There are many professional commercial photographers in Perth, but how do you choose a photographer that is going to deliver the results you are looking for?
In the last couple of years, many photography service websites have appeared allowing photographers to advertise their portfolios and connect with potential customers. These websites take a service fee and act as an online platform for the photographer and the customer.
As an idea, these websites sound good on paper, but in reality the types of photographers who are offering their services there are usually ones that are not skilled or well known enough to generate their own business. This can often lead to inconsistent results for clients who are looking for good commercial photographers. Here are three points that will help when looking for a commercial photographer in Perth.
1. Go Directly to the Photographer
While the website services mentioned above work well in theory, you can almost be guaranteed that you will get better results going directly to an established commercial photographer. You will not only be able to see their wider portfolio to ensure that their work is consistent, but you'll also have peace of mind that they are established as a professional photographer and have been delivering results for many years.
2. Look for a mix of Technical and Creative skills
Photography and videographer for the matter are generally unregulated industries. This means basically anyone can buy a digital camera and call themselves a photographer. If you are going to be trusting a budget towards a professional photographer to deliver commercial results you want to be sure that you will get professional results.
Great photography is made up of two main ingredients, one is having a strong technical understanding, which can be learnt over time and with practice. The other is having a strong creative eye, which is where the uniqueness and style come from, and this is harder to teach.
When searching for a commercial photographer be sure to study their portfolio to check that the photos are technically good and that they have creative skills to be about to make photos special.
3. Check about commercial licensing and if IP is included
If you want to be able to use the photos commercially you'll need to own the full commercial and Intellectual Property Rights to the images. If you are going to go to the effort of hiring a professional commercial photographer, you want to make sure that these rights for the images are included.
Some photographers will include these rights for free, while some will charge an extra fee to include them. It is important to make sure this is clear in any quotes to avoid misunderstanding or extra fees later.
Conclusion
Do your own research when looking for a creative commercial photographer. Spend the time to check their portfolios to make sure the photography will be a good fit for your brand.
Take the time to get to know the photographer to ensure they can work well with your creative team to deliver the results you are expecting.
For an example of a series of photos taken for a wellbeing brand, check out this recent shoot I did for Natural Way of Living in Perth. The goal was to capture authentic images of meditation, mindfulness and well-being practitioners highlighting the natural essence of the practice and the happiness achieved from Open Heart Meditation & Mindfulness.
Visit Natural Way of Living to learn more about Open Heart Meditation, Mindfulness and Wellness Programmes.