August 2021 Q and A

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Q: What’s your favorite pose for a girl and a horse?

A: I love anything showing a strong connection: bareback with no bridle, sitting by their feet, an emotional kissing photo, etc. Those are the rarest images I capture.

Q: How to make the jump to starting to charge for sessions?

A: I think that while you are practicing and building your portfolio you should not charge for your services. Ask friends to model, practice on safe subjects, and gain enough experience that you can deliver a consistent product no matter the circumstance (bad weather, ill-mannered horses, difficult clients, tough lighting, challenging location, etc).

Once you have a well-established portfolio that accurately represents your style, and enough confidence to deliver consistent images under any condition, I recommend opening your business. Right off the bat, you should be registered as an LLC, charging profitably (I have a course on pricing here),  and abiding by all local requirements (sales tax, licenses, etc).

I spoke on this topic at greater length on this podcast.

Q: Any tips for working in the heat? Sometimes even late in the day or early morning in the south can be excruciatingly hot and sweaty. Apologies if this is a silly question, but any tips you can provide (whether it be having towels on hand, or taking breaks, etc) will be much appreciated!

A: I bring my Yeti with tons of ice water (or a frozen water bottle that will melt throughout the session) because consuming cold water is what cools me off the fastest.

At the hottest sessions, I wear light tank tops and athletic shorts. I sometimes wear a cooling towel on my neck (like Artic Cool or Frogg) and add Biofreeze or peppermint essential oil to my wrists/back of neck/back for a cooling effect.

Q: How to find your ideals clients that won’t balk at your prices.

A: I look at this a little bit differently than you stated. Instead of trying to “find” clients, I think about “making” clients. Considering I sell a luxury service, I am more or less selling a daydream/fantasy/desire rather than a direct need. And I don’t assume that they already have this desire in their mind. When I approach my marketing strategies, I like to think that I need to show them something they didn’t know they needed. And then remind them of it often, to the point they envision themselves in my pictures. The stronger that desire becomes, the less of an obstacle price is.

In my head, there isn’t some group of people who already want thousands of dollars worth of romantic images with their horses running around that I just need to magically get in front of. I’ve identified the type of person I love to work with, and I do my best to attract her to my services over time. Marketing is, indeed, a long game for me.

Q: Have you ever turned down a client due to not being a good fit? How did you know they weren’t a good fit and how did you turn them down?

A: I have turned down a significant number of inquiries because I didn’t feel we will be a good fit. By rule, I don’t photograph any weddings or newborns (unless they are newborn horses!). But if the inquiry doesn’t feel right, or it is something outside of my comfort zone, I will politely decline and try to refer another photographer that better aligns with the request.

Q: Do you sometimes think a certain geographical location or demographic just doesn’t have your ideal client? There are so many “very nice” barns/horses in my area but everyone shies away when they see the prices.

A: Definitely, I think there are a lot of factors that go into marketing your services. I am not a fit for everyone: it might be my aesthetic doesn’t match their vision, my products don’t satisfy their needs, my price point is out of their budget, etc. However, if the price is the only factor here I would reconsider how you present the prices. Perhaps you might not effectively be communicating the value of the service you provide and need to place more emphasis on how much better their life will be with you in it!

Q: What is the best way to learn manual? I’ve been shooting on sport mode all this time. I’m scared to try it out.

A: First, you need an understanding of the exposure triangle. I recommend getting on YouTube for free education on this topic! Before you switch into “manual” you need to know that the lower the f/stop, the less depth of field you have. Less of the subject will be in focus. This lets more light hit the sensor and makes the background more blurry. The higher the f/stop, the greater the depth of field. This doesn’t let as much light in but puts more into focus. The higher the shutter speed, the less light hits the sensor. A slower shutter lets more light in, but can also cause motion blur. The higher the ISO, the brighter the image will be. However, as you increase the ISO number you increase the amount of digital noise the image will have.

When you have a basic understanding of how the three pillars of photography affect your images, the only way to get muscle memory is to put it into practice. Take pictures in every single lighting condition available: in your house, your backyard, at all times of the day, in different weather conditions, etc. The more you practice, the more “second nature” the settings become!

Q: Does gear matter?

A: Absolutely! I don’t think gear is the only thing that matters, but I think it is most certainly a contributing factor in your work. I think that your personality, how you related to your subject, direction in posing, use of light, settings, editing style, composition, and equipment all matter!

Q: Do you have any tips for super quiet and laid-back horses who lack interest in what helpers are doing, and are a real challenge as far as getting their ears up?

A: Keep things surprising. Most things that are interesting to look at might work the first time, which means you need to try a LOT of things over the course of the session! I find when I keep moving locations, give them breaks to walk or go back to their stall, it helps keep them fresher with their ears!

Q: Any tips for beginners stepping into this world of photography in terms of confidence… how do you keep confidence in yourself and work? How do you know what to charge based on your skill and confidence level especially in the beginning stages?

A: In the beginning, I do not think you should be charging for your work. Only once you produce a reliable product do I think you should open your business and treat it as a business.

In terms of confidence, I think you should put yourself in situations where you will succeed, and then build on that success! Check out this post here on how to build confidence.

Q: What are your go-to settings for portrait shoots?

A: I usually use f/2.2, I try to stay under ISO 500, and I allow my shutter speed to be the variable!

Q: What’s your opinion on mirrorless!? I’m trying to upgrade my DSLR and it’s backordered, but I am nervous about changing my whole lineup to mirrorless!

A: I am really happy with my D850, so I recently bought another new body instead of buying a mirrorless camera.

Mirrorless is the future – I won’t deny that. I also recently bought a mirrorless Sony camera for my husband to produce video with, so I will practice taking images on it to compare. Once I find a mirrorless camera that outperforms my D850, I will have no problem switching over!

Q: How to grow a clientele in a brand new town?

A: I won’t sugarcoat: starting over in a new place is a lot of work. I did this when I moved from Oregon to Texas. The advantage you have now (as opposed to starting from scratch) is experience and a strong portfolio. As always, I take a very multi-faceted approach to marketing (here are 8 ways I market my business). I was very intentional to understand the demographics and nuances of my new territory.

Where are the big horse trainers and boarding facilities?

Which breeds and disciplines are popular in this area?

Where do they generally haul to shows?

How close/far do the horse owners live from their horses?

What are their current needs/uses for equine photography?

How much are they spending on full care board and training for horses in this area?

Having a pulse on the equine market in my new location helped me build out (a) who my ideal/target customer was (b) where I would advertise to get in front of them (c) the message I would communicate to attract them (d) the current competitive landscape of the market and where I uniquely fit in.

Have more marketing questions? I have two marketing courses!

Q: What software and apps do you use to edit in bulk and transfer large amounts of files/photos?

A: I cull and color correct in Adobe Lightroom and retouch in PhotoShop. I use Pic-Time to deliver images to portrait clients and PixieSet for commercial clients.

I have links and discount codes to most of the products I use here.