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“But why do the prints cost so much?”

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Another classic from the “Tales of the Clueless..”

A couple of years ago I did some photos for someone at a bodybuilding competition. They liked the shots and bought quite a few prints. Then a friend of theirs who was in the same competition approached me and said ‘any chance of a copy of the pics which had me in?’ I said sure, no problem and game them a copy of my price list, to which they replied “How much??!! If I take them in Tesco they only charge 30p a print!”

So, I politely suggested that they should take their shots into Tesco and get them printed. Oh, but apparently the shots their girlfriend took on her compact camera ‘came out shit’ and mine were ‘loads better’.

Err, well DUH!

Here’s the bottom line: You’re not paying for the 50p it takes to print a photo onto a piece of paper. You’re buying a copy of a piece of art, produced by a professional photographer. You’re paying for the fact I’ve got nearly ten grands worth of gear in my bag and it’s taken me years to learn how to use it properly.

It’s not just pressing a button, it’s knowing which button to press..

I don’t do ‘snaps’..

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Normally an invitation to a party or other such event is something to look forward to, but sadly as a photographer it’s becoming all too regular to receive an invite, often out of the blue and from someone you wouldn’t normally expect to receive one from that’s worded something like:

“Hey Rich, hope you’re well. We’re having a party on such and such a day, hope you can make it!”

Great! I think, that’ll be fun. Then you see the next bit..

“Don’t forget to bring your camera, we’d love to get some good snaps!”

Ahh, so that’s why you’re inviting me then. Because you actually want a professional photographer, but you just don’t want to pay for one.!

Well thanks for the invite, but the only time I take ‘snaps’ is when I’m on holiday, or I happen to spot something that I’d like to remember for later.  If you want me to take photos for your event then that’s a job, not a invitation to a party.

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There’s an old tale about Picasso that goes something like this:

Picasso was in a park when a woman approached him and asked him to draw a portrait of her. Picasso agreed and quickly sketches her. After handing the sketch to her, she is pleased with the likeness and asks how much she owed to him. Picasso replied £5,000.

The woman screamed, “but it took you only five minutes”.

“No, madam, it took me all my life,” replied Picasso.

I wonder what sort of reaction you’d get if you invited your friend the electrician to your birthday and said “oh, don’t forget your tools, my shower is on the frizz”. Perhaps next time you have a barbecue you could invite a friend who’s a mechanic and ask them to service your car for free while they’re there too?

So yeah thanks for the invite, I’d love to come, but I’ll leave the camera at home thanks :)

 

 

Practice Makes Perfect…

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For me, one of the most satisfying aspects of being a teacher is when I see a student making real progress. That’s why it’s especially nice when I get repeat bookings for training as then I can see how they are putting their new skills into practice and then help to take them futher forward still.

[frame_right src=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/GayGilmourTrainingDay-0262-240×300.jpg” href=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/GayGilmourTrainingDay-0262.jpg” rel=’gallery’]Gay Gilmour[/frame_right]I had a great day out today with one of my regular students, the very lovely Gay Gilmour who’s making excellent progress over the past month or so.

As she’s been out with me a couple of times recently I thought I’d step it up a notch or two today and put her in a rather more challenging setting to get her out of her comfort zone a little. Suffice to say she more than rose to the challenge and came back with a super set of photos. Well over 50 really good shots a dozen or more that would look great in a portfolio.

At the rate she’s going we’ll get her up to Royal Society standard soon (shh.. don’t tell her I said that, it’s a SECRET ;-)

Here’s a small selection of Gay’s shots from today..

[button size=”small” href=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/training/gaygilmour/” bg_color=”#aaaaaa” text_color=”#ffffff”]Gay Gilmour’s Training Gallery[/button]

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A busy week of training..

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Over the past week I’ve had three new clients for my one-to-one training days, and what a cracking week we had with all three of them taking their photography forwards in leaps and bounds.

I’ll put up a gallery of some of the students work soon, but in the meantime here are a couple of the comments they said afterwards:

[frame_right src=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/GayGilmourTrainingDay-0262-240×300.jpg” href=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/GayGilmourTrainingDay-0262.jpg” rel=’gallery’]Gay Gilmour[/frame_right]
[quote]Hi Richard, I had a really inspiring educational day out and about with you yesterday. It has boosted my photographic confidence, taught me a lot and I can’t wait to continue further. Thanks for all your expertise, encouragement and patience[/quote]


[frame_right src=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/MikeLowe-0578-200×300.jpg” href=”http://www.richardolpin.co.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/MikeLowe-0578.jpg” rel=’gallery’]Mike Lowe[/frame_right]
[quote]Thanks… I really had a great time, learnt alot and hopefully with practice the things I learned will become second nature.[/quote]


I’ve got several more clients lined up for the next few weeks but still have a few slots available. If you’re interested please take a look on the training pages and get in touch asap!