Why You Need a Season Debrief

At H&H we say we are more than just a lab. But what does that even mean? Sure, when you partner with H&H you get best-in-class products and technology at your fingertips. But who else, besides yourself, knows as much about your business and has a vested interest in your success? Who else has the experience and perspective of working alongside thousands of businesses like yours? H&H Color Lab is your resource. And you’re leaving money on the table if you are not making sure you at least familiarize yourself with all those resources at your disposal. Many of our customers request a seasonal download. It’s just good business. It helps dot the i's and cross the T's. Not to mention it helps both of us continue to improve. You…

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“Weather” Or Not to Knock Out?

An interesting play on words. A decision that leads to more questions than answers sometimes. I would like to share with you some of my ideas and answers to this question. As a volume sports photographer in Houston Texas, I deal with weather issues all the time. Certain times of the year we get all four seasons in one day. In Texas, in August, it’s hot. 97 degrees outside with 85% humidity. Add it to the fact that you are taking pictures on a turf field—the temperature gauge now reads 115 degrees. Celsius. Other days it feels like monsoon season. The only thing certain in this type of climate is Image2C will show up. And we will take your pictures at the scheduled day and time. Let’s look at some…

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6 Tips to Build & Stay a Healthy Husband and Wife Sports Photography Team

My name is Megan Sockel, and have been married to my husband, Scott, for 11 years. We have 2 kids and have been running a business together for the past 12 years. How can we possibly be together so much? So many of my friends have said to me they could never work with their spouse and they would drive each other crazy. That may be true in some cases. Being together ALL THE TIME is a unique lifestyle. I do know from my own experience that marriage is HARD. Additionally, having a business partner is also hard because you can't just do what you want. But, why is it so hard to be together all the time?! I think it comes down to being able to "let go". Let…

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3 Keys to Pose Great Looking Sports Portraits

Everyone understands the importance of posing. No one wants to look like a dull-headed nitty-muffin. But we also don’t want to look awkward or “posed”. People say to stray away from how our parents posed us in portraits. It is a generational thing—“stiff” and “emotionless” to be exact. The fine line for posing, specifically in sports portraits, has a few things to consider to sell the emotion to the parents. That’s what we do as photographers—we sell a luxury item built upon emotion. To capitalize on that emotion, the parent needs to see their kids in a more natural state. These tips will help you do just that and hopefully pull away from the “other guys” in the marketplace. To accomplish the alignment of the expression, body, and environment, we…

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This One Thing Will Make You Love Those Last Minute Orders

Who LOVES late orders from parents? Who LOVES it when mom that forgets to order grandma's button or 5x7? ANSWER is... No One! Late orders have always been a problem in our business. We either never have enough for an order-minimum or we plain don't have time for them. Either way, late orders always equal unhappy employees and unhappy customers. That was until we partnered with our lab for all our online prepay, proof, and late orders. We now have an efficient and easy way to handle those late orders. Which means no more phone calls from mom wanting to order Grandma's forgotten button. Now I actually look forward to all the late orders. About two or three years ago, we transitioned all our late orders to online fulfillment. We…

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Winter Pre-Season Checklist

Free Checklist 6-Week Checklist to a Successful Winter Season Are you ready for winter? Are you, really? At H&H we want to help you have a good winter season and help you grow your business. And yes, we know it's Fall. We know you are so busy that you're not even sure if your kids remember what you look like. So, we put together a checklist to take the stress out of preparing for winter season—all while you are still taking care of the business you have today. Hope you enjoy. This checklist will help you prepare for: Confirm picture dates for winter. Design & print your winter sports flyers. Setup hhimagehost online sports price list & events. Order new picture day samples. Help you test and check your systems.…

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Are You Frustrated With Your Workload?

“Crap! My shutter release button is stuck” I said as I dismounted from the back on a 7-ton troop transport vehicle. I had finally returned from a multi-day convoy mission. We resupplied Marines in remote combat outposts throughout southern Helmand Province of Afghanistan. During the convoy, I captured hundreds of images of Marines and Afghan National Police in action side-by-side. My rifle and camera were the two most important things in my life. They had been caked with the fine powdery sand that was near impossible to avoid during the long drives through the desert country. And now my most important tool was not working. It was mid-morning. We had been traveling all through the night. The sun was beating down over the dirt wall barriers of Camp Bastion when…

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How to Break Into Competition Sports With Banners

Whether you are starting out in the volume business or are a seasoned professional, if you are not focusing on the travel team market and don’t have a plan to market to this segment of customers, you’re missing out. Statistics show typical youth sports leagues in the US are declining in number of participants. In our area, the total number of kids in the league on photo day is declining year after year. Or, some of our leagues are merging with others or folding all together. While the rec leagues are declining, they are making way for more and more travel and elite programs with the number of athletes participating in these programs skyrocketing. My son started playing travel baseball at 8 years old. Not because he was a great…

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Do I Need to Sell Sports Photos Online Like Shutterfly?

There is no arguing that we, as a society, have moved toward using our mobile devices in many aspects of our lives, including online e-commerce. I have been selling both online pre-pay and proof programs in schools and sports for years. It has increased my sales. It saves time and labor. But I've had to learn some lessons along the way. Here are some questions I've been asked or had to figure out on my own. Do I need to sell image downloads or packages first? The choice is up to you. I have found best practices are to sell packages first, then offer image downloads second. Remember once the customer has the digital file they can use it wherever they want and whenever they want. You lose control over…

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5 Ways I Screwed Up School Photography

I tried school photography, and failed. Spring of 2017 I was approached by a friend and told, “you should try school photography”. After some thought, and convincing words from my friend, I decided to give it a go. But let’s back up. I started my portrait photography business in January of 2010. I struggled through with some failure then, too. But with persistence and education, I managed to figure out the portrait business. And eventually, created a successful studio with a strong profit margin. School photography was my next step because now I’m thinking about my future. Let’s be candid….few people sell a portrait business. I needed something to sell so I can retire when I’m 95. So. Schools it is. With the help of my friends who had a…

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