The Successful Professional Photographer

A quick scan of the author’s qualifications convinced me that Valenzuela can teach us how to be successful professionals. He has written six books, and is a member of the Canon Explorers of Light group, teachers courses, and practices the commercial trade of photography. Of course, before he was a photographer he was a professional concert classical guitarist, wouldn’t you know 🙂 The first section of this most interesting book tells us how to stand out in what we know to be a vast crowd of digital photographers. Of course, if we are to succeed, we must indeed stand out! He advises us on how to best use Instagram to our professional advantage including how to use hashtags. Who knew there was that much value in how you use hashtags? This is all so interesting as well as useful.

The chapter on how to make a successful YouTube videos was likewise informative and fun to read. I enjoy his advice that it’s OK to dress casually, but you need also always look professional. I dressed the same way in my work life so it’s not surprising we do the same for YouTube! Valenzuela’s section on how to attract and keep clients has advice I’ve not seen elsewhere and, as is the rest of this book, was a pleasure to read. He reminds us that our clients are intelligent beings and deserve creative and thoughtful small talk. Questions about the weather are boring, asking whether they found the office OK is goofy because they are they are. Instead, the author suggests we compliment them on some option for the shoot that they chose, or on something they are wearing. In other words, don’t do the usual thing — personalize your chit-chat.

Toward the end of the book the author spends a lot of time on what seems to me a complete and creative discussion of how to price and how to sell your services. I have read in many places that, to do a wedding shoot, you should always have an assistant or second photographer just in case. He strongly advises us to include the cost of that assistant in the pricing of the wedding so that we don’t pay it out of our own pockets. He also discusses what those costs might be.

Valenzuela makes it clear he is not in it to gouge customers. He says there is enough money to be made from even the lowest tier pricing so that we do not need to focus only on higher end jobs and clients. As a human and potential client, I was touched to read that section:).

I had never heard the term “anchored collection” but it was interesting. You make multiple offers to your client of various collections they could choose among, anchoring the choices with a very inexpensive one and then an expensive one at the top, with other options in between. Makes sense for both the client and the photographer.

The author spends a lot of time going into great detail for beginning professionals and I believe a reader would come away well prepared to jump into the photography business. Valenzuela doesn’t appear to be hiding any secrets from us and lays it out so that you have a path to be a successful professional. This would be an indispensable manual for anyone going into the photography business.