Light Art Performance Photography, (often abbreviated as LAPP) is a unique type of art that was developed and invented by JanLeonardo Wöllert and Jörg Miedza. Unlike different forms of light painting, LAPP is one of the first types of art that uses light as the medium to get widespread attention.

Not only does it require the illumination of existing objects, it requires the photographer to capture and create new subjects based entirely on light. The main reason as to why it differs from other photographic forms such as light writing and light painting is due to the inclusion of a background in the photo.

LAPP is an easy form of art; all you need is a DSLR or a Lomo camera that has a shutter frequency under 5 seconds. Despite the appearance, LAPP does not require the artist to have any Photoshop skills. The additional tools one can use in creating this art form include a source of light e.g (glow sticks, laser beams, poi balls, LED lights), a tripod, flashlight, flash and strobes, lenses and tape.

As simple as it sounds, LAPP requires certain techniques to be followed in order to achieve the best results. However, you are not entirely restricted to solely using them.

Here are some of the techniques you can use for creating perfect Light Art Performance photographs.

Using Different Angles

Using different angles in creating the images is the key towards making your light photography come to life. It helps bring out interesting three dimensional effects to the objects you are photographing. A great example would be when taking the pictures from the ground, hold the beam down low, then pan the light above the ground.

When you are working with different angles don’t let the object stand in between the light and the camera or else the resulting picture will be a silhouette. Other than just presenting light from behind the camera around the object, try painting it from the sides. This could involve illuminating the sides of flat surfaces, which will allow you to bring out the various textures of the surface.

Appropriate Use of Light

Avoid shining the source of light at the camera directly, as this will create a bright spot on the image. Flashlights with red filters are great to use, as they will prevent you from ruining your night vision. They also come in handy when you need light and want to make camera adjustments.

Keep the light moving; the beam should be moved in slow strokes in the areas where less lighting is required. Just like you would paint with a brush, paint with the light; up and down or side to side strokes. Make sure the clothes worn are non-reflective, so as to ensure you don’t appear as a ghost in the picture.

Choosing the Right Surface

This is important when shooting objects on surfaces. Since different surfaces react differently to light, it is good to note the right surface to get the desired result. Surfaces such as wood are believed to require more light because the rougher the surface, the more light is absorbed. For shiny surfaces such as glass or metal, it is quite the opposite as they reflect light at maximum exposure.

Camera Settings

Adjust the following camera settings accordingly:

• Aperture: Make sure the aperture setting is high. This is because you’ll need the lowest amount of light hitting the sensor as it counters the long shutter. Any aperture set above f/8 will work perfectly. It may seem odd to take images at such a high aperture, but you can always decrease or increase the exposure when editing. Photoshop and other photo editing tools can assist in adjusting the image to the right exposure.
• ISO: Photographers report that the lower the ISO setting, the better the shots. You can try out different settings to choose the most suitable in your setup.
• Shutter Speed: Try shutter speeds of a few seconds for the initial LAPP shots and scribble with the flashlight. Then adjust the ISO and the aperture depending on what you want to paint. Once the pictures are starting to appear as you wish and you want more time to draw the images, move towards the bulb setting on the DSLR.

Additional Light Source Techniques

There are three light sources that one can use in light art performance photography. The three most efficient light sources are the on-camera light source, off-camera light source and the kinetic light.

1. On-camera Light: This involves creating the lighted image where the element that is illuminated can be viewed by the camera. This source is appropriate when creating light drawing, graffiti, photo booths and light writings.
2. Off-camera Light: This involves creating the image where the illuminated element is not visible to the camera. This involves having the artist or object behind the camera during long exposures. Light is also projected into the scenery to create the design and required color within the frame ow by using light painting brushes.
3. Kinetic light: This involves the process of leaving the light stationary and moving the camera around to create motion, colors and designs within the frames. A great example of using kinetic light is holding the camera with your hands and opening the camera’s shutter for long exposure while using the moon’s light to create drawings.

If you are ready to experience a unique art form, get innovative and you’ll be surprised with what you can create. You don’t have to follow this guide to the letter, try out something different and discover the possibilities. Create your own mix of composition, color and lighting, and blend them together to invent astonishing pieces of art that stand out in the world of photography. This is what true art entails.

About the author: Melissa is a young and energetic writer, a mom to a sweet little boy, and a fur-mom to two perfect pooches. Before becoming the Associate Content Director for Project Female, she was a journalist specializing in topics related to women in politics and policy affecting women.

Landscape photography is one of the most famous and challenging kinds of photography. Landscape photographs are surprisingly beautiful and eye catching. At one point of time or other, you must have come across really nice landscape photographs and simply exclaimed “wow”.

The amazing captured pictures of skies, clouds, mountains and water seem straightforward to shoot but they are actually not.

If you are a photographer and are looking for some useful tips that can help you with taking breathtaking landscape photographs, you are at the right place. Here are 5 simple tips to help you capture stunning landscape photographs.

Find the Perfect Location

The most important thing in landscape photography is the LOCATION. Do you want to photograph the Grand Canyon or capture the sunset from Sunset Point, California? Whatever the case be, you first have to picture it in your mind and explore the options as to which positions can give you the best pictures ever.

You can choose a top of a cliff or a field of flowers in a village as your subject. This decision will have an impact on the story, style and uniqueness of your landscape photographs.

Don’t limit yourself to the subject and the location. Explore more areas near your decided location. In this manner, you will get more unexpected landscapes to shoot.

And if you are running out of ideas, just pull out Google Maps. It provide so much information about locations that you can easily look for the best options for your landscape photography.

Look for the Best Lighting Time Possible

Landscape photography is nothing without proper lighting. All outdoor photographs require great light that looks so mesmerizing while it highlights all the beautiful elements and brings out the details of landscapes present in frame of your photograph. You get perfect pictures only if you are capturing them with the best lighting available. Therefore, you must schedule your photography shoots early in morning or before the sun sets in the evening. These hours are called golden hours and offer great lighting opportunities for landscape photography. At these times a soft golden light is present in the outdoors which is the best to glamorize the nature photographs.

Prepare your Shot in the Mind

The most favorite thing about landscape photography is that you get time to prepare a shot in your mind. When you are capturing a landscape, you can not only choose which part of the scene you would like to cover, you actually frame the entire shot. There are different angles to play around with.

For perfect photo composition, it is a good practice to take a lot the test shots and then review the images and think about the creative ideas to make the better shots.

Sometimes adding the background makes a picture look more interesting, while some pictures taken from a low angle look absolutely gorgeous and sometimes nature events like a storm that makes the rays of the sun looks more sharp on the sky helps you shoot brilliant images.

Use a Tripod

Tripod is very much important when it comes to landscape photography. If you want to save your pictures from getting blurred, you must use a tripod. Shooting outdoors isn’t that simple. Photographers who cannot carry a tripod for any reason can raise their camera ISO level as an alternative but that would affect your picture quality. If you want to have the finest sharp quality landscape images with best lighting then you must use a good tripod.

Post-process your images to add the finishing touches

Every photographer knows that ultimately the last step in the process is to post-process the images for adding the professional touch. Some photographers like to keep it real and keep the post-editing process as real as possible. They use limited options to enhance the pictures while some photographers process the photographers to the maximum level possible.

My recommendation is that you must take care of straightening your landscape photos, remove all the marks and spots. The exposure should be balanced and boost the saturation a little.

Adding some contrast and increasing the saturation level will always make your landscape images stand out!

If you enjoyed this post, do share it with the world. : )

Author’s Bio: Stephanie Lewis is a writer and a newborn photographer. She joined Photography Concentrate team in 2017 and since then she has been trying to pursue the best photography and editing practices. Besides photography, she loves having coffee, meeting new people and travelling to exotic places. Read this awesome post about Reasons to get into Photography.

Sometimes, as photographers, we’re afraid to admit that things aren’t working.

Sometimes we’re afraid to confess these things publicly, and sometimes, we’re afraid to admit them even to ourselves.

This article will cover a few of the most common confessions from pro photographers as well as a few tactics to combating them.

I Lied to Get My First Clients

When we are first getting started in our business, so many photographers feel like they have to “fake it until they make it.”

This couldn’t be more wrong. Let your work speak for yourself and if somebody is your first paying client and happens to inquire how long you’ve been doing this, let them know your experience but don’t be afraid to let them know they’re your first paying client. There’s a good chance they’ll be honored.

You don’t have to pretend, on your website or in person, to have a team, a studio, or anything else to get early clients. Let your work and your passion speak for itself. Until you get that first client, here’s a few other ideas on how to make money with your photography.

I Still Only Have a Few Clients

Along the same lines is lying to get your first clients, we feel like we have to lie, claiming that we ever only have a few slots of open or are nearly booked solid.

You’re afraid that potential clients won’t book you because you don’t have any current clients, somewhat like walking into an empty restaurant on a Friday night.

We’ve all been there, trust me.

This is not only unhealthy to you, but consider who you’re really doing it to impress. Is it your potential clients, or is it your peers? So often photographers work extra hard on their websites or their messaging because they want to impress other photographers.

Your ideal clients don’t care how booked up you are so don’t fake any kind of scarcity thinking it will impress them.

I’d Never Pay What I Charge

The first step with this confession is that it’s okay.

Trust me, it’s perfectly fine.

This is because you are not your ideal client.

Not everybody who works at the Bentley dealership drives one, either.

The danger lies in, should you continue believing this, you will sabotage yourself by shooting for free, giving in to unreasonable client demands, and *gasp* heavily discounting your services to a rate that seems more “reasonable” to you.

One of the biggest reasons you would never pay your rates is because you can do it for yourself! Your frame of reference is completely different.

The moment you decide to stop hurting your business by marketing to yourself, instead of your ideal client, your business will start to take off.

I Don’t Have Answers to Good Questions

Clients ask totally reasonable questions all the time. Questions like:

“What kind of camera is that?”

“What lens are you using?”

Sometimes they love photography. Sometimes they’re just curious people.

Instead of getting flustered or offering a cursory answer, direct the conversation back to your love of photography and your style, says a photographer.

Please note, unreasonable questions like “Can I see that?” after every shot, or “Can I get all of the files?” should also be handled with a similar grace, albeit a bit more firmly as these kinds of questions compromise your ability to get great shots.

I’m Bad with Clients

You may have gotten into photography because you like taking photos, not because you like working with people.

But let’s be honest: Most of us are quirky and awkward in one way or another.

Convincing yourself that you can’t be successful because you don’t have the people skills necessary to woo clients and build relationships is just flat out wrong.

Whether communicating via email or in-person, there are a lot of great resources for upping your social game so that it’s on par with the quality of your photography.

In the photography business, we have to wear a lot of hats, so don’t let your shortcomings in one area become part of your mental narrative going forward.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below. I read each one of them!

Author’s Bio: Brendan is the founder of Photo MBA, where he teachers photographers how to charge more, land better clients, eliminate business headaches, and bridge the gap between their current reality and photography business goals.

To some, photography as a hobby could just be a pastime, that they do after a rigorous full-time office job. On the contrary, you could actually use your passion of taking photos to earn some money. When you are able to deliver a beautiful photograph, you are ensured that you always have a place in the industry. In this article, we are going to identify the ways to make money with your photography hobby.

Become a freelance photographer for Newspapers & Magazines

While it is not a stable job, you could still earn money by taking photographs for magazines and newspapers. Contact any agent or staff from any of the publications in your locality and inquire about any possible work. Submit eye-catching and print-worthy photographs regularly. This way, you will be able to establish yourself as a credible photographer in their company. Once you have developed a rapport with the publication that you are working with, you can expect more regular work like covering local events for news and featured stories.

Sell your photos through stock photography sites

If you have a vast collection of photos, you can submit them to stock photography sites. You can sell these images or have them licensed when you join sites like Shutterstock, iStockphoto, or Getty Images. These photographs are purchased by website owners of academic blogs, automobile sites for using them on their websites, brochures, print media, etc.

To sell your photos, you have to sign up as a contributor on any of the sites mentioned above. Follow the guidelines of the site and upload your photos. Add metadata, photo descriptions, and relevant keywords. This will help the users in finding the required images easily. Here are some useful tips to become a best-selling photographer on stock photography sites.

Sell your prints

There are various ways on how to sell your prints. Primarily, you can put up your own website and upload your portfolio there. You could also showcase your photos in local coffee shops and restaurants. If customers like your prints, they can very well contact you for purchasing them. You can also approach photography and art galleries in your vicinity and get the chance to display your work.

For better prospects, get your prints framed. You can even consider printing on canvas for a professional look. The possibilities are indeed endless.

You may like to check out online photo printing services.

Join Photography competitions

There are a lot of photography competitions whose prizes are not to be joked about. You can try looking for contests that offer cash prizes. Mostly these are theme based. Capture the theme based photographs for the competition and submit the same. Some competitions might require you to submit your portfolio as a prerequisite for participating. If you photograph regularly, you can easily enter these contests.

Start with searching online for photo competitions. While it does not guarantee you an instant payout, the concept of joining competitions would be thrilling, to say the least. You will learn a lot from this exercise.

Start a YouTube channel or a blog

For about a decade now, vloggers have been using YouTube as an avenue to generate money through their videos. This has been possible due to ads and sponsored content. If you want to share your knowledge in photography and earn good money, you can consider uploading videos online. If you are more of a writer, you can start a photography blog where you can post the galleries of your best photographs categorized by themes / topics / subject matter.

You can also post tips and tricks, review camera gears, or collaborate with other photographers and do photo tutorials. The catch here is that you will need to have a good number of followers so that you can actually make money from your blog.

Final Thoughts

If it pays well, you can eventually turn your hobby into a full-time job. It needs hard work and dedication, but the end result is awesome if your hobby pays off!

About the Author:

This is a guest post by Irina. Irina is a certified advertising specialist, a journalist and an experienced blogger. Her blog is her love, her hobby and her life.

Check out her profile and blog.

Any professional photographer can take bright pictures of the high quality in the place with a good daylight, even if he uses typical SLR camera. But what can a beginner do if he has to take photos in the place with bad light? There is no need to mention that it plays a significant role during the photo sessions. However, most of the beginners think that they need to use advanced and expensive equipment to good lighting pictures.

Anyway, neither good camera’s resolution, nor a camera stabilizer, or zoom lens would help you to get pictures of high quality in the condition of bad lighting. The same refers to the splash usage, but here, in this article, the group of professional photographers made up a list of top 5 tips on how to make the best light for taking pictures and avoid bad lighting photos.

ISO

The modern digital camera offers us several methods aimed to cover as much light as possible with a matrix of the camera. And increasing camera’s ISO is one of them. Probably, this is the easiest and quite obvious way to capture a photo. ISO adjustments affects the amount of light which will get on a sensitive sensor.

And here is a trick that you should remember: the higher ISO, the more light you would get in a photo, but, at the same time, it increases the level of the grain or pixel size in your photo. Thus, don’t use an ISO of 3200 or 6400 unless you would like to get a photo with a lot of ‘noise’.

However, it is possible to retouch a slight grain with the help of post processing program devices. Increase in ISO is the most suitable alternative for pictures taken in dark rooms or concert halls. Check out some handy tips about ISO here →

Lens optics and aperture

If you often take bad photos in the rooms with bad lighting, for example, at nightclubs or concert halls, the best decision is to buy a good high-aperture lens. F/1,4 -1,8 lets you take shots with higher quality. Aperture is something like a pupil, so it helps to get more light, while the aperture is opened. If it is possible, you have to open it as much as possible to get better pictures.

The more aperture you open, the less exposure you need for the correct shot. The best way out is to do these settings manually to have an opportunity to get needed shots. While using the maximum aperture, you have to be careful, as there is a risk that bright objects may turn into blurred ones, while the background and the faded object wouldn’t be sharpened enough. So, in this case, you have to be careful, as in the case of increasing the ISO. The aperture can also be used for adding creative effects to the photographs. Check it out here →

Exposure time and a tripod

One more method to make your life easier and a photo a bit lighter is to use long time exposure. However, this method is perfect for shooting motionless objects or landscapes at sunset. Standard time of exposure is from 1 to 10 seconds, and it regulates according to the type of a scene lighting.

Here is one more tip for photographers – you have to head for objects of a middling light while adjusting time exposure. There is no doubt that longtime exposure requires a tripod. It is essential to use a tripod in order to make sure that the picture is not blurred.

Speedlight

Flash is the very last method you should use, but sometimes it is effective enough. Flash usage often gives you awful effects, but today you have an opportunity to use a speedlight. This is a special small portable flash device which you can attach to your camera or stand-alone if activated via remote control.

Black and white filter

If nothing really works, try to apply a black-white filter and decrease the level of contrast. It is not a way out of the situation, but a good alternative solution.

About the author: John Landrum is a Managing Editor of the ‘National Education’ magazine. He was born in Austin, the USA and graduated from the University of California. He is 39 years old, and you can get familiar with his works at https://samedaypapers.com/essay-writing-help.

A big part of being a lifestyle photographer implies knowing how to make your clients look less awkward in front of the camera. To overcome shyness and stiffness, you’ll have to help your non-models feel comfortable, smile naturally and just be themselves. Your attitude plays a major role and knowing the right things to say is half the battle. If you want to surprise your clients with incredibly candid shots, we’ve selected these tips for posing non-models that will show you how to make anyone look better regardless of their posing skills.

1. Establish What You Want to Achieve with Your Photos

   Whether you’re taking photos to improve your skills and your model is a friend or you’re taking photos of clients, you should know what you want to achieve from the start. In some cases, it’s up to you to choose the settings, type of photos and mood. For this, you have to be prepared so you can direct your non-model accordingly. Google some poses before your shoot begins and find some inspiration for various shoots.

   In other cases, however, the clients will request a certain setting like the beach or a forest. You should always talk to your clients before the photo session and establish what they expect from the photos. Make a list of questions and make sure you find out as many details as possible. What mood do they want to convey in the photos? Are they more traditional or more modern? All of these will help you get to know your non-models better and will make them feel more comfortable in front of you.

2. Don’t Force Your Subjects into Certain Poses

   Assuming you’ve done your pre-shooting homework, you have at least a few poses in mind that you will ask your non-models to try. However, you should keep in mind that some poses do not look universally good on everyone. Especially if your subject is uncomfortable, the stiffness will easily become apparent in all of your images.

   Unless you want to end up with dozens of cringey photos, don’t force your subject to do things that don’t come naturally. For instance, you can offer advice and tell your non-model to run her hand through her hair but this can easily go wrong and look awkward. Instead, be more specific with your directions and ask your model to run her right hand through her hair, using her fingertips to make a playful gesture. You will acquire this type of tricks with experience but if you want to speed up the process, you can enroll in a photography workshop that will help you improve both your photography skills and your interaction with clients.

3. Chin Up, Shoulders Down

   You’ve probably heard this piece of advice a million times before, but do you actually know why everybody preaches it? Non-models are bound to be camera-shy, especially in the first few minutes of your photo session. Giving them a few pointers will help them feel less awkward and uncomfortable. You should always encourage your subjects to bring their chin forward to avoid the double chin effect we can notice when people stand normally.

   However, this piece of advice can easily backfire, with some non-models bringing their chin way too high, making their nostrils visible. In this case, you can clarify the request and ask the subject to move their ears forward. In the same vein, tell them to relax their shoulders. When people feel uncomfortable, their whole body gets tense and you can easily spot the tension in their shoulders. Tell your subjects to slightly bring their shoulders down, which will also help them stand straighter, elongating the silhouette.

4. Show Your Non-Models the Photos You’re Taking

   Most photographers will go through an entire session without stopping. Not only is this tiring for them, it can also be tiring for the subjects. Non-models often feel awkward because they don’t think they are photogenic, they don’t feel good in their skin and they probably expect this to come across in the pictures. By taking a couple of minutes to show your non-models the photos you’ve taken, you can relieve their discomfort and show them how good the photos look. This can boost their confidence and make them feel more relaxed.

5. Be Careful with the Waist and Arms

   Everybody expects to look thin in photos, including non-models. And since they are probably unaware of how to achieve this, it’s up to you to make sure you accentuate the waist line accordingly. The waist line will make your subject appear sleek and look good. To make the waist stand out, it should be completely isolated and nothing should be touching it. This includes not only the subject’s arms but also objects behind the model that could elongate the line to our detriment.

   Likewise, you should always be aware of the subject’s hands and offer advice about where to place them. If your subject is resting her arm against her body, the arm will look bigger. If the subject puts her hands on her hips and moves the elbow away from the body, the entire arm will look slender. You can also help your non-model accentuate her waist by asking her to place her hands on the smallest part of the waist, bringing her fingertips close together without touching. This creates the illusion of a super small waist.

About the author: John Stuart works on behalf of londonschoolofphotography.com in outreach and content creation. He creates engaging content that help businesses connect with their audience and stand out from the crowd.

In last couple of years, it appears that one of the trending fashion is to create your own photobook. Over the time it has turned into a great hobby and a prevalent decision for picture takers who wish to keep their works in print.

Assembling your first photo-book can be overwhelming. You have to take a number of decisions that will all contribute in creating a photobook that stands out of the crowd. So ideally these tips will lead you through the basic process of choosing the photos, frames and so on.

Moreover, the tips below may set you on your approach to making your first photobook.

1. Answer the question: “Why am I doing this?”

   Firstly, think about the motive of compiling the photobook. Finding out the reason for creating the photobook will help you a lot in moving in the right direction and assembling a photobook that’s cool and creative.

   There are a couple of questions you can ask yourself:

   • Is it a photo book only for myself or for selling?
   • Is it a part of a project?
   • Does it need to be accompanied by some other works?

2. Think about putting all the photos together

   Secondly, think about a software you use to make the collages or to put the photographs in the appropriate order. For example, Blurb.Com. This site helps you with making professional photobooks. However, you may not only concentrate on this one. Try to use different websites in order to choose the one that works for you. Moreover, you can go to a library or a bookstore to get some inspiration about how other people create the books. You can get creative and try to copy the layouts or fonts the other authors are using.

   

3. Choose the type of Photo Book you want to create

   It is the time to think about the type of photobook you want.

   It mainly depends on:

   • Purpose
   • Content
   • Budget

   It is your decision whether you want to have a hardback or a paperback photobook. In addition, you may feel free to change the size of it and the quantity of photos inside.

4. Pick the best photos, think a theme!

   Your photobook will look better if it consists of the photos that are based on some theme. Say depth of field, shutter speed or time lapse for instance.

   The same style or the shots made at the same time frame will also work great.

   Select the best photos and if you find that one of them is out of the context, simply delete it and switch to another.

   

5. Choose a layout for your Photobook

   Select between a full bleed and a border options. The former implies putting the photographs in a way they fill all the page, while the white blanks have to be left if you want to follow the second option.

   You may even consider sharing the photo stories along with the photographs. Or you can try overlaying text on the images. So can try just about anything… options are many! Let’s get to the next point.

6. Think about whether you want to add some text

   Usually the photographs are put on the right hand side. The left side is used for writing or typing some captions. It’s your photobook, you can experiment with what looks good. You can organize, design and lay it out the way you want.

   If you think that the photo needs a description, feel free to write a couple of words or sentences about it. Although you can write whatever you want, it is recommended to keep it simple and short (KISS).

   If you choose to add text, you will have to careful about the choice of fonts. Make sure it goes well with the mood of the images. For example, use bold fonts for landscape photographs and cursive fonts for female portraits.

   

7. Select a Cover Photo

   This is the most important step in the series — getting the cover photo right! The front image need to present the main idea of your book. It has to be beautiful, interactive and encouraging to inspire people to turn the pages. It has to be awesome and appealing.

These tips will guide you in creating your very first photobook. These ideas will spark your creativity and after making the first one, I’m sure that you will want to create more photobooks. Get creative and put your heart and soul into every step of making this piece of art.

About the author: Lisa Griffin is blogger at payforessays.blogspot.com whose credo is “Be creative and fun! There are two best sides of yours”

This is a guest post by Karen Foley. Karen Foley is a professional freelance photographer who loves sharing the joy of her art with others. See Karen’s work at dreamstime.com. As the holiday season is ready to set on fire, Karen is excited to share her creative shopping ideas for the photographers.

The food has all been eaten, the relatives have gone home and kids have been put to bed. The holiday is over for another year. Now it is time to turn your attention to shopping for the biggest shopping day of the year.

You might be thinking Thanksgiving and Black Friday here, but if you are interested in shooting stock photography, the holiday sales to keep an eye on are the after Halloween bargains!

Stock photography is not all about smiling happy people doing stuff, it’s about capturing universal themes in ways that are easy to visually grasp. How better to do that than with the many props and costumes available inexpensively after the greatest of all dress-up holidays?

Here’s a quick guide of things to look for – other than, or maybe in addition to, the Halloween candy – when sale signs go up at your favorite Halloween supply store.

Start with the costumes

Halloween costumes have evolved over the years from the flimsy firetraps of yesteryears into realistic looking outfits of today. Avoid the naughty nurse genre, and head straight for the uniform sections.

Think about the various scenarios you can use military, first responder, sports or professional uniforms in your images in the upcoming year. Buy for the various size and genders of models you might be able to coerce into them in the coming year – including yourself.

Don’t completely pass by the fantasy section – Steampunk is a genre with many applications, and you just never know when you’ll need that “Big Foot” costume.

Go for the accessories

Don’t forget to add the accessories. Wigs, hats, gloves and stockings will help to set a more realistic scene in your images. Accessories can also be used alone to create a statement – a soldiers hat next to flowers on a grave, or the whimsy of devil’s horns on a piece of chocolate cake can speak volumes.

The Halloween make-up available now is near theatrical quality and not just for zombies and vampires – although those are fun as well.

Stock up on a wide variety of creams, colors and effects to create multiple looks. You will be surprised the number of times you’ll pull them out for a shoot. And grab some of the blood and gore while you’re there – it just might come in handy someday.

Don’t forget lights for dramatic effects

The eerie effects created for Halloween can be re-purposed over and over for different impact. Buy a smoke machine to use in disco settings or spider webs to simulate neglect or age in a scene. Colored lights are great for making light trails, orbs and domes when light painting, and don’t forget the great bokeh effect you can create with them as well.

Props and decoration pieces

Costume props and decoration pieces can be used in a wide variety of applications non-holiday related. Look for classic items that can be re-purposed again and again throughout the year. My poor skeleton guy has been in the closet, grabbing water in the desert, standing in for medical scenes, and the list goes on and on.

Keep an open mind – and watchful eye – as you browse the after holiday sales. Dog and children’s costumes are great for dressing up a teddy bear. Not sure where you can use that skull and cross-bone?

What does it matter at bargain basement prices? Grab a few out of the ordinary objects to help fuel your creativity for the rest of the year. You won’t have another chance to grab these bargains for 365 days!

About the author: Karen Foley is a professional freelance photographer who loves sharing the joy of her art with others. See more of Karen’s work at dreamstime.com.

This is a guest post by Nick Vinken. Nick Vinken is a photographer / videographer based in the Netherlands. On his website photographygearguide.com, he shares valuable advice for starting photographers and filmmakers. He mainly discusses gear considerations, but also publishes tips, tutorials and informational articles.

Depth of field (DoF) can be a difficult concept to grasp, but if one understands a few basic concepts it becomes a lot easier to understand and to control. Knowledge of these concepts will help you in improving your photography skills.

Using a shallow depth of field is a powerful tool that you can use to isolate the subject in your frame (either from the background or the foreground). It is a popular style in portrait photography, macro and wildlife photography (among others). When you use a longer depth of field, a larger part of your image will be in focus. This is more useful in other types of photography, like architecture and landscape.

How do you get started with experimenting with “Depth of Field”?

Your camera’s lens will have some point at which it is perfectly focused. There will be a zone of sharp focus both in front of your subject as well as behind it. The zone in front is typically shallower than the zone behind the focal point. There will be a small amount of foreground not in focus, a larger area of background unfocused. Set your camera at A for aperture or M for manual and take control!

You must think about some of these factors as reciprocals to understand the depth of field. There are optical explanations, but you need not know them. The factors that can effect depth of field include:

• Lens aperture the size of the hole that passes light through a reciprocal number.
• Lens focal length the measure of how strongly the system converges or diverges light.
• Shutter Speed the duration for which the shutter is open to transmit light, a reciprocal number.
• Angle of View the width of the view or the scene that the lens can take in.
• ISO the sensitivity to light of the sensor or film.
• Sensor size how large the light sensitive sensor is (in terms of megapixles).

The Lens Aperture (f-number magic)

By setting the lens aperture to a lower number like ƒ2.8-4.0, producing a larger hole in the lens shutter, one creates a much shorter, more compact depth of field (DoF). The background behind the subject will be blurred. This is useful in emphasizing the subject to the exclusion of its surroundings. Especially useful in nature photography: birds, bugs, reptiles and the like-and in portraiture.

Depending upon the ambient light you may need to reduce shutter speed and/or ISO. Setting your aperture to a higher number, say ƒ/22, will produce a smaller hole in the shutter, and give a long depth of field. This is useful for landscapes and can also be used in a lot of architectural shots.

Focal Length and DoF

The effect of focal length on DoF is less dramatic than aperture, but a longer focal length provides a lower optical power and higher magnification. It also compresses the scene front to back, an effect some find desirable. It reduces the angle of view. Setting your zoom to a lower focal length will be associated with a wider angle of view and less DoF.

Other Settings

One may need to make adjustments in shutter speed and/or camera ISO settings to adjust the amount of light passing through the shutter.

Large aperture = more light, small aperture = less light.

So what can you do if your camera does not have these more advanced features? All may not be lost. Check your camera manual and if it has a scene selection group of settings you can use them. The portrait setting will have a shallower DoF, while the landscape setting will have more depth of field. Try these and see how that works for you.

About the author: Nick Vinken is a photographer / videographer based in the Netherlands. On his website photographygearguide.com, he shares valuable advice for starting photographers and filmmakers. He mainly discusses gear considerations, but also publishes tips, tutorials and informational articles.

This is a guest post by Brian Williams. Brian is a marketing coordinator for Outdoor Photo Gear, a supplier of top quality photography accessories. In his spare time, Brian enjoys blogging and physical fitness, particularly golf and crossfit.

As a photographer, passion is a key ingredient for success. When you’re willing to work so hard that other interests fall on the back-burner, you’re pouring all your love into your craft. Like all areas of photography, outdoor photography requires hard work, dedication and a will to succeed. Unlike other areas, outdoor photography also includes a deep love for nature and the willingness to get dirty. Are you ready to succeed? Here’s a quick guide to help transform your passion for outdoor photography into a powerhouse profession.

How Do I Get Started?

Aside from deep-rooted love for photography, shooting great outdoor photographs involve a love for nature. To be successful in photography, the subject of your art should be something you feel strongly about. A passion for nature and the environment are necessary to start your career; the rest will follow.

Following Your Passion

The joy of getting paid for your passion is unparalleled, but certain benefits already place you ahead of the competition. As a photographer passionate about outdoor work, you’ve already spent more time shooting and spending time outdoors than most. This gives you knowledge and experiences others don’t have — knowledge that’s necessary for success.

Education

The majority of photography careers require a degree in either design or photography. Many colleges and art schools provide these programs, including those specifically for nature or outdoor photography. In addition, try classes related to your favorite photos. If you love shooting animals, for example, taking a class will help you understand how they survive in their natural habitats, which will be advantageous when shooting. Classes on biology, zoology, animal behavior, botany, and geology are all helpful when working in the great outdoors.

Learning at Home

There are books, tutorials, blogs and online videos that can improve both your photographic and nature knowledge, but spending time outdoors and practicing are also necessary. If you love what you do, getting out and working should be an exciting challenge. Practice, practice, practice.

How Do I Get a Job?

Most photographers who specialize in outdoor photos work as freelancers, which provides a great income if you remain dedicated. The passion is already there; a strong work ethic will take you far.

Another option is sending photos to newspapers or magazines, where your work must be of the highest caliber to be accepted. With many highly-skilled photographers regularly sending in work, this can be a competitive field, but it’s worth trying. Getting your work published is a huge step in getting your work seen.

You can also start a personal blog or website, in addition to using photography websites like Pixoto and Flickr.

The Recipe for Success

Research shows that choosing a profession based on passion helps fuel success, but so do talent and hard work. A willingness to take constructive criticism, learn, and improve are highly valued in photography. It takes a lot of commitment and dedication to turn a passion into a successful profession, but with the will to succeed, anything is possible. Passion can be both fun and fruitful.

Getting the Perfect Shot

Unlike human models, you can’t position animals or a landscape scene. You work with what nature provides, and that might mean hours to get the perfect shot.

Being an outdoor photographer requires patience and the ability to adapt to your surroundings, whether that’s an amazon rainforest or your own backyard. The opportunities nature provides are unparalleled in a studio. This is what makes outdoor photography such a unique profession. Take advantage of what nature has to offer. Enjoy it, soak in it, and get that perfect shot.

About the author: This article is contributed by Brian Williams. Brian is a marketing coordinator for Outdoor Photo Gear, a supplier of top quality photography accessories. In his spare time, Brian enjoys blogging and physical fitness, particularly golf and crossfit.

Recently I was thinking of a gift for a friend of mine and I decided I’d make a collage from some of my non-personal photos. The collage turned out to be a 36″ x 24″ poster with one 18″x12″ hero shot. I think for someone who pursues photography purely as a passion and doesn’t have the time to organize his work into a portfolio, this template does the job.

Here’s a preview of what it turned out to be. Related photographs here.

I met several challenges while I was making this collage. Lightroom wouldn’t let me save the collage as a saved print in TIFF format. Another major one was sizing and aligning the images in a grid with the required border. But finally I managed to get it done. And so I thought of sharing it so that you don’t have to go through the same pain.

The one that I had printed was created in Lightroom and then the file was saved and printed to a file. I then sent it to the printing company and voila!

However as far as printing is concerned, I find Photoshop a lot easier to work with. I thus sat and created a Photoshop template also within which you can place your photos with the right profile and all and save for print later, in whichever format you like.

Lightroom Collage Template

Lightroom Print Template (If you are on Windows, just extract and place the file in this folder: %appdata%\Adobe\Lightroom\Print Templates\User Templates)

Photoshop Templates

Though the size of these files seems trivial, be warned. After extracting these will occupy upwards of 600MB. The files are in Adobe RGB profile and set to print a size of 36″ x 24″ at 300dpi.

Guides Only: Just drag and resize photos as required and print or save for print later. You may not want to hit the print button unless you have a printer suitable for such large prints.

Guides with Smart Objects: This allows you to place your photographs as smart objects and the photo-borders are taken care of automatically by the layer effects.

Using the templates should be straightforward. Here’s a little video to get you started.

It’s the Indian new year today. The last year was a tough one. My father was diagnosed with cancer in Jan 2014. He left us on 25th Aug 2014. He was my inspiration behind music. And he was the one who let me hold a camera for the first time ever. I don’t remember the brand or make, but the camera had no film inside. For me he cut a roll of translucent paper and inserted the roll inside a camera just like you do with film. And then he instructed: “Every time you press the shutter you’ll see an upside down image of the scene that’s in front of the camera.” I had to keep the camera’s back open and I played all day. I made my brother pose and act in front of the camera the entire time — not that I’d see much since it just worked on the principle of the pin-hole camera, but I did want a real subject to pose. It was a manual camera with no auto forward. So after some clicks the paper roll would come to an end and had to be reinserted.

I bought the Nikon D80 in the early half of 2008. I had another not-so-serious Nikon film camera earlier which I rarely used — no fun clicking and not knowing what you shot, unless you spend the rest of the film shooting the walls and the sky and rush to have it developed. I made around 60K pictures with the D80.

I bought the Sony RX1 in 2013 and have made quite a few good ones with that as well. However as you know my primary job is to design websites for my clients and that’s my bread and butter. I never got a chance to make a proper collection. However recently I was thinking of a gift for a friend of mine and I decided I’d make a collage of some of my non-personal photos. So very quickly I rushed through my collections and narrowed down on these.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 10000

The famous Gwalior fort has been photographed from many angles and by so many photographers that it’s almost become a cliche. I never planned to get this shot. This was shot with the RX1 when the light-and-sound show was in progress. The high ISO of RX1, the dynamic range and the bit-depth all came together to make this a unique one. The scene is so dynamic and RX1 was even able to capture the blue in the sky even though shooting a bright subject.

Nikon D80, 18-200mm@120mm 1/1250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100

A sunset… one of the many sunsets I’ve shot. I seem to have so many sunsets in my collections that now I consciously avoid photographing them. I don’t play with white-balance for these. I just turn down the exposure compensation to a negative value (-2 or lower) to get the saturated colors. Else you see the sun is high and so bright that it will totally wash away the scene.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@200mm, 1/6 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600. Handheld.

The moon behind a coconut tree while I was enjoying the beach breeze in Goa.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@200mm 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100, -1.3EV

My first sunset photograph before I became a sunset expert. I waited for an hour at Gwalior fort to get this one right. I like the golden lining on the clouds and the framing that gives it a narrative and context.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 8000

The common every-night roof-top moon. I played with in-camera white-balance.

RX1 35mm 1/400 sec, f/2, ISO 100

My daughter’s shoes. She was less than a year when these were bought. Women go gaga over this family of pink tones.

RX1 35mm 1/100 sec, f/2, ISO 100, -3EV

At Lonawala on a family holiday.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 400

An electric Diwali-lamp.

RX1 35mm 1/1250 sec, f/2, ISO 100

The roots of a tree. I liked the forms and planned to turn it black and white. But I liked it with an emerald touch.

RX1 35mm 1/4000 sec, f/10, ISO 100, -1EV

Another sunset. I planned to have some florals to add a touch of beauty. This is what came out.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@24mm 1/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100

I was on this beach at Goa and had this leaf figured out. But my son conveniently walks into the scene. I kept this one for the trivia.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@18mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO100

A boat ride. I chose it for the colors.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@200mm, 1/640s, f/5.6, ISO100, -0.7EV

Some flowers.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@170mm, 1/1000s, f/5.6, ISO100, -1EV

Some more flowers.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@200mm, 1/640s, f/5.6, ISO100, -2EV

A lotus. It had been plucked by someone and was handheld when I took the shot. You’d discover an ant at the top of the stem on careful inspection.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@200mm, 1/4000s, f/5.6, ISO100, -2EV

The Tighra dam reservoir. I went for the golden waters.

Nikon D80 18-200mm@18mm, 1/200s, f/3.5, ISO100

Some rocks on a beach at Goa.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/8, ISO 640, -2EV

Another sunset. I tried to capture the beautiful tones instead of the sun.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 3200

I was returning from the country-side when I saw this fire in the field. I loved the combination of the deep blue and the orange.

RX1 35mm 1/400 sec, f/8, ISO 100, -2EV

Another sunset.

RX1 35mm 1/2000 sec, f/2, ISO 100

Oops. Yet again.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 25600

I had walked 20kms and finally climbed a hill to reach the Tighra reservoir. What I reached was a moon smiling from behind the beautiful florals.

RX1 35mm 1/10 sec, f/2, ISO 25600

This is what the reservoir looked like when climbing down. The spiral adds to the composition.

RX1 35mm 1/2000 sec, f/2, ISO 100, -3EV

The last sunset in this collection. I promise.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/8, ISO 3200

It looked like a normal pond on a cold, breezy, clouded, chilly, winter day. Then I played with white-balance.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 1250

Car tail-lights.

RX1 35mm 1/1250 sec, f/2, ISO 100

A lotus.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 250

A saree (dress) I bought for my lovely wife.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 640

My violin.

RX1 35mm 1/80 sec, f/2, ISO 250

Some “rakhis” displayed hanging at a shop.

RX1 35mm 1/640 sec, f/2, ISO 100

I’ll leave you with some flowers.

Time and again some readers have questioned my skills as a photographer. I’ve also been declared as an internet expert. Let’s just say I’m not a pro. But I hope you’d agree I do get lucky sometimes. I hope you enjoyed these. Please do share these with your friends and let me know which ones you like.

Nikon has launched the successor of the original AF-S DX NIKKOR
18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR. This lens is for all the photographers who wanted a compact and lightweight solution with a better range of focal length.

The Nikon 18-300mm VR (16.7x zoom lens) was announced on 10th April 2014 and will be available in the market from May 2014. This lens is available for pre-order at Adorama and Amazon.

As compared to older Nikon 18-300mm, the newer version has got better specs while being daintier and smaller. The newer version is also light on your pocket; it comes $100 cheaper than the previous version — not really a good excuse to buy this lens (more on that later). With that said, let’s take a look at the specs of this lens.

1. Price Range

   The good thing about this lens is that as the lens has become lighter, the price of the lens has also come down. The previous lens was available for $999.95, the new version is priced at $899.95. The price of the new lens includes a LC-67 Snap-on Front Lens Cap 67mm and a LF-4 Rear Lens Cap. And this lens comes with a 5-year warranty (in USA).

2. Compatibility

   Being a DX lens, Nikkor 18-300mm is compatible with Nikon DX cameras. If you are planning to buy this lens for your FX model, there are chances that the images may suffer from the darkened edges and will definitely be in the DX crop mode.

3. Specifications

   Before we discuss all the specifications, let’s demystify the jargon. It is an all in one telephoto zoom, which is called AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR where,

   • AF-S refers to Auto Focus- Silent Wave and helps in avoid lag time while switching from auto focus to manual focus.
   • DX refers to the compatibility of the lens with DX cameras.
   • 18-300mm denotes the minimum and maximum focal length (as you already know).
   • f/3.5-6.3 refers to the maximum aperture of the lens.
   • G states that there are no aperture ring. It is automatic.
   • ED means you have an extra low dispersion glass.
   • VR stands for Vibration Reduction. This lens has got VR that provides 4 stops of stabilization.
     

4. Sharpness

   The VR helps you get razor sharp images by compensating for the mildest shake. The old Nikon 18-300mm VR provided great sharpness in the pictures, but this one is expected to be better.

   

5. Diaphragm

   It has a round 7-blade diaphragm for normal background blur.

6. Optics

   It has got 16 optical elements in 12 groups. There are three extra low dispersion and three aspherical glass elements.

7. Focal Range

   It provides the same focal range as a 27mm to 450mm equivalent in the FX/35mm format; just that it is available for DX cameras.

   

8. Auto Focus

   Auto Focus uses Silent Wave Motor, which uses ultrasonic vibrations, not a gear system. It gives you silent, accurate focus.

9. Filter Thread

   It has a 67mm filter thread and has the same functionality as the old Nikon 18-300mm DX lens.

10. Aperture Range

    The aperture range is from f/3.5-6.3 as compared to f/3.5-5.6 for the older version.

11. Angle of View

    The angle of view ranges from 76° to 5° 20′.

12. Size & Weight

    This lens weighs about 19.4 ounces/550 grams and the size is 99mm x 78.5mm. This is one of the key features of the new lens as it is around 9.8 ounces lighter than the previous model of Nikon 18-300mm VR lens (29.2ounces/828 grams) but with better specs.

This lens is for all the hobbyists and professional photographers who always opted for Nikon 18-200mm owing to its versatility and light-weight.

My old Nikkor 18-200mm serves me perfectly and when it is time to upgrade, I am upgrading to FX — one key reason why you shouldn’t really invest in DX lenses any more (unless you really see a good return of investment). Are you buying one?

Photography might be a creative endeavor but it still is a business. You need to promote your services as a business while you practice the art. Word of mouth and having a Facebook page are not good enough. You have to do bigger and better. You have to make an effort to take your business to the next level.

For this, you need to have a rich online presence. And getting yourself a personalized website helps you in catering to the needs and demands of your clients.

How will a website help you in the process? How will it be beneficial for your business? Here are 15 different ways in which your website can potentially take your business to the next level.

1. A Website Is More Than A Perfect Replacement Of That “Elevator Pitch”

   With no one having any time to spare, how do you convince a potential client that you are the best among the crowd? Simple. Handover your business card with your business tagline and your website link. You may not be in your business attire all the time. But your website will project that grandeur of your art and professionalism. And if the clients have a second thought, your website will take care of the rest.

   

2. Your Website Helps You In Gaining Visibility On The Internet

   Having an online presence is imperative. The whole world is on the internet and having a website not only helps you reach your potential client base, but also helps you in building an image of credibility.

   Websites are a blessing in this respect. You can showcase your work, share your contact info, interact with clients through online booking/appointment form and present the client testimonials, all at one place — for your audience to see, appreciate and strike a conversation with you.

3. It Gives You An Opportunity To Present Your Portfolio

   There are tons of photographers out there, shooting the genres you are photographing. In such a stiff competitive market, how can you present yourself as a unique brand?

   The answer is an exquisite portfolio site. Along with showcasing your work on various social media platforms, go a mile extra by presenting your portfolio on your website — one portfolio per genre.

   

   You can go creative with showcasing the portfolio. You can actually share “behind the scenes” story for each of the shots included in the portfolio. Your zeal to share your photographing techniques helps in building your image as a established photographer.

   That’s not all. If you are interested in sharing your photographic experiences and knowledge, a valuable photography blog is what you can next head to.

4. Start A Photo Blog & Become An Authoritative Photographer

   Start a blog along with the website. Create the content that is genuinely yours and defines your style of photography. This helps you in becoming an authority in your field.

   The regularly updated website attracts clients as much as they attract the search engines. Start with sharing your photographic experiences, techniques and tips to eventually turn your photography blog  into a rich source of information in the form of tutorials, webinars, workshops and the likes.

   Over the time as you establish yourself as an authority, you can  also earn from this endeavor by offering premium content on your website. Offering ebooks is also a great idea.

5. It Helps You In Creating Your Forte & In Offering Specialized Services

   The way a business fares online is quite different than the way it works in the offline world. In the online world, it is all about making it to the top in search results — for your niche market and specialization.

   Just having a website doesn’t fare well; by all means, hire an intelligent developer who can not only build user-friendly websites but also optimizes your website for the right audience and the right keywords; so that your website hijacks the SERPs (search engine results page) for your specific niche. (Shameless plug: Let me know if I can help you with your photography site design.)

   

6. Your Website, Your Content, Your Images, Your Guidelines

   The work of photography is relatively more prone to being objected depending on the platform your are using and the regional culture. Ever saw a warning from Facebook or YouTube asking you to take down certain content from your profile (channel) because it doesn’t abide by their guidelines? I have personally come across this issue many a times.

   Having your own website, offers you all sorts of freedom. It is your website, you are free to publish the images and content that you want to share with your audience and you can set your own guidelines!

   You can take extra caution to make the content and the images safe and secure so that the users cannot use your content or images without your permission.

7. It Is Your Show All The Way

   When you showcase your work on social networking websites, your hands are tied. Even though you can finish your photographs to your satisfaction, you really do not have the control and flexibility to change the way they are showcased on these sites.

   Your own website in this respect gives you unlimited power over how you manage content and showcase your images. Want a gorgeous slider? Interactive animations? Grab that chance to impress your potential clients.

8. Not Only Woo The Customers But Sell Your Products Too

   Selling the artwork is the next great thing you can do with your website. Gaining visibility and establishing authority are the primary benefits of a website which can later be effectively utilized in bringing some passive income home. Sell your prints, exhibit the images for downloads or offer the exquisite Photoshop actions, Lightroom presets, etc to the amateurs; your website acts as a wonderful medium for this.

9. Count On The power Of E-commerce

   Sell your merchandise round the clock. Since your products are just one click away from the comfort of your site user’s home, your chances of gaining online visitors and customers multiplies manifolds.

   Photography website with online shopping feature helps you in more than one way. Without sleepless nights or long hours of work, you earn money (online sales) and save money (on distribution and production).

   In all you earn money for your business while saving the time for investing in honing your skills as a photographer.

   

10. Cost-Effective Advertising

    A website is a very cost effective advertising tool. You can create specific landing pages on the go; each landing page optimized for specifically targeted user query. And when the visitor lands on your optimized  landing page, he gets a quick overview of your offerings and becomes a potential customer for your business.
    

11. Generate Leads With Your Website

    Not just the customers, your website also helps you in building a subscriber (fans) base. With each new subscriber for your website, you are building an audience that likes what you offer.

    This opens up ways for marketing a new product with ease. You already have a market base. All you need is to deliver the information about the new product and services. Even if out of 10,000 subscribers, 1% convert, it takes far less time and effort than attracting 10 new clients.

    

12. Better Clientele → Informed Customers = Happy Customers

    Most of the time when a deal falls through is because the customer and the service provider is a mismatch.

    Customers don’t know what they want.

    — Steve Jobs

    Your website enables you to educate your visitors so that they make sound choices and you attract the kind of customers you want to work with.

13. Your Website Can Help You In Improving Your Business

    Take feedback from your customers through the feedback form on your website. Let them not only rate your products and services, give them an opportunity to share their experiences with you and your services. Blog about the client photo-shoots and include client’s testimonials as a conclusion.

    This creates goodwill in the longer run, which you can always capitalize on.

14. Your Website In Itself Is A Revenue Stream

    This is one of the most neglected advantage of the website. Websites not only generate revenue only when you offer products and services. It acts as a means of earning even when you don’t have your own tangible products. Advertisements, affiliate programs, etc are some of the common ways.

Still having second thoughts about having a website? Check out the killer ideas to make money with your website here.

Girish is a India based photographer. He is a self-taught professional photographer who loves to travel the world and shoot all the genres of photography. He is a full time IT Consultant and part time professional cameraman on the weekends.

Currently, he is working as a SAP Technical consultant with Accenture India and alongside nurtures his passion for photography by taking up photography assignments for photographing people, editorials, industrial projects and commercial work.

In this interview, Girish talks about his passion and personal life as a photographer.

Tell us something about yourself.

My name is Girish and I’m a self taught photographer who loves to travel the world. Pune is what I call home. I love shooting everything. For me, it’s about happiness, hope, love, pain, life, style, and real. I’m friendly and warm. I started photography a short while ago, I’m self taught. I have a strong bond with my style and fight fiercely to keep it and perfect it. I shoot people and emotion. I shoot weddings and love. I shoot buildings and lines. I shoot industrial projects and commercial work. I do editorials. I shoot fashion and nightlife. I shoot the world the way I see it when I travel. I am, A PHOTOGRAPHER, and I don’t desire to be called a certain kind of photographer.

Where are you based?

I am based in Pune and I operate in Pune and Mumbai (India).

You started as an IT professional and worked with some big names in the IT industry. How did you transition to photography?

I am working as a SAP Technical consultant with Accenture India. My photography journey started during my college days when I used to trek and keep traveling. I used a point and shoot camera to do photography back then. My hobby later turned into a profession lately in 2007 when I purchased a Nikon DSLR. Since then I have never stopped clicking.

How would you describe your photographic style and how it has developed over the years?

I don’t have any particular photographic style. I shoot everything — right from landscapes, insects, macros to portraits, festivals, weddings etc. And for me everyday is a new learning.

What was your first camera, and what equipment do you shoot with these days?

My first camera was Olympus C760 (point and shoot), which I still own. Then I used a Nikon D60. Currently I use Nikon D7000 and a couple of lenses like Nikkor 18-55mm, Nikkor 50mm f/1.8, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 VR1, Nikkor 70-300mm MF lens, Nikkor Teleconvertor 2.0x, Raynox DCR-150 & 250 (macro adapters) & some lights.

At what point did you realize that you should take up photography assignments?

In 2008, one of my photographs was shortlisted by Late Mr. Gautam Rajyadhaksha for the Sakal Reflections Exhibition and this is how I got inspired to take it up professionally.

Tell us about your first break as a commercial photographer (who was your first client and how did you get your first assignment).

My first commercial assignment was a folio shoot for two of my office colleagues who had been trying to get into modelling. My clients approached me after looking at my work on my Flickr & Facebook galleries.

Generally how do you get photography assignments?

Normally I get most of my assignments through my Facebook page (URL: https://www.facebook.com/GirishS.Photography).

What has been the biggest challenge with the commercial side of photography?

The biggest challenge what I see in commercial photography is convincing the client. There is so much of competition that the client wants the work be done in low budget.

What kind of marketing do you do for promoting your photography?

I am very weak at marketing. I normally promote my photography through my Facebook page, Flickr pro account & 500px plus account.

What has changed in the time you have been shooting commercial work? For better and worse?

I don’t think anything has changed. Only the expectations of the clients have changed.

What kind of investment and revenue generation is there in the field of commercial photography?

Equipment is the big investment that one has to put in for commercial photography. Second is the softwares and tools that you use for post processing.

You are working almost all genres like people, landscapes, macros, etc. Which is your favorite genre and why?

My personal passion is for portraits.

I’m very inspired by your it photography. For somebody wanting to get into this area of photography what are your suggestions?

Getting into portraits is easy and at the same time it is difficult. You need to do your homework very well and understand your subject.

What are you thoughts about getting a formal education in photography? Would you recommend against it?

Photography cannot be learned. It is an art that someone carries within. Formal education will not help in any way.

If you could go on assignment anywhere in the world to shoot whatever you wanted; where and what would it be, and why?

India of course. All around India, to experience various cultures and visit heritage sites. You won’t find so many variations and so many things in any other country else than India.

Before you start a commercial shoot, how do you prepare yourself?

Before any commercial assignment, I sit with my team and the model and understand what is the requirement of the assignment and how we gonna execute it. This way the model is also comfortable during the shoot.

Where do you look at yourself 5 years from now.

Traveling around with my camera, shooting for calendars, fashion events, models.

Who is your inspiration?

There are various people who have been my inspiration like Andrea Klarin, Richard Warren, Sue Bryce, Tarun Khiwal, Atul Kasbekar, Nicolaas De Bruin, Ashok Salian & Prabhuda Dasgupta.

A website or blog you visit often.

Flickr.com, 500px.com are the sites that I visit everyday.

What other hobbies do you pursue other than photography?

I love to travel, trek & listen music.

What type of camera, lenses and lighting equipment do you use?

Nikon D60 for a standby, Nikon D7000 and couple of lenses like Nikkor 18-55mm, Nikkor 50mm f/1.8, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 VR1 , Nikkor 70-300mm MF lens, Nikkor Teleconvertor 2.0x, Raynox DCR-150 & 250 (macro adapters) & some lights.

What has been the most exciting photography assignment.

The ones which I decide within seconds and shoot have been the most exciting ones. One of them is a folio shoot done for a model called Roshani Jain; album name Krasivaya (you can find it on my facebook page). I called up Roshani early morning and went on a drive and shot with whatever clothes she was carrying.

Another one is a recent shoot with Isha Phatak, which was again planned at the last minute. (You can check the pictures on my Facebook Page, album name — Just Clicks)

Does the camera and equipment really matters or is it the artistic side of photography that weighs more?

Obviously, the artistic side.

What’s the best part of being a photographer?

The best part of being a fashion photographer is that the women listen to the photographer. (Laughs ..) I just feel like an ordinary guy when I am with my camera.

Can you present one / two favorite images of yours? What do you like about them?

The following two images are my favorite shots. The first one is my favorite for the obvious reason that this image was shortlisted by Mr Gautam Rajyadhaksha and was displayed in the exhibition.

The second one is special to me because when I planned the Rajasthan Trip, I had already visualized this frame in my mind. And after waiting for a long time, the right time did come and I got what I wanted. It was like a dream come true.

What your post-processing workflow is like? Which editing tool do you find yourself using the most?

I normally process my images in Lightroom 4. I mostly do light corrections. Other tool is Photoshop and Portraiture & Exposure is what I use sometimes for the extra effects.

What has been the happiest moment in your photography life?

The happiest moments in my photography life are when my photographs are sold and printed as cover pages of books.

What advice do you have for photography enthusiasts who want to go professional and take it as a full time job?

It’s a tough path. One should be willing to do their homework everyday and work hard. Decide what you want to click and learn from your bad photos.

How can our readers connect with you?

They can connect with me through my Facebook page here: GirishS.Photography. Or can drop me a mail at: girish.suryawanshi@gmail.com.

With thanks to Girish Suryawanshi for taking the time for this interview.