#87 – The hidden realities of being a professional food photographer with Francesco Sapienza – Part 2

Photography talent is very different from business acumen. They’re both completely different skill sets and just because we are good at photography doesn’t automatically imply we’ll have a profitable business.

Yes, it begins with us falling in love with photography. That step is a must to be able to even start a business, but once we are in it, the real game begins.

Just like any other business, the reality of running a photography business is more than meets the eye.

Being able to pay rent, pay our child’s school fees, put dinner on the table, and be the breadwinner of our family is totally possible as a professional food photographer.

Food photography can be as profitable and lucrative as we’d like it to be.

Just because there are challenges, doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to overcome them. Being aware of those challenges and having realistic expectations is a large part of meeting success in our business.

In this week’s episode, we continue our conversation with the NYC based Italian food photographer, Francesco Sapienza, to learn more about the unseen realities of being a full-time food photographer.

In this episode:

• Francesco shares tips on how photographers can price their services.
• We discuss how photographers can differentiate themselves in a competitive market.
• He talks about the challenges to expect when trying to reach out to clients.
• He shares tips for photographers to turn clients into returning clients.
• Francesco talks about mindset shifts that photographers can make to have a higher chance of success in their business.
• He drops 3 truth bombs he wishes he knew about the industry before starting out.
• We talk about the toughest part of being a full-time food photographer.
• He shares the most profitable part of a food photography business and how to scale it.
• We conclude with tips for setting up a profitable food photography business.

Francesco’s website: Francesco Sapienza Photography
Instagram: @francescosapienza