Pet Peeves in Photography...and Business

© Noel

It's one of those days when the spirit of frustration is burning a hole through my keyboard.

Watching the news every night with stories about things in Washington would be a worthy subject to write about, if we weren't all sick of the nonstop stories. It doesn't matter whether you're a Republican or Democrat, this is worse than what a playground guard sees at an elementary school. Thanks to the government there would be plenty to write about, but who cares? 

So, it's one of those days when it's more fun to talk about things in our own backyard.

• Phone numbers: Let's start with a favorite pet peeve: This week I was on several websites with photographers who still don't give people a phone number on their contact page! GIVE PEOPLE A PHONE NUMBER...AND MAKE IT A LINE DEDICATED TO YOUR BUSINESS!
• Contact forms: I understand why many of you like formatted contact forms on your websites, but what good does it do if you don't answer the inquiry quickly? Many of you lose business to your competitors just because they respond to clients faster!
• Messages: If you leave somebody a voicemail and they call you back and you're out, call them back ASAP. I accept I'm obsessive when it comes to voicemail, but when I call somebody back and then never hear from them again it leaves me wondering what the urgency was in the first place. The same applies to text messages and IMs.
• Rumors: I'm tired of the rumor mill! I've had people tell me things they've heard about other artists that are NOT true. If you've got a rumor to share - DON'T! Instead, pick up the phone and call the person or company and ask what's going on.  
• Your Galleries: I was doing a website review recently and the photographer had a full gallery of mediocre to bad images outside her core specialty. When I asked if she wanted more of those customers she said, "No, but shouldn't I show the things I can do?" What you show on your website is what you're going to get, especially if it's the first gallery people see.
• Filter Junkies: And my most favorite, photographers who are filter junkies and think they can clean up a bad image by adding a few filters. Here's the point, and I've shared this before - you can't buff a turd!  Although, I said it years ago on a podcast and somebody sent me the link to the Myth Busters video on YouTube showing that you can! Seriously, just give it up and focus on your skill set so you get great images right out of the can.  If it's a bad image the majority of the time it's not worth saving.

 
​Thanks for allowing me to rant. Feel free to share your pet peeves and add to my list in the comment section and maybe we'll do a follow-up post.