Frequently Asked Question.... "What Is Your Turnaround Time?"

One of the most frequently asked questions I get, in my photography business is, "What is your turnaround time?"  This is a question that is always interesting to answer.  The answer is, apparently very quick!  My contracts state that galleries will be delivered within two weeks.  Honestly, I have never taken more than a week to deliver a gallery, even during my busiest times of the year.  So how do I do it, and what does this mean for the quality of your images? 

Here are some reasons I am able to deliver so quickly:

1. To start with, I do not overbook.  I know my ablities, my schedule, obligations and attempt at work-life balance, and I would not take on so many clients that I would back-log myself.  

2.  I am very aware of the fact that clients pay good money for not only photos, but for the full service.  I always step back and put myself in my client's shoes.  If I had a new baby, for example, I would not want to wait 6 months for the images to share with family and friends.  The same could be true if I were a wedding photographer.  

3.  I have a system for managing my client workflow, which allows me to book, answer inquiries and all the other "business stuff", and gives me more time to focus on the editing of my photos, which is the part I really love to do.

Here's my process... the day of the shoot, I start culling (sorting) the photos I have taken, to determine which will be uploaded and edited.  There are hundreds of photos taken at every session.  I choose the ones that I feel are the best representation of the session, my style, and my clients.  Those images are uploaded to my computer, and I pull a couple to edit and share as "sneak peeks" with clients before the night is over.  This gives clients a quick look at some of the photos, to hold them over until they get their gallery.  Many clients like to share those photos while they wait.   I then spend between 6 and 8 hours editing every session.  For shoots where there is extensive editing needed (a lot of acne, reddness, scaly skin), it could take twice this amount of time.  After I feel that all of the best images are edited, they are added to the client's online gallery, and then their link is emailed to them.

So from start to finish, this process, could in theory take less than a day, depending on how busy I am with other shoots, and obligations.  It is not unusual for me to be up editing until 1 or 2 am (as I know is also common for other photographers).  

Quality... I will be 100% honest with you.  If I deliver a gallery to you and it's been 1 day since your session, your photos will be exactly the same quality as if I delivered it 5 days after your session.  Reason being, I use the same workflow.  It's the same process.  The only difference would be other obligations that may require me to space things out a little.  As I said, this is why I have a calendar, and book accordingly, so that I am not behind.  So, when I deliver galleries to my clients, and they say "wow, that was quick"!  I always remind them that yes, it seems quick, but they don't necessarily see me up at 2 am working on their gallery.  It wasn't done in 2 hours.  I take pride in every gallery delivered, and in making every client happy, and I will not deliver a sub-par gallery to get it done quickly.  I get the work, and complete it right away so that I can rest easy knowing the work is done, and the client is happy. 

I just wanted to take a few minutes to break down this process, becuase honestly nothing bothers me more than seeing photographers on social media with a list of client names that they have in their que, and are 6 months behind on delivering.  To me, this is NOT good customer service, and not what you should be paying for.