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Archive for November 2008
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November 27th 2008
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Happy Thanksgiving !
(let's get to the meat....)
Take Photos That
Pay For Your Trips
Advance Notes: Taking photos you love to take is the fun part. The work comes before you take the trip. And it is work.
Recently, in the popular "Kracker Barrel" page (http://www.photosource.com/board) on our website, a photographer wrote:
"I'm going to travel in Europe this summer for two weeks. I'll be spending most of my time in northern Italy. Any of you travel photographers have any advice for me on what pictures I ought to be taking and how I can sell them?" -K.B.
Here was Rohn's answer:
Marketing is the next development stage in your soon-to-become stock photography career.
Be prepared to realize that much of your marketing work needs to be done before you leave on your trip. Write for travel brochures on your destination from airlines, and from railroad companies, hotels, Chambers of Commerce, Tourist Bureaus, Economic Development Departments, of the places you’ll be visiting. The designers of these travel instruments have already chosen subject matter that is appealing about the area. So, you’ll get concrete ideas about just where you should be heading.
Don’t shoot for grandma, who has never been to Italy. In other words, don’t come back with a lot of postcard-type photographs. They may be first class images but they will languish in a stock agency or your own file along with dozens (or hundreds) of other similar “tourist” pictures that everyone else shoots. It’s the Law of Supply and Demand. Excellent photography might never sell for you, not because it is not good, but because the competition is strong. The trick is to use Rule #4, below, and improve upon what has already been shot. "There's nothing new under the sun," as Shakespeare said. Your job is to improve on what's already been done.
Still to do before you leave on your trip: ask yourself, “Will my photos in Italy be on a specific photobuyer’s desk within a week upon my return?” If not, why not? (Be sure to look up the before-your-trip sample query letters in chapter 11 of Sell & ReSell Your Photos.) Diligent planning before the trip, including contact with targeted photobuyers, is half the answer to why some photographers get consistently published.
Want to read more of this article?
http://www.photosource.com/psn-article/pro14.html
Book review. . .
"The Sandy Puc Guide to
Children's Portrait Photography,"
by Sandy Puc (Amherst Media) (marketing@amherstmedia.com)
The book provides a clearly defined outline of what you would consider if
you were going to open your own children's portrait studio. The author
begins the first section with her philosophy in setting up and operating a
portrait studio.
In the second section, A Complete "Kid Care" System, Sandy brings you into
her studio with considerations like: First Impressions Count, Clean and
Organized, A Place for Kids, The First Phone Call, Consultations, Past
Clients, When The Client Arrives, Interacting with the Client, and The
Camera Room. With lots of illustrations and samples of her work, this
section is practical and explicit.
In the third section, Sandy looks at Camera and Lighting Equipment
considerations. With digital camera and lighting equipment she illustrates
both the need to stay up to date and the importance of having the right
equipment available. She comments on Camera, Meters, Tripods as well as
Reflectors, Stands, and Lighting Slaves in her studio.
In the fourth section, she illustrates Lighting and Camera Techniques with
Lighting Ratios, Catchlights, Low Key, High Key, etc. as well as Camera
Techniques with Positions, Selective Focus and the use of Grain.
In Sections five (Designing Portraits), six (Composition and Posing), seven
(Portrait Styles), eight (Working with Kids and Parents), nine (Ages and
Stages), and ten (Special Sessions), she demonstrates her extensive
experience with interacting with her subjects' needs and considerations in a
very artistic as well as practical manner in a studio environment.
In Section eleven, Marketing, and twelve, Sales, she brings real world
business experience to bear with thought-provoking comments on Creating
Opportunity, Community Exposure, Free Sessions Fees, Image Brochure, Outdoor
Sessions, and more. All with a sense of real community involvement.
In the final section, she shares with us her ideas about her involvement in
the community, with comments about Giving Back.
It is also very well illustrated with excellent examples of Sandy's work.
And I would recommend this book to stock photographers, as well as both
experienced and beginning portrait photographers. -JS 1120
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1584282347
Joseph Stanski has been an agricultural stock photographer for the last
twenty-five years. He has published in many ag-oriented magazines as well as
national publications. He retired as a schoolteacher and is currently
teaching photography and running his stock photography business in Southeast
Iowa. morningstar138[at]hotmail[dot]com
Macro Photography for Gardeners and Nature Lovers: The Essential Guide To Digital Techniques, by Alan L. Detrick.
Though advances in digital camera technology have made taking, storing, and sharing photos easier than ever, taking top-quality pictures requires familiarity with both digital techniques and the general principles of photography.
This book provides exactly the information that aspiring photographers need - no matter their level of skill - to take their photos to the next level. Clear, concise chapters cover the basics of macro (close-up) photography, explain the features of current digital single-lens reflex cameras, show the many ways images can be composed, and offer tips on digital effects, storage, and manipulation of imagery. Exercises, definitions, and case studies, demystify digital photography for the reader.
(ISBN: 978-0-88192-890-7; 176
pgs; $24.95) Timber Press, Inc., 133 SW Second Ave. Ste 450, Portland OR 97204-3527. Tel: 800 827-5622; Fax: 503 227-3070. Email: publicity[at]timbexpress[dot]com (160 pages) Contact: Painted Hills Publishing, 16500 Dakota Ridge Rd, Longmont, CO 80503. Tel. 303-823-6599. Fax 303-823-5119. Email: info[at]wildhoofbeats[dot]com Web: http://www.wildhoofbeats.com
There’s a wealth of advice in this interview with our marketletter editor, Lela LaBree. She points out a few mistakes that newcomers to the field of editorial stock photography (and some veteran photographers) are known to make. Photobuyers will choose not to work with photographers (despite their talent) who make these “etiquette” errors.
What do photobuyers expect from you?
Do they welcome phone calls?
Is it true photobuyers have a "filter list" where they list their non-favorite photographers? Why do they do this?
Rohn interviewed Lela LaBree, our in-house editor of the PhotoDaily, and the weekly PhotoLetter.
You’ll find the answers here.
She will serve as a perfect go-between to let you know "the other side of the story"
Listen to her interview here.
http://www.photosource.com/interview/Lela_LaBree
BTW - - The little dog in Lela's picture is Ingah. She is the Official Photosource Pug. Her official Kennel Club name is Ingah DuPont
WAYS TO SURVIVE. Selling Stock Photography; How To Survive In A Competitive Marketplace - - Stock is no longer just for print use; clients are buying still images for website, television, video, fine art and film use.
http://shutterbug.com/columns/business_trends/1108business/
Do you get traffic to your website?
--or do photobuyers pass you on by…?
In our field of editorial stock photography a photo researcher or photo editor has the task of finding a particular picture ( just any microstock picture won’t do ).
Photobuyers need to compliment the articles in their book or magazine with a photo that illustrates the author’s text.
How do researchers find these particular pictures?
In the far past – they visited photo libraries, on foot, and wore out their eyeballs. In the near past, thanks to the Internet, no walking was necessary, they used the Internet, but they still wore out their eyeballs.
Nowadays, with 50,000 new pictures coming onto the Internet every day, they have learned the secret of making a “long tail search” on Google. The same method you have learned.
You type in five or six words to come up with the Italian restaurant in the city you are going to be visiting, or you find some offbeat medicinal herb’s name.
ENTER EDITORIAL STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY:
If you put up a landing page on the web that is nothing but text words, (keywords, tags, etc.) describing in detail your photo collection, Google and other search engines will run their “spiders” through it every four to six months and include your text in their massive database.
When a photobuyer uses a search engine to find his or her pictures, that researcher will land on your landing page, if you included descriptions on your landing page that match their needs. . .mind you, they are not landing on your beautiful website, only to be confused by a kalaediscope of images. (They are only looking for one particular photo, and Google has indicated you have it.)
If the match is made, all that is left is negotiation for the sale. And remember, they have come to you, so there's no selling invloved -only "pricing".
Once they have used your services, now's the time to direct them to your major website to view your stuff. Pretty soon, you'll be on a first name basis with them.
We have been offering this service to stock photographers since 1999. It's called the PhotoSourceBANK. www.hard-to-locate-photos.com
Does it take a lot of work? In the long run, sure, but if you watch your favorite TV sitcom with a laptop in hand, you can easily enter 500 to a 1,000 descriptors each time. Many of our subscribers tell us that’s how they do it. Or some do it at the beach, or in airplanes, on the train.
Here’s where you can learn how to do it. You can join our system if you like, (we get 44,000 hits a day) or you can set up your own landing page. Or you can do both. It only takes a word processor, no fancy software. www.hard-to-locate-photos.com
--Rohn Engh
Photosource International
www.photosource.com
1 800 624 0266
ask for Bruce Swenson, if you have questions, he's the expert.
for info about landing pages:
http://www.vertster.com/marketing/article.asp?article=1015
MAKE YOUR OWN PHOTO BOOK. This system from MyCanvas and SmugMug provides a range of photo sharing and digital photo book publishing options. It allows users to produce one-of-a-kind photo books and posters that reflect their own personality. MyCanvas offers users virtually creative freedom by using advanced online photo book software, combination of templates and editing tools. SmugMug users import their photos directly into MyCanvas to create a variety of photo books, posters and calendars.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=prnw.20081119.LAW003&show_article=1&catnum=0
ORPHAN PHOTOS A LA FRANCE. 200 members of France’s 1,600-member photographers' union protested the editorial practice of publishing photographs by unknown photographers with the abbreviation DR, for "droits réservés" or "rights reserved."
While previously used only in the rare case when a photographer could not be located, and then usually temporarily, the abbreviation has become more prevalent as publications with shrinking budgets try to make use of photos they can run for free.
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29510/tough-times-for-french-photographers.
TAKEAWAY: Unsolvable problem? No, because one day, the right software will become available for anyone to detect the creator (copyright owner) of an unidentified image.
AS IF THEY DON’T ALREADY STAND OUT. -- A paparazzi agency from Los Angeles, has announced that it is basing its corporate growth plans on recruitment efforts to attract the best experienced photojournalists. Buzz Foto was founded in 2006 with what the company describes as a “talented, yet untrained, pool of photographers.” Due to increasing competition in the marketplace the company is looking to develop a roster of top-tier photography talent in order to stand-out from the crowd. Buzz Foto is counting on experienced photojournalists to drive future growth.
http://www.abouttheimage.com/3984/buzz_foto_paparazzi_experienced_photojournalists_drive_future_growth/author2
FRANCE HAS INTEREST IN ALASKA. Alaska Stock Images, a specialty agency featuring photos from Alaska has signed a deal to distribute Alaska Stock Images in France with a new distribution partnership with Paris-based Hemis, that specializes in marketing travel pictures for editorial and advertising customers in the competitive French marketplace. http://www.abouttheimage.com/3990/hemis_signs_deal_to_distribute_alaska_stock_images_in_france/author2
TAKEAWAY: Will only Alaskan travel scenes be of interest?
NEW ALAMY ALLY. George Sinclair, founder the stock photography consultancy, Virtual Picture Desk, has launched a new business called Universal Images Group Ltd. The new business will be based in the UK lead by Graham Everitt , a stock licensing industry veteran. As a first step the business has entered into an agreement with Alamy, to provide it with upwards of 300,000 images for global distribution. http://www.abouttheimage.com/3988/george_sinclair_distribution_business_called_universal_images_group/author2
STOCK: JUST THE FACTS, PLEASE. 80% of the revenue comes from 20% of the clients; and 80% of the best-selling product comes from 20% of the suppliers. Corbis and Getty don't just sell stock images they acquire from independent photographers. They also hire a staff of photographers who shoot (mostly assignment work) for the agency's clients. These photographers are typically paid a flat rate (salary). In fact, much of an agency's profitability comes from these assignments. Most stock agencies pay 30% to the photographers of the income coming from their royalty-free images.
http://ecommerce-journal.com/articles/11261_if_you_want_to_buy_an_image
TEN QUESTIONS FOR: PhotoShelter - In light of the demise of Digital Railroad, a few readers have written expressing concern about the future of PhotoShelter, and what their closing of the PhotoShelter Collection means.
Grover Sanschagrin answers.
http://photobusinessforum.blogspot.com/2008/11/10-questions-for-photoshelter.htmlt
FEW $$’s WILL TRICKLE IN. SAA (Stock Artists Alliance) reports the only positive news for photographers is the potential to receive a share of some license revenues.
In summary: Monies already collected by DRR will not be paid or refunded to the photographers, including prepaid annual hosting fees and any license fees received. From a FAQ posted by Diablo, "Prior to November 14, 2008, that portion of the photographer's money collected by Digital Railroad was either, paid to the photographers, used for operating costs, or foreclosed on by the senior secured crditor." DRR will continue to invoice customers and collect fees until Dec. 19. Photographers will receive 70 percent of the proceeds of license revenues collected between Nov. 14 and Dec. 19. http://www.photonewstoday.com/?p=19237 http://www.stockartistsalliance.org/drr
TAKEAWAY: It was fun while it lasted.
http://www.lightstalke rs.org/apany-art-directors-club-saa-and-digital-railroad-group-party How did Digital Railroad get sidetracked? http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=NewsDesk_Internal&article_num=102908-1
PRODUCTION LINE PHOTOS. -- Micro Machines - Microstock is one tough business for photographers. Prices are low, margins are thin and competition is fierce. Is it worth it? Here, the world's top microstock producers reveal how they're making it pay off.
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/content_display/features/featured-in-print/e3i0731a974271226255ad9e476eea06f6c
GOING UP! -- Shutterstock Hits 5 Million Images - Shutterstock's library provides creative and editorial content, rivaling traditional stock photography agencies, yet at far lower prices.
http://www.creativepro.com/article/shutterstock-hits-5-million-images
PHOTO ENHANCEMENT BEFORE DIGITAL. War photography: Truth is the first casualty. Can war photography ever be trusted? Our critic sees an unsettling show about Robert Capa and his legacy. In 1954, he stepped on a roadside mine at a small turn-off in the first Indochina war, and died the death he seemed always to have been angling for. Oh, and in between he founded Magnum Photos, that alpha-male photographers’ club that still calls so many of the photographic shots in modern media.
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article5197168.ece
THE PRICE IS RIGHT – The magazine, Inside Photoshop has forged a relationship with PhotoSpin, a subscription-based online stock photography service. Now, Inside Photoshop provides five high-resolution images handpicked from PhotoSpin’s online library, free, available for download right from the Inside Photoshop website. PhotoSpin is also offering discounted annual subscriptions to their library exclusively for Inside Photoshop subscribers.. http://www.prlog.org/10142351-design-professionals-rely-on-stock-photography-to-save-time-and-money.html
HERE WE GO AGAIN. National Geographic opposes high court petition in Greenberg case. The magazine says Justices should not take his case because 11th, 2nd Circuit Courts agree. The National Geographic Society is challenging the Jerry Greenberg (freelancer) U.S. Supreme Court petition for review, which, if granted, could revisit the high court's 2001 landmark copyright ruling that said publishers can't sell previously published freelance contributions for use in computer or online databases without renegotiating publication rights with the authors. Written by former Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr, the National Geographic brief argues that there is no reason for the Supreme Court to hear Florida photographer Greenberg's appeal of an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' en banc ruling favoring National Geographic that was handed down last summer. That ruling, released by a sharply divided court, addressed conflicting appellate interpretations of New York Times v. Tasini, 533 U.S. 483, and the 1976 revisions of federal copyright laws. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202426059772&pos=ataglance
TAKEAWAY: Maybe there should be a national referendum on this one to get it settled.
THE PRICE OF FAME. A Los Angeles Councilman seeks to protect celebrities from paparazzi Celebrities could drop their children off at school and visit their doctors without fear of being accosted by paparazzi under a proposal introduced by a Los Angeles city councilman this week. The proposed law, the latest effort by Councilman Dennis Zine to combat aggressive tabloid photographers, would restrict commercial photography and video recordings within 20 feet of schools, hospitals and medical facilities.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-paparazzi20-2008nov20,0,5207289.story?track=rss
WE WANT OUR PHOTOS -- Wedding photos seized from defunct studio The first of 3,600 couples whose wedding memories were locked away when a photography company shut down in January were finally united with their keepsakes today. About 100 couples from New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania went to the state Division of Consumer Affairs office in Newark to retrieve their portraits, photographs and DVDs taken by Celebration Studios.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/couples_united_with_wedding_ph.html
TAKEAWAY. Shades of Digital Railroad?
BORROWING GONE WRONG The celebrated French photographer Bettina Rheims has been charged with plagiarism and ordered to pay a fine of €30,000 ($38,000), reports Artforum via Der Standard. A French court ruled that Rheims, best known for her erotic images of women, had infringed on copyright by using an image by German artist Jakob Gautel in a montage; the work features Gautel's photograph with the word "paradis" written over an image of a toilet door. http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29510/tough-times-for-french-photographers/
EASY REGISTRATION. Registering Your Copyrights Using the eCO System - To make the process even easier, the US Copyright Office recently started offering the opportunity to register your copyrights online.($35, paper registration is $45.) Using the electronic copyright office system ("eCO"), you can register your photographs quickly and with less
work. http://www.naturescapes.net/docs/index.php/articles/341
A JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE. Life Magazine Archive hosted by Google - Time Inc. has announced over 10 million images in total - will soon be available on a new hosted image service from Google. Ninety-seven percent of the photographs have never been seen by the public.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/18/life-magazine-archive-hosted-by-google/
http://opensourcepbx.tmcnet.com/topics/open-source/articles/45647-10-million-rarely-seen-images-from-life-archive.htm
http://www.minonline.com/news/9253.html
THE SEEING EYE PHOTOGRAPHER. Artist envisions turning fake eye into bionic eye-cam. Three years after losing her left eye in a car accident, San Franciscoan, Tanya Vlach, wants to make her artificial eye more useful: She's planning to put a video camera in her eye socket with the goal of having a bionic eye.
Asked in an e-mail what her inspiration is, Vlach wrote: The Bionic Woman and maybe Blade Runner! Ever since I lost my eye I would fantasize about having a bionic eye. So I did research and I realized that as technology becomes increasingly smaller it seemed doable to engineer a miniature video camera small enough to put inside my acrylic prosthetic. And then finally I would have a device as close to an eye as I could get. Also, I love photography and video, this would be a true P.O.V (point of view) perspective. http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-10101188-76.html?tag=mncol
TAKEAWAY: You never know who’s watching (and taping) you.
SUPER SENSOR. -- Sony has announced the development of the finest-yet pixel-pitch 1/2.5" sensor. The 12.2MP CMOS sensor has been developed for mobile phone cameras, but is of a size commonly used in compact and super zoom cameras. The IMX060PQ sensor, which Sony brands 'Exmor' in common with its DSLR CMOS sensors, will also be available incorporated into an F2.8 28mm-equiv lens unit with piezoelectric driven autofocus - relatively advanced for a camera phone module.
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0811/08111701sony12mpsensorcamphone.asp
SAY CHEESE! Bottle cap tripod mount - Lone travelers, vain photographers, or anyone too shy to ask someone to take their picture finally have a convenient way to include themselves in their photographs, thanks to Charles & Marie's bottle cap tripod.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10102511-1.html?tag=mncol
BRIGHT IDEA. High-Brightness LEDs are optimized for flash photography. The new OSLUX LED benefits from an optimized chip and lens design that results in increased brightness.
http://news.thomasnet.com/fullstory/552165
WHERE’D MY IMAGE GO? -- PhotoRescue Saves Lost Pictures - This utility recovers digital photos from erased or damaged compact flash, memory stick, xd cards, smart media, sd cards, and other media. And it's only $29.00.
http://www.creativepro.com/article/photorescue-saves-lost-pictures
PORN IN A FLASH -- A surge in creepy "upskirt" photography has lawmakers concerned -- and the body parts of women posted all over the Internet. Similar shots can be found on many other popular photo-sharing sites, like Fotki and Photobucket. http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2008/11/25/upskirting/index.html?source=rss&aim=/mwt/feature
THE GQ PHOTO ESSAY. Jeff Riedel's Massive GQ Photo Essay - In the November issue of GQ is a 32 page photo essay (online here) shot by one photographer. There are very few photographers getting 32 pages in magazines all to themselves these days (anytime actually) and a photo essay of this magnitude is a major deal.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/18/jeff-riedels-massive-gq-photo-essay/
In “Marvels of Modernism,” the latest installment, 10 photographers have translated the design elements of 12 postwar Modernist landscapes — kidney-shaped pools, Miró-esque reservoirs, boomerang curves, floating cantilevered decks and adventure playgrounds — for the 21st century. The exhibition, which opened Wednesday, will run through Jan. 4 and then travel to museums and botanical gardens.So for a second year the foundation, in collaboration with Garden Design magazine and the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, has commissioned photographers to capture for posterity significant landscapes at risk of being lost. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/23/arts/design/23shat.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
FROM NATIVE RESERVATION TO PALM SPRINGS RESERVATIONS. A University of California/Davis exhibit of photographer Lee Marmon’s 60-year career, from reservation life to Palm Springs’ golfing glitterati
Today, his images of tribal elders are the heart of a photographic oeuvre spanning six decades. The now 83-year-old Marmon, considered the “father of contemporary Native American photography,” has spent his life documenting Native American people and landscapes.
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/Content?oid=880837
DIMENSIONAL PHOTOS. If you place pictures of nature on your website, give them some dimension by adding an inspirational phrase. http://www.naturesinspirationmovie.com/land.html
Source: Thanks to Pam Costa
1993 – The first issue of PhotoStockNotes appeared.
Happy Birthday to
PhotoStockNOTES!
(Thanks to LoriLee Sampson, ace photographer and web designer)
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20 November 2008
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Leave A
Paper Trail
Advance Notes: The Digital Era has ushered in the safeguard of sending digital scans to a prospective photobuyer for viewing, rather than originals. Step two, however, in some cases can involve sending an original transparency(s), that the photobuyer requests for final review. In the case of book publishing, you may have to send several dozen originals. What happens if one of those transparencies is lost or damaged? Depending on the size of the publishing house, you may want to hire the services of an attorney who is familiar with media legal aspects.
If you sometimes still deal in transparencies and experience loss of one of your images by a photobuyer, the attorney you retain will expect you to supply proof (documentation) that there was an actual transaction between you and the buyer. That being settled, here’s the kind of letter you can expect your attorney will write:
Dear Ms. Smith:
I have been retained by John Doe, Photographer, regarding his claim for reimbursement due to the loss of one of his transparencies by your company, Jones Publishing.
Mr. Doe has documented, with copies of correspondence and a phone log, the following course of events:
12/3/07 In response to a request on 12/3/07 by Jones Publishing, Mr. Doe sent 20
original color transparencies to Jones Publishing (JP) for review.
3/14/08 Mr. Doe received return of 15 slides, poorly packaged, from JP .
3/18/08 Mr. Doe notified JP by telephone of 5 missing slides.
4/10/08 Doe telephoned JP. He was informed that 4 of 5 slides would be
returned, but one slide remained missing.
4/17/08 Doe telephoned JP. Informed by JP that 4 slides had been
sent 1 week earlier. One slide still missing.
4/20/08 Doe received four of the five remaining slides.
5/5/08 Doe sent certified letter to JP with invoice for $1,500
(#4887-5) for lost original slide, demanding payment by 6/5/08.
5/16/08 JP telephoned Doe and offered $1,000 settlement of claim. Doe
counter-offered $1,250.
5/18/08 JP again offered $1,000 (by telephone). Doe accepted
provided prompt payment was made.
5/26/08 Doe called JP. Demanded payment of $1,000 by 6/5/08 as
per original invoice. JP stated payment would be made within
two weeks.
As of this date, 6/15/08, Mr. Doe has received no payment.
Please advise me if any of these facts, as stated by Mr. Doe to me, are inaccurate or incomplete according to your records.
Assuming their accuracy, the $1,000 settlement negotiated by JP and Mr. Doe is now void due to Jones Publishing's failure to make prompt payment as promised. Moreover, liability has been accepted by JP.
Want to read more of this article?
http://www.photosource.com/psn-article/gen593.html
Spammer Gets Off
You may remember back in 2004, when Jeremy Jaynes was convicted for sending unsolicited bulk email (SPAM to us). Now, 4 years later, the conviction has been overturned on First Amendment rights. The Virginia Supreme Court (the action was brought in Virginia because the servers that he used to send the emails, AOL, are in Virginia) declared the state’s antispam law unconstitutional, since at the time, the law was not restricted to commercial email, but included all such email, which would have included political and religious messages. And since the national CAN-SPAM act was not in effect at the time the messages were sent, it cannot be applied.
When Is Email Not Private?
Well, for one, we all know that most companies have a policy that emails sent via their equipment and/or ISP are not considered to be private correspondence, even if you use a non-company email address and/or webmail. Now, how about this: A reasonable suspicion is not needed for customs officials to search a laptop or other personal electronic storage devices at the border, which would include computers, cell phones, PDAs, memory sticks, etc.
Wow! Fortunately, so far, you don’ t have to worry about this unless you are the one being arrested. Passengers will not be stopped just to have their electronic devices searched. But if you do get into an altercation or are stopped for other reasons, your personal electronic devices are subject to this warrantless search. Yet another erosion of our personal rights in the name of justice.
White Spaces Opened by FCC
Bonus! This November, the FCC voted to allow use of the white space empty electromagnetic spectrum (air waves) between television channels to allow companies to provide broadband internet access.
“What is white space?” In the old days (analog television transmission), channels were spaced apart to avoid mutual interference, especially in fringe areas. And for some communities, analog TV will still be used, at least for a while. But remember, February 17, 2009 is the date for the nation to switch to digital TV transmission (www.dtv.gov), with the analog TV frequencies auctioned for other uses.
So I just see this as a re-allocation of broadcast spectrum, and not so much as filling in the spaces between TV channels.
And as it has the potential to reduce broadband prices and increase broadband access to millions of people, freeing up the white space is a good thing.
Bill Hopkins is the Webmaster of PhotoSourceFolio, where photographers
display photos and a regular contributor to PhotoStockNotes. Send comments to Bill via email. Fax: 1 818 831-0916. For on-line questions, contact Bill on the Kracker Barrel.
MARKETING TIP Some photographers use a month/year numbering system to identify their digital images. Don't. You reveal the age of your pictures. Photo buyers are less eager to buy a picture taken in 2006, than one with no date on it. Use an alphabetical photo identification system.
UNAUTHORIZED USE OF YOUR COPYRIGHTED PHOTO? If you receive no response after billing the infringer twice, contact us and we'll send them a letter. --Rohn Engh
GONE WITH THE WIND. -- Digital Railroad Servers To Be Scrubbed Clean - Diablo Management has informed Digital Railroad's former customers and clients the servers are now going to wiped clean and sold at auction immediately. "Digital Railroad had hoped that it could preserve the images on the storage devices so that the owners of these images could recover them. Unfortunately, this was not achievable. http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/wiped.html
SQUEAKY CLEAN AND SAFE IMAGES. ReadyImages takes the hassle out of using images for business purposes. Alamy Provides Images For Copyright Clearance Center Corporate Subscription Service - Subscribers no longer have to waste time searching for quality images, getting permission, navigating shopping carts and completing complicated check-out processes. http://www.stockphotographer.info/content/view/709/92/
TAKEAWAY. But how ‘bout the good ones that got away?
GETTING BIGGER. Fotosearch, has acquired the Canadian micropayment stock site Can Stock Photo. - Rick Wintersberger, the owner of the stock image distributor reported recently.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/11/prweb1603934.htm
PHOTOBUYERS are looking for you. Not every buyer looks for a pretty sunset
or a placid lake scene. In fact they seldom do. They know exactly where they can
find one. What they DO look for are those hard-to-locate pictures that
their authors write about. It just may be in your database. But how do you know
they’re looking for one of your pictures? If you are just starting out in stock
photography, you may want to test out the email marketing system provided by our
PHOTLETTER. Here’s where you can get more information about the PhotoLetter.
http://www.source-photo.com Be sure to ask about the ‘free coaching’ bonus.
IS IT FAUXTOGRAPHY? – A 73-year-old photographic agency,Black Star, announced the release of an eBook -- Photojournalism, Technology and Ethics: What's Right and Wrong Today? -- that examines photojournalism's ethical challenges through the prism of the profession's past, present and future. Is Photoshop killing photojournalism? Download the free e-book at rising.blackstar.com
http://www.creativepro.com/article/photoshop-killing-photojournalism
TAKEAWAY: Progress sometimes hurts.
WELL DONE. Failure is an Option - There are several reasons why a shoot fails. A failed shoot is no big deal and if a photographer has done other successful shoots but if it's the first time shooting they're probably not going to get a second chance no matter who's fault it is..
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/12/failure-is-an-option/
TAKEAWAY: “My reputation grows with every failure.” George Bernard Shaw
IS IT JOURNALISM OR ILLUSTRATION? Another Digitally Altered Department Of Defense Photo; AP Suspends Using Their Hand-Outs - "For us, there's a zero-tolerance policy of adding or subtracting actual content from an image," said Santiago Lyon, the AP's director of photography.
http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/general.html
TIGHTENING THE GUIDELINES. (Australia) Photography protocols panned as unworkable. ALL photographs of children clothed or unclothed will have to be cleared by the children's parents or guardians before they can be exhibited. That is one problematic aspect of sweeping guidelines designed to protect children depicted in works of art.
It has prompted a key visual arts organization to describe as "unworkable" elements of draft protocols drawn up after of controversy over Bill Henson's photography.
http://www.watoday.com.au/national/photography-protocols-panned-as-unworkable-20081113-66a6.html?page=-1
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2008/s2419720.htm
IT’S NOT YOURS! Kodak sues Samsung, LG over camera patents
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081117/kodak_patent_lawsuit.html?.v=1
IT’S BACK. Instant photography is back, in the form of Fujifilm's Instax 200 camera.
http://technologizer.com/2008/11/13/the-unexpected-return-of-instant-photography/
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Fujifilm-NASDAQ-FUJI-920650.html
MISSING PHOTOS. Hiroshima: The Lost Photographs - How 700 previously unseen photographs of the Hiroshima aftermath ended up in a pile of trash in Massachusetts.
http://www.designobserver.com/archives/entry.html?id=38841
PROFIT CENTER. Would you pay this guy $8,000 to take your wedding pictures? (Asia) $8,000 is how much Mr Hwang Chi Kuang charges for a day's work. 'Five years ago, these prices were unheard of,' said the owner of 39 East Photography. When he started, he said, the high end was around $2,500. Wedding photography was once considered to be at the 'bottom rung' of photography's ladder. It was felt that only those who failed to become fashion shooters or news photojournalists became wedding photographers. They were not seen as creative professionals. Mr Kelvin Koh, 33, owner of LightedPixels, said: 'Wedding photographers were considered no different from taxi or bus drivers.'
http://business.asiaone.com/Business/Office/Hot%2BJobs/Story/A1Story20081114-100685.html
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0811/08111101sigmafoveon.asp
DIGITAL DETECTIVE: Digital pics contain 'fingerprints' of cameras used to click them - The researcher says that his team's approach has been found to identify cameras with 90 per cent accuracy in early tests. If we can identify the camera, then there is a possibility that we can identify who bought it and where.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20081115/393/ttc-digital-pics-contain-fingerprints-of.html
Yao Lu Winner of the 2008 BMW-Paris Photo Prize for Contemporary Photography
http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=27277
SNAPSHOTS BECOME ART. For three decades, Michael Jang has earned his keep making photographic portraits of prominent San Franciscans, regular Joes and Silicon Valley big shots. But all the while he's been taking other pictures for the sheer pleasure of it: punk rockers,cowboys, gang members, Castro's Cuba.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/09/DDGG13N1SB.DTL
“Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” – John Madden
1912 – November 30 – Photographer Gordon Parks was born in Fort Scott, Kansas.
1925 – November 20 – Photograph from an airplane at night was taken over Rochester NY, by Lieutenant George Goddard in cooperation with the Eastman Kodak Company, which supplied a photometer by which the intensity of light was measured. The photographs were taken from a 3,000-foot altitude and showed about 3 square miles of the city’s area. A light bomb was dropped which made a flash lasting but one twentieth of a second.
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13 November 2008
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Adopt Your Own
Vertical Markets
Advance Notes: If you have been shooting photos "across the board" in a broad approach to stock photography, you have unwittingly forced yourself to find markets across the board, rather than in a focussed, or "vertical market," direction. You've given yourself a Herculean task. Change today to focus your shooting approach on your own, specialized areas.
Should you ever take a picture that is outside your specialization areas? Yes, if it's a hands-down "winner." You can always put it with your stock agency or add it to your listings on your PhotoSourceBank Web site: www.photosource.com/psb But your bread and butter will come from your vertical market areas.
How It Works
Finding markets geared to your interest areas flows naturally into focussing on "vertical markets"- different markets that all seek photos in a specific subject area.
First of all, you get to pick the level where you'd like to start. Top budget, middle, or entry level budget. Gauge your choice based on your track record, expertise, editorial stock photography experience, and whether you’re part-time or full-time.
At the lower-budget level you will aim for $1,000-a-year net profit from each contact on your Market List. At the middle level, you aim for $3,000 per year per market contact. At the top (professional) level, you aim for $5,000 per year profit per contact.
Shall we translate these numbers into reality?
Let's say you choose to work at editorial stock photography only part time. We'll choose the entry (lower budget) level, to illustrate. On average, a lower budget level publishing house will have a $20,000-per-month budget for photography. (That's per month, not per year. A top level publishing house will have five times that budget.)
Your aim is to be a recipient of part of that $20,000-per-month budget.
Let's say that on January 1st (all things being equal) you land a first sale of $75 with a customer whose photo needs match one of your photo marketing strength areas (PS/A). Over the next 365 days, you net $1,000 from that customer. In real terms this might be in the form of three cover photos @$400 (most publishing houses produce a variety of magazines, periodicals, brochures, electronic products, weekly bulletins, etc. - so there are many cover opportunities); four inside photos on average per month @$75; and one special use photo @$200. Your total sales to that buyer for the year are $5,000. Your expenses take up 80% of your costs and you come away with a 20% net profit of $1,000.
You might have broken even on your first sale, and spent $75 to make $75, but you can see where the investment is worth it.
And this is only one publishing house. If you gain ten new customers in 365 days, you are looking at $10,000 net profit for the year. In the following year, if you gain ten more customers, you are looking at a $20,000 per year net profit. And so on. And this is at the lower budget level.
Once you line up your vertical markets, you operate with them on the Future Net Worth principle. Every one of your markets represents an average amount of income you can count on for years ahead.
We have found here at PhotoSource International that an editorial customer on your Market List stays with you and keeps buying your work for an average of ten years (and some much longer). Because publishing houses rarely change the vertical theme of their publishing thrust (horticulture, sailing, horses, pets, travel, aviation, etc.) you can expect that if you build your stock file vertically in the same vein, you and that publishing house can do business for a long, long time. Individual photo editors at the publishing house may come and go, but you remain a regular supplier to that company.
THE FUTURE
Now that the computer has become an integral part of our lives, we're seeing photobuyers increasingly using the convenience of the Internet to locate highly specific pictures for their publishing projects.
If you collect a deep selection of pictures in a vertical market, you can expect to tie into many new markets who have been waiting to discover you. You do this by not "selling your photos” – but by focussing your camera in the areas you love shooting, and building expertise and depth of coverage in those areas – making you an important resource to photobuyers in need of your kind of pictures.
During a 'down economy' (we've been through 4 of them since 1977), photobuyers seek out new channels through the Internet to save time (and money) to find you and your specialties. They'd prefer not to 'flip through online catalogs', but to use a search engine to go directly to the source that matches their current photo needs.
Let the good times roll!
Rohn Engh veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of "Sell & ReSell Your Photos" and "sellphotos.com." For more information on how to sell images and to receive a free eReport: "8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer," visit his website: www.photosource.com Tel: 800 624-0266.
Attending a Seminar
Are you a stock photographer? You know that you shoot alone, work alone, and there's seldom an office where you can mingle with colleagues and co-workers. Have I just described a lonely vocation?
We all know that interaction with peers and colleagues is important in any profession. So is networking, discussing new ideas, new trends. So, what should a stock photographer do?
A REMEDY
Attending seminars is a excellent way to expand your knowledge of your craft. You also get to meet people interested in the field, veterans, and photographers just starting out.
There are plenty of general photography seminars and workshops available across the country. They are great for general info, inspiration, and mastering basic techniques. When it comes to the specific aspects of stock photography, however, you want to look for seminars targeted to stock marketing and operation.
INSPIRATION & KNOWLEDGE
As stock photographers, we sometimes forget that we are much more than "just" a photographer. We are also owners of a small business, and there is a wide range of information in all sorts of fields that comes in really handy for small business-owners.
To gain this knowledge you can arrange to attend other workshops and seminars aside from photographic ones. For example, workshops on direct mail/marketing, small business accounting, small business taxation and tax planning, and graphic design, are all beneficial for small business-owners.
Photography workshops come in all flavors and sizes. You have seen them advertised in the photo magazines and newsletters. They range from highly specialized to broad in their coverage. With a little investigating you're bound to find a seminar/workshop that is of interest to you.
Approach a workshop like you would any other business endeavor. Ask for a few references of photographers that have previously taken the workshop. Check the references out, make sure everything computes, and go for it.
There are several workshop companies that have been around for many years and that have a very solid reputation. The SantaFe Workshops, Maine Photographic Workshops, Rocky Mountain School of Photography and Nikonschool, just to name a few.
Note: Photojournalist Mikael Karlsson has 18 years' experience of working for magazines and newspapers in more than 30 countries. He moved to the United States in 1998 from his native Sweden. He lives in Nebraska and is currently US correspondent for 11 Swedish magazines and a regular contributor to a wide variety of U.S. publications. Reach him at mike[at]photosource[dot]com.
TRAVELERS
Photographers: We broadcast your foreign destinations along with contact information, departure date, length of stay, etc. Contact PhotoStockNotes (1 715 248-3800) at least two months in advance.
Photobuyers: Watch this column. For the e-mail address, phone or fax number of the traveling photographer, call the PhotoSource International office and ask for Rohn Engh (1 800 624-0266). For an expansion of this list: www.photosource.com and press the Travelers Abroad button, to learn of past international destinations of our photographers.
Terri Petri
Oct 17- Nov 2 2008
Johannesburg, Kruger Park, South Africa
Peter Llewellyn
Nov 7 - Nov 21 08
Brazil (Pantanal)
Frederick Randall
Nov 2008 – May 2009
Caribbean, BWI
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Travelwriter Marketletter… for writers and photojournalists.
Travelwriter Marketletter is a monthly publication available online ( http://www.travelwriterml.com ) and in hard copy format. Travelwriter Marketletter is in its 29th year.
If you’re a travel writer or photographer, TWM tells you about new markets, pay scales, editors, specs and trips.
Contact Mimi Backhausen Phone: 571/214-9086 Fax: 208-988-7672 mimi[at]travelwriternl[dot]com
If you're a travel photographer, TWM will supply you with contact information about photobuyers.
If you’re in travel PR, TWM tells you which publications are likely targets.
If you’re a travel editor, TWM tells you about trips, and about your competitors.
If you’re a photo researcher TWM will direct you to travel photographers.
Request a sample copy of TWML: 571/214-9086
TIMING IS EVERYTHING -- Photography and Petanque - With digital, the speed of delivery has become an even more essential part of the selling process. So much so that even if you have a mediocre image that arrives just before a deadline, it will be published, as long as it is the only one around..
http://blog.melchersystem.com/2008/11/05/photography-and-petanque/
TAKEAWAY: It’s not a social guffaw to be seen arriving early at the party. Don’t dally in order to “get it right.” In editorial stock photography, timeliness is often more important than picture quality.
AVOIDING PITFALLS. -- Improving a bad contract - It is all too common for a publisher to ask you to sign a work agreement that cancels your rights while imposing new obligations on you. But you can protect yourself. First, learn to recognize bad contract terms. Second, be ready to propose fairer terms.
http://www.asmp.org/commerce/legal/badcontract/index.php
WHOSE PICTURE IS THIS? -- When Camera Metadata Can Help . . . prove who took the shot. Check Kevin German's report of why it matters.
http://kevingerman.blogspot.com/2008/11/stolen.html
XMAS SHOPPING. Looking to buy some National Geographic products at 70% off? Here are three places to buy them: National Geographic Warehouse Sales: NG will be selling books, globes, maps, travel, kids, and home decor items at 70% off. GREAT holiday shopping!! ; Washington, DC . Nov. 14 –16, at DC Armory. ; San Diego, CA (Thanksgiving weekend) Nov. 28 -30 at San Diego Convention Center ; Austin, Texas
Dec. 12-14 at Austin, TX Convention Center . Source: aspp
MARKETING TIP (From Sell & ReSell Your Photos, Page 272.) Damages to your prints or slides or DVD’s? If you can prove a client has lost, destroyed, or damaged your property, you have the right to take that client to small claims court (in cases under $3500 in most cases). Seek help from the national organization Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts The Paley Building 1 East 53rd Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10022 212·319·ARTS (2787) or
1 212·752·6575
GET HELP -- Successful sales of your pictures takes more than just producing good pictures. You've got to get them to market, on time. Recruit a friend or relative as a partner, assistant, or employee. They can take on the administrative tasks (digital workflow, record keeping, scanning, etc.) and this help can make the difference.
( http://board.photosource.com/read.php?1,10040 )
Here's a recent posting.
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Posted by: Ric Trexell
I finally decided on a market. (After 10 years.)
Ok, I started looking into stock photography 10 years ago. So I'm probably never going to be accused of jumping into this stock photography thing. I have decided that I will make my market based on recreational type things that people do here in Wisconsin. (Yes, we do things other than drink beer, eat cheese and watch Packer games.)
I have ordered Photographers Market 2009, and have been reviewing the tapes of Mr. Enghs, plus reading the many books I have on stock. With this economy, I have got to start making money from stock.
Would this be too broad of a market to go after for stock? (I'm talking of recreational things, not the portrait business.)
For example, should I just concentrate on something like boating and water skiing? Or should I go for as much variety as I can? Does anyone have any ideas as to whether this is worth pursueing? Thanks. Ric.
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Congratulations Ric, you’re on the right path when you’ve decided to get off the Merry-Go-Round of snapping everything you see in your viewfinder, and then wondering later where to sell them.
This is a mistake that most early picture marketers perform when they make the decision to enter the field of stock photography.
It goes without saying that any endeavor we take part in will require some energy. The ups and downs of everyday living throw challenges at us that we can easily overcome if we have the energy and enthusiasm to solve them.
There’s an old saying, “What you think about, you bring about.” Or, another version, “Energy flows where attention goes.”
So, you mentioned you’ve narrowed your choice down to “recreational type things” and centering in on “boating and water skiing.”.
The normal process of making right decisions in photo marketing then, is to ask yourself, “Do you enjoy them?” “Are you thinking about these subjects a lot?” If so, then, you’ve made the right choice.
It’s always a good idea to choose a subject area that’s practical and one you can accomplish without breaking the bank. That is,-- is your target photographing market nearby (no extreme travel is necessary.)? Do you know where the “authority points” are? That means, --are there facilities nearby that feature your chosen subject? Are you in contact with persons who can open doors for you? Do you know where to go to get additional information on the subject area.?”
Next step is to see if there’s actually a market out there.
In my seminars and caoching sessions I always emphasize this point. Some times a photographer will choose an obscure market area to photograph and then find out later than there are very few photobuyers in that market area.
Yes, Photographer’s Market is certainly a good reference book for you. Not because it offers a wide range of markets, but because it breaks the markets down into categories.
But an even better resou rce is Google and similar search engines.
For example: type into Google: Wisconsin recreational magazines
You’ll find about twenty magazines awaiting your expertise as we talk. The more you become a valuable resource to them, the more business you’re going to get from them.
Here’s another entry. Seek out book publishers. Type in Google: Wisconsin outdoor sports publishers. You’ll see some overlap with your magazine publishers.
As far as centering on down even farther to boating, snowmobiling, etc., - that will be your choice. It all depends on the popularity of the activity. A Google search will reveal these numbers.
If you do your homework like this, you’ll discover a ready-made group of 25 to 30 photobyers who, at this monment are waiting to learn about you and your photography.
If you earn $1,000 a year from each of those markets… you’ve made yourself a tidy sum.
Once you get a name for yourself in this specialized industry, you’ll be ready to expand beyond Wisconsin.
Hope this helps. -Rohn
GOOD SAMARATIN -- One Photo Editor - Doing Good by Doing Right - Photo editors often get a bad rap. They're often (incorrectly) blamed for the bad contracts they are required to foist upon us. Thus, when a photo editor does the right thing, as is the case here, we feel it of value to let people know.
http://photobusinessforum.blogspot.com/2008/11/one-photo-editor-doing-good-by-doing.html
MONUMENTAL CHANGES. -- A Call For Change In The Publishing Industry - There could not be a better time for change in the publishing industry. This AdAge article (here) presents two scenarios for the next five years.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/06/a-call-for-change-in-the-publishing-industry/
ANOTHER ONE. -- Site Launches Photographer Upload - The UK-based online stock image provider has launched a new photographer upload section. The online function encourages more hobbyist and professional content for consideration by its team of editors by allowing photographers to upload images directly. http://my.moodboard.com/Pages/Public/Gateway.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fDefault.aspx
NO LONGER OF PAGE 2 INTEREST. -- Is Microstock Becoming More Accepted in the Stock Photo Industry? - This video shows some short interviews filmed recently with Andres Rodriguez, Steve Kapsinow of StockXpert, Serban Enache, Yuri Arcurs, and Steve Pigeon of Masterfile. In some of the interviews the topic of “microstock” came up; in others it arose naturally. http://www.microstockdiaries.com/is-microstock-becoming-more-accepted-in-the-stock-photo-industry.html
WALLPAPER? -- Activist, David Elliot Cohen, says, "Photojournalism can really change the world." This bold conviction has led the best-selling editor of the "Day in the Life" series to step away from his own tried-and-true formula and come back with "What Matters," a book that holds up a magnifying mirror to the world and presents a rather uncomfortable self-examination.
"In our digital age, photography has become wallpaper," he lamented in a recent interview. "With 'What Matters,' I wanted to give pictures that make a difference -- a chance to call out" to the spectator.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/09/when-photography-activism-meet/
INTERSECTION OF POLITICS AND PHOTOGRAPHY The Election And Photography - The Obama camp did a much better job managing their photography in this election. When I saw the Obama rally photos (here) I thought, how can you not believe in the power of photography to deliver a message?
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/04/the-election-and-photography/8
IS IT FAIR USE? ...Duncan Davidson: "I get lots of requests to use my photography. Some of these are commercial use requests, to which I respond with questions to determine an appropriate license fee. Others are non-commercial in nature and I try to help out those whose use seems appropriate to me.
And, every once in a while, I'll get a request from somebody over at Wikipedia wanting to use a photograph.
Let me say this up front and loudly. It pains me to deny requests to use my photographs on Wikipedia. I wish I could respond positively to these requests.
I think Wikipedia is one of the great success stories of the Web and I use the site all the time. There are actually several of my older photographs on Wikipedia, such as on John Battelle's page, and I wish there could be more. http://duncandavidson.com/2008/11/i-wish-i-could-help-wikipedia.html
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MARKETING TIP: You can copyright every one of your photographs, free. It's a gift from your government. It costs you nothing. Only when you "register" your copyright does it cost you $35 (online) $45 (paper). http://www.copyright.gov/docs/fees.html So place a Copyright Notice on each of your photographs if you wish, there’s no charge. (From Sell & ReSell Your Photos, Page 255).
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Does seeing your photos
published fascinate you?
If you are looking into the world of publishing your photos, but don’t know where to start, -our PhotoStockNOTES/Plus might just be the ticket for you.
Every Thursday morning, we supply you with two or three contacts of photobuyers who are looking for specific pictures that may be in your database of pictures (or slide file).
In addition, you receive the weekly PhotoStockNOTES – a newsletter that will keep you up-to-date on the new advances in stock photography.
More information about PhotoStockNOTES/Plus is at www.sellyourstockphotos.com
I made this (2 minute) video for you. . .
http://www.photosource.com/video/plus
Special Bonus: If you sign up before November 25th 2008, you are eligible for a free 1/2 hour phone coaching session with Rohn Engh. To make an appointment: 1 715 248 3800. Extn 21. Ask for Bruce Swenson
REVISED GUIDANCE -- In the UK. Talks aimed at easing relations between press photographers, journalists and the police have today been hailed as 'constructive' by the Home Office. Last week, National Union of Journalists (NUJ) general secretary Jeremy Dear told Home Office minister Vernon Coaker that police have used their powers to restrict photography in public places 'inappropriately'. The concern was one of several regarding 'media freedom' raised by the NUJ in a meeting Dear arranged with the minister.
Speaking today, a Home Office spokeswoman told Amateur Photographer: 'We welcome the constructive approach taken by the NUJ and the increased co-operation agreed by the Metropolitan Police to develop clearer working relationships between the police and the NUJ and their members.'
http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/news/Home_Office_Photography_rights_move_constructive_news_271463.html
WHO SAID PHOTOGRAPHERS CAN’T WRITE? History in the Buffer - David Burnett, photojournalist, wrote this piece about his experience "in the buffer" covering the USA election night in Chicago. A remarkable diary of his election night experience.
http://werejustsayin.blogspot.com/2008/11/history-in-buffer.html
TAKEAWAY: When TIME Magazine made “the computer” the Man of the Year, they sent David Burnett to Pine Lake Farm to photograph me and my new Radio Shack TRS-80 Model II. You can see the picture TIME used at: http://www.photosource.com/rohntime
CAPTURING WORLD WAR II -- Like a lot of war veterans, George Holmes - who saw World War II action at Iwo Jima and on Okinawa - didn't talk much about his experiences when he got home. Now, more than 60 years later - and 26 years after Holmes' death - his son, Ken, is doing his talking for him. Using a documentary film George made and hundreds of photos he took as a combat photographer for the U.S. Army, Ken Holmes is keeping his dad's memory - and story - alive making presentations to veterans groups, churches and other groups who want to hear it. http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20081109/NEWS15/811090499
FASTEST BIRD Vs. FASTEST PHOTOGRAPHY -- High-Speed X-Ray Photography - Hummingbirds Exposed on 'Time Warp' (VIDEO). The Discovery Channel's newest show, 'Time Warp,' treated viewers to the inner workings of a hummingbird by combining high speed photography with x-ray photography. This is the first time such footage has ever been captured on tape. 'Time Warp' hosts Matt Kearney and Jeff Lieberman are obsessed with high-speed photography. Their drive, in the case of filming a hummingbird feeding, was to discover how exactly they do so while remaining stationary. High speed photography combined with x-ray photography allowed them to do so.
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/high-speed-xray-photography-inner-workings-of-a-hummingbird
PHOTO BUILDING. Taking aim at far-from-perfect photos. Computational photography promises big changes for digital cameras the fast-moving field of computational photography and an open-source “Frankencamera” built by Marc Levoy
and his graduate students at Stanford University are suggesting how shutterbugs in the near future may be able to swap in and out the features they want with little more trouble than snapping together LEGO parts.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27585300/
PRINTER RACE Tomy beats Polaroid in digital instant photography race. Japanese toy maker Tomy Takara has beaten Polaroid to manufacture a camera with a built-in printer. The XIAO TIP-521 utilizes Zink's inkless printing technology to replicate what Polaroid has done with its instant film shooters.
http://asia.cnet.com/crave/2008/11/07/tomy-beats-polaroid-in-digital-instant-photography-race/
MULTI-VIEW. -- Bug-eye-inspired camera has six times the field of view of conventional ones. A tiny bug-eyed camera, which provides a field of view six times that of the conventional camera, has been tested by researchers at a defense company in the UK. Experts at BAE Systems at Great Baddow have revealed that the new system, called BugEye, has been developed primarily for use on missiles to keep track of targets. The researchers add that the prototype camera is so small that it can also be used on endoscopes, giving an improved field of view in keyhole surgery.
http://www.newspostonline.com/sci-tech/photography-bug-eye-inspired-camera-has-six-times-the-field-of-view-of-conventional-ones-2008110912985
AND PRINTS TOO. -- This camera has built-in photo printer - The Xiao TIP-521 is a 5-megapixel camera that looks much like any other low-end model, except for the fact that its body houses a tiny digital printer.
http://www.techradar.com/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/digital-camera-has-built-in-printer-483099?src=rss&attr=news
HOW DO THEY DO IT? Yuri Arcurs - Microstock Entrepreneur - Not content with an
annual microstock income of US$1.3 million and being the top selling microstock photographer, Yuri Arcurs is creating a microstock empire. Here's a summary of his new entrepreneurial activities.
http://www.microstockdiaries.com/meet-the-new-yuri-arcurs-microstock-entrepreneur.html22
BIG BUCKS. -- Global Market for Digital Photography Worth $230.9 Billion in 2013
According to a new technical market research report, THE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY MARKET (IFT030B) from BCC Research, the global market for digital photography technology was worth $136.7 billion in 2007 and an estimated $155.0 billion in 2008. This market will increase to over $230.9 billion in 2013, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3%.
http://www.pitchengine.com/bccresearch/global-market-for-digital-photography-worth-2309-billion-in-2013/1138/
LOCK PICTURE. -- Digital photography allows for key copies. Breaking into a lock without being noticed no longer means having to actually have the key ahead of time in order to make a copy. Computer geniuses at UC San Diego have written a computer program that can copy a key based solely on a photograph of it. The theory is really quite simple: If a photo of a key can be captured with enough detail, the image can be translated into a numeric code that can then be used to recreate the key. Software allows for accounting for whatever angle the photo is shot at. http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/110195
FINDING A HOME. Permanent Photography Space Opening. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, will open the Herb Ritts Gallery, the museum's first permanent photography gallery, on November 19, Artnet reports.
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29277/permanent-photography-space-opening-at-mfa-boston/
Two shooters, two sensibilities. Art Sinsabaugh and Gordon Parks approached photography from opposite ends of the spectrum. Yet they share the distinction of having contributed significantly, in markedly different ways, to the modern
history of the medium.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/entertainment/20081109_Art__Two_shooters__two_sensibilities.html
Renowned Northwest photographer documented WWII travels. When World War II came, Bob Spring hoped to become a combat photographer.He was already studying photography at what would become Central Washington University, but the U.S. Army had other ideas. Instead, Spring became an X-ray technician with a 750-bed hospital unit. Instead of shooting a gun, he shot dental and skeletal X-rays in North Africa, Italy, France and Germany. "They figured X-ray is the nearest thing to photography," said Spring, now 89 and retired in Bellingham. Fortunately, Spring's commander officer let him shoot his Speed Graphic, with 4-by-5-inch negatives, when he wasn't busy shooting X-rays. Spring used his X-ray darkroom to develop his negatives.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/entertainmentnews/story/650404.html
www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=270656
ROUGH LIFE. -- Hollywood paparazzo pioneer says he has no regrets. A Hollywood paparazzo famous for being sued by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and getting his teeth knocked out by Marlon Brando is unapologetic about the guerrilla celebrity photography culture he helped pioneer. But Ron Galella, who at 77 still has an active press pass, says he has little interest in being part of a celebrity photo industry that now values controversy over glamour. http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE4A81MZ20081109
Quote: "You have to find something that you love enough to be able to take risks, jump over the hurdles and break through the brick walls that are always going to be placed in front of you. If you don't have that kind of feeling for what it is you are doing, you'll stop at the first giant hurdle." -- George Lucas (Creator of Star Wars)
1789 – November 18th – French painter, physicist, and photography pioneer Louis Jacques Daguerre was born near Paris.
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6 November 2008
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Photo Thieves On The Internet…
Who Are They ?
Advance Notes: Once a year, it seems, a question about thievery on the Internet comes up. As I've written before – thievery on the Web is certainly possible. As we rush pell-mell along in the new Digital Age, some honest mistakes are going to be made. But outright thievery?…
With today's software capabilities, it's possible to 'res up' a 72 dpi image to 300 dpi with excellent results. So, technically it's possible to "steal images" by capturing small images on the Web and increasing their resolution. In my book, sellphotos.com, I give some examples of misguided improper use of photos.
One example: A commercial printing company executive used a previously published photo from the company's digital file for unauthorized use in a commercial brochure. The photographer took him to court. And rightly so. But the infraction was a mistake -- not outright thievery.
NOT OUR PHOTOBUYERS
As editorial photographers, focussing on editorial stock, not studio pictures, not commercial stock photos, we should take a close look at just who we are apprehensively thinking may steal a photo. Our markets are books and magazines. And relax: photobuyers at book and magazine publishing houses don't steal photos.
Nor do commercial art directors. The negative fall-out would be too damaging. But also we have an extra advantage being editorial stock photographers-- we produce pictures that can easily be identified because of their uniqueness. We need to examine whether we're putting too much worry into a concern that does not deserve it.
A rare few early mistakes were made as the Digital Age was coming of age. This has been a learning process for executives and printing company personnel as well as the general public, who are now learning the benefits of the Web. Eventually ignorance regarding appropriate handling of photos will diminish.
LURKING IN CYBERSPACE?
But the question is... "Is thievery rampant, or even existent, on the Web?"
Ever since photographers began realizing that it's possible for someone to "borrow" an image from the Web, I've heard warnings from my fellow photography columnists that thieves are lurking in cyberspace, waiting to steal your photos. Certain pros in our industry often perpetuate the myth at seminars and camera club meetings. They warn that photographers should beware, and that they should not expose images on the Web unless they are so tiny that someone could not profitably make use of them.
Look. A photobuyer who likes his or her job, is not going to jeopardize their good name and that of their company by lurking in cyberspace to steal images from stock photographers. It's just not happening.
Sure, there may be the rare exception. But that kind of thievery was happening before the Digital Age came along. A certain percent of the population is going to be stealing things, no matter what kind of lock you put on it.
Ask yourself, "What are you putting your images on the Web for?" It's to expose them to the buying public. If you hide them or make them too tiny and ineffective, you are sacrificing a major marketing channel.
When I hear reports of stolen images, I ask the persons for documentation. The informants seldom come forth. When they do -- it turns out that a cub scout organization, church group, non-profit newsletter, foreign newspaper, or industrious teen-ager, is the culprit.
So What?
Should we put in barriers to entry to potential buyers by installing a firewall or elaborate re gistration system? Few of us can afford time spent on paranoia, or money on expensive deterrent software. Nor can we afford to have photobuyers, when they encounter these barriers, move on to the next photo supplier.
I have said this often: "Please let me know (with documentation) where a professional photobuyer in the United States has purposely stolen someone's image. No hearsay please, I need documentation." (This refers to the U.S. because of the familiarity of our rules of Copyright, etc. in this country. Other countries have different copyright protections.)
I'm still looking for someone to come forward with documented evidence that "stealing images" by a reputable organization has or is being done.
As I mentioned earlier, this question comes up yearly. Each year, I make the same request. Send me some (documented) U.S. examples of images stolen by a professional photobuyer.
I never get them.
Rohn Engh, veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of “Sell & ReSell Your Photos” and “sellphotos.com.” For more information on how to sell images and to receive a free eReport: “8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer,” visit his website: www.photosource.com Tel: 800 624-0266.
The Wifetest
DIGITAL IMAGES AND SOFTWARE
Every piece of software I purchase has to pass the rigorous "wife-test."
The wife-test basically asks two questions. Those questions are:
1. Will this product make me more efficient?
2. Will this product pay for itself in the near future?
If the answer to both questions is "yes," I go ahead and buy. And it has to be a clear yes, no sneaking around with a "probably," or a "yes, maybe..."
I call it the "wife-test" because if I asked my wife, Ruth, for her input about a particular piece of software or anything else I might need for my business; those are the questions she would ask. Not because she thinks I might fritter our money away but because she's a practical and astute person who sees through the ads and marketing hype.
As we all know, when you go digital there's no end to all the extras you'll need. Like a faster computer, new hard drives, a DVD burner, software that does this, that and the other, a new monitor, various cables, card readers, and boxes after boxes with trinkets and gizmos.
Having the wife-test to lean on has helped me steer clear of quite a bit of hidden money-magnets.
Recently two different pieces of software passed the wife-test with flying colors. These are Capture One DSLR Pro from Phase One, and Spyder Pro from ColorVision.
The Capture One software is an image editor that handles RAW photos straight from my Canon digital camera. It has a converter that develops the RAW format into TIF with a minimum amount of hassle and a maximum amount of ease and functionality. This feature is light-years better than the conversion software that comes with the camera.
Capture One is intuitive to use and I have found that it has helped me cut 20 percent off the time it used to take me to import digital images into my computer. Mainly it's the RAW developer and the handling of associated data that makes this a very good buy, in my book. I warmly recommend Capture One DSLR Pro to anyone who routinely handles digital images. For those who don't need the full pro version, Capture One has a lighter, cheaper version. To purchase or for more info simply visit Phase One's website at www.phaseone.com
CALIBRATE YOUR MONITOR
Spyder Pro is a color management and calibration tool - something no stock photographer who works with digital images should be without. The software calibrates your monitor so that you can rest assured that what you see is really what you'll get as far as colors go. This is really crucial for anyone selling digital images, because photobuyers will really dislike you if your low res preview has brilliant color and your final high res submission looks nothing like the preview.
There are products that will make your life a lot easier when we're talking digital stock images. There are also products that won't. For me, the 'wife-test' has proven very useful in helping me discern between the two.
Photojournalist Mikael Karlsson has 18 years' experience of working for magazines and newspapers in more than 30 countries. He moved to the United States in 1998 from his native Sweden. He lives in Nebraska and is currently US correspondent for 11 Swedish magazines and a regular contributor to a wide variety of U.S. publications. Reach him at mike[at]photosource[dot]com.
MARKETING TIP: Can you objectively assume which photo will be chosen when you send a selection of on-target photos to a photobuyer? The answer is “no” -- because most photographers think like photographers –not photobuyers. How many times have you said, “I never thought they would choose THAT one! It’s not my best of that selection I sent”
This tells you that you should be ‘thinking’ like a photobuyer when you are shooting. Study the layouts of magazines, books, brochures, and websites. These will be a blueprint for you.
MARKETING TIP: When a publisher states that they want to license your photo on a RF (Royalty Free) basis, ask them first “What is Royalty Free?”
Very often their conception of RF will be different from the standard definition that’s often published on microstock sites.
In many cases, the photobuyer is looking for temporary protection if you were to license the same photo to a competitor. Or, a calendar company will ask that they can use the picture for a two-year period to make sure another calendar company won’t use it also.
Some companies only want to be able to know they can have permission to use your picture within the publishing sphere of their company and don’t care if the picture is used elsewhere.
Photobuyers are usually willing to negotiate on RF use. Don’t give them full rights unless you have to.
NO LONGER JUST FOR PROS. At PhotoPlus Expo: Hottest Advancements In Photography On Display . For the last 25 years, if it's been something cutting edge that snaps a photo, or has anything to do with snapping a photo, it's been on display at the annual PhotoPlus Expo, which is held at the Javits Center. Organizers say while the focus of the show was still on the professionals, each year there's more evidence that recent technological advancements seem to be shrinking the gap between what a pro and amateur can create.
http://www.ny1.com/content/ny1_living/87904/hottest-advancements-in-photography-on-display-at-photoplus-expo/Default.aspx
POLL FACTS -- (Next time) Guide to Shooting Video or Taking Pictures at the Polls. “I've taken my camera with me to vote for the last several elections resulting in both good and bad experiences. When San Diego used touch-screen machines for the first time, I was able to get a shot using my digital SLR. On another election day, I was stopped and aggressively questioned by a poll worker for trying to take a cell phone photo.
Here's the problem. The legality of cameras inside polling places isn't black and white; the laws vary state by state. Plus, some poll workers have only received basic training and will apply their own judgment. The Citizen Media Law Project suggests four things to avoid getting yourself into trouble: follow the rules, be discreet, don't interfere with voters or the process, and respect the buffer zone.
http://www.nathangibbs.com/2008/10/30/guide-to-shooting-video-or-taking-photos-at-the-polls/
CANNONBALL EXPRESS EXHUMED? Newscom About to Acquire Digital Railroad's Assets? - Digital Railroad has received a letter of intent (LOI) to purchase the assets of DRR, specifically its hardware and application software used to store and retrieve images with the desire to continue providing services to DRR members and customers with as little disruption as possible. Check the Diablo Management: website.www.diablomanagement.com
http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/drr.html
DOWNGRADING – Photographers Sue Getty Images Over Subscription Pricing - The suit claims that by including rights-managed stock images in the Getty Images Premium Access subscription product, Getty violated copyright and broke its contract with rights-managed contributors. The suit says Getty's product makes rights-managed images available under royalty-free license terms for unreasonably low prices.
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/content_display/photo-news/legal-news/e3i397aa99d2932d77da0aebdbf63c12a2c
BUT IS PHOTOGRAPHY ART? The CEO of Aeroplan hopes Damien Hirst isn't reading this. But Rupert Duchesne was astounded by the controversial British artist's recent Sotheby's auction, which sold $200 million (U.S.) worth of dead animals submerged in formaldehyde, glass-fronted medicine cabinets stuffed with cigarette butts, and drawings of Hirst's signature dots, butterflies and skulls. "It's mind-bogglingly bizarre," says Duchesne.
That's not to say Duchesne--who sits on the board of the Art Gallery of Ontario--doesn't respect Hirst's work. "He has produced some extraordinarily interesting pieces," he says. But there are some who don't consider Hirst's collections of peculiar objects to be art. Likewise, "there are people who've argued for years that photography isn't the same quality of art as, say, painting," says Duchesne, his blue eyes staring out the window of his eighth-floor Toronto office.
"I say this at my peril, but if a shark in a tank is art, then photography is art."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20081031.ROB11PG27/TPStory/Business
THE PAPARAZZI Two court cases could alter UK privacy laws, photographers' work - Big Pictures, a celebrity stock agency, has been dealt a double-blow in courts, threatening the future of celebrity photographers as two landmark cases against the celebrity agency could reshape UK privacy laws
http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=823647
SOME LEGAL TIPS. Online Legal Advice For Photographers - It's not what you take a photo of as much as it is what you do with it and who benefits. Rights and propriety are not always the same thing. As Attorney Wright says, what you can do isn't always what you should do.. Attorney Bert Krages has created a printable PDF to give you "quick access to your rights and obligations
concerning confrontations over photography."
http://www.appscout.com/2008/10/online_free_legal_adivce_for_p.php
THAT LOOKS FAMILIAR. Does a Derivative Work Violate Your Copyright? - Alistair Scott reports on a incident where it looks as though a painter combined two photographs to create her work that won the American Watercolor Society's 2008 prestigious Gold Medal Award. The winning painting has been withdrawn AWS is
investigating the matter. But what about the rights of the photographers who took the two photos? http://www.photoattorney.com/
TAKEAWAY: Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but no one is grateful when work is stolen. – Carolyn Wright.
THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH, by Sam Abell. Sam Abell, considered one of the foremost photographers of our time, showcases some of his most powerful and unforgettable images and answers the question, "What gives life to a photograph?" The book is organized around Abell's perspectives on landscapes, still life, street scenes and the photography of daily life. Selections cover geography and wildlife from the Arctic to the Amazon, and
cultures from Australia to the American West.
With each image Abell presents a master class in photographic thinking. In an original concept for a photography book, images are displayed in a unique, highly involving way that allows the viewer to be engaged in the photographic process. Viewers see how subtle differences in point of view, framing, timing and perspective can lead to strikingly different photographs. By showing similar images side by side, or sequences of photographs of the same event, the viewer is placed in the field and in the editor's chair.(ISBN 978-1-4262-0329-9; $40) Contact: John McFeely, National Geographic Books,2245 17th St NW, Washington DC 10036-4688. Phone: 202 857-7659. Email: jmcfeely[at]ngs[dot]org
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1426203292
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FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY COURSE. Principles, Practice, and Techniques: An Essential Guide, by Eliot Siegel.
This book serves as a practical self-teaching course, presenting a series of tutorials designed to build a beginning fashion photographer's experience and get him or her started on a rewarding career.
Siegel, a leading fashion photographer, provides chapters on lighting, setting up a studio, creating professional quality pictures both in studio and on location, how to
approach and work with fashion model agencies, developing a portfolio, selling one's skills to the fashion industry, working effectively with magazines and advertising agencies, and becoming a photographer's assistant as a valuable entrée to the fashion industy. More than 250 color photos accompany the text.
Includes discussion of trend-setting photographers in the fashion industry, and advice about cameras, both film and digital, and equipment and accessories. (ISBN: 978-0-7641-3947-5; 144 pgs.; $23.99)
Barron's, 250 Wireless Blvd, Hauppauge NY 11788. Email:
steve[at]barronseduc[dot]com. Steve Matteo, Publicity Mgr, 631 434-3311, ext. 208.
Web: www.barronseduc.com
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#0764139479
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CREATING EXHIBITION-QUALITY DIGITAL PRINTS - A Photographer's Guide to Developing RAW files and Optimizing Print Quality by Tim Daly published by Argentum, noonkester[at]ipgbook[dot]com
This book focuses on using digital techniques to reproduce the traditional darkroom methods used to produce fine art, exhibition-quality prints.
The book is laid out in eleven chapters covering The Secrets of Hand-Editing,Print Styles and Formats, RAW file Processing, Creating Emphasis in RAW, Editors, Drawing Out Detail, Deconstruction and Destruction, Personalizing Your Work, Raw Materials, Output Options, Storage - Mounting and Display, and finally Monitoring Image Quality.
Focusing on the raw digital file, the book is laid out in these nine chapters; covering, printing techniques, inks and papers, CMS management, fine art workflow, fine art printers, printing packages and RIPs, black and whit e, as well as image judgment and presentation.
In the chapter on RAW File Processing, Tim comments on where your files originate (scanning, capture data-backs, and or digital cameras. He comments briefly on their processing in software (Adobe Camera RAW, Apple Aperture, and my favorite Adobe Photoshop Lightroom) and then moves you on to the next chapter.
Creating Emphasis in RAW Editors illustrates how to manipulate your image with software like Lightroom's tone curves, color temperature, along with gray scaling and vignetting - again, just very briefly (enough to get you started). He than moves on to the real meat & potatoes of this introductory book on optimizing print quality, in chapter 4, with Drawing Out Detail in your
exhibition-quality digital print with fixing print brightness, fixing color cast, HDR processing (a very new and exciting photographic technique) and another favorite of mine, "Planning Your Print".
In chapter 5, Deconstruction and Destruction he briefly goes into more of Photoshop's adjustment features, like layers, contrast on a brush (history brush - quite good), breaking up flat tonal areas, creating an illusion of 3D space and finally maximizing saturation.
This is a beginner's guide, not a how-to book, on the subject, with the author briefly describing processes, (some more than others), that deserve consideration when creating exhibition-quality digital prints.
Had Tim produced a "how-to" book, it would have taken considerably more space and time.
His introductory level explanations of processes that involve were adequate. He exposed the reader to a solid overview of the digital imaging processes for producing a fine-art exhibition print.
I would have like to have seen a more in-depth step by step recommended workflow, along with more variety of techniques as well as other tools besides Adobe to help improve the process.
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1902538501
--Joseph Stansky
The dust has settled!
..and Now… where are you headed?
The marathon is over. It’s settled. The choice has been made. Now it’s time for you to make your choice.
The time has finally arrived to turn our attention back to our own photographic productivity…and move forward to a new electrifying chapter ahead.
There are uncertainties out there, yes, but given the right knowledge, good coaching, and quality work, there are no hurdles we can’t overcome as we move into this new era. Exciting isn’t it?
Where are you headed? Which choice are you going to grasp?
Whichever one you choose, -- stay vigilant and prepared.
You will hear new ideas; see new approaches to overcome problems you’ll face. One thing is certain, stock photos will always be sought after by your clients when they need to search for new ways to express themselves.
Be ready to supply those photos. There will be a great need for them in the coming months. Be ready to supply them.
Be prudent. Save on expenses where you see an opening. Coupons, discounts and bargains are always available when a new era, a new business, is launched. We can help out. We are offering a substantial discount on the PhotoDaily and the PhotoLetter.
For the next three days, November 5th, 6th, and 7th you can save substantially on a subscription to one or both of these marketletters, – powerful tools that can increase your photo sales and photobuyer contacts.
To capture this bargain price, go here for the details. http://photosource.com/fallsale
We call it the Fall Sale. Just in time to prepare for the coming winter. We provide you with concrete income-producing photo need requests, and you deal directly with photobuyers. Make your choice now, to inject new energy and results into your photo sales.
Let us hear from you - whether you’re a long-time subscriber or new to the field. We’d be happy to work with you in these exciting times to come!
Rohn Engh
PhotoSource International
1 800 624 0266
SCHOOL BOY PHOTOS -- Terrorism Act: Photography fears spark police response (UK). Police have moved to reassure photographers that soon-to-be released government guidance for officers will not give them more stop and search powers under the Terrorism Act 2000.
The statement came as the Metropolitan Police confirmed that officers used the anti-terrorism legislation to stop a schoolboy who had been taking pictures of Wimbledon railway station in London. Source: Joan Saks Berman, photographer.
http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/news/Terrorism_Act_photography_fears_spark_police_response_news_271070.html
IT DISPOSES ITSELF. The company that made memories with its disposable cameras will soon be nothing more than a memory itself. Hollywood based- Concord Camera Corp. said this week that it plans to close down operations. Concord, founded 25 years ago in New Jersey, moved to South Florida in 1998 as the market grew for disposable cameras, a staple for beach vacations and guests' tables at wedding receptions. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-flzconcorddig11010sbnov01,0,7402415.story
JUNK MAIL REPORT. Where have all the credit card mailings gone? “Those letters in the mail to my cat are no longer coming.” In response to a drop in acquisition direct mail volume from financial services companies, (Capitol ONE, et al) direct mail production services provider IWCO Direct said it will immediately close its facility in Elm City, NC, which employs
380 people. “It's becoming so much more difficult for people to become approved for credit that mail volumes have declined in some cases by as much as forty percent,” said Debora Haskel, VP marketing at IWCO Direct.
http://www.dmnews.com/IWCO-Direct-plant-closure-follows-drop-in-mail-volume/article/119883/
WILDLIFE. -- Chinese wins category award in wildlife photography contest Chinese photographer Zhu Yongkang is among the winners in the 44th annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition held here.
http://en.ce.cn/National/culture/200811/03/t20081103_17264440.shtml
HIGH SCORE. Photographer wins $103,000 prize for picture of Chinese dust bowl. A Montreal photographer has won the inaugural Prix Pictet, which hails excellence in environmental photography. Benoit Aquin took home about C$103,000 after the ceremony Thursday night in Paris. His work, titled "The Chinese Dust Bowl," illustrates how fertile farmland in northern China has been turned into an arid desert.
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5igqW8e5RKgnzI06w1z3q8XwDWA_Q
TRADITIONS FADE -- American Indian photographer's life examined in novel "To Catch the Lightning" Curtis saw his subjects as a dying people and his photographs as the only means of preserving their traditions.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081103/ap_en_ot/book_review_to_catch_the_lightning_1
NO LONGER RED -- Norman photography exhibit offers new look at life after communism. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992 came a new set of freedoms for Russian photo-journalists. No longer slave to the propaganda needs of the state, they were free to cover whatever they wanted. A Library of Congress exhibit.
http://newsok.com/norman-photography-exhibit-offers-new-look-at-life-after-communism/article/3318228
COMBING PHOTOS WITH WORDS. -- Photographer Michael Nye finds human voice in stories of mental illness. Pictures say a thousand words. But whose words? For Michael Nye, his portraits are about telling a story - a life in context, as he puts it - through not only dramatic black-and-white photographs but through audio stories told in a subject's own words. Touching, heartbreaking, inspiring words from their experiences, from the context of their own lives.
And there is much life to put into context in Nye's dramatically compelling "Fine Line: Mental Health/Mental Illness" exhibit, which opens with a reception from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 14 and will feature a talk by the artist. This major exhibition is sponsored by a number of mental health, art and social service organizations and will include a series of talks by mental health experts during the exhibit's run.
http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2008/nov/02/photographer-michael-nye-finds-human-voice-stories/
WAR AND PEACE -- Slain photographer’s work displayed in Gaylord Hall Dan Eldon’s Images of War and Peace,” -you should brace yourself for an emotional viewing. http://www.oudaily.com/news/2008/nov/03/slain-photographers-work-displayed-gaylord-hall/
WOMEN -- Power of Role Play Examined in National Museum of Women in the Arts' Original Exhibition Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography on View Through January 25, 2009.
Organized by the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography explores how role playing has been central to the art, meaning and social function of contemporary photography. The exhibit features 70 works by 18 artists.
"In today's image-conscious world, photography is one of the most powerful mediators of our sense of self and for more than two generations, photography has also proved a perfect medium for provocative new approaches to femininity," commented NMWA Director Susan Fisher Sterling, who conceived of the exhibition and is its co-curator.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Power-Role-Play-Examined-National/story.aspx?guid={520F8AE5-F277-4D28-8FCD-58B77E1582FC}
VIGINIA POVERTY. Through Different Eyes: The Faces of Poverty in Virginia" is a large-scale effort to capture through visual images the lives of those in society who are most invisible. The project intends to educate the public through art about the lives of low-income families and individuals in the Commonwealth. The Virginia Museum of Fine Art will tour the exhibit through its statewide education programs for the next two years. It is currently at the Staunton Augusta Arts Center through Nov. 26. http://www.newsleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008810300312
CAMERA OBSCURA Throughout his career, Cleveland-based photographer Bruce Checefsky has experimented with ideas that date back to photography's invention, touching base with its source points, but also making an end-run around history. “A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose," famously chanted Gertrude Stein in her 1913 poem "Sacred Emily." She could have been talking about so-called camera-less photography, especially as it begins to be practiced now in the digital age. Practitioners of that oxymoronic-sounding art sometimes combine high-tech computer equi pment with cardboard and duct tape, producing images that seem to bend back toward a real, rose-like (or at least Gertrude Stein-like) reality.
http://www.freetimes.com/stories/15/78/by-any-other-name
“Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."
-- Thomas Alva Edison
1905 - November 24 - The first gallery to exhibit photographs opened in New York City. It was called "The Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession." Located at 291 Fifth Ave, the gallery was later called simply "the 291." It was run by photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Steichen, who three years earlier, had formed the Photo-Secession Group for "renegade" photographers.
1936 - November 23 - The first issue of the new photo-magazine, Life, came out, selling for 10 cents a copy. The issue featured a cover photo by Margaret Bourke-White, of the Fort Peck Dam in Montana.
Alex Rivera, Award-winning photographer succumbs at 95. As a photojournalist, he covered the last lynchings in South Carolina and Georgia, traveled to Africa and Europe, and documented the court cases that ultimately led to school desegregation. At 93, Rivera, who worked for the Pittsburgh Courier from 1945 to 1965, occasionally still covered a news or sports event when a friend could not. On Oct. 23, Alexander McAllister Rivera made his transition in Durham, N.C., after months of declining health. He was 95.
http://newpittsburghcourieronline.com/articlelive/articles/42385/1/Award-winning-photographer-succumbs-at-95/Page1.html
Delmar Watson, a child actor who appeared in hundreds of movies and later became a photographer who snapped gritty crimes scenes and Hollywood stars, has died. He was 82. David Delmar Watson was 6 months old when he appeared in his first film in 1926. The nine Watson children lived near Mack Sennett Studios in Los Angeles, and "when they needed a kid, they knew where to go," Daniel Watson said.
Delmar Watson appeared in more than 300 films, playing Peter the goat boy in 1937's "Heidi" and Jimmie Hopper in 1939's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
His family also had a long history in news photography. His grandfather shot pictures of Buffalo Bill riding up the street in Los Angeles in 1902, Daniel Watson said.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/10/28/state/n125341D27.DTL
26 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
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November 27th 2008
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26 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Happy Thanksgiving !
(let's get to the meat....)
26 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Take Photos That
Pay For Your Trips
Advance Notes: Taking photos you love to take is the fun part. The work comes before you take the trip. And it is work.
Recently, in the popular "Kracker Barrel" page (http://www.photosource.com/board) on our website, a photographer wrote:
"I'm going to travel in Europe this summer for two weeks. I'll be spending most of my time in northern Italy. Any of you travel photographers have any advice for me on what pictures I ought to be taking and how I can sell them?" -K.B.
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Here was Rohn's answer:
Marketing is the next development stage in your soon-to-become stock photography career.
Be prepared to realize that much of your marketing work needs to be done before you leave on your trip. Write for travel brochures on your destination from airlines, and from railroad companies, hotels, Chambers of Commerce, Tourist Bureaus, Economic Development Departments, of the places you’ll be visiting. The designers of these travel instruments have already chosen subject matter that is appealing about the area. So, you’ll get concrete ideas about just where you should be heading.
Don’t shoot for grandma, who has never been to Italy. In other words, don’t come back with a lot of postcard-type photographs. They may be first class images but they will languish in a stock agency or your own file along with dozens (or hundreds) of other similar “tourist” pictures that everyone else shoots. It’s the Law of Supply and Demand. Excellent photography might never sell for you, not because it is not good, but because the competition is strong. The trick is to use Rule #4, below, and improve upon what has already been shot. "There's nothing new under the sun," as Shakespeare said. Your job is to improve on what's already been done.
Still to do before you leave on your trip: ask yourself, “Will my photos in Italy be on a specific photobuyer’s desk within a week upon my return?” If not, why not? (Be sure to look up the before-your-trip sample query letters in chapter 11 of Sell & ReSell Your Photos.) Diligent planning before the trip, including contact with targeted photobuyers, is half the answer to why some photographers get consistently published.
Want to read more of this article?
http://www.photosource.com/psn-article/pro14.html
26 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Book review. . .
"The Sandy Puc Guide to
Children's Portrait Photography,"
by Sandy Puc (Amherst Media) (marketing@amherstmedia.com)
The book provides a clearly defined outline of what you would consider if
you were going to open your own children's portrait studio. The author
begins the first section with her philosophy in setting up and operating a
portrait studio.
In the second section, A Complete "Kid Care" System, Sandy brings you into
her studio with considerations like: First Impressions Count, Clean and
Organized, A Place for Kids, The First Phone Call, Consultations, Past
Clients, When The Client Arrives, Interacting with the Client, and The
Camera Room. With lots of illustrations and samples of her work, this
section is practical and explicit.
In the third section, Sandy looks at Camera and Lighting Equipment
considerations. With digital camera and lighting equipment she illustrates
both the need to stay up to date and the importance of having the right
equipment available. She comments on Camera, Meters, Tripods as well as
Reflectors, Stands, and Lighting Slaves in her studio.
In the fourth section, she illustrates Lighting and Camera Techniques with
Lighting Ratios, Catchlights, Low Key, High Key, etc. as well as Camera
Techniques with Positions, Selective Focus and the use of Grain.
In Sections five (Designing Portraits), six (Composition and Posing), seven
(Portrait Styles), eight (Working with Kids and Parents), nine (Ages and
Stages), and ten (Special Sessions), she demonstrates her extensive
experience with interacting with her subjects' needs and considerations in a
very artistic as well as practical manner in a studio environment.
In Section eleven, Marketing, and twelve, Sales, she brings real world
business experience to bear with thought-provoking comments on Creating
Opportunity, Community Exposure, Free Sessions Fees, Image Brochure, Outdoor
Sessions, and more. All with a sense of real community involvement.
In the final section, she shares with us her ideas about her involvement in
the community, with comments about Giving Back.
The book is well-written, and follows a clear format
for starting and operating a portrait business.
for starting and operating a portrait business.
It is also very well illustrated with excellent examples of Sandy's work.
And I would recommend this book to stock photographers, as well as both
experienced and beginning portrait photographers. -JS 1120
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1584282347
Joseph Stanski has been an agricultural stock photographer for the last
twenty-five years. He has published in many ag-oriented magazines as well as
national publications. He retired as a schoolteacher and is currently
teaching photography and running his stock photography business in Southeast
Iowa. morningstar138[at]hotmail[dot]com
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Macro Photography for Gardeners and Nature Lovers: The Essential Guide To Digital Techniques, by Alan L. Detrick.
Though advances in digital camera technology have made taking, storing, and sharing photos easier than ever, taking top-quality pictures requires familiarity with both digital techniques and the general principles of photography.
This book provides exactly the information that aspiring photographers need - no matter their level of skill - to take their photos to the next level. Clear, concise chapters cover the basics of macro (close-up) photography, explain the features of current digital single-lens reflex cameras, show the many ways images can be composed, and offer tips on digital effects, storage, and manipulation of imagery. Exercises, definitions, and case studies, demystify digital photography for the reader.
(ISBN: 978-0-88192-890-7; 176
pgs; $24.95) Timber Press, Inc., 133 SW Second Ave. Ste 450, Portland OR 97204-3527. Tel: 800 827-5622; Fax: 503 227-3070. Email: publicity[at]timbexpress[dot]com (160 pages) Contact: Painted Hills Publishing, 16500 Dakota Ridge Rd, Longmont, CO 80503. Tel. 303-823-6599. Fax 303-823-5119. Email: info[at]wildhoofbeats[dot]com Web: http://www.wildhoofbeats.com
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#0881928909
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
There’s a wealth of advice in this interview with our marketletter editor, Lela LaBree. She points out a few mistakes that newcomers to the field of editorial stock photography (and some veteran photographers) are known to make. Photobuyers will choose not to work with photographers (despite their talent) who make these “etiquette” errors.
What do photobuyers expect from you?
Do they welcome phone calls?
Is it true photobuyers have a "filter list" where they list their non-favorite photographers? Why do they do this?
Rohn interviewed Lela LaBree, our in-house editor of the PhotoDaily, and the weekly PhotoLetter.
You’ll find the answers here.
She will serve as a perfect go-between to let you know "the other side of the story"
Listen to her interview here.
http://www.photosource.com/interview/Lela_LaBree
BTW - - The little dog in Lela's picture is Ingah. She is the Official Photosource Pug. Her official Kennel Club name is Ingah DuPont
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
WAYS TO SURVIVE. Selling Stock Photography; How To Survive In A Competitive Marketplace - - Stock is no longer just for print use; clients are buying still images for website, television, video, fine art and film use.
http://shutterbug.com/columns/business_trends/1108business/
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Do you get traffic to your website?
--or do photobuyers pass you on by…?
In our field of editorial stock photography a photo researcher or photo editor has the task of finding a particular picture ( just any microstock picture won’t do ).
Photobuyers need to compliment the articles in their book or magazine with a photo that illustrates the author’s text.
How do researchers find these particular pictures?
In the far past – they visited photo libraries, on foot, and wore out their eyeballs. In the near past, thanks to the Internet, no walking was necessary, they used the Internet, but they still wore out their eyeballs.
Nowadays, with 50,000 new pictures coming onto the Internet every day, they have learned the secret of making a “long tail search” on Google. The same method you have learned.
You type in five or six words to come up with the Italian restaurant in the city you are going to be visiting, or you find some offbeat medicinal herb’s name.
ENTER EDITORIAL STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY:
If you put up a landing page on the web that is nothing but text words, (keywords, tags, etc.) describing in detail your photo collection, Google and other search engines will run their “spiders” through it every four to six months and include your text in their massive database.
When a photobuyer uses a search engine to find his or her pictures, that researcher will land on your landing page, if you included descriptions on your landing page that match their needs. . .mind you, they are not landing on your beautiful website, only to be confused by a kalaediscope of images. (They are only looking for one particular photo, and Google has indicated you have it.)
If the match is made, all that is left is negotiation for the sale. And remember, they have come to you, so there's no selling invloved -only "pricing".
Once they have used your services, now's the time to direct them to your major website to view your stuff. Pretty soon, you'll be on a first name basis with them.
We have been offering this service to stock photographers since 1999. It's called the PhotoSourceBANK. www.hard-to-locate-photos.com
Does it take a lot of work? In the long run, sure, but if you watch your favorite TV sitcom with a laptop in hand, you can easily enter 500 to a 1,000 descriptors each time. Many of our subscribers tell us that’s how they do it. Or some do it at the beach, or in airplanes, on the train.
Here’s where you can learn how to do it. You can join our system if you like, (we get 44,000 hits a day) or you can set up your own landing page. Or you can do both. It only takes a word processor, no fancy software. www.hard-to-locate-photos.com
--Rohn Engh
Photosource International
www.photosource.com
1 800 624 0266
ask for Bruce Swenson, if you have questions, he's the expert.
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for info about landing pages:
http://www.vertster.com/marketing/article.asp?article=1015
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
MAKE YOUR OWN PHOTO BOOK. This system from MyCanvas and SmugMug provides a range of photo sharing and digital photo book publishing options. It allows users to produce one-of-a-kind photo books and posters that reflect their own personality. MyCanvas offers users virtually creative freedom by using advanced online photo book software, combination of templates and editing tools. SmugMug users import their photos directly into MyCanvas to create a variety of photo books, posters and calendars.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=prnw.20081119.LAW003&show_article=1&catnum=0
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
ORPHAN PHOTOS A LA FRANCE. 200 members of France’s 1,600-member photographers' union protested the editorial practice of publishing photographs by unknown photographers with the abbreviation DR, for "droits réservés" or "rights reserved."
While previously used only in the rare case when a photographer could not be located, and then usually temporarily, the abbreviation has become more prevalent as publications with shrinking budgets try to make use of photos they can run for free.
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29510/tough-times-for-french-photographers.
TAKEAWAY: Unsolvable problem? No, because one day, the right software will become available for anyone to detect the creator (copyright owner) of an unidentified image.
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
AS IF THEY DON’T ALREADY STAND OUT. -- A paparazzi agency from Los Angeles, has announced that it is basing its corporate growth plans on recruitment efforts to attract the best experienced photojournalists. Buzz Foto was founded in 2006 with what the company describes as a “talented, yet untrained, pool of photographers.” Due to increasing competition in the marketplace the company is looking to develop a roster of top-tier photography talent in order to stand-out from the crowd. Buzz Foto is counting on experienced photojournalists to drive future growth.
http://www.abouttheimage.com/3984/buzz_foto_paparazzi_experienced_photojournalists_drive_future_growth/author2
FRANCE HAS INTEREST IN ALASKA. Alaska Stock Images, a specialty agency featuring photos from Alaska has signed a deal to distribute Alaska Stock Images in France with a new distribution partnership with Paris-based Hemis, that specializes in marketing travel pictures for editorial and advertising customers in the competitive French marketplace. http://www.abouttheimage.com/3990/hemis_signs_deal_to_distribute_alaska_stock_images_in_france/author2
TAKEAWAY: Will only Alaskan travel scenes be of interest?
NEW ALAMY ALLY. George Sinclair, founder the stock photography consultancy, Virtual Picture Desk, has launched a new business called Universal Images Group Ltd. The new business will be based in the UK lead by Graham Everitt , a stock licensing industry veteran. As a first step the business has entered into an agreement with Alamy, to provide it with upwards of 300,000 images for global distribution. http://www.abouttheimage.com/3988/george_sinclair_distribution_business_called_universal_images_group/author2
STOCK: JUST THE FACTS, PLEASE. 80% of the revenue comes from 20% of the clients; and 80% of the best-selling product comes from 20% of the suppliers. Corbis and Getty don't just sell stock images they acquire from independent photographers. They also hire a staff of photographers who shoot (mostly assignment work) for the agency's clients. These photographers are typically paid a flat rate (salary). In fact, much of an agency's profitability comes from these assignments. Most stock agencies pay 30% to the photographers of the income coming from their royalty-free images.
http://ecommerce-journal.com/articles/11261_if_you_want_to_buy_an_image
TEN QUESTIONS FOR: PhotoShelter - In light of the demise of Digital Railroad, a few readers have written expressing concern about the future of PhotoShelter, and what their closing of the PhotoShelter Collection means.
Grover Sanschagrin answers.
http://photobusinessforum.blogspot.com/2008/11/10-questions-for-photoshelter.htmlt
FEW $$’s WILL TRICKLE IN. SAA (Stock Artists Alliance) reports the only positive news for photographers is the potential to receive a share of some license revenues.
In summary: Monies already collected by DRR will not be paid or refunded to the photographers, including prepaid annual hosting fees and any license fees received. From a FAQ posted by Diablo, "Prior to November 14, 2008, that portion of the photographer's money collected by Digital Railroad was either, paid to the photographers, used for operating costs, or foreclosed on by the senior secured crditor." DRR will continue to invoice customers and collect fees until Dec. 19. Photographers will receive 70 percent of the proceeds of license revenues collected between Nov. 14 and Dec. 19. http://www.photonewstoday.com/?p=19237 http://www.stockartistsalliance.org/drr
TAKEAWAY: It was fun while it lasted.
http://www.lightstalke rs.org/apany-art-directors-club-saa-and-digital-railroad-group-party How did Digital Railroad get sidetracked? http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=NewsDesk_Internal&article_num=102908-1
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
PRODUCTION LINE PHOTOS. -- Micro Machines - Microstock is one tough business for photographers. Prices are low, margins are thin and competition is fierce. Is it worth it? Here, the world's top microstock producers reveal how they're making it pay off.
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/content_display/features/featured-in-print/e3i0731a974271226255ad9e476eea06f6c
GOING UP! -- Shutterstock Hits 5 Million Images - Shutterstock's library provides creative and editorial content, rivaling traditional stock photography agencies, yet at far lower prices.
http://www.creativepro.com/article/shutterstock-hits-5-million-images
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
PHOTO ENHANCEMENT BEFORE DIGITAL. War photography: Truth is the first casualty. Can war photography ever be trusted? Our critic sees an unsettling show about Robert Capa and his legacy. In 1954, he stepped on a roadside mine at a small turn-off in the first Indochina war, and died the death he seemed always to have been angling for. Oh, and in between he founded Magnum Photos, that alpha-male photographers’ club that still calls so many of the photographic shots in modern media.
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article5197168.ece
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE PRICE IS RIGHT – The magazine, Inside Photoshop has forged a relationship with PhotoSpin, a subscription-based online stock photography service. Now, Inside Photoshop provides five high-resolution images handpicked from PhotoSpin’s online library, free, available for download right from the Inside Photoshop website. PhotoSpin is also offering discounted annual subscriptions to their library exclusively for Inside Photoshop subscribers.. http://www.prlog.org/10142351-design-professionals-rely-on-stock-photography-to-save-time-and-money.html
HERE WE GO AGAIN. National Geographic opposes high court petition in Greenberg case. The magazine says Justices should not take his case because 11th, 2nd Circuit Courts agree. The National Geographic Society is challenging the Jerry Greenberg (freelancer) U.S. Supreme Court petition for review, which, if granted, could revisit the high court's 2001 landmark copyright ruling that said publishers can't sell previously published freelance contributions for use in computer or online databases without renegotiating publication rights with the authors. Written by former Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr, the National Geographic brief argues that there is no reason for the Supreme Court to hear Florida photographer Greenberg's appeal of an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' en banc ruling favoring National Geographic that was handed down last summer. That ruling, released by a sharply divided court, addressed conflicting appellate interpretations of New York Times v. Tasini, 533 U.S. 483, and the 1976 revisions of federal copyright laws. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202426059772&pos=ataglance
TAKEAWAY: Maybe there should be a national referendum on this one to get it settled.
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE PRICE OF FAME. A Los Angeles Councilman seeks to protect celebrities from paparazzi Celebrities could drop their children off at school and visit their doctors without fear of being accosted by paparazzi under a proposal introduced by a Los Angeles city councilman this week. The proposed law, the latest effort by Councilman Dennis Zine to combat aggressive tabloid photographers, would restrict commercial photography and video recordings within 20 feet of schools, hospitals and medical facilities.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-paparazzi20-2008nov20,0,5207289.story?track=rss
WE WANT OUR PHOTOS -- Wedding photos seized from defunct studio The first of 3,600 couples whose wedding memories were locked away when a photography company shut down in January were finally united with their keepsakes today. About 100 couples from New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania went to the state Division of Consumer Affairs office in Newark to retrieve their portraits, photographs and DVDs taken by Celebration Studios.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/couples_united_with_wedding_ph.html
TAKEAWAY. Shades of Digital Railroad?
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
BORROWING GONE WRONG The celebrated French photographer Bettina Rheims has been charged with plagiarism and ordered to pay a fine of €30,000 ($38,000), reports Artforum via Der Standard. A French court ruled that Rheims, best known for her erotic images of women, had infringed on copyright by using an image by German artist Jakob Gautel in a montage; the work features Gautel's photograph with the word "paradis" written over an image of a toilet door. http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29510/tough-times-for-french-photographers/
EASY REGISTRATION. Registering Your Copyrights Using the eCO System - To make the process even easier, the US Copyright Office recently started offering the opportunity to register your copyrights online.($35, paper registration is $45.) Using the electronic copyright office system ("eCO"), you can register your photographs quickly and with less
work. http://www.naturescapes.net/docs/index.php/articles/341
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
A JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE. Life Magazine Archive hosted by Google - Time Inc. has announced over 10 million images in total - will soon be available on a new hosted image service from Google. Ninety-seven percent of the photographs have never been seen by the public.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/18/life-magazine-archive-hosted-by-google/
http://opensourcepbx.tmcnet.com/topics/open-source/articles/45647-10-million-rarely-seen-images-from-life-archive.htm
http://www.minonline.com/news/9253.html
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE SEEING EYE PHOTOGRAPHER. Artist envisions turning fake eye into bionic eye-cam. Three years after losing her left eye in a car accident, San Franciscoan, Tanya Vlach, wants to make her artificial eye more useful: She's planning to put a video camera in her eye socket with the goal of having a bionic eye.
Asked in an e-mail what her inspiration is, Vlach wrote: The Bionic Woman and maybe Blade Runner! Ever since I lost my eye I would fantasize about having a bionic eye. So I did research and I realized that as technology becomes increasingly smaller it seemed doable to engineer a miniature video camera small enough to put inside my acrylic prosthetic. And then finally I would have a device as close to an eye as I could get. Also, I love photography and video, this would be a true P.O.V (point of view) perspective. http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-10101188-76.html?tag=mncol
TAKEAWAY: You never know who’s watching (and taping) you.
SUPER SENSOR. -- Sony has announced the development of the finest-yet pixel-pitch 1/2.5" sensor. The 12.2MP CMOS sensor has been developed for mobile phone cameras, but is of a size commonly used in compact and super zoom cameras. The IMX060PQ sensor, which Sony brands 'Exmor' in common with its DSLR CMOS sensors, will also be available incorporated into an F2.8 28mm-equiv lens unit with piezoelectric driven autofocus - relatively advanced for a camera phone module.
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0811/08111701sony12mpsensorcamphone.asp
SAY CHEESE! Bottle cap tripod mount - Lone travelers, vain photographers, or anyone too shy to ask someone to take their picture finally have a convenient way to include themselves in their photographs, thanks to Charles & Marie's bottle cap tripod.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10102511-1.html?tag=mncol
BRIGHT IDEA. High-Brightness LEDs are optimized for flash photography. The new OSLUX LED benefits from an optimized chip and lens design that results in increased brightness.
http://news.thomasnet.com/fullstory/552165
WHERE’D MY IMAGE GO? -- PhotoRescue Saves Lost Pictures - This utility recovers digital photos from erased or damaged compact flash, memory stick, xd cards, smart media, sd cards, and other media. And it's only $29.00.
http://www.creativepro.com/article/photorescue-saves-lost-pictures
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
PORN IN A FLASH -- A surge in creepy "upskirt" photography has lawmakers concerned -- and the body parts of women posted all over the Internet. Similar shots can be found on many other popular photo-sharing sites, like Fotki and Photobucket. http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2008/11/25/upskirting/index.html?source=rss&aim=/mwt/feature
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE GQ PHOTO ESSAY. Jeff Riedel's Massive GQ Photo Essay - In the November issue of GQ is a 32 page photo essay (online here) shot by one photographer. There are very few photographers getting 32 pages in magazines all to themselves these days (anytime actually) and a photo essay of this magnitude is a major deal.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/18/jeff-riedels-massive-gq-photo-essay/
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
In “Marvels of Modernism,” the latest installment, 10 photographers have translated the design elements of 12 postwar Modernist landscapes — kidney-shaped pools, Miró-esque reservoirs, boomerang curves, floating cantilevered decks and adventure playgrounds — for the 21st century. The exhibition, which opened Wednesday, will run through Jan. 4 and then travel to museums and botanical gardens.So for a second year the foundation, in collaboration with Garden Design magazine and the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, has commissioned photographers to capture for posterity significant landscapes at risk of being lost. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/23/arts/design/23shat.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
FROM NATIVE RESERVATION TO PALM SPRINGS RESERVATIONS. A University of California/Davis exhibit of photographer Lee Marmon’s 60-year career, from reservation life to Palm Springs’ golfing glitterati
Today, his images of tribal elders are the heart of a photographic oeuvre spanning six decades. The now 83-year-old Marmon, considered the “father of contemporary Native American photography,” has spent his life documenting Native American people and landscapes.
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/Content?oid=880837
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
DIMENSIONAL PHOTOS. If you place pictures of nature on your website, give them some dimension by adding an inspirational phrase. http://www.naturesinspirationmovie.com/land.html
Source: Thanks to Pam Costa
25 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
1993 – The first issue of PhotoStockNotes appeared.
Happy Birthday to
PhotoStockNOTES!
(Thanks to LoriLee Sampson, ace photographer and web designer)
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
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20 November 2008
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19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Leave A
Paper Trail
Advance Notes: The Digital Era has ushered in the safeguard of sending digital scans to a prospective photobuyer for viewing, rather than originals. Step two, however, in some cases can involve sending an original transparency(s), that the photobuyer requests for final review. In the case of book publishing, you may have to send several dozen originals. What happens if one of those transparencies is lost or damaged? Depending on the size of the publishing house, you may want to hire the services of an attorney who is familiar with media legal aspects.
If you sometimes still deal in transparencies and experience loss of one of your images by a photobuyer, the attorney you retain will expect you to supply proof (documentation) that there was an actual transaction between you and the buyer. That being settled, here’s the kind of letter you can expect your attorney will write:
Dear Ms. Smith:
I have been retained by John Doe, Photographer, regarding his claim for reimbursement due to the loss of one of his transparencies by your company, Jones Publishing.
Mr. Doe has documented, with copies of correspondence and a phone log, the following course of events:
12/3/07 In response to a request on 12/3/07 by Jones Publishing, Mr. Doe sent 20
original color transparencies to Jones Publishing (JP) for review.
3/14/08 Mr. Doe received return of 15 slides, poorly packaged, from JP .
3/18/08 Mr. Doe notified JP by telephone of 5 missing slides.
4/10/08 Doe telephoned JP. He was informed that 4 of 5 slides would be
returned, but one slide remained missing.
4/17/08 Doe telephoned JP. Informed by JP that 4 slides had been
sent 1 week earlier. One slide still missing.
4/20/08 Doe received four of the five remaining slides.
5/5/08 Doe sent certified letter to JP with invoice for $1,500
(#4887-5) for lost original slide, demanding payment by 6/5/08.
5/16/08 JP telephoned Doe and offered $1,000 settlement of claim. Doe
counter-offered $1,250.
5/18/08 JP again offered $1,000 (by telephone). Doe accepted
provided prompt payment was made.
5/26/08 Doe called JP. Demanded payment of $1,000 by 6/5/08 as
per original invoice. JP stated payment would be made within
two weeks.
As of this date, 6/15/08, Mr. Doe has received no payment.
Please advise me if any of these facts, as stated by Mr. Doe to me, are inaccurate or incomplete according to your records.
Assuming their accuracy, the $1,000 settlement negotiated by JP and Mr. Doe is now void due to Jones Publishing's failure to make prompt payment as promised. Moreover, liability has been accepted by JP.
Want to read more of this article?
http://www.photosource.com/psn-article/gen593.html
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Spammer Gets Off
You may remember back in 2004, when Jeremy Jaynes was convicted for sending unsolicited bulk email (SPAM to us). Now, 4 years later, the conviction has been overturned on First Amendment rights. The Virginia Supreme Court (the action was brought in Virginia because the servers that he used to send the emails, AOL, are in Virginia) declared the state’s antispam law unconstitutional, since at the time, the law was not restricted to commercial email, but included all such email, which would have included political and religious messages. And since the national CAN-SPAM act was not in effect at the time the messages were sent, it cannot be applied.
When Is Email Not Private?
Well, for one, we all know that most companies have a policy that emails sent via their equipment and/or ISP are not considered to be private correspondence, even if you use a non-company email address and/or webmail. Now, how about this: A reasonable suspicion is not needed for customs officials to search a laptop or other personal electronic storage devices at the border, which would include computers, cell phones, PDAs, memory sticks, etc.
Wow! Fortunately, so far, you don’ t have to worry about this unless you are the one being arrested. Passengers will not be stopped just to have their electronic devices searched. But if you do get into an altercation or are stopped for other reasons, your personal electronic devices are subject to this warrantless search. Yet another erosion of our personal rights in the name of justice.
White Spaces Opened by FCC
Bonus! This November, the FCC voted to allow use of the white space empty electromagnetic spectrum (air waves) between television channels to allow companies to provide broadband internet access.
“What is white space?” In the old days (analog television transmission), channels were spaced apart to avoid mutual interference, especially in fringe areas. And for some communities, analog TV will still be used, at least for a while. But remember, February 17, 2009 is the date for the nation to switch to digital TV transmission (www.dtv.gov), with the analog TV frequencies auctioned for other uses.
So I just see this as a re-allocation of broadcast spectrum, and not so much as filling in the spaces between TV channels.
And as it has the potential to reduce broadband prices and increase broadband access to millions of people, freeing up the white space is a good thing.
Bill Hopkins is the Webmaster of PhotoSourceFolio, where photographers
display photos and a regular contributor to PhotoStockNotes. Send comments to Bill via email. Fax: 1 818 831-0916. For on-line questions, contact Bill on the Kracker Barrel.
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
MARKETING TIP Some photographers use a month/year numbering system to identify their digital images. Don't. You reveal the age of your pictures. Photo buyers are less eager to buy a picture taken in 2006, than one with no date on it. Use an alphabetical photo identification system.
UNAUTHORIZED USE OF YOUR COPYRIGHTED PHOTO? If you receive no response after billing the infringer twice, contact us and we'll send them a letter. --Rohn Engh
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
GONE WITH THE WIND. -- Digital Railroad Servers To Be Scrubbed Clean - Diablo Management has informed Digital Railroad's former customers and clients the servers are now going to wiped clean and sold at auction immediately. "Digital Railroad had hoped that it could preserve the images on the storage devices so that the owners of these images could recover them. Unfortunately, this was not achievable. http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/wiped.html
SQUEAKY CLEAN AND SAFE IMAGES. ReadyImages takes the hassle out of using images for business purposes. Alamy Provides Images For Copyright Clearance Center Corporate Subscription Service - Subscribers no longer have to waste time searching for quality images, getting permission, navigating shopping carts and completing complicated check-out processes. http://www.stockphotographer.info/content/view/709/92/
TAKEAWAY. But how ‘bout the good ones that got away?
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
GETTING BIGGER. Fotosearch, has acquired the Canadian micropayment stock site Can Stock Photo. - Rick Wintersberger, the owner of the stock image distributor reported recently.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/11/prweb1603934.htm
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
FINE ART PRINTING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS, Exhibition Quality Prints with
Inkjet Printers, 2nd Edition, by Uwe Steinmueller and Juergen Gulbins.
The authors provide the foundation necessary for fine art printing: the understanding
of color management, profiling, paper, and inks. They demonstrate how to set
up the printing workflow, and guide the reader step-by-step through the process
of converting and image file to an outstanding fine art print. This 2nd Edition
has been newly edited, and include expanded coverage of the newest printers
and papers. (ISBN-13; 978-1-933952-31-4; 298 pgs; $44.95) Contact: Joan Dixon,
Rocky Nook, 26 W. Mission St., #3, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Phone: 805-687-8728.
Fax: 805-687-2204. Email: joan[at]rockynook[dot]com
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
PHOTOBUYERS are looking for you. Not every buyer looks for a pretty sunset
or a placid lake scene. In fact they seldom do. They know exactly where they can
find one. What they DO look for are those hard-to-locate pictures that
their authors write about. It just may be in your database. But how do you know
they’re looking for one of your pictures? If you are just starting out in stock
photography, you may want to test out the email marketing system provided by our
PHOTLETTER. Here’s where you can get more information about the PhotoLetter.
http://www.source-photo.com Be sure to ask about the ‘free coaching’ bonus.
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
IS IT FAUXTOGRAPHY? – A 73-year-old photographic agency,Black Star, announced the release of an eBook -- Photojournalism, Technology and Ethics: What's Right and Wrong Today? -- that examines photojournalism's ethical challenges through the prism of the profession's past, present and future. Is Photoshop killing photojournalism? Download the free e-book at rising.blackstar.com
http://www.creativepro.com/article/photoshop-killing-photojournalism
TAKEAWAY: Progress sometimes hurts.
WELL DONE. Failure is an Option - There are several reasons why a shoot fails. A failed shoot is no big deal and if a photographer has done other successful shoots but if it's the first time shooting they're probably not going to get a second chance no matter who's fault it is..
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/12/failure-is-an-option/
TAKEAWAY: “My reputation grows with every failure.” George Bernard Shaw
IS IT JOURNALISM OR ILLUSTRATION? Another Digitally Altered Department Of Defense Photo; AP Suspends Using Their Hand-Outs - "For us, there's a zero-tolerance policy of adding or subtracting actual content from an image," said Santiago Lyon, the AP's director of photography.
http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/general.html
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
TIGHTENING THE GUIDELINES. (Australia) Photography protocols panned as unworkable. ALL photographs of children clothed or unclothed will have to be cleared by the children's parents or guardians before they can be exhibited. That is one problematic aspect of sweeping guidelines designed to protect children depicted in works of art.
It has prompted a key visual arts organization to describe as "unworkable" elements of draft protocols drawn up after of controversy over Bill Henson's photography.
http://www.watoday.com.au/national/photography-protocols-panned-as-unworkable-20081113-66a6.html?page=-1
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2008/s2419720.htm
IT’S NOT YOURS! Kodak sues Samsung, LG over camera patents
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081117/kodak_patent_lawsuit.html?.v=1
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
IT’S BACK. Instant photography is back, in the form of Fujifilm's Instax 200 camera.
http://technologizer.com/2008/11/13/the-unexpected-return-of-instant-photography/
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Fujifilm-NASDAQ-FUJI-920650.html
MISSING PHOTOS. Hiroshima: The Lost Photographs - How 700 previously unseen photographs of the Hiroshima aftermath ended up in a pile of trash in Massachusetts.
http://www.designobserver.com/archives/entry.html?id=38841
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
PROFIT CENTER. Would you pay this guy $8,000 to take your wedding pictures? (Asia) $8,000 is how much Mr Hwang Chi Kuang charges for a day's work. 'Five years ago, these prices were unheard of,' said the owner of 39 East Photography. When he started, he said, the high end was around $2,500. Wedding photography was once considered to be at the 'bottom rung' of photography's ladder. It was felt that only those who failed to become fashion shooters or news photojournalists became wedding photographers. They were not seen as creative professionals. Mr Kelvin Koh, 33, owner of LightedPixels, said: 'Wedding photographers were considered no different from taxi or bus drivers.'
http://business.asiaone.com/Business/Office/Hot%2BJobs/Story/A1Story20081114-100685.html
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0811/08111101sigmafoveon.asp
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
DIGITAL DETECTIVE: Digital pics contain 'fingerprints' of cameras used to click them - The researcher says that his team's approach has been found to identify cameras with 90 per cent accuracy in early tests. If we can identify the camera, then there is a possibility that we can identify who bought it and where.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20081115/393/ttc-digital-pics-contain-fingerprints-of.html
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Yao Lu Winner of the 2008 BMW-Paris Photo Prize for Contemporary Photography
http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=27277
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
SNAPSHOTS BECOME ART. For three decades, Michael Jang has earned his keep making photographic portraits of prominent San Franciscans, regular Joes and Silicon Valley big shots. But all the while he's been taking other pictures for the sheer pleasure of it: punk rockers,cowboys, gang members, Castro's Cuba.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/09/DDGG13N1SB.DTL
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
“Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” – John Madden
19 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
1912 – November 30 – Photographer Gordon Parks was born in Fort Scott, Kansas.
1925 – November 20 – Photograph from an airplane at night was taken over Rochester NY, by Lieutenant George Goddard in cooperation with the Eastman Kodak Company, which supplied a photometer by which the intensity of light was measured. The photographs were taken from a 3,000-foot altitude and showed about 3 square miles of the city’s area. A light bomb was dropped which made a flash lasting but one twentieth of a second.
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
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12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Adopt Your Own
Vertical Markets
Advance Notes: If you have been shooting photos "across the board" in a broad approach to stock photography, you have unwittingly forced yourself to find markets across the board, rather than in a focussed, or "vertical market," direction. You've given yourself a Herculean task. Change today to focus your shooting approach on your own, specialized areas.
Should you ever take a picture that is outside your specialization areas? Yes, if it's a hands-down "winner." You can always put it with your stock agency or add it to your listings on your PhotoSourceBank Web site: www.photosource.com/psb But your bread and butter will come from your vertical market areas.
How It Works
Finding markets geared to your interest areas flows naturally into focussing on "vertical markets"- different markets that all seek photos in a specific subject area.
First of all, you get to pick the level where you'd like to start. Top budget, middle, or entry level budget. Gauge your choice based on your track record, expertise, editorial stock photography experience, and whether you’re part-time or full-time.
At the lower-budget level you will aim for $1,000-a-year net profit from each contact on your Market List. At the middle level, you aim for $3,000 per year per market contact. At the top (professional) level, you aim for $5,000 per year profit per contact.
Shall we translate these numbers into reality?
Let's say you choose to work at editorial stock photography only part time. We'll choose the entry (lower budget) level, to illustrate. On average, a lower budget level publishing house will have a $20,000-per-month budget for photography. (That's per month, not per year. A top level publishing house will have five times that budget.)
Your aim is to be a recipient of part of that $20,000-per-month budget.
Let's say that on January 1st (all things being equal) you land a first sale of $75 with a customer whose photo needs match one of your photo marketing strength areas (PS/A). Over the next 365 days, you net $1,000 from that customer. In real terms this might be in the form of three cover photos @$400 (most publishing houses produce a variety of magazines, periodicals, brochures, electronic products, weekly bulletins, etc. - so there are many cover opportunities); four inside photos on average per month @$75; and one special use photo @$200. Your total sales to that buyer for the year are $5,000. Your expenses take up 80% of your costs and you come away with a 20% net profit of $1,000.
You might have broken even on your first sale, and spent $75 to make $75, but you can see where the investment is worth it.
And this is only one publishing house. If you gain ten new customers in 365 days, you are looking at $10,000 net profit for the year. In the following year, if you gain ten more customers, you are looking at a $20,000 per year net profit. And so on. And this is at the lower budget level.
THE FUTURE NET WORTH
Once you line up your vertical markets, you operate with them on the Future Net Worth principle. Every one of your markets represents an average amount of income you can count on for years ahead.
We have found here at PhotoSource International that an editorial customer on your Market List stays with you and keeps buying your work for an average of ten years (and some much longer). Because publishing houses rarely change the vertical theme of their publishing thrust (horticulture, sailing, horses, pets, travel, aviation, etc.) you can expect that if you build your stock file vertically in the same vein, you and that publishing house can do business for a long, long time. Individual photo editors at the publishing house may come and go, but you remain a regular supplier to that company.
THE FUTURE
Now that the computer has become an integral part of our lives, we're seeing photobuyers increasingly using the convenience of the Internet to locate highly specific pictures for their publishing projects.
If you collect a deep selection of pictures in a vertical market, you can expect to tie into many new markets who have been waiting to discover you. You do this by not "selling your photos” – but by focussing your camera in the areas you love shooting, and building expertise and depth of coverage in those areas – making you an important resource to photobuyers in need of your kind of pictures.
During a 'down economy' (we've been through 4 of them since 1977), photobuyers seek out new channels through the Internet to save time (and money) to find you and your specialties. They'd prefer not to 'flip through online catalogs', but to use a search engine to go directly to the source that matches their current photo needs.
Let the good times roll!
Rohn Engh veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of "Sell & ReSell Your Photos" and "sellphotos.com." For more information on how to sell images and to receive a free eReport: "8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer," visit his website: www.photosource.com Tel: 800 624-0266.
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Attending a Seminar
Are you a stock photographer? You know that you shoot alone, work alone, and there's seldom an office where you can mingle with colleagues and co-workers. Have I just described a lonely vocation?
We all know that interaction with peers and colleagues is important in any profession. So is networking, discussing new ideas, new trends. So, what should a stock photographer do?
A REMEDY
Attending seminars is a excellent way to expand your knowledge of your craft. You also get to meet people interested in the field, veterans, and photographers just starting out.
There are plenty of general photography seminars and workshops available across the country. They are great for general info, inspiration, and mastering basic techniques. When it comes to the specific aspects of stock photography, however, you want to look for seminars targeted to stock marketing and operation.
INSPIRATION & KNOWLEDGE
As stock photographers, we sometimes forget that we are much more than "just" a photographer. We are also owners of a small business, and there is a wide range of information in all sorts of fields that comes in really handy for small business-owners.
To gain this knowledge you can arrange to attend other workshops and seminars aside from photographic ones. For example, workshops on direct mail/marketing, small business accounting, small business taxation and tax planning, and graphic design, are all beneficial for small business-owners.
GENERAL PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS
Photography workshops come in all flavors and sizes. You have seen them advertised in the photo magazines and newsletters. They range from highly specialized to broad in their coverage. With a little investigating you're bound to find a seminar/workshop that is of interest to you.
Approach a workshop like you would any other business endeavor. Ask for a few references of photographers that have previously taken the workshop. Check the references out, make sure everything computes, and go for it.
There are several workshop companies that have been around for many years and that have a very solid reputation. The SantaFe Workshops, Maine Photographic Workshops, Rocky Mountain School of Photography and Nikonschool, just to name a few.
Note: Photojournalist Mikael Karlsson has 18 years' experience of working for magazines and newspapers in more than 30 countries. He moved to the United States in 1998 from his native Sweden. He lives in Nebraska and is currently US correspondent for 11 Swedish magazines and a regular contributor to a wide variety of U.S. publications. Reach him at mike[at]photosource[dot]com
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
TRAVELERS
Photographers: We broadcast your foreign destinations along with contact information, departure date, length of stay, etc. Contact PhotoStockNotes (1 715 248-3800) at least two months in advance.
Photobuyers: Watch this column. For the e-mail address, phone or fax number of the traveling photographer, call the PhotoSource International office and ask for Rohn Engh (1 800 624-0266). For an expansion of this list: www.photosource.com and press the Travelers Abroad button, to learn of past international destinations of our photographers.
Terri Petri
Oct 17- Nov 2 2008
Johannesburg, Kruger Park, South Africa
Peter Llewellyn
Nov 7 - Nov 21 08
Brazil (Pantanal)
Frederick Randall
Nov 2008 – May 2009
Caribbean, BWI
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Travelwriter Marketletter… for writers and photojournalists.
Travelwriter Marketletter is a monthly publication available online ( http://www.travelwriterml.com ) and in hard copy format. Travelwriter Marketletter is in its 29th year.
If you’re a travel writer or photographer, TWM tells you about new markets, pay scales, editors, specs and trips.
Contact Mimi Backhausen Phone: 571/214-9086 Fax: 208-988-7672 mimi[at]travelwriternl[dot]com
If you're a travel photographer, TWM will supply you with contact information about photobuyers.
If you’re in travel PR, TWM tells you which publications are likely targets.
If you’re a travel editor, TWM tells you about trips, and about your competitors.
If you’re a photo researcher TWM will direct you to travel photographers.
Request a sample copy of TWML: 571/214-9086
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
TIMING IS EVERYTHING -- Photography and Petanque - With digital, the speed of delivery has become an even more essential part of the selling process. So much so that even if you have a mediocre image that arrives just before a deadline, it will be published, as long as it is the only one around..
http://blog.melchersystem.com/2008/11/05/photography-and-petanque/
TAKEAWAY: It’s not a social guffaw to be seen arriving early at the party. Don’t dally in order to “get it right.” In editorial stock photography, timeliness is often more important than picture quality.
AVOIDING PITFALLS. -- Improving a bad contract - It is all too common for a publisher to ask you to sign a work agreement that cancels your rights while imposing new obligations on you. But you can protect yourself. First, learn to recognize bad contract terms. Second, be ready to propose fairer terms.
http://www.asmp.org/commerce/legal/badcontract/index.php
WHOSE PICTURE IS THIS? -- When Camera Metadata Can Help . . . prove who took the shot. Check Kevin German's report of why it matters.
http://kevingerman.blogspot.com/2008/11/stolen.html
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
XMAS SHOPPING. Looking to buy some National Geographic products at 70% off? Here are three places to buy them: National Geographic Warehouse Sales: NG will be selling books, globes, maps, travel, kids, and home decor items at 70% off. GREAT holiday shopping!! ; Washington, DC . Nov. 14 –16, at DC Armory. ; San Diego, CA (Thanksgiving weekend) Nov. 28 -30 at San Diego Convention Center ; Austin, Texas
Dec. 12-14 at Austin, TX Convention Center . Source: aspp
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
2 Tips
MARKETING TIP (From Sell & ReSell Your Photos, Page 272.) Damages to your prints or slides or DVD’s? If you can prove a client has lost, destroyed, or damaged your property, you have the right to take that client to small claims court (in cases under $3500 in most cases). Seek help from the national organization Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts The Paley Building 1 East 53rd Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10022 212·319·ARTS (2787) or
1 212·752·6575
GET HELP -- Successful sales of your pictures takes more than just producing good pictures. You've got to get them to market, on time. Recruit a friend or relative as a partner, assistant, or employee. They can take on the administrative tasks (digital workflow, record keeping, scanning, etc.) and this help can make the difference.
12 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
The KRACKER BARREL is a popular place for stock photographers to get together to discuss photo marketing of editorial pictures to the book and magazine industry.
It's free to join.
Stock photographers, both veterans and newcomers help each other out with tips, advice and updates in the industry, much like we do here at PhotoStockNOTES.
It's free to join.
Stock photographers, both veterans and newcomers help each other out with tips, advice and updates in the industry, much like we do here at PhotoStockNOTES.
( http://board.photosource.com/read.php?1,10040 )
Here's a recent posting.
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Posted by: Ric Trexell
I finally decided on a market. (After 10 years.)
Ok, I started looking into stock photography 10 years ago. So I'm probably never going to be accused of jumping into this stock photography thing. I have decided that I will make my market based on recreational type things that people do here in Wisconsin. (Yes, we do things other than drink beer, eat cheese and watch Packer games.)
I have ordered Photographers Market 2009, and have been reviewing the tapes of Mr. Enghs, plus reading the many books I have on stock. With this economy, I have got to start making money from stock.
Would this be too broad of a market to go after for stock? (I'm talking of recreational things, not the portrait business.)
For example, should I just concentrate on something like boating and water skiing? Or should I go for as much variety as I can? Does anyone have any ideas as to whether this is worth pursueing? Thanks. Ric.
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Congratulations Ric, you’re on the right path when you’ve decided to get off the Merry-Go-Round of snapping everything you see in your viewfinder, and then wondering later where to sell them.
This is a mistake that most early picture marketers perform when they make the decision to enter the field of stock photography.
It goes without saying that any endeavor we take part in will require some energy. The ups and downs of everyday living throw challenges at us that we can easily overcome if we have the energy and enthusiasm to solve them.
There’s an old saying, “What you think about, you bring about.” Or, another version, “Energy flows where attention goes.”
So, you mentioned you’ve narrowed your choice down to “recreational type things” and centering in on “boating and water skiing.”.
The normal process of making right decisions in photo marketing then, is to ask yourself, “Do you enjoy them?” “Are you thinking about these subjects a lot?” If so, then, you’ve made the right choice.
It’s always a good idea to choose a subject area that’s practical and one you can accomplish without breaking the bank. That is,-- is your target photographing market nearby (no extreme travel is necessary.)? Do you know where the “authority points” are? That means, --are there facilities nearby that feature your chosen subject? Are you in contact with persons who can open doors for you? Do you know where to go to get additional information on the subject area.?”
Next step is to see if there’s actually a market out there.
In my seminars and caoching sessions I always emphasize this point. Some times a photographer will choose an obscure market area to photograph and then find out later than there are very few photobuyers in that market area.
Yes, Photographer’s Market is certainly a good reference book for you. Not because it offers a wide range of markets, but because it breaks the markets down into categories.
But an even better resou rce is Google and similar search engines.
For example: type into Google: Wisconsin recreational magazines
You’ll find about twenty magazines awaiting your expertise as we talk. The more you become a valuable resource to them, the more business you’re going to get from them.
Here’s another entry. Seek out book publishers. Type in Google: Wisconsin outdoor sports publishers. You’ll see some overlap with your magazine publishers.
As far as centering on down even farther to boating, snowmobiling, etc., - that will be your choice. It all depends on the popularity of the activity. A Google search will reveal these numbers.
If you do your homework like this, you’ll discover a ready-made group of 25 to 30 photobyers who, at this monment are waiting to learn about you and your photography.
If you earn $1,000 a year from each of those markets… you’ve made yourself a tidy sum.
Once you get a name for yourself in this specialized industry, you’ll be ready to expand beyond Wisconsin.
Hope this helps. -Rohn
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
GOOD SAMARATIN -- One Photo Editor - Doing Good by Doing Right - Photo editors often get a bad rap. They're often (incorrectly) blamed for the bad contracts they are required to foist upon us. Thus, when a photo editor does the right thing, as is the case here, we feel it of value to let people know.
http://photobusinessforum.blogspot.com/2008/11/one-photo-editor-doing-good-by-doing.html
MONUMENTAL CHANGES. -- A Call For Change In The Publishing Industry - There could not be a better time for change in the publishing industry. This AdAge article (here) presents two scenarios for the next five years.
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/06/a-call-for-change-in-the-publishing-industry/
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
ANOTHER ONE. -- Site Launches Photographer Upload - The UK-based online stock image provider has launched a new photographer upload section. The online function encourages more hobbyist and professional content for consideration by its team of editors by allowing photographers to upload images directly. http://my.moodboard.com/Pages/Public/Gateway.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fDefault.aspx
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
NO LONGER OF PAGE 2 INTEREST. -- Is Microstock Becoming More Accepted in the Stock Photo Industry? - This video shows some short interviews filmed recently with Andres Rodriguez, Steve Kapsinow of StockXpert, Serban Enache, Yuri Arcurs, and Steve Pigeon of Masterfile. In some of the interviews the topic of “microstock” came up; in others it arose naturally. http://www.microstockdiaries.com/is-microstock-becoming-more-accepted-in-the-stock-photo-industry.html
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
WALLPAPER? -- Activist, David Elliot Cohen, says, "Photojournalism can really change the world." This bold conviction has led the best-selling editor of the "Day in the Life" series to step away from his own tried-and-true formula and come back with "What Matters," a book that holds up a magnifying mirror to the world and presents a rather uncomfortable self-examination.
"In our digital age, photography has become wallpaper," he lamented in a recent interview. "With 'What Matters,' I wanted to give pictures that make a difference -- a chance to call out" to the spectator.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/09/when-photography-activism-meet/
INTERSECTION OF POLITICS AND PHOTOGRAPHY The Election And Photography - The Obama camp did a much better job managing their photography in this election. When I saw the Obama rally photos (here) I thought, how can you not believe in the power of photography to deliver a message?
http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2008/11/04/the-election-and-photography/8
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
IS IT FAIR USE? ...Duncan Davidson: "I get lots of requests to use my photography. Some of these are commercial use requests, to which I respond with questions to determine an appropriate license fee. Others are non-commercial in nature and I try to help out those whose use seems appropriate to me.
And, every once in a while, I'll get a request from somebody over at Wikipedia wanting to use a photograph.
Let me say this up front and loudly. It pains me to deny requests to use my photographs on Wikipedia. I wish I could respond positively to these requests.
I think Wikipedia is one of the great success stories of the Web and I use the site all the time. There are actually several of my older photographs on Wikipedia, such as on John Battelle's page, and I wish there could be more. http://duncandavidson.com/2008/11/i-wish-i-could-help-wikipedia.html
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
MARKETING TIP: You can copyright every one of your photographs, free. It's a gift from your government. It costs you nothing. Only when you "register" your copyright does it cost you $35 (online) $45 (paper). http://www.copyright.gov/docs/fees.html So place a Copyright Notice on each of your photographs if you wish, there’s no charge. (From Sell & ReSell Your Photos, Page 255).
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Does seeing your photos
published fascinate you?
If you are looking into the world of publishing your photos, but don’t know where to start, -our PhotoStockNOTES/Plus might just be the ticket for you.
Every Thursday morning, we supply you with two or three contacts of photobuyers who are looking for specific pictures that may be in your database of pictures (or slide file).
In addition, you receive the weekly PhotoStockNOTES – a newsletter that will keep you up-to-date on the new advances in stock photography.
More information about PhotoStockNOTES/Plus is at www.sellyourstockphotos.com
I made this (2 minute) video for you. . .
http://www.photosource.com/video/plus
Special Bonus: If you sign up before November 25th 2008, you are eligible for a free 1/2 hour phone coaching session with Rohn Engh. To make an appointment: 1 715 248 3800. Extn 21. Ask for Bruce Swenson
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
REVISED GUIDANCE -- In the UK. Talks aimed at easing relations between press photographers, journalists and the police have today been hailed as 'constructive' by the Home Office. Last week, National Union of Journalists (NUJ) general secretary Jeremy Dear told Home Office minister Vernon Coaker that police have used their powers to restrict photography in public places 'inappropriately'. The concern was one of several regarding 'media freedom' raised by the NUJ in a meeting Dear arranged with the minister.
Speaking today, a Home Office spokeswoman told Amateur Photographer: 'We welcome the constructive approach taken by the NUJ and the increased co-operation agreed by the Metropolitan Police to develop clearer working relationships between the police and the NUJ and their members.'
http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/news/Home_Office_Photography_rights_move_constructive_news_271463.html
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
WHO SAID PHOTOGRAPHERS CAN’T WRITE? History in the Buffer - David Burnett, photojournalist, wrote this piece about his experience "in the buffer" covering the USA election night in Chicago. A remarkable diary of his election night experience.
http://werejustsayin.blogspot.com/2008/11/history-in-buffer.html
TAKEAWAY: When TIME Magazine made “the computer” the Man of the Year, they sent David Burnett to Pine Lake Farm to photograph me and my new Radio Shack TRS-80 Model II. You can see the picture TIME used at: http://www.photosource.com/rohntime
CAPTURING WORLD WAR II -- Like a lot of war veterans, George Holmes - who saw World War II action at Iwo Jima and on Okinawa - didn't talk much about his experiences when he got home. Now, more than 60 years later - and 26 years after Holmes' death - his son, Ken, is doing his talking for him. Using a documentary film George made and hundreds of photos he took as a combat photographer for the U.S. Army, Ken Holmes is keeping his dad's memory - and story - alive making presentations to veterans groups, churches and other groups who want to hear it. http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20081109/NEWS15/811090499
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
FASTEST BIRD Vs. FASTEST PHOTOGRAPHY -- High-Speed X-Ray Photography - Hummingbirds Exposed on 'Time Warp' (VIDEO). The Discovery Channel's newest show, 'Time Warp,' treated viewers to the inner workings of a hummingbird by combining high speed photography with x-ray photography. This is the first time such footage has ever been captured on tape. 'Time Warp' hosts Matt Kearney and Jeff Lieberman are obsessed with high-speed photography. Their drive, in the case of filming a hummingbird feeding, was to discover how exactly they do so while remaining stationary. High speed photography combined with x-ray photography allowed them to do so.
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/high-speed-xray-photography-inner-workings-of-a-hummingbird
PHOTO BUILDING. Taking aim at far-from-perfect photos. Computational photography promises big changes for digital cameras the fast-moving field of computational photography and an open-source “Frankencamera” built by Marc Levoy
and his graduate students at Stanford University are suggesting how shutterbugs in the near future may be able to swap in and out the features they want with little more trouble than snapping together LEGO parts.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27585300/
PRINTER RACE Tomy beats Polaroid in digital instant photography race. Japanese toy maker Tomy Takara has beaten Polaroid to manufacture a camera with a built-in printer. The XIAO TIP-521 utilizes Zink's inkless printing technology to replicate what Polaroid has done with its instant film shooters.
http://asia.cnet.com/crave/2008/11/07/tomy-beats-polaroid-in-digital-instant-photography-race/
MULTI-VIEW. -- Bug-eye-inspired camera has six times the field of view of conventional ones. A tiny bug-eyed camera, which provides a field of view six times that of the conventional camera, has been tested by researchers at a defense company in the UK. Experts at BAE Systems at Great Baddow have revealed that the new system, called BugEye, has been developed primarily for use on missiles to keep track of targets. The researchers add that the prototype camera is so small that it can also be used on endoscopes, giving an improved field of view in keyhole surgery.
http://www.newspostonline.com/sci-tech/photography-bug-eye-inspired-camera-has-six-times-the-field-of-view-of-conventional-ones-2008110912985
AND PRINTS TOO. -- This camera has built-in photo printer - The Xiao TIP-521 is a 5-megapixel camera that looks much like any other low-end model, except for the fact that its body houses a tiny digital printer.
http://www.techradar.com/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/digital-camera-has-built-in-printer-483099?src=rss&attr=news
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
HOW DO THEY DO IT? Yuri Arcurs - Microstock Entrepreneur - Not content with an
annual microstock income of US$1.3 million and being the top selling microstock photographer, Yuri Arcurs is creating a microstock empire. Here's a summary of his new entrepreneurial activities.
http://www.microstockdiaries.com/meet-the-new-yuri-arcurs-microstock-entrepreneur.html22
BIG BUCKS. -- Global Market for Digital Photography Worth $230.9 Billion in 2013
According to a new technical market research report, THE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY MARKET (IFT030B) from BCC Research, the global market for digital photography technology was worth $136.7 billion in 2007 and an estimated $155.0 billion in 2008. This market will increase to over $230.9 billion in 2013, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3%.
http://www.pitchengine.com/bccresearch/global-market-for-digital-photography-worth-2309-billion-in-2013/1138/
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
LOCK PICTURE. -- Digital photography allows for key copies. Breaking into a lock without being noticed no longer means having to actually have the key ahead of time in order to make a copy. Computer geniuses at UC San Diego have written a computer program that can copy a key based solely on a photograph of it. The theory is really quite simple: If a photo of a key can be captured with enough detail, the image can be translated into a numeric code that can then be used to recreate the key. Software allows for accounting for whatever angle the photo is shot at. http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/110195
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
FINDING A HOME. Permanent Photography Space Opening. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, will open the Herb Ritts Gallery, the museum's first permanent photography gallery, on November 19, Artnet reports.
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/29277/permanent-photography-space-opening-at-mfa-boston/
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Two shooters, two sensibilities. Art Sinsabaugh and Gordon Parks approached photography from opposite ends of the spectrum. Yet they share the distinction of having contributed significantly, in markedly different ways, to the modern
history of the medium.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/entertainment/20081109_Art__Two_shooters__two_sensibilities.html
Renowned Northwest photographer documented WWII travels. When World War II came, Bob Spring hoped to become a combat photographer.He was already studying photography at what would become Central Washington University, but the U.S. Army had other ideas. Instead, Spring became an X-ray technician with a 750-bed hospital unit. Instead of shooting a gun, he shot dental and skeletal X-rays in North Africa, Italy, France and Germany. "They figured X-ray is the nearest thing to photography," said Spring, now 89 and retired in Bellingham. Fortunately, Spring's commander officer let him shoot his Speed Graphic, with 4-by-5-inch negatives, when he wasn't busy shooting X-rays. Spring used his X-ray darkroom to develop his negatives.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/entertainmentnews/story/650404.html
www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=270656
ROUGH LIFE. -- Hollywood paparazzo pioneer says he has no regrets. A Hollywood paparazzo famous for being sued by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and getting his teeth knocked out by Marlon Brando is unapologetic about the guerrilla celebrity photography culture he helped pioneer. But Ron Galella, who at 77 still has an active press pass, says he has little interest in being part of a celebrity photo industry that now values controversy over glamour. http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE4A81MZ20081109
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Quote: "You have to find something that you love enough to be able to take risks, jump over the hurdles and break through the brick walls that are always going to be placed in front of you. If you don't have that kind of feeling for what it is you are doing, you'll stop at the first giant hurdle." -- George Lucas (Creator of Star Wars)
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
1789 – November 18th – French painter, physicist, and photography pioneer Louis Jacques Daguerre was born near Paris.
11 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
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6 November 2008
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05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Photo Thieves On The Internet…
Who Are They ?
Advance Notes: Once a year, it seems, a question about thievery on the Internet comes up. As I've written before – thievery on the Web is certainly possible. As we rush pell-mell along in the new Digital Age, some honest mistakes are going to be made. But outright thievery?…
With today's software capabilities, it's possible to 'res up' a 72 dpi image to 300 dpi with excellent results. So, technically it's possible to "steal images" by capturing small images on the Web and increasing their resolution. In my book, sellphotos.com, I give some examples of misguided improper use of photos.
One example: A commercial printing company executive used a previously published photo from the company's digital file for unauthorized use in a commercial brochure. The photographer took him to court. And rightly so. But the infraction was a mistake -- not outright thievery.
NOT OUR PHOTOBUYERS
As editorial photographers, focussing on editorial stock, not studio pictures, not commercial stock photos, we should take a close look at just who we are apprehensively thinking may steal a photo. Our markets are books and magazines. And relax: photobuyers at book and magazine publishing houses don't steal photos.
Nor do commercial art directors. The negative fall-out would be too damaging. But also we have an extra advantage being editorial stock photographers-- we produce pictures that can easily be identified because of their uniqueness. We need to examine whether we're putting too much worry into a concern that does not deserve it.
A rare few early mistakes were made as the Digital Age was coming of age. This has been a learning process for executives and printing company personnel as well as the general public, who are now learning the benefits of the Web. Eventually ignorance regarding appropriate handling of photos will diminish.
LURKING IN CYBERSPACE?
But the question is... "Is thievery rampant, or even existent, on the Web?"
Ever since photographers began realizing that it's possible for someone to "borrow" an image from the Web, I've heard warnings from my fellow photography columnists that thieves are lurking in cyberspace, waiting to steal your photos. Certain pros in our industry often perpetuate the myth at seminars and camera club meetings. They warn that photographers should beware, and that they should not expose images on the Web unless they are so tiny that someone could not profitably make use of them.
Look. A photobuyer who likes his or her job, is not going to jeopardize their good name and that of their company by lurking in cyberspace to steal images from stock photographers. It's just not happening.
Sure, there may be the rare exception. But that kind of thievery was happening before the Digital Age came along. A certain percent of the population is going to be stealing things, no matter what kind of lock you put on it.
Ask yourself, "What are you putting your images on the Web for?" It's to expose them to the buying public. If you hide them or make them too tiny and ineffective, you are sacrificing a major marketing channel.
When I hear reports of stolen images, I ask the persons for documentation. The informants seldom come forth. When they do -- it turns out that a cub scout organization, church group, non-profit newsletter, foreign newspaper, or industrious teen-ager, is the culprit.
So What?
Should we put in barriers to entry to potential buyers by installing a firewall or elaborate re gistration system? Few of us can afford time spent on paranoia, or money on expensive deterrent software. Nor can we afford to have photobuyers, when they encounter these barriers, move on to the next photo supplier.
I have said this often: "Please let me know (with documentation) where a professional photobuyer in the United States has purposely stolen someone's image. No hearsay please, I need documentation." (This refers to the U.S. because of the familiarity of our rules of Copyright, etc. in this country. Other countries have different copyright protections.)
I'm still looking for someone to come forward with documented evidence that "stealing images" by a reputable organization has or is being done.
As I mentioned earlier, this question comes up yearly. Each year, I make the same request. Send me some (documented) U.S. examples of images stolen by a professional photobuyer.
I never get them.
-- Rohn Engh
Rohn Engh, veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of “Sell & ReSell Your Photos” and “sellphotos.com.” For more information on how to sell images and to receive a free eReport: “8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer,” visit his website: www.photosource.com Tel: 800 624-0266.
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
The Wifetest
DIGITAL IMAGES AND SOFTWARE
Every piece of software I purchase has to pass the rigorous "wife-test."
The wife-test basically asks two questions. Those questions are:
1. Will this product make me more efficient?
2. Will this product pay for itself in the near future?
If the answer to both questions is "yes," I go ahead and buy. And it has to be a clear yes, no sneaking around with a "probably," or a "yes, maybe..."
I call it the "wife-test" because if I asked my wife, Ruth, for her input about a particular piece of software or anything else I might need for my business; those are the questions she would ask. Not because she thinks I might fritter our money away but because she's a practical and astute person who sees through the ads and marketing hype.
DIGITAL EXTRAS
As we all know, when you go digital there's no end to all the extras you'll need. Like a faster computer, new hard drives, a DVD burner, software that does this, that and the other, a new monitor, various cables, card readers, and boxes after boxes with trinkets and gizmos.
Having the wife-test to lean on has helped me steer clear of quite a bit of hidden money-magnets.
Recently two different pieces of software passed the wife-test with flying colors. These are Capture One DSLR Pro from Phase One, and Spyder Pro from ColorVision.
CAPTURE ONE
The Capture One software is an image editor that handles RAW photos straight from my Canon digital camera. It has a converter that develops the RAW format into TIF with a minimum amount of hassle and a maximum amount of ease and functionality. This feature is light-years better than the conversion software that comes with the camera.
Capture One is intuitive to use and I have found that it has helped me cut 20 percent off the time it used to take me to import digital images into my computer. Mainly it's the RAW developer and the handling of associated data that makes this a very good buy, in my book. I warmly recommend Capture One DSLR Pro to anyone who routinely handles digital images. For those who don't need the full pro version, Capture One has a lighter, cheaper version. To purchase or for more info simply visit Phase One's website at www.phaseone.com
CALIBRATE YOUR MONITOR
Spyder Pro is a color management and calibration tool - something no stock photographer who works with digital images should be without. The software calibrates your monitor so that you can rest assured that what you see is really what you'll get as far as colors go. This is really crucial for anyone selling digital images, because photobuyers will really dislike you if your low res preview has brilliant color and your final high res submission looks nothing like the preview.
There are products that will make your life a lot easier when we're talking digital stock images. There are also products that won't. For me, the 'wife-test' has proven very useful in helping me discern between the two.
Photojournalist Mikael Karlsson has 18 years' experience of working for magazines and newspapers in more than 30 countries. He moved to the United States in 1998 from his native Sweden. He lives in Nebraska and is currently US correspondent for 11 Swedish magazines and a regular contributor to a wide variety of U.S. publications. Reach him at mike[at]photosource[dot]com.
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
MARKETING TIP: Can you objectively assume which photo will be chosen when you send a selection of on-target photos to a photobuyer? The answer is “no” -- because most photographers think like photographers –not photobuyers. How many times have you said, “I never thought they would choose THAT one! It’s not my best of that selection I sent”
This tells you that you should be ‘thinking’ like a photobuyer when you are shooting. Study the layouts of magazines, books, brochures, and websites. These will be a blueprint for you.
MARKETING TIP: When a publisher states that they want to license your photo on a RF (Royalty Free) basis, ask them first “What is Royalty Free?”
Very often their conception of RF will be different from the standard definition that’s often published on microstock sites.
In many cases, the photobuyer is looking for temporary protection if you were to license the same photo to a competitor. Or, a calendar company will ask that they can use the picture for a two-year period to make sure another calendar company won’t use it also.
Some companies only want to be able to know they can have permission to use your picture within the publishing sphere of their company and don’t care if the picture is used elsewhere.
Photobuyers are usually willing to negotiate on RF use. Don’t give them full rights unless you have to.
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
NO LONGER JUST FOR PROS. At PhotoPlus Expo: Hottest Advancements In Photography On Display . For the last 25 years, if it's been something cutting edge that snaps a photo, or has anything to do with snapping a photo, it's been on display at the annual PhotoPlus Expo, which is held at the Javits Center. Organizers say while the focus of the show was still on the professionals, each year there's more evidence that recent technological advancements seem to be shrinking the gap between what a pro and amateur can create.
http://www.ny1.com/content/ny1_living/87904/hottest-advancements-in-photography-on-display-at-photoplus-expo/Default.aspx
POLL FACTS -- (Next time) Guide to Shooting Video or Taking Pictures at the Polls. “I've taken my camera with me to vote for the last several elections resulting in both good and bad experiences. When San Diego used touch-screen machines for the first time, I was able to get a shot using my digital SLR. On another election day, I was stopped and aggressively questioned by a poll worker for trying to take a cell phone photo.
Here's the problem. The legality of cameras inside polling places isn't black and white; the laws vary state by state. Plus, some poll workers have only received basic training and will apply their own judgment. The Citizen Media Law Project suggests four things to avoid getting yourself into trouble: follow the rules, be discreet, don't interfere with voters or the process, and respect the buffer zone.
http://www.nathangibbs.com/2008/10/30/guide-to-shooting-video-or-taking-photos-at-the-polls/
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
CANNONBALL EXPRESS EXHUMED? Newscom About to Acquire Digital Railroad's Assets? - Digital Railroad has received a letter of intent (LOI) to purchase the assets of DRR, specifically its hardware and application software used to store and retrieve images with the desire to continue providing services to DRR members and customers with as little disruption as possible. Check the Diablo Management: website.www.diablomanagement.com
http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2008/11/drr.html
TAKEAWAY:
They pulled out of Memphis nearly two hours late,
Soon they were speeding at a terrible rate.
And the people knew by the whistle's moan.
That the man at the throttle was Casey Jones.
Soon they were speeding at a terrible rate.
And the people knew by the whistle's moan.
That the man at the throttle was Casey Jones.
DOWNGRADING – Photographers Sue Getty Images Over Subscription Pricing - The suit claims that by including rights-managed stock images in the Getty Images Premium Access subscription product, Getty violated copyright and broke its contract with rights-managed contributors. The suit says Getty's product makes rights-managed images available under royalty-free license terms for unreasonably low prices.
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/content_display/photo-news/legal-news/e3i397aa99d2932d77da0aebdbf63c12a2c
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
BUT IS PHOTOGRAPHY ART? The CEO of Aeroplan hopes Damien Hirst isn't reading this. But Rupert Duchesne was astounded by the controversial British artist's recent Sotheby's auction, which sold $200 million (U.S.) worth of dead animals submerged in formaldehyde, glass-fronted medicine cabinets stuffed with cigarette butts, and drawings of Hirst's signature dots, butterflies and skulls. "It's mind-bogglingly bizarre," says Duchesne.
That's not to say Duchesne--who sits on the board of the Art Gallery of Ontario--doesn't respect Hirst's work. "He has produced some extraordinarily interesting pieces," he says. But there are some who don't consider Hirst's collections of peculiar objects to be art. Likewise, "there are people who've argued for years that photography isn't the same quality of art as, say, painting," says Duchesne, his blue eyes staring out the window of his eighth-floor Toronto office.
"I say this at my peril, but if a shark in a tank is art, then photography is art."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20081031.ROB11PG27/TPStory/Business
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE PAPARAZZI Two court cases could alter UK privacy laws, photographers' work - Big Pictures, a celebrity stock agency, has been dealt a double-blow in courts, threatening the future of celebrity photographers as two landmark cases against the celebrity agency could reshape UK privacy laws
http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=823647
SOME LEGAL TIPS. Online Legal Advice For Photographers - It's not what you take a photo of as much as it is what you do with it and who benefits. Rights and propriety are not always the same thing. As Attorney Wright says, what you can do isn't always what you should do.. Attorney Bert Krages has created a printable PDF to give you "quick access to your rights and obligations
concerning confrontations over photography."
http://www.appscout.com/2008/10/online_free_legal_adivce_for_p.php
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THAT LOOKS FAMILIAR. Does a Derivative Work Violate Your Copyright? - Alistair Scott reports on a incident where it looks as though a painter combined two photographs to create her work that won the American Watercolor Society's 2008 prestigious Gold Medal Award. The winning painting has been withdrawn AWS is
investigating the matter. But what about the rights of the photographers who took the two photos? http://www.photoattorney.com/
TAKEAWAY: Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but no one is grateful when work is stolen. – Carolyn Wright.
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH, by Sam Abell. Sam Abell, considered one of the foremost photographers of our time, showcases some of his most powerful and unforgettable images and answers the question, "What gives life to a photograph?" The book is organized around Abell's perspectives on landscapes, still life, street scenes and the photography of daily life. Selections cover geography and wildlife from the Arctic to the Amazon, and
cultures from Australia to the American West.
With each image Abell presents a master class in photographic thinking. In an original concept for a photography book, images are displayed in a unique, highly involving way that allows the viewer to be engaged in the photographic process. Viewers see how subtle differences in point of view, framing, timing and perspective can lead to strikingly different photographs. By showing similar images side by side, or sequences of photographs of the same event, the viewer is placed in the field and in the editor's chair.(ISBN 978-1-4262-0329-9; $40) Contact: John McFeely, National Geographic Books,2245 17th St NW, Washington DC 10036-4688. Phone: 202 857-7659. Email: jmcfeely[at]ngs[dot]org
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1426203292
=========================================================
FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY COURSE. Principles, Practice, and Techniques: An Essential Guide, by Eliot Siegel.
This book serves as a practical self-teaching course, presenting a series of tutorials designed to build a beginning fashion photographer's experience and get him or her started on a rewarding career.
Siegel, a leading fashion photographer, provides chapters on lighting, setting up a studio, creating professional quality pictures both in studio and on location, how to
approach and work with fashion model agencies, developing a portfolio, selling one's skills to the fashion industry, working effectively with magazines and advertising agencies, and becoming a photographer's assistant as a valuable entrée to the fashion industy. More than 250 color photos accompany the text.
Includes discussion of trend-setting photographers in the fashion industry, and advice about cameras, both film and digital, and equipment and accessories. (ISBN: 978-0-7641-3947-5; 144 pgs.; $23.99)
Barron's, 250 Wireless Blvd, Hauppauge NY 11788. Email:
steve[at]barronseduc[dot]com. Steve Matteo, Publicity Mgr, 631 434-3311, ext. 208.
Web: www.barronseduc.com
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#0764139479
================================================================
CREATING EXHIBITION-QUALITY DIGITAL PRINTS - A Photographer's Guide to Developing RAW files and Optimizing Print Quality by Tim Daly published by Argentum, noonkester[at]ipgbook[dot]com
This book focuses on using digital techniques to reproduce the traditional darkroom methods used to produce fine art, exhibition-quality prints.
The book is laid out in eleven chapters covering The Secrets of Hand-Editing,Print Styles and Formats, RAW file Processing, Creating Emphasis in RAW, Editors, Drawing Out Detail, Deconstruction and Destruction, Personalizing Your Work, Raw Materials, Output Options, Storage - Mounting and Display, and finally Monitoring Image Quality.
Focusing on the raw digital file, the book is laid out in these nine chapters; covering, printing techniques, inks and papers, CMS management, fine art workflow, fine art printers, printing packages and RIPs, black and whit e, as well as image judgment and presentation.
In the chapter on RAW File Processing, Tim comments on where your files originate (scanning, capture data-backs, and or digital cameras. He comments briefly on their processing in software (Adobe Camera RAW, Apple Aperture, and my favorite Adobe Photoshop Lightroom) and then moves you on to the next chapter.
Creating Emphasis in RAW Editors illustrates how to manipulate your image with software like Lightroom's tone curves, color temperature, along with gray scaling and vignetting - again, just very briefly (enough to get you started). He than moves on to the real meat & potatoes of this introductory book on optimizing print quality, in chapter 4, with Drawing Out Detail in your
exhibition-quality digital print with fixing print brightness, fixing color cast, HDR processing (a very new and exciting photographic technique) and another favorite of mine, "Planning Your Print".
In chapter 5, Deconstruction and Destruction he briefly goes into more of Photoshop's adjustment features, like layers, contrast on a brush (history brush - quite good), breaking up flat tonal areas, creating an illusion of 3D space and finally maximizing saturation.
This is a beginner's guide, not a how-to book, on the subject, with the author briefly describing processes, (some more than others), that deserve consideration when creating exhibition-quality digital prints.
Had Tim produced a "how-to" book, it would have taken considerably more space and time.
His introductory level explanations of processes that involve were adequate. He exposed the reader to a solid overview of the digital imaging processes for producing a fine-art exhibition print.
I would have like to have seen a more in-depth step by step recommended workflow, along with more variety of techniques as well as other tools besides Adobe to help improve the process.
http://www.photosourcefolio.com/bookstoreone.htm#1902538501
--Joseph Stansky
05 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
The dust has settled!
..and Now… where are you headed?
The marathon is over. It’s settled. The choice has been made. Now it’s time for you to make your choice.
The time has finally arrived to turn our attention back to our own photographic productivity…and move forward to a new electrifying chapter ahead.
We are all together in this. We’re
at the starting gate of a new blast-off.
The “8 years” are over, the blindfold
is off, we can see clearly – and a fresh,
new horizon faces us.
at the starting gate of a new blast-off.
The “8 years” are over, the blindfold
is off, we can see clearly – and a fresh,
new horizon faces us.
There are uncertainties out there, yes, but given the right knowledge, good coaching, and quality work, there are no hurdles we can’t overcome as we move into this new era. Exciting isn’t it?
Where are you headed? Which choice are you going to grasp?
Whichever one you choose, -- stay vigilant and prepared.
A NEW ROAD FOR YOU ?
You will hear new ideas; see new approaches to overcome problems you’ll face. One thing is certain, stock photos will always be sought after by your clients when they need to search for new ways to express themselves.
Be ready to supply those photos. There will be a great need for them in the coming months. Be ready to supply them.
Be prudent. Save on expenses where you see an opening. Coupons, discounts and bargains are always available when a new era, a new business, is launched. We can help out. We are offering a substantial discount on the PhotoDaily and the PhotoLetter.
For the next three days, November 5th, 6th, and 7th you can save substantially on a subscription to one or both of these marketletters, – powerful tools that can increase your photo sales and photobuyer contacts.
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04 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
SCHOOL BOY PHOTOS -- Terrorism Act: Photography fears spark police response (UK). Police have moved to reassure photographers that soon-to-be released government guidance for officers will not give them more stop and search powers under the Terrorism Act 2000.
The statement came as the Metropolitan Police confirmed that officers used the anti-terrorism legislation to stop a schoolboy who had been taking pictures of Wimbledon railway station in London. Source: Joan Saks Berman, photographer.
http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/news/Terrorism_Act_photography_fears_spark_police_response_news_271070.html
04 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
IT DISPOSES ITSELF. The company that made memories with its disposable cameras will soon be nothing more than a memory itself. Hollywood based- Concord Camera Corp. said this week that it plans to close down operations. Concord, founded 25 years ago in New Jersey, moved to South Florida in 1998 as the market grew for disposable cameras, a staple for beach vacations and guests' tables at wedding receptions. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-flzconcorddig11010sbnov01,0,7402415.story
04 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
JUNK MAIL REPORT. Where have all the credit card mailings gone? “Those letters in the mail to my cat are no longer coming.” In response to a drop in acquisition direct mail volume from financial services companies, (Capitol ONE, et al) direct mail production services provider IWCO Direct said it will immediately close its facility in Elm City, NC, which employs
380 people. “It's becoming so much more difficult for people to become approved for credit that mail volumes have declined in some cases by as much as forty percent,” said Debora Haskel, VP marketing at IWCO Direct.
http://www.dmnews.com/IWCO-Direct-plant-closure-follows-drop-in-mail-volume/article/119883/
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
WILDLIFE. -- Chinese wins category award in wildlife photography contest Chinese photographer Zhu Yongkang is among the winners in the 44th annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition held here.
http://en.ce.cn/National/culture/200811/03/t20081103_17264440.shtml
HIGH SCORE. Photographer wins $103,000 prize for picture of Chinese dust bowl. A Montreal photographer has won the inaugural Prix Pictet, which hails excellence in environmental photography. Benoit Aquin took home about C$103,000 after the ceremony Thursday night in Paris. His work, titled "The Chinese Dust Bowl," illustrates how fertile farmland in northern China has been turned into an arid desert.
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5igqW8e5RKgnzI06w1z3q8XwDWA_Q
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
TRADITIONS FADE -- American Indian photographer's life examined in novel "To Catch the Lightning" Curtis saw his subjects as a dying people and his photographs as the only means of preserving their traditions.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081103/ap_en_ot/book_review_to_catch_the_lightning_1
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
NO LONGER RED -- Norman photography exhibit offers new look at life after communism. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992 came a new set of freedoms for Russian photo-journalists. No longer slave to the propaganda needs of the state, they were free to cover whatever they wanted. A Library of Congress exhibit.
http://newsok.com/norman-photography-exhibit-offers-new-look-at-life-after-communism/article/3318228
COMBING PHOTOS WITH WORDS. -- Photographer Michael Nye finds human voice in stories of mental illness. Pictures say a thousand words. But whose words? For Michael Nye, his portraits are about telling a story - a life in context, as he puts it - through not only dramatic black-and-white photographs but through audio stories told in a subject's own words. Touching, heartbreaking, inspiring words from their experiences, from the context of their own lives.
And there is much life to put into context in Nye's dramatically compelling "Fine Line: Mental Health/Mental Illness" exhibit, which opens with a reception from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 14 and will feature a talk by the artist. This major exhibition is sponsored by a number of mental health, art and social service organizations and will include a series of talks by mental health experts during the exhibit's run.
http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2008/nov/02/photographer-michael-nye-finds-human-voice-stories/
WAR AND PEACE -- Slain photographer’s work displayed in Gaylord Hall Dan Eldon’s Images of War and Peace,” -you should brace yourself for an emotional viewing. http://www.oudaily.com/news/2008/nov/03/slain-photographers-work-displayed-gaylord-hall/
WOMEN -- Power of Role Play Examined in National Museum of Women in the Arts' Original Exhibition Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography on View Through January 25, 2009.
Organized by the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography explores how role playing has been central to the art, meaning and social function of contemporary photography. The exhibit features 70 works by 18 artists.
"In today's image-conscious world, photography is one of the most powerful mediators of our sense of self and for more than two generations, photography has also proved a perfect medium for provocative new approaches to femininity," commented NMWA Director Susan Fisher Sterling, who conceived of the exhibition and is its co-curator.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Power-Role-Play-Examined-National/story.aspx?guid={520F8AE5-F277-4D28-8FCD-58B77E1582FC}
VIGINIA POVERTY. Through Different Eyes: The Faces of Poverty in Virginia" is a large-scale effort to capture through visual images the lives of those in society who are most invisible. The project intends to educate the public through art about the lives of low-income families and individuals in the Commonwealth. The Virginia Museum of Fine Art will tour the exhibit through its statewide education programs for the next two years. It is currently at the Staunton Augusta Arts Center through Nov. 26. http://www.newsleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008810300312
CAMERA OBSCURA Throughout his career, Cleveland-based photographer Bruce Checefsky has experimented with ideas that date back to photography's invention, touching base with its source points, but also making an end-run around history. “A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose," famously chanted Gertrude Stein in her 1913 poem "Sacred Emily." She could have been talking about so-called camera-less photography, especially as it begins to be practiced now in the digital age. Practitioners of that oxymoronic-sounding art sometimes combine high-tech computer equi pment with cardboard and duct tape, producing images that seem to bend back toward a real, rose-like (or at least Gertrude Stein-like) reality.
http://www.freetimes.com/stories/15/78/by-any-other-name
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
“Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."
-- Thomas Alva Edison
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
1905 - November 24 - The first gallery to exhibit photographs opened in New York City. It was called "The Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession." Located at 291 Fifth Ave, the gallery was later called simply "the 291." It was run by photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Steichen, who three years earlier, had formed the Photo-Secession Group for "renegade" photographers.
1936 - November 23 - The first issue of the new photo-magazine, Life, came out, selling for 10 cents a copy. The issue featured a cover photo by Margaret Bourke-White, of the Fort Peck Dam in Montana.
03 Nov, 2008 | Posted by: psn
Alex Rivera, Award-winning photographer succumbs at 95. As a photojournalist, he covered the last lynchings in South Carolina and Georgia, traveled to Africa and Europe, and documented the court cases that ultimately led to school desegregation. At 93, Rivera, who worked for the Pittsburgh Courier from 1945 to 1965, occasionally still covered a news or sports event when a friend could not. On Oct. 23, Alexander McAllister Rivera made his transition in Durham, N.C., after months of declining health. He was 95.
http://newpittsburghcourieronline.com/articlelive/articles/42385/1/Award-winning-photographer-succumbs-at-95/Page1.html
Delmar Watson, a child actor who appeared in hundreds of movies and later became a photographer who snapped gritty crimes scenes and Hollywood stars, has died. He was 82. David Delmar Watson was 6 months old when he appeared in his first film in 1926. The nine Watson children lived near Mack Sennett Studios in Los Angeles, and "when they needed a kid, they knew where to go," Daniel Watson said.
Delmar Watson appeared in more than 300 films, playing Peter the goat boy in 1937's "Heidi" and Jimmie Hopper in 1939's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
His family also had a long history in news photography. His grandfather shot pictures of Buffalo Bill riding up the street in Los Angeles in 1902, Daniel Watson said.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/10/28/state/n125341D27.DTL
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