Thoughts & Info
How Things Have Changed
We live in a digital world. There's no denying it has changed the way we do things and even the way things are perceived – including photography.
We are constantly bombarded with images in the real world and online. Endless photos are captured using devices now common to everyone, not just a select few. Is photography appreciated as much as it once was? Have our senses been so inundated with outstanding (and dare I say overdone) imagery that we can no longer enjoy it in a meaningful way? Have we bought into the idea that because an image is digital it should be cheap or even free? Can you really put a price on a photograph?
It's hard to put a price on an image, but what really matters is how much an image is valued by somebody.
It's helpful to remember that when you hire a photographer you are paying for their time, their skill, their vision and their experience. You will also pay for the images they produce for you, whether they be in digital form or printed products. You are paying for a service and a product.
Photos of someone else's family might get an appreciative glance from you for their visual appeal, but their value to you personally is virtually nothing. Photos of your own loved ones are priceless.
When considering whether it's worth your while paying a photographer for photos of your family, think about how much you value top quality images over every day snap shots and phone photos. Not everybody will come to the same conclusion on this. That's ok. (I love taking phone photos. It's convenient and fun. I also love that I can capture superb quality pics of my kids on a full frame DSLR; the image quality is amazing!) What would you like to be able to hand down to the generations to come?
On Digital Files vs Printing
There are a lot of people out there who don't back up their family photos. Are you one of them? The reality: you are much more likely to have a hard drive fail or lose a computer than you are to experience a house fire (what a horrible thought!) and lose all those old prints and negatives you have got stashed away.
Your data is not safe. If you buy digital photos, the very first thing you should do is back them up. Then back them up again to a difference device. Then back them up again (yes I'm repeating myself) to a different location. Eg. cloud backup. Then you are protecting against hardware failure as well as a disaster.
Another way to ensure longevity of your favourite photos is high quality printing. I still remember the feeling I used to get when I would go to the shops to pick up a roll of film that was in for processing. The feeling of flipping through them to see them for the first time. I miss that.
Now that I can see my photos instantly, the closest I get to that feeling is when I see an image on the back of the camera and know straight away that 'I got the shot'. Then I can't wait to see it large on the computer screen. But it's never quite the same as it used to be. Seeing it in a large print would be even better; imagine seeing your favourite photos covering the walls of your home and being able to enjoy them over and over without having to sit in front of a computer or other device. A great image can be enjoyed in its full impact when it is enlarged. Photo books are another great option. They can be held and enjoyed over and over by you and visitors to your home.
I encourage you to print your photos, display and enjoy them.