Is 12 feet enough for studio ceiling

[racingpinarello]

For tax purposes, and for logistics I am going to open up a full time photo studio in the bay area. With lease rates down below $1/sq foot I am looking at a 500sq foot office with 12 foot ceilings. There is another space with higher ceilings and natural light for 700 sq feet, but there would have to be some leasehold improvements for the space.

Not wanting to regret my decision I am leaning toward the 700 sq foot location, but if 12 foot is adequate that would be great because of cash flow purposes. All other available spaces have 8 foot ceilings or cost an arm and a leg.


tax reasons: Since I don't own my home I cannot deduct the shooting area from my taxes. Now with a permanent address I will have a mailing address and a legal write off from the taxes.


Your insight is welcome.
Loren

[Asylum Steve]

Loren, don't get me wrong. I think it'd be great if you get a studio, ESPECIALLY with me coming to visit in October , but I was under the impression that your home shooting space was pretty good.

If you can, please clarify your reasons for wanting to rent a seperate studio. What does it matter if your home space is tax deductable? You're paying that rent anyway, so it seems to me life would be a lot simpler shooting at home.

I guess what I'm saying is that if I had a choice, I would definitely prefer to live in the same space as my studio, assuming of course, it wasn't a major hassle to set things up and work there.

Also, are you shooting enough studio work to justify renting space? Check out the recent thread Gabe posted in Viewfinder, because unless you have a very large volume of studio work, the prevailing tendency among pros now is to rent studio space on a job by job basis.

Oh, and BTW, you can never have enough ceiling space. In a perfect world, all studios would have 15 foot ceilings... ;) Still, 12' gives you a lot of room to work...

In any event, good luck with this, and keep me posted!

[racingpinarello]

Loren, don't get me wrong. I think it'd be great if you get a studio, ESPECIALLY with me coming to visit in October , but I was under the impression that your home shooting space was pretty good.

If you can, please clarify your reasons for wanting to rent a seperate studio. What does it matter if your home space is tax deductable? You're paying that rent anyway, so it seems to me life would be a lot simpler shooting at home.

I guess what I'm saying is that if I had a choice, I would definitely prefer to live in the same space as my studio, assuming of course, it wasn't a major hassle to set things up and work there.

Also, are you shooting enough studio work to justify renting space? Check out the recent thread Gabe posted in Viewfinder, because unless you have a very large volume of studio work, the prevailing tendency among pros now is to rent studio space on a job by job basis.

Oh, and BTW, you can never have enough ceiling space. In a perfect world, all studios would have 15 foot ceilings... ;) Still, 12' gives you a lot of room to work...

In any event, good luck with this, and keep me posted!

A couple of reasons for the need for studio/office space. I am moving into a condo with my girlfriend and there is no room for shooting or adequate office space. Tax purposes, you cannot write off your home office space unless you are profitable.

I am going to use the space primarily for office/digital imaging/photo shoots. I'm doing more work in that area, but I also plan to rent out the studio to other photographers to help with the cost. The cost is low enough to justify the dedicated photo expense. Month to month cash flow is now below my previous rent ($500 studio/$500 housing) so before taxes, I am actually reducing my housing expense by $300 if you take the tax considerations into effect.

I also hope to work with other digital artists (Trevor ?) to become a group so we can offer additional services.

Loren

[Asylum Steve]

Loren,

Ok, now I understand. I didn't realize you were moving.

So, my advice is, go for the BIGGER space, and I'll be more than happy to help you break it in come October!