Jake Baggaley: Product photography
Based on the south coast of the UK, Jake has been a professional photographer for more than a decade. As a product lifestyle photographer for international brands, Jake aims to capture real and honest moments in nature with a focus on human emotion and interaction with the landscape. Visit www.jakebaggaley.com and Instagram: @cakejaggaley
As we’ve seen in some of the other types of commercial photogrpahy discussed here, he overarching trend in product photography at the moment is also real people in real moments, according to Jake Baggaley. He shoots mostly sport and outdoor products, and the brands he works with want to see normal people using these in those environments. ‘All of my clients are wanting more ordinary-looking people instead of professional models. And about 80-90% often ask my help to find these models,’ Jake says. ‘Brands want a more authentic feel to their images. They want it to feel like a natural, candid moment. I think this probably comes from the fact that the world is so documented now on social media. Brands are looking for a polished version of social media.’
When it comes to choosing which photographers they work with, Jake believes that, in his part of the industry, brands are looking for someone who shares their passion for what they do. ‘If you’re doing it purely to make money, there are ways to do it, but the way I’ve got my relative success was because
I was loving making the pictures that I shoot.’
As an outdoor enthusiast himself, Jake says: ‘It’s really hard to tell the story of something if you don’t understand it, but if you do understand why being in the mountains is magical, you can really convey that feeling in your photographs. That comes across in the images and will sell your photography over others.’
There are a lot of logistics when it comes to lifestyle product photography, however, and Jake says it’s important to not forget how valuable your time is. When he was starting out, Jake would often spend several days sourcing models, scouting locations, even retouching images for free.
Jake didn’t charge for this time in the beginning, but he found he was getting so busy doing unpaid tasks that something had to give. ‘When I decided I needed to start charging for it, clients were happy to pay it,’ he says. ‘And with more experience and a bigger portfolio, I could also start charging more for my time. I had to learn to be comfortable with what I charge and not undersell myself.
‘Eventually I got to the point where I wasn’t so busy all the time and can spend time on the projects I want to be working on. I also find that the images come out better when I can justify putting the time into them.’
Given the nature of his work, Jake sometimes works with massive, global brands like Adidas, and smaller local brands. Because their needs are often different, he has different price structures for both. With smaller clients, he charges a day rate for photography, a different day rate for retouching and another day rate for production. If someone wants him to source models and locations, he’ll give them a rate for a production day. Having these separate rates gives budget-conscious clients the flexibility to book him for key needs.
‘A licence to the images is always included in my day rate, but for smaller companies, the one included would usually be a one-year digital only usage, which would cover all their needs. I’m often more flexible on this than I am with the bigger commercial clients – smaller clients’ needs and audiences are often considerably smaller than Adidas or Montane.’