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This week I am changing how I price my portrait sessions for families and children.  I’m getting rid of the upfront session fee and replacing it with an upload/Print credit fee.  What that means is that there is no charge to schedule your session and for me to take your pictures.

How it works -

You schedule a session, we meet and I take your pictures.

A week-ish after the session, I will show you a collection 30 or so photos.  If you want the collection then you pay an upload fee and I will upload the photos to a private gallery for you.  If you don’t like the photos, then we shake hands and thank each other for our time.

And to make things even more appealing, the upload fee will include a print coupon and web-ready files.   You will have prints for your house or for gifts and digital copies for use on on facebook, blogs, emails and mobile phones.

I’m calling this my stress free pricing.  There is no risk to you (minus an hour or so of your time).  The pressure is placed entirely on me to deliver interesting and captivating photographs.

My initial pricing is $300 for upload fee and you receive a $300 print credit.

My hope is that this will help people who have been thinking about hiring a professional photographer take the plunge.  I went into this business because I love having quality photographs in my house and I believe that every family should have their own as well.

I also want to encourage people to use me for everyday moments.  Let me tag along with your family as you go for a walk in your neighborhood or play with your playgroup.  I know from experience that there are amazing photographs to be found with a block or two of your house.  Since there are no upfront fees, if you don’t like the photographs, you have wasted nothing.  But there is a very good chance that you will get a series of photographs that capture something very special about your child and/or family and where you live.

* What if I just want digital files like for a head shot or an engagement announcement? I will replace the print credits with 3 digital.  With these files, you receive rights to print up to 8x10s for personal use.

*  How do I schedule this? – with the contact from on the website.

*  Can I reschedule? Yes – but since there is no initial charge, I will charge a $100 reschedule fee after the second reschedule.  Basically, something comes up once, no problem.  Something comes up twice, I’ll work with you m but I need you to show you are really interested.  I’ll apply that $100 to your purchase.

*  Can I combine multiple sessions? You mean you like a few of the photos but not all of them and you want to do a second session to get more.  Sorry but no – that would leave me open to shooting any number of sessions for the price of one.  That would be be stressful for me and not qualify as stress free pricing.

*  When can I do this – I generally shoot Wednesday through Sunday.  With this approach, we could easily try a mid day session just to see what happens.  You wouldn’t want to take that risk when paying up front.

*  How will I see the photos? – I’ll meet you and show you them on my laptop.  Once you say yes, I’ll upload them to an private online gallery and send you the link.

*  Do I need to buy prints when you show me the photos? No- all you need to decide at  the initial showing is “yes-you want the collection and you’ll pay the upload fee” or “No – I don’t think the photos are worth that money”  You have as much time to order the prints as you like (but you do get a discount if you order them within a week).

*  What if I want to show my partner/husband/wife/etc first? Then have everyone at the showing.  But my thought is that one person can decide “yes, we will like to buy some prints” and then go home to further discuss exactly which prints to order.

*  What if I can’t decide? Then its a no – honestly if you aren’t “oh yeah – give me those photos now” then I don’t want them out in the world.

*  What happens to the photos if I say I don’t want them? I file them in the trash bin.

*  How long do you plan to take this approach? Until I can think of something better.