terms. Buy up first place search in your area for "headshot photography" and a few other phrases that can only mean the exact thing you're selling. In example, don't just target "headshot" or you will spend 11c every time a kid is bragging about COD online in your area.

This will be your main source of new customers, and it does work. Start cheap and tight, and when you're getting clients in regularly, making money, then experiment gradually with expanding relevant search terms, always keeping the safety cap on spend. This is how you can grow quickly, assuming that your area has enough relevant clientele.

Where do you suggest I buy the ads? Facebook? Google? I've never paid for ads before.
My plan was to create an account on fiverr to get clients.

I saw someone else with kinda decent photos charging $100/starting fee so thats what I copied.
I figured I'd start low, and then increase fee as my portfolio grows, but yeah it'd be better if I could do $250 or something instead, for sure, I would like to buy more lights and stuff.

The nomads charging $500, claim to be 'nyc top headshot photographer' or whatever in their ad, but you make a good point I should aim higher and run some ads, see if anything catches, and then lower my price if i'm not getting clients.

 

[Nate North]

Where do you suggest I buy the ads? Facebook? Google? I've never paid for ads before.
My plan was to create an account on fiverr to get clients.

I saw someone else with kinda decent photos charging $100/starting fee so thats what I copied.
I figured I'd start low, and then increase fee as my portfolio grows, but yeah it'd be better if I could do $250 or something instead, for sure, I would like to buy more lights and stuff.

The nomads charging $500, claim to be 'nyc top headshot photographer' or whatever in their ad, but you make a good point I should aim higher and run some ads, see if anything catches, and then lower my price if i'm not getting clients.

The smart money is on google adwords and facebook ads. With ads it's all about bang for buck, and those 2 have historically provided the most audience for the least money per ad. It's been a minute, so I can't be certain of your ROI, but in the past I've used careful targeting and search selection (interest groupings on facebook) to get my money's worth. In example, I made a film once for 10 grand, spent another grand or so on ads, and it returned the full budget inclusive ad spend.

The big deal is that it's scaleable, so if you dump in 300 bucks over a month, and you get 3 clients, and you charge 200 each, you can just reinvest the next month, and get in 6 clients. This is statistics gambling, so you need to run long term to get a feel, or more ads if you can afford that, but the point is, if over the course of a year, you are getting a client for each hundred spent, and each time you can reclaim double or triple your investment, then it allows you to scale up at no cost.

Essentially you want to add your ad cost per client acquired into your charge, so you never actually pay it out of pocket. Get 3x or 4x your ad investment per month in income, and you can scale up to your area's saturation point at virtually no out of pocket cost. Since you are in a populous region, and have only one photographer, it's at least possible you can saturate your available time, level off ad spend, and that's it, you're a profitable business operating at peak efficiency!

 

[Nate North]

I would add that experimentation, iteration, and A/B testing are an integral part of fine tuning your ad spend. In many cases it's possible to get 2 or 3x the results from the same spend, simply by triangulating in over time on the best search phrases, demographics, or ad presentation.

If I'm remembering correctly, I got almost double the impact per dollar once by changing something like "A Movie about Park County" to "The Park County Movie". It's unclear why, but even very similar ad headlines can have significant performance discrepancies.

To clarify about the difference between facebook and google adwords ads, Adwords is far more complex, and functions by allowing you to play "search term bingo" using an auction format. So you are a person in MD, and you type "actor headshot photographers", and there are a few bidders in your area, but it's low, so you can offer 3c or 22c, and get corresponding prioritization. Top end gets your ad as the first search result on every search, but eats through budget faster. Bottom end gets you less results, slower and cheaper. Might take a while to get the hang of adwords, but also it can essentially be a make or break for this type business, especially if you become skilled at it.

Facebook is simpler, and cheaper usually. but has much less control. More money gets wasted, but it's cheaper, so it balances out, and can be more effective in some cases.

I'd just A/B test them, and run both for a while, to see where your ad spend is most effective. That's the core of all ad campaign management anyway. Make an image ad with a headshot of one actor, then an identical ad with a shot of another, and see if one face gets double the traction, stuff like that.

 

[CelticRambler]

Agree with @Nate North about the layout of the photos on the page (viewed on a 19:6 laptop screen). While the pictures themselves are fine, the presentation as-is is very flat. While your portfolio is still a bit thin, at the very least I would consider combining each set of three into a kind of "photo booth" strip, probably make it quite a bit bigger, and maybe display them as a carousel. That way, you'll get a more dramatic landing page. Your visitors, when arriving at the site, don't need to see all your photos - they only need to see one that convinces them you know how to take in-focus pictures.

Also, for the times we live in, you'll want to avoid presenting a portfolio that seems to suggest you have a preferred customer base. Right now, while we know that you're taking whatever work you can get and have other clients, a random visitor will see only "white male with token black guy". I would suggest that before you follow Nate's advice on advertising, you spend a small amount on models for portrait shots specifically to display on the website.

What do you think of the name? Sean Foster Studio? or should be it Foster's with an apostrophe s?

Or something else altogether.

It might sound very premature, but you need to be already considering how you want this venture to develop as a business and pick a name accordingly. Is it always going to be you, just you, taking the pictures, because that's that the whole point of it? Or are you providing a service that needs to be provided and you'll take on another photographer - or several - if/when you get established, so that you can pick the most interesting shots, or have the time (and money) to do something else?

It's always easier to get more investment and/or sell part or all of a business if it has a name that's not too personal, because those third parties will prefer the current clientele to be tied to the business, not the person. Similarly, if you do decide to invite another photographer to work with you (not necessarily for you) they'll benefit from being able to promote themselves with (for example) the line "Odenton Headshots, ask for Tanya." That avoids an impression of a strict hierarchy of talent and creative vision.

If you're sticking with your own name for now, personally I wouldn't use the apostrophe, but I might add a "the" at the front.

 

[CelticRambler]

One more thing: your choice of font. You have four different fonts on display - two in the logo, one for the heading and footer, one for the menu. That's not good design practice (loads of articles on this topic if you google it) and while it might not make a difference to a wreck-recovery business or lemonade stand, it's the kind of subtle artistic touch that will affect someone's decision when looking at photos, even if it's subconscious.

This is something worth field-testing on a bunch of random strangers and costs next to nothing. Print a line of text (e.g. "The Sean Foster Studio") on plain paper using a few different fonts (one per sheet); laminate each one - you need the glossy look to simulate a computer screen; take them onto the streets, or any other public space; tell people you're doing market research, show willing victims one sheet/one font, and simply ask what it says to them (give no context whatsoever). Make a note of their answer, and do that over and over and over and over again.

If you find an astronomical percentage of people think your preferred name/font is a heavy metal tattoo parlour or poodle grooming service, then you probably need to recalibrate. At the end of the day, though, you should have a spectrum of responses that'll help you choose the best font for your target audience.

 

[sfoster]

Agree with @Nate North about the layout of the photos on the page (viewed on a 19:6 laptop screen). While the pictures themselves are fine, the presentation as-is is very flat. While your portfolio is still a bit thin, at the very least I would consider combining each set of three into a kind of "photo booth" strip, probably make it quite a bit bigger, and maybe display them as a carousel. That way, you'll get a more dramatic landing page. Your visitors, when arriving at the site, don't need to see all your photos - they only need to see one that convinces them you know how to take in-focus pictures.

Also, for the times we live in, you'll want to avoid presenting a portfolio that seems to suggest you have a preferred customer base. Right now, while we know that you're taking whatever work you can get and have other clients, a random visitor will see only "white male with token black guy". I would suggest that before you follow Nate's advice on advertising, you spend a small amount on models for portrait shots specifically to display on the website.


It might sound very premature, but you need to be already considering how you want this venture to develop as a business and pick a name accordingly. Is it always going to be you, just you, taking the pictures, because that's that the whole point of it? Or are you providing a service that needs to be provided and you'll take on another photographer - or several - if/when you get established, so that you can pick the most interesting shots, or have the time (and money) to do something else?

It's always easier to get more investment and/or sell part or all of a business if it has a name that's not too personal, because those third parties will prefer the current clientele to be tied to the business, not the person. Similarly, if you do decide to invite another photographer to work with you (not necessarily for you) they'll benefit from being able to promote themselves with (for example) the line "Odenton Headshots, ask for Tanya." That avoids an impression of a strict hierarchy of talent and creative vision.

If you're sticking with your own name for now, personally I wouldn't use the apostrophe, but I might add a "the" at the front.

That's some great suggestions, although I'll probably move out of odenton and expand beyond headshots.
The problem is every damn name under the sun is already taken. And I'm kinda bad at coming up with names.

Took me like 2 years to name Christmas Hellfire, after a lot of bad failed predecessors.
It's a good tip though, I'll ask my dad and brother, maybe they'll be better at names than me.

I'm not interested in event photography, weddings, etc, so I seriously doubt I'll be hiring someone.
Even when i made my films i didn't have a PA lol.

Edit: oh what about 'Feathered Light Media' thats not too bad, and can lead to some cool feathery logo options
Aww shit, what dude is gonna want their picture taken at some feathery place, it sounds too girly.

I changed the pricing model to $250 + they keep all good photos w/ their top 5 retouched, and unlimited look changes during their 1 hour.

Is that better?

 

[mlesemann]

a random visitor will see only "white male with token black guy". I would suggest that before you follow Nate's advice on advertising, you spend a small amount on models for portrait shots specifically to display on the website.

Yes this - I'd certainly work in a photo of a woman, and if you can incorporate a photo of someone (male or female) who is Asian, Middle Eastern, Hispanic, whatever, I think that would be good.

I like it, especially the cookie reward

 

[AcousticAl]

I’d suggest dropping “Studio” from your name. I tend to roll my eyes at startups that name their company “[Whatever] Studio”, or worse, “[Whatever] Studios”. To paraphrase Wayne Campbell: “You don’t own *a* studio, let alone many studios that necessitate an entire lot.” So, unless you have a proper, dedicated studio, go with something else. Media, Images, Visual Works… and are you including your video production in this?

Maybe simplify it to your initials and a descriptor. SF Images? SF Visual Works? SF Creative?

Other than that, and the great feedback already posted by others in this thread, the one thing that kind of stuck out was: “You receive ALL good photos taken during your session.” I get what you’re trying to say, but it comes across (to me) as one of those things that ends up saying something that you don’t intend. Kind of like, “I’mma take a lot of duds, but you’ll get all the good ones.”

 

[Nate North]

Taking another look at it today, I had a few other thoughts.

This is just a sales thing, but I would suggest a more concrete value proposition, and a slightly more random price, ironically, for the purpose of making the price seem less random.

I think many people might respond positively to stuff like "$270 for a minimum of 6 finished images, and 2 bonus upscaled and polished versions of your two favorite images"

Everyone's brain works a bit differently, and for some people, they really want a concrete value.

I totally get how photo shoots happen, and how it can vary so much from one session to another, but with digital cameras you can likely get over 100 base shots in an hour, so you have some headroom to make at least a small promise.

Compare how these ads might interest you -

"9 dollars for 2 mcdoubles, a quarter pounder with cheese, and a medium coke, this week only"

"9 dollars for a cheeseburger experience"

It could be the exact same thing when you get there, but one helps value conscious consumers feel more certain about what they are getting.

 

[indietalk]

The word Studio is fine in my book. It's an umbrella term. Even corporate companies have divisions called studios, like a branding studio for example, which is just a team of people that work ads into their product. They may work in a room in an office. But they are a studio. It's more about the team and their mission. It's fine, and also sounds right for photography.

 

[indietalk]

Edit: oh what about 'Feathered Light Media' thats not too bad, and can lead to some cool feathery logo options

Fostered Light
A last name pun
A Dylan Thomas poem, Foster The Light

 

[CelticRambler]

I'm not interested in event photography, weddings, etc, so I seriously doubt I'll be hiring someone.

Hence my emphasis on the phrase working with you, not for you.

You've a long way to go before the situation will arise, but you're heading straight into service that - if managed correctly - can generate a lot of repeat business. That one guy or gal who comes to you for head shot may treat it as the key that got them that job (so now they need a new professional portrait, okay, that's still your thing), on account of which they met that partner and got married (and would really like you on board, ahhh, maybe ... nah) and go on to have a bunch of children (cutie-pie casual shots instead of posed portraits ... ? )

This is where you might come across, or go actively looking for, someone who enjoys those kinds of shoots but doesn't have the contacts to get into it professionally. So you bring them onboard (even temporarily) to do the shoot under your brand and everyone's happy. It's all good work, good money, and may lead on to even more opportunities. Even if it's not in your five-year-plan at the moment, try to set things up so it's an avenue that can be quickly explored in the future.

I don't think there's anything wrong with using the word "studio" for the service you're offering, especially as you'll be mostly shooting in ... a studio! I would be much more bothered about the word "media" ; that implies a whole range of audio-visual digital and print services, which is not what you're doing.

 

[indietalk]

I don't think there's anything wrong with using the word "studio" for the service you're offering, especially as you'll be mostly shooting in ... a studio!

Exactly!

 

[sfoster]

I’d suggest dropping “Studio” from your name. I tend to roll my eyes at startups that name their company “[Whatever] Studio”, or worse, “[Whatever] Studios”. To paraphrase Wayne Campbell: “You don’t own *a* studio, let alone many studios that necessitate an entire lot.” So, unless you have a proper, dedicated studio, go with something else. Media, Images, Visual Works… and are you including your video production in this?

Maybe simplify it to your initials and a descriptor. SF Images? SF Visual Works? SF Creative?

Other than that, and the great feedback already posted by others in this thread, the one thing that kind of stuck out was: “You receive ALL good photos taken during your session.” I get what you’re trying to say, but it comes across (to me) as one of those things that ends up saying something that you don’t intend. Kind of like, “I’mma take a lot of duds, but you’ll get all the good ones.”

I have a dedicated photography home studio, thats why I picked the name.
Sad that term makes people roll their eyes, and then think most of my pics are duds.

It sounds like this website is giving you a really bad impression all around. Yikes.
I'm not sure how else to phrase 'client gets all pictures' - every other photographer nickle and dimes people, charging for time and then charging for each individual photo afterward too.

The world is so damn big and populated "SF Creative" is an actual stock footage image lol

Taking another look at it today, I had a few other thoughts.

This is just a sales thing, but I would suggest a more concrete value proposition, and a slightly more random price, ironically, for the purpose of making the price seem less random.

I think many people might respond positively to stuff like "$270 for a minimum of 6 finished images, and 2 bonus upscaled and polished versions of your two favorite images"

Everyone's brain works a bit differently, and for some people, they really want a concrete value.

I totally get how photo shoots happen, and how it can vary so much from one session to another, but with digital cameras you can likely get over 100 base shots in an hour, so you have some headroom to make at least a small promise.

Compare how these ads might interest you -

"9 dollars for 2 mcdoubles, a quarter pounder with cheese, and a medium coke, this week only"

"9 dollars for a cheeseburger experience"

It could be the exact same thing when you get there, but one helps value conscious consumers feel more certain about what they are getting.

Thanks, this seems like a tough one to crack.
What is the difference between a 'finished image' and a 'polished image'?

that implies a whole range of audio-visual digital and print services, which is not what you're doing.

I'm shooting a film this saturday for my cinematography portofolio, then making a small instagram commercial for a fitness dude next week.
There's a company near me that makes short scenes for actors for $900, what an incredible gig.

They're actually getting paid to write and produce short films, I'd love to be able to expand to that.
I love movies a lot more than pictiures. Pictures are just so much easier and faster.

 

[CelticRambler]

I changed the pricing model to $250 + they keep all good photos w/ their top 5 retouched, and unlimited look changes during their 1 hour.

This is just a sales thing, but I would suggest a more concrete value proposition, and a slightly more random price, ironically, for the purpose of making the price seem less random.

I think many people might respond positively to stuff like "$270 for a minimum of 6 finished images, and 2 bonus upscaled and polished versions of your two favorite images"

We're getting into hard-core business "stuff" here (leave your artistry at the door ... ) but it's important too. Nate's right about the psychological effect of "random" pricing - as long as there's some consistency to it. A good way to get to this "random" price is to break down the package, assign a value to each component, build it back up again and then apply a package discount.

This has two advantages : first, it forces you to think about what you're charging for your time and your creative input. When the client sits for an hour, they sit for an hour and you take as many photos as you/they want. That should be a fixed charge - if they want time for a costume change, that doesn't make it any less of an hour for you. This is an important figure get right, because it'll probably be one that you most often need to adjust when your rent and insurance goes up, your equipment has to be replaced, your next movie needs funding ... but also it'll allow you to more accurately/fairly price longer jobs.

Next you might, for example, offer a plate of 24 low-res straight-out-of-camera images from which the client will pick ... let's say eight for retouching at "standard" resolution. That first set of 24 will cost you next to nothing, because they're digital and you'll have fired off a hundred or so during the hour but you still have to spend some of your time scrolling through that hundred and picking the 24 you're happy with, and then e-mailing or uploading them to wherever the client will see them. So make sure that features as a line on the invoice.

Then you'll have the eight re-touched images. Again, that's your time and your artistic skill, so it should be charged for, and the charge should be seen on the invoice. Of course it shouldn't take you eight times as long as one to do eight photos, seeing as you'll be able to apply a personalised LUT and other short-cuts once you've processed the first one or two, but that's something to keep for later.

Finally the serious high-def, large-format portrait. Each one of these is going to be one of your portfolio pieces, going out into the big wide world as an example of your work, so you'll need to produce to a high quality. Once more the client is paying you for your artistic talents, so make sure there's a line on the invoice to indicate this, and a figure that reflects the effort you've put in.

I've used arbitrary figures for the number of images you'd supply, but do think about this carefully too. Don't promise three high quality images and then find yourself working till your eyes burn every night because it's one too many. Consider the use to which the images will be put - will most clients be happy with just one really great hi-def image if they've got ten standard jpegs that they can paste into a Word document or upload to LinkedIn? Don't saddle yourself with a lot of time-intensive work unless you're sure your customers want it. Remember if you're attracting a particular kind of client who needs, say, just the three high-def portaits and no standard resolution images, you can always introduce a new package later on with a price to match - based on the fee structure you've already established.

Ditto for the client who wants something extra, say an extra half-hour on the shoot for more changes of clothing, but the same range of photos; or the one who's happy with everything but can't decide which of the two she really wants in high quality, so asks for both. Once you have your step-by-step fees defined, it's really easy to give a price for the extras, and equally easy to know how much you're giving away if you offer it for free (make sure that's billed, then discounted, on the invoice, so the client knows too!)

 

[CelticRambler]

I'm not sure how else to phrase 'client gets all pictures' - every other photographer nickle and dimes people, charging for time and then charging for each individual photo afterward too.

OK, you posted that while I was adding my nickle-and-dime advice.

It's not a great idea to give the client all the pictures, unless you're taking so much care with each and every one that you never make any mistakes. If you're rattling off several dozen shots, some will have an eye closed or a weird drooping mouth or a fingertip in the wrong place. It's in nobody's interest for the client to see those - and definitely not in your interest for them to be sharing them as examples of the "hilarious" pictures you took.

So don't offer to hand over everything, and the phrase is no longer a problem coz you won't use it.

Despite what I wrote above about detailling every charge, that's for your internal business use and for invoicing purposes. On the website, you only need to display the whole package price and describe the key features. You can lay out a bit more detail about the complete package in a FAQ page if you want, but remember that most people will be coming to you for one, maybe two, really good portraits, so don't get carried away with advertising how many packets of ketchup come with the meal (to continue Nate's cheeseburger meal metaphor ).