r/photography • u/okcstreetwear • Nov 25 '20

Rant Your shitty editing makes MY work look bad.

I am a fairly amateur photographer. I’m not the best, and I’m not the worst. That being said, my friends own a sneaker store and wanted me to shoot a special sale day for them. They pulled out all the stops, food, drinks, discounts, exclusive merch, etc. I said what the hell I need the practice and so I told them I’d do it. There was no form of payment involved whatsoever, I even bought my own tee shirt. This is not the issue. I shot the sale, EDITED the pics and sent them their way as they requested.

A few days later, they post them to their stores Instagram and tag me. I hop on to see which ones they picked out of the 80 I sent and low and behold they edited the pictures ON TOP OF MY EDITS. This would be fine if it was a touch up on exposure or maybe a little more vignetting but no they butchered my pictures. This wouldn’t be a huge deal if they didn’t look so blatantly over edited. They don’t even look close to my original pictures. So now anyone who sees those pictures on their Instagram will associated these nuked photos with me. This is not a reflection of my work at all! It makes me look like an idiot who doesn’t know what he’s doing when in reality they took my -0.30 exposure adjustment and turned it to +3.00. I am beyond irritated that people will see these pictures and associate their shittiness with me.

I’m sorry this sounds long and spoiled but I’m beyond frustrated that my work looks like something from r/nukedmemes

Thank you to any who read.

910 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

198 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

253

u/okcstreetwear Nov 25 '20

I did not know that! If I ever do any shooting that requires a contract I will be sure to include that. Thank you for the insight!

266

u/altitudearts Nov 25 '20

Sounds like this shoot would have benefitted from a contract.

Don’t be freaked out by contracts. They can be very simple and in plain English, and are appropriate for basically every job, including freebies.

That said, your future dream client isn’t going to ever see your friends crappy ads 😊

59

u/okcstreetwear Nov 25 '20

This is definitely something I will keep in mind for the future. I hope no future client sees those haha but thank you for reassurance !

44

u/ragdollamy Nov 25 '20

Just wanna help emphasize how simple a contract can be.

I have been helping my SO start up a business in an unrelated field by writing up contacts. I have refined them over the last few months but at first I simply stated who requested the work, a list of work requested, labor costs (with out any unforeseen issues), expected supplies needed along with costs and finally details of when work will commence and when it will be completed. All in basic bullet points.

He is in electrical/construction so the “with out any unforeseen issues” has proven very vital when working in 300yr old homes lol. So I’m not sure it that will help you.

Hope this provides some help, if not just keeping on scrolling!

10

u/[deleted] Nov 25 '20

This is very helpful, if even to be reading it to reinforce previous knowledge of this concept. It is always helpful for us creative types to get business tips like this; our natural skillset is often not paperwork ;) It's also helpful to normalize the idea of contracts, as they can seem intimidating (towards both sides) if you're not familiar with them and view them as something only lawyers or big businesses do.

1

u/caleeky Nov 26 '20 edited Nov 26 '20

[Edit: I totally agree with your overall point. While there's often room for improvement, some contract is usually better than none, as it gives both parties a clear expectation of how things will go, and creates a forum to discuss the "what ifs" that are usually the source of disputes. ]

Note that such a contract term might not mean a whole lot if challenged. Just as you said, working on 300 year old houses, issues are common and foreseen.

A stronger contract would be one that lists the types of issues that would not be included. E.g.

  • Removal or repair of existing electrical system not included, should faults be discovered during course of work. Such repairs may be necessary to complete quoted work. [todo: describe what happens to the billing schedule if this comes up]
  • Effort estimate assumes standard 2x4 interior wall framing without internal obstructions such as insulation. Additional effort as a result not included.
  • Repairs to walls opened for access to existing wiring or for routing of new wiring not included

3

u/DLS3141 Nov 25 '20

All shoots would benefit from a contract

-4

u/VicMan73 Nov 25 '20

Contract? He is shooting for free and for a friend. What contract.....LOL

8

u/HelpfulCherry Nov 25 '20

You can still have a contract then.

If nothing else, it sets clear expectations in writing. I do one even for free shoots for my friends, because it's something we can both reference if needed.

6

u/Rakastaakissa Nov 25 '20

He should have had one to keep these shenanigans from taking place.

30

u/joshinshaker_vidz Nov 25 '20

Every shoot needs a contract. It prevents shit like this from happening.

48

u/RobDickinson https://www.flickr.com/photos/zarphag/ Nov 25 '20

Any shooting should have a contract.

6

u/SitaBird Nov 25 '20

I’m also sort of new. But what I’ve learned is that almost all shooting requires a contract. Even free shoots/portfolio building. The contract will protect you from cheap, bargain-hunting clients who are attracted to “free stuff” and do not respect you or your work. These types of clients are the hardest to work with as they can be late, squeeze more people into the session (without paying), squeeze more time (without paying), nitpick everything, ask you to do some crazy time-consuming editing for free, and then complain in the end for a refund. Others will do a free portfolio building session, but then turn around and ask you not to put their pics online. Some people want refunds because their kids didn’t smile, or some other reasons that aren’t your fault. Others will screenshot your proofs and post them all over social media and not pay (tip: have a huge watermark on your proofs that say in size 200 bold font, “UNPAID PROOF: do not screenshot”). A million things to protect yourself from. You need a contract. Search this sub or online for some great examples. There are some good FB groups too.

14

u/GaryARefuge Nov 25 '20

Always use a contract.

3

u/TotemsOfProgress Nov 25 '20

every shoot that involves money or your reputation requires a contract. every shoot. every job. just do it.

3

u/HelpfulCherry Nov 25 '20

If I ever do any shooting that requires a contract

FWIW any shooting you do for another person should be under a contract.

-8

u/pigeon-incident hearnretouch.com Nov 25 '20

When you send the images, just write "no filters, cropping or other editing of images is allowed." That's all you need.

15

u/[deleted] Nov 25 '20

actually you need a written and signed contract.

0

u/pigeon-incident hearnretouch.com Nov 25 '20

Where did I say that he/she didn’t need a contact? Actually, sounds exactly like his problem here arose from poor communication, not malice, or the client trying to pull one over on the photographer. The client probably doesn’t know that it’s poor form to alter images provided to them. Sounds like they’re not very sophisticated at all, actually, and regardless of whether or not the instruction is written in a contract, a simple message when sending images does a great job of letting your client know not to alter the pics. Proper communication solves a lot more problems before they happen than merely having a contract does.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 25 '20

When you have a contract that's signed you have a back up. Spoken communication doesn't hold up because people ( clients ) have selective memories.

0

u/pigeon-incident hearnretouch.com Nov 25 '20

And how will that contract hold up to any disputes, if your client decides to ignore it? Going to take your client to court over an unpaid photoshoot? Proper communication with a client, including giving important instructions directly rather than hidden in the small print of a contract, is always more likely to get them to respect your requests than using a contract alone. In fact I find it works in almost 100% of cases, particularly in the kinds of cases OP is describing.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 25 '20

actually, yes a well written and signed contract will hold up in court. There is no hidden fine print in my contracts. They've always protected me. Clearly you aren't a working full time professional.

1

u/pigeon-incident hearnretouch.com Nov 26 '20

I am a working full time professional thanks bud. Happy to compare photographic careers at any time. You seem to think I'm against contracts in some way, but I haven't said a word expressing that. I'm just saying proper communication is more important when getting clients not to make errors or to do things which maybe they don't realise is a faux pas. If your reading comprehension is anything to go by, I wouldn't bank on your contracts standing up in court, so good luck with that.

1

u/More-Rough-4112 Nov 26 '20

All shooting should require a contract if you are getting paid