Behind The Scenes: Private Photo Editor

Something that I don't talk about a lot is that I am also a private photo editor for other photographers! Editing has long been one of my favorite parts of photography but a lot of other photographers hate it or it has become a huge backlog for them. I love that I can provide a service that blesses us both immensely!

One of my favorite parts of being a private photo editor as opposed to working for a company is the relationships I get to have with my photographer clients. The big-box editing model works really well for some people but I love the personal connection I get to have with my clients. We are friends!

Every editor has their own system and process and I'm going to share mine with you today!
When I get a new client, I edit one or two galleries (if they are portrait sessions) or a selection of a wedding gallery so that they can see and get a feel for that side of the process. If both of us feel like this relationship will be a good fit, I schedule a time to do a video call and chat with them about expectations and I "interview" them about their editing preferences.

One of the biggest things I stress is how important open communication is. I send my clients a LOT of emails. As an editor, especially in the first couple of months, I want to hear feedback on what adjustments I need to be making to really nail my client's style. New situations come up that have to be dealt with in a new way so I will have questions for my client and they might have new things to tell me.

What I have found to work well for my clients is to send them Dropbox links to all their scheduled sessions for the next month. Sometimes a session is added last minute but usually they have a pretty good idea of what their workload is in advance. Then, once the session has been shot, culled, and the anchor images edited for the blog post, they upload the catalog to the corresponding Dropbox folder and I go to work!

My turn around time is based on my client's promised turn around time. For portrait sessions, usually the promised turn around time is 2 weeks, so my goal is to get it back to the photographer in one week. Weddings are longer but I aim for a 2 week turn around on my end. That is based on when the photographer gets the catalog to me, obviously. 

The invoicing process is super simple and straightforward. Some clients prefer to be billed after each session and other prefer billing at the end of each month but it is all online and very easy for me and my clients.

Something I love about editing for other people is to see how others create their style. I love seeing how they see a session and the things they capture. I love seeing what excites them about their style and the sweet moments they get to turn into memories for their clients. And I love that I am able to help them make their business and client experience even better by taking this part of the process off their plate.

If you are looking for a private editor, I have a few open spots for new clients. Send me an email at [email protected] and we can see if I would be a good fit for you!



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(I have a free gift for you! Grab your pack of ten free screensavers - five for computers and five for phones. Enjoy!)