Setting up a photography booth for valentine's day

[davsmiths]

just got for it.

i did a shot in my poly. we took the shots, thn the girls headed to the printshop, printed all the groups photo, and thn arranged and handmade scrapbooks. very nicely done. i played my part in providing the gears and photography.

the girls did the printing and designing of personalised and individual scrapebooks.

 

[Trigger Happy]

to threadstarter: purely from a project execution standpoint, this is still do-able, but very very tight. i hope you've put your plans into motion. planning-wise, you're better off working on the project for 2008. seriously. or graduation/ parties.

basically you need to set A very specific objective and work towards it. draw up your plan, list the challenges for each bit (see your original thread), and be very self-critical and even a little pessimistic. and most importantly, don't try to do it all by yourself. phil 4:13.

 

[XC Pictorial]

Honestly the commotion about your gear seems really unnecessary.

I have students attending courses partially conducted by me with 5D, and a collection of L lens worth in 5 figures. But its really nothing considering SG has got 50,000 millionaires.. Then again, i have friends who got cars for birthday present, what is a few lens.

In any case, most of the ppl here have been very kind to list many useful points for you.

The only point i hope you can take note is not to expect too much. i can understand your enthusiasm to put your gear to use and show off what you can do. However do understand that unless you have a very good marketing department or you can price your services VERY competitively, do not expect much response.

Conveniently i had just been approached by the Biz manager of a certain committee in one of the local University to do a similar thing between 12 to 14th. I told them honestly about the possibly letdown response and since they do not really require professional services they might be much better off with a simple setup using a point and shoot, doing simple processing and printing out 4R on the spot.

Care to share how much you intend to charge for your services and the institute that you are in? Might be much better for evaluting the feasibilty of your ideas.

I understand PJC did a photoshoot fund raising project last christmas at paragon. $5 per shot. Done with simple PnS with built in camera flash, even the white balance was off, but responses were apparently good. I hope you can get what i am driving at. If couples want to get professional shots, they WILL approach professionals. I presume you will not be providing even simple makeup such as concealer and powdering..

Have fun.. JC life rocks.

 

[photobum]

And in response to your practice of not charging for prints, my father maybe be relatively well off, but I have 3 other siblings to consider. He is willing to pay for a hobby that will benefit me in the long run (he wants be to take up photography remember?) but he doesn't approve of giving our "family money" away to others.

You are a JC student. I am sure you can read better than most people here (including some of us university grads who have failing eyesight).

PLEASE READ MY 2nd POSTING AGAIN. I wrote "Offer your service as a complementary to your fellow schoolmates. I am sure most of them are willing to pay for the cost of the prints."

Service = free, prints = must charge. Get it?

 

[photobum]

"I have students attending courses partially conducted by me with 5D, and a collection of L lens worth in 5 figures."

So what does this tells you about Singaporean students today. Consider that many students in our neighbouring countries cannot even afford a pair of school shoes.

There are many, many children in my mother's hometown in Kuala Terengganu, West Malaysia, still cannot afford their school textbooks. This is sad.... very sad, because education is still a priority for all children. A retired school teacher, my mother gathers used school textbooks in Singapore and send them to her hometown to be distributed free around the schools there.

 

[ywtan9]

Just a few suggestions.

1. Consider the use of polaroid. Instant picture framed in well designed valentine card?
2. If printing is a hassle, outsource it. Consider getting a few good photo developing studio or shops to develop the photos. The more pictures you develop, the lower the cost of developing.


Hope this helps. All the best and I wish you success.

 

[jeanie]

vector, good luck in your project.

and i have to agree with you, that this forum has people who has this something against people who are well to do.

but on the other hand, you'll get real good advices and help from the correct people.

 

[ymmij]

well it seems that you have sufficient comments and suggetions to keep you going for the event next week. some infromation provided here are very good for your thoughts. i personally like a few.

1. many students already have quite good pns camera. why would they pay for you to shoot for them and just print it out. i think you need to focus on the creativity and value added part, be it getting goodlooking female/male friends to be model, getting in costumes or graphic editing etc.

2. the payment for your "service" must be reasonable. it does not need to be too cheap either. if i were a jc student, i definitely dun mind paying few dollars to simply take picture together with the jc beauty queen. but it is just me. :embrass:

3. target customers, there are basically few kinds - single, couple and group friends. you may want to cater for all three categories if possible. therefore what you provide will be specific and somehow different. i definitely don't want my girlfriend to take picture with the manhunt winner at your photo booth, unless of course i have my take with the peagent queen.

just my thoughts to share... once again good luck... just go for it... learn along the way.

 

[vector1]

A big thank you to all the above posters

All of you have great advice for this novice photographer, thanks again!

zoossh, your idea is great, but I only have a limited time for phototaking. It lasts from about 1500h - 1730h, but I'll try to refine this idea. Maybe a combination of both or more photographers? I also am doing this not out of a desire for profits, but instead to help out my friends in the SC, who actually had to do this themselves, but instead passed the job onto the photographic club. Bear in mind I'm only in this JC for 3 months, and theres really no reason for me to help out other than to help the school. Yes, I just listed my equipment just to check with the forum whether I'm lacking in any area, and NO I'm not trying to offend people or invite criticism over my kit.

Youhong, thanks for your confidence in me. I understand the problems that you have posted, and have considered them first. This is why I was asking for ideas to "value add" the photos that I'll take. However, I feel that my photos, with the studio flashes, should be good enough for students to see the difference between the cam phones ;p

tchern, If theres one thing I have learnt from life in my 16+ years on earth, it is that PLANNING is essential. That said, I'm sure my first time running this event will be extremely fun and educational!

 

[jamestty]

Just happened to dropby, was a JC student some time back too, still a newbie learning...

Anyway, yeah. Ideas for value adding it-
If you're going to print it on the spot, try getting a whole ton of art cards from popular (the big shelves with multicoloured cards) its like 1.50 for quite a fair amount... you can make instant photo-cards there... To make it sorta arty-farty get black art cards, and grab metallic pens or milky pens and just let them write stuff on it... If there's photo-editing software there, perhaps you can give them filter options to add effects to the shots, from Lomo-ing it, black-white, sepia, etc. (sort of like the ibook's built in cam effects)

Can try having fun props around, grab some from drama club or whatnot, from sofas to things from ties, suit-jackets, to roses, big red stuffed hearts from Ikea, bouquets even (can have fake flowers) And yeah. Just go creative and let your team members chip in tons of ideas...

Its sort of almost like a wedding shoot, perhaps take some good studio shots with your friends first, in different poses, effects and what not, to give them sort of an idea and put them up to see what could possibly be acheived la...

Just get people in the mood... A friend's wedding photographer used to crack jokes to actually make them laugh naturally... etc. You get the idea... Get people relaxed and all...

There's alot that you can do with your equippment. Also perhaps location might be a certain factor. If there's a schoolgarden nearby or something (my jc had some sorta mini jap garden, pond-bridge thing right outside the lecture theatres and study areas) you could setup your booth there for both indoor/outdoor shoot options...

And yup, like what others have said, head down to bookstores or take a peep at some wedding coffeetable books, etc.

just my $0.02 worth of ideas...
As for admin, all the best =) I'm not too good in that area...

 

[J-Chan]

hey.. nice to see you on the forum also.. got to say, you really impressed me..

 

[XC Pictorial]

So what does this tells you about Singaporean students today. Consider that many students in our neighbouring countries cannot even afford a pair of school shoes.

There are many, many children in my mother's hometown in Kuala Terengganu, West Malaysia, still cannot afford their school textbooks. This is sad.... very sad, because education is still a priority for all children. A retired school teacher, my mother gathers used school textbooks in Singapore and send them to her hometown to be distributed free around the schools there.

The rich getting richer, the poor getting poorer?

Looks like GST should rise more :think:

 

[zoossh]

i think maybe we should leave the social discussion between the rich and the poor aside. there is no end to comparison and different places and different people lead different lives.

 

[versatile]

Can ask evenstar, he's one rich JC kid. I bet would be glad to show off his sponsored body and 2 lenses.

 

[zoossh]

It lasts from about 1500h - 1730h, but I'll try to refine this idea. Maybe a combination of both or more photographers?

i didn't have experience of such organisation, but how fast do you think you want to have the turnover in 2.5hrs? experienced studio photographers probably can handle it well. if not, too short a time and a static location may produce monotonous pictures churning out like passport photos....it may turn out a chore and you may not enjoy it at all being a photographer.

 

[catchlights]

................... Offer your service as a complementary to your fellow schoolmates. I am sure most of them are willing to pay for the cost of the prints. Since you are a newbie, take this opportunity to learn more about photography instead. Making money should not be not your objective...........................

agreed with photobum on this

any price also expensive one lar,

i know some of the guys will come do a group of 20 pax, than buy one photos, go back scan and print own self to give to the rest of 19 persons.

This is what I encounter in a local secondary school during their anniversary dinner, those kids can even discus who can scan and print it right in front of us.

............... but I only have a limited time for phototaking. It lasts from about 1500h - 1730h, but I'll try to refine this idea. Maybe a combination of both or more photographers?................................

do you know how many printers if you need to print on the spot?
do you know the printers are so easy to get overheat after a few prints?
do you know how to nail your exposure,cropping to minimize post production?

for 2 1/2 hours, how many heads can you shoot, process and print?

so if you shoot too many heads, your team can not cope with the printing.
if you are not giving them the prints during the event, than will be less students want to be shot.


.

 

[Kimura_papaya]

Hi everyone!

I'm a student in JC1, and my CCA, the photographic club is considering setting up a booth on 14th Feb to complement the school's games & activities for valentine's day. The rough outline is to collect orders, take photos, print photos, distribute photos. I realize that selling plain photos are not enough to attract the students, so I'm brainstorming for creative ideas to "add-value" to our photos, any suggestions appreciated!

I'm a complete beginner at this, as I have never planned this sort of event before, so I hope everyone will bear with my questions and help review my rough draft.

I have a canon 20d, with canon lenses 14-40 F4L, 24-70 F2.8L and 70-200 F2.8L IS. I also own 2 elinchrom flash units, a canon 580EX speedlite, a tripod with ballhead, a grey backdrop with stand, light meter, and a canon selphy 730 printer.

My JC also has more canon Dslr cameras with lenses, some portable flashes, and great people who love photography!

a) Taking Orders

My plan is to publicize my booth before the event, and take advance orders for photos using forms so I can allocate timeslots for the phototaking on the 14th. Or is it better to take orders on the day itself, then immediately take the shot? Which will be more welcomed?

Other services I was thinking of providing are Emailing of original photos to buyer (for a fee of course!) any suggestions for this area? What about larger sizes which I could send for developing at a outside lab, but take a longer time?

b) taking photos

Photos could be taken around the school compound, at various "romantic" locations, but I'm not sure how I could coordinate the transfer of the files to the printing group for editing and printing. Any suggestions?

Also, I need ideas on how to actually take the shots. I plan to bring some basic stuff for people, like combs, hand mirrors etc, but is it a good idea to bring more clothes like jackets of different designs, props like roses for people to hold as we take the shot, hair bands/clips for girls? Give me ideas PLEASE! Should this be a extra cost to be added in?

Furthermore, what poses are appropriate for 2 people? or for a larger group?

c) printing photos

The most important part. I only have one canon selphy, and that would not be able to deal with the number of pictures i need in a limited time. I am considering what to do about this. I might be able to persuade my teacher to buy a canon ES1 for the club, and use it for the event, or should I try to find a external vendor to rent printers from, or simply come and do the printing for us on the spot?

Could I get some suggestions for the style of presenting the photos? I have thought about creating a template (paper holder for the 4R photo) with different designs, and providing markers for people to customize it themselves. Anyone knows where I can find quality templates like that?

d) Distributing photos

A troublesome part would be to organize everyone so that the printers are not left idle for a long time, so as to maximize our resources. How should I coordinate the photographers with the printing group? Maybe rotating CF cards after 5-10 shots between the groups?

e) Misc stuff

What about prices? How much profit is reasonable, because we're donating profits to my school.

Is it a good idea to offer some simple designs for couples? Like asking them to pose facing each other, then pretending to kiss, and we photoshop some hearts around the photo

Are package deals good to be included? Like 3 couples get 25% off or something along those lines

How should I price the photos? by shot or by counting the number of people in the photo?

Conclusion

I may have missed out on some vitally important thing for event photography, so if you see anything that I should consider, please post it on the forums.

Thanks to everyone who will help me in advance.

lucky chap that you have such great family to support your hobby. compare to my gear..i guess mine will looks like toys to you :sweatsm: can not hold candle with your pro studio set.:bheart:

the question here is you own the best equipement in the market..consider as top of the line..but you don know how to make the best use of it.

so the question now for you is you have not come out with business strategy, am i right to say?

i believe there are lots of input from above, here are only few thing i want to add and strong suggest.

1. you may wants to consider sell your shooting to couple as package, such as VIP card service where they can enjoy a free shooting annually in your photography club.

2. 1 canon selphy is certainly not enough for such event, bearing in mind normally such event will have a lot of order coming at the same time. you need to source for at least 2 to 3 pc with editing software. and at least 4 photo printer selling at same time. Processing time you should give yourself some buffer of 20min including emergency case like printer down, out of ink, calibration as bla bla......

3. to support heavy flow of client, maybe you need issue ticket for tracking order.

4. about the backdrop, i suggest you find a few find a nice spot for outdoor(maybe two spot which consider romantic). there are some spot in school actually has very romantic spot like old tree, remind ppl of olden high school day. this will leave them a good memory after they leave school. As for indoor, since you have your studio set, i guess setting up backdrop should not be big issue to you, just keep the setting simple and focus more on lighting. i think this will help you to come out with good photos.

5. related to item 4, if you can do a wonderful or near pro studio shots. i think you can use tis as good selling point to attract ppl cos it is only 1 day event. you need to test the responce before you commit yourself on heavy investment. One way is to have your booth setup 1 day before the actual event so that you will have more time to bring out ppl's awareness about the valentine event.

6. As for charges, you cant charge too high cos it is a school event, your aim is to boast photography club in school, same time you just wish to attact couples to spent on having a intimate photos. so the charges rate has to maintain at below market rate by 10 to 15%.

7. there are some added value you may consider, find few friend of you who is always good at organizing games. get them help you to setup a game spot beside your photography booth, while the 20 minute waiting time for collecting photos, get them involve in the game booth, the game booth can be something like carnival style. any participant will win some small sourvenier, it is a place for couple to have fun or group to have fun. you may even come out with old time game like shooting tin can, darting balloon to win some bear. some simple game for students, couple and group.

till here, i think that is enough to squeeze your brain juice liao.

cheerio,
kimu

 

[vector1]

Thank you to everyone for your advice and encouragement.

ParkerTR, I need more details for your kind offer by this weekend, as I must confirm with my teacher by Monday latest. Refer to my PM please.

Lastly, wish me luck! Tomorrow at 1400h I'm receiving my O level result slip!! I'm so tense now, and I hope that I'll do well!! I really really want to get below 10 points!!

 

[LOTUSfairy]

Thank you to everyone for your advice and encouragement.

ParkerTR, I need more details for your kind offer by this weekend, as I must confirm with my teacher by Monday latest. Refer to my PM please.

Lastly, wish me luck! Tomorrow at 1400h I'm receiving my O level result slip!! I'm so tense now, and I hope that I'll do well!! I really really want to get below 10 points!!

dun worry...I wish you good luck... cha-yu!!:thumbsup:

 

[zoossh]

yah, best wishes.

by the way, dun worry too much about the shooting part. there is still time for you or the photographers to do some practice. there is always classmates to help you. and who knows, maybe some of them may become couples after helping to model for you....