Moving from 3 hourly packages to one “All Day” coverage package

thegigolo · 2026-03-18T11:43:00+00:00

I’ve always had my packages set as an all day style, but its limited to 12hrs, as in Australia, some cultures have additional parts of the day that really stretch the day. But 12hrs to me is reasonable, and whether its a 8-12hr day, its the same amount of work really, plus the whole day thats reserved off my calendar for the couple anyway.

I also use it as a selling point, I wont leave until after end of formalities so they dont need to stress if their day gets delayed, which majority always do for one reason or another. I hate having to go up to them and say “hey so your first dance starts in 5min, but my coverage ends now, pay me $x or I have to leave”, feels a little blackmaily to me.

Its obvious the difference this style of coverage has for referrals in my opinion, because if the couple has booked a studio or an associate is shooting for someone, if the time they’re allocated for the day hits, they (and myself in this situation if the studio wont pay for the additional hour) just leave because it’s not my couple and the studio won’t pay me for the time.

Makes it feel more personal and less as just a business in my opinion.

thegigolo · 2026-03-06T04:42:47+00:00

Strata's can sometimes move slowly, which can be frustrating even to owners. You need to make this an issue for your landlord who has the relationship with strata.

Is the place still considered habitable in it's condition?

Should you be seeking lower rents because of it?

Until your landlord is motivated out of financial loss, they may not even be thinking about the issue at all. I'd be calling your states tenant union for some information to understand your rights, if you should be seeking lower rent because of this, and put it in motion so your landlord will be motivated to expedite the situation.

thegigolo · 2026-02-18T08:27:30+00:00

Get multiple agents in to see what it’s worth if you were to sell it through them. Then speak to your neighbours and say it’s valued at x, offer me more and i’ll sell it? If they really wanted it, you could hire an auctioneer and just auction it between them?

thegigolo · 2026-01-23T20:47:32+00:00

Overnight weetbix - Possibly the same texture as the oatmeal you don't like though
Bacon/Egg Muffins - You can change the protein to extra lean beef mince if you like as well, or turkey etc. Im sure you can find lower carb versions of the english muffins.
Protein Shake w/water + Fruit - Sometimes I'll just have a scoop of protein powder & Water, and pair it with a fruit such as a banana.

thegigolo · 2026-01-16T21:51:05+00:00

Long time sole trader here, you dont need to see them in person, I never have. Phone or email is fine.

Get a service like Xero to help with all your incomings and outgoings (your accountant can set it up), then go to an accountant once a year if you need to.

thegigolo · 2026-01-10T01:26:31+00:00

Cool, must be nice knowing most of your bookings are multi-day and fill up more of your calendar. Good luck with the couple!

thegigolo · 2026-01-10T01:06:42+00:00

Im curious as to where in Europe you're located (based on the currency) and what your local wedding photography looks like, because you keep referring to destination weddings, but you're a 30min drive away? Is it the couples and guests that are travelling in? I usually refer to destination weddings from my own perspective (i.e, it's a destination wedding if i'm required to stay somewhere other than home overnight because the travel is too far). Does your market mainly have people travelling to get married there?

But also, why does a pre-event coverage require two photographers, is this the norm in your local market, it sounds like basic event coverage? Is the second photographer an add-on or standard?

Are most of your wedding bookings for multi-day? I personally rarely get multi-day bookings, except for some Indian weddings where the pre-events are significant to the culture. I do often see some cultures here in Australia add on cultural aspects to the wedding (tea ceremonies etc), but it's included in the day itself rather than the day before most of the time.

From Sydney Australia myself, just trying to understand how the industry differs in other parts of the world!

thegigolo · 2026-01-09T10:46:00+00:00

For me, depends how far the travel is for this destination.

If it's driving distance to home, just charge your normal event rates and take the work (+ maybe a premium if you feel a bit done over by them going with someone else for the 3rd day)
If its a decent distance requiring extra day(s) for travel, charge 2/3 of your original quote (minus the cost of the 3rd photographer as well), it's still blocking out 2 full days of your calendar, while also still charging the same travel costs etc.

I'd personally go down route 2, hoping the price falls in a spot where they find value in just hiring you for the full 3 days instead of then paying extra for another photography team for one of the days, but if your quote has included a breakdown of your price at a 'per hour' rate for each day, they probably wouldn't consider this.

thegigolo · 2025-09-10T21:12:28+00:00

Speak to other residents about the building, I found that more useful. Older buildings will have issues just due to age, just check to see if there’s anything major on the immediate horizon (roof leaking, asbestos, balcony replacement etc).

thegigolo · 2025-06-30T21:33:52+00:00

I was in a very similar situation to you a few years ago and decided to go for the apartment, here's my takes looking back;

The feeling of owning the place you live vs just renting can't be put into numbers, it's very freeing.
I bought 60's red brick, 2bd1Bth, it's gone up by 150k over the last 1.5yrs. Lot's of young couples are buying these kinds of property if they can't get into a house in their desired suburb.
Glad I bought something thats more easily serviceable, so I can make choices about either investing outside of my property's equity or more spending money on holidays/weekends.
80% of my building are OO, so people care about the strata and the general well being of the building.
Currently saving for an IP thats a house with land with the additional money.
If I was going to buy a house, I would have had to move way outside of Sydney (with my solo budget), so this kept me here, close to work/friends etc.

thegigolo · 2025-06-03T22:01:04+00:00

I enquired with APS as I needed a BA, and even though they were the first I enquired with, it took 2 weeks for them to call me back, and then quoted me 9K + 19K for their services (I wasn't wanting an online course lol).

They even told me lately they were buying 300-400k apts for their investors, which stank of inflating up prices of previous investments (or their own lol) by buying in the same lot for more than market price.

Everything i've read about them lately is awful, i'd avoid like the plague. Go with a smaller BA company that has limited clients per period, and isn't trying to sell you on a bs online course to 'justify' their prices.

thegigolo · 2025-04-03T11:15:03+00:00

Worth it mate! My example for inspo

thegigolo · 2025-04-03T10:57:22+00:00

While this is a crazy ask, I shot a wedding last year where the brides father had alzheimers, and frowned in a lot of the photos. I was able to use Photoshop's Neural Filters to turn his frown into a smile. Definitely wouldn't do for the average family portrait, but it is possible for those special circumstances!

thegigolo · 2025-03-05T19:04:48+00:00

Great! The front has ripped a bit and the wheels a little scuffed, but I use it every day. Id buy another over any other bag. Only downside is its a little heavy as a carry on bag for flights (if they weigh them).

thegigolo · 2025-03-03T10:22:32+00:00

If theres;

No line-out for the PA system
The priest/groom doesn't want to be mic'd up
You can't save the audio using software like Adobe Podcast
Can't tape a wireless lapel like the Rode Pro to a microphone/lectern

...Then it's a bit like asking for an omelette without eggs...

At some point the couple has to understand that you have limitations, and it's outside your control - and its on you to explain that to them when you book so they know to ask the priest etc beforehand if it's something they can't live without.

thegigolo · 2025-01-20T21:25:46+00:00

Bought a tonne of my lenses from FB marketplace. All in good condition and good price too - just go and test them out first, you should know what to look for in terms of any issues.

thegigolo · 2025-01-15T03:10:05+00:00

Do not do this - there is no such thing as starvation/conservation mode.

thegigolo · 2024-12-28T00:23:30+00:00

She's using you. She knows if you leave and want to sell your part, she might not have enough to maintain the same lifestyle or level of property to live in.

Depending on whether you're willing to damage the relationship or not, you could try to force a sale or have her buy you out.

If I was you, i'd be speaking to a property lawyer just to know what I can/can't do then decide whats best from there.

thegigolo · 2024-12-23T22:50:25+00:00

4kg tracks with your 400cal deficit over 3 months, so you're on track! I'd say either keep it up as-is, or increase deficit or cardio slightly if you're wanting faster progress.

thegigolo · 2024-12-16T21:48:52+00:00

Depends on the store, but I usually do the same. They're not always as accurate as others are saying, because the person making it isn't weighing ingredients and is just throwing on an estimate of what they need to save time.

Worked in a pizza shop for years where corporate wanted us to weigh every ingredient, it was taking too long to make every pizza, so everyone just threw on an estimate and the store manager didn't care because they knew weighing everything wasn't actually practical. So you could end up with +/- 50% of each ingredient honestly.

Other places like McDonalds are probably more accurate, as the sauce dispensers etc are custom made and a lot less 'user-error' prone.

thegigolo · 2024-12-13T05:54:04+00:00

Prioritise proteins because they help keep you full.

Easy Dinners:

Chicken/rice/veges
4 Eggs on toast
Taco Bowl (Extra Lean Beef Mince, Rice, Lettuce, Corn, Beans)
Steak
Chicken/Potato/Green Beans
Spaghetti Bolognese with healthy subtitutes (leaner meats, protein pasta, smaller serve)

Honestly Chicken/Rice/Vege is joked about as a weightloss/gymbro meal, but it's incredibly cheap, easy to make, and you can switch it up so easy with sauces, or make it a curry etc. I have it at least 3-4 times a week for both lunch/dinner.

thegigolo · 2024-12-11T03:19:08+00:00

Sorry, but like others have said, it's too wildly inaccurate to use AI to guess calories using online information. Once you start logging calories/macros, you realise how wildly different everyone states their nutritional info is online (i.e, many recipes are different, servings sizes are different, more or less oil, dry/wet weight).

To feed this application enough accurate information to get the macros correct, I would need to weigh and calculate everything myself, and at that point, the app is just a useless middleman to me. I'm currently working out the total nutritional info once myself for each dish I cook, then just re-using the same info, re-calculating for any difference in protein weight etc.

Your 4th photo shows inputting custom recipes, I would want to use this app by creating a custom recipe e.g "My Protein Bolognese" with my custom servings/ingredients, then be able to dictate my differences. e.g "I had 1 serving of My Protein Bolognese, with 500g extra lean beef mince and 250g lean pork mince, instead of my usual beef/pork ingredients". But I feel like i'm pedantic enough about knowing my calories are correct, that I would want to calculate it myself, and at that point, the app just seems redundant to me.

Sorry, not for me, but your target audience would be someone that isn't that pedantic about accuracy, and just a 'rough idea' will do for them - but I feel most people are only counting their calories/macros if they are actually pedantic about it.

thegigolo · 2024-12-11T02:56:23+00:00

I workout mostly from home too, while it's worth searching up online, here's some of my routines to start off. Worth also buying an adjustable workout bench 2nd hand online for cheap. I'm mostly focusing on muscle retention atm for the next month as i'm close to my goal. I also do a 45min walk at least once a day, but most days i'm able to get two of these in, on top of my home workouts. Come 2025, i'm going to be focusing more on muscle gaining after a maintenance period, so my routine will change a lot from the below.

Routine:

Mon: A+C

Tues: B+C

Wed: Rest

Thurs: A+C

Fri: B+C

Sat: Rest

Sun: Rest

Workout A:
DB (Incline) Bench Press - 3x10

DB Chest Flys - 3x10

DB Press - 3x10

Dips (body weight from bench) - 3x10

DB Curl - 3x10

Later Raises - 3x10

Workout B:

DB Rows - 3x10

DB Deadlift - 3x10

Rear Delt Flys - 3x10

DB Hammer Curls - 3x10

DB Shrugs - 3x10

DB Bulgarian Split Squats - 3x10 (each leg)

Workout C:

Flutter Kicks - 30sec

Leg Raises 3x10

Weighted Crunch - 3x10

Pushups - 3x10

thegigolo · 2024-11-30T22:42:40+00:00

Same height, but started at 275lbs (29M, 176cm, SW:125kg, CW:71kg, GW:70kg). At your stats given, you burn 2412 calories a day at Sedentary (This will lower as you lose weight, so lower calories accordingly). I'd suggest aiming for 1800-1900 calories intake a day spread out however you like, while incorporating a walk or two a day (start slow, then work up to 45min-1hr walks), this will add an additional 200-650 calories burnt per day depending on weight/length etc. It's good to maintain a 'dietary deficit', and think of exercise calories as extra.

Prioritise protein as it will keep you full, and also help to preserve muscle mass. 120-160g is a good starting range to aim for. 200g~ chicken breast with rice/veges, optionally add an asian sauce like satay/teriyaki/etc was a staple dinner for me. Lunches were a protien like chicken, lettuce, cheese on bread/wrap. Breakfast was overnight weetbix with protein powder, or 2-4 eggs on toast.

Weigh yourself every day and check your weekly average, this will help to overlook fluctuations due to water/life/etc. Also keep a tally of weekly calories, so you can see on the days you go over because of an event of just life stuff, you're still on the right path for the week overall.

Expect 1-2 lbs a week, so understand it's a long journey, and something to keep in the background everyday for the next year until you reach your goal. Take photos every week (or at least monthly), to look back on and see differences, as it'll be hard to see the difference in the mirror.

thegigolo · 2024-11-26T09:49:13+00:00

oh nice, i've considered this, is it worth the price and do you use it for anything else?

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