DigiLabs Pro Blog

As a child, my parents infused me with art.  My father would sit with me in museums, asking which was my favorite and why. Then he would discuss color, light, composition, subject, medium, the artist and art history.

I became interested in photography in my early twenties. I worked for Andrew Kilgore, a black and white portrait photographer.  Andrew taught me all there was to know about darkrooms and black and white film.  That opportunity was an invaluable foundation.

After raising two children and ending a marriage of 28 years, I needed a vehicle for re-entry into the world. I purchased a point and shoot and learned how to use it and photo editing software.  The next year, I bought my first DSLR. I continued to grow by purchasing better cameras and traveling.  I’ve only worked with Canon, my first a Rebel, then a 50D.  I now use a 5D Mark II and am thrilled with the results I get.

Cross Species Fashion Transference

I began entering competitions at the suggestion of my friend Stewart, who thought I was much better than I thought I was.  To my surprise, in the first year, I was juried into 12 shows; most were international calls for entry. My images began selling. I started my own business, Photos by Pinque, and my friend Katie built my first website: photosbypinque.com.  I joined the Boulder Chamber of Commerce, who quickly became a client.  In November of 2011, I was invited to show at Bittersweet Café, in Louisville, near Boulder.  This led to my work exhibiting as the focus of décor in Parma Trattoria, a wonderful, new Italian restaurant in Louisville, Colorado.

Hello From Denver!

1. What inspires you?

The biggest influence on my photography is the fine art I’ve been exposed to my whole life.  Also, music, fine art, daily life, and the play of light on surfaces and people. It’s all about feelings and composition.

2.   How long have you been in the Photography Industry?

Since my 20’s.  I started my own business three years ago.

3.  What photographers inspire you?

Irving Penn, Annie Leibovitz, Edward Weston, Richard Avedon,  Andrew Kilgore and the many photographers I view on the web everyday.

Liguria

4. What gear or gadgets can you not live without?

iPod, sunglasses and 5D Mark II.

5. Name a person, place or thing you can’t live without?

My photography, my children, the people in my life and Coti my dog. My spiritual home is the mountains.

6.  What is the biggest challenge you have had in your business so far and how did you overcome it?

Pricing and valuing my work, understanding the legal rights for photography and photographer, and inventory issues.  I overcame these by trial and error, industry networking, lots of research and making a LOT of mistakes.

 Make a Wish

7.    Tell me about one of your biggest disasters from a shoot?

My biggest disaster was not in a shoot but in the placement of my art.  The hardware used to hang two of my pieces failed, causing the 5’ x 8’ canvases to come crashing down in the midst of lunch at Parma.

8.  What is the most successful marketing strategy you have implemented in your business?

Entering competitions.

9. How does Digilabs help your business?

Digilabs has given me a convenient retail portal for my work. It has made fulfilling orders remarkably simple to customers throughout the country. The Staff at Digilabs was enormously helpful and supportive while I set up my website.

10.   What word of advice can you give to other (seasoned or new) photographers?

Keep your camera setting on manual and look at the results daily.  Never leave home without your camera.  If you can’t work it out of the photo, work it in.  Never be afraid to break the rules.

Just The Right Note

11.    How are you changing your business to incorporate social networking and/or new technologies?

I asked my Facebook friends to help me select the eight images for my first competition. Five were accepted. I love my Facebook friends.I post a photo everyday on my Facebook page, which is also linked to my webpage. Artists from all over the world have become my friends through that process.

Want to Learn More About Pinque Clark?

Website: www.PhotosByPinque.com

Facebook Page: Pinque Clark

Digilabs Pro is running a summer Photo Books and Greeting Cards promotion!

Get 25% off of the Portola, Fillmore and Ashbury Photobook by using Promo Code: PROPB2012 in the shopping cart.

Ashbury Coffee Table Photo Book:

Fillmore Coffee Table Photo Book:

Portola Coffee Table Photo Book: 

Also take 25% off 5×7 Greeting Cards by using Promo Code: PROGC2012 in the shopping cart.

5×7 Folded Greeting Card

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Boudoir photography is booming now more than ever, women are booking with award winning photographers for many reasons, they wish to preserve their looks, a gift for their boyfriend, to celebrate the last few pounds shed, even to capture a new facelift or bigger bra size. Boudoir used to be a secret, hushed up and not talked about unless you were into shocking your neighbors. Now many clients are not so shy and many are excited to show the world how high those heals go.

How does a professional boudoir photographer balance the daring divas with the secret sallys? The solution is to split one shooting style into two.

All professional boudoir photographers understand most of our clients need for discretion, I make sure to never post any photos online, never to exhibit or publish them either, I explain to each woman that her images are safe and viewed only by who SHE chooses to show.

recently I have found more and more of my clients are bringing in girlfriends to the shoots and we all have a grand time.

My long time assistant Mischa Marie came up with the best idea to throw “Pin Up Parties” we would set up a day in advance book a fantastic make up artist, make gift bags, design fun sets, and throw a party! At Bay Area Boudoir we have two types of parties open invite parties we throw only 4 times a year as a special treat. We also have private pin up parties that are arranged by our clients. Women love playing dress up and spending time together, photo shoots are great ways to do both. Birthday parties, Bridal photo parties, Girls night out parties.

This splitting of types of shoots opens up a whole new client base for boudoir photographers. Treat each style with the expected discretion, for Secret Sally’s private shoots I never show the images to anyone they are just that private if requested by those who are very concerned, I destroy all the files after my clients call me to say they love them & are satisfied, this little extra step promises my clients utmost confidence that her private secret photos will never be shared. For my Daring Divas, I make sure to get a proper model release signed by all parties for the images that will be shown, we take group photos, and advertize our parties all over the place.

Mariah Carle

Want to Know more about Mariah Carle?

Visit her:

Website: Boudoir Photographer Mariah Carle

Facebook: Mariah Carle Photography

Thank you Mariah,

Digilabs Pro Professional Photography Software

Tell us about yourself:

(CarrieLynnsPhotography.com) My name is Carrie Nedo, I was raised in the small town of McBain, Michigan. Growing up I loved to ride & show horses, play sports & spent a lot of time exploring the great outdoors! My love for photography started in middle school and as I graduated high school I landed a job traveling and photographing the hunter/jumper horse show circuit! From there I went on to study at Central Michigan University earning my Bachelors degree in Photography & Journalism. During college I worked for a local newspaper & photographed at a few Michigan motocross race tracks. It is there were I meat my wonderful husband and decided to move to Traverse City, Michigan and start my own wedding/portrait photography business. I am currently living the dream of running my own photography business & am very happy to announce that I will be a new mommy soon! Want to Learn more about Carrie? Visit her Website and Facebook Page!

What inspires you?

People are truly who inspire me to do photography. I absolutely love knowing that with one click of a shutter, I can capture a moment in time; “I believe that every photograph I make, stops a memory from fading away.”

How long have you been in the Photography Industry?

I have always loved photography even at a young age. At 16 I joined my schools photo club. My teacher ran a fundraiser and said whoever raised the most money would win their own SLR Film camera, needless to say I raised the most money ever and from there I built my own small darkroom in the basement under the stairway. It has been over 12 years now since then & I still love doing photography as much as I did then!

 What photographers inspire you?

There are hundreds of amazing photographers out there! I have to say that I will never forget driving 3 hours just to see a gallery showing of Ansel Adams prints! He has truly inspired me!

What gear or gadgets can you not live without?

I cannot live without my 35-350 L & 50 1.4 lenses! I almost never take them off my camera! I also could not live without using Light room and Photoshop.

Name a person, place or thing you can’t live without?

I truly could not live without my husband. He is my number one supporter in my personal and professional life!

What is the biggest challenge you have had in your business so far and how did you overcome it?

The biggest challenge for me in this industry is keeping up with the every so changing technology. As soon as you master one program or piece of equipment another one comes out.

What is the most successful marketing strategy you have implemented in your business?

My most successful marketing strategy has been running my monthly mini session specials! I do 1 themed photo shoot one weekend a  month at a different location were my clients can come to me and try something new! It works out great for creating new and unique images.

How does Digilabs help your business?

Digilabs Pro has been amazing with keeping up with today’s trending client needs! They have superior products; design & support that can help me get any job done in a quick high quality & timely manner. 

What word of advice can you give to other (seasoned or new) photographers?

My advice would be to keep up with the new technologies and to always photograph each image from your heart!

How are you changing your business to incorporate social networking and/or new technologies?

I am constantly upgrading to new software, trying new products and of course I have incorporated Facebook into my business by posting specials and client sneak peeks! It has been a great networking tool to outsource to new clients that I would not have been able to reach before.

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In the last blog post I discussed how to improve your Studio website visibility through basic SEO (Search Engine Optimization) tactics, such as local business listings, business reviews, directories, social media and photo sharing. I briefly touched upon two key photo sharing websites, which were Flickr and Panomerio.

These two websites will be the main focus of the blog today and how you, as professional photographers and Digilabs Pro clients can use them to benefit your Studio website.

What are Flickr and Panoramio?

Flickr (aka Yahoo Photos) and Panomerio are both online photo and video management & sharing applications. Flickr has over 42 million users and has been owned by Yahoo since 2005. Paneramio  has over 25 million users, and has be controlled by Google since 2007.

Now, you might be thinking, why would I want to share or upload my photos? Aren’t they just going to end up on someone’s website or on Pinterest/Facebook without my consent? Most likely not, but just in case always use watermarks. Both websites have features that are beneficial to Professional Photographers:

Flickr and Panomerio features:

• Show and Share your pictures to millions of people.
• Connect with other photographers within groups, forums and through blogs (share feedback, ideas and concepts)
• Have the option of protecting your images or making them for public use
• They even have contests you can enter your photos in, which in turn could earn you recognition

Overall these sites are a great way to engage with other photographers and potentially build a following (and connect them to your studio)

The How To

Go to either Flickr or Panomerio

Sign In/Sign Up using a Google or Yahoo associated e-mail account

Follow the instructions to Upload your photos or videos:

This is my dog!

Then give a description

Example: Tonnie the Chiwawa. (I usually name the Jpeg after what the image is.. i.e Tonnie-the-dog.jpg)

Then at the bottom of my description add a link to your Studio page.

Ex: http://www.bryanpassanisiphotography.com

Then Tag the photos or Videos (both of Flirckr and Panoramio will instruct you how)

I would tag the keywords as:  Chiawawa, dog, Tonnie, and most importantly Bryan Passanisi photography, Passanisi Studios ect . You can have a ton of tags, but it’s better to keep it short and specific-usually tag the city your Studio is located in.

Wow, so you have 100 uploaded pictures with your Studio name , tagged and added a link to your studio website? How can this get any better? One word: Geotagging

What is Geotagging? (Literally, put yourself on the map)

Simply, Geotagging is just adding the location of the picture or piece of media that has been created. (In both sites, you can alter your geotagging) Flickr and Panoramio both use geotagging as a way to index pictures and sort them through their search engines, specifically Bing, Google and Yahoo maps.

Why does this matter?

Well, between the links, tags and geotagging, the search engines begin to trace a pattern and use keyword and location association. Now, Bryan Passanisi’s photography is being indexed on Google/Yahoo with my own photos and is becoming more recognizable at the local search level. So, now if someone in your local area searches, “Professional photographer in (local city)” your photos and studio have a higher chance of being ranked on Google.

Again, I hope this was an interesting piece of information that you can all benefit from.

PS: In the next couple of weeks, we will have a specialty guest blog post. Keep your eye out for it.

Thanks for Reading

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Visit Us: DigilabsPro: Professional Photographer Web Galleries

My name is Bryan Passanisi and I am the newest addition here at Digilabs! I have been the Social Media and Search Engine Optimization Specialist at Digilabs Pro for the last couple of months (yes, I have been posting the puppy pictures and tweeting the tweets). I graduated from The University of San Francisco(Go Dons!) with an emphasis in Online Marketing  and I couldn’t be happier working at Digilabs.

I am a pretty down to earth guy, I would say. I have my favorite TV shows (Family Guy, American Dad, Simpsons, Futurama and anything on the Food Network.) I also love music and have long sideburns..Yeah, I believe that sums me up

Basic SEO Tips for Professional Photographers

So by now all of us know that having a site on the web is just not enough. A website with no traffic is like a store front on the arctic pole. The good news is that many customers are searching online for photographers and photography services, as shown in the following Google information

So the key is how to get visible to the potential audience.  Remember that you do not need to be visible to “the entire world” and not even to all brides/clientele.  After all, what do you care about finding a bride in Connecticut if your business is in Dallas? In this and  flowing blog posts, I will try and help a little by giving ideas and tips per this critical task.

First what is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is essential to any business. SEO is the practice to make anything visible search engines. I will only be going into a basic, yet effective strategy tips

Google, Yahoo and Bing will be your best friends.

These are the major 3 search engines that people use to search for businesses and ….funny animal pictures.

About 70% of internet users use Google as their primary Search Engine, then Yahoo at 15% and Bing around 10%..Ask.com and AOL make up the remaining. (Anyone still have those free 40hr AOL discs?)

Think Local

Google, Yahoo and Bing let you post your business information and description for free at the local level.(Take some time and check them out)

Google Places for Business

Yahoo Local

Bing Business Portal(Beta)

These listings do take some time to appear and do require verification. After your listings do appear, you can still edit the information.

With every listing always use consistent N.A.P-(Name, Address and Phone Number) Search engines will start noticing you better if you, if there is constancy.

A couple of other free LOCAL  business directories that I would recommend

1 SuperMedia

2 City Search

3 Local.com

You will need to Sign up/Register..but nothing more.

Keywords: (Choose your words wisely)

Keywords are the bread and butter of SEO. When potential clients are looking for a photographer, what do you think they are putting into Google? Well besides “Photographer.” Maybe” Portrait Photography”, maybe “Family Photographer”? or “Professional Photographer in (local city)? Just to be safe cover all bases and be descriptive, clear and concise when creating your business listing. Always place key events you cater to in these listings, Weddings, Birthday’s, Bat Mitzvah ect.  Use your words wisely because most listings give a limited amount of words.

Reviews:

Yelp Business Listing 

Yelp: It could be scary thinking that you really have no control over what other people say. Yes, there will always be someone saying something negative about your service, but thats whatever.

Don’t be afraid to create a Yelp Business Account or any other kind of review service. Yelp and review sites have become a standard before any kind of purchase, therefore many people are searching and could find your Studio. Reviews = potential visibility. So get one of those, “We are on Yelp Stickers“ and place it in your studio.

Blog

Have a Blog/Tumblr? Good, Use it to write about anything and everything/post pictures and have your friends, family and clients follow you. The more you blog = the more potential visibility from search engines. Try to make it a routine because in SEO, content is king.

Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Foursquare, Flickr(highly recommended for Pro Photographers), Instagram, Myspace ect . Hop on those mediums and connect your company.  Social media is not only a good SEO tactic, but connect with your clients, communicate and show case your amazing work.

All of these little tips are a good introduction to SEO practice.

Again, this is just a very very very brief over view of one side to SEO. I encourage everyone to read more and have a better understanding about SEO  to help their business thrive and gain traffic.I hope this piece was helpful and entertaining.

Thanks for Reading

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Follow us: Twitter

+1 us: Google+

Just Us: DigilabsPro: Professional Photographer Web Galleries

My name is Bryan Passanisi and I am the newest addition here at Digilabs! I have been the Social Media and Search Engine Optimization Specialist at Digilabs Pro for the last couple of months (yes, I have been posting thepuppy pictures and tweeting the tweets). I graduated from The University of San Francisco(Go Dons!) with an emphasis in Online Marketing  and I couldn’t be happier working at Digilabs.

I am a pretty down to earth guy, I would say. I have my favorite TV shows (Family Guy, American Dad, Simpsons, Futurama and anything on the Food Network.) I also love music and have long sideburns..Yeah, I believe that sums me up

Basic SEO Tips for Professional Photographers

So by now all of us know that having a site on the web is just not enough. A website with no traffic is like a store front on the arctic pole. The good news is that many customers are searching online for photographers and photography services, as shown in the following Google information

So the key is how to get visible to the potential audience.  Remember that you do not need to be visible to “the entire world” and not even to all brides/clientele.  After all, what do you care about finding a bride in Connecticut if your business is in Dallas? In this and  flowing blog posts, I will try and help a little by giving ideas and tips per this critical task.

First what is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is essential to any business. SEO is the practice to make anything visible search engines. I will only be going into a basic, yet effective strategy tips

Google, Yahoo and Bing will be your best friends.

These are the major 3 search engines that people use to search for businesses and ….funny animal pictures.

About 70% of internet users use Google as their primary Search Engine, then Yahoo at 15% and Bing around 10%..Ask.com and AOL make up the remaining. (Anyone still have those free 40hr AOL discs?)

Think Local

Google, Yahoo and Bing let you post your business information and description for free at the local level.(Take some time and check them out)

Google Places for Business

Yahoo Local

Bing Business Portal(Beta)

These listings do take some time to appear and do require verification. After your listings do appear, you can still edit the information.

With every listing always use consistent N.A.P-(Name, Address and Phone Number) Search engines will start noticing you better if you, if there is constancy.

A couple of other free LOCAL  business directories that I would recommend

1 SuperMedia

2 City Search

3 Local.com

You will need to Sign up/Register..but nothing more.

Keywords: (Choose your words wisely)

Keywords are the bread and butter of SEO. When potential clients are looking for a photographer, what do you think they are putting into Google? Well besides “Photographer.” Maybe” Portrait Photography”, maybe “Family Photographer”? or “Professional Photographer in (local city)? Just to be safe cover all bases and be descriptive, clear and concise when creating your business listing. Always place key events you cater to in these listings, Weddings, Birthday’s, Bat Mitzvah ect.  Use your words wisely because most listings give a limited amount of words.

Reviews:

Yelp Business Listing 

Yelp: It could be scary thinking that you really have no control over what other people say. Yes, there will always be someone saying something negative about your service, but that whatever.

Don’t be afraid to create a Yelp Business Account or any other kind of review service. Yelp and review sites have become a standard before any kind of purchase, therefore many people are searching and could find your Studio. Reviews = potential visibility. So get one of those, “We are on Yelp Stickers“ and place it in your studio.

Blog

Have a Blog/Tumblr? Good, Use it to write about anything and everything/post pictures and have your friends, family and clients follow you. The more you blog = the more potential visibility from search engines. Try to make it a routine because in SEO, content is king.

Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Foursquare, Flickr(highly recommended for Pro Photographers), Instagram, Myspace ect . Hop on those mediums and connect your company.  Social media is not only a good SEO tactic, but connect with your clients, communicate and show case your amazing work.

All of these little tips are a good introduction to SEO practice.

Again, this is just a very very very brief over view of one side to SEO. I encourage everyone to read more and have a better understanding about SEO  to help their business thrive and gain traffic.I hope this piece was helpful and entertaining.

Thanks for Reading

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Just us: DigilabsPro: Professional Photographer Print Lab and Web Gallery Host

The Lake is a Beautiful and Vibrant  cost effective Album that is silver halide printed to ensure crisp and clear photos. The Album is the best of both worlds. The Lake is flexible and the lay flat spread pages deliver a book like feeling, with a quality look of an album. Perfect for any event and would make a beautiful addition to any photo package. For a limited time get 40% off the breathtaking Lake Album by using coupon code THELAKE12 in the shopping cart. (Expires March 30th)

• Three sizes to chose from: 8 x 8 , 10 x 10, 12 x 12,
• Choose from 20 sides up to 60 sides
• Matte or glossy wrap-around photo cover
• Professional photo paper
• Optional dust jacket similar to the photo cover
• 5-7 business day turn around for your album (not including shipping)
• Free easy to use album design software with wedding album templates

For more information and to sign up for a free accout go to http://www.digilabspro.com

Jeff Fong Photography located in Kenmore Washington, just outside of Seattle, focuses on wedding and portrait photography. Jeff, a veteran at his craft, has been in the photography industry for 16years.

Having the opportunity to work with Jeff over the past couple of weeks with Client Creations has been a pleasure. Jeff is a straightforward guy, who has a sharp sense of the photography industry from a business standpoint. No wonder, he graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, concentrations in Marketing and Finance. All business aside, Jeff is very laid back and has a good sense of humor.

Jeff takes an active role in the community by being a current instructor for the Digital Photo Academy and also being a board member of the Seattle Professional Photographers Association. Jeffs’ hobbies include music, travel and of course, you guessed it, photography.

Jeff has been featured as Photographer of the Month and a top wedding photographer for Animoto. (And now a Digilabs Photographer of the Month!)

For more information about Jeff:

Websites: (Jeff Fong.com) (Jeff Fong.net)

Blog: Jeff Fong Blog Spot

FaceBook: Jeffs Facebook

1.Describe your personal style.

My studio does both portrait and commercial work.  Regardless of what I’m photographing, I work hard to bring out the best in my subject.  I love to capture emotion, focus on details and create images that will wow the client.  Whenever possible, I use existing light and adhere to a minimalist mentality when it comes to backgrounds and props.

2.What inspires you?

I am inspired when I study the work of fellow photographers whom I admire.  I think everyone should develop their own style, but it never hurts to view others’ work to see what you like or don’t like and then use that information to help you figure out your own way in the photographic world.

3.How long have you been in the Photographic industry?

Since 1996.

4. What photographers inspire you?

There are different photographers who inspire me for different types of photography.  For high school seniors, I think Kirk Voclain is one of the best at his craft.  He is very cutting edge and knows how to bring out the best in his clients.  For children, Sarah Petty is my favorite.   I love her creativity and style for children’s photography.  Curt Littlecott is my hands-down favorite for wedding photography.   I love his style and his energy.

5.What gear or gadgets can you not live without?

When I photograph weddings and some of my commercial work, I absolutely cannot live without  my 90mm f/2.8 macro lens.  I would probably have to include my 50mm f/1.4 lens in my essentials list as well.

6.Name a person, place or thing can you not live without?

My family, without a doubt

7. What is the biggest challenge you have had in your business so far and how did you overcome it?

Like many photographers, my biggest challenge is staying busy in a slow economy.  I’ve had to re-think my marketing and try new things.  Clients are very cost-conscious so you need to figure out how to address that issue.  One way is to educate your clients that what you provide is a service like no other, that we create images that capture this moment in time.  If clients understand what you are providing, I believe they are much more willing buyers.  The real tragedy is when someone chooses to postpone a family portrait, for example, and then one of the family members unexpected dies.  These things happen.

8.What is the most successful marketing strategy you have implemented in your business?

I don’t know if I can identify one particular marketing strategy that was the most successful.  I certainly have tried several strategies over the years, with varying levels of success.  One thing that is important to do, however, is to identify elements that are measurable to help you decide if a particular marketing approach was successful or not.  And if it wasn’t so successful, what changes could you make to improve your results.

9.How does Digilabs help your business? 

Digilabs is my lab of choice for my album and other book-related needs.  The quality is excellent, the turnaround time is fast and everything is manufactured in the U.S.  At times, I’ve worked under tight deadlines and Digilabs has always delivered on time.  The personnel have been very helpful to me as well.  Whether I need to strategize marketing ideas, get technical support or resolve production issues, I’ve always had prompt and courteous service.  That’s important for any studio.

10.What word of advice can you give to other (seasoned or new) photographers?

Don’t be afraid to reinvent yourself.  The world of photography is changing, probably at a faster rate than I’ve ever seen before.  I think it is important to realize that if you don’t change accordingly, you run the risk of become irrelevant.  I’m not suggesting abandoning what has made you successful, but figure out what you do best, and then incorporate new ideas and technologies that keep your work ahead of the competition.

 11. How are you changing your business to incorporate social networking and/or new technologies?

I believe it is important for all professional photographers to utilize social media in some fashion.  I pick and choose which sources I use, realizing that some work better for me than others.  Having said that, let’s focus on Facebook.

Facebook is, in my opinion, a must for every professional photographer.  This is a great way to showcase your work to a huge potential client base.  You can use this “soft sell” approach to let potential clients see your work and advertise what kinds of photography you do.  In addition, I use it as a way to keep in contact with my clients, fellow photographers and other vendors.  One thing that I would caution, though, is to not let Facebook consume your life.  I know many photographers who spend way too much time on Facebook.  I think it is important to keep the time that you invest (or waste) in perspective.  Don’t put more time into it than you are getting out of it.

For more information please visit: DigilabsPro

In a market survey conducted 6 months ago, we have found a few interesting findings:

On average, a couple will spend $27,000 on their wedding. Out of this budget, on average, $3,000 will be dedicated to photography; making photography one of three the top ticket item in the wedding.

• A little over 80% of the couples plan to hire a professional photographer to shoot in the wedding.
• However, about 35% of the brides who hire a pro wedding photographer will not buy an album from the photographer; stating price as the main reason for that.
• Almost 80% of those brides which didn’t order an album from the photographer still plan to create a printed output, but from a different lower cost source.
• Furthermore, 86% of the brides thought, “It is important that I have a hard copy album/photobook of my wedding pictures.”
• And 87% of brides thought that, “An album/photobook is the best way to preserve my wedding pictures for future generations.”

The conclusions so far are clear. Even though the vast majority of bride’s value printed output (87%), there are a significant number of brides (35%) that do not order an album from the photographer mainly due to price.

So maybe a low-cost “Costco” style retail photobook is the solution they are after? Maybe they just don’t understand the value delivered by a professional album?

The research results do not support this thought.

When asked about the difference between an album and a photobook, the distinction was clear:

Album vs. Photobook – excellent performance:

• Quality of image- album 84%, photobook 27%
• Durability- album 72%, photobook 27%
• Images will be enhanced- albums 80%, photobooks 24%

The top three characteristics most important to those brides were:

• Output quality
• Durability
• Image enhanced

Much fewer placed value on the fact that somebody else is designing the product for them (around 34%)

Brides were willing to pay for an album at a higher price, rather than for a photobook (as they did see a value difference as stated above), but the actual numbers where somewhat surprising:

•  25% – $100-$200
• 19% – $200-$300
• 18% – $300-$400
• 16% – $400 and up

As this was a survey with no sample products presented to the participant, the above pricing results should be taken with some caution. Still, an overall trend can be recognized, especially when combined with all the other info as described above.

The business conclusion we have reached here at DigiLabs is pretty clear:

• From the 2.05 million weddings a year, in the US, about 620,000 brides a year which do hire a pro photographer will not order an album from him/her.
• They do understand the value, and what a printed product delivers, but they cannot afford the price.
• Most of those 620,000 brides do not place much value on the design services offered by the photographer. Thus, are not willing to pay a premium for that service.
• A significant number (more than 400,000 brides a year) would be willing to pay for a premium product in a  DIY model, but this product has to be priced around $250-550

To address this market, and to arm photographers with the tool needed to get a share of that market, we have developed the concept/product of Client Creation.

Case study

Earlier this month, Jeff Fong, a Seattle based veteran photographer, took the Marina and Anza Classic Client Creation sample on the road to the 2012 Seattle wedding show. While showcasing the client creation, Jeff received plenty of positive feedback from his soon to be clientele. In an interview about the trade show, Jeff stated with much enthusiasm that:

“Everyone I showed the kit to love it…without exception, everyone I spoke to thought this was a great idea; they’ve never seen anything like it.”

“There are a lot of brides who have their wedding photos sitting on a disc, not doing anything with them… they want that medium that would allow them to create a high quality album.”

“The market for this item is huge… whether it be soon to be brides or recently married brides.”

Jeff went on to say that Client Creations is a “win-win for photographers.”

“Gives the brides creative control, user friendly templates…and comes with great customer support.”

“Other photographers didn’t know that this kind of product existed”

How Can You Get Part of The Action?

Ride the wave instead of fighting it. Client Creations is a prepaid album that is ready to sell to the DIY bride, and it’s simple as 1, 2, 3…

1. Buy a “Client Creation” kit at wholesale price – all what a bride needs to create a quality album.
2. Sell the kit to the bride at retail price.
3. Brides creates and uploads top quality product-we have developed a proprietary workflow which will ensure your work looks good, including manual color correction of each image.

The kit includes a black presentation box to store their album, a pre-paid flush mount album voucher, and instructions on how to create and redeem the album and lastly, the free design software to create their album, which includes professional wedding album templates.

We have developed a proprietary workflow based on our licensed technology, which insures a top quality product, including manual color correction for each image. It makes certain that your photo’s come out looking their best.

Currently, there are four album options that the client can choose from, ranging from various prices:

• Marina Classic Client Creations (30 sides, Leather Cover)
• Marina Classic Client Creations (20+ sides, Wraparound Photo Cover)
• The Anza Classic Client (20 sides, Leather Cover)
• The Sunset Client Creation (20 sides, leather Cover, Peel & Stick)

They range between around $170-300 wholesale and $240-450 SRP (suggested retail). More will be coming to cover even a lower entry level price point.

To help you sell in bridle shows we have developed these tools:

• Easy to print and downloadable brochure that is featured on our website. The brochure is great for events and in studio marketing. Click here to view the brochure.
• Client creation kit without an album (the kit sold to the bride) – $40
• Special studio sample discount of 40% (limited to one sample per) so you can show how the final album/s look like.

There are hundreds of thousands of brides that want to design their own quality album; so be a part of the solution and offer her the Clients Creation Kit. With its easy to use software, full customization ability, various pricing options and unbeatable photo quality for a DYI album kit, Client Creation would be the optimum choice for the DIY bride, and will help you generate a growing revenue stream you had no access to..

For full info: http://www.digilabspro.com/client-creations.shtml