The lady is being a pain!!

[ang1995]

free or for $

If free you can set any rule you like if $ the customer wins with her acknowledging that the shots may not be as nice if you had better lighting.

I don't know if she is paying me or not but I don't think so.

 

[Big Mike]

No, I'm not doing it for a living yet. They did pay me $20 on the last shoot that I did for them but I don't think she is planing on paying me this time which kinda annoys me but I know that I'm still learning and not everyone thinks I should be paid. She told me on the last one that she was going to pay me and she didn't until like 2 months later so I just kinda guessed that she wasn't going to and when she did she said "now I will not feel bad when I ask you to take pictures again in the fall" and she hasn't said anything about paying me.

I feel like I can't really tell her no.

I tried last night to explain it to her but because she is older and is the kind of person that likes to take charge she thinks she knows better then me.

This is exactly the type of thing that happens when you only charge $20...or are only hoping to get paid.

On one hand, this can still be a good learning experience for you...in terms of the photography, but this should also be a business lesson...as in 'what not to do'.

Check out the following links.

The 7 Deadly Sins Of Emerging Pros « PhotoCynic
http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/general-shop-talk/256614-f-ck-you-pay-me.html

 

[ang1995]

No, I'm not doing it for a living yet. They did pay me $20 on the last shoot that I did for them but I don't think she is planing on paying me this time which kinda annoys me but I know that I'm still learning and not everyone thinks I should be paid. She told me on the last one that she was going to pay me and she didn't until like 2 months later so I just kinda guessed that she wasn't going to and when she did she said "now I will not feel bad when I ask you to take pictures again in the fall" and she hasn't said anything about paying me.

I feel like I can't really tell her no.

I tried last night to explain it to her but because she is older and is the kind of person that likes to take charge she thinks she knows better then me.

This is exactly the type of thing that happens when you only charge $20...or are only hoping to get paid.

On one hand, this can still be a good learning experience for you...in terms of the photography, but this should also be a business lesson...as in 'what not to do'.

Check out the following links.

The 7 Deadly Sins Of Emerging Pros « PhotoCynic
http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/general-shop-talk/256614-f-ck-you-pay-me.html

I was kinda afraid of that! It is just weird to me because they were the first family that wanted to pay me and I didn't know enough at the time of what to tell her. And I have always looked at myself as being to young and not good so people don't have to pay me.
I know now that I need to give people a price instead of saying that they don't have to pay but inside I want them to pay.

I guess I have learned my lesson and I know what to do next time. Right?

 

[Derrel]

Believe it or not, this is actually a really good opportunity for someone your age to get to experience. Dealing with difficult customers is unfortunately a fact of life in any business. The more you deal with the easier it gets and the better you are at predicting/avoiding bad situations. I don't have any specific advice to add to what's already been said, I just wanted to put this idea in your head so that you have a silver lining to the cloud you're dealing with now. Good luck with the shoot and when it comes to dealing with people, don't be afraid to make mistakes. You have to make them sometime when you're learning and people will be a lot more forgiving now than later.

Great post by bentcountershaft. You need to price your sessions higher. $20 is KFC money, even in Tennessee. Start asking for $75, at LEAST. Even as a high school kid. Taking the lens cap off and shooting 15 to 20 frames? $75. Coming over to the house for a quick snap of the two boys? $75. Getting some cute pics of the new dog? Seventy-five bucks...

An "all-day family photography shoot?" $300. Coverage for great-gammy's 85th birthday, six hours of coverage? Three hundred bucks. I'm not kidding!

 

[ang1995]

But I'm not that good! Nobody will want to pay that much. Will they?

 

[Derrel]

But I'm not that good! Nobody will want to pay that much. Will they?

Get better. Grownups have more money than you think. You wanna see how much they will pay? Then find out. Next time somebody from church asks you to come shoot some photos, tell them, "Well, my normal rate is $150 for two hours. Can you afford that?"

Then, say NOTHING ELSE. I'm serious. The key phrase here is two-fold...my "normal" rate implies this is a negotiation, and , "Can you afford that?" means, well, you know what it means...it's a challenge...

Keep your mouth closed, tongue pressed firmly to the roof of your mouth!!!!!! It might take 15 seconds for their reply, which will be either "Yes, I can afford that," or, "How about a hundred dollars for say, an hour and a half."

Please carefully consider the psychology underlying the comment, "Well, my normal rate is $150 for two hours. Can you afford that?" coming out of the mouth of some sweet high school girl...

 

[Big Mike]

But I'm not that good! Nobody will want to pay that much. Will they?

The key to success is believing in yourself. If YOU don't think you're worth it...then neither will anybody else.

If you don't think that you're good enough, then work hard to get better before you start charging people. Read books, take classes, apprentice with a professional photographer....practice on friends & family.

Just because you are young & inexperienced, isn't a good reason to be cheap. If you are good, then you need to charge for it. The key is getting good before you start trying to charge people for it.

 

[Sammie_Lou]

Good luck! I would say that if she liked your work enough the first time to ask you to take her pictures again, then she probably thinks you're good enough to pay. Otherwise, she wouldn't have requested your work again. Any chance we can see some examples from the last shoot??

 

[gsgary]

Believe it or not, this is actually a really good opportunity for someone your age to get to experience. Dealing with difficult customers is unfortunately a fact of life in any business. The more you deal with the easier it gets and the better you are at predicting/avoiding bad situations. I don't have any specific advice to add to what's already been said, I just wanted to put this idea in your head so that you have a silver lining to the cloud you're dealing with now. Good luck with the shoot and when it comes to dealing with people, don't be afraid to make mistakes. You have to make them sometime when you're learning and people will be a lot more forgiving now than later.

Great post by bentcountershaft. You need to price your sessions higher. $20 is KFC money, even in Tennessee. Start asking for $75, at LEAST. Even as a high school kid. Taking the lens cap off and shooting 15 to 20 frames? $75. Coming over to the house for a quick snap of the two boys? $75. Getting some cute pics of the new dog? Seventy-five bucks...

An "all-day family photography shoot?" $300. Coverage for great-gammy's 85th birthday, six hours of coverage? Three hundred bucks. I'm not kidding!

Is $75 Subway money ?

 

[GeorgieGirl]

You did a good job with that photo you took of that lovely girl. It's clear to me if this lady is asking for you to photograph her again that she likes your work. If she is wiling to go around and say she is having a photographer shoot her in such and such a way on such and such day, then you will want to consider that you are that person she is referring to. You are better than you think you are.

 

[jwbryson1]

Can the OP post some pics here so we can see them? (Sammie Lou, just saw your post--sorry, did not see it before).

 

[unpopular]

One way to handle these absolutely impossible situations is just to say "I'm sorry, but that goes beyond the capabilities I have ... maybe there is another studio that has more experience with these sorts of things than I do, but right now I am not set up for this situation."

In the end, you'll avoid a disatisfied customer, she might go somewhere else and be disatisfied with them, or maybe they can pull it off. But if you are certain that you can't make it work out, there is no sense in trying - you'll just be waisting everyone's time.

As a print advertiser, I've had clients who wanted to do things which I simply was not set up for. Often if they want web design or motion graphics for a TV spot I refer them to another ad agency that specializes in that kind of media. This is a great way to build relationships with other studios, which comes in handy down the road. Customers usually appreciate the honesty, and having that reputation and loosing a customer to your competition is far better than blowing a job.

 

[e.rose]

What do you'll do when you have people like this?

Learn to say "No." :greenpbl:

Just because you go to church with her doesn't mean you owe her anything.

Keith's (my husband) dad is the WORSHIP leader at our church. And I LIVE with him. And he was bugging the HELL outta me to play keyboard for the worship team, but I said no.

I don't just go to church with him. I'm related to him, he's a LEADER in our church and I LIVE with him.

I still said no.

I had to say new a *few* times, but I just kept saying no and he eventually got the hint.

Just learn to say no.

 

[ang1995]

Here are a few of my pictures.

 

[shootermcgavin]

But I'm not that good! Nobody will want to pay that much. Will they?

You're better than you think, the quicker you think your time is valuable the quicker you will get paid for your valuable time. Do you know the main difference between the CEO that runs the company and the employees that work there? The CEO believes he can run the company and the employees don't. The feeling of worth you put into yourself can make you far more money than any degree or amount of training you can receive.