Photo Portfolios

[aweaver]

Hi,
Does anyone know of a creative way to present a portfolio of photos to a prospective client?
Im thinking of approaching children boutiques in my area and asking if they'd like to have some of my images in their store for decor so I need a way to show some of my work.
I don't want to present the typical leather binder with glossy inserts that create a glare. I though maybe a flush mount photobook might work, but they are expensive.
Thanks for any help

[w9ctm]

Do you have an iPad?

[suerenee]

When meeting with clients Ipads are the way to go. I love mine and have booked every bride I met with since I've had my ipad.

Flushmounts are expensive but you can get a studio sample from most vendors with a % off. Neil Enterprises sell nice do-it-yourself flushmount books that I do for my boudoir clients. You could print photos through WHCC and then throw them in the albums. Just make sure that if you display work you are getting the credit for it.

[texkam]

asking if they'd like to have some of my images in their store for decor

Perhaps project them on their wall to size.

[groovyone]

Originally Posted by texkam

Perhaps project them on their wall to size.

That is a cool idea. Pico-projectors keep dropping in price too. Have some way to measure the projected image and they can see exactly how it would fit on their wall.

[csa]

You could also do a press book, much less expensive than a flushmount.

[texkam]

Perhaps project them on their wall to size.

I must give proper credit for this idea. This was advice from one member to another in an old thread. Thanks Don and Heather, that's what this forum is all about.

The Great and Wonderful Don Barnes told me to buy a projector, and that if I didn't make enough to pay for the projector on the first sales session, that he would buy it from me. My average sale at that time was $200. My first session with projection sales was $701.57. The projector cost me $432......nuff said :) Cuz it's all in the math baby!

[aweaver]

thanks for the suggestions. I don't have an iPad. I thought that might be the way to go if I already had one. I do have a laptop and I thought of just saving the movie and using it, but then I saw posts about people saying they would rather show the real image in print rather than a computer screen because it just isn't the same.
I will ask about studio samples.
Thanks again

[Village Idiot]

If anyone knows who Don Giannatti is of the Lighting Essentials - a Place for Photographers. Learn Lighting, Photography, Fashion and Editorial Portraiture on Location and In Studio. Portable Strobes, Studio Flash and Natural Light Photography blog, he's doing a 51 week project for his followers and icludes live web discussions with that.

One week the discussion focused on portfolios and the general concensus is that iPads are neat, but they're better off when you're not dealing with certain clients. It's not something you'd want to take in with you to an art director or other client at a place that deals with photographers all the time as at that point it become a gimmick. I have one and I carry it around as a portfolio for showing people I happen to bump into that are interested in hirign a photographer, but I'm putting a book together for face to face meetings with clients.

Press printed books look classy and they give you freedom to design them so that there's more to it than just showing photos. You can have one page with the original photo and the next with tear pages from the jobs you've worked on with a blurb about the company/person you were shooting for and the job you were doing.

[aweaver]

I contacted Bay Photo, who I've dealt with before, and they said they would offer a flush mount book as a studio sample to 50% off. I think I will try doing that to start with. Thanks

[Coelus]

Personally, if I was wanting to sell prints as wall art I would walk in with a print case with matted prints. That's what you're trying to sell isn't it? Let them put their hands on the product your selling, hold a couple up on the wall and give them an idea of size. Sell not just a print, but a matted and mounted print. I'd use 16x20 mats and fit all the prints to it. Show them how small that 16x20 is on the wall, and how much better a 30x40 ($$!) would look. If you're shooting kids in your stock shots you can also sell them on making custom prints using their products ($$$!) which of course you can license to them ($$!) for other advertising they may do.

Do that and you're a business, not just someone selling prints on the side.