[CoastalTog]

Christy-  My post above was in reference to the original starter of this thread.

[CoastalTog]

I disagree.  Sure there are anecdotes supporting your argument but the reality is, if you’re someone who thinks WalMart is your “go-to” store, or if you call WalMart “Wally World”, you’re not the client I’m targeting.  You don’t shop at WalMart for quality, you shop there because it’s cheap.  Plain and simple.

[CoastalTog]

You’re not a fauxtographer but you should learn to process in a clean traditional style.  The VSCO look is burning out.  Clean and classic is in!

[CoastalTog]

Holy VSCO presets, Batman.  Maybe someone should be critiquing YOUR work.  (I’m referring to the OP).

[CoastalTog]

Sorry…no sympathy from me.  When you apply for school, one must always research the institution.  The piss poor reputation of the for profit AI schools is well over a decade old.  Besides, the best degree for someone entering into photography is not photography but business.

You have amateur entry level gear with variable aperture lenses.  You have a deviant art website.  How can you call yourself a professional?  Get yourself a job at a restaurant to pay off the massive school debt and to purchase decent glass and then a good body.  Get yourself a credible website with your own email address and not a gmail or hotmail address.

It’s been researched and found that to master something you need 10,000 hours of practice.  Learn the classical lighting configurations and master the rule of thirds and other general principles of good photography before you resort to photoshop actions and processing that covers your shortcomings.

And that folks, is non-sugar coated advice.  Somebody has to say it before they end up in court.

p.s.  I hope you’re a registered business and paying your taxes on your professional service you provide.  After all, one thing you failed to mentioned in being a professional photographer also means you’re earning 51% of your income from photography and are a registered and legal business.

p.p.s. I just took a look at your deviant art website.  I highly suggest you drop the “professional photographer” title from your vocabulary and spend many hours learning the basics and learning how to pose your subjects.

[CoastalTog]

These $50 shoot and burn fauxtographers are catering to the Walmart crowd. These are people  who are in the bottom of the middle class/upper lower class. They don’t have the knowledge to understand what good photography is because they live on cheap, disposable products, and $0.59 ramen.  98% of the fauxtographers are not registered as a business nor do they pay taxes. Additionally, these Faux’s are generally spouses who don’t rely on their photography income to put Mac-n-cheese on the table. This is why they can afford to only charge $50.

If any photographer is concerned about their business being undercut then perhaps they should provide a better service and quality that moves them into an upper customer tier. I’m absolutely mind boggled that photographers are worried about their business because of a $50 fauxtographer.

[CoastalTog]

Continuous lighting is groovy for non-human product work. In fact, I prefer it for commercial work. However, for living creatures, strobe lights are more practical. I’ve been using Elinchrom for years and love the quality of light it produces.

[CoastalTog]

Overall not too bad.

Two things that stand out:

1) watch your white balance when applying actions or using photoshop. They enhance your minimal knowledge of how to attain proper white balance.

2) recommend putting a specific portfolio for each category under each genre header. Don’t advertise weddings until you are proficient.  Cheap parents that don’t appreciate fine photography will overlook the bad white balance and poorly composed shots of their baby because their baby is perfect in their eyes. However, you screw up a wedding and watch the fire and brimstone fall from the sky. You recognize you’re in the “faux” category so why not take that cue and become proficient in photography first?

[CoastalTog]

As long as you’re doing it with their permission.

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Haha.  Now I know what the vid in question is.

[CoastalTog]

^^^^^ This may be single handedly the best post I’ve read on this forum in over a year.  You’ve said it much better than I could.  I find myself putting the same amount of effort into giving advice as the faux’s do into their education – minimal.

I’ll touch on something that nobody ever wants to bring up on the internet but one that I’ve had conversations with in various photography circles with working professionals.  Fauxtographers typically live in the lower end of the economic class.  They tend to see this as a get rich quick type of employment rather than a long term educational process.  After all, how hard can it be to actuate a shutter?  After 3 years when their clientele has dried up, they’re off to another at home project.

[CoastalTog]

What are we looking at?  The only video I saw photography related was on their photography site and it was a “how I met my hubby” video which was a Jasmine Star rip-off.

[CoastalTog]

Standard military wife Faux.  They were everywhere when I was in the service.  Entry level camera with a nifty fifty.  No lighting experience, post production is subpar (vignettes don’t count), and cheap pricing which tells us this is more of a hobby and taxes aren’t getting paid.  As mentioned above, all the gimmicks that come in the Fauxtographer handbook.

Your bio on your webpage tells us that you’ve only been doing this for a year.  That is hardly enough time to become a pro.  Your portfolio is limited and mediocre.  The one thing you have going is military spouses who like cheap photography.  You’ll always have work when living on Post.

Now that I’m done being brutally blunt, here are some suggestions:

1. Join the PPA and take advantage of everything they offer.  Attend some real workshops.  Get indemnification insurance because at the pace you’re going, you’re gonna need it.

2. Go to asmp and search cost of doing business.

3. Meet with a lawyer and draft up contracts and register your business.  You will find you will need to raise your prices significantly to turn a profit.  This will take you out of the cheap market and your skillset isn’t good enough to sustain in the next tier up.

4. Go back to the basics.  Check out Adorama TV or Snapfactory on YouTube for basic “how to” videos.

5. Invest in some good lenses.

6. Learn post processing.  This doesn’t mean kewl photoshop actions.  It means learning how to resize and sharpen your images for a variety of viewing.

[CoastalTog]

Classic cliche Faux.  Based on her pricing she is not the sole bread winner nor is she paying all the applicable taxes. This is a classic case of girl gets Canon Rebel/ Nikon D5100 for Christmas and hangs up a shingle 2 months later.  I’m more blunt than others on here so best to take advice from the others above. This isn’t a sustainable business for you. Once all the cheapskates pay for a shoot you’re going to run out of clients.

P.s. Heavy vignetting is a classic sign of being a faux.

[CoastalTog]

I’m guessing Nikon D5100 with kit lens and 50 1.8mm. No flash.

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