Vickie, my lovely bride, suggested for the subject of my next blog I chat about something scary! Of course, she made this suggestion at the first of the month… a Halloween theme for October. I hope I can put some thoughts down and get it proofed in time to make the month of October. We will see, but the theme is a good one.

Scary

In photography, for me one of the scariest sentences I hear is, “We’ve never done it that way before!” Of course, this statement most of the time comes at the end of meeting that starts with them saying, “It can’t be done! We should call Mike.”

My Process

Most of the time, it starts with that call, in which the opening statement was, “It can’t be done! So we’re calling you.” Okay, what can’t be done? They define the desired outcome. Then using old school photographic theory and adding in Photoshop, I design a process to achieve their desired outcome. (Simple, until I have to order a crane or some other needed equipment like a generator.)

My process also takes into consideration time restraints, lighting, color balance, ambient lighting, motion, required digital quality for printing or electronic delivery, privacy and other potential legal issues. In short, I design for why it cannot be done and once I overcome the issues, I’m left with how it can be accomplished. It is at this time I hear, “We’ve never done it that way before!” I just want to shake my head and say “SO!?” or “of course not, that’s why they said it couldn’t be done, because you never did it this way before”. Both of these statements would be grossly condescending, so my normal response is, “I understand that. That is why I 100% guarantee my work. You have zero risk of loss.”

Most of the time my 100% guarantee gives the client the confidence to try something new, and that’s when the WOW factor comes.