Do you ever have one of those moments where you truly think you may have outdone yourself? Could be in your profession or in your hobby or anything that you're doing. And maybe not so much that you have outdone yourself but possibly just amazed yourself at what you were capable of. Well that's how I was about this particular capture.
I had been trying to crack into the world of senior photos for quite a while. Yes, it's a competitive market, but pretty much any aspect of photography is. Especially when there are so many GWCs out there selling false goods to people who have lowered expectations. But I personally had a lot of ideas that I couldn't wait to use on young seniors that were up for up for it. It was just a matter of getting my name out there. That was no easy task to begin with.
Before this shoot, I had done a few senior sessions here and there so I would have samples to show people of what I could do. I would always get the same response: "Thanks for the info...we'll let you know". 9 times out of 10 when I hear that, I never hear back from the people again. I guess that could technically be considered a form of rejection? I never let it get to me though. It's just the nature of the business. I just keep plugging away and save up those ideas for when I am able to pull in some senior business.
Kalob's mother had been in talks with me for a few weeks leading up to the session. I could tell from the onset that she was genuinely interested in following through as opposed to some of the aforementioned people. Sure enough she fully committed and everything was a go. I asked her about her son's hobbies, sports, etc, and baseball was one that came up. This concept was something I had in my head for a while but never able to fully materialize it. Even when I explained it to her, I couldn't describe it enough to give it justice.
The easy part about this capture was getting the shots themselves. It involved two different shots of Kalob: one done by a regular brick wall...the other done in studio on a black background. Looking back on it, I meant to actually have one of them looking the opposite direction as opposed both the same way like you see here. A small oversight on my part but I think it still works regardless.
The real work started when it came time to edit. Even with as much as I know about Lightroom and Photoshop, I realize that I am probably still only using the tip of the iceberg. Additionally, some of trickier things I do know I use so infrequently that I have to often refresh myself on how to do them properly. So the whole process of having Kalob's own image superimposed on the brick wall while fading into his other self was a challenge. Photoshop experts could look at this and probably immediately think of an easier way to accomplish it than I did. One that didn't involve a couple (maybe even few) hours of researching and editing. But that's the only way we learn and make ourselves better is by putting in that kind of work.
Once it was all said and done, I had an image that I knew would be the perfect mouthpiece for advertising to lure in more senior photos. I made sure to prominently feature it when I was soliciting senior photo business. I even went through the trouble of getting a 30x20 print of it to display at a tradeshow where I was promoting my business. So did it work? Well since Kalob's senior session I still haven't had a single senior photo session. Not one. Oh, there have been a few of those "Thanks for the info..we'll let you know" people, but no commitments. See...told you it was a tough niche to crack into.
WOW...that is beautiful...thought it was done at the Negro Baseball League Museum here in KCMO upon first glance. Hope you crack that market and really give the seniors their moment in the spotlight, senior pictures are generally valued by all and especially parents...most of the photos are standard and repetitive...your work is so SO much better.
Posted by: Auntie | 12 December 2013 at 08:05 PM
Thanks Auntie!
Posted by: Stan | 15 December 2013 at 11:17 AM