A fairly common thing we hear from photographers is: “My clients just don’t want printed products.” But here’s the truth — more often than not, it’s not that they don’t want them. It’s that they’ve never been shown the value of them. They’re used to digital galleries. They expect USBs. That’s what the industry has trained them to expect. But just because it’s all they know, it doesn’t mean that’s all they want. Ian tells the story of being in a seminar with a number of very wealthy Americans. When he tried To View More >>

Gary Vaynerchuk said something about the worst thing you can do in business is to be romantic about how you make your money. But show me a photographer who doesn't love taking pictures.  In fact I just wrote two rather emotional posts myself about professional photography. So I thought I'd set out the unromantic business reasons to sell products. Not how to sell or what to sell, but why.  And yes, we make the products, so of course we’d love you to sell them, but this is what's in it for you. We call them the three Ps. 1. You benefit from the sale of the To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook There are so many reasons why the printed image matters, but long term accessibility to your most treasured photos is surely a deal breaker. Why printed images matter Back in the ’90s I remember walking back to our trade show booth behind two people from a neighbouring stand. They were into IT. As they approached our booth I heard one say to the other, “I feel sorry for these guys. How long can they last in the modern world?” It’s so long ago I feel like they must have been visionaries — how did they know To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook If the first time you think about me is when you realise I’m blocking the sale, too late! Some years back there was a young man called Nigel working at Queensberry. He was about to get married, and that's how the following exchange got started. It prompted me to write a post in which I said that, to hear people talk, you’d think that only two people are involved in buying a wedding album – the bride and her mother. Same with portrait shoots, I was sure. I couldn't imagine To View More >>

Previous |  Contents | Next Download the eBook "Me me me! My favourite word." — Seth Godin The people paying Here’s the key thing about social photography. Those people in your viewfinder are paying your bills. All of your bills. And the images you take are more or less worthless to anyone else. What are your customers after? Why do they want their photographs taken? Actually, do they want their photographs taken? In social photography the trick is to understand that it’s not about the print, or the album, or the photography, or Photoshop, or what your peers think To View More >>

I'm going to be a bit pushy here. Our series on selling albums talks about:  — setting expectations — making it clear you sell them, and why! — making it easy for your clients to buy — not coming across as "pushy or sales-y" etc. I think that's good, sensible stuff — I helped write them, so there's that! — but let's face it, they lack something: ambition. Sales-ambitious or sales-shy? Portrait and wedding photographers come in all shapes and sizes, attitudes and ambitions, but one of the most important things that define them is surely their attitude to To View More >>

I've just finished re-watching Barry Schwartz's Ted Talk on The Paradox of Choice. He makes this very important point: Too much choice produces paralysis. Offer people too much choice and they'll find it very difficult to choose at all. Yes, at Queensberry we offer a lot of choice! We know that. We do it because every photographer is different. And we agree, as Barry Schwartz says, that it can be difficult to get your head around. But … if you want to sell products, you need to make the effort, not leave it to your customers.  As our designer friend Donna says, to run a design To View More >>

With a few recently released products now available to order, portrait photographers have a range of options to suit any genre and style. In no particular order, here are our top picks for portrait photographers:  1. Studio Boxes Our recently released Studio Boxes are perfect for any portrait studio. With buckram and custom canvas options, you can personalise these boxes with branding, and even bulk buy to have your clients walk away with the product in their hand. VIEW PRICING  ORDER NOW *Photographers and designers only. Login to view pricing and order products. 2. Portrait To View More >>

Matted prints are proving to be a great sales tools within the professional photographer community, and since Sue Bryce introduced her 'reveal wall' sales technique, photographers have been jumping on this for their own studios. Our Studio Boxes and Slip-in mats are designed so you can stock up with products, and order your Queensberry prints separately. The prints will only take a few days to arrive depending on whether you want us to colour correct or not … or of course you could print your own. Either way, you'll be able to schedule a sales consultation/photo To View More >>

Travel photographer Lola is a Kiwi born and bred, and her work inspires the adventurer in all of us. She has a bubbly and life-affirming attitude that shines through her photography, and motivates us to get out and explore. We’ve partnered with Lola in her photography exhibition, Aqua Frizzante. Driven by the calmness and solitude the ocean can bring, she focuses on movement and textures as she floats alone, with a more abstract approach than we’re used to. We can’t wait to see what she’s installed. Details below.  Lola got into photography at a pretty young age, To View More >>