For those 8 months since I’ve quit from my job and became a self-employed photographer (most of all, interior photographer), that means I don’t spray myself for any other activities besides of photography – since then, I face very often with the fact that every person makes his own sense in the meaning of quality photography.
No, I don’t mind at all that all the people are different and everyone has own possibilities (first of all, financial one), every person earns his money the way he can, and so on, and on, etc. But… how could I put it mildly? I am dejected by the very low bar of inquiries from the vast majority of potential customers and, at the same time, blatant illiteracy of so many competitors. I will explain.
Nobody doubts that advertisement is the engine of the trade. In the case of real estate, restaurants, hotels, bars, cafes, country clubs, camp sites and others, i.e. all those who meet clients with the interiors – obviously that interior photography is that “locomotive of the trade”. The same about construction companies, real estate agencies, and ordinary people who decided to rent or sell their apartments.
So, why most of them are satisfied with frankly lousy pictures? Photos made with a phone, with falling verticals and angled horizon, with unpleasant yellowish, greenish or violet shades of artificial light? For instance, nobody will appear on business meeting dressed in a crumpled, dirty and foul-smelling suit even it has a Hugo Boss label! Honestly, I’m at a loss!
Now, about the competitors. A huge bunch of them appeared lately. The proudly screaming on their websites that you’re really lucky to meet them because only they can make high quality photos of your property. They’re a team of real professionals! Moreover, they are quite earnestly (and right I should admit) describing all the cons of your own attempts of interior photography and the pros of referring to a specialist. But the problem is that they have images in their portfolio that I can only call as a frank hackwork. Especially considering the money their customers pay them. (By the way, one of them is the very respectable hotel in the center of Saint-Petersburg! But be quiet, do not tell anyone! 🙂 ).
I don’t mean that I’m a mentor who wants to teach anyone, no. I’m just a conscientious and responsible professional interior photographer, in love with his work. Michael Bulgakov wrote great words: “My dear heart, that is nonsense! Second freshness – that’s what is nonsense! There is only one freshness – the first – and it also the last. And if sturgeon is of the second freshness, that means it is simply rotten”. The same with the interior photography: even if the photos made with the professional camera and then during the post processing the colors and light were corrected but the walls kept falling or being arched, like a barrel, or the horizon is angled – such photos are the hackwork! And call it quality is nonsense!
Well, I threw out my indignation. 🙂 I hope so much that this text will help you in your search of an interior photographer who does his work truly high quality and without cheating. By the way, if you interested in work with me, you can connect me via e-mail: photodenischurin@gmail.com.
And as an example of really good photo made by all the rules of the interior photography here’s one of my latest work: