Drawbacks To Relinquishing Your Electronic Image Files

By Patrick Rice

Unfortunately, more and more photographers are caving-in to client requests to relinquish their electronic files on a CD or DVD.  While there is the illusion that you are booking additional work because of this policy, it is a shortsighted gain at best.  First of all, if a client truly wants to secure your services, not receiving the electronic image files will not be a determining factor in their decision.  Second, releasing the electronic image files allows the client to have YOUR images printed at ANY local drug store, super store, or warehouse club.  These facilities do not maintain the same high standards of quality control that professional color labs adhere to.  Both the client and the professional photographer lose when inferior images are printed from your electronic files.

To validate this statement, I did a market test that any photographer can repeat in their area.  I placed a single wedding image of a bride and groom in church posed on the altar on a CD and brought it to several of my local drug stores, super stores, and warehouse clubs.  The results were eye-opening!  The bride’s white dress had a colorcast of red, yellow and blue from three of the stores where the print was made.  While a few of the stores made an acceptable print, none had the ‘snap’ that you receive from a professional color lab.  Moreover, one of the stores actually printed the image out of focus!

When your client takes your electronic image files to one of these stores for their cheap printing and receive inferior results, who do you think suffers more?  I believe that the reputation of the professional photographer is damaged every time this occurs.  Worse yet, once you relinquish your electronic image files, you’ll never even know when your client experiences this type of problem.  Your reputation as a professional is being irreparably tarnished and you aren’t even around to provide an explanation!  When your client’s friends and family view inferior quality prints of your work, they will probably assume that you created the images poorly.  It is doubtful that they will fault the store that printed the photos.  Over time, the professional photographer’s referrals will diminish and they will secure fewer bookings and wonder why.  Knowing the way some photographers think, they will then probably lower their prices thinking that will solve their problems.  Soon, they will be out of business or looking for a “real” job to pay their bills.

Sadly, professional photographers are currently causing the problems that will lead to their demise.