Shooting friends.

[ibcrewin]

A friend of mine got engaged a couple of months back and I offered to take

their engagement pictures. This was really my first time doing it and I found

it to be fun even thought it was a good amount of work. I gave them all the

pictures on a DVD unedited because I figured "ah what the heck it's for my

buddy" Anyway, when I went to the engagement party which was a pretty big

affair, I noticed they had blown up a few of my pictures. The prints looked

horrible, they were over saturated and were completely manipulated. While I was

happy they used my pictures I was kinda pissed they looked so bad.

 

Anyway, I got them this salad spinner thing for an engagement gift. What is

your opinion on what happened and do you think I should have just got them a

nice print in a nice frame? Thanks. Ivan

[jennifer valencia]

If you're giving people pics on DVD, I think you have to get used to seeing awful renditions of your beautiful work. :) I've had this happen, too.

 

When I do portrait shoots, part of my package is to provide digital copies of the pics on disc, and I give them a release form stating that they have the right to alter/edit/copy/display (but not sell or profit from) the pictures. This of course means they can do any kind of hideous mumbo-jumbo that they want!

 

A few months ago, I did a portrait shoot for a fmaily with some adorable kids, and the pics turned out lovely. I gave them the pics on disc with instructions on how/where to get them printed.

 

A few days later, the grandma, who lives near me, called me across the street: "Look what we did! Isn't it LOVELY?" she exclaimed, showing me a highly saturated and pointillistic version of my favorite photo. Someone had clearly gone into Photoshop and had a little spree.

 

I politely said that it was very creative, even though I secretly thought it was the ugliest thing I'd seen in a long time. And I sincerely hope they don't show THAT version of the photo to friends and family, b/c I doubt it will get me new clients!

 

But it's part of the deal, I think, if you provide digital pictures to people. I'm OK with it -- people have their own styles and tastes. And I'm sure to put my "good" versions on my web site.

 

Maybe you could ask your friend to send out YOUR web site address to party guests, in case they want to get copies of pictures? Obviously the real reason to send the website is so they can see your REAL work (and maybe hire you!).

 

good luck!

Jennifer

[ibcrewin]

Oh man.. That stinks. I think sending a link to my original pics IS definitely a good idea! Thanks.

[bill_b2]

Next time, let your friends select from pictures that are the keeper possibilities from the shoot, and then give them some prints(Let them do the framing, which is an interior design issue). People will think of the final shots as yours, regardless of who printed them, so make sure they are good.

 

If they are not close enough friends to do this, don't volunteer.

[em1310]

Yep, it's happened to me...

I did a shoot of all the grandkids for the grandmothers 85th birthday. It included a group photo with portraits of each grandkid. Anyway, I didn't deal with the photos, just like yhou gave them the DVD to print the images.

At the party, I saw the album with all the pictures... They had a cyan color cast on all of them. One was so hideous I was shaking me head. And like you they had blown up the family shot and it was the ugliest thing.

 

Everytime I go to the Grandmothers house I want to rip the family shot from the wall and run with it like superman... and reprint and put it back ... before they notice i have even left

[david_schilling___chicago_]

Let's see,.....has there been anyone on the forum that has suggested that when you shoot for family/friends that things can get a little or alot weird? :-)

 

My experience is that some people will value your work and some won't, many will fall somewhere in between. If you simply turn over undeveloped rolls of film or unedited digital files, then that speaks to how much you value your work. I don't release anything that hasn't been tweaked, culled, and edited.

[wedding-photography-denver]

"

David Schilling - Chicago, Illinois Photo.net Patron, jul 11, 2006; 01:12 p.m.

Let's see,.....has there been anyone on the forum that has suggested that when you shoot for family/friends that things can get a little or alot weird? :-)

 

My experience is that some people will value your work and some won't, many will fall somewhere in between. If you simply turn over undeveloped rolls of film or unedited digital files, then that speaks to how much you value your work. I don't release anything that hasn't been tweaked, culled, and edited."

 

Ditto.

[think27]

I have done quite a few weddings for family and friends and the experience has been wonderful. I always charge "cost" and just a little above cost for time for post work and I'm very clear about what they can and can not do. I do this as a gift and never had a problem.

 

I think it just makes sense to protect your final product and make sure they know your standards and boundries.

[conraderb]

Ivan - forget the salad spinnger thing. if you show them a good print in a nice frame, they will realize how bad their print is.

[kari douma]

I did baby portraits for a friend early in my career as a gift. She didn't want to pay pro lab prices to develop the film, so I just handed it over and let her go. She took it to the local 1 hour photo Pharmacy. Later when I called her to ask her how they were, she hesitated and said "I think your lighting was off. The pictures are kind of green." Well, of course I knew what happened, it was bad printing. I talked her into letting me take them to a pro lab and reprint a few. She agreed and was pleasently surprised that I didn't "mess up the lighting". That was the VERY LAST TIME I will turn over a file to anyone. Even if friends or family ask, I tell them the story, and tell them that I am very careful in my printing. I either don't charge them at all and just give them prints that they want, or give it to them for cost. (Although sometimes I'd rather just give it to them, because I don't want them to know what my cost actually is.) But it was then that I realized that I don't want anyone to think that I did a bad job becasue of a bad print job.

[patrick_viebey___orlando__]

You will always see lots of defects in your pictures. If the customer (in this case, your friend) is happy, isn't that what you were looking for?

 

But, yeah, giving the raw images to the uneducated can yield unpleasant results.

[jurmellies]

I am really not a fan of delivering files on CD/DVD...call me oldfashioned...I'm a photographer, I deliver photographs (in print)...period! I want to have total control over the output, for me thats the final print.

[laurenm]

Thanks Ivan, you just answered a question I've been asking myself about what to do with a friend's files. Now I will definitely give them prints even if I do include a cd/dvd. Also, for the other friends and family at the wedding, instead of emailing them the files, I will have them order prints online from my lab at just over cost as Mary suggested.

 

I guess even if you didn't want to print them all, a few large ones would show what they SHOULD look like.

[savagesax]

Tell them that the cd/dvd has a special binary code called GATESvirus to be used only at your pro studio. All other labs will not be able to print high quality prints and also the cd/dvd will be damaged and self distruct in 24 hours unless they bring it back to you!!!

 

Probably won't work, but you will get a good laugh out of it!