Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

 I recently did a shoot for Automotive News.  This black Corvette ZR1 was the car that was being featured.

The Chevy Corvette is an iconic car, so it is always fun to have a chance to shoot one.

Orcatek Automotive Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Looking toward the future - Maternity

B&W is one of my favorite styles as a photographer for creating maternity photographs. I like how the shadows and light play across the pregnant belly. I call this one "Looking towards the future" as she looks off to the distance thinking about how her life will be with her new baby.

Orcatek Maternity Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Pin-up - Samantha of Bewitched

I used to love the classic sitcom, Bewitched. So this gave me the idea to create a pin-up photograph based upon the show intro. Alex looked like Samantha so the idea came together as I was working on her shoot. Grab a broom and some extra Photoshop and tada!

Orcatek Pin-up Photographer - Phoenix, Arizona

Groupon Killing Photography?

Are Groupon and sites like it killing the photography business? Sadly I believe so in a number of ways.

First off, many photographers are not working through the math of a deal. A typical deal seen for photography will be something like:

1 Hour Portrait Session, Two 8x10's, CD of proofs, regular price $400, our special price $99! A savings of 75%.

The discount companies like prices under $100, so they tell the photographer it needs to be this cheap.

The photographer gets 50% minus fees typically. But to keep it simple the photographer gets $50 for each shoot. They sell 200 of them. Sounds great a check comes for about $10,000. Wow! Looks even better at first. $10,000 in sales for one month. Of course the photographer now needs to pay the sales tax as the discount site doesn't collect it. In my location that's 10% off the sale. Still not bad $9,000 left.

Then reality starts to set it. 200 shoots will take at least 600 man-hours between shooting, retouching, printing, scheduling, delivering etc. At 40 hours a week it will take almost 4 months. I've seen these deals say 500+ deals so a photographer could fill their entire year. Of course a larger studio can split the load and do it in less calendar days, but it is still a lot of hours.

I have talked to photographers that have done it and heard some pretty scary stories. One actually gave a deal that without an up-sell, they actually lost money on. Not sure how they are going to make out, as they are still working through the mess they created.

Now some photographers say they will not give a deal like that, but the discount companies will show you that's the deal they have given in the past and it is expected. So many photographers, especially newer photographer feel they should do it too. After all XYZ sold 300 of these deals. That means 300 new customers yippee!

Now the idea is the photographer will up-sell the buyers to make it profitable. This increases the time spent with clients, but payback is good if you can sell. The issue being that these clients are taking this deal because they don't spend or cannot spend a lot for photography. So up-sells will be smaller than your typical client and fewer will ever buy anything more than the deal.

Of course one of ideas used to persuade the photographer that this is good for business is that it gets their name out to huge numbers of potential clients.

This the the bigger reason that these deals sites are bad for photography. The clients on the deals sites are price sensitive. They are always looking for a deal and a way to save money. In today's economy that's easy to understand.

This client shops by price, not by quality. Sure they won't buy total crap, but they will take good enough. And they know that a photography deal will come soon enough by another photographer sucked into the idea, so no need to go back to the company they saw a while back.

But even if they do remember the company. What do they remember? They remember a company that would do their portraits for $99. So in their minds the value of these portraits is now $99. Not only is the company that placed the advertisement devalued by this, but other photographers as well. The clients think if Company A can do it for this $99, Company B should too. Anybody who doesn't is overcharging.

I actually overheard a conversation at lunch the other day which brought this to light. Two woman were discussing gets some photos done and I was about to walk over and introduce myself when the third said. "I'm on Groupon and a bunch of other discount sites and you can get your photos done for $99 by a really good photographer, I see this deal all the time. Don't waste your money paying full price." She then went on to tell her that she would let her know when she see's the next one as they happen all the time and how she got her family portrait done for just $99. She explained how they tried to get her to buy more, but she was smart and just took the print and scanned it to make more. They nodded in agreement. She showed it to them on her iPhone.

So photographers think long and hard about these discount sites and the impact they will have on business long term. First it fills your calendar with low margin clients and second it devalues photography services. Seller beware!

Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Published Again - Yippee

I had some more of my photos published in a national magazine this week. The magazine is called College Gentleman. I shot a number of very sexy boudoir style photos for the magazine. Here are a few samples.






Tasteful Boudoir Photography by Orcatek - Phoenix, Arizona

Pin-up Girl

One of the Phoenix Pin-up dolls from our group shoot this past weekend.




Pin-up By Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Self Portraits - the toughest assignment - Orcatek - Part II

In an earlier post I talked about trying to shoot a self portrait. Well I finally got one I liked.

The hardest part is getting a photograph that looks relaxed. It is easy to see how important it is to have a good rapport with people so they can be relaxed in their photographs.

Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Cover College Gentleman Magazine

One of my recent shoots for College Gentleman Magazine. I shot the cover and poster girl for this issue.

I give my clients the same magazine level shoots for their boudoir photography sessions as every woman should be a covergirl.

Orcatek Boudoir Photography - Phoenix

Show a little, and still be sexy

I have always said that great boudoir photgraphy is not about what you show, but what you don't. For a picture to be really sexy the imagination needs to be used. This is an example of just that.

Take a boudoir photography workshop

Orcatek Boudoir Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

More Pin-up this week

This week I had the chance to have some more fun shooting some pin-up photography.

I really find that everyone has a great time creating this images.




Take a pin-up photography workshop

Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Telephone Pin-up

This past week I shot a lot of pin-up. This shot is one that I really liked. Classic pose with a telephone.

Take a pin-up photography workshop

Orcatek Pin-up Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Pin-up Time

Pin-up is a popular style of boudoir photography. This past week one of my favorite sessions created this photograph. Her dad a wonderful classic car which she brought to the studio for her shoot.

Take a pin-up photography workshop

Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Model Portfolio on Location

When creating a model portfolio a combination of shots from both the studio and location are needed. The location images help to show how the model can work in a variety of settings and provide some diversity in looks. After all, more work tends to be done on location than in the studio.



Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Fine Art Nude Shapes

I like to work with shapes and lines when I do my fine art nude photography. This is from a recent workshop.

Take a Fine Art Nude Photography Workshop

Orcatek Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Old style Glamour

Sometimes a client wants you to create an image in a certain style. This time it was an old style glamour look. She loved the final result, it was just how she wanted it to look.



Orcatek Boudoir and Glamour Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Baby on Board

I had a fun shoot this week shoot some maternity shots of Jessica. She was so excited about the baby she is having. Of course I made sure to get plenty of shots that really showed off her belly.

Jessica loved the proofs and her selections made an amazing memory book.

Orcatek Maternity and Pregnancy Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

B&W Bath

Here is a shot from a boudoir photography shoot that I did the other day. Sometimes I find that B&W white is just the way to go with a shot. It just seems a tad more sexy in B&W for this photograph.

As a photographer it is always a challenge to decide how to finish an image. I always have a pretty good idea of what I want when shooting, but sometimes I find another direction more interesting.



Orcatek Boudoir Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Maternity Photography - Play with light

I always look for a new way to photograph my maternity clients so their pregnancy photography book will have a wide variety of photographs. I want each spread in the book to create its own mood.



This time I felt like using one of the techniques I use in fashion, a strong directional light to create shadows and shapes. I really wanted the shadow on the floor showing off the shape of the future mom.

Orcatek Maternity and Pregnancy Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Bridal Boudoir - Fun with Mirrors

I always love to shoot bridal boudoir. Add some mirrors to the mix and I am a very happy photographer.

Brides to be are always glowing with excitement, making the shoot extra fun. And knowing that I am helping to create a gift for her new husband that he will remember for a very long time makes the shoot all the more important.



This shoot shot is a perfect example what fun can be had with mirrors during a bridal boudoir photography session. This one ended up as one of the key images in the album that was created as a gift for the groom.

Orcatek Boudoir Photography - Phoenix, Arizona

Make it a Boudoir Valentines

When Valentines Day approaches, boudoir photographs make a popular gift. It is a gift that he will remember for a very long time. Remember it takes time to retouch and print your photographs, so be sure to book early.






Orcatek Boudoir and Glamour Photography - Phoenix, Arizona