With big, expensive cameras being so accessible, is there really a need to hire a photographer anymore? Why should anyone have to pay someone when their uncle Fred, or their friend Bob has a big camera?
There are so many reasons why someone should hire a professional photographer, I'm not even sure where to begin. I think it would be easiest if this post looked at why someone should hire a wedding photographer, and why someone should hire a photographer for headshots. Anyone who is looking to hire a photographer probably falls into one of those two categories; you're either looking for a photographer to document a special event or occasion, or you need photos to try to sell something.
Fred or Bob may have an expensive camera, but having the right equipment doesn't mean they'll provide the same results as a professional. Cameras are only tools. Thinking someone will provide amazing photos because they have an expensive camera is like thinking purchasing the most expensive golf clubs will make you the next Arnold Palmer. Having expensive equipment doesn't tell the person using it when to press the shutter button, or where to focus, or what settings to use. Generally, a good, professional photographer will be able to provide similar results regardless of the camera used. The same goes for someone who isn't a good photographer. Their results will look the same if they use a cheap camera, or an expensive one; bad.
I'm sure some of you out there are aware that Fred or Bob won't provide the same results as a professional photographer, but you're probably going to go with them anyway. There are two reasons for this; either you're paying Fred or Bob nothing, or you're paying them much less than you would pay a professional. Like with pretty much everything else in life, you get what you pay for. Fred or Bob's photos may be okay, or good enough, but if the event is special enough to you, spend the money to get quality photographs that you'll want to look at and show off to your friends and family. There's no point in having photos taken if you don't want to look at them because they're nothing special. And a lot of times, special life events, like weddings, or certain birthday parties, only happen once, and there isn't going to be another opportunity to get those photos. Paying a professional who knows what they're doing means there's a smaller chance of key moments being missed.
The next reason why someone would hire a professional photographer, is because they're trying to sell something. In a lot of cases, what you're trying to sell may be yourself.
Almost every person who is just starting their career has some type of social networking profile, which means it only requires an interviewer to type the name of a person into Google to find information on them. Yes, most social networking sites allow the user to make their profile private, or gives the user the ability to hide certain information from people, but one thing that usually isn't hidden is their profile photo. The explanation of why someone who wants to appear professional should hire someone to take professional headshots of them is easy. If you and one other person apply for the same job, the employer looks at both candidates on a social networking site, both candidates have identical resumes, but one candidate has a profile photo that's just meh, and one has a profile photo that they had taken professionally, who do you think is going to be hired? Probably the one who looks more professional. We're told to not judge a book by its cover, but it happens all of the time. People are more likely to go with the product that looks more appealing, or is portrayed better. When someone goes into a job interview, they're trying to sell themselves to the interviewer and having a professional headshot either online or somewhere in your resume can only help.
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