How Do you tell….??

[dstone81]

Here is my dilemma. My husband has a cousin who got a DSLR camera for Christmas and I saw on facebook yesterday that she has had some business cards made to start advertising/charging for her “Photography”. The thing of it is I feel that she still has a lot of learning to do before she starts charging for her photography. How do you let the person know that you feel they shouldn’t be charging till they have more skills under their belt without hurting their feelings?  I mean she is still using snapseed  and picasa for her editing.  And I have seen a lot of flaws in her photos that even I as an amateur/ hobbyist have noticed.  Like lighting, composition, and white balance and color issues. I mean she does have a decent eye, but I feel that if she is going to charge she needs to have a lot more practice under her belt. So what would ya’ll do?

[fautox1977]

She already has 3 months of experience! She’s good to go.

Why don’t you start by directing her to this site. Tell her that it is not the camera, but the person behind the camera that takes the photos. That person needs to have knowledge about composition, light patterns, exposure, color reaction to light, posing, use of camera equipment, use of camera settings, post processing etc. This might look as a long list but it is only the basics you need to know in order to charge people for photography.

It is better to explain to her that people have eyes and can distinguish bad photos. If she is to get a bad reputation early on for showcasing bad photos, it is much harder to recover and will probably end up here with the rest of the atrocities in the main YANAP page.

[EyeDocPhotog]

*** This post  is a “ribbing.” Don’t flood me with hate posts.***

That person needs to have knowledge about composition, light patterns, exposure, color reaction to light, posing, use of camera equipment, use of camera settings, post processing etc.

Umm, the pattern of light is a constant. It is made up of both waves and particles which do not vary. In addition, color does not react to light – color is merely a perceptual concept used to describe in uniform, standard nomenclature which wavelengths of light are reflected off an object.

🙂

[emf]

Light patterns is a photographic term for where the light source(s) is in relation to the subject.

I would point out that if she goes into business now she would have to charge rock bottoms prices and would be working for below the min wage – break it down mathematically and in terms of how many hours she would work – for peanuts. Her business wouldn’t work, long term.

[fautox1977]

Umm, the pattern of light is a constant. It is made up of both waves and particles which do not vary. In addition, color does not react to light – color is merely a perceptual concept used to describe in uniform, standard nomenclature which wavelengths of light are reflected off an object.

Of course it is a constant. That is why you never need to adjust ISO, Shutter or Aperture. Anyway, I was talking about basic patterns or “direction” of light (i.e. Rembrandt, Butterfly, Short etc. I am sure you’ve heard it before)

Now about color. Try hitting a red apple with green light and see what comes of it.

[nairbynairb]

Why do you feel like you have to tell her in the first place?
It doesn’t sound like you’re close enough with her to tell her straight up, so why are you interfering in her life?

Don’t get me wrong, I hate the fact that there is another fauxtog in the making. But why not let her learn for herself? Let her get low-paying clients, and let her deliver unsatisfactory photos. She won’t last long unless she gets good. And if she does happen to get good, who are you to have wanted to stand in the way?

[dstone81]

I want to tell her so she doesn’t learn the hard way by getting sued because she got into something way over her head. I want her to learn the right way and perfect her art before she starts charging for her services. I talked to her today about maybe enrolling into some courses before she put herself out there claiming to be a pro. I just came on here asking for a tactful way of telling her without hurting her feelings. I don’t want to stand in her way because I think she does have potential. I want to see her succeed and I don’t want her to get a bad rep for putting out subpar product. Because once you get a bad rep for something it is kinda hard to fix it.

[emf]

I would just tell her exactly what you wrote in your last post – it’s fair enough, dstone. What was her reaction to enrolling into college? Or suggest assisting a local tog? Good luck!

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