I've been at my computer editing for 3 clients today. I'm very fortunate and blessed to have clients all order at the same time. I'm grateful to be sitting at my computer all day making sure the images look great. My interest in photography began a handful of years before the DSLR (DIGITAL single lens reflex) camera was popular after converting to digital myself, had to learn how to use Photoshop for retouching. (Some day I'll write about the truth, reality and misconceptions of Photoshop). Stick with me...I'm getting to my point... The common denominator with all three clients is that they all are receiving DVD's of their images. Two are business clients and one is a family. The family purchased a package that includes the DVD as well as prints and a beautiful coffee table album (one of my favorite products ever!).
Now considering the title of this post, I must tell you that I am not criticizing the digital requests. I offer it as a product. The business clients need to use their images for business cards, websites and other promotional uses. The family will have a nice backup and able to make Christmas cards with some of their favorite images. This is all good stuff. But let me get real honest in an attempt to help you, the photographers client understand why you should not think Disk first and Prints last.
Backstory: I had bumped into a old friend and he and his wife are successful photographers in the area. We were discussing the business of photography and the digital file issue came up. I mentioned that my prices will be going up soon, especially the digital files. He voiced his opinion on the subject, which made me extremely conscious of the topic. P.s. We were out on the golf course when this meeting happened, so I'm blaming him for my poor play the rest of the round... and all the shots I hit before I saw him... digress... point is, I've been thinking about this subject quite a bit, especially on how to express the importance of prints to my clients.
I know PL-Enty of photographers like myself that hear "can I get the images on a disk?" within the first 3 questions asked. You should know and understand that this is not an easy question to answer nor taken lightly by photographers. There's a lot involved here and this would be another long topic I hope to cover soon, but not today. With Twitter, Facebook and all of the other social computer related possibilities for using your professional images, it's easy to see why everyone wants the digital negatives. But let me ask you this: Why did you have pictures taken by a professional photographer? I think our phones are great devices to capture images and they look great as our screen savers and wallpapers. But did you really spend several hundreds of dollars to put a picture on your iphone? So for this post, I feel compelled to share 3 quick reasons why you should be thinking "print first" and not "disk please" when scheduling a session with your photographer.
1. I know you think you can get them printed cheaper at CVS, but your images were created by a professional.
Your professional photographer has taken his or her time to work hard mastering their craft, understanding light, and probably spending a fair amount of time retouching your images. Your precious photographs are color corrected and tuned the best of the photographer's ability. So why would you want to trust someone that makes a few dollars an hour at Wallmart or Cosco to print your images? I LOVE shopping at Cosco and I love getting my deodorant from Wallgreens, but your photographer is going to be the one you can trust to crop correctly, make sure the color is right and MOST importantly, sending your files to a Professional Reproduction company. I completely understand that money can get tight at times, but print quality makes a huge difference. I've had clients email or call because they're tell me the files are faded or the color seems odd. When I reminded them that getting their images printed on the cheap would affect the print quality, and a new order was placed through me, they ended up not saving any money. Your images are too important to print on the cheap!
2. Where are you gonna hang your computer?
Your new iMac or laptop doesn't look that good over the fireplace. Just sayin'. Facebook and Twitter are GREAT ways to display your images and trust me, I WANT you to share the love! I WANT you to tell everyone that I was your photographer. But have you noticed that a majority of time (I'm speaking of myself and a few photographers I know) your photographer will post your images anyway?!?! Unless you've asked me to be descreete because you're planning on printing your image as a gift, I'll probably post them on Facebook or on this blog anyway! There! All you have to do now is "share" it or make the image your profile pic. (Keeping the watermark on and not trying to crop it would be a nice gesture, btw). And I know you'd like your screen saver to remind you of our session, but then you're not showing them to anyone else and as soon as it gets cold, chances are you'll change that screen saver to the one with the pretty beach pictures as you start counting the days until the snow melts!
3. Prints display the value of family.
I was walking through my uncle's home a couple weeks ago, and covering a majority of walls and displayed around the fireplace on the mantle and on the floor were images of kids, grandkids, cousins, grandparents and, well, memories. I had to smile when I walked by a picture of my brother, taken about 32 years ago. He had just joined the Navy and he looked like such a baby.
Now how can I enjoy that image if it's on a disk or in a drawer (if not lost) or on a computer? When my uncle's grandkids walk into his home, they are reminded of how much they mean to him because they know Grampa cares enough to put their pictures on the wall so he can see them every day! As the years pass, the value of those images increases! Grandkids and great grandkids get to see see how mom and dad looked as kids! I just don't think you'll ever hear "hey grandma! Can you pull out the laptop so we can see pictures of mom again?!"
I'm not saying that you shouldn't look into ordering the digital negatives if a photographer offers them. But I just think the result of having professional images taken is for display. That's why God made walls! Maybe?... I have had several clients order gallery prints (which last for 100 years), and I LOVE knowing that this big piece of art will be displayed someplace prominent in their homes reminding everyone that sees it that this family, this person, these people or this moment has great value and deserves to be seen, deserves to be shared and cherished, not stuck in a desk or on the hard drive. That's my two cents anyway...
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