One of these image was shot with a $10,000 Medium Format camera, and the other shot with a $1,000 iPhone X camera, can you tell the difference? The sad part for us photogs is most people can't and so they aren't able to justify why they should pay us to photograph them when they can just grab a quick iPhone picture of themselves.
But look again...
Get in close and I think you'll discover there is a world of difference between the two images. The iPhone can't begin to compare when it comes to retaining detail and depth. Most people don't realize how important this is when it comes to making your skin and therefore your entire portrait look beautiful. Maintaining depth is what gives your skin that dreamy soft transition from the in-focus to out-of-focus areas of the portrait. With the iPhone, there is no smooth transition. Everything is in focus, but there's not much detail. By comparison, the amount of detail in the Medium Format image is far superior to that of the iPhone. The area that is supposed to be in focus is sharp and full of detail and the areas that are out of the focus zone have a smooth transition with creamy bokeh. There is simply no comparing the two. Sadly, most clients won't understand or appreciate this.
