How to build my photography studio at home??? PLEASE HELP ME!!?
Hey Guys, Thankie you a lot for clicking on my question :]
First of all if you only have rude comments to make don’t say them at all it’s my life and I will choose what I want to do with it. Of course, CAREER WISE! lol so please understand that this is my choice not yours and simply answer the question don’t go all smart on me, telling me this is not a good career or why am I even thinking of this at age 13. I am sure about it :] Thankies!
So here is what is happening, I am 13 years old and I have my career picked out I am choosing photography, And I want to be experienced now at this age so when I am older and can actually have the education I need in photography to be/or almost be an expert in photography! I just bought the book "Digital Portrait Photography" by Steve Sint and I absolutely love it! I also already picked out my camera but I am not sure check it out tell me if it’s good recommend others if you’d like http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stor鈥?
My house has 4 bedrooms and three living rooms but they are all in use is there a way where I can still have my photography studio?? ( I cant make another room I don’t own the house I rent)
So how can I build my photography studio at home?
How do I make it look nice and professional for customers?
What do I need for my studio to be complete? (as in equipment)
How do I stay organized with all of this? (Money,Customers,Appointment, etc.,etc.,etc.)
What are good prices for portraits?
What makes a photographer more money Landscape photography or Portrait photography?
If you sticked with me for the entire time thanks so much I really appreciate it, please take your time to answer my question bellow.
Thankies,Vanessa<3
I never got past line 5.
Not a good way to ask people for anything and certainly not a question that I am inclined to help you on.
Posted in digital photography studio
November 24th, 2011 at 10:21 am
Hey Guys, Thankie you a lot for clicking on my question :] First of all if you only have rude comments to make don’t say them at all it’s my life and …
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November 24th, 2011 at 11:06 am
I never got past line 5.
Not a good way to ask people for anything and certainly not a question that I am inclined to help you on.
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November 24th, 2011 at 11:11 am
Very ambitious indeed. There’s a lot of info in your question, so hold tight for an equal response.
First off, I would caution against building a studio right away. I would suggest seeing if you can find a photographer to shadow for a while or apprentice after and upon legal age to work, find someone to take you under their wing. This is for several reasons… first of all, you are young, which is an issue because people are usually looking for experience (hell, I have experience and I’ve been turned down because I don’t have enough). You will also be able to get some guidance on your skills so you can improve. It would also allow you a chance to see the inner workings of the studio side of photography to understand the equipment and business aspect. If you can find an art center or college that has classes you are able to take (age thing may limit college, pending the type or program), it’s also suggested. I would stick to trying to enter local shows and contests to start getting your name out and to get some experience that you can fall back on later or place on a resume.
Being a professional photographer isn’t as easy as reading a book, buying equipment and waiting for it to all work out. It’s also not as easy as just snapping a few photos. Do you have any equipment now? Do you have a source of income to afford the equipment?? Any experience with editing? These are some things to consider. It’s not cheap. The camera and lenses you would need will probably cost thousands, not including back drops or lighting equipment. An SLR body alone can cost a few hundred easily and good lenses can go over a grand a piece. Your link is not working so unfortunately I can’t look at what you were looking at.
I would research the tax laws and business requirements for federal, state and local levels, particularly if you are trying to set up a studio as a business or expect to earn income from the venture. Name registration, for example, tax ID numbers and sales/use tax certifications… I started my business over the age of 18, so I’m not sure if there are restrictions because you are 13- There are limits on the age you can legally begin to work and how many hours you can if under 18 and while in school if you are in the US. Sole-proprietership would be the best bet, but you’re liable for your "company" then too, which is a risk you may take. If you are looking more for portfolio aspects, you don’t need a grand studio, or one at all. Work with what you have available and those around you to learn the ropes and build your portfolio from there. Take some family members to a local park and use natural settings as a back drop and learn to use natural light to your favor.
As far as keeping organized? well, with organization skills. Excel sheets and calendars. How do you plan on keeping appointments and books balanced around school? Something to also consider– this takes time. Editing can take time. Price wise the typical range I’ve seen is 3-5x cost of product with some account for time used and any editing for prints, pending too level of experience, training etc. You probably would want to do sessions by frames or in time slots (hourly rates or session rates). Some individuals price their skill into it. I would suggest keeping your prices low if, or when, you decide to officially start a business at first.
There is not "more money" for any type of photography. It’s what you put into it, hands down. If you photograph weddings, for example, you can make a good amount for a single day of shooting. But they are long days, a lot of responsibility and take time to edit and produce final products… not to mention worry about contracts, or unhappy bridal parties. It’s stressful. Portraits can swing the same way. "Landscape", I’m assuming is referring to taking pictures and selling photographs which would mostly land on your ability to get your name out and market yourself. I won’t even start into trying to brand yourself.
So in short. I would hold off, get some additional training or guidance, and take some time to work on your vision and to learn your camera equipment. Do more research on business aspects and marketing. It’s not easy, it’s not cheap, and there are a lot of things you need to cover before you could start a business officially.
Be patient, it takes time, money and effort and will not always go smoothly.
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I’m a photographer and artist.
November 24th, 2011 at 11:25 am
We could have done without the paragraph validating your existence.
I’m not sure why you need a studio when you just said that you don;t even have a camera yet but here goes:
PART 1 – INSURANCE
I’m going to assume you aren’t going to be bringing in clients … otherwise your parents are going to have to check with their home insurance in terms of liability. If someone gets hurt and you are using the house as a business, the insurance company can (and most likely will) refuse to cover you if you don’t have professional liability.
PART 2 – PERMITS AND LICENCES
Again, if you are planning on having paying clients come in, you’ll need to check with your municipal government (or equivalent wherever you are) on licencing requirements. For example, I’m not even allowed, by law, to have a studio in my home where I bring paying clients.
PART 3 – SPACE
For portrait work, you’ll need at the very minimum 10X10 and you need fairly high ceilings (8 feet or more … 10 is best). 10X10 is the smallest you can go and is only really good for single portraits at most and small product shots.
As for making it look nice and professional, there’s really nothing I can say about that as I don;t know the layout, the state of the house, how clean or messy it is, if the rooms you have access to have their own seperate external access … too many factors.
PART 4 – GEAR
As far as setup is concerned, you need to be able to clear the room (10X10 space at least) and then the rest depends on what type of photography you plan on doing … portraiture, product shots … it varies.
For classic "studio" portraiture (think wallmart, school portraits … that type of thing) similar to this ( http://flic.kr/p/8mgeXa ) then you’ll need at minimum:
3 off camera lights sources
2 bounce umbrellas (or softboxes)
A radio triggering system (one transmitter and 3 receivers)
3 light stads
A backdrop system (back drop, 2 light stands and a croossbar system, works well)
For the lights, you can go as cheap as 40$/light for manual shoe mount flashes like the YN460’s plus another 18$ per umbrella plus another 150$ per softbox + another 20$ per lightstand + another 20$ per umbrella backet (so around 600$) + backrop kit (around 200$).
You could also get a bowens studio strobe starter kit for about 1500$
http://www.henrys.com/64558-BOWENS-500-500C-UM-SB-KIT-BW-4950US.aspx
Throw in an extra light for 700$
http://www.henrys.com/61536-BOWENS-GEMINI-400-SINGLE-HEAD-KIT-4716US.aspx
And then add a backdrop system (about 200$)
Now in terms of CAMERA equipment … you’ll also need the following.
1 Main camera (1200$ (Rebel t3i) to 8000$ (Canon 1Dx))
1 Backup body (1200$ (Rebel t3i) to 8000$ (Canon 1Dx))
50mm f1.4 (350$)
24-70 f2.8 L (1600$)
Cheap lens like a 18-55mm kit lens as a backup in case somethign happens to your other lenses. (Free)
2 TTL flashes (Canon 430EX II at 500$)
Next, you’ll need to have a proper backup system built into your workflow. So you’ll need either a NAS or 2 external USB hard disk drives to do backups to. (anywhere between 300$ to 800$)
I’ll just assume you already have a computer to do the post processing on.
So start up costs just for gear are anywhere from 6450$ to 22150$ and up.
PART 5 – BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
There are UNIVERSITY and COLLEGE level courses on how to manage a business. I can;t summarize a 3 year course into a few sentences.
PART 6 – PRICING
I can;lt just give you a price, your price is going to be dependent on a few things, your business operating cosdts, market conditions in your area, your own skill … too many factors to just give you a number.
Just remember that there are costs to running a business (your gear in step 4 for example and things like web hosting costs, internet access, printed portfolios, business cards, contracts, legal fees, licencing fees …) and you need to cover those costs and pay yourself. So sit down, figure out your cost and then what you want to be paid and compare with other business offering the same type of service as you to try and remain competitive.
I do weddings for example and just in promotional costs (wedding shows mainly) I spend a little over 3000$ a year. Out of each wedding I shoot (I only do about 10 a year), 800$ is eaten up by my operational costs then I have another 250$ that’s eaten up be shoot specific costs (gear rental, printed materials, travel costs …) so I need to charge AT MINIMUM 1050$ to even break even.
As far as the type of photography … between landscape and portraits Portraits … no one buys landscapes.
STEP 7 – CHOICE OF GEAR.
So your link doesn’t work but I can tell you are looking at a Sony DSLR based on the url. I wouldn’t recommend that … it’s not that Sony is horrible but as a professional you’ll want to rent gear once in a while … good luck finding a place that rents anything other than Canon or Nikon.
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November 24th, 2011 at 11:47 am
Due to Child Labor Laws – I Wouldn’t Do Business That’s Being Ran By a 13 Year Old Person. No Way Not A Chance.
Plus what if someone wants to set up an appointment for photos while you’re in school? You just lost money. Also how are you going to get to a location if someone wants take photos other than in the Studio? Planning on Taking the Bus? or Having the Parents Take You to a Location?
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November 24th, 2011 at 12:29 pm
There should be some kind of law preventing precocious teens from posting utter rubbish here… Once you have mastered the principle of tact, you may be ready to start a business… until then…
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