Why Our Senior Rates Are So Affordable

Simple Answer: philosophy and ideology.  A number of years ago I branched off from magazine, model, commercial and architectural photography to add senior photos.  The genesis was my oldest son’s senior photos, as a professional photographer, I quickly noticed that there was no connection between prices senior studios charged and the product they delivered.  They charged exorbitant and unjustifiable charges, simply because they could.  I could not sleep at night charging seniors and their parents what many photographers do.  Senior pictures should not cost half a semester of college tuition.

I be_O9A9769-Editlieve that affordable highest quality professional senior photographs should be available to all seniors.  I went to too many graduation parties where the senior photos displayed were obviously taken by a parent, friend or relative because they looked amateurish.  Not that they were horrible, but as a professional I’ve spend many, many hours honing my skills and thousands of dollar on the equipment necessary to capture pictures correctly (notice the light in the eyes of my subjects, models or seniors). So, I decided to enter the market at a price point that should be acceptable to all seniors and provide a complete professional package and, yet, if someone wanted to really have a special unique session I would offer that also.  See our Packages and Prices Page.

The bottom line is quality and uniqueness of photos.  Look at any of my galleries or my homepage slide show and compare my images with any other studio.  If you find their work better, please go there as your happiness is the most important quality.  Senior photos should be fun and exciting in the capture and thrilling in viewing.

About me, I am, in my opinion, the top model photographer in the San Antonio-Austin area, quite likely the most in demand.  I’m a preferred photographer for Forte Modeling, I am widely published and my work (in 2015) was featured in 8 different magazines, including a cover shot and a six page spread (very rare) as well as a month in calendar.  These are national magazine and I was in competition wAshleyS-2624-Editith photographers from coast to coast and from Hudson Bay to Mexico City. I bring all of this to you at a rate nearly anyone can afford and my packages are All Inclusive.

I have seen photographers in San Antonio who have a $1,000 limit and advertise the average package is $4,500.  That’s crazy expensive.

Here’s what happens, they make a big promotional deal of the event.  You will be charged a non-refundable fee to book your session and then your session.  After your session, they advertise they you will be brought in for a special private showing of your images.  This meeting is a sales meeting (very much like buying a new car)and is where they make their money.  They put on an impressive slide show and show you a variety of packages you can order (of course the basic packages have none of the images you really want) and so they guide you to a very expensive package, once they have that package done, since you have been, and should be, impressed with the pres_MG_1079-Editentation and excited about how you look, they will use that enthusiasm to get you to buy photo books, picture frames and a host of other products.  You will then make a substantial down payment on the products ordered (non refundable) with final payment due on delivery.

Let’s discuss senior pictures, Call or Text to 715-533-2214, or use the contact page on this site, or email to david.nelson12@gmail.com.

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Senior Picture Premium Locations

_MG_8587 Our goal is to provide an opportunity for all seniors to be able to afford the highest quality senior photos at the most reasonable prices in San Antonio.  See our Prices and Packages section for our all inclusive prices and determine for yourself.

A number of seniors have asked for something different for their senior photos and so we have contracted with several San Antonio sites for use of their facilities.  It is important to remember that we are willing to shoot anywhere and any place you want at no additional charge (assuming there is no fee to us).  Travel is not an issue and we will travel up to 60 miles at no additional fee.

As the title indicates these site are premium and there is a cost involved.

The Settlement:  The Settlement is a popular wedding venue located in Bulverde, near the Kinder Ranch housing development.  It was settled in 1850 and the buildings are authentic and in their original locations.  The site contains a prairie house, a stage coach station and a huge barn.  The image above shows The Settlement from the back.  The barn also has an 1850 bridal suite with French doors that open onto the yard, which is very nice.  Under Emma’s Galleries you will find images we took of Emma at The Settlement.  Prices, for a 2 hour session the cost is $175 in addition to the session fee.  For a 3 hour session (recommended) the cost is $225 in addition to session fee.  Availability of The Settlement is determined by their events schedule and is generally more likely to be available on weekdays and Sundays.

Lone Star Brewery (San Antonio Art Museum) The old Lone Star Brewery (now the San Antonio Art Museum) provides a number of very interesting shooting concepts.  The old stable buildings with the huge doors and the beer warehouse with elevated doors (for loading horse drawn beer wagons) make for dramatic images, then there is the main brewery building with it grand architecture  as a backdrop and finally the art addition with reflective glass windows and its landscape dotted with sculptures.  Combining all of these creates a host of different looks at one location.  The Lone Star Brewery is a $100 option in addition to the session fee.

Sun Set Railroad Station late 1800’s railroad station is also a popular wedding venue and presents some unique opportunities for photos.  Inside is the grand staircase that goes up to a landing and then splits to left and right, the upper level is dominated by luxurious trappings from the period original doors, railings and sitting areas.  On the main floor is the original ticket counter from the period, glass booths, flipup entry gates, etc.  The fee is $175 in addition to the session fee.  (The Sun Set Station’s availability is based on their schedule and week days are more likely to be open than weekends)

Concerning the Sun Set station, shooting outside the station is free and one of our more popular locations is on Commerce Street and St. Paul’s Square (a block from the Station) where the architecture resembles that of New Orleans with covered sidewalks, gas lamps etc and since Commerce Street is mostly empty store fronts and government offices it presents a great opportunity for street and sidewalk scenes with limited distractions.

 

We are working on other venues at this time so keep abreast.

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Packages and Pricing

It’s all about you and your social media world

You live in a Social Media world, why choose an old style studio?  Our senior services are built around how you live in the Social Media World: Facebook, Instagram, Vine, SnapChat, Pheed, Tumbler .etc.  We provide you with a DVD of all your images resized and formatted for use on social media sites. Just upload and share what you want with who you want.   We also provide a DVD of all your images full size and full resolution so if your parents, relatives or friends want photos we’ve got that covered too…And if you buy photos from us there no photo package requirements!   Why should you be forced to buy photos you don’t want and need to get those you want?

We’re Affordable.   After year of shooting senior portraits (including our own kids) we recognize that senior portrait are almost a rite of passage for seniors, we also know that most senior photographers in San Antonio price many students out and so seniors use Uncle Fred or mom or dad to shoot their photos.  You might think that with our national exposure and the extra mile we go, we would be very expensive, but we are not. We  love taking senior portraits and senior pictures are not where we make our money.  We are probably the most affordable senior studio in San Antonio and there are no hidden charges, no hidden fees, what we tell you is what you get.

 

 

The Essential Difference Between Us And The Other Studios

Virtually all other professional studios make their money selling expensive photos.  Typically they will charge you a small sitting fee, take your photos, give you some proofs to review and then require you to purchase photos in packages.  This gets very expensive quickly and you will find that if you want to buy a certain size photo that it only comes in a package with other photos, so you have to forgo getting some images you want or pay for images you don’t want.

We do not require you to buy photos.  While you are under no obligation to purchase photos from us, we are contracted with a professional lab and if you want to order photos from us we can provide the highest quality for near Wal-Mart prices.  And, if you choose to purchase photos from us there are no required packages, simply choose the images you want in the sizes and quantities you want.  It’s that simple.

Packages and Prices

Our approach is very simple.  Our package prices are all inclusive, there are no additional fees or hidden costs. 

All Packages Include

  1. The opportunity to select 25-35 images to be finished. provided to you with a full release on a DVD
  2. Professionally finishing of all images (removal of blemishes, skin smoothening, color enhancement, removal of distracting background items, etc) Identical what we do for submission to magazine.
  3. A DVD of the finished image re-sized and sharpened for use on social media sides.
  4. A DVD of  full sized  hi-resolution images with a full release for making copies.
  5. A free web gallery on our site.
  6. Senior photo sent to your high school.

Studio or Location Only Package $375

Includes a three-hour session with unlimited wardrobe changes, backgrounds and poses.  A location package includes two to three separate locations.  We shoot at many locations (we can provide you a list and if you tell us what you’re interested in we can suggest locations to match), but if you have a special location in mind, just name it.

Studio and Location Package $525

This includes the Studio Package and the Location Package,  (and you can do the sessions on different days).  The cost is $525.  That’s it, no extra fees and no hidden costs and we offer a 100% guarantee.

Country, Urban, Studio and Water Package ($850) We are offering a $50 discount to any senior(s) who arranges for a session before the end of April (the session can be any time before the end of October)

This is a  full day, often two half day sessions.  We will start shooting in the country and will work  our way into the city where you will have a range of options from a fashion like shoot on the a main street of San Antonio, one of the many city parks, (Tea Garden). one of the Missions, along the River Walk, the Old Lone Star Brewery, Sunset RR station, Guadalupe State Park to various grungy and gritty locations.  We will take a break, give you a chance to get a bite to eat and then freshen up at our studio, change hair styles and make up and then we will take some of the more formal and interesting shots in studio and we will end the  day with a session in or near the water as the sun starts to fade.  The Tea Garden, Missions, Old Lone Star Brewery, Sunset Station are premium locations and an additional fee applies.

Can’t Uncle Fred Take My Senior Photos?

Well, he certainly could.  Uncle Fred, is probably a good photographer and takes great vacation and family photos.  But Fred is not a professional.  As professionals we have invested thousands of dollars in equipment and spent hundreds of hours honing our skills in all aspects of photography.

We asked a couple of last year’s seniors to  send us a “good” photo taken by a relative and below each we placed one of ours.  We think our images speak for themselves.

Why we think it is a bad idea to have Uncle Fred take your senior photos.

1. Often when people see a great photo their initial response is, “Wow, you must have a great camera.”  Actually the camera is the least important factor in a great photograph.

2. What separates non-professionals from professionals comes down to two factors, posing and lighting.  The first is posing.   Posing a subject is the most difficult skill to learn in creating a great portrait.  Every element of the body needs to  be posed.  This is why magazines hire professional models.  Since we shoot professional models most of the year, we can make you look like a professional model. The second element separating photographers is lighting.  No matter how beautiful the subject, no matter how well posed, it is the light that makes the image spectacular.

3.  What do you mean by lighting?  Well, if someone puts you in the shade (hopefully not the sun) and took your picture that would be ambient light (see the two examples above), it would look ok, but you would not be separated from the background, the image would be flat looking and you likely would have raccoon eyes (shadows under the eyes).  He could use the popup flash on his camera which would be bad, or the worst he could put an external flash and attach it to the top of the camera, giving you that DMV look.

4.  We are one of only a handful of studios who balance ambient and flash.  Done correctly the subject pops without that “flashy” look.   Since light should never come from the same axis as the camera, we use radio controlled flash triggers to take the flash off the camera, place it at the correct angle to create dramatic images, soften the light with a softbox and using a 3 to 1 ratio and balance the flash with the ambient light.

Posted in Prices and Packages, Senior Pictures, Senior Pictures in San Antonio, Senior Portraits, Senior Portraits in San Antonio Tagged , , , , , , , , , , |

Senior Portraits in San Antonio

Tiffany Senior Picture
We are an established and nationally published photography studio offering senior portraits in San Antonio. We think you owe it to yourself to consider Davidanelsonphotography for your senior p_MG_3622-Edit-Editictures. We bring our talent and experience shooting for magazines and working with some of the top models to your senior portraits session.
We want your senior portraits session to be creative and capture those unique senior pictures that illustrate all facets of your personality.  If you are involved in spoSenior Portraitrts, cheer, dance, music, technology, cars, truck and motorcycles, clubs, community activities, etc. These are all are part of who you are and should be a part of your senior portraits.
If you’re into fashion our Fashion Flair sessions offers the opportunity to have your hair styled and makeup applied by a professional MUA (Make Up Artist) as if you were getting made up for the cover shoot for a magazine. Into Sports? We’ve got that covered and have worked with photographers from Sports Illustrated. Whatever your interests are we will do what is necessary to capture that interest in a way that will make you smile.
We guarantee that you senior session will be fun, exciting and memorable. We believe that senior portraits are almost a rite of passage and that prices for senior pictures from many senior photographers in San Antonio are too expensive with all the other costs involved in being a senior. Rather than see you have an aunt or uncle take your senior pictures, we decided to offer our services at a cost that is affordable to nearly all seniors. Check out our Senior Packages page for more information on costs and senior photo options.
We pride ourselves on going the extra mile to ensure your senior portraits make you smile and make your frieEm's Senior Volleyball Portraitnds envious. Unlike most senior photographers in San Antonio, wEmily's Graduation Photoe are not tied to our studio or to any locations, if you have a place that holds special memories or has a connection to an interest, lets make it a part of your senior portrait session.  We offer unique senior portraits and will go the extra mile to ensure they are creative portraits that match your personality and interests.
So check out our work and our prices and then give us a call to set up your senior session.

Posted in San Antonio Senior Photographer, Senior Pictures, Senior Pictures in San Antonio, Senior Portraits, Senior Portraits in San Antonio, Senior Sports Pictures, Senior Sports Portraits, Seniors In Sports Uniforms, Volleyball Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |