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Category Archives: Photography Business
What is a “professional camera”?
Many people in the Atlanta area are applauding the return of Music Midtown – what used to be a multi-generational and multi-cultural music festival. This time it is very much geared to the late 20 to mid 30 year olds. But this isn’t about the questionable non-diverse lineup. This is about the return of a stupid anti-photography policy and the inability of the music business to get with the 21st century.
The last Music Midtown I attended was in the mid-90s. I had just started learning to take pictures, and figured that I could get some fun shots with my Pentax P30T (which I still have) and Focal 35-70 lens (Focal was, literally, the KMart brand of add-on lenses). I was stopped at the gate and told that no “professional cameras” were allowed in the festival area. I first thought how cool it was that someone thought I was a professional and that I had a professional camera, then I quickly realized that I was really just learning how to take pictures, was far far from a professional, and no professional photographer would use the limited equipment I had. I protested, but my words fell on deaf ears.
Also posted in Band Photography, News & Updates, Opinion
Tagged Atlanta Music Midtown, Canon G11, Canon G12, iphone, Leica, Nikon Coolpix P300, shooting video
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Alien Bees Repair Service
Normally I would never hesitate to highly recommend Alien Bees studio lights to anyone. Their products are stellar, and their sales support is fantastic. But any product, no matter how well made, will eventually need to be repaired.
I had two of Alien Bee 800s die on me last year. The first one just *poof* blew up at a shoot. The acrid smell of burning electrical parts filled the shooting space, and I was down from 3 Bees to 2.
In December a friend was using my lights, and one of them decided to no longer flash and just stay on constantly. I was now down to just 1 Bee.
The holiday season had me busy with family, and the first few months of 2011 have not been studio heavy, so I kept putting off getting my lights repaired until I realized that I only had one studio light left! If (when?) that one blew out, I would be crippled. So I sent my two ailing Bees back to Nashville for repair.
If I ship from Atlanta to Nashville via FedEx ground, the package will arrive in one day. I sent my lights out on March 28th, and true to form they were in Nashville and delivered to the folks at Alien Bees on the 29th. But by Friday I had no word from them. A quick call to find out the status was not encouraging.
“Sorry Mr. Selby, there’s nothing logged in. When did you send them in?” Hmmm…. I told them delivery was confirmed on the 29th. She checked, and tah-dah, my lights were there after all – still in the box and still on the received shelf. They had not even been checked in, but the lady I talked to said she’d get them checked in and sent over for repair that day.
As of today I still had no word, so I called again.
“Sorry Mr. Selby, we don’t have anything logged in for you. When did you send them in?” What?? I repeated the facts from a week ago, and again I was told, “Yes, they’ve been marked as received, but we don’t have them in repair yet. We probably won’t have them until Friday at the earliest, maybe Monday.”
“How long does it take to turn around a repair,” I asked with just a hint of whining.
“Well, we’re really busy in repair. It is a three to four week turn around once we get it.”
Obviously there’s nothing I can do about that (yet), but if we take the worst case four week turn around, then it will be close to six weeks before my two Alien Bees will be back in service in my studio. I had an engine replaced in a car in one week. I don’t understand why it will take almost six weeks to get my studio lights back.
I still love Alien Bees. They are reliable and affordable, and generally well made. And I can’t “blame” Alien Bees for the fact that I am down to just one light. I should have sent the first one in for repair the day after it blew. Same goes for the second. I would certainly be in a better position now, but a six week turn around? Really?
(The picture was borrowed from Jeff Denomme at thehauntedzoo.com. Check out his work. It’ll make you laugh)
Tagged Alien Bees, studio lights
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Back Up Camera
My very first digital camera was the now obsolete Nikon D70. I chose that because I was already shooting with Nikon film cameras and lenses and had no desire to buy a whole new system. A few weeks ago while shooting with my Lens Baby on the D70, I noticed that I was getting a solid black picture with a faded pink/red line at the top. It seems that after almost 7 years of use, my D70 had finally passed over to digital camera Purgatory.
That also meant that I no longer had a good back up camera which is an unacceptable state of being for someone who has the occasional paying photography gig! If my Nikon D300 ever crashed on me I would be up the proverbial creek until I could afford to get it fixed or replaced. So a good back up camera was an absolute necessity.
I would have loved to have had a second D300 or D300s, or moved up to a D700 and relegated the D300 to back up status, but the economy hasn’t been that good to me. I had to find something that could deliver quality images but not break my meager bank.
After much research (and checking the numbers in the bank account), I decided that since I still really liked the images the good old D70 produced, I would be happy with one of the lower level of the Nikon line and went with the Nikon D3100.
The next step of 2011 is getting my Tamron 70-200 f2.8 lens repaired!
Tagged Nikon D300, nikon d3100, nikon d70
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The Models All Cancelled
It was a beautiful March weekend here in North Georgia. I had two shoots booked with some incredibly beautiful tattooed models. My creativity was just under the boiling point with the anticipation of working with them. Then the unfortunate but all to frequent disappointment happened.
The models all cancelled.
The first shoot (Saturday) was to be with three tattooed beauties – one I’ve worked with a number of times, one I’ve only met, and one who has been on my Must Shoot With Her list for a long time. The shoot was to be a “production” shoot – just one look with lots of props, creative lighting, and kick ass models. It was the brain child of the third model. On Friday afternoon I get a text message from her canceling the shoot for “personal reasons”. No specifics offered, and none asked for. I accepted her apology and reason, shrugged my shoulders and made other plans for my Saturday (I took my dogs to the dog park in Alpharetta for a few hours).
My shoot for Sunday was with the model who won the Garage 71 Pinup Contest at the World Of Wheels. The shoot was to be a feature on dirtyrottenrides.com – a website marketed to the hot rod, tattoo, and pin up culture. She texted me on Saturday to change the shoot time from the scheduled 1pm to 3pm. Then on Sunday changed it to 4pm. That many time changes is a red flag, and I called her. There were issues with child care. It has been my experience that those kinds of problems are always bad news for a shoot.
I’ve been doing this long enough to know that cancellations are just part of the business. The hardest part for me was to learn not to take it personally. For the longest time I would get bummed out and even insulted when I got a cancellation – ESPECIALLY a last minute one. But I came to the realization that I have a family, a life, and other things I can do on a weekend, and that, dammit, I am a good photographer, and if these models want to cancel – or worse NO SHOW – I can just move on.
If you are in the business or hobby of doing glamor or pretty girl or pretty boy photography, it isn’t a matter of if a model will cancel on you at the last minute. It is a matter of WHEN that will happen. It even happens to the Big Important Photographers. And yes, it even happens with agency models. Don’t take it personally – even if it is personal (another topic for another post on another day).
Here are my model cancellation strategies:
- Schedule your shoots early or late in the day. Never in the middle. If your model cancels or no-shows, you still have plenty of time for other activities.
- If a model changes a shoot time the day before because of problems with her schedule, prepare yourself for a no-show or cancel.
- Never rebook a no-show. Never. Ever.
- Use your judgement about rebooking a cancellation. Some photographers require a deposit to hold a day for a shoot from someone who has canceled on them before.
- Have a life. Always have something else to do on a shoot day – whether it is housework, family time, another hobby, or even a movie you wanted to see. Having something else to do softens the blow.
- In spite of this post, don’t post on your blog or your Facebook or your Twitter that you got stood up or canceled on. Taking your failures public only makes you look bad. This one is hard to do, but photographer-friend Stu Haluski made me see the error of my ways with that.
- Models are like buses. If you miss one, just be patient. Another one will come your way soon.
Do It Yourself Studio – Inexpensive Studio Solutions
Laura Hall
It is no big surprise that outfitting a studio with the latest and greatest tools and toys can be a very expensive undertaking. From backdrops to stands to light modifiers to props – the list goes on and on and the dollar signs keep rolling by.
Fortunately it is entirely possible to have a highly functional – even professional – studio without getting a second mortgage. Here are a few inexpensive solutions I’ve found and used in my studio.
Dean Collins Tinker Tubes PDF file is legen…..dary among DIY studio photographers. This free download is full of studio solutions you can build yourself with easy to find and use PVC pipe. I have used the ideas in this file for many of my own studio projects – including my pet project the Big White Box.
Posing stools are great to have in the studio. You can raise or lower the seat as needed and roll them around to position them better, but buying a posing stool from a photography studio supplier can run $60 or more. You can easily find rolling stools at your local Lowes or Home Depot for less than $40. Check where they keep the welding supplies.
When you start shopping for professional canvases and backdrops the temptation to raid the bedroom closet to find a bed sheet can get pretty strong. While it is tempting to use a pretty bed sheet as a backdrop, the dreaded “wrinkled sheet” is dead give away that you are an amateur photographer. Or even worse – a GWC! That said, used correctly an interesting bed sheet can make an interesting backdrop. You can also find interesting and fun back drops in the remnants and clearance bins at your local fabric store, and even gift wrap paper can be used.
Photographed By Talisa Selby
I have had more discussions than I can count about what kind of lights a photographer needs in the studio. There will be arguments for one brand over another, one light versus multiple lights, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. The fact is that it doesn’t matter how many strobes or hot lights you have in your studio if you don’t know how to use them, and some of the best photographers in the world only used the sun! True, studio photography almost by definition includes the use of some sort of strobe, but great portraits can be done with one light. Small product shots such as jewelry and things your’re going sell on ebay or etsy can be done with just regular light bulbs, and modern speed lights (what we used to call “flash” back in the day) are more than adequate to meet the needs of most home studio photographers.
Controlling that one light, whether it is a speed light, a hot light, or the sun, is easier to do with light modifiers. You can buy kits that have fancy reflectors, diffusers, and light blockers. You can also make your own inexpensive versions.
Start with poster board! A plain sheet of white poster board will set you back about a buck and a half, and will allow you to evenly and neutrally bounce light back onto your subject. A plain white baby crib sheet stretched over a PVC frame will effectively diffuse harsh sunlight, or spread out the light from a small shop light. Bi-fold doors from your local “Loews Depot” painted white on one side and black on the other make perfectly useful large panels for bouncing and blocking light.
For more DIY photography tips, check out this website. Prowl the aisles of your local home improvement store and find creative and inexpensive solutions to many studio needs.
(The photo at the top is Laura Hall, a.k.a. Layla Beatdown, one of the roller derby girls with the Atlanta Roller Girls. She is sitting between a window and a silver reflector. No additional light was used)
Also posted in Photography Tips, Portrait Photography
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