Toronto Photography Meetup Group

I'll be interested in seeing what people have to say on this. It's not generally a problem for me, as I usually shoot in a documentary manner, but I have had to deal with one person who wanted the gap between her front teeth "fixed" in post. After a couple of subtle attempts that didn't pass muster I gave her a set of "Chiclet teeth", which stopped any further requests

" well thats what you look like fatty, Lose some weight" haha Im sure that wouldnt go over well .. I do passports for people all the time and I get the same thing I just chuckle and continue. Some people are completely rediculous when it even comes to passport photos. Don't even let me get started on baby passports Id rather de acnefy all day then do 1 babies passport lol What a pain

I dont have the experience of the other members here or the OP, but i just ask them to show me some pictures of them that they DO like.

By having other photos there with the same person in them (that they like), it grounds their expectations to what they can expect and it helps you in terms of just being able to produce quality better than those samples and realistic goals, rather than making them look like Brad Pitt or Jolie.

WYSWYG unless retouching has been discussed and agreed upon, but I always think it's the photographer's job to make you look your best up to a certain point.

Creative edits is entirely a different matter more of a personal style imo.

Just add a $1000 retouching packet to the bill and send me the files, I'll do for 30% They won't recognize themselves - skinny, make-up, no flaws, a perfect mannequin

hey, for $300 PotatoEYE, you should be able to photoshop them on top of a unicorn with a sword in their hand, long flowing hair, and standing over vanquished enemies!

I deal with demanding people all the time (not photography related). The trick we use here is to make sure they are aware of what they will recieve before the product is delivered.

For instance, when estimating turn over times, the average product can be finished in about 3-5 business days. We usually tell our clients it will take 7-10 business days. This allows for recovery if there are any delays and if it comes in on time, the client will be even more pleased.

Some ways of applying this to your business is as PotatoEYE suggested. You can tell them your package includes basic touch ups, but if they want a more superficial finish you can do it for an extra charge.

Can definitely do that

To me, it's all about setting proper expectations. In the contract it should clearly state that only basic touchups are included, things like exposure, brightness, contrast, etc. Any additional touchups would be charged by the hour - such has skin smoothing, photo manipulation, etc.

Do what the client asks as long as they're paying you. If you're really sick of the client asking for more,just say you've done all that you can do.

i had similar issue once, but when people approached me to do photography for them i usually tell them im not responsible for retake since i have zero complain from the past

but at the end of the day.. clients are always right...

If it clearly states this in your contract then I would simply refer them to the contract. In that case, they don't have a leg to stand on when they dispute it.

I'm not a magician I'm a photographer. It's a touchy subject to debate with customers on making them look better

Perhaps saying something like this: "Just so you're aware and there aren't any surprises when you get your portrait, I photograph individuals as they are, with all their really good attractive features and the features that they may not find so attractive about themselves. I can always touch up photos but I usually don't do excessive retouching. If you think you'd want a lot of airbrushing or retouching done, then, perhaps, I'm not the right photographer for you."

Unrealistic expectations comes from not setting expectations to begin with.

I'm not saying this is all on the photographer OR on the client but both have to know what each other expect out of the interaction. It's an education for both imho.

This sort of thing has very little to do with photography itself.

Client expectations, if not set/asked about or addressed leaves the door open for someone to bad mouth your business/work.

Setting expectations with the client even before they sit down for the portrait is very important (I'm sure you all know this already and I'm preaching to the choir here ).

Perhaps, in this particular case, before/after retouching samples (as mentioned earlier in the thread) and difference in pricing etc.

There are already a lot of good suggestions but what I've found is that by setting reasonable expectations with clients both parties can end up being quite pleased at the end of the transaction.

Cheers,
Dave

Great response, Dave. But I would say.. "If you think you'd want a lot of airbrushing or retouching done, then I'll have to charge you extra." =)

As a hobbyist I've never encountered this and thank God I never will. They ARE the customer paying your wage so I do like the idea of charging more for post-production work.

I got this a lot and I really hate when customers would make that comment about themselves. It was hard to respond to. Now what I do when customers make that comment is, pull out a picture of Gabourey Sidibe and show it to them. After letting them take a good look at it, I would ask them if they still felt the same about what they just said? 99% would say "No" they fell much better now.

Don't forget though, don't be using that 10mm lens with the hefty customers! The 400mm from 100' away might be the look that they are after!

One of the funniest things that has happened to me was during some wedding rehearsal shots, the mother of the bride (a very plus size woman) said "Vince, can I see that photo?". When I showed it to her she started shaking her head at me and said "I don't know if it's you or your camera, but something is wrong. I'm fat in those pictures".

There was a split second of awkwardness and then we both bursted out in laughter.

One of the best pieces of advice I've received is this:

People you want to photograph: Anyone who has a good attitude and likes their appearance.
People to stay away from: Anyone who has a bad attitudes and dislikes OR likes their appearance.

That may sound bad but you're looking for a positive experience for both parties. If the subject hates their photo being taken or hates their appearance it won't be a positive experience unless you're a magician. Yes, there are exceptions... they're few and far.

The key in any relationship of the kind rhommel described is to set proper expectations at the beginning. It is also important for the photographer to understand what the client wants.

I am not a processional photographer but this is a very common situation in all sorts of businesses:
the supplier fails to properly communicate with the client and delivers a product/service that is not up to the client expectations.

This is a communication failure and it is much harder/expensive to correct after the fact than at the beginning of the project.

Back to the OP question, I would make sure I understand what kind of portrait the customer wants. I would show them some book with posing samples or some samples of my own work, etc.
I would gently point out that if you weight 280Kg your shape will show round in pictures no matter what I do with the camera.

Can you shoot tethered? If yes you can get instant feedback and correct the pose accordingly. This too has to be agreed upon before shooting session so you don't end up spending a whole day shooting one person.

To sum up: communication is the key. You'll be amazed how cooperative most people (read clients) can be if you connect properly with them.

Erm, this is why I only photograph wildlife. The blighters never complain.