Don’t be the Uncle Bob of Your Own Business…
Posted on November 20, 2009 by Christine | 3 Comments
So you’re a professional photographer, right? And if someone shows up to your wedding, portrait session, whatever and whips out the fancy camera they just bought at Best Buy or Amazon and starts firing away, you’re probably going to be thinking to your self something along the lines of, “Awww… how cute. But my photos will be much better because I’ve got mad skillz at photography, YO!”
(What? You don’t talk to yourself like some bad-ass photo rapper? Well, whatever. I do. Run with it.)
The point is, you know what you’re doing. You know your skill set, and the long hard hours that it took of practice to get to where you are at. And 99% of the time, your photos will be better because of it. Sure, there is always the one person that is just kind of a natural that will show you up, but they won’t know how to deal with a tricky lighting situation or how to balance flash with ambient light, so whatever. YOU are the SUPERSTAR!!!
So why the heck are you designing your own logo? Your own business material? Trying to create your own website or blog from the ground up from scratch?
How is that any different then the person that dropped $1500-3000 to have a camera as fancy as yours? They are not an expert.
Yes, you’re artistic and creative. But that doesn’t mean you know all the ins and outs of what makes a graphic design truly sing, or that you should spend hours and hours learning CSS and how to code HTML, PHP and smoosh it all into a awesome blog.
You’re a photographer (or a wedding planner, a cake artist, a caterer – whatever you are) — not a graphic designer or a website developer. Know what you’re good at. Hire someone else to do the rest. Leave it to the experts.
It is the same thing you expect of your clients every single day.
Oh, In case you were wondering – Uncle Bob: Definition, and what you usually get. Don’t do that to your business.
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- You’re Fancy!
Tags: Business Blogs | photography business | small business | Uncle Bob | wedding photography | wedding vendors
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Hi! I'm Christine. I've been blogging here since 2000. I am married to Mike. I have a son, Jason. We have a cat, Mona. We live in Houston, Texas.
I love helping other photographers and other small business owners improve their businesses. Most of my posts here are related to that, although sometimes I write about personal things as well.
I am currently available for business & blogging consulting and assisting you with WordPress. Contact me for more details.
I am a wedding and boudoir photographer and I'm available both in Houston and for travel worldwide. I would love to be a part of your wedding!
You can buy prints of my photography.
In addition to photography and geek things, I sometimes knit. I even used to have a knitting podcast, PointySticks.
November 23rd, 2009 @ 10:50 am
Ha! I’ve never heard the “Uncle Bob” term before, but I like it! Now, what do you call a close family friend that doesn’t want to be a wedding photographer, but somehow got suckered into it anyway? Because that’s what I am. Apparently I’m shooting the wedding reception of some friends next Fall. To say I am woefully unprepared is an understatement.
January 4th, 2010 @ 9:23 am
Nice and informative blog having valuable information, the term “Uncle Bob” I have never heard before, all the photographers can learn much more from the post, very nice and excellent, keep the chin up. waiting for next post.
January 23rd, 2010 @ 11:45 am
I totally agree with getting people to do the work you either don’t have time for or don’t have the skill set for.
I know what I can and can’t do. Its so easy in this day and age to outsource work.
A lot of places like India and Phillipines can do fantastic work and a REALLY great price. It took me a while to find some good people/companies but now I wouldn’t part with them for anything!