How to Start Photography Business

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

How to Start Photography Business

Photography is employed in many fields of science, manufacturing and business, as well as its more direct uses for art, recreational purposes, and mass communication. A home-based photography business can provide steady revenue and requires relatively low start-up and operating costs. Moreover, it allows the freedom to work in different areas. "As a home-based photographer, you can work on a broad range of subject areas, from fashion, portraits, underwater, weddings, product photography and others," according to the Power Home Biz website.

Photography Business Instruction:

Step 1

Estimate start-up costs. Price cameras, lights, tripods, props, background canvasses, light meters and digital photography software. If necessary, apply for a loan — you can get a small business micro loan through an approved Small Business Administration lender. Micro loans are under $35,000 and repayable over six years. As an alternative, borrow the money from your retirement account or a friend.

Step 2

Structure your home-based photography business. Form a sole proprietorship, registering your business' fictitious name, if you use one, with the state or county clerk. Also, apply for a state ID number from your state's department of revenue.

Step 3

Purchase insurance for your home-based photography business. Contact a local licensed insurance agent and ask what products you should have as coverage; he will likely recommend liability insurance because clients will be visiting your home.

Step 4

Determine your pricing. Examine other local photographers' rates by visiting their websites, and price your rates competitively. You can also contact newspapers and magazines to ask what the going freelance rate is to help you price your services.

Step 5

Market your home-based photography business. Create and publish a website and distribute flyers to local schools, churches and clubs. Also, distribute literature to local professional offices, as many businesses hang photos of owners and managers in their offices. In addition, create social networking profiles and send out updates and special promotion announcements. Use your website to publish your portfolio and link any new work to your social network profiles.

Business License

To start a home-based photography business most cities require a valid business license. Requirements for obtaining a business license vary based on local ordinances. For example, in the city of Sandy Springs, Georgia, a home-based photography business must apply for a business license at city hall. In addition, if the business owner resides in an apartment or condominium, she must obtain a notarized letter from the apartment’s management or condominium owner granting her permission to operate in the apartment. Applicants also pay a non-refundable application fee and the city zoning board must approve the application. Most banks require a business license to open a business bank account.

Business Insurance

A home-based photography business must carry business insurance. Basic insurance coverage for a home-based photography business includes comprehensive general liability coverage, theft and damage coverage and business property content coverage. Comprehensive general liability coverage covers bodily injury and property damage for which the photographer is legally liable. Theft and damage coverage and business property content coverage covers the photographer's photo equipment and home-based office equipment.

Marketing Materials

Even without a large budget, a home-based photography business must market itself. A website and business cards comprise basic marketing materials for the home-based photography business. A photographer’s website must showcase the photographer’s work and provide an easy method to contact the photographer. Essential website elements include contact name and phone number, email address and in some cases -- typically non-commercial photography -- the ability to purchase photographs directly from the website.

Camera Equipment

Equipment needs vary based on the kind of photography services provided. Wedding and portrait photographers often require studio lighting and/or portable strobes and lightweight cameras. Architectural photographers typically use larger-format cameras that have the ability to tilt/shift the lens plane, and sports photographers require cameras that have a fast frame-rate and the ability to use long focal length lenses with wide apertures. The right equipment helps the photographer shoot more efficiently and leads to better results.

Computer Equipment

The majority of professional photographers use digital camera equipment to capture images. Digital images get uploaded to a computer for further manipulation after capture. Digital image files range in size from a few megabytes to very large files that can reach almost a gigabyte in size. The software used to manipulate digital images also requires extensive amounts of computer memory. Computers used for digital image management need extensive amounts of memory and hard drive space to accommodate these requirements.

References

1 comment:

UnknownJune 15, 2015 at 8:55 AM
I was 35 and I'm starting to build my small business here in our hometown, that's why I'm starting to browse or look for more stunning business ideas that can probably help me with this. I want my small business comes with unique and effective ideas. I hope to hear it from you. Anyways, I loved those ideas you've shared. Thanks!
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Easy Tips and Ideas to Start Business

Although anyone can start a business, many people fail because of a bad product or improper research. If you want to start your own business, you can improve your chances for success before you even begin. In order to make your business successful, start strong and make sure that your idea will hold out for the long haul.

Have a Good Product

Ensure that you plan to sell something useful. Although you may think that your product is important or special, that doesn't mean the general public will agree. Ask friends, family and strangers what they think of your product. If they don't seem that interested, ask them why. With their suggestions, you can either improve the product or scrap the idea completely. According to Brad Sugars of Entrepreneur magazine, most small businesses fail because they sold a product that didn't have an adequate market. This also applies to small businesses that provide a service. A lawn-care business might be useful for part of the year in a northern state, but it is in-demand year-round in the south. Consider whether people will actually want to use your service and get constructive advice from those not afraid to give their opinion.

Research Local Businesses

Research local companies before starting up your own business. This will not only give you an idea of the amount of competition you will have, but it will also help you price your product or service. If you're looking to start a wedding photography business, you may find during your research that the market is over-saturated in your area. If not over-saturated, you should contact each business and ask them for a price list. Alter your prices so you can stay competitive with the competition in town. Researching similar local businesses will also help you decide where to locate your business location. Try not to start up a store or office close to another business of your type. If your small business is located away from similar business types, this will cause locals to choose you over businesses that are farther away from where they live.

Get Professional Advice

You may know someone who has started their own successful business. Ask him for advice and listen to his stories of how he started his company. You may gain useful advice on the good and bad ways to start a business. Local entrepreneurs can also introduce you to local product providers or advertisers that you may not have met without their help. Accept any advice with open arms, especially if the advice is coming from someone successful in the area.

How to Calculate Business Start Up Costs

Starting a business in no easy endeavor. It takes a great deal of research, perseverance and hard work. While sweat equity will make your small business more successful, you will most likely need real capital to get the business started. Before you start raising capital and/or investing your own funds, the first thing you need to do is determine the total start-up costs.

Step 1

Determine your costs of sales. For most small businesses this means inventory, the cost of raw materials, manufacturing equipment, shipping, packaging, and warehousing. However, not all businesses sell products. In this case, the cost of sales is primarily the direct labor involved in making the sale. For example, to open a small shoe business entails purchasing enough inventory ($10,000) to stock the store.

Step 2

Determine professional fees. Planning your business structure, i.e., limited liability corporation or general partnership, means hiring an attorney. There may also be the need to pay an attorney for help with establishing trademarks, copyrights, and patents. In this scenario, that puts total professional fees at an estimated $20,000.

Step 3

Determine technology costs. Technology can greatly reduce the cost of labor for small business if used effectively. Most small businesses require computers, printers, cell phones, website development, Internet access, software applications, information security, data storage, and outsourced information technology (IT) consulting. If the cost of technology is $10,000 to start, add an additional $5,000 a year for maintenance (hint: maintenance is not included in start-up costs).

Step 4

Determine administrative costs. This varies with business types and may include items such as business insurance, office supplies, product packaging, parking, rent, express shipping, desks, chairs, fax machines, phones, or anything else necessary to operate the business daily. A good estimate for start-up administrative costs would be $5,000 for the first six months.

Step 5

Determine initial sales and marketing costs. Now that you have your product, you need to let folks know about it. Sales and marketing costs generally include marketing materials for presentations, printing stationery, business cards, advertising, trade show events, and public relations. These initial sales and marketing costs can add up to $3,000.

Step 6

Determine the wages and benefits needed to secure a staff. This includes employee salaries, benefits, workers compensation, and payroll taxes. Let's put the cost of wages and benefits estimated at $20,000 for the first three months of business.

Step 7

Add all costs associated with starting the business for a total. Be sure to only include business start-up costs that will be incurred in the first three to six months of operations. For this example, the calculation is: $10,000 + $20,000 + $10,000 + $5,000 + $3,000 + $20,000 = $68,000.

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Tuesday, March 31, 2015