ccrafford

IG: chriscphotog

Find a good balance between paid engagements (weddings) and personal work - landscapes, birds, architecture.

Hi. Most wedding photographers use a fast 35mm and 85mm or a zoom that covers a similar range like a 24-70mm. I use the Tamron 35-150mm and have a F1.4 35mm for low light small rooms/spaces and for my second camera I use the 24-70. Some folks carry a 70-200 especially for large church ceremonies. You are unlikely to use the 150-600. You also need a quality flash, and ideally some OCF for reception photos.

Weddings, Landscape, Birds

Hi Matt. I switched to CaptureOne about 5 years ago from LR. The main reason initially was for Sony the CP1 Color Engine just did a better job in my opinion. The product has expended tremendously over the past years and the speed and quality I get from it is excellent. CP1 does have an annual payment to get support and all the updates. When I need to do edits that I cannot do in CP1, I use Affinity Photo. It is excellent and you pay once for life. The other editing tools I use when needed are the Topaz tools. I think that to get the detailed editing you want, you need to find the combination of tools that can do all the pieces well and then develop a workflow with them.

Great images. Great quality and details. I just got one of these beauties. It is a pleasure to use. The overcast sky is most excellent! Can you order that on demand?

Love 'em or hate 'em it is where many of your potential customers are especially if you do events, portraits etc. I just read a 2022 Professional Photographers survey that was published this week. Over 96% of photographers use Instagram to share their work, and 87% consume there. I would say it is a necessary part of being a pro today. You need to find how to best make it work for you!

I use Pic-Time. In addition to being able to style the gallery it can be connected to a store where your clients can order prints or albums or you can design an album for them and deliver it directly to the printer. You can also make galleries public, or private or let the client choose.

One thing that has worked for me is to create a challenge, for example take a lens I use less frequently and go out to take photos with just that lens. For example for for a walk in the woods/local town center with a 200-600, instead of a wide angle or normal lens that you would most likely use, or take a really wide lens like a 12mm. Beside being fun, you will force yourself to look at the surroundings in a way you did not before, especially if it is a location you have been to many times.

Depends what I am photographing. If it is an event like a wedding it will be wide open or maybe 1 or 2 stops down for group photos or details where I need more depth of field. I also do landscape where the starting point is F11 and then you adjust depending on the mood/feel I want. For BIF with a long telephoto (200-600) I will try to get F8 so I have enough depth to get detail beyond the eye.

I have printed my own images. It takes a bit of learning. I use a Canon Prograf 1000 Printer connected to my Mac Laptop. It can print up to 22"x17" prints which covers most of what I need. You do need to spend time getting paper samples from more than one vendor to see what works for you and then you will need the matching ICC profiles for the paper to be able to get the color you expect when yo print. You must calibrate you Monitor as well if you want to get good color in the prints. If all this sounds too much then a lab may be a better option. I used to have a darkroom and made prints for years. Making your own prints from digital is the closest I have gotten to pleasure of making your own print in a darkroom.

Outstanding advice David. I would add one variant on the Mentor item, Never stop learning. Learn the basic foundation, but keep building skills in photography and business.

Some recent engagement sessions

Thank you. Great to be here.

Hi. I am Chris Crafford, based in Georgetown, TX. I have been photographer for a long time and switched to Sony in 2017, after using Nikon before that. I am currently restarting my wedding photography business. I had a wedding business when I lived in California for 5 years, but focused on landscape and nature after moving until early this year when the itch to do weddings took over. I would be happy to help any other folks where I can. I am a member of PPA and about to take my CPP exam. I love to learn new skills and hear new ideas. Currently have an Alpha 1 and a A7R4 plus a bunch of lenses.