7 tools I use to run my photography business

Here are 7 tools I use every day to run my business - many of them can be used across industries, so please do check them out if you think they’ll be useful to you too!

Just so you know, this blog post contains affiliate links. This means that if a link has a * next to it, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you 😊

Squarespace

It would be remiss of me not to start this list with Squarespace, seeing as it’s the tool I’m using to write and host this blog post! I love how easy the platform is to use to create beautiful, responsive websites and it really doesn’t take very long to get something that looks professional to get you started.

Notion

I absolutely LOVE Notion! I use it every day to keep on top of my to-do lists as well as my content planning for Instagram. It’s so easy to pull together visually pleasing and organised to-do lists and databases so that you can keep track of everything from daily habits and meal planning to travel itineraries and client details. Have a look at how I use Notion to plan out my content below…

Dropbox*

I cannot tell you how much easier Dropbox makes my life - it’s so easy to just move between my desktop and MacBook and know my files are just where I left them, not having to Airdrop files between all of my devices. Also, it really soothes my anxiety to know that my images are all backed up separately to my hard-drives so that if anything did go wrong, they’re all there!

Dubsado*

I’ve just started using Dubsado so I’m still getting to grips with it, but so far it has been game-changing for my workflow. If you haven’t heard of it before, Dubsado is a Client Management System and it allows me to make sure all enquiries that I get can be recorded, tracked and responded to as efficiently as possible. I really think it’s going to be a great tool for the next stage of my business and beyond!

Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop

This one is probably obvious seeing as I’m a photographer, but I couldn’t do what I do without the Adobe Creative Suite. I spend the bulk of my time in Lightroom editing images and creating presets (did I mention I’m going to be selling my presets soon!?), but also use Photoshop for more intense editing and retouching work where it’s needed. I also use Photoshop for all of my website graphics!

Narrative Select*

Narrative has honestly cut down SO much time for me when culling shoots. It’s the part of the process that is the hardest for me because I find it really boring 🙈 so being able to whizz through my images at lightning speed means that I can blast through it and then get to the good bit much faster!

CleanMyMac X

This software is magic. It gets rid of all of the unnecessary rubbish on your hard drive that clogs your computer up and makes it run slowly. Not going to lie, I don’t have much of an idea how it does it, but I know it means I can work much faster and that’s always a good thing when you have hundreds of huge files to plough through!

What tools could you not do business without? Am I missing out on something that’s going to change my life? I love chatting process, so get in touch and let me know!