I’m a Photographer- Why should I care about video?
Photography is the second most popular hobby in the World. After fishing.
That’s why the prefix ‘professional’ is often required before the word ‘photographer’. If your job is doing something that millions of other people choose to do for fun then the prefix is necessary (see ‘professional skateboarder and ‘professional chocolate taster’). Yes- you got into photography for the love of creating images, but the reason you can keep doing is is because you get paid. A point which many non-creatives miss is that being a freelance photographer is a job, just like being a civil engineer or a barber. Most of the work a photographer finds themselves doing doesn’t have them doing backflips with excitement, but they are what pay the bills and they sure beat working for the IRD or as a checkout operator. In this column we’re going to discuss what is probably the easiest way to start making more money immediately- shooting video.
Many photographers have taken up video as a new method of creative expression. Many more are adding ‘videographer’ or ‘DoP’ to their LinkedIn profiles in order to maximise profits from the clients they already have. This is no minor point- freelance photographers expend a lot of valuable time, effort and money on wooing new clients. The ability to offer a new service to existing clients is extremely efficient.
If you’ve had a look at the internet recently, you will have noticed that it is full of videos. The majority of these are not short films requiring large crews, lots of camera movements, a truck full of equipment and an expert editing team. They are ‘talking head’ interviews, catwalk videos, virtual tours etc. Basically moving photographs. Have a think about your clients and the content they may require. Whether they are in the business of selling houses or dresses, it’s likely they are already thinking about introducing video content.
If you’re an established photographer, you can easily book assistants who are experienced DSLR video camera operators who will take care of the technical aspects of your shoot. If you’re just starting out as a stills assistant, discuss the idea of shooting cool behind-the-scenes short videos with the photographers you are working with. They will make you look great, the photographer look great and the brand look great. Take a look at the behind the scenes videos on the Max Fashions website for examples.
There is a huge demand for video interviews against a clean, white background. These look great and, for a professional photographer with experience dealing with cameras, lighting and people they are a piece of cake to shoot and edit. If you have a studio lighting kit, you can simply use them as constant lights with the modelling bulbs to light your video. This means you have all of the light shaping tools such as beauty dishes, softboxes, reflectors etc at your disposal.
You will already have the camera, lenses and tripod needed to shoot an interview, the only thing missing is a microphone. Yes, your camera has built-in mics but they are awful. You’ll need to get hold of an external mic and fortunately, there are lots of simple and affordable options available to buy or hire such as the almost ubiquitous Zoom H4N Recorder or the Rode Shotgun mics. And that’s it. Spend two minutes watching the video tutorial we made on DSLR video settings and you’ll be set. With almost zero expenditure on equipment or time you can be offering (and billing) your clients a new and proven way of selling their product and promoting their brand.
Another growing market for video content is fashion retail. New Zealand is steadily catching up with Europe and the States with more people buying clothes online. More and more online stores feature not just look book / mannequin photographs on their websites but videos of a model walking a catwalk in the garment. This has become the standard on many online shops such as asos.com with customers being far more likely to purchase an item they have seen in motion. The hard statistics prove that the inclusion of video content increases customer engagement and drives sales. Video is a very easy sell to your clients- they just need to see the statistics for increased revenue for companies who are using still and video content across multiple platforms. The Google Think study at the end of this article is a good place to start.
While researching this article I came across the phenomenon of ‘haul’ videos. These are 10 to 15 minute videos made with a webcam where a teenager talks to his or her computer screen about a shopping trip. They talk about the shops they visited and show the clothes they bought. That is it. I made it through almost 2 minutes of a haul video by a 17 year old Californian called Beth (MacBarbie07) before skipping to the end searching for a point to the video. I know, you’re thinking the same as me – so far, so narcissistic and irrelevant. That’s until you look at the amount of YouTube followers Beth has – 3,260,637. Imagine a small country filled with girls, credit card in hand, hanging on every word Beth has to say about a cute pair of shorts she found in H&M. A Google study indicates that 4 out of 10 people who watch a haul video will physically visit a store talked about in the video.
So, how is a teenager talking about shopping relevant to your photography business? I personally know a large percentage of commercial photographers working in New Zealand so am certainly not suggesting you all start making webcam videos of yourselves in your bedrooms gushing about a sweater vest you bought for $14 from K-Mart as a way to generate more income. That would be horrible. If fashion retail makes up any part of your business, you should spend some time on Joyus.com which is a ‘video shopping destination’. Sort of a hybrid between a shop, a chat show, a magazine and an infomercial, Joyus is a window into the future of shopping. Scratch the glossy surface of the two-dimensional shopping BFF that is Joyus and you will find some very sound business sense. Unlike traditional advertising and marketing, the metrics for video content are completely quantifiable- Joyus statistics show that every 1,000 video views generates $470 to $930 in direct sales revenue for the products featured. The data shows that video is proven to convert visitors at 5.15 times the rate of those who only browse product listings. “Joyus video viewers also buy 4.9 times more than those who don’t watch the product videos.â€.
The figures speak for themselves. Perhaps it’s time to consider adding ‘video production’ to your business card.
Video Tutorials from Kingsize Studios
Film-Making for Photographers Workshop
Luke White wrote this article for Issue 197 of The Photographer’s Mail