Introduction

Hi readers, in this article I’m going to answer a common question I get from time to time.

That question is…why should I hire you over other photographers. 

I totally understand where this question is coming from. 

Dating photography used to be very niche but now it is slowly becoming mainstream and popular.

More and more traditional photographers are hopping on the trend.

By traditional photographers I mean someone who shoots a variety of portraits such as LinkedIn headshots, event photos, modeling portfolio photos, newborn photos and etc. 

If you do a quick Google search, you will find a lot of photographers like that in your city that do dating photos.

At the same time, there are also companies/photographers that specialize in online dating photos.

So which one should you choose? Let’s talk about it.

Hiring a Traditional Photographer Could Work

On one hand, it’s great that you have more photographers to choose from, and the competition will benefit you, the consumers.

But on the other hand, it’s also harder to make the right choice when you are looking to hire someone. 

You certainly do not want to hire someone incompetent. 

I’ve had a handful of clients who previously worked with another photographer and the photos didn’t get them results at all. 

But I’m not here to bash you, and I think these are extreme examples.

A great traditional portrait photographer can most certainly do a good job and get you some matches. 

Like I already said before, taking Tinder photos isn’t rocket science. 

If you want to hire a traditional photographer, that’s cool. But make sure you look at their portrait portfolio first. 

If photos from their portfolio look stiff and awkward, that is a major red flag.

If the photos look very staged and try-hard, that is another major red flag. 

But if photos look pretty natural, the subjects look attractive and approachable, and the image quality is good. I think it’s a good sign and the photographer should be able to do a good job for you.

One small caveat though.

When a subject is already handsome and naturally confident, it’s very easy to work with a guy like that and it doesn’t take many skills to get nice shots.

But a lot of people I encounter on my shoots are just regular-looking guys.

Most of my clients are very nervous in front of the camera too. 

To make regular guys who aren’t models look sexy in the photos is a true test of skills.

This is a whole different ball game.

I’ve been doing just that for my clients consistently over the years so I’m confident in my ability to make anyone look great.

But if you hire a less skilled photographer this most likely won’t be the case. 

Just keep this in mind. 

So yeah, I’m not discouraging you from hiring a traditional photographer who’s dabbling in 10 different photography genres. 

It could work, and I just showed you how to find a good one. 

But You are Better Off Hiring a Specialized Dating Photographer

Look at it this way, if you have a heart condition that requires immediate attention. Would you prefer a general surgeon or a heart surgeon to perform on your heart?

Exactly. 

If you need specific help with your online dating photos, it’s pretty obvious to me that you should hire someone who dedicates their entire work to that one niche. 

I’m going to sound like a broken record at this point but I will repeat this one more time.

Good photography alone doesn’t get you matches on dating apps. 

At the end of the day, they are matching with you because they think you look physically attractive, have a good vibe, and seem trustworthy and not a serial killer. 

When I’m on a photo shoot, I only spend less than 30% of my attention worrying about the technical aspects of the photos.

Good lighting, pretty backgrounds, and nice colors don’t mean shit if the client doesn’t look attractive as a person in the photos. 

I spend most of my shoots coaching my clients on fashion, body language, facial expressions, and looking natural and candid. 

These are what really matter when it comes to getting matches on dating apps. 

But in order to do that, you need a lot of empathy/people skills and a great understanding of psychology, and you have to keep up with current fashion trends. 

And I‘ve been battle hardened by working with regular guys.

I know how to make regular people look great! But this took years of practice and training.
If I was shooting a lot of good-looking models like traditional photographers, I wouldn’t have the skills required to do that.

I’d say I’m more of a marketing guy than a photographer. 

When someone hires me, they are really hiring me to help them with personal branding for dating purposes. 

But from what I’ve seen, traditional photographers aren’t operating like this.

When you hire them, they will be focusing their efforts on providing good photography. But they aren’t helping you with what really matters for online dating. 

I highly doubt any traditional photographer is constantly reading psychology books to understand what women find attractive and vice versa. 

I’m Hyper Focused on Improving My Dating Photography

Because I specialize, all my efforts are spent on getting better at these 3 core skills:

1. How to improve my ability to help guys relax and look natural

2. How can I dress each client better based on their demographics and looks

3. How can I make anyone look as sexy as possible

Because I have a singular focus, I’m able to constantly and rapidly improve the work quality I provide to my clients. 

The type of work I do now blows my old work out of the water. 

If I was also doing corporate headshots, acting headshots, fashion photos, and a million other things, I would never be able to double down on my core skills like that. 

This is why I think you should hire a specialized online dating photographer over a traditional portrait photographer. 

Conclusion

Ok, hope this helps. To sum this up, yes you can definitely get some good shots with a traditional photographer. But someone like me who specializes in dating photos will have much better skills and knowledge to create photos that are effective at getting matches.