Today I don’t have any photo shoots planned. I’d love to tell you that I am taking the day off to eat bon bon’s and watch soap operas – but unfortunately that’s not in the cards! Even though there isn’t a session taking place today, it begs the question: what happens on days you aren’t shooting? Today we are delving into some of the less glamorous parts of running a photography business, but one’s that are important just the same!

What Happens on Days You Aren’t Shooting?

I love this pie graph from PetaPixel, it shows a (fairly accurate) representation of what people think we photographers do on the left, vs what we actually do on the right. While yes, it’s fun to take gorgeous pictures, travel to kick awesome locations, and party like a rockstar (which we do anyway!) – running a successful photography business involves so much more than that! We are breaking down where the time goes and talk about what happens on days you aren’t shooting for clients.

Editing Photos

This is probably where the majority of our time gets sucked up – chaining ourselves to the computer and working until our eyes start bleeding. Some people hate this part of the job, some people don’t mind it as much, but it’s a necessary evil and one that I actually don’t mind too much.

Marketing/Networking

This can be difficult for some people – especially if you tend to be more introverted. But marketing your business and networking with others in your field is imperative to growing a successful (and profitable) business! Where do you market your business?

Client Interactions

This includes anything related to working with the clients: getting ready for an in person meeting, driving to/from the photo shoot location, sending/answering emails, phone calls… communication in general. I’d rather send too much information than leave my clients with unanswered questions!

Client Orders

This is a broad topic as well and can cover everything from album design and production (so pretty when they’re finished!), ordering prints from the lab, ordering canvas prints, putting all those gorgeous images into pretty packaging, etc.

Legal Necessities

This is the not so fun part about owning a business, but is a necessary evil. Keeping tax records, licenses, professional dues, and banking information straight is SUPER important. Getting started might be difficult, but once you’ve done it a few times, keeping everything organized will seem like second nature.

Social Media/Blogging

Speaking from personal experience – this could take over your life… no joke! There are so many social media platforms that are available to us photographers, we really need to pick a few and devote the majority of our time and energy into those. As far as blogging goes, it doesn’t really matter how often you do it, just be consistent! I aim to blog 3-4 times a week, and (usually) we make that happen!

So the next time you wonder what happens on days you aren’t shooting, keep this list in mind!

Take Your Business to the Next Level!

If you are a photographer in need of business mentoring, I would love to help you out in your photographic journey! Fresh Look Photography offers private mentoring to help with any aspect of running your business, and we’d love to chat with you! Feel free to drop a comment below or click the { Contact Me } button and we will get rocking and rolling!