Wedding photography is one of the most popular genres around these days, and you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out why. For one thing, as long as people continue to getting married, there will be a constant stream of potential clients. You don't have to have a 600mm lens or stalking skills and you don't have to try to sell your finished images – all you have to do is get them right. There are a dozen or so more reasons, but you get the picture.

On the other hand, that popularity makes this genre a very competitive one and keeping your rates competitive can make for a pretty narrow profit margin. So, how do you help ensure that your wedding photography business is a profitable one? Here are a few tips from some of the most successful photographers in this industry.

Hire a second shooter.

This may sound counterproductive, but most pros will tell you that a second shooter leads to more signed contracts as well as more additional sales after the event. Not only can you tell your prospective clients that you're better prepared to cover everything at the wedding and reception, but having a second set of eyes means a better chance of capturing all those special moments, especially the candid ones.

Of course, the trick is to hire someone at a rate that allows you to make more profit, not less. Fortunately, there are enough good photographers around that don't necessarily want the hassle of being the lead photographer, doing the marketing, etc. and will work at a reasonable rate in exchange for that.  Run an ad, do some interviews and set yourself up with a second. Chances are you'll be pleasantly surprised at the difference.

Use more free marketing resources.

You may not take LinkedIn, Facebook and similar social media networks seriously, but your serious competitors certainly do. No matter how much you've spent on that dazzling website and other advertising, having a solid presence on social media is imperative if you want to be noticed.

Local ad networks, Craigslist and other free ad outlets are worth your time, too. You'd be surprised how many people consult those resources for service providers. There are hundreds of free resources available; take some time to find the ones that work for you and utilize them. Nothing will help decrease your overhead like free advertising.

Cross market.

Another great way to get your name out there for nothing is to trade referrals. Drop off some business cards at your local bridal boutique and get some of theirs. Do the same at tuxedo rental shops, men's stores and any place that has a wedding registry, with the promise that you'll give their name to your new clients. Do a search for wedding planners in your area for a perfect referral relationship.

One word of caution here: get to know the businesses you refer your clients to. A bad experience with someone you recommended is going to do almost as much damage to your reputation as theirs. Be selective.

Offer something extra.

A little something that adds a special touch to your services and the happy event will go a long way to closing a contract and client satisfaction after the event. Weddings have come a long way over the past couple of decades and making your services memorable takes a special touch. Think about what you can do to help highlight those special moments and make it part of your wedding packages. Is the wedding party going to dance in? Is there going to be something unique about the father/daughter  dance? Don't leave it up to the guests to record those things; you or your second shooter can include the video in your deliverables.

Photo booths are a standard offering by wedding photographers now, and better yet, there's a new twist on that idea that I think every wedding photographer should check out. Gifyyy is a self-contained, easy to set up system that lets the guests create hilarious animated gifs of themselves and send them to their phones. At the same time, it captures emails so that you can contact the guests later to let them know the photos and video are up on your website. This fun, new concept is going to catch on quick, so check it out now before everyone else gets one.

Give a gift.

The fact that you've been hired to do a job doesn't mean you can't be one of the guests, too. After all, you've just spent more time with the happy couple than many of the other people there. You don't have to go to their registry (although it won't hurt). A small, non-photographic token that says. "Thank you for letting me/us participate in your special day" will bring a smile and, very likely, a batch of referrals.

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Ask the top pro wedding shooters the secrets to their success and you might be surprised tp find that most of them won't have anything to do with photography skills. Yes, it's important to be more than moderately skilled with your photo gear. In the final analysis, though, there are hundreds of technically expert photographers out there who never become more than good at weddings. The reasons generally have to do with traits other than photo skills. So, what else do you need? I'm so glad you asked!

Charisma

You're going to have to work one-on-one with all kinds of individuals and groups and you're going to have to keep a smile on your face. What's more, you're going to need to know how to put one on all of theirs. Your number one asset as a wedding photographer is the ability to connect with people and make them feel comfortable.

Patience

For all its awesomeness, a wedding day is still a very stressful day for many of the people involved, particularly the bride and groom and their parents. It's a very short step from pre-wedding jitters to panic and one of the easiest ways to push someone there is to be pushy. Keeping your cool will help everyone keep theirs.

Problem Solving Skills

You need to know how to think on your feet. The wedding planner got them this far, the officiate will get them through the ceremony. Guess who they're all going to be looking to when it comes to everything else? That's right, you're running the show. You'll have to make snap decisions when the weather changes, your equipment malfunctions and when no one can find Aunt Grace.

Leadership Skills

Once you've made the decisions and solved the problems, you have to get everyone to go along. That means gently but firmly controlling the crowd, whether it's the wedding party or the whole reception. A firm voice and good manners will go a long way.

A Sense of Humor

This will be an asset in almost everything you do. A little joke will ease the tension in the group shots. Gentle teasing will often get just the right expression from any of the more difficult photo subjects. Making fun of your own mistakes will keep your own frustration level down.

A Sense of Tact

Don't let your jokes and comments sink to the gutter level, no matter what anyone else does. You're a professional. Stay classy.

A Flair for Entertainment

From the beginning photo shoots to the reception shots, you're going to need to keep people of all types and ages entertained, even more so than the band or DJ. If you lose that, it will come out on your shots in insincere expressions and awkward poses. Relax, have a good time and bring your subjects into the good time with you.

There's a new tool out there to help with this one and it's a sure way to keep the party going and the guests from getting bored. Gifyyy, a new, portable platform, sets up at the reception and invites guests with the words "TOUCH ME" on a screen. When a guest complies, Gifyyy records a short sequence and plays it back as a GIF animation. The guests then have the option of recording a new one or sending the current one to their smart phone and sharing over the social networks. Within a few minutes, you'll have everyone in on the act and having a ball. What's more you'll be building a potential client list at the same time. Find out how and get the rest of the details on Gifyyy here.

Stamina

A wedding shoot is a long day and a lot of hard work. Being the first to arrive and the last to leave will reward you with some special shots you won't get otherwise. You're not going to have breaks, even if there are more than one of you on the job. Start the day well rested and keep yourself hydrated and sober. Your clients will appreciate the efforts and when they refer their friends, it will be with a rating of "great", "amazing", "incredible" or "awesome", not simply "good".

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I know many readers are already screaming, "NO!!!" Let me start by saying that I don't believe in shooting for free and that's not what this article is about. That doesn't mean that I don't know and believe in the value of bartering your services in a mutually beneficial exchange. There's much more than just face value to be gained, if you know how and who to barter with. I'm about to give you a couple of good examples, so let's get right to it.

Hook up With a DJ

This is one of my favorite arrangements. Disc jockeys, or event hosts, if you prefer, get to go to all the cool places, have lots of fun and get paid for it. They also tend to be very busy during events and many aren't very photographically inclined. (Don't tell them I said that.)

If you can work out a barter agreement with a DJ, you could find yourself at some of the best parties, rubbing elbows with some of the coolest people, in exchange for letting the host use some of your photos of the crowd on the dance floor, and of course, the DJ and equipment. Even if you're not the dance party type, you should realize that everyone on the floor is a potential client. Party goers are often happy to have their photos taken while they're "gettin' down".

There's a new way to work that angle, too. A smart photographer can let the revelers take not just photos, but record great animations of themselves on the floor and send them directly to their smartphones. What's cool about that for you? Well, every phone number that's input is saved to a list for you and you can send your own SMS messages to them to announce the availability of photos from that night, events coming up or whatever you need to. How's that for potential business? The name of this new "booth" is Gifyyy and you should find out more about it here.

Go Flying

No, I'm not suggesting you go hit up one of the major airlines, although if you're really confident, I recommend applying for the job. Let's think just slightly smaller. How about a nice charter flight to Alaska? Hawaii? The Bermuda Triangle?

There are an awful lot of small charter companies out there with some beautiful aircraft that visit some incredible locations. Many of those companies love to have professional photos of their crews, aircraft and happy customers on location. By agreeing to supply them with those photos, you could find yourself visiting all those places you've wanted to and maybe even shooting famous people there.

Now, let's take it down one more notch. The really small, local charter businesses, flight schools and even sky diving clubs need those same photos. Maybe you don't want to jump out of a plane and maybe the charter flights aren't going anywhere really exciting? Think about this: Some of my favorite shots are aerial photos I took while flying no more than 60 miles from my own home, just riding with a charter pilot while he got some hours in. In exchange, he got copies of the photos and some of him with his plane.

It's About Checks and Balances

Now, if you can't see the profit in relationships like those, then the barter system probably isn't for you and that's perfectly respectable. If you're more like me and can see where a situation like one of those above might work for you, then think about what other services you might need and how you might be able to make it profitable for you and the client. Product photos in exchange for a line of store credit? Photos for a fishing guide in exchange for a trip? The possibilities are endless; it's a matter of how much the exchange is worth to you.

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Don't get the wrong impression from that title; I'm a big fan of good second shooters. Unfortunately for many event photographers, though, many gigs aren't going to have the budget to allow one. If you're successful enough to say you won't take a job without one, congratulations. If you're on the other side of the tracks and not in a position to refuse work, one of the newest trends is a good alternative and it's taking many areas of event photography by storm.

Many readers will, no doubt, already have figured out that I'm talking about photo booths, but please, read on, because there's a brand-new twist to that idea that you may not know about. Yes, I'm talking about letting partiers, wedding guests, convention groups, covens – ok, just seeing if you're paying attention with that one – do their own selfies and crazy stuff while you focus on the serious work.

 Portable booths are becoming a regular item at events of all kinds and a staple piece of equipment for many event photographers. While they've been permanent installations in shopping malls and other locations for quite some time, these new, streamlined versions are perfect for just about anything else. On the surface, they're bringing self service photography to everything from company parties to golf tournaments and birthday bashes. Underneath, they're taking some of the load off the event photographer and providing a value-added service to the client, as well as great fun for the guests.

So, while you're taking all the obligatory shots to fulfill your contract, you've got this silent partner taking all kinds of interesting photos and the fact is, not many people at gatherings can resist them. You simply charge the client a fee for having the booth at the event, stock it with a few cool props and the guests do the rest. Not a bad sideline.

That concept has just been taken to another level and we think it's something every event photographer is going to want to check out. Imagine letting the guests record and preview themselves having fun, not in photos, but in fun and funny animations, then sending the ones they like directly to their smart phones. After the send, they'll see a link to their GIF animation with share buttons for the social media networks. It's coming to events near you, it's a laugh a minute and it's something you're going to want to see for yourself.

It's called Gifyyy and it's a super-portable platform with its own light source, tripod, AC adapter and carrying case, complete with all the hardware and software needed to do all of the above and more. Here's the best part: The phone numbers entered are saved to a list for you. When you need to announce the event photos going up for sale on your site or notify people of our next fun gig, you can send an SMS message to everyone.

With or without a second shooter, Gifyyy adds a whole new dimension to gatherings, with fun for the guests, kudos to you and your client and a list of new prospective clients for you. I know what my next purchase is going to be, but don't take my word for it; go check it out for yourself.

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Everyone makes mistakes, right? Right, but when those mistakes cost you money, your best bet is to avoid making them. That's especially true in a field like event photography, in which you get one shot at getting things right and if you fail, word spreads like wildfire. If that paints a dismal picture of the genre, that's not my intent. In fact, it's one of my favorites and my point in writing this article is to help anyone thinking about trying it out avoid some common errors and increase the chances of success. Ready? Let's count them down:

Failing to Research the Event

Diving into a pool of water without knowing how deep it is doesn't do much for your odds of survival. Showing up to shoot an an event without knowing everything you can about it is pretty much the same thing for your business. You'll not only end up looking like a bait fish in a shark tank; you'll miss important moments and probably lose any chance of a referral or rehire. Get a schedule. Check out the location. Talk to the staff about the setup of the venue. Show up confident and geared up with everything you need.

Forgetting the Wide Shots

Whether it's a marathon, a concert or a convention, every key person at an event is going to want his or her photo taken during the time of participation. It's important to get those shots and you''ll often have extra sales opportunities if you get them right. Meanwhile, don't forget that the person who staged the event (often your client) is going to want people to see the crowd that gathered. Don't forget to get those wide shots of the field of competitors, the audience during the speeches or the mayhem in the mosh pit.

Not Capitalizing on the Crowd

Whether you're under contract or just there to capture some shots for sale, the crowd is a potential gold mine if you're prepared. Photo booths have become a great way for event photographers to collect some extra cash from a shoot and now there's something completely new that you should take a look at. Gifyyy is a simple, extremely portable setup that lets attendees or guests create and record funny animations of themselves and then immediately send them to their smartphones. Each number is captured to an SMS list that you can use later to send announcements, increase potential sales and gather new clients.

Showing up Late

You are one of the most important people at this event, at least for the person or persons that hired you. That holds true if you're just there to shoot and hope to make some sales, too. Arrive early and ready to go to work. Period.

Avoiding these 4 - seemingly small - mistakes isn't going to ensure your success as an event photographer, but 9 out of 10 of the frustrated novices I talk to have been guilty of at least one on this list. Burn them into your brain and the road to success will have a few less potholes.

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