I never thought I could teach someone else anything. I never thought I would be able to put into words how I felt about photography or how to achieve a certain outcome. And I still might not do that perfectly. But I want to try. I went to college for photography and had the amazing experience of working with a professor that encouraged me, pushed me, challenged me, tested me, critiqued me when I thought I was awesome and fully supports me as an artist. Yes, he still does because we still keep in touch!
I admire him and want to offer that feeling to other artists. I want other photographers to know what it feels like to work one-on-one with someone already doing something they want to do. I have found that is the best way to learn anything. Take advice from people in the shoes you want to own. I do this myself and love it. Trial and error is a heck of a way to learn and it does the job, but being able to hear about the good and the bad before it happens also has it’s perks!
I often receive emails asking about different topics related to either running a photography business, creating the type of photography I do, what vendors I use to print with, why I use certain equipment, how to process images in Photoshop… the list goes on. More recently I’ve been getting contacted about interning with me, shadowing me on shoots or 1:1 mentoring. I couldn’t feel more excited about being reached out to for information, but the debate that I struggle with is, where do you draw the line of offering too much information and for free? Many photographers blog a ton of great information about everything from how to use manual mode to how to do your taxes for a small business – I personally love reading about this information on blogs when I come across it. But I have also spent years learning this stuff myself – going to college, working in a darkroom, taking business courses, attending workshops. I invest in my own education because I love soaking up information about what I’m doing and it makes me a better business person and artist. I knew that I wanted to offer information to other photographers, but I didn’t want to do it randomly over my blog or in emails. I wanted it to become part of my business, possibly part of my brand. What I really want to offer is in-person and hands on. I want to offer a service of knowledge by experience. And I don’t want to offer everything I have learned, experienced and researched for free. It’s a simple truth. This is my business. And so I have incorporated mentoring and portfolio building into my business to help you grow yours!
I started offering 1:1 mentoring sessions last year after a handful of high school students showed interest in learning how to take photographs like mine. Mostly from girls that looked up to me and felt that they could see this as being a passion for them as well. I then started getting emails from other photographers in the business looking for tips on how to maintain a growing business and change their image up. Who am I to give advice though? Who am I to even address that you might need to change something or learn something new? But once I let it sink in and really looked at why they were asking, I was honored and humbled. Maybe I had more to offer than just taking a pretty picture. And so I jumped in last year with just a few mentoring sessions that were probably all a hot mess. This year I want to do more. And without the hot mess part!
I do want to address what I do and don’t offer. Randomly answering emails or Facebook messages takes time away from my business (which is what pays my bills) and my home life. And as much as I don’t mind answering a question here or there, offering an entire explanation about how to address business taxes for example, is a different story. (and then never get a thank you for it, tisk tisk) I will be addressing photography related questions and situations here, so if I find that I keep getting asked similar questions, it just may become a topic!
Taking on an intern is not a good fit for me right now. I am a small business – just little ol me – and I can’t say I would have anything for you to do. I love shooting, I love editing, I love working with my clients. I am still at that stage where I love it all and want to do it all myself, despite being somewhat overwhelmed and overworked. I also feel that I am very much my brand and sending someone else out to do what I do in place of me is not what I am offering at this time. This may change in the future and I totally welcome all inquiries!
Bringing a shadow photographer on a shoot with me is not my style. I think this is a cool way to learn, but it’s not what I offer to the people who are hiring me. Because my sessions are very fast paced and a very personal connection is built during that time, my clients need to know that I am only there for them and they are my main focus. I never want my client to feel like I am also teaching someone else while I am working with them. In every aspect of what I do, I am one-on-one and personal. This goes for both photography clients and mentoring clients. If I was hired to mentor a photographer, I doubt they would like me to also be shooting a client’s session for free and taking their time to do that. I always want to focus on one thing and one client at a time.
I offer a few different options for mentoring and portfolio building – to the budding student photographer that is just barely out of high school, to the intro business photographer that just wants to nail down the questions they have and to the new face on the block that wants to start her modeling career. Yes, I offer model building portfolios that include mentoring in how to get stared. And I am planning some specific PDF downloads that address working strategies for me – such as how to use Facebook to contact senior clients and get your rep program working.
Mentoring sessions are broken down into 3 hour sections and build in information as we go, but you can certainly pack them all into one day and learn it all at once like at a workshop! These start at $350.00 and include travel and a model to work with! Model portfolio building is a bit more complex, so please contact me for details! nicole@nicolepfeifferphotography.com
What are some topics you have questions about?
by Nicole Pfeiffer
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