Gone are the days when only large photography studios could manage enterprise-level workloads. Thanks to AI-powered tools like Aftershoot, solo photographers are now stepping into the role of one-person photography studios, handling millions of photos with ease. The result? More time to focus on creativity, family, and business growth.
So far in 2024, photographers around the world collectively saved over 13 million hours on post-production. How? By leveraging the power of AI to handle the most tedious parts of their workflow.
In this article, we’re going to talk about how this has become possible, and we’ll share some examples! Of course, maybe your business goal isn’t to become a one-person “massive” studio. Maybe, you’d prefer to keep things relatively small and simple! Still, using AI for various parts of your workflow is going to help you work smarter, which means more efficiency & productivity, and less time and money wasted on the more tedious tasks!
With that said, let’s dive in.
The Burden of Modern Photography
Cameras nowadays are doing amazing things in terms of image quality, autofocus, and affordability. However, one thing we aren’t obsessed with, as portrait and wedding photographers, is just how blazing fast they have gotten!
Honest opinion: You don’t need 20-30 FPS to photograph a portrait! If you shoot photos this way, you’re only making your life harder. We have found that for portraits, 3-5 FPS is more than enough, and for weddings, sometimes 5-10 FPS is useful for a few moments, but not all.
Even with that little tidbit of advice, many photographers are still going to face an intimidating workflow later at their computer, likely involving thousands of photos every week for a full-time pro.
Weddings, portraits, events—each shoot can result in many thousands of images to process. Even if you’re a portrait photographer who does small, short sessions that result in just 25-50 delivered images, you’re likely still clicking your shutter a few hundred times during each shoot, and undoubtedly generating thousands of photos every week!
(To be precise, according to the data, almost 50% of over 500 working photographers capture between 3,000 and a staggering 10,000 images per job/session!)
Of course, it’s not just the clicking of the shutter that’s demanding. In fact, post-processing can stretch over weeks or even months. Inevitably, if you’re always finding yourself falling behind on delivering photos, it will lead to frustration and, eventually, burnout.
However, according to Aftershoot’s 2024 Snapshot Report, photographers culled 31% more images than in 2023, and edited 84% more images. This sheer scale is staggering, with over 5.4 billion photos processed this year alone, a 370% increase from 2023.
This surge in productivity has allowed photographers to deliver higher-quality results, faster, without sacrificing their personal well-being.
The Rise of AI: Aftershoot’s Game-Changing Role
This is where AI steps in, and creates new opportunities for one-person photography businesses. (Or small teams such as husband and wife wedding photography businesses, of course!)
Tools like Aftershoot are now handling repetitive tasks like culling and editing with incredible precision and consistency. By taking on the “busy work,” AI allows photographers to refocus their time however they want.
In fact, we’re about to answer a common question about using AI to edit photos: “won’t it take away my creative edge? I want my photos to retain my artistic eye.”
Indeed, you’ll see the answer for yourself when you consider the following factors. Furthermore, you’ll hear from other photographers who have firsthand accounts of just how life-changing the results are:
- Unprecedented Time Savings: Each Aftershoot user saved an average of 31 full working days in 2024. That’s almost a whole extra month freed up; it’s time that can be re-directed towards the creative aspects of photography, or personal time with family, or expanding your business, …or all of the above!
- Simplicity and Speed: Aftershoot’s intuitive platform integrates culling, editing, and soon, AI-powered retouching—all in one place. With its “One-Click Cull & Edit” feature, photographers can process entire shoots automatically, reducing hours of labor to mere minutes. A streamlined workflow also reduces stress and errors, too!
- Consistency at Scale: Whether it’s weddings, portraits, or event photography, Aftershoot’s AI adapts to each user’s unique editing style. This means that the more you use it, the more it understands your own creative style!
This is a perfect time to note that Aftershoot, unlike some competitors, does not charge per-image; you get unlimited images included in whichever plan you subscribe to.
For pros like Kasey and Tyler Rajotte of Studio Twelve 52, (and Studio Twelve 52 Pets!) …Aftershoot’s ability to cull photos was a game-changer. Not only do they photograph brides and grooms, but they often photograph pets, too; Aftershoot did a fantastic job with ALL types of faces!
“Aftershoot has given us a huge chunk of our lives back. As a higher-volume company run by just the two of us, managing two full-time branches of our business is no small feat. Aftershoot learned our culling style so effortlessly—even with pets, which totally surprised me!” —Kasey and Tyler Rajotte, Studio Twelve 52
The Power of One: Solo Photographers Become Studios
With such an efficient workflow now available, (at a relatively affordable value!) …what was once only possible for large studios with big teams is now achievable for solo photographers and very small teams.
Our own experience is that of a rather large photography studio, based in Southern California, photographing both weddings and portraits nationwide and even internationally. With teams of 10-20+ photographers on the job almost every weekend of the year, we’ve always generated tens of thousands of photos each week. The post-production process was a monumental task, indeed, and to be honest it was everyone’s least-favorite part of the job! Long story short, we were all too eager to let AI handle as much of the workflow as possible. It gave us back our time with family and friends, it made our clients happier, and it allowed us to steadily grow our business!
With AI-powered tools, individual photographers are taking on studio-level workloads, scaling their operations without adding overhead. This “democratization” of high-volume business has reshaped the industry’s playing field, allowing many new opportunities:
- Handle Enterprise-Level Workloads: One person can now manage what used to require more hours than exist in a day, or, an entire team of editors. This scalability means fewer bottlenecks and faster turnaround times, even for a growing studio.
- Break Studio Size Limitations: Speaking of growing, photographers can now scale their businesses without hiring more staff than they could have afforded in the first place, cutting costs and increasing profit margins. (In other words: AI is NOT “stealing jobs” here. It’s simply allowing photographers to achieve something they couldn’t have done before.)
- Boost Productivity and Well-Being: By automating the most tedious tasks, photographers are reclaiming their time, reducing burnout, and rediscovering the joy of photography.
Real-World Results: What Photographers Are Saying
Aftershoot’s impact is best seen through the testimonials of those who use it daily. On this Trust Pilot review page, you’ll find many firsthand descriptions of the results, such as Alicia Levy:
“This program has exceeded my expectations and changed my business completely. It has saved me time and money and allowed me to take on more clients, which in turn made the last two years the most profitable I have ever been.”
…or this review by wedding photographer Lisa Meyer:
“I’ve been photographing weddings for 12 years. Editing has always been the dreadful endeavor of my job. It kept me from my family, personal life & honestly it was burning me out.
Aftershoot was literally a dream. I have used other online editing services but it was so costly and I couldn’t afford it. With Aftershoot, I can literally click a button and walk away while the magical unicorns take care of my weddings.
Look no further than Aftershoot for your editing needs! It’s a life changer and a game changer.”
Conclusion | Work Smarter, Not Harder
The shift from solo photographer to studio owner is no longer a pipe dream—it’s a reality! Thanks to AI-powered tools like Aftershoot, photographers are transforming their workflows, expanding their businesses, and reclaiming their time. The results speak for themselves: millions of hours saved, better work-life balance, and the ability to scale…
Thus, the photography industry’s evolution, led by AI, is well underway. Photographers can now edit and deliver more images, faster, and better than ever before. The best part? Its value, that is, the price tag. Indeed, you can join the movement today for a very affordable price.
Take advantage of Aftershoot’s limited-time offer: $9.99/month (first 3 months) Right now is a perfect time to take Aftershoot for a spin, and see for yourself that it’s possible to save days, even years of your life in the long run. This offer includes unlimited culling and editing, and has a 30-day money-back guarantee backing it up. For more information you can visit the Aftershoot website here.
