Commercial Photography:
Saving You From the Perils of Using Stock Photos

"I have an ad designed I need a photo for.  It should be in a residential setting with a woman and a small girl.  They need to be looking at a computer screen, although not obtrusive in the shot, with them to looking happily engaged in activity on the computer.  Can you get that to me by Monday?"

A commercial photographer makes photos happen.  I scout the location, line up models, get model and property releases signed, handle props and lighting equipment and, finally, take the shots.
I put a game on the computer that the little girl would enjoy to keep her attention focused on the computer and looking natural for the duration of the shoot.  This also gave my adult model something to "act" to.

"We are always searching stock photo sites only to find five or so photos that are not quite right.  We end up rewriting the ads to accommodate stock photos," explained one customer.  The ad agent agreed stating, "There is incredible power in working with imagery that a commercial photographer created to exact specification."

A Newspaper Ad
"The ad calls for a young boy in business clothes that are a little too small for him and absolutely surrounded by boxes.  The photo needs to convey the idea of a warehouse that ran out of room.  The kid should look kind of perplexed as if he's wondering what to do about his problem."

I was able to find a real warehouse willing to let me take over part of one floor for a few hours.  The advertising agent and the customer were both well pleased with the results. 

Production
Even if you or your design professional are clear across the country access to photos is possible minutes after the photo shoot is done.  I might be the only photographer in Southern Colorado with a dedicated download server.  Realistically, photos could be posted to your website that I just shot an hour or two earlier.

Counter to common digital photography practices, I take great care to make photographs right at the time they are being taken rather than fixing them on a computer later.  Most of my photos are used just as they came out of the camera.  This saves you much production time and cost.

As part of my services I permanently archive photo shoots to DVD and keep a secured off-site backup library.  There will always be a backup of your photographic assets.

"Computer Girls" and "Too Small" print ads by Steve Jacobs.