Am I being to cautious & sensible

step72

step72

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michael
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Hello everyone

Recently I've been asked if I would be interested in being the photographer for a nursery that's has 60 infants, as there normal photographer has retired, I've had a meeting with the owner of the nursery & asked a whole load of questions from that meeting I've come to the conclusion that its come 12 months to soon as I don't feel confident enough to deal with this type of booking

Then last week I was contacted by a officer in the army and he is asking for a price for me to cover the officer's Christmas party, this would be about 60 members with partners, the brief was to take a shot of each couple and then groups of 6, again I feel this has come to soon

I'm fine doing a few shoots in the comfort of my home but these would be a whole new ball game

As I said to soon I do t want to ruin my name even before I do get started ...... Or am I being silly?
 
Will you ever be ready? You have got to start somewhere.

How have they contacted you, word of mouth, advertising etc. If your advertising or recommended, sure you must feel ready?
 
Swanseajack said:
Will you ever be ready? You have got to start somewhere.

How have they contacted you, word of mouth, advertising etc. If your advertising or recommended, sure you must feel ready?
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It's all word of mouth no advertising yet
 
I will go against all the advice so far.... if your not confident in your own ability to do the job then you shouldnt be doing it... well not for money on a pro basis.. so wait until your confidence is up more then you wont let people down..


I can hear the boos and hisses from here :)
 
KIPAX said:
I will go against all the advice so far.... if your not confident in your own ability to do the job then you shouldnt be doing it... well not for money on a pro basis.. so wait until your confidence is up more then you wont let people down..


I can hear the boos and hisses from here :)
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I completely understand where your coming from
 
step72 said:
I completely understand where your coming from
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I didn't feel bad when I wrote it... i do now you have replied ..whats that about? :)

I have turned down jobs in the past for subject i ahve never photogrpahed before... for example I was asked to cover a horse race.. paid work.. I cant really afford to turn money away.. but I ahve never done a horse race before.. I could google and ask but that and doing are two different things. I couldnt take money for something i havent done before and wouldnt be able to give my best....... I have no idea of your photo history.. if you havent photogrpahed a nursary or a ..do ? that and your obvious lack of confidence I think would be a disaster... do some where theres no preassure and gian the confidence before you start getting paid.,. the difference between paid work and a favour or whatever is massive.. the preassue is miles bigger...
 
Balls to the above, if you've been contacted by word of mouth then your work must be good enough, if this is what you want to do then go for it.
The Army ones are good never shot one but been on the side many times.

Sometimes in life you are offered opportunities and if you don't take them you wont get another shot at them, these 2 gigs will not come around again (unless the people they get in instead of you are Arse)
 
I do a few shoots at my home in a garage type studio it's started to go outside of family so I've got myself liability insurance for piece of mind
Doing a few family shoots on my own patch is one thing but to go to a nursery/officer's mess where I could come up against all sorts of issues is a whole different ball game
My gut instant is saying walk away this time and when I feel ready go for it

Does that make sense
 
In your shoes I'd go for the nursery setup because you can go back and do it again if things go tits up....on the other hand the Christmas party is effluent or bust, there's no second chance.

Just MHO.

Bob
 
Didn't say it was, many people doubt themselves and their abilities and with that never push themselves (myself included in that) for your first gig at anything it is going to be hard and you are going to sweat over it, get stressed and have doubt. However if you know what you are doing, then stick to the basics The army one is especially a good starting point, everyone ive been to and had pics done is the same, black background 1/2 lights with a rim light and a formal shot (generally partners), if the brief is different then that needs to be taken into account.

However the nursery one is slightly more difficult IMO.
 
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Canon Bob said:
In your shoes I'd go for the nursery setup because you can go back and do it again if things go tits up....on the other hand the Christmas party is effluent or bust, there's no second chance.
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yes.. sensible solution IMHO :)
 
As someone that has experience of both nursery and Officers Mess shoots I would say you're right to both think carefully and take advice on them. From a purely simplistic viewpoint the Mess function is the easier to shoot - they ate all (allegedly) adults and will do what you ask of them .... at least until the alcohol flows :). As long as you have a suitable backdrop and lights it'll be no more difficult than what you're already doing.

The nursery, however, opens a whole raft of other issues. You'll need both PI and PL insurance and probably an extended CRB certificate (or whatever it's called this week). Before the know it all start on this, I know you don't actually need one but all of the nurseries I've dealt with demand it.

Aside from that it comes down to how you feel about dealing with young children. Can you pose them and keep their attention for the time you need to get the shots? Trust me, it ain't easy. I've got five grandkids and never mastered it :) How ate you at dealing with youngsters with ADHD or Autism or who are just unable to understand what you say to them?

These ate the intangibles that only you can answer. If it works right then it's mega rewarding but if it doesn't then it'll kill your confidence stone dead.

Just my opinions, of course, but based on practical experience. Take it or leave it :)
 
I'm not great at English grammar myself, but I do reckon that you need to improve on yours if you want the confidence to become a pro. Clients may be able to forgive some grammar mistakes, but to instead of too and there instead of their could be too much.
 
Bristolian said:
As someone that has experience of both nursery and Officers Mess shoots I would say you're right to both think carefully and take advice on them. From a purely simplistic viewpoint the Mess function is the easier to shoot - they ate all (allegedly) adults and will do what you ask of them .... at least until the alcohol flows :). As long as you have a suitable backdrop and lights it'll be no more difficult than what you're already doing.

The nursery, however, opens a whole raft of other issues. You'll need both PI and PL insurance and probably an extended CRB certificate (or whatever it's called this week). Before the know it all start on this, I know you don't actually need one but all of the nurseries I've dealt with demand it.

Aside from that it comes down to how you feel about dealing with young children. Can you pose them and keep their attention for the time you need to get the shots? Trust me, it ain't easy. I've got five grandkids and never mastered it :) How ate you at dealing with youngsters with ADHD or Autism or who are just unable to understand what you say to them?

These ate the intangibles that only you can answer. If it works right then it's mega rewarding but if it doesn't then it'll kill your confidence stone dead.

Just my opinions, of course, but based on practical experience. Take it or leave it :)
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Yep crb is required that's not a issue,my daughter is disabled and has severe learning difficulties and attends a special needs school that has a wide spectrum of children with different needs so yeah I understand just how difficult it is to communicate and very good point

I have to say its the nursery that bothers me the most
 
On the Huh said:
I'm not great at English grammar myself, but I do reckon that you need to improve on yours if you want the confidence to become a pro. Clients may be able to forgive some grammar mistakes, but to instead of too and there instead of their could be too much.
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I'm writing on a forum not to a client if I'd ask for advice on grammar then I would of stated so in the original post
 
Hey bud, I'm giving advice, take it or leave it, my intention is to be helpful. Why spell different on a forum than to a client any how?
 
On the Huh said:
Hey bud, I'm giving advice, take it or leave it, my intention is to be helpful. Why spell different on a forum than to a client any how?
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As ive stated this isn't about grammar so your advice isn't welcome
And just for the record I've had to deal with dyslexia and other learning issues all my life so to receive comments like that is of no use at all
 
OK! Apologies.

Back to your original question: You're just being silly.
 
Go for it,back when i started out their was no internet or forums,it was a matter of just jumping in, your confident will get better as you start :)
 
Technically, both jobs are simple - which means that all you're left with is your people skills.
The army guys will be helpful and good to deal with and you're a parent, so must know how to get kids smiling - so what could go wrong?
And even if something does go wrong, you'll learn from the mistakes, it isn't like a wedding where you can really b****r it up for someone
 
As I replied above you have got to start somewhere. And take at as massive confidience boost that youv'e beeen recomended.

After completing my carpentry apprenticeship, I went into manufacturing for the more regular income for 18 years or so. I was made redundant twice in a short period of time so I decided that I would then control my employment and went self employed back on the tools. I was lucky as I had a mate as a manager at Floors2go to help me start off.

It was worrying going into people houses and cutting away there door jams, using nail guns to fix scotia or skirting etc to go along with laying there laminate or wood floor... I then started to get more into fitting kitchens, bedrooms and tiling and other second fix carpentry. With this you had the danger of hitting pipes, electric cables etc....... and I was nervous at times, as you could completely mess sombodies house up if things go wrong.

What I'm trying to get at, the photography for the gigs you have got, your not going to completely going to mess somebodies personal space up, like there home.

With the children you can go back?, as this is going to be ongoing work and a regular income I think you should go for it. With the army pictures what are they going to do if they dont come out as planned, shoot you? It's just a photo at the end of the day (I understand the importance). As your taking the pics cant you wi-fi straight to a laptop to check how good they are, if not okay adjust settings and take again etc..............

Another thing you could do, is take a more experienced photographer with you if you know someone? I used to often double up on jobs which I wasn't sure with or needed the physical help, don't be afraid of asking.

A little long winded and I hope I got you to understand how I done things and my way of thinking. Be confident you can do it.
 
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Swanseajack said:
As I replied above you have got to start somewhere. And take at as massive confidience boost that youv'e beeen recomended.

After completing my carpentry apprenticeship, I went into manufacturing for the more regular income for 18 years or so. I was made redundant twice in a short period of time so I decided that I would then control my employment and went self employed back on the tools. I was lucky as I had a mate as a manger at Floors2go to help me start off.

It was worrying going into people houses and cutting away there door jams, using nail guns to fix scotia or skirting etc to go along with laying there laminate or wood floor... I then started to get more into fitting kitchens, bedrooms and tiling and other second fix carpentry. With this you had the danger of hitting pipes, electric cables etc....... and I was nervous at times, as you could completely mess sombodies house up if things go wrong.

What I'm trying to get at, the photography for the gigs you have got, your not going to completely going to mess somebodies personal space up, like there home.

With the children you can go back?, as this is going to be ongoing work and a regular income I think you should go for it. With the army pictures what are they going to do if they dont come out as planned, shoot you? It's just a photo at the end of the day (I understand the importance). As your taking the pics cant you wi-fi straight to a laptop to check how good they are, if not okay adjust settings and take again etc..............

Another thing you could do, is take a more experienced photographer with you if know someone? I used to often double up on jobs which I wasn't sure with or needed the physical help, don't be afraid of asking.

A little long winded and I hope I got you to understand how I done things and my way of thinking. Be confident you can do it.
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Completely understand where your coming from
Thanks for taking the time I really do appreciate it
 
Thanks everyone for your comments i really do appreciate it
 
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