In the first week of Startup, Sue teaches the fundamentals of kit building, creating a versatile yet simplified professional portrait studio setup, and how to make a home-based studio work.

Over the next 12 weeks, Sue will give you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

This week focuses on the essential needs of any size studio setup. From a basement to a full brick and mortar shop. You will learn the basics of getting your studio up and running. Topics include lighting sources, essential gear and props, interior design ideas and other considerations that can help you sell, sell, sell!

The best part about this course is learning you don’t need to spend a lot of money! See how Sue-savvy choices in your studio can put you on the path to success.

Check out this blog post all about V-Flats.

Once you’ve finished this week, we recommend visiting Sue’s Studio Tours for further inspiration!

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Natural Light Studio

DIY Backdrop Painting

Shooting in Small Spaces

Humble Beginnings: The Home Studio

The Black Sash

Being Creative with Tulle

Welcome to the third week of the 12 Week Startup course! This week Sue will ask her students to truly get to know their camera basics through a series of four challenges. These challenges are designed specifically for indoor and outdoor portraits. Students will work with aperture ranges for single-subject and multi-subject portraits, pushing their ISO, hand-holding duration, and overriding their light meters. It is essential that you take the time to get to know your camera. This camera basics course will get you on the right track to mastering your craft and creating the successful business you are working so hard for.

Once you’ve finished this week, we recommend checking out our blog post, 5 Easy Tips for Sharper Images by John Greengo. You can also check out his amazing in-depth camera course, Camera 101  available on The Portrait Masters.

Over the next 10 weeks, Sue will continue giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Camera Basics for Portrait

In the seventh week of the 12 Week Startup course, Sue covers one of the most important subjects, POSING. Sue discusses the fundamentals of posing – from body language, body types, and thoughtful composition, to working in standing, seated, laying down positions, and more. Mastering posing is so important because if you go into a shoot knowing how to pose your client with confidence, they too will become more confident. This allows for a more seamless, fun shoot which will produce stunning portraits that your client will love for years to come!

Topics of discussion include posing with curves, on the ottoman, on the couch, and more. Get ready to learn the ins and outs of everything about posing and watch your confidence soar.
Over the next 6 weeks, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Posing Hands

Posing Brother & Sister

Posing & Direction

Posing & Direction with Curves

Posing Breakdown

Flow Posing: Women

Flow Posing: Man

Posing Couples

Posing Same Sex Couples

POSE

POSE — Girls with Curves

12 Week Student Practice

In the fifth week of the 12 Week Startup course, Sue guides her students through the natural light studio. The class works on mastering soft even lighting that flatters all faces. Topics of discussion will include window light, backlight, constant light,  and working with strobes. Sue wants you to master finding that beautifully diffused, flatter, soft light that has drawn so many people to her brand. Once you master lighting, you can truly produce amazing portraits anywhere! So tune in to week 5 and let Sue share all her tips and tricks that she’s found through her personal experience over the years to help you become the best portrait photographer you can be!

Once you’ve finished this week, we recommend checking out Sue’s additional lighting courses.  Also, we highly recommend Felix Kunze and Sue’s course, The Lighting Series which is available on ThePortraitMasters.com.

Over the next eight weeks, Sue will continue giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Polyboard Reflectors

Natural Light Studio

Mimic Natural Light with Strobe & Kino

Bending Light

Magic of Natural Light

In the eleventh week of the 12 Week Startup course, Sue shares tips, tricks, and hacks for retouching with Photoshop and Lightroom. Sue has been working with Photoshop since it first rolled out. In this week’s course, she ties in all her years of experience and teaches you the best hacks for Photoshop. These hacks will help you spend less time behind the computer screen, which in turn makes your business more profitable since time is money. Get ready to be well on your way to becoming a master in Photoshop!

Topics of discussion include cloning and skin retouching, using the healing tool on skin, and reducing redness and shadows on chin, shoulders, eyes, and nose.

For further learning, we recommend Photoshop: Two Minute Retouching.

We also highly recommend purchasing Pratik Naik’s The Retouching Series to learn amazing in-depth Photoshop techniques.

Over the next 2 weeks, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Photoshop: Skin Retouching

Photoshop Retouching

Photoshop: Warping & Contouring

Photoshop: Two Minute Retouching

Extending Backgrounds in Photoshop

Editing a Mature Face

Retouching in Lightroom

In the ninth week of the 12 Week Startup course, Sue discusses what having hair and makeup specialists on the team means to her personally and things you need to consider when it comes to glam. She will walk you through the different types of business models, including doing the hair and makeup yourself and outsourcing to professionals, whether you bring them on full time or just contract them for a shoot. There are many levels to choose, and Sue will walk you through each one so you can decide what is best for you and your business.

Topics of discussion include hiring/bartering with hair and makeup artists or going DIY. In the end, the best thing to do is educate your clients on their options and learn what they want.

For further learning, we recommend checking out Sue’s Working With Hair and Makeup.

Over the next 5 weeks, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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DIY Hair

DIY Makeup

Working with Hair & Makeup

Styling Hair

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Present Yourself

Sales Contact #1 — Networking

Sales Contact #2 — The Consultation

Free Shoots & Gift Vouchers

In the second week of Startup, Sue teaches you how to create a pricing structure based on your value, your experience as a business owner, and your experience with being a paid photographer. Knowing your worth is crucial in business.

This week focuses on understanding your value. This includes identifying your blocks when it comes to your self-value. Topics include understanding your value, your time, and your craft. As well, we’ll look at how to get your pricing to industry standards, and all the possibilities for pricing plans, packages, and more. The more you understand your value and demand your worth, the more you will see your business soar.

Once you’ve finished this week, we recommend visiting the Sales Intensive for further studies on this topic.

Over the next 11 weeks, Sue will give you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Pricing

Pricing to Sell

Your First Package Price

Selling Wall Portraits

Selling Framed Images

Selling Wall Portraits + Collections

In the eighth week of the 12 Week Startup course, Sue will discuss the ultimate marketing material hacks, using Photoshop and InDesign. Now is the time to create your brand. This includes your website, social media, printouts, etc. If you aren’t design savvy, this is the week that will help you build your brand without having to shell out a lot of money. Sue will walk you through how she managed to build her brand while not being great at design. She shares what marketing design hacks worked and didn’t work for her so that you don’t have to make the same mistakes.

Topics of discussion include pdf creation, accordion cards, and magazines.

For further learning, we recommend checking out Sue’s DIY Marketing Design Live. You can also purchase the marketing templates in The Portrait Masters store.

Over the next 6 weeks, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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DIY Photoshop Design

DIY Marketing Design

PDF Design

In the fourth week of our 90 Day Challenge, Sue discusses sales in relation to yourself, your experience in being self-employed, and your craft.
In order to have a profitable business, it is essential that you know your value as well as what is blocking you from selling.

You can have a stunning folio with heaps of experience, but people won’t come to you until you sell to them. By getting into the 15 Basic Transforming Sales Steps, you will learn how to get out of your way and start asking for equal exchange in value.

Learning sales is crucial to a thriving business. The time has come for you to overcome the fear of sales, the fear of pricing yourself, and the fear of owning your path.

Sue will teach you how to replace the word “fear” with the word “unknown” and how just that change will help you mentally. Then she will help you establish where you are as a photographer and where you want to go. Learning how to market yourself is critical.

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Sales Intensive

When Am I Good Enough to be Paid?

Average Sale

Sales & Selling

Pricing to Sell

In the sixth week of the 12 Week Startup course, we get into the tactical details of marketing and how to capitalize on your natural strengths as a marketer. Topics of discussion include: creating your marketing printables, deciding on your style, and learning how to speak to the demographic you want to draw to your business.

Before and after shots are a great way to get started. People love makeovers, and it speaks to the style of glamour portrait photography. We are going to teach you to sell, so you can attract those who are attracted to your brand. Sue wants you to find your voice, so you can pitch to the clients you want. She wants you to find your genre, so you can perfect your brand and find your demographic.

For further learning, we recommend checking out Sue’s Marketing Intensive. You can also purchase her marketing templates in The Portrait Masters store.

Over the next 7 weeks, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Marketing Intensive

Video Marketing

Social Media Marketing

Marketing Business-to-Business

It’s time to launch your portrait photography business!

It’s the final week of our 12 Week Startup. Are you ready to move forward? The time has come to launch your brand and to own your path. This is the time where we start to adjust what it is that we are walking towards.

It is time to take stock of what you have learned, set your intentions, and move forward with your portrait photography business. Call it “Butt Kick Week,” or “Certainty and Conviction Week.” This is the week where you decide what you truly want. It’s the week where you learn to get out of your own way and start walking towards it! It’s time to take everything you’ve learned the last few weeks and put it into action. Get ready to LAUNCH!

If you find yourself needing a little extra self-confidence boost, check out our additional Self-Value courses.

Over the next week, Sue will keep giving you the tools you need to create a business and thrive. Whether you are new to being a portrait photographer and need advice from the ground up, or if you are an experienced portrait photographer who wants to take their business to the next level, this course is going to help your business grow.

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Website

Branding Your Business

Writing Your “About Me” Page

Masterclass