Photographer/Director/Filmmaker Eric Wolfinger has paid his dues in the best possible way by doing what he loves: immersing himself in the sharing and preparing of food. Through extensive travel and a home base of San Francisco, Eric put himself in the middle of it all, from the growing, gathering, and preparing of ingredients, to the moment of presentation among groups of families and friends. Working as a baker and chef, while honing his skills as a photographer, has given his career the best possible grounding and helped him develop a great client base along the way. He currently produces stills and film for advertising and editorial assignments, cookbooks, and working on two personal documentary film projects. With his deep understanding of the subject matter and his highly developed culinary skills, his clients also count on him to help develop and tell their stories.
When we asked Eric questions about the business side of the equation he described it as a bit “like the wild west out there!” In terms of estimating, the full buyout is the film production industry standard, unlike the licensing model for still photography use. There is still plenty of room for negotiation though. With ever changing technology and the increasing utilization of social media platforms for brand messaging, Eric’s best advice is to utilize value-based pricing and to take the client into account. If the client is a small company and indicates the usage is for web, price the buyout accordingly with the understanding that if it is later used for paid web usage or broadcast, there will be additional cost.
When we posed the question, “What’s your dream job?” His response was immediate. “I’m doing it!”
