Why You Should Take Advantage of Instameets
As a photographer, or another type of business owner, or maybe even as a client, you have noticed how many social media platforms we use to promote our business and services with Instagram being one of them.
Over the summer I started to attend InstaMeets (if you’re not familiar with the term it’s basically a group of Instagram users who get together to take pictures and videos) that were organized by an old high school acquaintance and fellow photographer and I can’t express to you how much fun it has been.
Here’s a few reasons why I like them and you as a starting photographer, or even a starting model, should take advantage of them:
THEY’RE FREE – the biggest bonus to someone who’s just starting their business, right? Let me rephrase that, at least all the ones I have attended so far have been no charge.
Networking – as an introvert I don’t necessarily prefer to be around people 24/7 so trust me when I say nobody understands how uncomfortable it makes you to be around strangers like I do, but I promise it’s totally worth putting yourself out there. Why, you ask?
It builds relationships with other vendors in your industry quicker – you now have people you can bounce ideas off of, a bigger support team than you had before, and now that you know who is offering what – you can refer clients who come to you for services you don’t provide to someone who does which in turn builds trust in you.
It builds relationships with models – some models donate their time for these events, which is a good source for future clientele if they like your work.
EXPERIENCE – this is another big perk of attending InstaMeets. The more you practice with your craft, the more confident you’re going to be in your work and the chances of improvement are greater. You get to know your camera, how it works, and which settings you like best in addition with learning how to direct models will help with how you direct your future clients as well as which poses look best or flatter different body types.
Creative Freedom/Change of Scenery – I am the type of person who gets bored of things very quickly if there’s a predictability about it. I must create a change in scenery to keep myself sane and interested. Attending InstaMeets challenges my creative thinking, giving me the opportunity to experiment with different things, and test my capabilities so I can provide better and more unique services for my clients and fellow vendors. The images you shoot during these meets can also be good practice to find your editing style as well. You can of course do all these things with paying clients as well, but I prefer to do my soul searching on my time and not theirs.
Please remember that these opinions were formed by my personal experiences and as every person is different, not all InstaMeets are planned and executed the same.
Have you attended an InstaMeet before? If so, what are your thoughts? Do you have something to add to our list? Let us know!