Shooting for theatre affords an opportunity for both amateur and professional photogs that is unlike anything else in the industry. Most theatre troupes are more than welcome to invite you in to document their work for free. If it turns out you happen to be good at what you do, you can easily get your name around and begin a niche service. In the field of theatre photography, there is good money to be had.

Getting Your Foot in the Door…or On the Stage

While in most cases it can be easy, getting your foot in the door can be tricky if you’re not careful. I stumbled into my post as photographer for Blackfriars Theatre, because the company was left in the lurch by their previous photographer who went AWOL. With no experience under my belt, I grabbed their digital camera and began snapping away. Five years later, after many shows and pictures, theatre photography has developed me into the photographer I am today. I was lucky to fall into my position, and you may find that there might be photographers in place; the local mom or dad, the hobbyist, or a photographer just like you. Don’t fret, as most photographers are happy to share their space with you as long as they don’t feel threatened that you are trying to steal some of their bread and butter.

Production photo from Blackfriars Theatre's production of Our Leading Lady

Most cities and towns have several theatre groups that put on many shows a year. There’s a lot of work to be had for those that are willing to put in the effort, of getting your foot in the door. A good quick way to find out what is going on in your area that might afford you the opportunity for theatre is to get your finger on the pulse of your local entertainment scene. Pop open the local paper, hop on the internet and Google, pursue Facebook groups. Become friends with actors and directors, and before you know it you will find yourself with a plate load of potential photog food du jour. Once you have chosen what areas you want to look at (Theatre photography can also extend into shooting film, dance, and bands but mostly you just want to focus on the former) you begin the courting process. This starts with getting introduced to who runs the troupe or production. Get to know them well.. Learn what they’re about, what their goals are, and what type of material they are producing (past, present and future). Most importantly during this process is to find out about their photo needs are, if they have any. Whether they do or not, this is when you pop the question to see if they will let you in as a photographer. If you are new to this, let them know the reality of the situation; that you are growing your portfolio. If you are a pro, you may do the same or offer them your services. Most will jump at the chance for their masterpiece to be caught on film, whether or not they want to pay you. This is where getting your name out there helps out.

Production photo from Blackfriars Theatre's production of Same Time Next Year

Every Photo Has a Story

There is a reason I believe theatre photography to be a prime place to get your footing as a photographer, and that is, resources. As mentioned previously, there are no shortage of benefits to shooting on location, on set, or on stage. But above all these physical resources is the intangible, priceless resource of story. I am a firm believer that in order for a photo to really stand out, it must always tell a story for it to stand on its own. The greatest thing about shooting in this arena is that the story is already there waiting for you to capture it on film. The important thing to remember is to capture the moments. Don’t just shoot to shoot. You have real, live models performing in front of you, breathing life into their characters. Get it on film.

The side benefits of shooting on stage or set is that most actors wear makeup, because they are under lights. So you can have wonderful, dramatically lit sets and actors, and all that is needed is for you to step in do your stuff. You don’t have to bother with creating characters, and giving them something to do. No need to worry about lighting, makeup, hair, and set pieces. Simply get in there and shoot. Learn to take photos in a different, albeit ”theatrical”, setting. Learn to setup your camera and shoot from the hip,  capturing photos  that only you can get. What I have found is that the best photos just happen. It becomes the collision of so many forces working together as one unit.

Publicity photo from Blackfriars Theatre's production of A Wild Party

Every Story Has Two Sides …or more

Mostly everything I’ve discussed deals with the meaty part of theatre photography, meaning production shots. There is however more than just popping in and taking shots during their production runs. Most theatre groups rehearse nonstop for a month (meanwhile building the sets, costumes, et al.) then open their show till it ends. In the world of theatre you can be involved at any point, but most theatre companies like it if you are not taking shots when they have a live audience. They also provide the opportunity for behind the scenes shots, and promotional or publicity shots. I spend most of my time in this industry dealing with publicity and production shots. Behind the scenes shots are icing on the cake, and stuff that let’s the outsiders in on the life behind the lens or off the stage.

Publicity photo from Blackfriars Theatre's production of Shipwrecked

Dealing with publicity shots is entirely different than working on production shots. In taking production shots you may go in, setup your camera, prepare for the action and fire away;, In shooting for publicity it has its own mad world to contend with. If you are not a professional, this is the one area that takes all the elements and brings them together, and helps you to forge your path as a photographer. You may work with the director or producer who has their vision of what this project is going to be, but has laid it in your hands to make that vision come to life. You may at this point find yourself with no lighting, minimal sets, no costumes, and very little believable story from characters who have yet to be refined and brought to life. It is up to you to take these elements and create something special.

Here is the best advice I can offer: Breathe, and don’t forget to think outside of the box. If you are on the stage, you may be able to get the lighting designer to throw up some lights for dramatic purpose. Discuss beforehand what the director may want, to afford you time to gather things together. I have found it necessary to use what you have available; while working at theatres I will frequently steal set pieces and props from other shows, to get what I want. Sometimes I will take the actors and go walking, or meet somewhere that embodies the vision of the piece. That may mean you can find yourself in a park, or in the dungeon-like basement of a church. Use what’s available, and never be afraid to let things happen. Most of my best publicity shots occured because of the unexpected items that gave the photo character. The same can be said for film work. A couple gels, filters, and some portable lights, and you can shoot nearly anything, anywhere. Just make sure what ever you shoot, you shoot from several angles, and get adequate coverage, in a nice sharp focus. You will find that most newspapers and magazines will be more apt to publish your work if it is crisp and colorful.

Production photo from Blackfriars Theatre's production of A Year With Frog and Toad

Tools of the Trade

I have gone through several cameras before I settled on the image quality that is produced by my Canon 50D. For its price, it was hard to beat the quality that came from this camera. On a typical shoot I bring along two lenses; my trusty 17-85mm EF IS Canon lens and a 70-300mm EF IS Canon lens. Those, coupled with my 16gb CF card get me the coverage I need. Yes, there are other lenses and goodies I would like to use, but you will find that the fast-paced setting of shooting something live like theatre does not afford you switching lenses every couple minutes.

I find it helpful to try and catch some rehearsals prior to the shoot so that I can anticipate what shots I want to go for, where the breaks are, and where the best angles are. This way, I can plan my lens switches without needing to buy an extra body, or lose out on some great shots. In film you have the benefit of multiple takes which affords you more time. I try to stay away from wide shots when doing my theatre work. I occasionally take them only for the benefit of the theatre to showcase their sets and scenes, but the money shots are always in the action. I try to put myself in the best place to make the scene pop to life. This may mean running across the theatre, straddling seats, or balancing on ladders. Each theatre provides its own special nuances, and I find the smaller (and subsequently sometimes closer) theatres give you the better balance of shots as opposed to the 1000 seat, 60 ft wide stages.

When working indoors with sets and stages, find a setup on your camera that works best for you, I find Manual setup or Shutter (Tv) priority with a higher iso 800-1600, and tungsten balance work best. I always shoot in RAW so that I can play with balancing when I get back to the studio. You will find that having an indoor setting or starting point for this work allows you to get more consistent quality and a higher quantity of shots. I average 500-800 shots during a shoot for a 1.5 hour show, but of course this changes when you add or subtract actors or scenes.

Getting Your Name Out There

The biggest part of being a photographer is simply getting your name out there and getting work. You should already have an online portfolio, and you should already be using Facebook and Flickr to your advantage. I know I do. When getting your name out there, and when in the process of working with theatres it is important to remember to always get your photo credited. My photos have been used in a magazine, our city newspaper and local papers many times over. They also post most of their articles now on their websites as well, giving your photo that much more exposure. Having your name attached anywhere it is used will help other theatres and interested groups find you easier. Any promotional material used by the theatre should have this as well, especially if you are doing the work for free. I am huge advocate, and constantly hound newspapers to get the credit in there, and to spell the name correctly, because if you boil it down, it is advertising. Its your piece of art going on display, so don’t be afraid to take the credit. If you are afraid to take credit, then maybe you should think twice about being a photographer.

Displaying your work in an online portfolio, and Facebook is nice, but having a site like Flickr to post and get feedback is a great tool at advancing your self in this industry. Below are some links to portfolios (shameless plug of my own portfolio and Flickr page), and Flickr groups that should interest you if you are looking into this niche of photography.

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Details

File Type: JPG
Number in Set: 37
Resolution: 4752 × 3168
Download Size: 208mb
License Type: Creative Commons
Author: Adelle Charles

We would love to see how you use these textures, so please share your work in the Fuel Your Photography Flickr Group.

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What the heck is that?

Take one photo a day for a consecutive three hundred and sixty five days of the year. If you’re not into taking photos every day, no fear-there are other options; you could design something every day.

Why would I want to do that?

Many reasons. You don’t have to be a professional photographer or even have an expensive camera to partake in 365. Don’t get me wrong, the pictures turn out better if you know what you’re doing! But it can still be fun, I have a Canon T1i-but I am choosing to shoot my project 365 with my iphone because it’s easier for me to commit, since my phone is always with me. And…if you’re worried that you missed out since it’s already January 5th-don’t! It doesn’t need to start on Jan 1, it’s any consecutive 365 days throughout the year, so what are you waiting for?

If you need even more tips on why or even how, here is a great take on seeing your life in a whole new way.

But…who is doing it?

Well-good thing you asked. Lot’s of people-even companies are getting into it like Threadless. They’ve launched ‘Threadless 365′, where you can get daily behind the scenes stuff from their world.

What do I need to start?

Whether your an experienced photographer, an amatuer or just a hobbyist/photo lover, it’s easy to gather up some tools and get started. These are just some options, you don’t need ALL of them.

• iphone or other mobile device - photo taking
• a film camera or DSLR - photo taking
• scanner – if your using film
• flickr - uploading your photos
• tumblr - upload & blog about your photos, also has an iphone app.
• posterous – upload & blog about your photos
• wordpress - upload & blog about your photos
• twitter - let everyone know about your project
• notebook/moleskine – record when & where the photo was taken, perhaps even the settings or your mood.

Twitter searches & hashtags:

• #365
• #project365
• ‘Project 365′ Search

Flickr groups to join

• Project_365 -general
• Project 365 – general
• 365 Days – focuses on a self portrait for each day
• 52 Weeks – general

Beautiful samples to get you motivated

Wynona R (january fifth)

Alexandra Diaz (2/365)

Lou Bert (Day One Zero Six: Snow)

Brandon Lyon (5/365 Nothing fancy, just some coffee please)

Kenneth Edwards (2/365)

Are you taking the challenge? Let us know. While you’re at it, join the Fuel Your Photography Flickr group and add some of those photos, you never know where you might be showcased! You can also follow us on Twitter.

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Best Moment: Canon makes photographic history

If you have any question that art reflects life, an historic presidential portrait shoot in 2009 provides ample proof that digital photography has taken center stage.   An official inaugural portrait photo released January 14th will go down in history as the the first of its kind taken using a digital camera. The historic photograph was shot by Pete Souza, an official white house photographer, using a Canon Eos 5D Mark II.  Whatever your political sway, when the mammoth which is Washington finally gets on board, you have proof positive that the ‘new medium’ has become mainstream.

Best Photographer: Mike Yamashita

OK, so we know the paragraph title is overreaching, but what the hell, Mike Yamashita in our opinions, might just be one of best nature photographers of all time.  With a print version of National Geographic as our window, Mike Yamashita’s ‘Mystic Waters‘ series, captured China’s natural beauty in a way that speaks to how fragile our environment can be, while drawing us into his location.   We pored over thousands of photographs and considered a similar number of names, but 2009 belongs to Mike and his work;  simply to say thank you!

Best DSLR Camera: We let the numbers speak.

Ahh the arbitrary notion that we can tell you what camera will produce your best pics.  Before we give our boorish feedback on what hot piece of kit is selling off the floor… We viewed amazing photos this year from almost every camera available (including some amazing work from disposable 35mm’s).  Beg, borrow or St… err you get the drift – we always recommend trying as much gear as necessary to find what works for you.  If you are starting out however… The Canon Digital Rebel XSI 12.2 mp SLR is being reported as this years top seller.  This ’starter’ Canon, gives great picture quality and consistent output (with an interface which we rate head & shoulders over the Nikon) However if you are a die hard Nikon fan you will not be unhappy with the comparable Nikon d5000 which boasted slightly less in sales, but sports an equally passionate fan-base to Canon.

Best Project: David Zimmerman – We agree with Sony

2009 found photographer David Zimmerman bringing home the proverbial gold when he won the Sony World Photography Award ‘09 with his desert Landscape Project.  The pictures taken in the series in AZ, NM, CL, NV and depict a highly stylized look at the fragile ecosystem of the American southwest desert. Congratulations David.

Best Software/Software Update

Adobe added value to it best of breed with an update to their Elements software by launching  Photoshop elements 8 The new version brings automatic & fast organization to its already robust assortment of correction tools. Our favorite addition was the inclusion of the nifty function ’smart tags’.  You can check out an in-depth review here, but if you aren’t already, Chalk this up as a must have tool for any photographer.

Best New Tech: A fun feature for when one shot wont do.

Nikon has added HD Video to its full‐frame digital SLR camera range for the first time. If your a Nikon fan, you have probably seen some of the low light videos being made using the Nikon D3s?!  As fans ourselves we like the direction the industry is taking and hope this coming year brings more goodies.

Best Memory Card: Eye Fi Pro – The ‘Swiss Army’ card.

In June, Eye Fi launched a Pro version of their memory card which uses built-in Wi-Fi to wirelessly transfer your photos. This ‘Pro‘ update caught our eye because it lets users wirelessly upload more file types, including JPEG and RAW images and videos, adds Geotagging capabilities and allows users to create an ad hoc connection through their computer or other mobile device to wirelessly upload media files while away from a wireless router.   FUEL editors agree that regardless of whether you think you need it or not, you can’t deny the cool factor. We think it’s a must have.

Hottest Gear: Best SLR Backpack/Bag

It is true not all shoots require the same gear, but since we have found ourselves left wanting on the wrong side of too many mountains – we tend to pack on the heavy side.  So naturally our vote for the best SLR backpack/bag for 2009 goes to the Lowepro Vertex 200 AW In short, its intuitive design, weather resistant exterior and customizable harness makes this a must have for any serious photographer. It will keep you fully stocked with room for up to 2 Pro digital SLRs, a large 35mm or medium format system, 4-6 lenses (up to a 300mm f/2.8), tripod or monopod, flash and laptop.  Checkout cnet for an in-depth review.

2009 retitled ‘Year of the Apps’

The shear volume of photography focused mobile apps which have hit the market requires that Mobile Apps as a whole get an honorable mention.  With a sharp rise in twitter fueled self importance, the ‘mobile-photographer’ has passed fad and been bumped up to formal pop culture status.  Thankfully, although 2009 heralds major strides in cell phone camera tech advances, most of us will not be replacing our DSLR’s just yet (stay tuned for next years ‘best of’ post for that announcement)

Amidst this app storm, one little app shone above the rest, earning it a place in our best of roundup. DSLR Camera Remote is a well designed and useful little iphone app which as its name suggests, allows you to control your camera remotely during a photo shoot. Believe it or not, the app allows you to remotely control the shutter-speed, aperture, white-balance etc, View images shot on the camera from your iPhone or iPod touch and even look through your camera’s viewfinder remotely.  Why do you need this you might ask.  Well we answer simply… Why the hell not?

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Details: This is the second of three sets of textures from three wonderful cities: New York, Paris and Rome.

Ahh, the City of Light. Paris is the world’s most popular city destination and it is absolutely beautiful. If you have a camera in your hand, you will have a hard time putting it down. In this post, though, we would like to share some textures that were shot while exploring this wonderful city.

We would love to see how you use these textures, so please share your work in the FUEL Your Photography Flickr Group.

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If you are an amateur photographer or professional photographer, Flickr is the largest community of photos online.  Sure, there is Picassa and Smugmug, but they do not have the ability to connect with others like Flickr.  In this article, I am going to cover how to get the most out of your photos in the Flickr community.

Getting started

Uploading photos is a little tricky, that’s why I am covering it. If you know this, scroll down to Getting Exposed.

To upload photos in Flickr, go to You -> Upload photos.  Since you can now batch upload photos, pick a whole bunch and then press on upload.  Let Flickr do its magic.  It will then ask you, “Next:  add a description, perhaps?.”  Click on the link and you arrive at all the newly uploaded photos.

Now is it the time to organize it.  I admit, it’s tedious and even I avoid this task (only later to regret it).

Add Tags -  This allows you add tags that will be all the photos in the set.  If you took a bunch of photos of San Francisco, you should add “San Francisco,” SF, Bay Area.

Add to a a Set – All the photos can be added to a preexisting set or you can create a new set.

Title, Description, Tags – Add personal titles, descriptions, and tags to each photo.  If you know anything about search engine optimization, this is like adding meta data.  If you want anyone to click on your photo in a search engine search, add this data. And add lots of tags, don’t be afraid. Of course, be on topic but if the photo is of a rabbit (like the sample above) use general tags like “rabbit, bunny, fuzzy, furry”, etc to ensure that people would stumble upon a photo when searching.

Once done with this… save!

Getting Exposed

Groups
The awesome part of Flickr comes in with Flickr groups.  There are thousands of groups on Flickr from locations (Stockholm) to camera reviews and equipment (Nikon Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 VR) to random goodness (Purple Flowers).

You want to add your best photos to groups. The more groups you join, the greater the amount of photos you can add to groups. Okay, some groups do put limits so no one person spams the group.

Make sure to visit Flickr on regular basis to submit photos to groups so that your photos don’t get entirely buried in the deluge.

Interact with others
Like any social community, chatting/interacting with other people is the way it survives. In Flickr, photos gain popularity and exposure through commenting and favoriting them.

The more comments a photo receives, the more popular it becomes and higher it will rank on searches. Give feedback and constructive comments because you are demonstrating the ability to be a good contributor. Plus, by commenting on another person’s photo, chances are, they will visit your page. Just think of this like blog commenting.

Same goes for making a photo a favorite by clicking on the pink star. The cool bit is that you can look through any user’s favorites’ photos and see what inspires them. The photos you favorite will then appear in your favorites folder so that you can see them at any time.

You can also chat with others through threads and question groups. Some groups are entirely off topic from photography while others are ‘meet and shoot’ clubs where people decide where to meet and go off to take photos together. Yet, another great way to become more well known in the community.

Figuring out Your Activity

Your home page on Flickr is the second most important page (you’ll find out about the second in a bit).

The left side shows recent activities within your network. The Photostream shows any comments made on your photos, favorites, and any replies on comments you made on other photos. The Contacts section shows latest uploaded photos by your contacts. And, you can guess, the Groups sections shows the latest uploaded photos in some of your groups.

On the right side, is the latest from the Flickr blog. And below is an advertisement for many of Flickr’s third party applications (Moo, etc).

Now it is time to go to the most important page: Stats. See the graph to the right of “Your Photostream?” Pro account users can see statistics on all their photos. You can see number of photo views, favorites, and comments. You can also track the domain referrers. Because you can see the domain referrer, it’s easy to learn how your photo was used. If possible, comment on the post or article where the author used your photo, you can get more exposure again.

What does this all lead to? If you tag your photos well, write good descriptions, participate in community by favoriting and commenting, join groups, then you stand a chance of getting good exposure. Many photographers, especially amateurs are approached to license their photos or even do real shooting. I licensed my photos through people who emailed me via Flickr.

Don’t stand in the dark(room) anymore. Even if you have a professional site, put up your best stuff on Flickr. Chances are people are looking both via the search engines AND in the Flickr community for their next photographer or photo to buy.

About the Author:
Preeti loves taking photos even though she can be lazy at tagging them. She enjoys writing, traveling, and of course taking photos. Her blog, Lost in Stockholm, is about living in Sweden. You can see her favorites photos from Grand Canyon to Narvik, Norway on her blog.

Got questions or comments about using Flickr? Send her a tweet.

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Number of Followers

I’ve been using Twitter since 2007 and have seen it evolve over the past few years. During this time people always seemed to want to get their Followers number up. The logic is: The more people that follow me, the more people that will see my tweet, the more people that will click on my link, the more people that will then purchase my product or service, etc… This type of thinking is false. For example, yesterday I posted a tweet that had the words “Key West” in it. Two minutes later, a realtor from Key West started to follow me. This increased my Followers count by one, but I highly doubt that the realtor will start to engage me in meaningful conversations. More likely, this was done automatically, and the realtor has no idea who I am, or what I do. So instead of worrying about your Followers count, start engaging people and you will start to have more meaningful conversations.

Twitter Lists

Twitter recently introduced a new feature called Twitter Lists. This new feature allows you to organize people you Follow (and people you don’t Follow) into lists. These lists can either be Public (Everyone on Twitter can view), or Private (Only you are able to view). At first, I wasn’t a fan of Twitter Lists and didn’t see how I could put them to use. However, I recently restructured how I am following people on Twitter, and it is all based on Twitter Lists. For example, if you are overwhelmed by your Twitter Stream and feel like you are following too many people to actively engage them in conversation – Create various Twitter Lists to help you organize your Twitter Stream. Personally, I created 5 private Twitter Lists – Photography, Design, Business, Entertainment, and Fun. I then started moving people into the appropriate Twitter Lists. For example: @ErinVey in the Photography List, @RibbonsofRed in the Design List, @RichardBranson in the Business List, @OGOchoCinco in the Entertainment List, and @ShitMyDadSays in the Fun List. To simplify my Twitter Stream even more, I unfollowed the majority of the people I put in these Lists. Does this mean that I’m not going to have a conversation with them because I unfollowed them? Absolutely not – In fact, the opposite is true: I will have more conversations with them because of how they are now organized. I highly recommend you take a look at using Twitter Lists to organize your Twitter Stream and start having more meaningful conversations.

Meaningful Conversations

Did you notice how the past three paragraphs ended with the words “meaningful conversations”? At the end of the day, this is all that matters when it comes to Twitter. So don’t worry about the numbers – Have fun, meet new people, and enjoy the meaningful conversations.

About the Author:

For the past five years, darkroomRYAN has worked with Fortune 500 clients. As the owner of Darkroom Branding, he now provides marketing and branding strategies for photographers. Feel free to follow him on Twitter at: @darkroomRYAN

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Details: This is the first of three sets of textures from three wonderful cities: New York, Paris and Rome.

For a photowalker, New York City is amazing. No matter where you begin, you can find wonderful architecture and textures to photograph within a couple of feet. Today, we are sharing 6 textures that were shot during a short photowalk before catching a flight that would lead to Paris and then Rome.

We would love to see how you use these textures, so please share your work in the FUEL Your Photography Flickr Group.

About the Author:

Dan is a freelance web designer and the Director of Community and Events for FUEL Brand, Inc. He is driven by a passion for design and engaging with the creative community. You can check out his personal site or follow him on twitter.

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Have you ever gone on set after prepping for a photo shoot, only to get there and draw a big blank? You have forgotten your vision of what you imagined these pictures would turn out to be. You look at your client and have no idea what to do with them. This is a common occurrence among beginner photographers. Usually once you start and get your creative juices flowing, you’ll get to a point where you are in the moment and tailoring the shoot to the style and feel of the environment. However, sometimes it is good to have a starting point so as not to get stuck in a rut. Below I have listed 5 different elements that can help you add variety to your photo shoots.

1. Lighting (sun)

front lit, back lit, side lit

2. Background

sky, grass, landscape, architecture

3. Perspective/angles

above, below, straight on, behind, side

4. Poses/emotion

laughing, smiling, turning to side, serious

5. Props/Wardrobe

personalize to each individual (football, umbrella, flowers, scarf, cowboy etc.)

Now mix and match these elements. If you do this, you will find that you have endless opportunities to get a variety of shots that will showcase your client in a new and exciting way. Jot down this list and keep it in your camera bag so when you have that moment of What Do I Do Now???, you will be prepared. If you have other go-to ideas that you always use, please feel free to share them.

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There was a time when people weren’t so interested in transparency, when the web was principally used to send email and the idea of keeping interior monologues interior was key. That was before blogs.

Blogs have become useful in lots of ways, especially to photographers.

Blogs are useful because they can help prospective clients see what your interior monologue looks (or even sounds) like. You can use your blog as a place to put your photographic experiments. Sometimes projects have happy accidents and those are useful fodder. Sometimes, things go terribly awry. You have to be a good judge of what’s “overshare” and what’s interesting. Putting these things on your blog gives you a comfortable place to “talk it out” about the things that you experienced. An added bonus of creating a blog is having a place to come back to see what you were thinking previously.

Photographers have lately needed to become experts in all sorts of fields rather than just making images. Many have had to learn how to bid for projects, how to understand search engine optimization, and finally create and update websites. Having a blog is a way to cut down on website content changes and keep your work fresh. Putting up work from recently completed jobs gives prospective clients a chance to see your range. It allows you to showcase whatever newest image (or set of images) you’ve made that strikes your fancy.

Value-added extras, like behind-the-scenes videos and photos, can also fit well on your blog. Often, people like to see what went into making a particular image as much as they like seeing the actual image itself. More than that, some ADs are interested in knowing more about who you are, so keeping your personal projects on your blog can humanize you. Telling stories about your images aids in this. It helps clients gauge how you might integrate with the creative teams they’ve assembled.

What’s important is to keep a regular posting schedule because in the digital world, attention spans are fickle. A blog that’s a hit today can be a dud tomorrow because of a lack of posts. It might be good to keep the following things in mind as you enter the world of blogging:

(1) As a photographer, it’s always good to put a photograph in each of your posts.
(2) Post on a regular schedule so that your readers can know when to expect new content.
(3) Enjoy yourself! Your blog should be about your work, but it’s about you, too.

Here are some helpful blogs to look at:

Jay Reilly Photography
Lemon Lime Photography
Jasmine Star Photography
Emily Shur Photography
The 10 cent Designer
Lydia Hudgens Photography

About the Author:

Thomas Scott is a photographer in Richmond, Virginia. He specializes in location portraiture. He likes bright colors, the laughter of children, a good beer and pretty pictures.  Drop him a line; he also loves to talk.  More information can be found about him at his website: www.punchphoto.com.

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There are many amazing iPhone apps to enhance your photos – i.e. CameraBag, Best Camera, PS Mobile, etc…  However, there are also some great iPhone apps that can enhance your photography business.  In this post I will be highlighting five free iPhone apps that you might find beneficial.

1. Evernote

Consider this your brainstorm and inspiration collection.  Evernote allows you to create multiple notebooks, photos, and voice messages that you can use to organize your inspiration.  For example, one notebook could be “Poses”.  This notebook could contain thoughts and ideas on various poses that you have seen and wanted to save for future reference.  Another great feature of Evernote is the ability to tag items.  This is helpful when you have many items in Evernote and want to search for a specific item or topic – i.e. Wedding Photo Ideas.

2. INRIX Traffic!

What time is it?!?!?!?  We’ll never get there in time!!!  Sound familiar?  This app comes into handy when you have a photo shoot at a location that’s across town.  You can simply check this app and see which route is the best one to take depending on the traffic.

3. To Do’s

When you have your own photography business, you are not just a Photographer.  You are also in charge of sales, marketing, public relations, accounting, finances, and on top of all of this you need to remember to pick-up your child from kindergarten.  Sometimes it can feel overwhelming wearing all of these different hats.  To Do’s is an app that allows you to create items that you can prioritize to make a simple To Do list.  You could also get creative with this list and write down all the different shots you want to take at an event, and then check them off after each one has been shot.

4. Find A Photographer

I’ve mentioned in the past that one of the best ways to grow your business is to network and get to know other photographers.  This iPhone app allows you to search for photographers based on location, specialty, and last name.  After finding a photographer, you can view the photographer’s portfolio directly within the app.  The photographer’s Address, Phone number, Email, and Website are also provided.  Note: The app only provides results for photographers belonging to the American Society of Media Photographers.

5. Pixelpipe

I personally love this app!  If you are into social media, this is the app for you.  It allows you to update multiple social networks and blogs (Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Wordpress, 12 Seconds, and many more) at once.  You can also update multiple Twitter accounts at the same time – i.e. If you have a Personal account and a Professional account.  With Pixelpipe, you no longer need to jump back and forth from app to app or from site to site to post new content.

I hope you have enjoyed this post on free iPhone apps to help your Photography business.  My goal was to share with you some free iPhone apps that you may not have tried out yet.  However, these apps are just the “tip of the iceberg”.  Depending on the response to this post, I might share with you some of my favorite paid iPhone apps that can help your business.

Feel free to leave a comment and share some of your favorite free iPhone apps for your photography business!

About the Author:

For the past five years, darkroomRYAN has worked with Fortune 500 clients. As the owner of Darkroom Branding, he now provides marketing and branding strategies for photographers. Feel free to follow him on Twitter at: @darkroomRYAN

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I remember the first time I heard the word “blog”. I thought it just might be the funniest word I had ever heard. It took me a while to get used to  it, and to even know what it meant. But now, 8 years later, the word “blog” is used in every day conversation. The blogging world is taking over, and you better be ready for it.

There is one powerful tool that can separate your blog (whether just a personal journal, or a photography blog) from all the others. It’s something that will keep your readers scrolling, or send them on to the next site. That tool is the proper use of pictures. Here, I offer a few ways to make your pictures more appealing and fitting to your online journal:

1. Invest

If you are serious about your blogging, then it’s time to get serious about your camera. I’m sure by now you have noticed the difference between a pictures shot with a measly point and shoot compared to one with a dSLR. Need help deciding on which one to get? Refer back to this article. If you want to make it more interesting, try using different types of cameras like Holgas, Polaroids, etc. for a different style.

2. Simplify

Is your blog for a business? Or just personal? Either way, your pictures should be free of unnecessary distractions. In order to get your story told, or your product sold, you need to learn how to find nice lighting, a simple background, and voila. A nice, simple picture that will get your readers hooked.  Oh, and one more thing. Instead of posting 5 pictures of the same thing, but maybe each one has a slightly different angle, just choose your favorite one and post it. Pictures lose their impact if they are repeated too often.

3. Lighten Up

You’ll find that one of the most common problems in photographs is that they are underexposed and flat.  Once you have your pictures, find a program that allows for easy editing (Picasa and Lightroom are both simple).  Add some light and some contrast, and you will be amazed at how big of a difference it will make on your pictures. A good tip to remember is that the whites should be white, and the blacks should be black.

4. Focus

Please don’t post pictures that are out of focus. It hurts my eyes.

5. Bigger is Better

Save the readers from having to click on each picture to get an idea of what the picture is all about. Post a picture big enough where they don’t have to click on it, but not so big that they feel they’ve lost their personal space. Your pictures and design are the look of your blog, so make the look worthy of your writing. Having problems with your writing? Check out Fuel Your Writing and Fuel Your Blogging for tips!

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A lot of new photographers look at the work of professionals and lament, “I’ll never be able to do anything like that!”  Their reasoning is simple: Without the funding to trek to the four corners of the earth and hire talent from the sets of Hollywood, what are beginners to do to get practice and build a body of work? The answer is equally as simple.  Give yourself an assignment.  There are many ways to make this work.

1.

If you want to shoot editorial portraits, find models that are willing to sit for you, and create a reason for your images.  If finding people is difficult, use a website like Model Mayhem to find people near you who are interested in having their photographs taken.

2.

Another possibility is to find or start a collective blog.  The photographers at This is a Photo Blog aren’t all professional photographers, but they do get the opportunity to share their images with at least each other and whomever reads their collective blog.  The photographers at Smash All Your Idols run a similar program.

3.

If you like to be given a challenge, Digital Photography School has weekly assignments with a forum for all the contributors to post their pictures as well as give feedback to others’. It’s a great way to get practice in all areas of photography, and expand your creativity in finding things to shoot.

4.

Making images that are interesting and stretch your creativity isn’t hard, but it does take some practice.  Another possibility is to organize a group of photographers near you and start a weekly photography walk to explore parts of your area that you might not while alone. When you’re with a group, things that may seem mundane on your own can take on new lives and be interesting in new ways.  Moreover, the camaraderie that comes from collaborative exercises may provide other avenues for your creativity.

So even if you’re not Chase Jarvis or Anton Corbijn or even Annie Lebovitz, there are still chances for you to begin to excel at your work.

About the Author:

Thomas Scott is a photographer in Richmond, Virginia. He specializes in location portraiture. He likes bright colors, the laughter of children, a good beer and pretty pictures.  Drop him a line; he also loves to talk.  More information can be found about him at his website: www.punchphoto.com.

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If you are a beginner and are interested in being an assistant to a photographer – OR – if you are a professional who is looking for a photo assistant, this article is for you. There are a lot of important characteristics of an assistant that you need to take into consideration. There are technical, social, intellectual, and fashionable traits to look for.

Technical:

Need to have a basic knowledge about: cameras, reflectors,  lighting, tripods, backdrops, etc. etc. etc. You should know how to angle reflectors to fill in shadows, and where the lights need to be placed. You should know enough about the technical aspect to be able to take direction and understand any of the technical vocabulary.

Social:

You need to be comfortable in front of clients. If you are painfully shy, this probably isn’t the job for you. You need to be able to communicate effectively. You need to know your boundaries – don’t interrupt the photographer. If you have a good idea, know how to express that idea effectively and properly. You should be able to help the clients feel comfortable and relaxed. Unless asked, you should not be doing funny faces and bunny ears behind the camera to get someone to laugh. In other words – don’t be annoying.

Intellectual:

You may be asked to help with paperwork/ filing/ billing/ etc. You should be good with numbers and have a good memory. You should be organized and always be aware of the time. You should know photography terms and be familiar with the photographer’s work.

Fashionable:

Maybe fashionable isn’t the right word, but if you are going to be interacting with the clients, you should know what poses look good, and SHOW them how to look fabulous. You should know when to fix their hair, or help them with any wardrobe malfunctions. You should know how to create space and lines. You should know enough to make any client – short, tall, fat, or skinny, look flattering in front of the camera. It’s good to take a few tips from Tyra on how to extend your neck, drop your chin, and smile with your eyes (the one good thing I’ve ever learned from her). Small changes like that make a huge difference in the shot.

Most important of all, you should support the photographer. You should only say kind things about him/her, even when you are off set. Be professional and be open minded. You will learn the most by being on set at photo shoots, so be grateful for opportunities to learn in these situations. These are prime chances to grow as an artist and as a business person. The more you assist with, the more the photographer can focus on getting the perfect exposures/focus/framing. Work as a team. The better you get at assisting, the better prepared you will be to get behind the camera and get out on your own. While browsing, I found this assistant’s online resume that I thought was a good idea. Best of luck!

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Twitter Directories
One of the benefits of Twitter is its ability to connect people that share a common interest.  In this case, connecting you with other creative photographers.  Thanks to Twitter, I’ve had the pleasure of becoming friends with some of the top photographers in the industry – and you can too!

Here are three Twitter Directories that you can use to search for other photographers on Twitter:

We Follow: http://wefollow.com/twitter/photographer
Twellow: http://www.twellow.com/category_users/cat_id/342
Just Tweet It: http://justtweetit.com/photographers

Often times the photographers I follow on Twitter will send a tweet asking for a second shooter for a wedding, or other possible job opportunities.  So start following, and become active!

Note: You may also find it beneficial to add yourself to these directories so that other Photographers can find you.

Advance Twitter Search

There is an Advanced Twitter Search option, and there are numerous ways that you can use this Search option to help you and your business. If you clicked on the link above, you’ll notice that there is an “All of these words” form field in the “Words” box, and “Near this place” and “Within this distance” form fields in the “Places” box. Depending on how you fill these out, you could potentially uncover new client opportunities.

For example, lets say I am a photographer in Las Vegas… I just typed in “photographer” in the “All of these words” form field, and typed “Las Vegas” and “25 miles” in the “Near this Place” and “Within this distance” form fields. I just scanned the first page of the results, and there were two people that tweeted how they needed a photographer… It would then make sense for me to write a tweet to them introducing myself.

The best part of this is that you can save the RSS Feed of the Search. So anytime in the future when someone “within 25 miles of Las Vegas” mentions “photographer” in a tweet, you will automatically be notified.

Here are some other searches that you might want to create and save: “Wedding Photographer”,  “Wedding Photography”, “Just Got Engaged”, “Fiancee”,  “Fiance”, “Photo Shoot”, and “Photography Shoot”.

Wrap-up

The two ideas that I shared above are just the “tip of the iceberg” when it comes to how Twitter can improve your Photography business. In upcoming posts, I will share other ideas and methods on how to leverage Social Media to gain new clients and exceed your photography business goals.

About the Author:

For the past five years, darkroomRYAN has worked with Fortune 500 clients. As the owner of Darkroom Branding, he now provides marketing and branding strategies for photographers. Feel free to follow him on Twitter at: @darkroomRYAN

Sponsored by

Advertise on Fuel Brand Network.
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