Discussion ?? 10%

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

I was talking to a fellow photographer the other day, one who has been in the business far longer than I have, and I mentioned that I'll take 200+ photos at a shoot and only have 20 or so that I feel are great photos, worth editing and giving back to the client. He said 10% is actually a good goal to aim for. How do you feel about this? Do you find that you have better results than 10% or is 10% pretty average?

5 comments:

Amanda J said...

I'm probably around 10% as well. Especially if there are really small kids in the pictures!

Jamie Lewis said...

Yeah, I think it depends on the subject and event. I try for higher, or rather I shoot less (one of my teachers is always telling me to shoot "judiciously"), but try to make each one the best. I've gotten much better, and often its more than half that turn out great. But mostly its 20-30% I'd say.

maureen said...

It's so much lower on shoots with toddlers up to 8 or 10 years old who move around so much, that's for sure about 10%. With older people, I get many more usable shots. I know what you mean about shooting judiciously Jamie, I'm trying for that too! But I swear some of the best photos of small children are nestled between a bunch of ones where they are looking away, etc.

Jamie Lewis said...

Definitely! I also just read my comment- first of all, I meant sometimes (not often) I get about 50% or more great ones), but most of the time its 10-30%. Its always lower with kids and babies. I hate going through and weeding out the bad ones,so I often just wait camera ready for the right moment. Honestly my big problem is focus! I lost my glasses a while back and focusing my camera is a pain in the neck now!

Unknown said...

I agree, it depends on the subjects. When children are involved I take dozens of shots and pick out the best ones. You never know what gems will surprise you after the shoot is over. I always try to take at least two or three of the same photo. Great shots are too often ruined by shaking hands, closed eyes, etc. On average I come home with 150-200 shots, and end up keeping only about 15-20% if its a good shoot.

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