Mall portrait stands

[jasevk]

I spent some time looking at a portrait stand at a large mall today, and Must say I cannot believe how many parents were lining up to have their kids photographed after seeing the terrible quality of images being turned out. The display images on the outside of the stand were really bad, over exposed, under exposed, hot spots everywhere, incredibly soft images.... One of the girls working there tried quite hard to convince me' I needed pictures of my son taken, and mentioned that for only $8 for the shooting and one print, I'd be crazy not to get it done. I asked her of the display images were a fair representation of their best work and she replied... "absolutely". When I then asked her if that's why she only charges $8, I didn't get much of a reply.... Fair question??

[I @ M]

I like your thought process when asking the girl questions Jason. :th3: :D

[macmich]

you should have got a photo of her expression when you asked her that it would have been priceless
cheers macca

[Analog6]

You get what you pay for. I've seen some shockers too.

[jasevk]

Hehehe... You should've seen the people lining up, I felt like handing out business cards to the queuing mothers, although I can't match $8 :D

[kiwi]

I prefer to go to a butcher for my steak

[LuzArt]

:) Priceless.

[Wayne]

Thing is they don't do it for $8.
They sometimes do the shoot for very little and even free, but the catch is they invite you back in a few days time to view the pics, and then they hammer you with the hard sell while showing you all of the edited pics. I know people who have paid $400-1600 for a small quantity their kids pics from these operators. They really do the hard sell, start at the top, and if they think they are going to lose you and get nil for the prints, they will take whatever they can get out of you.

[campo]

[QUOTE=Wayne;704505]Thing is they don't do it for $8...../QUOTE]

BINGO - i have some close friends who had originally asked me to do some portraits for them and I was happy to do it for the cost of printing. They ended up going to one of these Extortion oops, I mean Mall Stands and ended up spending $1500 on a few prints/canvases. They only picked a few images because they weren't happy with the images but they were the best of a bad bunch. I was asked for an opinion on how much it would has cost for the what they got (materials only) and I came up with $100-200 from my suppliers. They've since admitted to learning their lesson...

[Raven]

Thing is they don't do it for $8.
They sometimes do the shoot for very little and even free, but the catch is they invite you back in a few days time to view the pics, and then they hammer you with the hard sell while showing you all of the edited pics. I know people who have paid $400-1600 for a small quantity their kids pics from these operators. They really do the hard sell, start at the top, and if they think they are going to lose you and get nil for the prints, they will take whatever they can get out of you.

Same! Been told I was too expensive by a friend of a friend that ended up spending $600 at one of them :eek:

[terrencechin]

I see them everywhere. Shopping malls don't have cheap rent so they've gotta be doing well.
I suppose people are always busy now and rather than looking for a photographer, it's definitely easier to just have a few quick shots taken while you're already out shopping.
In the end, parents want to remember their kids as kids and bad photos are better than no photos.
A lot of these places aren't run by the photographers themselves. It's like a factory and it's designed for volume not quality.
Unfortunately, this is how the market works, people get worse images and photogs don't get to do much about it, assuming those that work at these places even care to begin with.

[para]

my partner had a business in a cairns shopping mall, quite often they put one of these next to her shop was watching one day as the "photographer" was practicing using a kids toy

[huga]

Hate those places with a passion. I am forever getting hassled by them when I have my kids with me and it drives me nuts. I've discovered that if you tell them you are a professional photographer, they back off pretty quickly ;) Just like the Foxtel people do when you tell them you don't have a TV.

[flame70]

i remember seeing an ad for a job as a mall photographer...."no experience needed" need i say more:rolleyes:

[Kerro]

That says it all Jez :lol:

[Sobriquet]

I prefer to go to a butcher for my steak

We grow our own steak!

[ving]

hmm... this was prolly the equivalent to a pixi or something right? not a private business? and the photographer didnt own the store?

isnt that the same as marching into macdonalds and telling them that thier burgers suck and for twice the price you can get a really nice burger next door in the take-away?
if this place was just a franchise or something you were prolly a bit harsh on them... or dare I say unprofessional.:rolleyes:
your "outrage" would be better aimed at the head of the organisation rather than the poor sucker taking the photos...:(

that said if the tog was the owner of a privately owned stand then fine.

[CapnBloodbeard]

I think you're being overly harsh.

The standard of these images is, in my opinion, on par with many of the images produces by the thousands of wedding photographers that seem to have cropped up in the last few years :D

[oldfart]

The lines of people wanting photos suggests this is what that market segment wants.
Maybe there's a lesson to be learnt from this business model.

[jasevk]

Harsh? No... And I guarantee you... This particular stand was some of the worst work I've seen. And I've seen and done some terrible work in my time :D

[jasevk]

isnt that the same as marching into macdonalds and telling them that thier burgers suck and for twice the price you can get a really nice burger next door in the take-away?


your "outrage" would be better aimed at the head of the organisation rather than the poor sucker taking the photos...:(

No it's not the same... when I'm harassed for simply walking past said stand, I'd say they had it coming from at least one person.

Outrage???? No outrage occurred at all. Was simply a question regarding their services.

[CraigPauli]

I think your question was quite fair.

[GlossyFX]

From my experience and research I would say most of these "Mall stands" are at a low quality of image. Flat lighting, soft processing and with a lack of originality that creates a good image, however at times this is what some people are after.

One member mentioned that the line was long so that is what the people want. I disagree, I believe this is an indicated that there is a market for photographic images. The "Mob" accepts, as standard what is offered to them on mass, therefor they reach for this level when looking for images.

All my portrait clients have stated after they have viewed their images that they were blown away by how good they are. I know that these images aren't top shelf, however compared to the quality that the "mob" accept as standard then even on a bad day these images will stand out as exceptional.

We as professional photographers need to educate the public as to what they should expect from their photographic session, at the price point in the market they are looking at. Then if they choose the "mall stand" they are choosing that level of image at that price point, with that level of connivence.

Also as a pro photog mate of mine stated, he has a "mall stand" image he had done of his children hanging in his bedroom and he finds it just fine. 8-) So they can be good for what they are wanted for.

[GoldenOrb]

I agree and disagree to some comments... by no means am I trying to offend anyone.....

There is never any harm in asking questions if you were intending to purchase an item... It someone asked me questions to make me feel dumb or make me feel that what I was doing was worthless/ meaningless, Id probably make my own comments and the resulting answer would be "Yes!!!" ... my remote cord is around your neck........ (joking)

Having been a Franchisee (no not a Mall photographer) there is many many things to consider, some are:
The franchisee generally would have to complete some form of competency to show that can perform to a minimum standard... Is the standard set too low, is the training provided poor, is the monitoring of the product set at an acceptable level. Under pressure sometimes this standard slips... thats just normal esp if you are lacking in experience.

The franchise the wife and I owned chose to go in a direction of quantity vs quality... We were constantly harassed by the franchisor that we took too long with what we did, but we refused to release products that were not up to scratch.

The franchisee will be trained to a minimum standard... remember some people will take on a franchise because they do not have the experience to go at it alone. (this was us.... the wife wanted to go back to work but with 3 kids under 6 at the time... its easier to work at home).

If the franchisee is trained at a minimum the person/ slave that is running around trying to take the photos is probably trained with even worse standards and only getting a bare minimum on a part time wage.

Even if on minimum wage and its a franchise... these operators would be forking out massive royalties and printing costs, as said by someone else... you get what you pay for, this also includes employment. The franchisor will be trying to cut costs by using cheaper media and inferior inks (the icc profiles would also be out when printing), so he makes a bigger profit. They dont care, the customer will never meet them. Most will sign a contract stating that they will only print through one business or head office.... this is illegal.. but most wont know.

Sometimes the employee may have a want for photography or even a passing phase.

Either way they probably have no to little knowledge of the equipment (which someone could probably buy a better compact then what they use)

Photographing children will always result in a win with mass products from Mall operators because even if the child in the photo turns out to look like a baboons arse... its still their child whom they love and adore. Those photos no matter what they look like are memories for the life time of the product .

my 2 cents

[Tony B]

I grit my teeth whenever there are the "thinking of turning pro" threads. This thread is typical of a wannabe. There are far too many photographers with delusions of becoming a pro & ALL that entails. I have said many times there is more to becoming a professional photographer than taking photographs. A professional should, IMHO, know the industry its equipment & workings inside out & backwards, have some sort of recognised accreditation & should certainly have public liability insurance. I am also surprised that government legislation does not mandatorily demand that business registration & certificate of insurance be on display. Usually the poor providers do not register for business or pay for insurance. Unfortunately there is no industry regulation & the public does not have the brains/balls to ask for accreditation. . The thinking person asks to see my public liability insurance, accreditation & Working with Children Card. The insurance & Child card should have been demanded by the Mall before permitting work to take place. In addition to my photography I have had a tennis coaching business for over 20 years & it is difficult to obtain public liability insurance as a coach unless one belongs to an accredited body ie Tennis Australia or State.

[FallingHorse]

I grit my teeth whenever there are the "thinking of turning pro" threads. This thread is typical of a wannabe. There are far too many photographers with delusions of becoming a pro & ALL that entails. I have said many times there is more to becoming a professional photographer than taking photographs. A professional should, IMHO, know the industry its equipment & workings inside out & backwards, have some sort of recognised accreditation & should certainly have public liability insurance. I am also surprised that government legislation does not mandatorily demand that business registration & certificate of insurance be on display. Usually the poor providers do not register for business or pay for insurance. Unfortunately there is no industry regulation & the public does not have the brains/balls to ask for accreditation. . The thinking person asks to see my public liability insurance, accreditation & Working with Children Card. The insurance & Child card should have been demanded by the Mall before permitting work to take place. In addition to my photography I have had a tennis coaching business for over 20 years & it is difficult to obtain public liability insurance as a coach unless one belongs to an accredited body ie Tennis Australia or State.

Just out of curiosity - do you grit your teeth in the same manner when one of the kids that you coach says that when they grow up, they want to play professional tennis? I have no desire to become a professional tog but I still like to teach my kids that we can do anything if we put our minds to it and work hard not just "poo poo" someone for having a dream. There is a lot of work involved no matter what field someone wants to work in - photography certainly isn't Robinson Crusoe there. But really - we are all 'Wannabes' - I wannabe retired so I have more time to spend on my hobby:D

[sugarcourt]

I think a lot of the companies hire people with no experience as most of them are commission based. No sale doesnt matter to them too much as the employees dont get paid either. People that are good at convincing people to buy dont need to be a good photographer, just talk the talk, get the customer feel convinced by what you say do the guilt trip thing especially to parents - they get them everytime.
People taking photos in the malls is more of a convenience for parents, why travel any further than you have to if you can get it done at your local shopping centre. Most people have no idea what a decent photo is. I went to a 'professional' studio in adelaide a few years ago. Charging thousands of dollars for photos that aren't centred or have dust/hair on the film when they are printing. Even not being happy with the shoot they charge you a fee if you dont turn up to view the photos. Mind you I didnt get the photos, I was not happy with them but I think most of the time there is a lot of pressure selling. People fall victim to this felling like they have to purchase the photos.
We need to get out there and show people what a good photo is and that it doesnt cost the earth.

[Tony B]

i USUALLY AS

[Tony B]

I am talking adults becoming pros not kids. I have many kids saying they would like to be a pro tennis player, never an adult. I would rather teach enthusiastic kids who will never become a pro than a prima donna usually with a parent with attitude & totally unrealistic expectations. As an aside I retired at 41 from my profession of accountancy & have been following my dreams for the last 20 years. I also competed in at least 5 sports at a national/international level so have some experience in setting goals & assisting others achieve theirs.

[silverprince]

I guess it just comes down to the fact that they don't know or value the end product "the photo" enough to fork out what a pro photographer would charge for it. Let's face it, those Mall photo booths may as well have a revolving belt on them for all the care they take in lighting :)

S