I'm wondering just how many photographers have "studios" or setup their meetings IN their homes.. I normally meet w/ my mine at Starbucks or a quiet bookstore but lately I've been considering converting our dining room into a nice little meeting spot w/ a comfy sofa, coffeetable and some prints on our walls. We really need a way to show our clients slideshows of their proofs and this would be perfect for us until we can afford to rent a studio spot.

If any of you do this, would you mind sharing photos of your home meeting area?

If I could have any wish it would be to have Cinematic Brides studio..i'm still drooling over it!

Much appreciated!

If I had a room to convert to a studio or client meeting area, I would in a heartbeat. As it is, coffee shops are the way I roll.

I have mixed feelings on this, I like going to my local starbucks, but have a feeling I'm perceived as less professional because I dont have my own space (at least it's something I felt after a recent string of nonbookings). I recently got stood up by a client who had wanted to meet, and being somewhat paranoid, I thought that perhaps my suggestion of meeting at starbucks had something to do with it.

I have a house of my own where I could theoretically set something up, but I have two dogs who love visitors and bark a lot if they're left out of the action. I'd love to finish my basement and have that as my dedicated area, but it'll take money I don't have lol

I guess that's my little conflict being in a place where I want a place to seem professional but not having the bookings to make funding such a space a reality.

I have some mixed feelings about this also.

Like many of you, the local coffee or pastry shop has been a place for me to meet and I also offer going to their home. This in fact allows me to see their style and help me craft a product that seems to fit their personality such as albums and collages.

I have had my first in-home consultation for a maternity shoot. The person was reffered by a friend of mine and I had no worries.

The only part that I am reluctant in having more clients meet at my house is that, let's face it, there are some serious "nut cases" out there and who knows what a bridezilla or disgruntal customer might do. The safety of my wife and daughter is first and foremost and would like to shelter them as much as possible from the insane screaming customer. Now, that has never happened to me yet, but the laws of averages will make me encounter a few in my lifetime.

Don't get me wrong, I like the fact that I can dispaly my work and the customer can just come and take a look instead of me dragging my product from one location to another. But family comfort comes first.

Just my opinion,
Bernard

currently i have all my clients meet at my house in my basement studio. I like that i have all my stuff here, my kids can be here, and i'm not getting a babysitter and trying to meet up taking more time. the flip side is what if i get a nutball? =) that is how we all work here we have studios and we photograph in them. i do all my sessions mostly in my yard or close by for locations, so really they know where i live anyway. I can have big prints hanging so its kinda fun to decorate. for me its the way i have to do it right now.

julie b

I think that's what I"m afraid of - a NUT. I just didn't want to post that right away so ya'll wouldn't think I was crazy

Security is the one thing that keeps me from doing it - the idea of having a disgruntled customer knocking at my door or just showing up unannounced. I have my home address on my contract so theorectically, they CAN already do that if they google me but so far so good. Most of our work is by referral and I don't have a problem NOT working w/ someone that I can tell isn't worth the $$.

Decisions Decisions!

Interesting topic, and being new this is something my wife and I have been working on. We tried to set up our family room as a "studio" and met a few clients there. None of them booked. We then decided to start meeting them in their home, booked our first 4 we met. I think that unless you have a dedicated office/studio in your house, possibly with a separate entrance it is hard to meet clients in your home. I think they are distracted by your decor, by your neighborhood, by your yard, by everything. When we have met with clients at their own house they are more comfortable and relaxed, and we feel that we get to know them better. Plus they love the convenience of us going to them.

We have a live/work loft in downtown Atlanta. It's gated and coded, so no one can just stop by and knock on our door; they have no choice but to make an appointment. Our downstairs area is our client meeting area. Most people figure out that we live AND work here, though many think this is a separate studio away from our home, since all of our private living space is upstairs and clients don't see it.

When we lived in a little apartment, we did the coffee shop thing, and it was fine. But now we have the advantage of not going anywhere for meetings. If someone cancels at the last minute? No big deal. We just keep doing what we were doing. If someone's late? Not a problem. An extra 30 minutes for editing. It's also great because we can give clients the option to pick up their products here now, rather than us always having to ship stuff. Our local clients can come by and we can present their albums or prints to them in person for the first time, which is just a nice added touch.

If we lived in a regular house, I don't think I would have clients over. I would be nervous about people just dropping by with no concern for business hours or our availability. I also wouldn't want to have people over if we had kids, because I would want my kids home to be their HOME, not a place for our clients to invade.

Does anyone here share studio space w/ another photographer? if so, was it a good move- bad?

We had one room in our house that we met in. We out grew it qucikly. We finished the basement. We have a good size meeting room. A huge office/production space, and a home theater to showcase their slideshow, and websites. It's been a big hit.
The downside...We do 50 weddings a year, we have a first meeting, details meeting, and a slideshow/release party in the home theater. Thats 150 visits for our booked clients, plus we see the ones we don't book. Thats alot of traffic into you house. Plus we have two young kids, and a dog. It's tough to work out of your house, we are thinking about getting a studio space, but we like the profit

Also, has there been any benefit to those that have met in coffee-shops of the exposure of being around so many people with your samples/albums/etc. out? Has anyone been approached because of another customer seeing their work?

We converted our garage, but then the more I thought about it, the more it made me uneasy. I will, however, shoot a project pink session if it's a woman I know, but that is the extent of my comfort level with having people in my home for business.

My 5-year plan includes hiring a decorator to fix up my home (cuz it's a mess and conveys the subtle undertone of a disorganized life with two boys who love Legos and a smelly cat). But I can't show the big 30x40 gallery wrap at Starbucks.

No.

If anything, there were time that I felt like we were really being obnoxious. We always tried to be sensitive to the other patrons at the coffee shop, but sometimes our potential clients would march in like it was our own private studio, talking loudly and not ordering anything from the establishment (we always made a purchase whenever we were there). There were also a couple of times when we had three back-to-back meetings, and we hogged a table for 3-4 hours, potential clients traipsing in and out the whole time. Ick.

There's also the downside of tables covered in stickiness or crumbs, and potential clients who weren't careful not to set a sample album right next to their dripping coffee cup or on top of their muffin napkin. Public places can also be really NOISY; there's nothing worse that trying to meet with a couple on a busy Sunday morning with a line out the door and a screaming kid in the corner.

Now that we're meeting in a space that's solely OURS, we have total control over the noise level, the "mess" level (no mess at all! ), and whether or not the couple has a beverage in hand before we pull out the sample books.

If you want to make your services available to the coffee shop crowd, leave your card on the community bulletin board.

Lindsey,

I get about 40 percent of my work while in Starbucks. Yep that means new clients that see me in Starbucks not by appointment but just by being there when I am there.

If you are interested in hearing more about this let me know. I don't want to steal this thread.

-bill

Its cool if its done right. This shot is about 3 months old. Since then the front wall there has been finished, large prints on the walls, etc.

To Phil, dude....I have 2 psycho dogs and cat who things shes a dog. I'll usually <del>duck tape</del>just put them in the backyard.