Why hire a Professional Commercial / Advertising photographer ?

Picture this - you’re a marketing manager at a company when you realize your project is going to require a professional photographer. In the past you’ve used an employee who is an amateur photographer, and although you’ve had some success going this route - you just aren’t accomplishing the level of quality needed. So now what? Well, now you need to try and find a qualified photographer who will deliver results that exceed your expectations. 

There are many ways to find a photographer that you can trust. The first step could be as simple as asking business associates in a similar business to yours for a referral. Knowing in advance that the professional this associate has worked with has delivered good results is a great way to make a decision with ease and confidence.

Another valuable approach is to do a Google search for Commercial/Advertising photographers in your area. The internet is your friend and can help you shop multiple options for the job. Have a look at the portfolios of the photographers you find and keep an eye out for work that is cohesive with your vision for your project. On top of being able to browse existing work you should be able to find testimonials, their years of experience etc. Once you have identified 2-3 photographers you feel good about you can move forward by requesting quotes from each of them. You want to do this not only for pricing comparisons, but also to see how each of the companies responds. In order for a photographer to be able to properly price out a project they should respond with a list of questions for you about the particulars of the shoot. This is how you can tell they know their stuff. The answers to these questions will help inform the overall cost and provide assurances as to the number of and the type of images you will be receiving. You want to have as much information as possible, and both ends should be very clear of expectations and what is being produced for the given estimate. With this information you will be prepared to choose the photographer that best suits your vision and needs.

Once you have made the choice of photographer, the next step should be a meeting or call in which the photographer gathers vital information from the client and/or marketing agency. For example, at Jive Photographic we ask all new prospective clients the following question at the beginning of every discovery call - are you presently working with an Ad Agency or Marketing Company? Depending on the agency's involvement, they should be able to answer all further questions and provide us with creative direction - if no agency is involved, we would be looking to communicate directly with your marketing department. Once the line of communication is made clear additional questions would include but are not limited to; 

How many selected final images are required? 

Are descriptions of the images required? (For example, photos with or without people, interiors, exteriors, portraits, architecture, still life/product shots?) 

Is talent required? (And if so who is responsible for the casting/scheduling?) 

Can we do a site visit prior to the shoot shoot date? 

Who will be our point of contact during the shoot? 

What is the turnaround time on delivering final images? 

What is the highest resolution required for output? 

Is there a need/preference for vertical vs. horizontal framing? 

Does the client want to own the images or only license them for a fixed amount of time? Etc.

These questions are intricate to ensuring you receive exactly what you have set out to achieve. The difference is in the experience. By choosing to go with a professional photographer, you are choosing to go with someone who has dedicated their lives to understanding how to deliver their clients needs. Executing based on the answers to these questions will lead to a happy client and this is how we at Jive ensure we exceed your expectations.

Moral of the story? Planning, preparation and knowledge are the keys to achieving a successful commercial photoshoot. One where the client ends up with images 

that serve their needs and helps them grow their business. Don’t forget - we succeed, when our client succeeds. 

The importance of hiring a Professional Photographer

So you need to source a photographer to take some commercial photos for your company. Where to start ?

Obviously you can do a google search for commercial / advertising photographers in your general area. But before you do any of that, you first need to ask yourself a number of questions.

• Why do I need these photos taken ?

• What message do I want these photos to convey ?

• Where do I intend these photos to live ?

• How long do I want these photos to be relevant ?

• Am I concerned about using existing employees (is the high turn over in your company) ?

• What do I have allocated in the marketing budget for this ?

• Do I need to have more money allocated to the marketing budget to do this properly ?

• Most importantly, how much time do I have to commit to this project ?

This last question is maybe the most important of all, because if you are like most people working full time in a marketing position, you are flat out as it is, so hiring an experienced commercial photographer is really the wise move, because you are getting their guidance. Experienced commercial / advertising photographers add instant value by being able to provide what is required to execute the project and not waste any of your valuable time. 

Okay, I know this sounds like a lot of work, but it really isn’t that bad, and it’s short lived. By planning properly you won’t need to revisit this photoshoot thing for quite awhile. We have been called upon on more than one occasion to do a shoot that was previously completed by a photographer that simply lacked the skill set to realize the clients vision. It’s not a blame thing, it’s most often a lack of experience in knowing what the right questions to ask are and being able to realize that vision and more importantly add value to that vision. That is really what you should be paying for. My goal is always to try and over deliver on whatever the ask is. We want our clients to say that we exceeded their expectations, however big or small the shoot is. 

To sum up, do some research on who the best commercial / advertising photographers are in your area, look at reviews, look at websites, look for years of experience. Basically, don’t rush into any decisions before doing a bit of homework. It’s a big investment and you want to get good value like any other large investment.