Why Is Photography So Undervalued?
There was a time when I wholeheartedly knew that when I was ready to fully pursue photography as a career path getting clients to book with me would be a feat in and of itself. I was in my mid-twenties and had gumption while trying to retain a sense of being realistic: It was going to take a lot of work in building up my portfolio (away from my Fine Art images) before it would make sense to charge someone for the photography I was delving into (Fashion, Headshots, Branding, etc.)
In such a saturated market, it was going to take perseverance and consistency to gain any traction in this field. I decided long ago that I wasn’t interested in family, newborns, or weddings. While they make money, they just weren’t for me (and yes, I DID try shooting each of those styles before I quickly ruled them out).
I eventually got to a point where I was ready to start putting myself out there to get clients and not be coy when someone asked how much I charged for photos or offered to do a session for free out of fear of my work not being worth what I would charge someone for it.
It made sense to offer my services at a lower price point just to build connections/clientele while still getting paid a small stipend to build onto my portfolio. And in 2022 it genuinely felt like there was traction and I was hustling (hate using that word) to get clients to book me, still at a reduced rate, but I saw the value in those sessions I was booking. With each photoshoot, I was gaining confidence and a workflow that would give the best experience to my clients and the potential for greater returns for my business in the long run.
But as I have made it to 2024, I have learned that would not be the case.
These are the things that I found to be true no matter how great of an experience /a product you can give/have given:
Very rarely do people want to pay you what you are worth, even if you did provide them with amazing images from a previous session.
There is this standard that photography should not cost a lot of money (specifically in this digital age with the addition of AI and image quality of iPhones - which could never fully replace a mirrorless or DSLR but does a pretty damn good job for what it is). Examples below of the things I have been asked or have seen others complain about online:
“You’re just holding a camera and pressing a button. Anyone can take a picture. I don’t understand why it costs so much!”
To that I say, you’re right, anyone CAN take a picture in the same way that anyone CAN sing, and anyone CAN draw, but you’re not going to ask your friend Ashleigh with no background, training, or skill to sing at your wedding just because she likes to sing “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston on karaoke night. We’re confusing capability with caliber.
“I love the images you did for us in our previous sessions and I wanna do another shoot with you!” I sent them my updated rate card and it was crickets after that.
“I need 15 headshots taken for my realtors for my real estate business. Please have a professional camera and lighting equipment. Budget is $150.”
“Can you shoot this woman’s 90th birthday party for 3 hours of your time, $75, and I’ll provide you with an SD card, no editing is required.”
“Hey, I’m also a photographer so can I get a reduced rate if I do the retouching myself and you just give me all of the RAWs? “(This one always blows my mind)
A good portfolio is not enough to sell the value of our work.
Yelp ads are a waste of money lol.
Word of mouth goes a loooooooong way.
Getting repeat clients is much harder than you think.
Refer to the second bullet point above for when you did work for a new client for a lesser rate and then they assumed you would do the same amount of work for the same rate two years later.
It’s possible though! But it does take longer than you realize depending on the type of photography you are shooting. There are ways to market yourself to entice your clients to come back for different stages of their life:
Newborn Photography: Shoot a newborn session and upsell the parents to come back every three months to document that first year of their child’s life
Wedding Photography: Stages of engagement sessions up to the wedding ceremony
Branding Photography: Do a full branding shoot and then upsell mini branding packages that can be utilized throughout the year for holidays/marketing material/new product launches (when there are a few items being added to their inventory)
The title of this blog post is self-explanatory. And this is not an isolated experience that solely affects the world of photography. This happens to all artists of many backgrounds and mediums. I can’t tell you how many friends I have who are illustrators and have their friends or family ask them to “draw something” for them because “isn’t it fun? lol”. Or the small theaters in LA that make money off of actors performing for free (It feels a bit exploitative to have a well-rehearsed production with well-invested props, charging $25 a ticket to NOT share some of those earnings with the performers). Or the choreographers/dancers that should “dance in this movie/show/video for free because of
~ e x p o s u r e ~”.
It’s no wonder parents tell kids not to pursue art as a genuine career path because the likelihood of someone “making it (financially viable)” is incredibly difficult. Even the most well-intentioned parents want what is best for their kids and to support their dreams, but they don’t want to see their children struggle or be let down.
And while I can understand where the parents are coming from, I think we as a society need to reframe how we view art in general. I think because of its subjective nature the worth of someone’s work is severely undervalued in comparison to other goods/services. As in, you’re not going to haggle with the waiter at Musso and Franks over the price of their steaks because you got it cheaper at Texas Roadhouse.
This whole article probably feels like I’m rambling but it boils down to that it has been challenging for me to pursue this as a career full-time. I honestly haven’t because income as an unknown photographer, along with the rent prices I deal with in Los Angeles is impossible to survive without other avenues/income streams. I’m currently being considered for two other full-time opportunities (still within the realm of photography) but it would drastically reduce my availability to take on new clients. But at the given rate of how many clients I have booked, it’s not really much of a loss.
I know this blog comes off as someone who is throwing a fit because “boo hoo, no one wants to book her for her work” and while it’s not exactly that, I am undoubtedly venting. And not in the constructive, polished vernacular of a LinkedIn post but the outward frustration of an aging artist who still struggles financially and is slowly wearing down from the constant expectation from clients who want me to sell myself short. I would much rather say no to an all-day shoot that’s paying $200 than to over-exert my talents, skills, and time that has been reduced to pennies.
My advice to photographers? Don’t quit your day job just yet. Slowly build your clientele and portfolio, and once that starts paying more than what you are currently earning (or at least paying your bills and then some), you can reconsider your new career path. Advice that I followed for a while until I didn’t. Now, I am working in reverse to take several steps back and find a job that provides a living wage with benefits over the stress of working night and day to find someone who might pay you what you sell to them (this has been few and far between but on the bright side at least those people do exist).
Another observation: we don’t have control over the clients who want to book us (looking at the Mr. Krabs out there that wanna penny pinch a good & service), but we have control over the clients we choose to book. That is one thing that has given me SOME piece of mind. Yes, it is annoying and frustrating when you have someone who approaches you trying to haggle your rates in exchange for your skills, but at the end of the day, I can say no. And for all of the influence that I lack in this field, that “NO” feels so damn powerful.
“...At the end of the day, I can say no. And for all of the influence that I lack in this field, that "NO" feels so damn powerful.”
This doesn’t mean that I am hanging my camera up and separating myself from my gear and lighting equipment. No, no. This only means that I value income stability over “hustle” culture. It’s exhausting and I’m getting too old to live like this. I know that it won’t be like this forever and like people say “if you really wanna do something you’ll find time for it” and I’ve done it before in the past so I know that I can do it again. And when the time comes when I am booking more clients, then I can reevaluate my photography journey.
