My wife Kelly launched a new business last year as an in-home caregiver for the elderly and special needs.  She wanted to make some business cards and a brochure.  I took some pictures of her with my iPhone to use in her new marketing pieces but we were both unhappy with them.  So we decided to call a professional photographer and have him take the same shots.  Christopher Smith, who shoots for Elite Digital Images, came to the house, took some shots and even offered some suggestions on poses Kelly and I hadn’t thought of.

The pictures came out great and Kelly’s new business literature has helped her fill her schedule way sooner than we thought she would.

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I was looking at some of those pictures recently, and thinking about the difference between amateur and professional photography.   And it’s huge.  But the problem is that nowadays, we all think we’re photographers.  We all have cameras in our pockets and with the filters and effects we can add to our iPhone or Android-snapped pictures we feel we’re true artists.

But take a look at the difference between your last selfie and a professional photograph of you.  It’s night and day.  Which isn’t to say there is anything wrong with taking pictures on our phones or digital cameras.  But there are certain times when that’s not enough.  There are certain times where it is worth it to call in a true professional who will capture an image much better than you ever could and will see things through the lens that you may have missed.  I’m smiling as I write that because I’m thinking of a picture my brother was showing off a while back in which he did looked extremely handsome but the problem with it was behind him was a painting that made it look like he had a big green Afro.  That’s not something he or the amateur taking the picture noticed but a professional photographer would have.

In my experience, these are some of the moments you might think about calling a professional photographer:

Baby Pictures.  Sure, you’ve already got a million shots of your newborn or toddler.  But a short session with a professional will probably result in some of your favorite ever and make it on to this year’s Holiday card. Dominic and Sarina did this recently with their son Nico.  A local photographer named Gerda from Artist European Photography took some shots and got some amazing images of him even though it was rainy day:

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Family Gatherings  A few years ago Kelly was organizing a family day, inviting her cousins out from Long Island to visit with their grandmother.  We decided to have a professional photographer spend some time with us that day, getting some pictures of the whole family.  John DeFiora took some amazing pictures that day and, as it turned it out, this was a wise choice.  Kelly’s beloved grandmother passed away less than a year later and those pictures from that day are images we will all cherish forever.

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Your Honeymoon.  When Kelly and I got married in 2013 she told me she had a crazy idea.  What if we brought our wedding attire on our honeymoon in Iceland and took some professional pictures?  We were able to  locate a photographer named Levi Tijerina who took some amazing pictures of us.  These are images we cherish to this day:

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Headshots. Perhaps it’s just the line of work I am in but I think everyone nowadays should have professional headshots of themselves.  Spending a few hours with a professional photographer can result in some impressive images that will help you promote yourself online.  And this isn’t just for the self-employeed.  If you’re a professional in any line of work, your social media (or at least LinkenIn) image is important.  Why not have a professional shoot the shot that will become everyone’s first impression of you.  Here’s one Carrie Roberts of Elite Digital Images got of me last year that makes me look way cooler than I ever could be in real life:

Mike Walter Headshot for masthead of both articles

These are only a handful of times when a professional photographer should be considered.  I’m sure you can come up with a few more.