Seen this thread in NSR?

http://bbs.scoobynet.com/non-scooby-related-4/552745-venture-photos.html

Basically, you are lured into a family photo shoot by a stunning photo display in your local shopping centre or similar by a smart sales girl. Given a free voucher etc.

Then you go for the shoot, are wowed by the results, then given a bill for a few grand :eek: It appears to work!!!

Richard.

Yeah I'd seen it and was watching with interest.

Suprised they didn't ask in here to see if anyone knew anywhere or would do it themselves.

It's expensive but entirely justifiable.

For example, most studio rental in London would be £400-£500 a day, then photographers fees (£400+ a day), makeup artist (£200-£300 a day) and then presumably for £1000 they are getting 2-3 poster size professionally printed and framed photos. And they are obviously quite modern and striking so look expensive, rather than the insipid cloth backgrounds with the vaseline smeared on the lens that so many portrait phoographers like.

Obviously they are making a killing but unless you have a friend who is a photographer and is willing to help out for the average family to get this sort of quality you would easily have to fork out a lot.

It's expensive but entirely justifiable.

For example, most studio rental in London would be £400-£500 a day, then photographers fees (£400+ a day), makeup artist (£200-£300 a day) and then presumably for £1000 they are getting 2-3 poster size professionally printed and framed photos. And they are obviously quite modern and striking so look expensive, rather than the insipid cloth backgrounds with the vaseline smeared on the lens that so many portrait phoographers like.

Obviously they are making a killing but unless you have a friend who is a photographer and is willing to help out for the average family to get this sort of quality you would easily have to fork out a lot.

Exactly. Good professional photography is not cheap, especially with all the trimmings. I can see Paul using all his fingers right now. He could call it Extreme Venture :D :lol1: (Not such a bad idea actaully :) What do you think Paul?)

Of course, spending a couple of grand on a nice set of wheels, tyres and a daft spoiler is entirely reasonable :rolleyes:

Richard.

Venture are bandits.
Just a formulaic business driven by some custom PS actions to generate the hi key results they're known for.
They'll get you in the door with promise of 25 quid prints and then pressure sell more.
There are many good photographers who will give you proper results at a good price and not just posed in front of a backdrop stuff, you just have to find them.

Venture are the McDonalds of the photography world...only a bit more expensive. Ludicrous prices for frames and canvases after a very hard selling session.

Hm... maybe the theme for the next round of the competition should be 'high key portraits' - we'd soon find out then just how special they are.

Maybe those with studio setups would be up for the challenge?

Just picked some up yesterday.. £1300. for 2 large panoramic and a small pic

Emotional blackmale, im telling you you want them all

Well worth it though :luxhello:

I did some naff high key white background pics as a favour for a friend of my wife's. Did her four 12"x12" canvases charged her £100 and still made a very small profit! She had been to venture previously and had spent as little as possible, two 12"x10" framed prints of her daughters. £150 each and the frames looked like the sort of thing you would buy off the market for a quid.

Big bucks in family photography though even if you charge half wot venture do, so I keep wondering if it is worth building a decent studio. Looking forward to seeing Ariane Studios at the scooby studio shoot.

The original owners of Venture have now sold out to a big company, forget who, and are now multi millionaires so not daft!

Are people F0000000000000000kin mad, surely this can only happen to our freinds down south, as NOT ONE SINGLE PERSON I KNOW OR KNOW OF would even consider, entertain or remotley think about ever spending over £1000 on photographs, paid for from there hard earned wedge...

obviously IMO

More likely to be those Northeners trying be like celebrities or footballers. Just a guess as the head office is in Chesire.

You would be surprised. People go in for the £35 offer and end up spending fortunes. I spoke to a couple whose wedding I'm doing next year. Her aunt went to venture, ended up spending £800 on a framed pic so drove it around in the car to show everyone she knew and to make sure they as many people had seen it as poss as it cost so much!:lol1:

A guy who has a framing shop near me has bought a 5D a couple of lights and a white backdrop and has started doing portraits and obviously doing his own frames and canvases. Shows how difficult it is!:freak3: Funny thing is he tried to book himself with wife and kids for a £35 spy session at Venture. However they rumbled him and rang him up and told him to 'eff off!:norty::nono:

Exactly. Good professional photography is not cheap, especially with all the trimmings. I can see Paul using all his fingers right now. He could call it Extreme Venture :D :lol1: (Not such a bad idea actaully :) What do you think Paul?)

Of course, spending a couple of grand on a nice set of wheels, tyres and a daft spoiler is entirely reasonable :rolleyes:

Richard.

Hiya Richard

Lol, but yes, this is a area that we already exploite, only for a lot less than Venture. They usually use high calibre offices in city centre locations, hence their overheads must be huge. Not only that, but all the suit clad pretty staff they employ adds to cost.

As, ive said, we already do it, at half the cost, for the same, if not, better quality.

The thing that gets me though is the snobbery value, some people would prefer to pay twice as much for the same, if not inferior product, just to drop names:wonder:


Paul:)

Are people F0000000000000000kin mad, surely this can only happen to our freinds down south, as NOT ONE SINGLE PERSON I KNOW OR KNOW OF would even consider, entertain or remotley think about ever spending over £1000 on photographs, paid for from there hard earned wedge...

obviously IMO

I wouldn't, until I went. They photos are good, though as I said on the other thread, I've seen equally good on the web. They do employ very good looking 20 year old girls to get your coffee, I assume that's to keep dad happy while mum coos over the loverly brochure.

I'm tempted to go back and just use the free voucher, so I can take more notice of their techniques, but I think I'd fall for it again.

They don't even use expensive cameras, they were mid range DSLRs when we went. They do have the advantage of a big studio, mine's tiny, and too small for kids to be running about.

Oh, they don't do make-up. Just photos.