Is your photography business feeling a little down and out? Are you left with the impression that the photography industry is dying? All is not lost…
Have you visited any online photography forums or professional photographer groups lately? If not then you might want to check out some of the ongoing (and often heated) discussions about the photography business. For a start, I guarantee you’ll find a hot thread in there somewhere that talks about “photography dying as a business” or that professional photographers are all doomed…
Do you lie awake at night scared about how the professional photography business will have changed by the time you get out of bed in the morning? Are you concerned about how you or your photography business model can evolve to satisfy the ever-changing market’s needs?
Are you scared that clients just won’t pay you as much as they used to, or that other so-called professional photographers are too willing to surrender their services for little (or even no) compensation, thereby rendering you out of business?
The question is, do you believe photography is dying as a viable business?
Is A Failed Photography Business Past Saving?
Much to my dismay, there are too many photographers out there who subscribe to the idea that the photography business is dying, and I see more than several visitors here each day who searched Google for something like, “how can I save my failed photography business?”
Given that their business appears to have already failed, the questions seems somewhat redundant, and I’m left wondering what, if anything, they tried to do to avert disaster before reaching that point of no return.
How badly did they want their business to succeed, and how committed were they to preventing failure at all costs?
Even more upsetting is the fact that too many of these failed professional photographers are highly talented individuals, able to produce wonderful imagery, but they somehow lacked the necessary marketing and business skills that could have made them successful.
It doesn’t seem fair, but then fairness is not part of the game of business.
Of course, everyone deserves a second chance and they can always start over.
With that in mind I believe the answer to the question, “can a failed photography business be saved?” is a resounding “yes“…
But…
It Depends Which Camp You’re In
Having read through masses of comments, rants, flame-wars, and other impassioned responses on various forum and group threads on this subject, two distinctly different factions are evident, which could be broadly described like this:
- “We’re all gonna die… the industry’s already dead!“
- “Let’s just get on with it – no one has to die today…“
This is such a polarizing issue that a razor-thin fence divides these two camps – with no one even thinking about sitting on it.
Are You An Optimist Or A Pessimist?
And The Dividing Factor Is…
If you’re a regular reader of this blog, or are a member of the site, then you won’t need me to tell you which of these two camps my flag is firmly planted in.
However, what interests me the most is what really divides these two groups from one another. What is it, per se, that separates a professional photographer in the “doom and gloom” camp from someone in the “the future looks bright” group?
I believe the answer can be boiled down to one simple word: Attitude.
We all have one and it’s subject to change at a moment’s notice – it’s just a matter of whether it’s predominantly negative or positive.
Of course, it goes deeper than that, and I’ve looked in detail at each of these two camps. What I find (not surprisingly) is that those who believe in the end of days for professional photography are the very same photographers who don’t believe in investing in their own personal development, marketing and business education (unless it happens to be free). They are also the first ones to get defensive and start a flame-war whenever someone tries to point out that such things as “being a professional photographer requires a significant investment in business and marketing knowledge.”
I find this a little ironic, since many of these folk are the same ones telling the rest of us that we need to “evolve and adapt to the new way of doing things, and accept our fate that no one will pay good money for photography any more…”
In the words of one such photographer whose business fell into the black hole, “ the days when a photographer could make a living are finished…”
Seriously? How so? The evidence to the contrary is all around you!
Anyway, I don’t want to belabor the whole point of why some people will invest in themselves, despite obvious reasons not to, again here as I recently addressed it at length in another recent post at: “Ask The Photography Coach: How Do I Save My Photography Business?” By the way, if you aren’t 100% sure what a photography coach is or why it’s important to have one, check out this article: “The Importance Of Hiring A Photography Coach“.
Let’s Hear What You Think?
What I would like to know is where do you stand on this issue? Remember, that fence is awfully thin, and there’s precious little company on it, so take a moment to give us your thoughts – all comments are welcome!
So is photography dying as a profession? Are professional photographers going to become extinct?
Share your thoughts below…
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I think you made a clear point here again, Nigel! Being negative but not willing to actively change the things starting with yourself is not a way to improve things.
The market has changed since the digital revolution, and not only for photographers. One may need to learn to adapt. And in general, to learn a lot in the changing context. But there are also so many new possibilities that were not there before!
I also think that photography, and probably each business that has to do with creativity, requires extra enthusiasm and commitment.
I’m the eternal optimist. My glass is always half full even when I’m thirsty. Relatively new to the photography business (3 years) it’s taken me that long to find myself with all the industry chatter. One thing I have a leg up on is having been in my own [non-photography] business for 15 years, a setting for critical thinking skills and thoroughly understanding the value of the work I do. The chatter can be disturbing but to date I’ve stood my ground. I do go the extra mile to educate potential clients, that goes with the territory. I even make a small investment in the nickel-and-dimers in hopes that if they go ‘on the cheap’ they’ll think about what the results might do their business. No bridge is burned. After all it’s about more than just delivering a photograph. I know I need to continually invest, adapt and change, from how I market myself (not enough, Nigel you’re right) to my creative side. Each night before I go to sleep I peruse photos, I dream in photos, continually looking for ways to make them uniquely mine. It’s all a balancing act. It’s important to listen to the chatter now and then, just don’t let it influence what in your gut you know to be right for you. Optimist, idealist, realist … that be me. Thank you Nigel for starting this thread. I’m very much interested to see where it goes.
Photography, the love of it, the need for and the desire to have it is MORE ALIVE than it ever has been and the evidence can be found on ever street corner in the world in a thing called a cell phone. People photo & video more now than they ever did before and that fact can be found on Facebook & Twitter. The challenge that some face, myself included is finding a place in this race & demand for imaging.
I am more than convinced that some are content with the p-poor quality images that are provided by cell phone’s & I battled that adversary w/no success for 2 years. I stopped fighting when I remembered a business principle taught by a very wise and wealthy man, “Observe the masses & do the opposite. Seeing that a lot of people are content with cell photo’s I began focusing on providing a product that cell phones can’t produce and targeted that clientele. Some of the actions taken came through Nigel & the things he exposes photographers to & I believe this type of move/shift is being made by others who see the business as well as the art of photography.
On the other end of the stick are people with established businesses who are seeing an influx of demand for their work. This demand exists because the worlds interest in images has grown which means he need for high quality, professionally crafted product is requested. My goal is to develop my skills, diversify my offerings so that a demand for what I do will move me into or closer to that league of people. Those who are in demand go there by developing a demand for what they do through growth in what they do and improving how they do it.
You can cry & complain or adapt and advance, your choice.
The photography industry dying?? Are you kidding me? My business is just starting to pick up! Granted I’m only working part time because I choose to home school my daughter! But work is picking up! Its still fun and I love what I do! I don’t market myself as much as “experts” have told me I should – I don’t want to be so busy that I can’t educate my child!
I’m not new to photography, but I’m new to the business end of it. My day job, which I have now been doing for a few organizations over the past 30+ years, has exposed me to other businesses and their practices. Unfortunately, the business I’m in now is cutthroat – the only way to make money is to lowball everyone until they go under, then adjust your pricing. I’m not fond of the concept, and it’s one big reason I’m signed on to this community. I know I have a culture shift to go through if I want to make this my full-time passion when I retire from the current job. After so many years, it will sometimes be a difficult transition, but I want to do it. I admit that every time I walk by a Target photo studio and see neighbors there, I resent both them and Target. I can’t make a living off people who walk into my studio with a coupon for a “special $9.99 package.” That frustrates me and discourages me, but I have a strong love for the profession that will carry me. I have about 10 years to build a business before I retire from the day job, but after reading a number of blogs and joining this group, I’m wanting to NOT wait 10 years.
Ahhh! It is so refreshing to read positive thoughts on the photography industry for a change. I prefer to be on the optimist side myself! Forums frustrate me! So many negative people
Photography is far from dead, although who knows what the industry will look like in 10 years. Right now there’s still plenty of money that can be made. The thing is 10 years ago it was all about how good your photography is, but now it’s all about how good your sales and marketing is. This is obviously because of the digital revolution and increased competition. Now we have to show and educate clients on the value of what we do. It’s not a hard sell, it’s about: asking questions, meeting the client before you even make the session appointment, projecting your photos, displaying photos at a decent size rather than leaving clients to choose online, partnering with complementary businesses in your industry and so on. Being good at photography is not enough, it’s the bear minimum. Photographers need to be studying sales and marketing techniques far more than worrying about equipment or Photoshop. However, I guess most people on this website realise this, otherwise you wouldn’t be here, right?
My opinion regarding Failed Photography Business? Is Photography Dying As
A Profession?
I think it’s going down slowly but not dying, here in Malta people are
still getting married and almost all couples hire a photographer, the
problem some of us face here is that, there are a number of people who
seek to hire a “cheap” photographer but I’m pretty sure that they
regret it afterwards. So we try to discount our prices and we don’t keep in mind all the long hours we spend on shooting and editing.
Even here all the couples ask for the cd. Some ask to shoot a wedding
and then give them a hi res cd only, cause they want to print them in a
cheap kiosk.
What I believe is that it’s us in our mind who are killing our
trade, cause every parent wants to have their children holy communion
portraits hung on a wall, every newly wedd couple wants to have some photos taken and a wedding book
We must change our negative thinking into positive thinking and things all around us will change to the better.
_
I think the perception of the professional photographer has changed over the last few years. Having been in the business for 27 years I have seen the advent of digital make it easer for people to produce “good” photos, thus the profession of photography has been devalued. Nigel had said in a previous post, and I have heard a bride say, how can someone charge as much as they do for wedding photography where they’re “just shooting a bunch of photos for four or five hours”. so people see our job as being easy, and thus don’t want to pay for it. What we need to do is find the right customers, or the right product. that is where I am right now.
Definitely more focus on marketing and sales is required as well as customer service, but photography is certainly not a dead business just because everyone has a digital camera. That’s like saying that art is dead because anyone can invest in a paintbrush, paints and canvas. And after a while, when people start to realize that they really can take photos as good as the “photographers” that sell their photos for $9.99, they will start seeking out the photographers whose photography is truly a craft and a passion.