Bits of Data: Holiday Portraits - Box Stores Vs the Underdog

Think you are saving money by getting your portraits done at any of the bigger box store portrait departments?

I recently looked at Walmart, Sears and Yuen Lui before I started to get the flow. They are all in the same neighborhood in terms of pricing. At least in the “hook” price.

Here are some of the advertised prices you can find with these bigger studio stores.

“Over 30 portraits for $7.99”

“Portrait Package $7.99”

“$39.95 for session and an 8x10”

Now we all want to save money. No doubt. Some family’s get their portraits done every year because every year the children are growing older and sometimes parents wish to catalogue these changes for future viewing.

But are they really saving money going to these box store studios?

I can’t nor won’t speak for every major department store’s portrait studio in terms of cost or quality. I will say that the lighting of the shoot is usually the same throughout. The camera is usually mounted on a tripod and the photographer rarely if ever moves the camera.

What you get are well lit portraits that are just plain boring. But here’s the real dig. The fine print is that most of the “photographers” are really salesmen who want to sell you a package. The package that will end up costing you $300-400 or more depending on your needs and/or wants.

The fine print is “yes we will take 30 portraits of you – 30 frames and charge you $7.99 for it and if you’d like a copy of the prints it will cost you X amount". A digital disc can run over $100.

I haven’t run across freelance guys like myself who promote their services this way. I’ve seen a few recently that say, “portrait sessions, 2 hour minimum, X photos = $200” or some such.

That’s right, the little guy, the free lance, the one-man photography studio might just be able to save you more money.

Let’s look at some pros and cons.

Using your local PROFESSIONAL photographer

Will usually tell you upfront what your money will buy
Will offer in studio or on location shots
Will vary the lighting (usually)
Will get you professionally printed shots

The potential drawbacks:

One man shows are just that and when things go wrong, such as the photographer can’t make the appointment for whatever reason, you will have to reschedule. That can suck if you just got your hair done.

Your photographer might be limited in backdrops or lighting accessories. Hey most one man shows don’t own 30 backdrops.
Your one man show might have a SMALL studio, because it’s in his or her basement, living room, etc.

Box Store Studio Comparisons

Upside:

Someone will be there to take your photo. If you made the appointment it will happen. They usually have a couple of people who are able to stand in and click buttons.
It’s in a room large enough to be called a studio, not a basement. That’s got to account for something right?

Downside:

That hook to get you in the door for $7.99 because you wanted to save money might actually mean paying MORE than visiting your local photographer because they won’t release the OTHER photos they took at the time of the session unless you pay for them.
They got you to come to them through deceptive advertising. Face it, you won’t walk out of there paying $7.99 or whatever astronomically low fee they painted in their window or on their website. They will try to “upsell” you a package which may cost anywhere from $100 for barebones to $500 or more for deluxe.
They usually won’t change the lighting or angles. Headshots can sometimes be done on a tripod but how boring to have the whole shoot on a tripod!! Your Christmas photos should have some pizzazz, some life to them. This isn’t the 1970’s where family photos were just plain BORING!

Alright, enough said. You know where I stand. We as photographers who are trying to make a living are the underdogs (not to mention being underbid by amateurs who suddenly think their pro cam can replicate the knowledge inside the professional's head). There are plenty of great wedding photographers who more so now than 10-15 years ago get underbid by the "cousin, uncle, or nephew" with the pro cam who's never shot a wedding and specializes in macro photography.

If we are ethical then we don’t try to deceptively lure in families for $7.99 and then try to upsell them. I don't like that as a customer, and I definitely wouldn’t be imposing that on MY customers.

So what to look for in a free lance photographer who will shoot your holiday portraits?

Qualifications

He or she would likely have a portfolio. You would be able to see this before making any commitment.
He or she would give you the upfront cost for your portrait session and what that includes in terms of prints or whether or not you get a digital copy of the photos, etc. Everyone wants to upload photos to their Facebook right?
He or she would have an ample sized studio, whether it is a living room or basement but which can facilitate the delivery of the product YOU want.
The prints would be printed by a professional lab such as MPIX or any of the other reputable online photo labs. This would guarantee the BEST quality print.
He or she would have a contract signed prior to starting which defines the terms of the shoot, the costs, etc. which YOU get a copy of and which ultimately ends up protecting YOU and the photographer in terms of guaranteeing some pay for delivery of a product.

Choosing a photographer isn’t a hard thing to do. It’s best to give the underdog a chance. One last thing. The underdog, the private photographer who wants to do your holiday portraits will often try harder than the box store competition to give you the BEST. Because let’s face it, MANY will be lured in by the promise of $7.99 and it’s hard to compete with deceptive BIG stores.

One last thing: How many Box stores will let you bring a shotgun to your holiday shoot? =)