Shylock misses out...

Today I want to have a bit of a rant about companies offer quick loans.

A few days ago I heard of a twenty year old, unemployed man who had been given a completely unsecured loan by one of these companies that advertise on the TV.

This young man has no job, does not sign on and has no other income. Yet, on the strength of a debit card and a pound in his bank account, he was loaned £250 for a month. He has no apparent concept of responsibility and is reputedly borrowing money from all his friends. It would seem that one of these friends directed him to the easy and instant money available from this loan company.

The loan was for a month (he clearly had no idea of how he would repay the loan) and fell due a few weeks ago. The company are now chasing him for the money and his family are going to have to bail him out.

You may feel this problem is the sole fault of the young man (as I did initially), but perhaps we should ask ourselves how he obtained this loan in the first place.

This company states it is a responsible lender, but how responsible can you be if you lend money to someone with no way of paying it back? The interest so far is close to 70% and growing. I suspect this is the only aspect of the loan that interests many of these companies...

We need to look at the many loan companies currently preying on the poor, needy and the frankly stupid people who use these businesses. This country has massive debt problems and shocking poverty. How can it be right to licence the companies to drive people into debts they cannot afford? After hearing of this story I googled the company name and found story after story from people regretting ever taking a loan from them.

I know the banks have tightened lending, but permitting these  companies to operate in the way they do is not the solution. Sometimes banks refuse a loan because you really cannot afford the extra debt. 

These companies merely provide the opportunity to get further in trouble before the crash.

Shylock would be amazed at the business opportunities these companies would offer him in the 21st century.

Uncle Bob? I wouldn't employ him!

Last year I wrote a piece about hobby photographers and their impact on Wedding Photography as a profession.

To my surprise, it was published in a national magazine and sparked months of debate on the letters pages.

As I couldn't think of much to say today, I thought I'd share it with you.

 

We all know Uncle Bob. Nice guy - owns a camera and will be happy to take your wedding photos. “You don’t need an expensive, so called professional – Uncle Bob has got a decent camera and that’s all you need.”

Every professional photographer has met, or lost business to, Uncle Bob.

In these digital days, everyone with a camera thinks they can do the job as well as a professional. Add in a recession and suddenly a few hundred pounds for a photographer at the most expensive day of your life is an unnecessary outlay. No-one says “I’ve got a garden, I’ll grow my own flowers” despite the cost of bouquets (and the short life), but they are more than happy to leave the photography to ‘some bloke with a camera’ based on price. 

Uncle Bob will usually offer to do the wedding shoot “just buy me a drink” he’ll say. Why on earth do people entrust what may be the most important images of their life to someone who does it for ‘fun’?

Couples spend thousands on the big day, but then try to cut costs on the person who will provide a record of that day. Uncle Bob might seem a bargain before the wedding, but we all know the final price. Poor quality images, disappointment and regret. Unfortunately, a wedding isn’t the same as a family portrait – you can’t come back and try again. Uncle Bob gets one go and that’s one too many...

I recently returned to photography as a profession after a long break. I took a great many pictures to ensure total confidence in my camera, I used everyone I could think of as guinea pigs and I offered free shoots to couples who couldn’t afford a photographer (does that make me Uncle Bob?) in order to put together a proper wedding package. I regarded it as a refresher programme after a break. 

My first paid wedding went very well. My clients were delighted with the quality of the images and also my relaxed style. And that is what makes us so much better than Uncle Bob. We do this for a living; we are confident enough to pose the couple when necessary, but we also work with them to create relaxed, natural images. We don’t ‘point and shoot’, nor do we march around giving orders. We do our best not to intrude in the day. We take the images they want, when they want. 

Our philosophy is different from Uncle Bob’s (or should be). We want our clients to regard our images as the perfect reminder of their day. We want them to show them off with pride. Uncle Bob wants to be known as the chap who took the photos, he doesn’t do this for a living and he doesn’t really care about the long term.

My advice to any couple booking a photographer is simple. Price is obviously a consideration – it’s no good booking a £1000 an hour photographer if your wedding budget is £2000 – but the most important thing to consider is their portfolio. Do you like their previous work? Is it a style you want for your own images? Do you feel comfortable with the photographer (after all, you’ll be working with them all day!)? Are they willing to listen to what you want or do they have a fixed idea? Most photographers will want you, the client, to get the images you want. If someone refuses to listen, I’d keep searching.

If their prices are a little too high, ask about other packages. They may offer lower prices on weekdays for instance. 

Uncle Bob is unlikely to offer a portfolio – if he was good enough to have a number of successful weddings under his belt he would be charging accordingly. Do you really want to entrust your day to someone who has no investment in ensuring you are more than happy with your images? I doubt it, but if you do I wish you good luck......

Too cheap to be worth it?

I hate my job. I don't mean I don't like it - I genuinely hate it.

The job has made me ill, it conflicts with my own moral code and it is pointless in the extreme. If I actually do the job I'm employed to do, I will be over-ruled by people with 'friends in high places'.

Without going into detail, the job has opened my eyes to the type of corruption that is apparently acceptable in local government.

In short - I want out!!!!

Some of you may recall my attempt to find self employment as a photographer. Well, I want to try again as part of a wider range of employment options. I'm also undertaking a proofreading course as part two of 'The Plan'.

The problem I seem to be currently experiencing is pricing. I live in an area with a lot of photography students looking to earn a few pounds to top up their income. This means the customer is swamped with cheap (not inexpensive, which implies quality at a lower price) photographers offering cheap, or even free, wedding shoots.

This, obviously, makes it difficult to find work.

I recently read an article that suggested I should charge a higher price as this makes you stand out from the crowd and implies a higher quality standard of work. Now, I'm always happy to earn more, but will it take me out of consideration for most potential clients?

Do I need to find a new way to market myself to the higher spending clients? If so, what is this marketing method? I hate the sales side of things, but I know I'm going to have to push hard to break away from the herd. 

I intend carrying out a few model shoots during the upcoming weeks and will update my portfolio with the type of images my competitors seem unable to offer (I visit opposition websites to assess quality). Hopefully this will give me the slight edge I need to get moving forwards.

As far as the pricing goes, I need to give this a lot of thought and get feedback from everyone I know. Does price reflect quality in your eyes when seeking a photographer? Is it better to do inexpensive packages and hope someone wants a better service, or do I charge more on the basis I'm better than the 'Uncle Bob'* photographers out there?

The next few weeks are going to involve a lot of market research in the hope of answering this question. If you have any thoughts, please let me know.

Thanks

* Uncle Bob was the subject of an article I wrote for a national photography magazine last year.