Top 6 Awesome Photography Business Cards According to Experts

Looking for a way to impress future clients and get your name out there as a great photographer? Creating awesome photography business cards is one of the easiest and most effective ways to do just that! Read our ultimate guide to business cards for photographers to learn more about how to design and use them to maximize your business potential!

What Should be on a Photography Business Card?

If you are a serious photographer, your business card should let people know what you are all about. Everything you put on the card should help your potential clients understand the value that you provide. So, it helps to make sure you know exactly what should be of

Characteristics of a Photographer’s Business Card

This section will focus on the philosophy and concepts are that are behind a great photography business card. If you want your photography business to shine, make sure your cards do these things:

1. Represents Your Brand

Take a look at your business, and boil it down to two or three words. It could be something like “Precious Moments, Captured” or “Marketing Photography Master”. Really, your photography business cards could say anything, as long as it represents you!

2. Showcases Your Skills

Ideally, you should be able to prove some of your talents with your photography business card. If you are a wedding photographer, try to get an image of rings or an altar that gives a good idea of what your brand is like without using someone’s face. That way, your potential clients will be able to see themselves in your work!

3. Styled Your Way

Nobody wants to hire someone whose photography business card looks boring. So, take your business card as an opportunity to show your sense of aesthetics! Choose colors, fonts, and layouts that work well with your photography’s business vibe. Look for business card designs that reflect the type of work you do; that way, you will have a cohesive and unified brand around your photography business!

What to Put on a Photography Business Card

In this section, we will cover the essential information that your potential clients need to see on your photography business cards! Most of the work of “landing a client” involves making things as easy and clear as possible for them. So, you should do everything you can on your business card to give them exactly what they need to hire you! If you’re a professional photographer, business cards should include the following:

Business Name

Make sure the name of your business or your professional name is on the card! This may seem silly to mention, but some photographers get lost in their desire to make a fancy card and forget this basic step. Plus, you must remember that your prospective client is likely considering several other photographers- they won’t call you if they can’t remember you!

Contact Information

Lately, more and more photography businesses are including social media info on their cards, but no contact info. The reason that they do this is to encourage people to use the social media they are used to, in order to reach out and start planning.  This is good- you should include social media information on your business card if you can. However, you should always include normal contact info, like your phone number and email, too!

Logo and Branding

Include all the design elements that make up your brand, from the color design to the logo.

Website/Portfolio Link

If you don’t have a photography portfolio or website yet, you should get to work on one! They’re the best way to naturally lead people from seeing your business card to exploring your work, and then to finally booking you for their event or project! There are even some business cards that let you use a QR code so people can access your website using just their smartphone’s camera!

Your Photography Niche(s)

If you’re just starting your photography business and looking for business cards, you may not yet be aware of how many different types of photography there are. There are wedding photographers, brand photographers, advertising photographers… the list goes on and on! So, if you specialize in one or two types of photography, you should try to mention that on your business cards. This is helpful for clients, but also for networking purposes so your colleagues/employers/etc will know exactly what you’re about!

How to Make Photography Business Cards

Alright! Now that you’ve thought out your business card design, it’s time to make your photography business cards come to life. How do you do that? You have two options, and one is much, much harder than the other:

Design and Print them Yourself

If you happen to be an expert with Photoshop and Illustrator, you can design your business card on your own. Find out the right dimensions for business cards, design until you are content, and then, once it is fully designed, it is time to print.

If you own a high-quality printer, you can print them at home on thick cardstock. Then, use a paper cutter to precisely and perfectly cut out business cards for your photography business. For people who have lots of free time and resources, this is a pretty good way to do it.

However, it does have some drawbacks. First, if you don’t have all the resources, it can be very expensive to order the right kind of paper, even if you already have the other expensive hardware needed to do it by yourself.

Second, printing and cutting your own business cards is tricky- if you don’t do it right, your customers will be able to see that they aren’t even, and they probably won’t put you high up on their photographer Wishlist. You should only make business cards by yourself if you really know what you’re doing!

Finally, it takes up a lot of time. Any good business owner knows that the most profitable way to do something is to pay someone else to do it! Doing things yourself that distract you from the business tasks only you can handle takes away from your ability to grow. That leads us to the second, and preferred, way of making photographer business cards:

Order Professionally-Designed Cards

There are a few reasons this is a much better way to do things. First, you can be intimately involved in the design process, but leave the actual printing and cutting to the pros! You can make your business card look exactly the way you want to, and have it printed on top-quality printing paper with industry-leading machinery. Then, when it is cut, it is cut perfectly, every time. This is the “no-risk” method of designing a business card.

Second, you can choose from templates that have already been designed by graphics pros- saving you the time of trying to come up with ideas yourself. You can select any template you want and customize it until it’s exactly right for your photography business! You can add images, change up the fonts, whatever you want- until it’s the perfect business card to represent your photographic style.

Third, you get to focus on running your business: running social media accounts, planning your next shoot, working with clients, all the things that should occupy your attention. Designing your business cards, though it is vital to your business, shouldn’t take up your whole day. When you order business cards online, you are able to devote your time to the things that matter most! That includes the design of your business card, but not the printing, cutting, and packaging- let someone else handle that!

How to Create Awesome Photography Business Cards?

If you combine all of the advice above into a final product, you should have an awesome photography business card! Here is the step-by-step process for making a photography business card you will be proud of for years:

1. Select a Template

Start by searching through the available templates, as well as business card size, material, and shapes. There are many you can choose from on Wow Impression, and they are thoroughly customizable. You don’t have to worry too much about choosing the perfect template off the bat because you can change things around to suit your liking.

If you’ve got a very specific vision, you can even clear the template and work completely from scratch. While this is not recommended, since designing is a very precise process, it’s nice to know that you have this option! This can also be accomplished using Canva, a quick, fast photo-editing app!

2. Add Your Logo/Images

Now that your photography business card template is selected, it’s time to add some of your brand iconographies, like your eye-catching logo. Upload your logo, and position it on the business card in a place that is clear and visible. With Wow Impression, you can upload many different file types, so you shouldn’t have any trouble with getting your logo perfect!

3. Add Your Business Info, Choose Typography

Example of a well-branded business card Next up, it’s time to work on the text for your business card. Add your business name, contact info, and website, so that your customers will be able to easily get in touch with you. Wow Impression has dozens of different fonts to choose from. If your brand has a very specific font, you can upload your typography as an image and position it correctly. This may take some trial and error to get everything just right, but it is a valuable option!

4. Customize to Fit Your Brand

You’ve got the basics of your photography business card designs figured out. Now, it’s time to really invest in the “brand aesthetic”! This is a very important step, but it’s actually one of the most fun! Use the colors, fonts, and design options you have at your disposal. Play around with different ideas, and ask your business partners for their opinion if you want to!

Make everything look exactly how you want it to. Remember, the business card will form many people’s first impressions of you and your work. You want it to precisely represent what your business is about. For a wedding photography business, you’ll want to use elegant fonts, dreamy colors, and simple logos. A business headshot photographer will want to strike a more serious tone in their business card; focus on strong colors, typography, and a clean, “no-frills” design.

Once you’re happy with the way your business card design looks, you’ve finished your part of the photography business card journey!

5. Order and Wait!

Now that your photography business cards are ready, all that’s left to do is order and wait. Wow Impression has very fair prices and delivers your high-quality business cards quickly because they ship locally anywhere in the United States. In the meantime, it’s time for you to get back to being an amazing photographer!

Is It Good To Have a Picture on a Business Card?

As a photographer, you will naturally want to have a picture of yourself or your work on your business card. The good news is, your instincts were correct! In most cases, it is a good idea to have a picture on your photography business card. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of this question to get a more full and clear answer:

Pros

Demonstrate Skills

Using a photo in your business card can help potential clients see your skills in a very easy way; it can add lots of value to your brand. After all, you are a photographer first and foremost- why not display that eye-catching work on your photography business card?

Great for Solopreneurs

If you’re a “solopreneur”, meaning you’ve started your photographer business all by yourself and run it that way, using a headshot is great for your brand. It lets people see your friendly, smiling face, and help build that personal trust and connection your business will thrive on. People have a hard time trusting “faceless” companies- and you are the face of your company! Show it off!

Cons

May Clutter Design

The design of your business cards is very important- using a picture can throw off the balance of the business card and make things hard to see. Business cards are already pretty small, and having a large image can really put a strain on people’s eyes. You want to make things easy for people, and that may mean emphasizing readability above style.

Limited Scope

If you plan on hiring more photographers to help you down the road, your business cards will have a pretty short lifespan if they have your face on them! Once you cease to be a one-person photographer business, your business card will need to be updated. Since you’ll likely be getting your business cards in bulk- 500 or more- it makes more sense to plan for the future.

Examples

Here are 3 great business card example images that show you how to include a picture in your business card, the right way:

Professional Headshot Business Card

 

 

Clean white background Business Card

 

Are Business Cards Still Relevant in 2022?

Even though we’ve moved increasingly to a remote, digital world, business cards are still important for a professional photographer. If you don’t have a business card ready at all times, meeting a potential client can be a “swing and a miss” since it’s hard to get them your info smoothly.

In addition, leaving your business card at a wedding venue, chapel, or banquet hall is a great way to do passive marketing. Many people who own wedding venues like to keep a list of recommended photographers and pass their business cards out to couples. It’s always a good idea to have a few hundred photographer business cards ready- they’re a simple and timeless form of networking and marketing for a reason!

Top Business Cards for Photographers

1: Classic Business Card Template

 

2: Multi-Photo Business Cards

 

Frequently Asked Questions

How Much Can a Photography Business Make?

In your first year in business, you can make a decent amount of money, but not enough to sustain yourself. That’s because it takes time to build up a client base; most photographers start out part-time and slowly transition into full-time work. Most photography is charged to clients by the hour. Here is what you can expect to charge per hour/project at various stages of your career as a photographer in the United States:

Beginner Level

$20-75/hour, $250-1,250 per project.

Intermediate Level

$50-200/hour, $1,000-5,000 per project.

Established Professional Level

$125-750/hour, $2,500-10,000 per project.

Top-Tier Pro Level

$500+/hour, $8,000+ per project.

What Types of Photography Pay the Most?

There are many different types of photography, and they pay very differently! These are the highest-paying types of photographer business in the United States:

Fashion Photography

Earning Potential: Upwards of $150,000/year

Job Description: Shoot for magazines, clothing labels, and models/influencers. Edit and send to publishers/advertising companies.

Wedding Photography:

Earning Potential: $67,000-130,000/year

Job Description: Shoot weddings and other events, making special edits and albums for the lucky couples. Lots of outreach and network-building; free time during the week.

Brand/Product Photography

Earning Potential: $90,000-250,000/year

Conclusion: Awesome Photography Business Cards

A great-looking photography business card is an essential piece of every photographer’s strategy. They help you present yourself to clients and business partners, and they always come in handy. Wow Impression has a great selection of photography business card templates to help you define your brand and get your next client! Have any questions about how a photographer should create their business card? Let us know in the comments section below, and we would be glad to help!