The Business Side of A Haitian Wedding Photographer: Fénelon Esaü

Among the numerous fields that are being chased, photography is undoubtedly one of the most sought-after art forms in Haiti, welcoming a few hundred amateurs each year.

But, in the Ivy-league where only a handful of professional photographers lead the competition, it requires more than just photography skills to get in business, let alone stay in business. 

One field some photographers embrace as being profitable and as artistically as complete is Wedding Photography. Nevertheless, succeeding as a wedding photographer is more about the business side rather than the artistic side. A lesson well learned by one of the most charming contemporary Haitian wedding photographers, Fénelon Esaü. 

With nearly a decade in the wedding photography business, the man behind Fénelon Photography© showcases a portfolio similar to those of the greatest. His road so far hasn’t been easy, and if his work is acclaimed by many, here are the factors he lays out to be the roots of his success. 

• Uniqueness

In an artistic realm, it is simply overwhelming to be different as it takes experiences and techniques of pioneers to develop your style. According to Fénelon E., ‘’each photographer has his/her way to relate to a scene, a subject. Having a different perspective simply comes to how each photographer tells the same story.’’ 

Being unique is a key factor for any business industry, especially in photography. It is the differentiation factor that leverages your possibilities to get more prospects while separating yourself from others’ works. From composition to critical thinking, Fénelon E. has proven his abilities to create magic from anything and make more couples happy. 

• Adaptability and Professionalism

A wedding photographer is expected to be competent in different areas or subfields to succeed in this arena. For having to constantly interact with people, an effective wedding photographer is a good listener, someone who shows confidence, and a prompt problem solver. 

That’s why one in that field ─as Fénelon E. puts it─has to anticipate the downturns of planned events and respond quickly to the most unexpected scenarios if they ever happen.  Weddings are once-in-a-lifetime events and rule number 1 by Cliff Mautner─American Wedding Photographer who has shot over 900 weddings in his career─ is to take the image. 

These ceremonies, most of the time, carry antagonist emotions, and a photographer who manages their emotional intelligence should professionally handle complicated situations and do their sole job which is to help create the best memories of the events. 

• Continuous Improvement

‘’Every wedding is a new one and should be treated as such.’’ That is the mantra of Fénelon E. who insists on the fact that the wedding is about the couple, not about the photographer. 

No matter how experienced a photographer is, it is the couple’s story and that’s why it should be told accordingly. The concept of continuous improvement here is about telling different stories for different couples. In other terms, capturing moments that the couple should solely relate to.

This concept factors in as well the photographer’s endeavor to become a better version of himself throughout his professional and artistic journey. Continuous improvement is an engagement of a professional photographer to sell his services in a customized way which further makes him better at what he does. 

• On-Time All The Time

Punctuality is quite a simplistic concept and yet hard to go by for many. ‘’It is not only about being on time for an event. It has to be for every single step of the process’’ says the man behind Fénelon Photography©. 

From planning to being on set and delivering the product to the customer, a photographer’s good sense of operations management is effective if he/she manages their time properly. For wedding photographers who deliver about 70 to 150 images on average per wedding, it is a daunting task to post-process different events of the same kind. Therefore, careful planning can tremendously help stick to schedules and engage in more contracts. 

According to Fénelon Esaü, there is an emotional flow that must be maintained because a ‘’good’’ image delivered on time is more valued by the customer than a ‘’great’’ image overdue. That principle applies to all business industries and can be a competitive advantage if managed well. 

• Effective Marketing

Nowadays, marketing plays a huge role in businesses’ daily life. Being shrunk down to social media, poor marketing results in less or no visibility, hence no revenues earned from expensive marketing campaigns. 

Although a wonderful image of a bride on a beach coast can generate reactions from social media users, it is no effect if it doesn’t incite others to create one of their own.  Throughout his career, Fénelon Esaü has built a trustful network which he nurtured and grew over time. The network itself expanded as his work got better and spread the good news to others.

Effective marketing, according to Fénelon resonates well with market segmentation as it allows a wedding photographer to know his worth about the clientele he wants to serve. The Wedding Photography industry in Haiti is quite a heterogeneous sector that requires thorough research to determine one’s positioning.

It is no surprise that many great photographers fail at the business level. It requires more than just photography to be a successful photographer and as long as many are caught in the artistic process of the journey, they will at times create beautiful work that they can’t make a living from. 

There’s no recipe for success as much as there’s no one-rule-does-it-all for all business industries. Photography is primarily art, but making a business off of it implies being skilled at different areas and being aware of what others are doing to keep creating that unique added value. 

Being a wedding photographer is definitely a tough job, one that Fénelon has enjoyed for about a decade. There’s always room for other photographers. It’s only a matter of who you want to serve and how different you are from others. No matter the photography genre, a client’s satisfaction is a photographer’s boost to continuous improvement and business growth.