If you book on a pay-as-you-go basis, the minimum amount of time you can book our studios for is two hours. There are several reasons for this; read on to find out more!
1. Time goes a lot faster than you think
This is the big one – in our experience (over a thousand bookings so far!) the majority of people need over an hour to create the content they want.
It’s very easy for you to go over time even if you plan to the last second…all it takes is for traffic to be bad, a last minute decision to grab a coffee or change an outfit, a last minute tech issue, or someone you’re working with to be delayed (in-person or virtually).
If you’re in the photo studio, it can take a while for the photographer to set up, the client to fix their hair and touch up their makeup, and last minute changes and questions. There’s also packing away time and any of your own photography equipment to take out at the end.
If you’re in the podcast studio, the induction takes around 15 minutes of your time. After that, you want to set up the room how you like it and do any quick last minute things (grab a drink, use the bathroom, check your notes, etc). Transferring the files from the computer to your hard drive or USB stick at the end also often takes people longer than they think due to the file sizes involved.
2. Your time to create and the finished recording length can be very different
An hour doesn’t mean an hour – or even necessarily half an hour! – of content at the end. Outfits and hair can need adjusting, often people want to re-record bits they’ve blanked on or just don’t like, people want to talk things through or discuss aspects in advance, or you’re just having a day where you trip over your words and need to repeat takes a lot more than you planned.
Having enough time to get everything how you want it, trying new things if your initial idea doesn’t look how you thought it would, and not being stressed about fitting everything in, will mean you get much better results.
3. It reduces the pressure
Other studios have much higher pricing than us, partly because we don’t want you to feel under pressure to create the best content you’ve ever created in your life. You don’t have to be a professional or have sponsorship to come and use our studios, they’re priced for small budgets and so you can just play around without pressure.
Squeezing the time adds the pressure back in, as it can put stress on everyone involved. This is especially the case if you have guests who are a bit nervous because a podcast or photoshoot isn’t something they do regularly so they’re initially feeling a bit out of their comfort zone. Some people are also naturally indecisive, and so need a bit more time to figure out what they want in real life…even if they have a Pinterest board and a bunch of ideas ahead of time!
Having a bit of time as a buffer means you have time to relax (and naturally get much better results with less editing needed after). As there may be someone booked in after you, it also means you’re not scrambling to leave in a rush with someone else waiting to use the studio.
4. Our prices are cheap to give you more time
Even if you really don’t need to use the full two hours, you’re still getting a much better deal than you’d pay for an hour elsewhere – and you also get use of all our equipment and props! We would need to charge the same if you were just booking one hour, to cover our overheads, so it wouldn’t make a difference in terms of the total amount you’d pay.
Having time for extra things like a sneak peek or short preview, B roll from behind the scenes, or a bloopers reel also gives you more for your money. If you have guests or clients, ending with a quick selfie or TikTok can be a fun way to end your session and gives you all something to share before the finished results are in.
If you end up with time to spare, there are lots of different ways you can use it; take a look at this post for inspiration: 7 ideas for filling spare time in your room or studio booking.
How to book our podcast studio or video studio for an hour
Having said all that, if you have a Fledgling or Songbird membership, you can book our studios for an hour. This is the only exception to the two hour rule!
This is because members can let themselves in, they know their setup, the props and equipment we have, and are generally a lot more familiar with everything (we do recommend they book more than an hour the first time they’re in!).
If you’re interested in finding out more, all the membership details can be found on our pricing page, or alternatively head directly to our booking page to book a two hour (or more!) session.