Hire photographers

Pick the specialty before the person

Photographers specialise more than most buyers expect. Product and e-commerce work is about consistency across hundreds of frames under controlled light. Headshots and team photos are about putting people at ease quickly and matching a house style. Event and conference photography is about anticipation and speed, often in bad light. Brand and campaign work is closer to a film shoot, with a creative lead, styling and locations. Food, real estate and architecture each have their own craft. A strong portfolio in one of these tells you little about the others, so decide which job you are hiring for first.

What goes in the brief

• The job type (product, headshots, event, campaign, food, property) and a shot list or count.
• Where the images will be used: web, print, advertising, packaging. This decides usage rights and resolution.
• Dates, location and whether you need a studio or the photographer brings one.
• Deliverables: number of final retouched images, formats, crops for social, turnaround.
• Styling and props: who supplies them, whether a stylist or makeup artist is needed.
• Budget range, so the quote can be sized honestly.

How to read a portfolio

Look for the job you are hiring for, in volume. Three beautiful product shots prove less than thirty consistent ones. For headshots, look at how different people are made to look like they belong to the same company. For events, look for the moments that are hard to get: speakers mid-gesture, candid reactions, the room from above. Ask to see a full delivery from one job, not just the highlights; it shows you the editing and retouching standard you will actually receive.

Usage rights, explained plainly

A photographer's quote usually covers a defined use: your website and social channels, for example. Advertising use, print, packaging or an unlimited term cost more, because the images are worth more to you. Decide the use before the shoot and put it in the agreement. On Spexster the contract runs through the platform, so the rights and the deliverables are written down before anyone picks up a camera.

What moves the price

Rates vary by market and specialty, and every quote on Spexster is clear and upfront. The movers are the number of final images and the retouching standard, studio or location, assistants and stylists, usage rights and term, and turnaround. A half-day of headshots and a two-day campaign shoot are different quotes for good reasons; the brief is what makes them comparable.

Hiring across cities

For headshots, events and property, hire local to the shoot; nothing about those jobs justifies travel. For a campaign, a photographer whose work you already trust may be worth flying, with a local assistant and stylist sourced through White Glove.