Tuesday 15 August 2017

7 TOP TIPS ON WEDDING ALBUMS IF YOU ARE A PHOTOGRAPHER

7 TOP TIPS ON WEDDING ALBUMS IF YOU ARE A PHOTOGRAPHER

7 TOP TIPS ON WEDDING ALBUMS IF YOU ARE A PHOTOGRAPHER

Why including wedding albums may not be the best choice? Top tips on wedding albums from Andrew Miller Photography.

So.  You’re a Bristol wedding photographer just starting out perhaps, or an established one and thinking about including wedding albums in your collections?  Read on, this article is for you.
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 1
Do your research.  Seriously.  Get out there and go to the NEC in March when the big, bad and ugly in the photography world exhibit and look around ALL the album companies.  There are loads of them.  You may find one you love but the cost price is too high.  You may find one whose cost price is good but the quality isn’t all that.  So do your research!
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 2
Work out the numbers for your business.  The cost price isn’t what you charge your clients. Some simple numbers:
Cost Price of album:  £100
Design charge to design the album: £100
Profit for you: £100
Total cost to client – £300
If you are a wedding photographer who charges £750 and wants to move up the value chain by adding wedding albums you will have to increase your prices by £300 at a minimum using the above figures.  Or to put it another way by 40%.  That is a large chunk to increase your prices by and may push you into another stratum for your client base.
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 3
Think about your marketplace and your future clients.  (Not your current ones.)
Don’t get lots and lots of sample albums.  I’ve been there, made that mistake. The only people it helped was the album companies. Get a couple of well-designed albums, well laid out, well thought out colours etc and stick with those.  You do not need every combination of size, shape, colour etc.
Make sure the albums fit your images and future client base.
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 4
Think about the future.  If you start including albums then as I’ve mentioned above you increase the cost of your collections, and will also start to attract clients who can afford that extra cost.  So do your market research – what would they like to see in a wedding album?
All the bells and whistles or more classical in approach?
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 5
Have faith.  Yes, it’s easy for me to say this.  When you add an album and increase your prices you will find your bookings going into a slump whilst your new marketing (aimed at future clients remember) gets going.  Stick with it.  Make sure you have something aside to cover this or have a part-time job.
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 6
DO not opt all in for one supplier.  You are limiting yourself.  Use a minimum of two suppliers.  Differentiate yourself from the photographers in your local area – show different albums.
Top Tips on Wedding Albums – 7
Don’t go for the biggest, fanciest, ornate sample wedding album out there.  Yes, it looks good on your wedding fayre stand or on your studio shelf.  But it costs a fortune and the chances are that the majority of people just won’t go for it.  Get wedding albums that your customers will buy – not that you would buy.  They have to live with it – you do not.
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WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESSES AND THE GDPR

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESSES AND THE GDPR

The GDPR will apply in the UK from 25 May 2018. The government has confirmed that the UK’s decision to leave the EU will not affect the commencement of the GDPR. So in effect, you have to think seriously about implementing some security to look after your client’s data.
  • The GDPR applies to ‘controllers’ and ‘processors’.
    • If you are a processor, the GDPR places specific legal obligations on you; for example, you are required to maintain records of personal data and processing activities. You will have significantly more legal liability if you are responsible for a breach. These obligations for processors are a new requirement under the GDPR.
    • However, if you are a controller, you are not relieved of your obligations where a processor is involved – the GDPR places further obligations on you to ensure your contracts with processors comply with the GDPR.
  • The GDPR applies to processing carried out by organisations operating within the EU.
  • It also applies to organisations outside the EU that offer goods or services to individuals in the EU. So if you are in the US and photograph weddings or run training workshops in the EU you are involved with this.

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESSES AND THE GDPR – WHAT YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT.

Personal data
Like the DPA, the GDPR applies to ‘personal data’. However, the GDPR’s definition is more detailed and makes it clear that information such as an online identifier – eg an IP address – can be personal data. The more expansive definition provides for a wide range of personal identifiers to constitute personal data, reflecting changes in technology and the way organisations collect information about people.
For most organisations, keeping HR records, customer lists, or contact details etc, the change to the definition should make little practical difference. You can assume that if you hold information that falls within the scope of the DPA, it will also fall within the scope of the GDPR.
The GDPR applies to both automated personal data and to manual filing systems where personal data are accessible according to specific criteria. This is wider than the DPA’s definition and could include chronologically ordered sets of manual records containing personal data.
Personal data that has been pseudonymised – eg key-coded – can fall within the scope of the GDPR depending on how difficult it is to attribute the pseudonym to a particular individual.
The GDPR includes certain rights for your clients:
  1. the right to be informed;
  2. the right of access;
  3. the right to rectification;
  4. the right to erasure;
  5. the right to restrict processing;
  6. the right to data portability;
  7. the right to object; and
  8. the right not to be subject to automated decision-making including profiling.
Article 30 of the regulation declares that organisations with fewer than 250 employees will not be bound by GDPR. So the chances are small business won’t be affected too much, however it is best to review your arrangements anyway.

SOME SIMPLE SECURITY MEASURES

Use a multi layered approach!
“Perimeter Security” – All of your IT infrastructures should be stored in a secure and alarmed location. The alarm is monitored 24/7 and where a key holder does not answer a call the Police will be instructed to visit the site.
“Network Security” – All of the IT is further secured using strong password protection, using a mixture of alpha numeric and symbols.  This is NOT written down.
“Privilege Based” – Only those who need to access your information will be able to access it.  In 99% of cases that should be just you, or possibly an assistant.
More information can be found on the ICO’s website and in this .pdf

WHAT ABOUT YOUR CLIENTS?

Your clients should be made aware of your requirements under the GDPR and the DPA anyway.  You should have a privacy policy in place on your website and also should have a postal address listed on your website as well as contact telephone numbers.
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Wednesday 11 May 2016

Dummies Guide to Copyright for Photographers


DUMMIES GUIDE TO COPYRIGHT FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

Dummies Guide to Copyright for Photographers – Ok.  You are a photographer (or other creative artists, it matters not).  What does matter is that YOU create something new when you work.
When you create that NEW something it’s your creation, your product, your baby, your thing.  You want to protect your product from other people taking advantage of you. So what is that I see lots and lots of new and established photographers and other creative artists saying things like:”
“Includes 100% copyright free images on a USB”
This was a wedding photographer with apparently 20 years of experience.  Understanding copyright law is essential for those running a creative business, such as wedding photography.

IN A NUTSHELL

If you give the copyright of your creative works to someone else you LOSE the right to use it / amend it / sell it etc.  That means you can’t make any extra money from it, it can be sold by the new copyright holder etc.
You take the photograph.  You OWN the copyright.  Check out the UK Government website on copyright.

COPYRIGHT FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS – WHY THE ABOVE PHOTOGRAPHER IS WRONG.

Think about JK Rowling.  
How did she make her money?  Writing books, the Harry Potter series of books to be exact.  If JK Rowling had decided to give away the copyright to her books to her publisher she couldn’t benefit from it again. So it’s a one off payment, thank you very much and away she goes.  Instead, being the business savvy lady she is, she keeps the copyright and gives the publishing company a license to publish with a percentage of the royalties going to her.  She keeps the copyright of her work.
The Harry Potter Films made millions for JK Rowling. Why?  Because, as she had kept the copyright to the books she could also sell the film rights as well, and the clothing rights, and the model figure rights etc.
If she had given away the copyright to her publishing house, it’s the publishing house that would have made all that money (not that they didn’t make a lot!).  See my point? By giving away the copyright to your work you are giving away potential income.
But I Only Photograph Weddings 
Really?  Because I’m a wedding photographer and end up being a product photographer, florist photographer, jewellery photography, car photographer, venue photographer, suit photographer, dress photographer, ring photographer etc all in the same day.
So when those wedding suppliers come and ask you for a sample of your work (and yes, they should ask, not take!) you have a couple of choices:
1.  You sell them a commercial license to use the images based on what they want to use them for.  Print = higher price, social media = lower price. (what you charge is up to you!)
2. You give them a commercial license to use the images in exchange for a link back to your website or credit on the photograph if used for print. Backlinks are good for your Google SEO.
3.  You give it away free of charge in exchange for that well known international currency “Exposure”.
Ask yourself this.  If that supplier makes money from your images; why shouldn’t you charge them for it?
If you gave the copyright to the client, THEY would be able to make money from them by selling the use of the images back to the suppliers!
Download a FREE guide to Copyright for Photographers.
Basically, DON’T GIVE COPYRIGHT AWAY.  Give a personal license to use the image to your clients.

SOME LINKS TO MY WEB PAGES YOU MAY FIND USEFUL

We regularly work at stunning venues such as St Pierre Marriott Hotel & Country Club and Miskin Manor.
Check out my web page at St Pierre Marriott Hotel & Country Club, specially written for clients getting married at this great wedding venue!
You can view some of the Cardiff Wedding Photographs by clicking here or here.
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