This is my 5th year as a professional photographer and every single day I learn something new. There is always another way to do it, or a cool program to use, or an editing system that works wonders. After getting several emails from aspiring photographers about where to start and what programs to use, I decided to compile a list of must have software programs for your business.

One of my biggest passions is helping other photographers succeed in starting and growing their own businesses. It blows my mind that I am able to support my family (yep, my husband quit his job!) on a creative job like photography. If you are interested in a private mentoring session, I’d love to hear from you! Enjoy these tips!
 

WEBSITE

1: ProPhoto

I just upgraded to ProPhoto about two years ago and it has really changed my business. I get so many compliments on my website about how clean it is and how easy it is to use. I design my own pages and I promise it doesn’t take long to learn. They literally have video tutorials for every question you could possibly imagine. Click here for $10 off your site!

2: MachForm

This is the most important thing I did for my business- made a contract! In the beginning, I would email back and forth with the client, decide on a shoot date, and that was it. I would even start driving to a newborn session, only to realize that I never asked for their address (!!!) I implemented a contract a few years ago and MachForm is the easiest way to do that. I believe it’s $59 and that gets you unlimited forms and it’s only a one-time fee. I created a my contract, then uploaded it directly to my website so it’s easy for clients to see and it looks like it’s part of my design. You can also enable PayPal payments, so at the bottom of the contract once they press submit, it takes them to PayPal where they can pay the deposit. I then get an email with all the client information and the signed contract, so if I need their address or info, a quick search in my email with pull it up. So easy!

3: BlogStomp

I love this! You know how you see adorable collages on Facebook from other photographers? Well I used to try and make those on my own in Photoshop with multiple layers, and a lot of confusion. Blogstomp is too good to be true! You simple upload the photos you want in the collage, click on a layout, and stomp it. I use it a ton for my website pages and also on my blog. It’s such a time saver!
 

EDITING

4: Lightroom

I use Lightroom for 99% of my post processing work. I use Photoshop for tiny tweaks that can’t be done in LR, but mostly I edit everything in LR. I love it because it also acts as a way for me to easily categorize and organize my photos. If you shoot in RAW, you can completely manipulate the images in LR, which is wonderful, especially when you are starting out and might need to adjust white balance, exposure, etc. I have developed two presets that I use for all of my work. You can purchase them here!

5: Portraiture

This is a life saver! This was a program that I discovered in 2013. I don’t remember how I found it, but let me tell you, it’s worth every penny. After I edit all my photos in LR and apply my preset, adjust colors, cropping, etc. I batch process them all through Portraiture. I set it on the lowest level. It slightly smooths the skin on all my subjects and creates a softer image. For me and my style, this works great.
 

CLIENTS

6: Shootproof

I use Shootproof for all my client galleries. It is so easy to use and clients love it. Within a gallery, I create two albums: Print and Web. Since I include digital files with my shoots, I upload the high-res and the web-res files to each album, making it easy for them when downloading to distinguish between the two sets of images. If you do not offer digitals, you can set your account to not allow downloads and you can add a watermark to all of your uploads. You can also add prints, products, and other things to your client galleries that they can purchase directly through the site. You can also create a client app with 40 of the best images from your session. They can download the app on their phone and show the photos to all their friends and family. People love it! Use the link here for a discount!

7. Animoto

I started including a slideshow for my clients about a year ago. It’s another ‘wow’ factor for clients and it’s that little extra step in the delivery of images. Since I don’t do in person sales, I want their first time viewing the images to be something sweet and sentimental. I upload all the photos to an easy pre-made template, I re-order them to make it look the best, and I include that link at the top of my client gallery email. Most of the time the client says it made them cry, so I think the overall response is great. Click here for a free month!
 

BUSINESS

8. MailChimp

I started collecting email addresses from my clients years ago and I’m so glad that I did. When I have a promotion or a mini session day, most of my bookings come from my newsletter. MailChimp is free to use for small businesses and really easy to design. I like to keep it super simple, but you can make it complicated with images and fancy designs too. If you are just starting out, make sure you are creating a database with client emails! You never know when someone will read the newsletter and want to book with you.

9. Quickbooks

I love Quickbooks online because it is so easy to use! In my first years of business, I literally had every transaction from clients on a notepad and at the end of the year I was using a calculator to add up my total revenue. Once I realized that was insane, I joined QB and it’s been the best thing for my business bookkeeping. You can sync your business bank account and PayPal so that QB sees all your transactions and logs them into the correct category. I can easily run a Profit and Loss report for my month, my week, a year, a specific day, etc. I highly recommend it!

10. PayPal

I’m sure you know what PayPal is! I have found this is the easiest way to keep track of all my business finances. This is where I accept the client deposit from the contract, then after the shoot I will either swipe their card with my PayPal reader, or I will send them an invoice via PayPal for them to complete. Yes, it takes a percentage, but for me it’s easier than checks. I have a debit card that I can use when purchasing business things as well, so I keep everything in one place. I then transfer the money out to my personal account or savings when I need to.

 

I hope this blog post has helped you! Feel free to email me with any questions! xo, Katie