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Charr Crail has been working professionally for 25 years, and is based out of California. She has spent the better part of her career as a photojournalist, specializing in editorial, portraiture, digital illustration and commercial/corporate work. Her work has been published world-wide, and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, LA Times, and many more.
In our discussion, we talk about Charr’s successful photography career, and also touch on some practical tips that our listening audience can apply to their own photography businesses regarding marketing, as well as just running a successful photoshoot.
I want to give a huge thank you to Charr for taking the time to chat with us! I consider myself as much a student as the listening audience, and appreciate her sharing her extensive knowledge.
“If you don’t see light, you don’t get a picture.”
Top 3 Tips From the Interview:
1. A photo shoot is essentially a collaboration between you and your subject.
This is especially true with portrait photography. You bring your skills and equipment as the photographer, and your client brings the other important half: their unique self, which includes their look, personality, and quirks. Get to know them, collaborate with them, and help their uniqueness shine in your photography of them.
2. Consider keeping in touch with your past clients through a non-pushy newsletter.
This is a great way to indirectly keep in touch with them without being pushy or desperate. Through a newsletter, you can keep them on top of your latest activity and any specials you may be running. Charr also likes to include a call-to-action at the end of each of her newsletters so that people have a way of contacting her to book a shoot if they so choose.
MailChimp and Aweber are two great newsletter tools. MailChimp is free, while Aweber is not. However, Aweber offers more functionality, is generally the next step up for small businesses.
3. Understand what your client needs.
Don’t just assume you know. When a client books a wedding or portrait session with you, it’s a no-brainer that they want wedding or portrait photos. However, they usually have a specific expectation that you’re going to deliver certain types of shots, or a certain style of photography. Make sure to have a discussion with them on what their expectations are. Thoroughly Understand the end result they want, and don’t be afraid to ask specific questions before the shoot so that there are absolutely no misunderstandings afterwards.
Charr Can Be Found At:
» CharrCrail.org: Here you will find Charr’s teaching and digital imaging photography workshop information.
» CharrCrail.com: Explore Charr’s online portfolio.
Charr’s Recommended Resources
» Adobe Photoshop: The go-to editing software for many photographers.
» Creative Live: Great online classes for the creative mind.
» YouTube.com: Great for finding inspirational and how-to videos.