life as a photographer friend

If u think that shooting for free or paying to shoot for your friend's event is good, think again. I always have pretty bad experiences shooting for free and paying to shoot as a photographer (ie. there is no reimbursement for transportation or meals).

Here are just some personal reasons,
1. More than often, the photos that you spent hours touching up, trying to rush them, forgoing dates, appointments with friends don't get appreciated. cause there isn't any value in it. When your clients doesn't spend a single cent on them, they do not see the value that you have captured. Some may think it is a nice shot but that only is just a fleeting moment. At the end of the day, they do not feel attached to the photo as much as they would need to pay for it.

2. You get smacked back into reality, your friends may just wanna use you as they think you take good photos and want to give you a chance to expand your portfolio by letting you have an opportunity in taking their wedding photos or events. These may just be the friends that would give you a small red packet say S$20/- that may just cover the cost of your taxi in the wee hours of the morning but not the trip back. More than often, they are the acquaintances than real friends. Will you receive a written thank you card or a date out after that photography shoot? I doubt so.

3. You get thrown left right up down all around during the photography assignment and need to be professional about it despite not doing it for any cent. Well, since you have offered your services, you just gotta stay cool and be professional about it.

4. Clients are clients. As much as a friend you want to be with them other than a photographer, I feel most clients would just want to maintain this client and service provider friendship. Imagine, if you are one of the highly commanded photographers, that would be a different story. Everyone wants a piece of you. Trying to be a friend to you and stuff like that. If you market yourself as one budding photographer that anyone can find in the streets, noone really wants to be interested in you except when can you deliver the photos.

5. You can't post the photos that you shoot. Enough said. so why shoot? cause he/she is your friend. how bout just one photo? no. period.

6. You did not capture a particular shot that they wanted. It actually doesn't matter if you were paid or not for this job but your client/friend was not happy with the photos that you given them. So how? Reshoot? Somehow, they forgotten that you were not paid in the first place.

7. You get branded as the shoot for free photographer which I'm sure it will be hard to break out of the name.

So why am I still shooting for free or paying to shoot? beats me. I just like to press the shutter and capturing that frame that I'm proud of. It doesn't matter whether I'm paid S$2,000 for a shoot or shooting for free. I give my all in each shoot.
That said, I have the luxury of choosing my shoots that I want to shoot each weekend. :)

cheers!