PhotoPro Expo is technically the Kentucky Professional Photographers Convention, held in Cincinnati. However, the show is drawing from all over the Midwest and I’m convinced it’s all because David Ziser, chairman for this year’s event, put together a great platform of speakers and the entire KPPA team backed the play.

For me, I’m flattered and honored to be on the program, even batting last and finishing 10 minutes before Super Bowl Kickoff!  I’m hoping at the very least my wife will be there, since she’s neither a Giants or Patriots fan. LOL

Other states, even PPA, could stand to take a lesson from the crew in Kentucky! Focus on goals together and work as a team and give up the politics. It’s hard to imagine how much stronger so many different events could be if everyone just worked together.

My point is an easy one to understand… I’m really proud to be included in this year’s PhotoPro Expo, but I’m even more proud of David, Randy and the Kentucky team who’s worked so hard to make it happen!

Cameras for Kids Foundation is in the running for $100,000 from Cars.com and all it takes is all of us to click on the link below and go to Cars.com’s Facebook page and vote for CFKF. It’s a click of a mouse and you can vote every day through February 12.  Then, during Super Bowl when you see the Cars.com commercial use the free app, Shazam, and hit it again – Cars.com will add $1.00 to the pot each time for the winning charity with the most votes.

All of us have at one time or another been moved by something that happened in our lives, but only a few have actually gone out and done something about it. In this case, Betsey Chesler, founded a very special non-profit 501 (3)(c) to use photography to help abandoned kids regain their self-esteem. She started it completely on her own dime and is determined to keep helping as many children as she can.

So, here we are with eleven days to go and that’s eleven times you can vote and help get CFKF closer to $100,000. Come on gang – it’s the only one of the seven charities competing that’s involved in photography and all you need is to click your mouse on the link below!

https://www.facebook.com/#!/CarsDotCom?sk=app_297817783599257

Let’s help Betsey blow the doors off the number she needs to win! The more we help CFKF the more they can help more kids!

There are still a few details to work out, but in keeping with my promise of a February 1 announcement, here’s what’s in place so far…  

Dates: August 5 – 8, 2012. Plan to arrive Sunday afternoon. The mini-trade show starts at 4:00 pm, the first presentation at 7:30 pm with Summer School ending Wednesday at noon.

Format: Let’s talk about more hands-on shooting first.  We’re going beyond the two hours of shooting with each photographer we incorporated last year and give everybody two full days and then some. Every attendee will have their choice of two of seven different outstanding photographers. In addition, there will be a two day film-making workshop in which participants will work on the skill set they need to create a marketing video for their own promotions and website.

Hands-0n Faculty: This year’s faculty is top shelf for hands-on shooting. Imagine being able to spend a full day with photographers like Clay Blackmore, Michele Celentano, Tony Corbell, Jerry Ghionis, Kevin Kubota, Bobbi Lane or Roberto Valenzuela. 

Film-making and Storytelling:It’s a special addition to Summer School with Ross Hockrow and Jeff Medford, along with a ton of video gear from the MAC Group. They’ll be teaching an intense film-making program for the full two days. Some of you may have met Ross and Jeff on their Get In Motion tour last year. They’re outstanding instructors and the founders Cinestories.  Attendees will not only be learning the techniques of video storytelling, but learn how to create their own personal promotional video. 

Class Size: Classes will NOT exceed twenty people. There will be no exceptions. This includes the video workshop as well. We will not allow more than twenty people in any hands-on program! This guarantees everyone a more intense experience and the ability to learn from the very best.

Marketing and Business:  It’s at the top of everyone’s list and we’ll kick off Summer School on Sunday night with my new program on marketing and business with special guest, Melissa Ghionis.   If you’ve never heard Melissa present, a key part of her background is the lost art of customer service. 

Catherine Hall will join us for a special key note program on Monday night. As co-host for TWIT Photo she’s taken branding and marketing to a completely new level. She’ll provide attendees with great ideas on how to expand their reach in their own communities.

Website Review: Many conferences offer portfolio review, but the minute you register for Summer School, we’re going to review your website and give you some solid suggestions on your galleries and your ”About” section. These are two of the most important elements on every photographer’s site. It’s the equivalent of a portfolio review, but done ahead of time, before you get to Summer School. This will give you a chance to identify more of what you need to grow your skill set prior to working with your instructors.

Sponsors and Mini-trade show: There will be some incredible products and services offered by this year’s vendors, including the sell-off off all the lighting and video gear used in the various workshops. It’s a terrific opportunity for you to pick up the additional gear you need at dramatically reduced costs. The first trade show session will start right out of the blocks on Sunday afternoon from 4:00 pm to 7:30 pm. 

Location: We’re headed to Chicago this year! Chicago is one of the easiest and least expensive cities to fly in and out of in the country. Decent airfares make it an economical mecca for reasonable travel costs.  We’ll be at the Doubletree Hilton in Oakbrook, Illinois, just ten miles from the airport.  It’s a great property and we’re pretty much going to “own” the hotel, making the experience even better.

Everything else on this year’s educational event along with some additional surprises will be announced on February 9 when registration goes live! What a kick this year’s Summer School is going to be!

I found this post from Scott a little while back and the point he makes is so relevant. Instead of being overwhelmed at what you don’t know and letting your frustration throw you into an I-give-up mode, think about all you do know. Even better think about how much more you understand about the business today than you did yesterday.  Then smile over how big your network is growing in comparison to the  ”Uncle Harry’s” out there.

We’re in the peak of convention season and Scott’s thoughts are so appropriate to your attitude in the weeks ahead. All of you should be planning on at least one convention, be it a big national show or a local state convention of photographers. Use these opportunities to reinforce your skill set by attending programs to help fill up your bag of tricks and at the same time build your network. Make it a point to meet new people. Talk with other photographers about what they’re doing in their communities. Share your ideas as well as the frustrations you have in your own market.

Most important of all – don’t give up and don’t let yourself be intimidated by how much you might still need to learn. My old buddy Don Blair when once asked, “What’s the best photograph you ever took?” answered back, “I don’t know I haven’t taken it yet?”  Photography is a never-ending educational process and there will always be more to learn!

Copyright Scott Bourne 2010 – All Rights Reserved 

There’s a documentary film called “I Can’t Do This But I Can Do That.” Upon seeing this movie I was motivated to consider how this saying can and does apply to photography.

It dawned on me that low self-esteem, combined with the bullying that is prevalent online, might work to stop some potentially great photographers from moving ahead with their photographic pursuits.

If you find yourself doubting your ability to become a serious photographer, try this exercise.

Make a list of things that you struggle with. It could be focus, or posing or composition or post-processing. Okay. So there’s the elephant in the room. All too often, that’s where people stop. Don’t be that person. Do the second and more important step. What do you do well?

It could be any of those same things. Perhaps you’re great at getting sharp focus, or devising great poses or you might be a master at Photoshop. If you’re good at remembering names and making people feel comfortable – write that down too.

Now here’s the important part. Start thinking about, talking about and living in the world of the stuff you CAN do. Concentrate on what you CAN do and not on what you CANNOT do.

I am not saying that you shouldn’t pay attention to improving in the areas where you need help. I am saying that 80% of your focus should be thinking about what you can do and not what you can’t. There’s a way to make this even more successful. Only surround yourself with positive, supportive people. Ask them to stop you dead in your tracks if they start hearing what you can’t do. Ask them to remind you what you CAN do. I bet you have more going for you than you realize.

Good luck.

 

I’m feeling like there’s a lot going on, because there is! And if I’ve learned nothing else in all my time on the planet, which Scott Bourne regularly jokes about my time here so far being extensive (Hey, I’m an old fart in this industry and proud of it!) I’ve learned that everything always does come together.  You can’t rush it, just take it one project at a time, finish each project and then before you know they’re off your plate!

I know it’s going to look like an infommercial, because it is. Just like so many of you, who send me updates on what you’re doing, I’m pretty excited about everything happening this month! Here are the events and links!

PhotoPro Expo: It starts on February 2 and I’m the last presentation before Super Bowl kick-off. I finish at 6:30 and kick-off is estimated to be at 6:40 or so. I promise I won’t run late! Hope to see a lot of you there – David Ziser, as the event chairman, has put together a great program!

Skip’s Summer School: I’m working hard to get the last minute changes into this year’s program and it’s going to be terrific. The three biggest things people have asked about in the past are for a more intense hands-on experience, more marketing and business and a different location. I took on more than I anticipated with trying to incorporate all three, but we’re going to do it and the announcement will be on the website on February 1st as promised.  Here’s a hint though – if summer school in the past was “under-graduate” work, then this year you’ll be working on your Masters!

Photographer’s Ignite: I’m honored and ecstatic to be included in this year’s line up of speakers, but all my slides are due on February 3, with the presentation on February 19. It’s five minutes and twenty slides (15 seconds per slide) to make a point! The hardest thing anybody can do in communicating is to be concise and it’s actually turning out to be harder to do this five minute presentation than it is to work on my two hour program for PhotoPro Expo.  What a kick to be involved!

GoingPro Bootcamp:If you’re not signed up yet, give it some thought. It’s not about being new to the industry or just starting out, but about building a solid foundation for your business.  Plus, the experience that Scott Bourne, Michele Celentano and I will be sharing will all be based on your input and the areas so many of you need help with.

WPPI:Having spent a good part of my life working with an incredible team to build the show up to what it is today, heading back to Vegas again for the convention is always a kick. It’s a great trade show, incredible educational venue, but the best part for me is always catching up to my network and the old and new faces that become part of the “family”. It all starts the day after Bootcamp. See you there!

Body Parts:We’re only a few weeks into the ordering process and it’s great to see so many people adding it to their list. If you’re thinking about it but just can’t decide, here’s something to consider. We’re only planning on this one print run. We’re not in the book business and don’t want to carry a lot of inventory, so while we’ll print a few additional copies, this is a classic opportunity for a classic publication. If it’s on your list, put your order in at the pre-publication price and save ten bucks, because we’re only going to do a very small overrun.

Cameras for Kids Foundation: My post last week says it all, but here’s a rare opportunity to get every photographer involved and you don’t have invest anything except the time to click your mouse and vote once a day for the next couple of weeks. Cars.com is giving away up to $100,000 to the charity who gets the most votes and CFKF needs our help! Voting is just a click away!

Resource Magazine: If you haven’t seen it yet, get yourself a subscription or look for it on the news stand. It’s becoming the fastest growing magazine in photo. The staff is top notch. Many of you met when Alex, Aurelie and Adam when they joined us at Summer School last year. But don’t just enjoy the magazine, check out their online presence for RescourceMag online and RETV.  I’m writing a column on the challenges of becoming a professional photographer and it’s a kick working with these guys…and oh yeah, it’s one more deadline on my plate this morning! LOL

Okay, that’s it for this Monday morning. Whatever happened to the first quarter of the year being the slow time?

I first met Bob and Dawn Davis at Photo Plus Expo in New York when I was asked to look at an album they shot for Oprah. They were hired to document Oprah’s recognition of African-American Women Who Changed the World. The event took place at Oprah’s estate outside Chicago.  The images were incredible and the way they told the story of the day in the album was even more impressive.  Over the years the friendship just naturally grew. We’d see each other at various conventions, were involved in some of the same charity events and then Bob joined us last summer, teaching at Skip’s Summer School. 

Okay, so admit it, it was the “WTF” that got you reading this morning, so I’m turning this over to Bob…

The goal: Shoot a twilight portrait in a snowstorm using Speedlights.

The challenge: Photograph Kelly during a winter storm with blistering wind chills and huge snowflakes falling at the rate of one inch per hour.  Who’s crazy enough to do this?  I knew the storm was coming, the weatherman was right this time, called my buddy Ed Weiland, he’s always up for my crazy ideas, we loaded up our gear and headed out into the tundra. 

The Gear: Camera: EOS 1D Mark IV

Lenses: 16 – 35 F/2.8 L & 70 – 200 F/2.8 II L

Lighting: 3 Canon 580 EXII Speedlights & STE2 Wireless Speedlight Transmitter in combination with Radiopopper transmitter & receivers.  Calumet 9′ Light Stands, large Rogue FlashBender & Rogue Diffusion Panel and Westcott Apollo Strip & Orb along with a few plastic bags to keep the Speedlights and Radiopoppers protected from the elements.

The Settings: Manual mode on camera, ETTL mode and forced manual mode on the Speedlights,

ISO ranged from 200 to 1600 as the night grew darker, Aperture f/4, shutter speed varied from 1/160^th to 1/8^th, slowing as the night grew darker to allow for some ambient light.

Note for Canon users: I have found a way to combine ETTL mode and Manual flash mode.  With the Speedlight in slave mode, hold the mode button on the rear of any Canon Speedlight for a good long second, say to yourself “one thousand and one thousand and two”!  Magically the flash drops out of ETTL mode and into Manual mode.  The Speedlight is still dedicated to you, can’t control it from camera, you have to manually dial in the power you want.  I usually start around ¼ power and go from there. 

Remember! Shutter Speed = ambient light     Aperture = flash output

Kelly, our adventurous model, was brave enough to go along with this craziness and keep smiling during the shoot all while the wind chill dipped below zero.  In-between shots she would run to the car to warm up.  It was so cold the rear command dial on Ed’s Mark IV froze from him breathing on it.  I learned a long time during my photojournalism days to hold your breath when your eye is to the viewfinder in extreme cold.  Once while covering a fire I fogged the viewfinder and it frosted over with ice and froze the controls on back of my camera, boy that camera was cold!  I tucked it inside my coat next to my body to thaw it out.

I always say to myself, slow down, breathe and think!  This always helps me during a tough shooting situation.  If I were to use on camera or direct flash (on axis) the light would reflect off of the white snowflakes preventing a clean shot.  This is known as the angel of reflectance.  Getting the flash off camera will sidelight the snowflakes allowing for a clean view of Kelly. 

Using one off camera flash either camera right or left would make a nice portrait, always be careful where that shadow falls, you don’t a long unflattering shadow across your subject’s face.  Good lighting will have the shadow fall right into the crease where the nose meets the cheek.  I chose to use two Speedlights.  One as a back light to separate Kelly from the background and highlight the snow, creating depth and one off camera right, (see lighting diagram). 

Since we were shooting in an open field and the wind was blowing I choose to use small light modifiers.  I didn’t want my Speedlights sailing away like Auntie Em’s house in the Wizard of Oz.  Toto we’re not in Kansas anymore, this feels like the Arctic.  The Light modifiers on this shot were the Rogue FlashBender large as a snoot for the back light and the RogueFlash Bender large with the new Rogue Diffusion Panel for the main light. 

I always like to say the right tool for the right job; in this situation anything bigger would need a team of circus carneys to keep them grounded.  I was totally impressed with the quality of light from the Rogue Diffusion Panel.

In this first image you can see how direct flash, with a back light, lights the snowflakes, very distracting.  The direct flash is on axis with the lens causing the light to reflect off the snowflakes.

Settings: ISO 1250 f/4 @ 1/30^th sec, lens @200mm, main light in ETTL mode, rim light in forced manual 1/16^th power.

Off camera flash, camera right, using large Rogue FlashBender and Diffusion Panel.Settings: ISO 200 f/4 @1/80^th sec, lens @75mm, main in ETTL mode.

I’ve talked a lot about various charities in our industry over the last few years. One of them, near and dear to my heart, is Cameras for Kids Foundation, started by fine art photographer, Betsey Chesler.  Betsey, starting off with funding mostly out of her own pocket and launched this non-profit in 2009, working with abandoned teens and using photography to help rebuild their self-esteem.

Cameras For Kids Foundation  is dedicated to making a difference in the lives of  abandoned children by exposing the teens to the process of creating art through a camera’s lens. CFKF uses photography to capture participants imaginations, to empower them, build confidence, self-esteem and open a whole new world for them to visualize and create.

Like any non-profit, especially in this economic climate, CFKF never has enough money to do the things they really need to do and here’s where all of you come in:

CFKF has been selected as one of seven charities to be the possible grand prize winner of a $100,000 grant from Cars.com.  There’s a rumor that they’ll even be talking about it in their commercial during Super Bowl! But here’s what CFKF has to do to win! They’ve got to have the most votes through the Cars.com facebook page which just went live today!

Please, we need your help and all it takes is a click, your vote and you can vote once a day for the next three weeks. All of the charities selected are excellent organizations, but CFKF is the only one in photography. (Many of you met Betsy at last year’s Summer School and I know Roberto Valenzuela helped teach with Betsy at an orphanage in Los Angeles last year.)

Here’s an opportunity for all of us to play a role in expanding photography’s reach into more communities and all it takes is a trip with your mouse!  Please vote now and help us spread the word!

Go to Cars.com’s facebook page and vote for Cameras for Kids Foundation!  Here’s the link one more time:

https://www.facebook.com/CarsDotCom?sk=app_111475642307764

CFKF really needs our help, so spread the word to everybody you know on line and let’s get this great little organization the horsepower they need to help more kids!

Yesterday I had a great conversation with a photographer who’s about to go full time. Her work is terrific, her website, while it needs a little fine-tuning is all in place and overall has a great feel.  Having been part time for the last four years, it’s that first jump “into the pool” that’s the hardest and she’s working through all the questions all of us have asked ourselves at one time or another.

Well, this post just seems to fit the issues so many of you are facing today… 

Robert Frost wrote, “Two roads diverged in the wood, and I – took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

Diversity can take on many meanings. In this post – it means standing out by being great at what you do.

So, let’s talk about the different path you choose to travel with your business with one big question – are you taking the road less traveled or the one everybody else is always taking? By that I mean, are you like those who say “It’s good enough.” Or are you the one who says “It can be better.”

Quality:Are the images you’re showing on your website and in your albums the very best they can be? I’ve seen so many websites with images that photographers have just loaded in to fill it up, paying no attention to the quality. You’re much better off to show just a few spectacular images than everything you have! This is about the finest steak at Ruth’s Chris, not the big buffet at Stuckeys!

With every image ask yourself one question, “If this was the only image I could show, would I hire me?”

Style: Are you working to be unique? I’m not just talking about your images, but your personal style. This is about everything from being personable and approachable to the composition of your images, the look of your website, your logo, etc.

Products:Are you offering presentations that are unique or, when you work with a client do you show them the same things everybody has? Yes, I know they’re a GoingPro sponsor, but remember, we pick our sponsors for a reason! I love the new look of so many of Album Epoca’s products, (www.albumepoca.com). You need a final presentation that shines through and above what every other photographer is showing!

Mining:There still aren’t enough photographers building business off of their past clients, in new directions and it’s definitely a road less traveled. Here’s the point, if they loved your work on the wedding then why wouldn’t you want to be there when the first child is born? And, if you don’t like photographing babies and kids, then how about working with another photographer in the area who does, and building a referral business and cross-promoting each other’s work?

Your past clients are your greatest resource. They’re already believers in your work and you have credibility with each one of them, unless of course you did a lousy job!  So, assuming they loved working with you, then here’s another aspect of diversity. Send them a personal letter and remind them of your skill set.  Plant the seed for an updated family portrait, an on-location day in the life shoot of the kids or maybe a new business head-shot. It’s Marketing 101 and you’ve got the perfect target – a client who already knows how good you are!

The list could go on and on, but here’s the point: There are thousands of photographers all accepting mediocrity. What are you doing to make yourself and your work different? Have you chosen the right road?

A trip to Las Vegas in February isn’t just about WPPI anymore. It’s about adding new building blocks to your business and some of them are outside WPPI programming. For two years I’ve started every marketing presentation with the same statement.

Just because the media says it’s going to be a bad year, doesn’t mean it has to be!

That’s a big part of the GoingPro theme and Bootcamp. We started the project because there are so many aspiring photographers interested in going pro and missing the boat on the right way to get started. Frustrated, they jump into the market with lousy quality and low-ball pricing. Instead of building a business on a solid foundation, they try and build it on the word “professional”, having no understanding of the importance of how to sustain a business.

Well, it’s been two years since we started the GoingPro, which originally was just a book with Random House. Now it’s a blog with an estimated 50,000 followers and sixty-four podcasts, resulting in 120-150,000 downloads a month. Last but not least, it’s our second Bootcamp, an all day event helping you with everything, but photography.

George missed the last GoingPro Bootcamp, but we didn’t and neither did a 100+ aspiring and working professional photographers. He’s got another chance and so do you! With the combination of Michele Celentano, Scott Bourne and me we’ll help you with ideas on marketing, pricing, building your business, insurance, social media, community involvement and local networking, just to name a few. Most important of all, we’ll help you figure out how to promote yourself and your work so you can get your second customer.

Anybody can get their first customer. The trick of building a solid business is getting your second customer and even better, getting the first customer to come back a second time. You know how to focus your camera. Well, we’re going to help you focus on concepts like quality, value, integrity and the ability to exceed customer expectations. Those are the key attributes of any business that brings customers back!

And speaking of exceeding expectations – that’s just what we intend to do on February 18. It’s only $99 for the day. So, whether you’re just getting ready to take the plunge into the pro side of the business or you’ve been out there for a few years and need some help – we intend to exceed your expectations. 

See you in Vegas! Signing up for GoingPro Bootcamp is just a click away!