Case Study on a Wedding Photographer from Chicago
When an established wedding photographer from Chicago, Illinois got in touch with our team, we realized something: even the most seasoned professionals need a set of extra hands at times.
PHOTOGRAPHER FROM CHICAGO
The owner of a professional photo studio in Chicago, Illinois has been shooting events such as prenups and weddings for a long time, but just recently, their business skyrocketed to popularity. The public started noticing his unique photography style, soon later more people appreciated his expertise. Just in the first half of 2020 alone, they handled over 15 clients already. That’s considering all the canceled and postponed events brought about by the pandemic.
And because his team has been solid for more than 5 years already, he only entrusted his projects with them. They came along to assist during event shoots and they handled clients, social media, and marketing. When he was just starting out in the business, his main challenge was booking clients and growing his market. Now, his business has been growing steadily, but why is he still struggling? What could he be struggling with?
When professional photographers are just starting out, they are struggling to put their work out there for people to see. They need to get more clients, and they are throwing in all their efforts into winning more projects. Seasoned photographers like him face a different set of challenges- more specifically, how to deliver consistent quality shots quickly and keep up with the fast-paced demands of client bookings.
THE CHALLENGE
He decided to focus on weddings instead of catering to all types of events, simply because their schedule couldn’t handle it. Before he tried working with a wedding photo editing company, he would turn down client booking requests because even if the date requested is open, they were still in the middle of post-edits for a previous event. It would literally take them several days to turnover the perfect wedding photographs to the newlyweds. Eventually, they scheduled their projects every 2 weeks to make sure there’s no overlap. Even though his small team helps take a lot of tasks off his plate, he is still left to process and edit all the pictures. This takes up the bulk of his time, going through thousands of pictures for a single event, choosing which to keep and edit, and then going through the process of retouching and color-correcting anywhere from a few hundred to a thousand photos.
He was really trying to preserve their good reputation and didn’t want to rush any work, nor did he want to overcommit to any client. He valued trust very much, with his clients and his team members alike. This is mainly the reason why he personally worked on the photos. He found it hard to trust someone else to match the edits with his personal photography style.
After 4 missed project opportunities, he realized that his popularity didn’t mean anything unless he was able to expand his business from it. He was looking for the best wedding photo editing company, but he settled for the first decent option he found. He thought the quality of the edits would justify the hefty prices, but it was the opposite in fact. After spending hundreds of dollars, he received pictures that didn’t look like his. They went back and forth discussing his requirements and after days of testing waters, he thought the editing company finally captured his vision. He was advised to wait for the final photos but when he received them, it wasn’t aligned to his style. He thought, “I knew it, even the best wedding photo editing company can’t do it as I do..”
He tried hiring freelancers, and the expertise just didn’t match up to what he and his in-house team could produce. They were harder to manage and the relationship just added to his stress. He thought that hiring extra members would help him have more time for the business and for his personal life, but boy was he wrong…
Aside from the freelancers not being able to capture his style, they worked slowly, and that only frustrated him. That was his first and only experience with hiring freelance editors because he doesn’t want to get burned again. He spent most of his time working on photo editing, just so they can finish sooner with one project and accept more bookings. Although his family fully supported him and cheered him on his growing success, his kids were obviously sad with the fact that he no longer had enough time for their special bonding traditions. He used to spend his mornings fixing breakfast together with his kids. His Sundays were dedicated to movie marathons or days at the park with the wife and kids. For him, the cost of growing his business started to outweigh the benefits, especially since it’s affecting his family life.
He knew that missed opportunities could eventually turn his career stagnant. An in-demand photographer is just that, in-demand. A business doesn’t expand only on market growth alone, but on the quantity served as well. He didn’t want to choose between his career or his family, especially since his services are becoming some of the most sought-after in his field. He was contemplating whether he should outsource or just hire professional editors. As he was weighing the pros and cons, he came up with this list:
FREELANCERS
PROS
You only hire them when needed, so you don’t pay a fixed salary; No fixed contract means no benefits, which also means no extra costs; You can hire as many as you want to depend on your workload and editing requirements
CONS
It could take many tries to find a skilled and trustworthy freelancer; It’s more challenging and stressful to supervise them; They may seem cheaper at first but the rule of thumb in freelancing is the cheaper the cost, the less skilled/experienced they are
IN-HOUSE
PROS
They are available on-demand and can be held accountable for each assigned project; They work with you consistently so they learn your signature style; They work closely with you so you are updated with the progress every step of the way
CONS
You pay all the mandated fees for employees; You have to pay them even when there is little work to be done during low seasons; You are responsible for monitoring their performance and progress; You still need to train new hires
THE SOLUTION
It seems to him that there’s a downside to whichever option he would choose, but he knew he had to make a decision. After days of going back and forth on his list of pros and cons, he came across Picsera. “Another wedding photo editing company?” he thought to himself, but he knew outsourcing this way would mean less work on his part. In September 2020, the same year his photography company started to be the talk of the town, he decided to sign up for Picsera’s FREE TRIAL. He wanted to check out the quality of editing Picsera can provide before jumping in again like what he did with his first and last experience working with freelancers. After a quick call with David Sinai, the founder of Picsera, he followed the easy workflow that provides both the client and Picsera an easy way of transferring files and monitoring progress. He discusses the requirements with Picsera, such as the number of photos they need to be delivered and the specific editing styles that need to be matched. He then provides Picera with some Lightroom presets that the editors can use to match his specific signature style. After a fruitful conversation, he was very pleased with how convenient Picsera made the workflow:
First, the photographer uploads all the images to Lightroom after the event using a Lightroom catalog template provided by Picsera. Picsera’s dedicated team of editors discusses the requirements with them, such as the number of photos they need to be delivered and the specific editing requirements. The editing team then picks the best shots from the files uploaded and uses a non-destructive editing technique using Lightroom. The chosen shots are color-corrected to match the photographer’s individual style. The best 15–20 shots are given priority to be edited and are placed in a folder called Social Media. Photographers can use this to immediately upload on their social media pages after an event. The finished wedding photos can be downloaded by the photographer from Picsera’s website in 4–7 days from the time the order is submitted.
Using a non-destructive way of Lightroom editing allows the photographers to take complete ownership of the pictures. The seamless workflow lets photographers and Picsera editors cooperate harmoniously as if they’re working as one team. Photographers still usually do some minor steps in Lightroom before they send the finished products to their clients. They can add or remove photos from the collection of images selected by Picsera and they can see all of the Lightroom Development Module changes for each photo. With this kind of process, they can still incorporate all their creative input, with less time and work.
The photographer was very excited with his first collaboration with Picsera because of the appealing rates that David offered him:
The table above is just an example of the pricing ranges you can expect when you work with Picsera. Each photographer has a different set of requirements every time, so David likes to take his time to discuss with the client all the specifics. Based on this, he can offer custom quotes favorable to the photographer.
THE RESULTS
Their photography business can now accommodate more than the usual on a monthly basis because of so much time they were able to free up. Working with Picsera increased their capacity, their popularity, and of course their revenue. He kept his original team and they managed well with just them without needing new in-house editors. Working with the best wedding photo editing company meant the in-house team could focus on creating albums and assisting with in-person sales sessions. Not only did he increase their capacity to accept clients, but he also had more personal time for his family than he ever had since starting his company. Editing time has been significantly reduced, from 8 hours after the wedding to just an amazing 1 hour, which already includes the time they need to upload all the files. Since editing took up several days or weeks of focused work, working with Picsera gave him the freedom to step back from his business every now and then and enjoy some quality time with the kids. They are now back to their normal routine of bonding over breakfast, movies, and some outdoor fun. Even his wife was thankful for finding Picsera right when they did because she was already feeling the lack of quality time from her spouse. Now, he has been more attentive to his wife and the family is happier than ever.
And because he had a better grip on his schedule, his clients are reaping the benefits. They now get their photos faster and the quality is still the same, even better. His signature photography style is still evident in every photo for every client. That’s what the best wedding photo editing company should be able to do: retain the original editing style and stay true to the photographer’s vision. Clients are raving on and on about how amazing his skills are and the service they have provided for the event. He and his team are never overworked, so they can attend to their clients with happy smiles and cheerful faces.
This case study with our professional photographer from Chicago proves that outsourcing isn’t only for the up and coming photography businesses. Each professional photographer has his or her own share of challenges in growing the business. This is why we made it our mission to cater to businesses of all sizes, to make sure that everyone in need of our services can thrive in their respective crafts.
Click here to get started with Picsera to get the same benefits this photographer from Chicago now enjoys.
