I'm often told that brides do all their research online and communicate with photographers only by email. And that it's normal to book a photographer based on such minimal interaction: "Stephen it's no use. They just want a price. It's all about the deal, so I just give them one and hope." I don't believe it. Or at least, I don't believe it's the only possibility. I wasn't going to start these posts this way, but maybe a simple response to this challenge is useful, something you can use immediately. Anyway, here's how I would reply. Rewrite it in your own words of course, but I hope it helps engage To View More >>

You might remember a post called "the secret life of wedding photographers" on ISPWP a few years ago. Apparently photographers lead a great life – you get to spend your time taking pictures, travelling to exotic locations and partying like rockstars! Of course the sad reality is often quite different. This fertile little meme has got a lot more airtime recently because APE and now Seth Godin have posted about it. As always, Seth's post is well worth the read. He makes the point that everyone has a choice: get together the "guts and resources" too do what you were born to do, or spend your time To View More >>

It's been a busy year for Queensberry. We've made some minor changes to our classic albums, but the big news has been the launch of Musée and the Queensberry Press. We're big believers in the principle of "Good Better Best" as a way to tempt your clients' wallets and aspirations, and these new ranges reflect that. Beautiful as they are, we understand that our albums are a luxury for most people. The Queensberry Press isn't about albums, however, but books. Books have their own strengths — they can hold more images, they're as comfortable with text as with pictures — but part of their appeal To View More >>

Many photographers include albums in their wedding packages but you'd never know it! On their websites they'll say they sell them - they may even say how much they cost - but they won't actually show what they look like. We strongly believe that to be successful you need to show people what you want them to buy. Sarah Vivienne from the UK is someone who does a great job of it. These photos are from her blog: On her blog Sarah photographs and discusses her albums with detailed product shots and insight into the design process. I recently spoke with her and this is what she had to say: "I find To View More >>

Are you showing people what you want them to buy? I'll bet you're not. This is important, and so simple... Why does the "business you" want to sell albums? Because they're a surefire way to create extra income from two scarce resources - your time and your wedding bookings. I just got off skype from a photographer complaining because she can't sell albums. Wants to … but can't. But look at her website, or almost any photographers' website, and how many albums do you see? Almost none. How many photographers are showing what they (want to) sell? Almost none. So what's the difference between them To View More >>