Question for professionals

Question

I'm starting a photography business from home. I'm not very techy and don't have time to set up a website or pay someone to do so. So on my ads/cards I was going to put "to see sample works please call to schedule a gallery viewing." and then I would meet with them and show them a computer slideshow. I'm very leery of posting photos online & I think watermarks are unattractive. Is this a good idea?

Answer 1

You've gotten some good info already,  so I'll just answer your final question: "Is this a good idea?"

No.

Answer 2

If you want to start a professional photography business, you need to make it look professional. What you describe doesn't sound professional at all to me.

At a minimum, this means get your own domain (they're not expensive), not smugmug or anything like that. You don't need a fancy website, but you need a website. Make it as easy as possible for potential clients to view your work. Why are you so worried about posting your images online? That's what pretty much all professionals do. Some really big names don't even care and have explicit "Download" and "Print" buttons on their websites.

Now, I don't know what kind of photography you're doing. Maybe you're doing some boudoir stuff or whatnot and hence your trepidation in posting photos online. If not and, say, you're a wedding photographer, I just know that if I saw an ad in a magazine and there was no website to view the work, I wouldn't bother calling to set up a meeting. Sure, some people would, but why cut out so many potential clients with this approach?

Answer 3

"Gallery viewing" suggests that you have a gallery.  You showing up with a CD and a laptop would make you come across as cheap and phony.

It seems that you are not really prepared to start up your own business if you are not willing to risk some financial investment in proper marketing.  You don' want to pay for a website.  You don't want to pay for a protected gallery.  You don't think that industry standard watermarks are "attractive."  And yet, I suppose you still expect to make some money from this venture.

Why don't you, just, design a very attractive business card with contact information.  Then, when potential clients call, you can discuss what you can offer and how that fits into the client's needs.

I don't post my online portfolio url to the public.  I only give out that address to potential, serious clients.  Even then, it is with the expressed understanding that the images shown are for display purposes.  These potential customers KNOW that the images are copyright protected.  I am a pro, and I deal with pros.  Because I take care in to whom and how I display my work, I consider the risks minimal.

In addition, all of my online images are of thumbnail size, not much suitible for anything but that.  Each thumbnail links to a larger image of a DETAIL of the represented piece.  That detail does not show the entire image, but a high resolution PORTION of the whole piece.

This pretty much precludes any commercial misuse of my intellectual property.

But seriously, you may have to reconsider your "business plan," such as it is.

Answer 4

i think you should find a way to put sample works ONLINE because that increases your market, and not everyone will be willing to just show up at your office in person.

many photography professionals post their works online...in fact i dont konw of too many who don't post them. you can always do tiny watermarks; not all professionals put watermarks either.

you can find a webmaster who disables right button clicking (so that there is no way anyone can take your image off your site).

Answer 5

Why the trepidation to an on-line portfolio? Many, if not most, of the top photogs in the world have their work displayed on the Internet.

Your problem is going to be that potential customers now expect to see an online portfolio. If you don't have one, you can expect to lose a lot of work to your competitors who probably have on-line photos.

If you're worried about having images co-opted, keep the sizes small enough that they're not overly useful to others. 600 to 800 pixels on the long side is great for viewing, but not so great for thieves.

A password protected gallery is an option but, again, you're going to lose some customers.

Answer 6

This might work but I doubt it. What you need to do is setup a site or use something like Smugmug. Just make sure it is password protected. You can give potential clients the password to view your gallery. You can also change the password whenever you want.

Edit: Yes the password protected galleries are going to cost you some money. None of them are free. If you are starting a business it is one of the expenses you will have to pay.