Inspire Design Create with David Lee

EPISODE 49: RETAINER CLIENTS, PROS + CONS

What's good podcast friends! Today we're talking about what retainer clients are, why they might be beneficial for you and how to speak to a prospective client who could benefit from a retainer client model. The most important things to consider are:

#1. Does it make sense for you to have a retainer client?

#2. Continue to build your portfolio with reel worthy work

At the end of the day we all have to balance paying the bills with passion but eventually you'll get to the point where the majority of your income comes from the type of work you want (DP, Cinematographer, Cam Op etc).

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 48: Q&A Time!

What's this? You got QUESTIONS?!?! Well lucky for you I have some answers. Whether they're good or not is yet to be decided BUT hopefully they help you guys out! Here are the questions that were submitted:

1.) How to combat the fear to fail before shooting? Does it ever go away with experience?

2.) If the lens is faster at F2.8 why do people shoot at F8 or higher?

3.) How do you handle data management for your footage? Do you ever delete footage?

4.) How do you stay disciplined in the hustle?

If you guys like this format from time to time let me know! Shoot me a DM on Instagram @atdavidlee and i'll do my best to put your question in the next Q&A episode.

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 47: $1000 vs $10,000 GEAR, DOES IT MATTER???

Well hello podcast fam! I'm sure there's been a point in time where you've asked yourself, "will I get more work if I had more gear?" - I have been there before too and have made the mistake of purchasing a gear thinking I would get more work because I saw so and so online who had a particular camera, lens, light etc. The fact of the matter is the client budget and your skillset always dictate the profit you make and as you're starting out the gear doesn't matter because most likely you're working low budget projects.

As time progresses along with your career and skillset, you'll start to see the budgets grow and with that the requirement for gear start to increase. That's when you can start to analyze what pieces of gear makes sense for you to own or rent and in today's podcast episode I talk all about it!

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 46: WHEN CLIENTS ASK FOR PREVIOUS WORK

Oh the dreaded question, "Can you show me previous work you've done?" UH OH! How on Earth do you answer that when you don't have the work to show? That's where written and visual treatments come in along with some crafty use of language to help pitch the client your vision and how it can support their brand, product or service.

In today's episode I go over some examples of how to pitch your vision to a prospective client, why Spec work is still relevant and hopefully by the end of the episode you'll have some more information to take into your next client conversation.

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 45: UNDERSTANDING CLIENT BUDGETS

Oh this is a good one folks, take a moment to listen to today's episode as i'm covering the topic of understanding how different clients have different budgets and how that impacts your business decisions. Not every client has $100,000 in marketing for single project, some may only have $10,000 for a single project but if you're still working with $500 clients I think today will bring to light a new perspective on how client budgets work in general.

If this episode helped you out let me know! Shoot me a DM on Instagram @atdavidlee and if you're looking for inspiring gear reviews or tutorials check on my YouTube Channel www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 44: THE CASE FOR BIGGER LIGHTING GEAR

Oh here we gooo, today we're talking about the lighting gear i'm buying this year and why i'm making the case for purchasing bigger lights. Now bigger lights don't necessarily mean you need to be hunting for a good deal on a 6K HMI on E-Bay but with really solid options such as the Aputure 600D Pro and Nanlite Forza 500 it's providing indie filmmakers and owner operators the ability to take their lighting to the next level. 

I'm also a huge advocate for diffusion and again, the bigger diffusion you can use the more natural it will look and feel on camera which is the look I am going for and perhaps it's also the look you're after too. Diffusion with your lighting fixtures is the tag team championship formula where you need team work to help make the win for the scene you're trying to light, but again you have to go big with the diffusion or use a combination of small and big to get the quality of light you seek.

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 43: DO YOU STILL NEED A REEL???

What is going on friends! In this week's episode we are covering the topic of reels.

#1. Do you need one?

#2. Should you reel have everything or be more focused?

#3. What to do if you don't have the content for your reel?

I still have an updated reel every year because it allows me to showcase the exact type of work I do and the visual aesthetic I bring to clients. Not everyone needs a reel but in this podcast episode I talk about who does so don't feel left out if you don't have a reel yet friend, there's always time to make one!

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 42: FULL FRAME VS SUPER 35

Oh here we go, let the flood gates open because I know many of you out there are ready to defend full frame over super 35, or maybe there still are the loyal filmmakers devoted to not giving into trends and are still rocking an old Alexa ST or RED Epic Dragon with your beloved S35 lenses! Do we still need to have this discussion of which sensor is "better"? I think we do and in today's episode we are focusing in on this topic for owner/operators and small crew type shoots.

Which sensor suits your needs and is more practical for your business/production needs? Look at some of your favorite movies in the past 10 years and i'm pretty sure you'll see Super 35 cameras at the top of your list. Well enough blabber from me and if you've read this far, well then...kudos to you my friend.

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

 

EPISODE 41: TAKING RISKS FOR YOUR BUSINESS

As someone who left a very cushy tech job years ago to pursue filmmaking, production and following my passion I know plenty about taking risks and the FEAR that comes along with it. You see FEAR is the driving factor behind a lot of our action or inaction. In this episode I wanted to step away from the business and camera talk for a moment and speak to one of the more important aspects of being an owner/operator and that is the ability we all have to take risks that will help us in the direction of our dreams.

 

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee 

EPISODE 40: WHAT TO CHARGE CLIENTS

When you're just starting out, how much is your time worth? Have you been low balled time and time again? In this episode I wanted to cover The 3 Things to help determine what to charge clients, whether it's your first year or if you've been freelancing for some time, we always need to identify:

1.) What is the client's budget?

2.) What are their expectations

3.) What is your profit number?

 

By discovering these three things you'll run into less headaches during your discovery engagement calls, you'll be able to determine all expectations for the project to reduce unseen headaches and create accountability for both you and the client, lastly you will start to track how much your rates have increased or stayed the same over time which gives you more information on where you can start to scale your business and profits.

 

If you enjoyed this episode please rate it and let me know how i'm doing! Subscribe to the podcast if you're loving the content and share it with your friends!

www.atdavidlee.com | www.legendarymediahouse.com | Instagram @atdavidlee | YouTube www.youtube.com/atdavidlee