Interview: Buying a Photo Studio pt. 2

In part one of this interview, I asked fellow photographer Justin Horrocks about making the decision to invest in a commercial poroperty, and he told me a bit about the financial aspect of taking this huge step. This time, I’m asking him about what happened once the keys were in his hand and the reality of it all finally hit.

The very idea for this interview came, after Justin had called me in to take a look at the building. At the time, no work had yet been done to the place, to make it more like a photo studio. The upstairs had a small office area, which looked very nice and ready for immediate use. This part was to be leased out, and only the part of the downstairs was to become the photo studio. At the time, the previous tenants had not moved out yet, and though it was obvious that the dimensions and potential of the space itself was there, the many years of use as a powertool repair shop were showing. The place was dirty, the way only garages and workshops can be. That thin layer of oil, dust and tiny metal particles seemed to cover floors and walls to the point where you could almost taste it. The impression was amplified by the workbenches and tools all still being there, of course, but when Justin started telling me about making part of his new studio bright white, I admit, I got a little nervous on his behalf.

It’s been a while since then and things have progressed. Gone are the tenants and their tools, as are the stains and suddenly the place is beginning to look like a real studio. Justin looks tired, when I ask him what things he has done to improve the space. Apart from cleaning his heart out, he adds:

“The renovations include the construction of a 12'x24' cyclorama, tearing out the old fluorescent lighting and installation of new track lighting, painting, re-tiling floors in the loft, and re-finishing the concrete floors in the main studio and intermediate workshop area. Of course, there were minor repairs as well, such as a leaky roof and leaky garage bay doors.

The little details add up, he says, but then the tired look of someone who has been working hard is replaced by a hint of pride. Things are coming together, but there have been revisions along the way. I ask him how setting up the studio has changed, since he first showed me the place.

“The idea of having an L-shaped cyclorama in the main studio, was scrapped due to a space constraint (it was changed to occupy the length of the longest wall, keeping both ends of the studio open for other things like paper rolls and prop walls). The idea of ceiling rails with pantographs for studio lighting was also put on hold due to cost and an uncertainty as to how useful they will be in the space. But probably the biggest variation from the original plan is how much of the building to occupy vs. lease to other businesses.”

Originally, only the back room of the downstairs was supposed to become the new studio. This part of the building used to be a garage and storage for the tool repair shop, but as time progressed, Justin realized that including the tool shop itself would give him enough wiggleroom to be able to set up a green room and a small storage for props.

It’s a lot of work and it takes a good deal of time, during which not a lot of photos are being taken. I asked Justin one more money-question, namely how long he thinks it will take, before he can start actually making a profit off of the studio.

“I imagine it will take some time (years?) before the studio is making more than I spend on it. There are still a lot of building improvements to be made and projects to make the studio more user-friendly. It will remain a work in progress for some time to come, but then again, that's part of the fun of it. In the meantime, I will be looking for ways to subsidize the operating cost by doing things like renting out office space, renting studio time, offering training workshops, etc. There are many more possibilities aside from stock photography alone!”

Rasmus Rasmussen is on loan from iStockphoto, where he is part of the image inspection team.