5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before You Book Your First Wedding

Wedding photography can be difficult. If you are about to shoot your very first wedding, or even just starting to consider getting into the huge industry of weddings, remember that is can be a tough job. Your very first shoot that you ever do is important and before you commit to photographing one of the most important days in a couple's life, you want to ask yourself a few questions to make sure you are totally ready. 

Photo credit: Chung Li Photography

Are your photography skills ready?

Sometimes this question can be hard for some photographers. You may be able to shoot portraits wonderfully or have always been able to capture a beautiful sunset but capturing all the photos you need to at a wedding requires a few other skills. 

You must be organized and good at logistics and staying on schedule. A wedding is a schedule... everything is in order and set to happen at a certain time. Sometimes that schedule gets pushed back for various reasons like weather, or someone who is running late. You also have to be able to work well with other people. You will be coming across many different personalities, some who are nervous, anxious or stressed, and you need to be able to work with each one easily and get the job done no matter what. A wedding is pretty intense and you may feel a lot of pressure to get exactly what the couple is looking for so being relaxed and able to go with the flow is a great skill to have. 

Do you need help?

It is hard for one photographer to capture everything you need to at a large wedding. Having a second shooter or an assistant to be another set of eyes is a great idea. While you are off taking photos of the bridal party and the newlyweds, your assistant can be in the reception capturing photos of the little details and guests. Even while people are dancing and having fun, it is good to have someone focused on the bride and groom and still know that other things happening are not being missed. 

It is important to find someone who you know you can work well with. Like we said before, a wedding is a stressful and tense event and very fast moving, so working together is imperative. Be sure to read this article on 3 things to think about when you are considering hiring a second shooter. 

What should you charge?

If you have never photographed a wedding before, you may not really know what you should charge the couple. You can not price yourself out of the market, but you also do not want to price yourself so low that you do not make any profit.

To decide on your price, try to determine what the entire wedding day will cost you in your time spend, travel to and from the event, any equipment you may need to buy or rent, and even the cost of a second shooter. Also remember insurance you need and meals you bought that day while working. If you still need a little help, this article "How Much You Should Really Be Charging For Your Photography" may help you out!  

Also be sure to check out 3 Tips To Pricing Your Wedding Photography Packages To Sell.

Photo credit: Wild Bunch Weddings

Do you have the right gear?

You do not have to have the most expensive camera on the market to take great photos but you do need to make sure you are ready with the equipment and tools you need to shoot and entire wedding day. You need to have a tripod in case it is needed. You also want to make sure you have extras of everything just in case something breaks. Think about extra lenses, memory cards, extra lighting if you think you will need it. It is also good thinking to have an extra camera as backup. We know that sometimes the cost is hard to have a second one... but what if your camera decides to stop working right in the middle of the bride and grooms first dance? What will you do for the entire rest of the wedding if you do not have a backup? It could be disastrous. 

Is my insurance in order?

You need to have insurance if you own any business. Something can always go wrong, and sometimes things can go terribly wrong and you want to make sure you have insurance to help if needed. Some of your equipment could get damaged or you or your second shooter could get injured somehow. If this happens, insurance is necessary. Many venues - especially those very high-end ones- will not even let you work on their premises if you can not provide proof of insurance. 

Here are a few other wedding photography related articles that you may enjoy:

• 4 Tips To Photographing An Amazing First Look Wedding Shoot
• 2 Great Ways To Pose Couples 

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If you liked these 3 tips, there are SO MANY more offered in this 76-page guide, "The Business of Wedding Photography." You can get it for only $149.99!! What a great value for such valuable business tips. 

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5 Great Locations To Find People To Photograph

Taking photos of people can be pretty exciting. Whether you are finding new people that you have never met or you are simply snapping great candid shots among your own group of family and friends, it is amazing what you can get when your photos are not posed. When you pay attention and look close enough, you can find people laughing, having fun, exploring, traveling or just deep in thought and the photos can be stunning. 

There are many places you can find where people gather together so today we wanted to share with you a few locations where you can find these people. In order to find people to photograph, take your camera and get out there and explore. It is even good practice to take your camera with you wherever you go, because you never know what or who you will find along the way. You never what type of photos you will get, some that may help you earn some profit.

Here are 5 places you can find people to photograph that we found on Photography Talk. 

1. Street Fairs, Festivals and Markets

Every city has its own special events, street fairs and markets that are perfect to find people and families of all ages. Typically these types of events have tons of colorful things to capture, such as local vendors selling produce, products they have made and more. 

2. Cultural Events

Everyone loves to celebrate culture whether it is something like Cinco De Mayo or Shakespeare. These festivals are some of the best to find people enjoying themselves, dancing and having a good time. The event could include cultural dancing, people in unique costumes, live music and even sword fighting.

Photo credit: David via Flickr of Market Square in San Antonio, Texas. 

3. Public Beaches

Who doesn't love going to the beach? When there is sun, sand and cool ocean waves, you are bound to find tons of people kicking back to relax and have a little fun. This could be a great place to capture people surfing or kiteboarding. You could see fisherman or even children excited at catching their first fish. People may be walking their dog or playing frisbee. You will find people lying out in the sun and reading.... the possibilities of what you could capture go on and on at the beach.

4. Sports Events

Sports fans can be fun to photograph no matter the sport. Try to stay back and not get in people's faces during the game, because you could be asked to leave if you are interfering with other people's enjoyment of the sport. You will be able to capture people decked out in team colors with face paint, funny hats and more. 

Photo credit: The Sports Fan Journal

5. Conferences

Conferences are full of people that you can photograph. It could be the speaker at the event or even a group of people at the conference having a meeting together. It is good practice to reach out the conference beforehand to find out what restrictions they have for photographers... you may even want to register as a photographer for that specific conference. If you get some great shots of some of the speakers and other things that take place, it could be a good money maker for you if the conference wants to buy some of your work for their marketing materials.  

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5 Food Photography Tips... So It Looks As Good As It Smells

Food can look so tempting... and the best food photography just urges you to eat it! If you are taking photos of food, there are a few tips and tricks you will want to remember to be sure you are capturing it to look as good as it smells. 

1. Think About The Background

The background of the photo is pretty important because you want to make sure that the delicious seafood or steak you are capturing is truly the center of attention. If the background of the photo is very busy with a bunch going on, it could take away from the food. Find a spot with a solid color placemat or wood table that does not have any patterns. You also want to think about the color and style of the plate or bowl your food is being put on. Make sure the color is a good contrast from the food being displayed. You also want to make sure there is not any stray silverware (except what is needed for your dish of course), napkins or even people that show up in the shot. 

Photo credit: Serious Eats

2. Natural Light

It is always best to use natural light whenever you can. Try to find a nice place to shoot that is by a window to get the best light possible. If you can not find a place near natural light, it is best to stay away from using your flash. A flash tends to be a bit too harsh for food. 

3. Move Around

Take photos of the food from every angle you can. Take photos from the side, from above and even at an angle from below. You never know what photo angle will turn out the best so moving around and capturing every way you can is not a bad idea. But, even though you are moving around and using different angles, make sure your camera is totally still. You may even want to think about using a tripod. 

Photo credit: Pinterest

4. Use Your Zoom

Get as close as you can to the food with your zoom. Try and fill the entire frame with the food... if that is the focus of the shot, why not show it off as close to the deliciousness as you can? Most cameras have a macro setting that would be great to use. 

5. Keep An Eye Out For Those Little Details

You do not want to spend tons of time shooting a savoring piece of chocolate cake and then realize that there was a little chocolate sauce smeared on the side of the plate. And remember those little extra details that will make it look even more tempting... like if you are shooting a refreshing picture of freshly squeezed lemonade, having a small plate of lemons next to it may add that something extra to the photo. 

We hope these tips have been helpful for you! If you loved these, here are a few other posts you should check out:

• 4 Tips To Photographing An Amazing First Look Wedding Shoot
• 3 Tips To Remember When Photographing Newborn Photos
• 4 Great Photography Tips For Beginners

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If learning is something that you want to be sure to do this year, we have tons of great guides you can easily buy and download about so many aspects of photography. Are you a new photographer that is not sure if you want to actually start a business or not? Wondering what all it takes to start your own photography business? How To Start Your Photography Business would be the perfect guide for you. For $149.99, read this 133 page guide that will tell you everything you need to know about how to get your business started, marketing, getting a web presence, and business planning. 

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3 Unique Places To Find High School Senior Clients

Taking portraits of upcoming high school seniors can be so rewarding. They are so happy for their senior year and all the excitement of what they have planned for their future awaits them. Pretty much every family wants their child to have senior portraits taken, so we know that it is a HUGE market for photographers. With that said, photography has become such a popular industry, that you really have to market yourself as best as you can to stand out among all the competition you have in your city. 

This guide "How To Get High School Senior Clients - Marketing Tell All" is the perfect eBook to give you all the tips and tricks you need to find great clients to help boost your business and stay on top of your competitors. So how do you find high school senior clients? One great way to find clients is by looking and marketing in places you may not have thought of (and that your competitors may not have thought of). 

Photo credit: Stephanie Pana Photography

Today, we are going to give you 3 unique places to find high school senior clients that you may not have thought about. These places come straight from this eBook... enjoy! 

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1. Orthodontist Offices

Most of the patients that come to an orthodontist office are teenagers which makes it a great place to leave your marketing materials. Perhaps you have a flier you could leave for people to pick up with a business card that offers a $50 discount or a free print or some other type of deal. 

2.   School Programs

Any type of school program that is going on of course is a wonderful place to find clients. Perhaps it is at the school of one of your children, or if you just find out when local schools are having their sports events, chorus shows and more. It is a great place to have fliers handy to leave for people to pick up or just pass out and talk to people. You could even reach out to the school to see if you can buy an advertisement in the sports football program so every single person that picks up one over the season will see your company.

Photo credit: SD Photographs

3. Visit Recreation Centers or Leagues In Your City

Many cities or towns have their own recreation centers that city residents can join that has a gym, classes for children and adults, a pool, and more. Typically, these recreation centers are a much better deal than a gym and they are an excellent place to connect with local residents. These recreation centers also often have sports leagues for school age kids. It is a perfect idea to place fliers for your business at every recreation center or go pass them out at the recreation league sports games. 

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These are 3 great places to find high school senior clients that you should be utilizing! This guide offers many more and so many other great tips! Learn where the best places to advertise are or who you should really reach out to when you are looking for students. It also includes sample emails, social media posts and even questionnaires that will come in handy. Get "How To Get High School Senior Clients" today for only $62.50! 

 

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6 Tips On Taking Portraits With Pets

Have you ever had a client that wanted to include a family pet in their photos? It can be exciting because they can really turn out great and is a fun way to mis up the typical family or couple portrait... but it is important that you plan ahead and know what you are doing. Pets, kind of like children, can be very unpredictable when you are photographing them so we have a few tips that will make for an smooth session, amazing photos and a very happy client! 

Photo credit: Tracey Buyce Photography

1. Talk With the Client Ahead of Time

It is important with any session you are photographing to meet with your client ahead of time, especially when they are going to be including their family pet in the photograph. It is good to learn specifics about the pet before the day of in case you need to plan to do things a little differently than you normally would. For example, does the dog really hate being around someone who wears a hat? If you like wearing a hat while you are working, that is good to know so you do not wear one that day. Or, perhaps they get really hyper in the morning. If that is the case, it may be best to do the shoot in the late afternoon or evening when they are more calm. 

You also want to make sure you give them some tips for preparing their pet. If they want to have their long-haired dog groomed before the shoot, doing so at least 5 days before is best to help any potential shedding that could come along with the grooming. It is also a good idea to tell your client that they may want to take your pet (if it is a dog) on a long walk or run earlier in the day, so that they will be a little more tired than normal. 

It also may not be a bad idea to go a step further and plan a meeting with the client and their pet. If you feel like you should be around the pet to introduce yourself and get a better sense of how they act may be helpful for you. Make sure you know whether or not they will be including the pet in all of their photos or in just a few, that way you can both plan ahead and the family can have someone on hand to watch or take the dog home if needed. 

2. Bring Treats

Having treats with you during your shoot is a great way to get the animals attention while you are trying to snap a photo. Holding that yummy treat up by the camera lens is the perfect way to have them look right at the camera! 

Soft treats tend to be better to use during a photo shoot because hard treats may crumble and could make a mess... you already have enough to think about, you do not have to worry about cleaning up on top of it! 

3. Have Fun and Be Silly

Pets bring out the best in us and they love when you are having fun. It can be easy to be silly and make a fool out of yourself and that may be important during the photo shoot to keeping the pet's attention. Don't be embarrassed to jump around and do what you need to do in order to keep the animal happy. 

Photo credit: Allen Taylor Photography

4. Keep Shooting Even If The Pet Is Not Cooperating

Sometimes you will find that the animal will just not cooperate and that is okay! Pets can be very unpredictable while taking photos just like they can be in every day life! Just because the dog, bird or rabbit is not doing exactly what you had hoped, keep snapping photos because you never know what you are going to get. If the dog likes to bark, capture it in a photo... those are the memories the family or couple will love to see, and many times those unpredictable photos are the ones that turn out the best, because everyone is having fun, even the pet!  

5. Don't Worry Too Much On Posing

Most family pets do not really sit still and wasting your time trying pose them with their pet and have them all actually hold that position is probably not going to work too well. It may be more beneficial to you to guide the couple or the family on what they should be doing, and then just take photos as they move around, snuggle and play with their pet. 

6. Capture Photos From Different Perspectives

Like any of photos, having shots from many different angles and perspectives is nice. If you are photographing a bride and groom with their horse on their farm, taking a photo from beneath the large creature may be really great. Or, if you have the family playing with their dog, getting an aerial shot from above may showoff the beautiful landscape as well as them playing. 

Photo credit: Artful Paws Photography

We hope these tips have been helpful for you! Here are few tips we think you may enjoy:

• 3 Tips To Remember When Taking Newborn Photos
• 4 Great Photography Tips For Beginners
• 8 Tips To Taking Awesome Indoor Sports Photography

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4 Things You Must Include On Your Photography Business Website

Having a photography business can be so rewarding. You are doing something you are truly passionate about and getting paid for it! What is better than that? When you have your own business, you want to promote, market and work as best and effeciently as you can. One important factor of any business today is to make sure you are online. You want to have a good online presence with a nicely designed website and you also want to be utilizing all the social media sites as well. 

Are you wondering what type of information you should be including on your photography business website to make it the most effective as you can for getting new business? Today, we will share with you 4 things you must have on your website. 

1. Your Business Name and Contact Information

Number one is so important and so many businesses leave these details off of their website, which can lead to losing business quickly. If you think about it, today's world is online and everyone wants to find information instantly. They do not want to have to search in numerous places to find what they are looking for. If someone is researching possible wedding photographers for their upcoming wedding, and stumble across your website and love the work they see, but can not find a phone number or email address easily, you may lose their business. This is not always the case, but do you really want to test it? 

Be sure you have a page on your website dedicated to all of your contact information. Just having an online contact form does not cut it (but having one along with all of your other contact information is okay)! You want to include your name, company phone number and email address as well as links to all of your social media pages. If you have a studio where you work, you want to include an address to that as well. Make sure there is a link to that contact page at the top of your website homepage so that it can be found and clicked on easily.

Janae Shields Photography is a good example of a contact page that is easy to find and has all the relevant information. 

2. Samples Of Your Work

What is a photography website without showing off any of your photography? Showcase a little of all the different types of photography you do. If a client comes to your website looking to hire you to photograph a sports event, and all they see is samples of wedding photos, they may decide to look elsewhere. If you are a well-rounded photographer and have many specialties, awesome! But make sure you include samples of everything you do. Your website is a place for you to showoff the excellent work you do, so don't be afraid to showcase your talent! 

3. An About You Page

If someone is hiring a photographer for a special event or moment in their life, it is important to show them who you are personally and professionally before they hire you. You always want to make sure you are the perfect fit for your client and the only way to do that is to make sure you get along and understand each others needs. Have a page on your website that talks about you. How you found your love of photography, details about your family and children as well as other passions you have in life. This is also a wonderful place to talk about your personal photography style. 

A great example of a nice about page is from George Street Photo and Video. It talks about how the company was founded, the people it includes, a short video as well as other awards and accolades they have won. 

4. Fresh Content

Now-a-days, simply having a website is not enough. It is great to have a blog where you regularly post new, fresh content. Regularly does not in any way mean that you have to post daily, but updating your blog once a week - or even twice a month if you struggle to find the time - is good. Posting photos of recent photo shoots, weddings or landscapes you have taken are great post ideas. You can also do informational type posts. For example, as a wedding photographer, provide your tips on what couples should be asking their photographer before they book them. If you love photographing animals, come up with a great post with tips on how to make them the best they can possibly be. 

Throughout that content, you want to make sure you also keep SEO in mind which you can do with keyword phrases throughout your website and blog posts as well as making sure all of your photos have Alt and Title tags on them. All of this helps optimize you in Google's search.  

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2 Tips For Planning Perfect Mini Sessions

Mini sessions have become very popular and are a great way to find new clients and keep them. When you are planning a mini session, you will typically pick a day and a specific them and try to fit as many 30 minute sessions in as you can. For example, many photographers do mini sessions around holidays like Easter or Christmas and have a nice holiday backdrop. 

The BP4U guide "The Ultimate Mini Session Guide" is the perfect tool to help you if you are looking to start doing mini sessions or wants to make their sessions better. With expert tips from Brooke Bustillos, a successful photographer and entrepreneur, and Nicole Speer, a family photographer, this guide is the perfect manual to motivate you and give you creative ideas. 

Today we want to share with you 2 tips that come straight from this guide that will help you in planning your own perfect mini sessions. 

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1. Don't Price Your Mini Sessions Too Low

Brooke Bustillos says right at the beginning of this guide that "whenever you are trying to figure out your pricing, you never want to offer sessions lower than the cost of doing business." This is a great tip to remember and many photographers do price their mini sessions too low. You have to figure in many aspects of the business when pricing these sessions. You need to figure in how long the day will last, how far you have to travel, as well as the cost of any products that you are including in the mini session package, advertising costs you used for promoting the session and more. 

Think about it this way... if you are doing mini sessions for 6 hours, and you also photograph weddings that are 8 hours long, take the price you would charge for that day of wedding photography and divide that by the number of clients you are having do mini sessions. You already know that number for your wedding photography package is enough to cover your business expenses and make you profit, so why not use that as a reference. Remember that every single mini session you do could vary in cost depending on where it is located, the cost of the props you are using and anything else extra you need to factor in. 

2. Think About Unique And Different Locations To Shoot

If you plan to do a few mini sessions a year come up with different locations for each one so you can capture more clients. If you are doing a session for the holidays, you will most likely be focused on children, so perhaps you could have the session inside near a Christmas tree or by a nicely decorated fireplace.

If you are doing a more general mini session, perhaps one with a summertime theme that was on a beach would entice couples or families rather than just people who want to have their children photographed by themselves. Other fun places that would be more enticing for adults or couples could be libraries, coffee shops, movie theaters, a college campus or a popular bar or restaurant. 

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7 Easy Steps To Improve Your Photography

Like we always say about anything in life, you always want to continue learning and growing. That goes for your photography as well. There are so many different things you can do if you want to keep improving your work. Read everything you can about your craft. (Here are a few books about photography that you could start with)! You could also take classes and you want to take photos all the time. 

Many people think that you can make your photos better with simply photo editing everything, but that is not all it takes. Editing is helpful when needed, but you want to shoot your photography as best as you can the first time. Here are 7 easy steps that can help you improve your photography skills that we found on Huffington Post. 

1. Read your camera's user manual.

Don't overlook your camera's user manual. It does contain a lot of information that is key to helping you make the most out of your camera and learn how to take the best possible photos you can. 

2. Apply what you read.

Once you read the user manual and hear about all the other great things your camera can do, go try it out and experiment with what you learned. 

Photo credit: StockSnap

3. Make the most out of what your camera can do! 

You do not need the most expensive camera out there to take the best photos... you just have to make the most out of the camera you have and what it can do. 

4. Use a tripod. 

Many people find that using a tripod can dramatically improve the quality of your photos. It can give you stability when shooting which in turn makes your images come out sharper and more balanced. Just be sure your tripod and camera are on a stable, flat surface because you do not want your photos to come out slanted. 

The photo to the right is a great and lightweight tripod that you may like. You can see more details on the product here. 

5. Use the edges of each element as a guide in framing your photo. 

To make your photos more balanced and visually appealing line up the edges of certain elements in the frame to create a pathway that leads to your subject. Aside from edges and lines, look for other interesting shapes, textures and patterns in the scene that you can use as a guide in framing your subject. 

6. Expose your work and photos to others. 

Attend exhibits, read about photography tips and tricks that other photographers have written or on sites such as Camera Giveaways and look at as much photography as you can. If you see a photo you like, make a note and then experiment on how you can recreate that particular style with your camera. 

7. Ask others for feedback on your work. 

Feedback from others can help you find out what you are doing wrong and what you need to improve. Whether you regularly talk with other photographers in your city, or you use photo sharing sites like Flickr where you can upload your photos for critiquing, getting that feedback will be so beneficial if you are looking to improve your work.

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2 Tips For Photographing Children

Taking portraits of children can be tough. Kids can be unpredictable and you as a photographer have to learn to work with their personality, no matter what it is. Depending on the age of the child you are photographing, you may find that they may not want to cooperate. They may be in a fussy mood or they simply may not feel like smiling. In the end, if done right, you can capture such wonderful photos that truly showcase their personality (or even their temper tantrum!) in each and every photo you take. 

Since children can be so tough to pose, we wanted to share 2 tips for photographing children with you today that come straight from an amazing guide called "Posing Workflow For Children Photography." This guide is a collaboration between BP4U and Five Eleven Photography and offers 111 pages of awesome tips and tricks for posing and photographing children. 

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POSING WORKFLOW FOR CHILDREN PHOTOGRAPHY NOW! 

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1. Bring Out The Child's Personality

You want to make sure the child is not nervous, shy or uncomfortable around you while you are photographing them or you will be able to tell in the photos. Kids can be so fun, but you need to bring out their personality first. Not all kids will be smiling and excited to have their portrait taken, so warm up to them first. Don't just jump right into snapping photos. And remember that it will be different for every child you work with. Those that are only 1 year old may be more squirmy or want to explore, while a child that is three or four may be a bit shy. 

Perhaps talk to them about their favorite Disney princess or super hero, or ask them what their favorite movie or song is. These types of questions will get the child excited and talking and will help them warm up to you and in return they will hopefully be more comfortable when you tell them to smile! Doing this will really help you make the child ready to take photos. 

Photo credit: Five Eleven Photography

2. Use Props

Props are a must-have when photographing children. You want to have plenty on hand to use and mix things up. It is always great with children to keep things interesting, and props can do just that! Props can be anything you use that is extra in your photos. Some props can be used to photograph the child on, like a really cute chair that is perfect for girls or a nice stool that a boy can rest on. Baskets, rugs, mats and other items that the child can get into or lay on are also great ideas! 

You also want to think about items that the child can use while having photos taken or items you can set up around them. We love the cute mustache in the photo below for example. Or, you can have items like dolls, flowers, blocks that the child can set up and play with, or anything else that really fits into the photo shoot you are doing as well as the child's personality. 

Photo credit: Five Eleven Photography

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POSING WORKFLOW FOR CHILDREN PHOTOGRAPHY NOW!

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7 Important Facebook Tips For Photographers

Social media is HUGE in business today. Pretty much every person, both young and old, is on some form of social media on a daily basis and that means your potential customers are there as well. That makes social media a big marketing aspect for your business. One social media platform that is very important is Facebook. You need to think about your business and how you are showcasing yourself in this popular online space.

Think about this... Facebook is totally FREE so it is a no brainer that you should have a business page and that you keep up with it. In order to make sure you are doing everything you can on Facebook to help promote your photography business, we want to share with you these Facebook tips for photographers.  

1. Post Daily

You want to make sure you post regularly on your business Facebook page. Posting will get your page out on the newsfeed of those that follow you, which is important because you want others to see your posts. Keep in mind that you do not want to post so much that you are a pest where people will want to stop following you, but doing so once or twice a day is perfect!

2. Use Photos

On Facebook, using photos is SO important. That is not too bad since you are a photographer and have tons of photos to showcase. Each and every post should include some kind of photo as posts without them tend to get passed over quickly. Find photos that stand out to you... think about other photos that have gone viral and made its way quickly throughout social media and online. 

3. Use Variety In Your Posts

You want to be sure that you are mixing up the type of posts you do on your business page. While you want to showcase your work, business and different services you offer regularly, you don't want that to be all you share. Perhaps you came across a great article online that lists important questions that you should ask your wedding photographer before you book them. If you are a wedding photographer, that would be a great article to post on your page for all your brides or brides-to-be to see. People also love things like great quotes, funny memes or graphics that you come across or anything else that you think will stand out and make someone smile and want to share.  

4. Link Back To Your Website or Blog

If you have photographed some really awesome photos you want to share, and you have just posted them on your blog, go ahead and share them and be sure you link to that post on your website. It is a great way to get additional page views and you never know who is going to see your post and share it. And once they share, then everyone in their social media network will see your great work! What an awesome way to reach new people you never would have before!!!

5. Interact With Others

Posting is great but you want to make sure you go through your newsfeed and comment and like posts from others that you follow daily. The way Facebook's algorithms are, your posts only show up in a small number of people's news feeds, but by commenting and liking other's posts, it will help you show up on pages of people you interact with. 

6. Include Business Information On Your Profile

You want to be sure that you include information on your Facebook profile so potential customers can contact you if necessary. If someone is looking for a photographer to photograph their daughter's senior portraits and they find you first on Facebook, you want them to find your phone number, email and website right away without them having to search 3 different websites. The more a customer has to search for your contact information, the quicker they will lose interest in you and move on to another photographer. In all aspects of life in today's society, people want accessibility and if they think you are hard to find or get in touch with, you may not get a chance at their business. 

7. Respond To All Messages

Some people - who could end up being a potential customer - may reach out to you on your Facebook page. Someone could be checking out your page where they see some of your work and decide they want to message you for more information. You want to be sure that you check your Facebook messages daily and respond as soon as you can. We recommend you responding with a short answer to their question and give them another way to reach out to you so you can set up a time to further discuss over the phone or in person. Make sure you take those Facebook messages seriously... you could find some great clients!  

We know that keeping up with your social media can be difficult and sometimes may be the last thing you want to do after a busy weekend working. We recommend carving out 15 to 30 minutes a day where you sit down and knock out all of your social media then. If you follow these tips and do them on a daily basis, you will see that social media is a great marketing tool to utilize. 

Camera Giveaways loves social media! Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, and Twitter! 

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Between Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and all the other social media sites out there, it can be hard to keep up with all the posts you should be doing on a regular basis for your business. If you do not have the budget to hire a social media expert, Social Media Kit is here to help! For only $350, get a bundle of 6 awesome social media products that will help you in the social realm. 

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE SOCIAL MEDIA KIT NOW! 

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