Should a photographer deliver photos with no editing?
Before I tell you my opinion about this, I want you to know that I don’t think there is a right or a wrong answer for it. Each particular photographer, just as each particular videographer or artist has their own way of working and I totally understand if you do not agree with me.
But to me, the answer is no. A photographer should not deliver photos with no editing.
And I know you might have reasons to think the opposite and we will go through them in just a second, but first I want to tell you why I do not deliver photos with no editing and why I think photographers should not do that either.
Photography is art. When someone goes after you and hires you as their photographer, usually they’re hiring you because they have seen your work and they like it.
They’ve seen your Instagram, your website, your portfolio, the photos you did for someone else and they want you to take photos just like those for them!
The point is: editing is 50% of the process. Of course that, for you to have a great photo, you need to have a good shot in the first place but the editing will always give it that final touch that makes your portfolio and the photos you put out on your social media special! Unless, of course, you’re a photographer that posts your photos with no editing in the first place. But then it is very likely that you haven’t created a style for your photos either. Because the editing says a lot about the photographer’s style.
The way the photographer sees things through their lens is part of their style but the editing is part of that also. So sometimes people contact me wanting to hire a photo session and ask me if I could deliver part of the photos with no editing or if I could deliver all the photos with no editing for a better price and my answer is always: no.
Why? Because usually the people who ask me for that, have no clue about how much the editing makes the difference and how much it is what makes that photo look like the photos they liked.
They would probably receive the photos with no editing and think: oh, but this is not what I hired. I hired Priscila Elias because I liked her portfolio but this looks nothing like that!
It would be like selling a wardrobe without the door. If you saw a beautiful wardrobe on the website, you decided to buy it because you thought it was very nice and when you received it at home, it had no door, would you be happy?
Probably not! I wouldn’t.
So no: I do not think photographers should deliver their photos with no editing simply because they will deliver something that does not represent them. I sell the photos you see on my Instagram. If you hire me, that is what you will get.
Now, I know photographers and videographers who don’t mind selling their work or part of their work with no editing. I get it! I’ve worked with some photographers who would offer the client a package of 10, 20 or 100 edited photos and if the client wanted to receive all of the photos, the photographer would send the edited photos the client bought and for an extra amount of money, they would also send all of the rest of the photos with no editing so the client could have them all.
Is it a bad thing? I don’t think it is a bad thing. It’s just not a thing for me. To me, a photo with no editing will not be a Priscila Elias’ photo. And I sell Priscila Elias’ photos. It’s my art and to me, it only represents me after it is fully finished. And it gets finished after the editing process.
But maybe you don’t believe that. Maybe you don’t care about any of this and you just want to make some extra money. I respect that and get your point of view.
If you’re a new photographer and if you’re sure of what the editing can do to a photo, please check out the video where I do a 1 minute vs a 1 hour portrait photo editing so you will see the 3 stages of a photo: the before editing, the basic editing — which is usually the kind of editing I deliver to documentary photos such as weddings and events — and the fully edited photo — which is the type of editing I suggest my clients get when they ask me for portrait sessions.
And what do you think? Do you deliver photos or videos with no editing if your clients ask you to? I would love to hear your thoughts because my truth is just my truth, it is not THE truth. So, drop me a line down here to spice up this conversation!
Thanks so much for reading me and I will see you in the next post!
Tchau.
