Mark Ashworth

"… It is all too easy these days to snap away and correct things afterwards…" Mark Ashworth image 1

My career started when I was accepted by a respected and well-established high street studio, based in Cambridge, UK. Frances Dumbleton had built her business from a small office at home to having three studios covering many portraits and over 600 weddings a year.

I began at the very bottom with a two-week work-experience programme when I was only 16 years old. After college I worked there full time, mainly carrying out office duties, and finally, at 19, started to take baby portraits in the studio. The rest, as they say, is history. I now run a successful business from home with my wife Kirsty, covering around 30 weddings and about 50–60 portraits per year. I am also happy to extend my skills to occasional commercial work when requested.

There are some very fundamental areas that are essential to our success, and I will look at these in turn.

When you watch a drama-style movie, watch how real it feels, how realistic the characters are and how beautiful the lighting and composition are. Just remember one thing – everything is acted, directed and captured by very talented individuals. So when photographers are at work, our clients are the actors, we are the directors and photographers. I have to admit, I do struggle with the term reportage and photojournalism, and I know that this subject is controversial and may cause a stir! Don't get me wrong, I love great informal and candid moments and I have seen amazing images of this genre that have been captured by very talented photographers known for this style but, in the main, your client needs to see that your images carry professionalism, talent and experience which is very difficult to show just by shooting 'informals'. Certainly in portraiture, how do you ask a family to 'just be natural' as I am sure for most families it is not that often that they hire a professional photographer to capture such important moments in their life. The point I am trying to make here is that when you know the rules of classical posing and lighting, you are able to break these rules for creative impact that your clients and peers will love. Your customers will be more than happy to pay and any judges and referral still brings you the best and most profitable clients. Being a wedding photographer, in turn helps to build a database of people who are ideal portrait clients. Most of these couples will go on to start families, which are a natural target for your portrait work. All you need to do is stay in touch, either by newsletter or telephone. Any good business person will also tell you that the one thing that many businesses fail to do is stay in touch with their existing clients – I know because I am guilty of it too. I also found that advertising for portrait work just doesn't work. Referrals and recommendation are best, so try making each and every client give you at least one more client. This can easily be achieved by staying in touch. I run promotions during the run-up to Christmas, and then mostly rely on reputation for the rest of the year while I am busy with weddings.

Mark Ashworth image 3

Mark Ashworth image 2

Page 1 - Page 2

What our members say
Why I like the Societies: I like the standards they set for photographers - in this industry, it is important to have the backing of Societies as customers are more comfortable with using a photographer who has met a certain standard of photography. - Kirsty L
Find out more about the Societies here

Convention testimonials Just want to thank you for the amazing SWPP convention. Even though I could only visit yesterday (15th) I had a great time and was great to focus on my business and what I want to achieve both short term and long term and to think of the area that I need to develop my skills in. Jenny
Find out more about the Convention here

Photo Quote: As I became aware that all things have unique spatial and temporal qualities which visually define and relate them, I began to perceive the things I was photographing not as objects but as events. Working to develop my skills of perceiving and symbolizing these event qualities, I discovered the principle of opposites. When, for example, I photographed the smooth, luminous body of a woman behind a dirty cobwebbed window, I found that the qualities of each event were enhanced and the universal forces which they manifested were more powerfully evoked. - Wynn Bullock

There are 228 days to get ready for the SWPP Convention and Trade Show at The Hilton London Metropole Hotel ...
which starts on Tuesday 8th January 2013