[by Paul Bartholomew]
It kind of goes without saying that having a backup camera is very important. The chances are high that you will eventually run into equipment malfunctions. Try to have a plan B in place. Did you think about a backup tripod? If your work is mostly accomplished on a tripod, everything will come to a halt if a little item such as a lock decides to break. Think through your equipment and be prepared for the smaller items too.
[by Blake Discher]
Many photographers forget that their websites are a form of advertising and as such the individuals in the images must be released. ASMP has Property and Model Releases on it’s site, available to anyone, at www.asmp.org/releases. I keep copies of the simplified release in my camera bag and in my car’s glovebox. That way, even if I’m carrying a point and shoot while visiting a park with my son, I have releases handy.
[by Jim Cavanaugh]
How many times have you heard people lament “I can’t get a hold of anybody. All I ever get is voice mail”. It can be frustrating until you realize that voice mail is really a perfect way for you to get your message to a client in a clear, concise manner. Just be mentally prepared with your best “elevator briefing” if you get dropped into voice mail. Keep it brief, who, what, why, where, when and how. Make sure you speak clearly and be sure to repeat your phone number.
[by Paul Bartholomew]
Sometimes an invoice payment is delayed because a W-9 form may be required by the client. Whenever working with new clients you can send a filled out W-9 form along with the invoice or you can check with their accounts payable if one is required. This can also reduce the hassle of last minute requests at the end of the year.
[by Peter Krogh]
Whenever you move the primary copy of your images from one drive to another, you should perform a validated transfer. This makes sure that all files are transferred, and that every bit in the original is also in the copy. Read about the process and watch a movie of it in action at dpBestflow.org.
[by Gail Mooney]
Watch TV commercials with the sound off. You’ll quickly see how the footage was cut together in the editing room.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in law school has been to look at both sides of every issue and to negotiate solutions–not as antagonists, but as two “sides” with a common goal. If lawyers can do this successfully, leaving the venom and aggression out of it, photographers and clients can.
[by Thomas Werner]
Think of video as more than documentary or an interview; think about how you can use video to create physical and emotional space, architecture, think of ways to immerse people, control their experience. Begin to use video in more ways than just a moving version of your still imagery. Get one step ahead of the game in video instead of playing catch-up for the next ten years.
[by Charles Gupton]
Although it’s against my perfectionist nature, I am finding that with today’s fast changing market conditions, I’m needing to make a huge number of decisions without first having all the information I’d like to have in hand.
However, as I look around, I’m seeing way too many people living in fear of making wrong decisions — a fear that even a small failure will be catastrophic. But I’m also seeing that time and again, the riskiest decision one can make is to do nothing. So, just make a decision and act on it.
Action trumps inaction.
Sometimes, when you feel completely overwhelmed and out of control, a day off is not only a good idea, it is absolutely necessary. The piles of things to be done will still be there, but you’ll be in a better place to deal with them.
[by Gail Mooney]
Before you decide on which video camera to buy, work backwards and make sure your editing software and platform will be compatible. Check out these compatibility charts from Adobe and Apple.
[by Thomas Werner]
Art buyers and art directors look for photos in the places they are most familiar and comfortable with. Put your photos up on Flickr, a large number of art buyers and photo researchers look for, and purchase, images there.
[by Paul Bartholomew]
With so many online accounts these days we become very vulnerable to hackers. I had my blog hacked this past year and decided on an easy solution. I created a much longer password that’s easy to remember by combining two passwords together. So far it’s been working.
[by Blake Discher]
Non photo-centric blogs that get my nod: Photographer Bruce DeBoer (@brucedeboer) writes an absolutely superb blog about creativity. Marketing guru Seth Godin’s blog at is read by just about every member of ASMP’s National board. And for the latest in technology, both current and speculative, check out www.gizmodo.com.
It’s hard to not be inspired to greatness as you view any of the TEDTalks. The TED folks have a blog that I read just so I know when a new recording is posted to the site for viewing. If you’re after some immediate creative inspiration, check out this TED talk.
[by Leslie Burns-Dell'Acqua]
Jump start your marketing by calling three targets every day for the next two weeks. Not the same three, of course. If local, try to get a meeting. If not, ask if you can send your book.
(you can keep doing this after two weeks, but commit to that time to start)
If you don’t have a book, don’t do this. Instead, your assignment is to draw up a plan to produce a great book. Several, in fact. Priority.
Remember, personal meetings are the most effective way of getting work. You have to have a real book to do that. And you have to make the calls.
[by Jay Kinghorn]
Blogs are a tremendous source for information, ideas and insights. However, they can also be a tremendous drain on your time and productivity. If you subscribe to more than a handful of blogs or news feeds, an RSS reader like Net News Wire (Mac), FeedDemon (Windows) or Google Reader is essential to quickly sift through a large number of blogs and find the valuable posts hidden within.
An RSS reader aggregates all the unread blog posts from your favorite blogs into a single window. This allows you to quickly skim the headline of each post and read only the articles you’re most interested in. If you’re really tight for time you can flag articles, or pull them into a clippings folder for later reading.
Here are a few links to get you started:
Newsgator
Google Reader
Best RSS Readers
[by Thomas Werner]
Take 6 friends, drive into the forest, desert, to the ocean, a lake, and just photograph each other all day….feed off the energy, creativity and community, and do not worry about the outcome of the shoot.
[by Gail Mooney]
Make sure that when you take a class – like Final Cut Pro – that you have a project to work on. Even if it’s a project that’s self proposed – it will let you immediately apply your new knowledge in a real way. Otherwise, the information you hear tends to go in one ear and out the other very quickly.
[By Ed McDonald]
Unless you have unlimited amounts of time on your hands, you should automate as many steps of your social media as possible. Like cross-posting all content in multiple social media outlets. Take some time to set up a few steps to automate the process. Here are a few good tools for sharing and automating content through social media outlets : Hootsuite, Ping.fm, Involver, Tweet later, Social too. These are just a few. Make sure to keep it in your own voice and keep it personal.
[by Gail Mooney]
