Visual Story Telling

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2010-03-26T15:19:00.001-04:00

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It’s Not All About Me, But It All Depends On Me

2010-03-17T22:40:00.000-04:00

One of the best things I have learned over the past year about how to grow my business is that it's not all about ME, but it all depends on ME.

Kenneth H. Blanchard who wrote the famous book The One Minute Manager also wrote Raving Fans. I rediscovered him through my client Chick-fil-A. They embrace his concepts and work hard at creating Raving Fans.

Definition of a Raving Fan: One who uses your services more often; pays full price; and tell others about you.

All businesses want and need Raving Fans. So, how do you get them?

First: Your product or service must be superior. Doing business “Good Enough” will make some clients rave about you, but they will not be FANS. Striving for nothing but the best will create genuine fans.

As a photographer I look for a unique angles; something they are not likely to see themselves. “Good Enough” is giving my client a professional version of something they could have seen and done without my help. My photos must WOW them. That’s my obligation to them as a professional.

Creative use of lighting can move my photography from just “Good Enough” to excellent. I need to explore the subject and find the point of view with the most effective use of light. For example, moving a person so that the light from a window creates the main light on their face rather than fighting the glare of the same window behind the subject. I may need to set-up strobes (flashes) to create my own “window light.”

“Good Enough” is scouting a location after joining my client at the shoot. Much better to shout in advance of the shoot and be able to suggest locations for the best light, composition or unique perspective to make photos that standout from the expected.

Second: To win Raving Fans – go the Second Mile in service. In my business I looked for things to do that were not required, but would be valued by my client.

Something I did from the beginning was to deliver my work to my clients on a professional-looking CD or DVD. I printed my logo and sometimes their logo on the disc as well as the date of the photo shoot and other useful information. “Good Enough” is writing the information on the disk with a Sharpie.

Another unexpected and appreciated extra is a quick turn-around delivering the images. When possible I give the client the disc before I leave the shoot.

By watching other businesses it is possible to discover some of the ways they attract fans. Chick-fil-A, for example, works at making a customer feel like a guest in someone’s home. Little things make this happen. They’ll hold the door for folks, carry the trays to the table, refresh their drinks and even give them food occasionally.

Seeing what other businesses do and finding ways to apply the concept to my business isn’t always apparent. It is a constant struggle to find ways to be more service oriented. We call those who “do it naturally” Ladies and Gentlemen. (The rest of us gotta work at it.)

I believe the whole key to attracting and keeping Raving Fans is to first be sure to deliver a quality product and do so in a professional way. Only if we are doing this will the Second Mile Service have any real impact. No matter how many nice-little-things we do for a client if they are not happy with our product… The point: You Can’t Go The Second Mile If You Didn’t Go The First Mile FIRST.

I’ve found a great second mile touch is a hand written thank you card. Anything hand written is so rare these days that it has an almost unimaginable positive impact.

Third: Another component of creating Raving Fans is establishing an emotional connection with the client. It’s called Friendship.

When my customer becomes more than a paycheck, when I see them as a valuable person, when I come to care about how they’re doing and I’m concerned about their happiness that’s when I discover the true joy of “doing business.”

When business reaches this level going the second mile only seems natural.

This relationship is not going to form with all our clients, but when it does it was worth the trouble and we’ve made a Raving Fan.

A few months ago I ran into a man I knew when he was a teenager. We were talking when he stopped and said, “Last Sunday my pastor said in his sermon that we should tell people what they have meant to us over the years. Well, I want to tell you that you were a major influence on me when I was a kid and I want to thank you for that.”

I want forget that for a long time. Made me feel great and humble at the same time.

We probably didn’t know our clients when they were kids, but there are things we like and appreciate about them that, given the opportunity, perhaps we should tell them.

An easy way to make a fan and a friend is just to listen to them. Maybe over coffee or a meal, just give them the time of day. A friend, after all, is someone who will listen.

I believe this can all be boiled down to this statement: If you want to grow a business, look for ways to serve your customers.

Give yourself an assignment

2010-02-26T07:44:00.003-05:00

I just got back from Hawaii and I’m excited. It was my fifth trip to Hawaii to teach, but photographically this was the best trip by far.

Why so? Well this time I had a couple of assignments.

On the drive over to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park my daughter calls me and says, “Daddy, I need some photos for of the volcano for my class at school. We’re studying the Earth’s crust and I thought the volcano would be a good way to show it.”

Listen, with an extraordinary assignment like that you give it all you got! I knew I needed to do an outstanding job for this client. Besides, this gave me the perfect opportunity to play with my new Nikon D3s.

At the Volcanoes Park I meet this Park Ranger and decide to interview her since she was bound to know more about it than I did (wouldn’t take much).

When I told her about my assignment and the intended audience she knew just what to do. We did the interview in one take. I got the feeling she’d done this before – what a pro.

Here’s what we did from my daughter’s class. You can see it for yourself.

Here’s another assignment I did while on the island.

I’d been to the luau the Island Breeze produces in Kona. I asked the folks at the school where I was teaching if there was a way we could set-up a shoot with these dancers. Don’t tell me luck has nothing to do with anything. One of the dancers with Island Breeze was actually in my class! Brooke Valle, the student, is also a professional dancer and travels the world full-time dancing.

I was able to photograph the women dancers and one of the guys who is a fire dancer. They were excited. We photographed the women one night at the home of Kamehemeha the Great, the first king to rule all the islands. The next night we photographed the fire dancer on the beach.

I used this as an opportunity to show the students how to silhouette the dancers and expose for the sky at dusk, which makes for a great looking sky, but puts dancers in the dark. Then I showed them how to use remote Nikon TTL flashes to light up the dancers and make them pop.

Here are the examples:

Here the dancers are silhouetted.

They are now revealed with the flash.

One of my favorites showing the king's palace in the background.

The dancer is silhouetted.

Now he is revealed with the flash.

These self-assignments, well one assigned by my daughter, forced me to pre-plan. The photographs were better than in past trips and it was a lot of fun.
Want better travel photos? Do some research and preplan. You’ll be glad you did.

Here are some of the student’s first attempts working with studio lighting and off-camera flash after a few days in class.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

2010-02-18T23:06:00.000-05:00

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park from Stanley Leary on Vimeo.

Youth with a Mission - School of Photography 1 (A Week of lighting and Business Practices)

2010-02-18T20:07:00.001-05:00

Youth With A Mission Photography School 1 from Stanley Leary on Vimeo.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-03T19:38:00.008-05:00

In February I go to Hawaii to teach in a photography school. We’ll cover Lighting, the heart of photography, and Business Practices in Photography, the lifeblood of the business. Below are some of the points we’ll cover that might work for you in your industry.

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

I specialize in photographing people, but setting up a category for companies who hire photographers that photograph people is too broad. By assigning a contact to a category such as “Education” I can send a promotional piece to only those contacts in the education field. Assigning multiple categories to individual contacts further refines target marketing.

Contact management software has space for making notes. Keep this up-to-date as new information about your client comes to light. Use this field for their Facebook page and other information that don’t fit in any other field.

Time To Party

Parties (some parties) are a good way to build your database. Attend the “after-hours” events many civic and trade organizations sponsor that are designed to promote getting to know people and businesses in the area. Usually held monthly these events are great ways to meet a lot of folks and have fun doing so. It beats sitting at home with a computer.

Work The Room

Be sure you know your two-minute “elevator talk” about your business. Find someone you know. Get them to introduce you to the person to whom they are talking. Exchange business card and ask if you can follow up at another time for coffee or lunch. Be sure to give that person your full attention while you are with them, but move on after about five minutes. Remember, almost everyone in the room is there for the same reason you are, to meet people and find clients.

Be Relevant/Current

I recommend to the students to read industry magazines. Photo District News helps keep photographers informed on happenings in the world of photography. It is filled with the latest trends and techniques, business and legal news and new product reviews.

Contact information for magazines that might be interested in your work can usually be found in the masthead. Many magazines are online today. Read some back issues before contacting them. Offer a story idea to the editor. If you did your homework your idea should reflect the trends that are going on in the industry or plug into the style of that magazine.

Investigate – Dig Deep

Put on your investigative reporter hat and dig around for your niche. Use Google and type in your categories. Combine them with the word “organizations” and you will find many of the trade associations. When you find their websites click on the “About Us” section. It often will help you know the image the company is trying to convey. This is invaluable if you contact them and land an appointment.

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

I know of a photographer who contacted a designer for a couple years. The photographer sent out beautiful newsletters and promotional material. One day the photographer dropped off a portfolio and met the designer. He asked if he was the person that hired the photographers. He said no, that his boss picked the photographers; he just designed the pieces.

Connecting With A Client

If you find common interests with a prospect, you can establish a business relationship. In a prospect’s office look at: pictures and plaques on the wall; the books on the shelf; anything that shows their interest. Commenting on that interest is a good way to start a conversation. People love to talk about their interest. Try to find common ground for a friendship. People are more likely to buy from a friend than a salesman.

Sales consultant Jeffrey Gitomer says, “If you establish common ground with the other person, they will like you, believe you, begin to trust you, and connect with you on a deeper level; a ‘things-in-common’ level. The best way to win the connection is to first win the person.”

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-03T19:36:00.000-05:00

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

Time To Party

Work The Room

Be Relevant/Current

Investigate – Dig Deep

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

Connecting With A Client

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-01T19:52:00.000-05:00

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

Time To Party

Work The Room

Be Relevant/Current

Investigate – Dig Deep

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

Connecting With A Client

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-01T19:45:00.002-05:00

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

Time To Party

Work The Room

Be Relevant/Current

Investigate – Dig Deep

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

Connecting With A Client

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-01T19:45:00.001-05:00

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

Time To Party

Work The Room

Be Relevant/Current

Investigate – Dig Deep

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

Connecting With A Client

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

Finding and Keeping Clients

2010-02-01T19:45:00.000-05:00

Finding Clients

Before you start building a database of names determine your niche. Targeting the specific audience you need to address will make your research and set-up time more productive.

Get Organized

Software programs such as Microsoft Outlook (PC) or Entourage (Mac) are helpful in organizing your material. Also, these programs are integrated with Microsoft Word and facilitate emailing.

What To Do With Collected Contacts

Set-up files in a database for the name of the company, the personal contact’s name, their address and phone numbers, email and website address. Assign each contact to a category.

Time To Party

Work The Room

Be Relevant/Current

Investigate – Dig Deep

Dale Carnegie said it best; “You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.”

Qualify Your Lead

Connecting With A Client

Finding clients is hard work. Keeping them is all-important.

EFFECTIVE VISUAL PRESENTATIONS FOR NGOs

2010-01-16T16:04:00.001-05:00

photo by Dennis Fahringer

If a picture is indeed worth a thousand words then a slide show is an entire book.

We’ve all endured dull evenings sitting in the dark looking at someone’s mind-numbing pictures of something they thought we would enjoy.

A slide show audience is usually a captive one; there is no escape. We owe it to those watching to present an interesting, educating even entertaining presentation.

Planning prior to the trip will change a deadly dose of the dulls into a motivating experience for the viewers.

We want know exactly what we will encounter when we arrive at the shoot, but there are some time-honored questions we’ll need to answer in order to tell the NGO’s story.

Listed below are a few guidelines that can help make a visual presentation people will appreciate and with a message they will understand.

Remember the purpose of the presentation: The presentation is to help the non-government organization. In any group, likely to see he presentation, there are possibilities for support for the NGO.

What is the GOAL?
It is to motivate people to action — be it prayer, giving or by becoming involved.

What is the REAL SUBJECT?

photo by: Dennis Fahringer

It’s people. Not buildings, wells, machinery nor the land. It is okay to photograph these things without people, but this shouldn’t be the focus. Present the NGO in human terms.

Who is the AUDIENCE?
Is it business people, civic clubs, the NGO’s support base, faith groups, agencies that give out grants? Make a list before the trip and look for tie-ins to these groups.

What’s the BUDGET?
What are the travel and postproduction expenses? List other cost such as website.

Stay Specific:

Everything can’t be told. Pick the powerful images and subjects.
Perhaps show how the NGO has impacted a person or family. This approach helps the audience connect with those the NGO helps.

West Africa (photo by Stanley Leary)

Use a storyline to arrange your coverage.

Give an Overview of the Country

Show the town
Show the market place (show faces, how the people dress, their jobs)

Highlight the work of the NGO

Show a family

Group photograph (dinner table)
Individuals

Show the NEEDS

Why do they need the services of the NGO?
What is being provided that meets a need: water, food and shelter?

Show how the audience can support the NGO

How they can volunteer
Financial

Equipment
A Project
Ongoing support of a person or family

Specific Guidelines:

Hold a visual on the screen for no more than ten seconds.
Two to three seconds a shot is long enough for today’s TV and Internet savvy audience.
A two to three minute presentation is ideal for the web. When presenting to a group give short presentations mixing these with a personal story or two. Allow time for questions.
Write for the ear. Use short sentences.
Record an interview and use sections of it in the presentation. People telling their story adds authenticity.

DON'T

Use too many pictures
Show photos with exposure problems, with heads cut off or that need explaining. A picture should tell it's own story.

DO!!

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT. Show the only the best.
Use recorded script.
KEEP IT SIMPLE!!!!!

NOTES:

Visual presentations are easy to update.
Presentations should be tailored to fit the audience.
Visual presentations can be used to get support for an NGO; also the NGO can use the presentation itself.
Leave people wanting more.

West Africa (Photo by: Stanley Leary)

This is just scary and funny at the same time

2010-01-15T09:39:00.001-05:00

Tips When Hiring a Photographer

2010-01-01T14:09:00.003-05:00

Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor (5) rushes against Tennessee during the Chick-fil-A Bowl game against Tennessee. Tyrod Taylor (5) averaged 5.2 yards a carry for his 26 total yards against Tennessee, helping the Hokies defeat Tennessee 37 to 14.

Want to know how to get the most for your money out of a photographer? Bring him in early in your planning.

Clients benefit in several ways when they include the photographer as part of their creative team. Not only will the shoot go smother and faster, but more importantly, the photos will be just as you want them to be and your budget will go further.

The sooner the photographer is involved in the planning and preparation for the shoot the better.

After the concept and approach are determined in a planning session the client and I usually scout the locations together, if possible. While on location we determine the best time of day for the shoot based on the lighting. Scouting with the client makes it is easier for us to maximize the time at each location during the shoot.

During the planning session we discuss the feelings the photos need to invoke in the viewer. By working together from the beginning we are both better able to achieve our objective. Preplanning allows everyone to concentrate on the fine details when it truly counts - on the day of shoot.

During the actual shoot priorities can change. Certain shots emerge, as “must have” pictures, while others may become less essential than initially thought. Going for the best shots and dropping or limiting the others can stretch the budget yet still produce outstanding images.

Tennessee cornerback Janzen Jackson (15)and teammate cornerback Eric Berry (14) celebrate defensive play against Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl on December 31, 2009 in Atlanta, Ga.

Here is an example of stretching a photo budget. When working with universities and schools it is more expedient, since most general classrooms look alike, to set-up in only one classroom. The faculty and students rotate through the classroom where all the lights have been placed and the exposure and white balance determined. There is no need to move from building to building. This saves time and money.

As you consider your photo needs consider adding me to you creative team, that decision will save time and money and ensure a more productive and creative photo shoot.

I’m here to help, just give me a call.

Digital Photography – A Real Stimulus Package

2009-12-16T16:24:00.002-05:00

My grandparents, aunts and uncles at Christmas in the 60's

Ebenezer Scrooge would have loved digital photography.

Before his ever-faithful nephew gave him a digital camera Old Ebenezer would say, “Bah! Humbug! Every time I press that button it cost me money. And for what, fuzzy photos for future memories, assuming I want to remember any past Christmas.” (I know, I know, there weren’t any cameras in Victorian England… I’m just making a point here.)

Scrooge was right; back in the jolly of days of photographing Christmas with film it did cost us money every time we pushed that button. This had a great influence on how we made photos.

My family’s roots have a good amount of Scotch-Irish Penny-pinching heritage. Maybe your family used the camera like we did. We could squeeze a whole year of events on one roll.

In order to get as much for our film money as we could we wouldn’t waist a shot. We’d dress everyone in their Sunday best, make sure the sun was shining on their faces, backup to include as much as possible, have everyone look at the camera and say cheese. Then the one taking the picture says, “Ready, one, two, three …” then snap the shutter… once.

At Christmas we all gathered at our grandparent’s house. For the annual Family Christmas Photo we’d pull the sofa out from the wall, fill the sofa with the grandparents and grandkids and arrange everyone else – by height – behind the sofa. Next we put the camera on a tripod and set the self-timer. This was an important event so we’d take two shots to be sure we had it.

That's me on the far left with all my cousins.

Ebenezer, before he got his digital, would have been pleased, well, at least he would have appreciated the economy of it all.

Now I don’t want to imply that digital photography is cheaper. You’ve got to buy a digital camera. While the simpler ones can be inexpensive, if you get serious about it, the cost of a whoop-t-do SLR digital camera can make you whish we were back in the days of film.

Next you need a computer, but most of us have one already. Then you need some software, but unless you’re serious about your photography you can get by with the software that comes with the camera.

However, the cost to shoot one photo is the same as making hundreds of photos when it comes to digital. Now we can take lots and lots of photos, pick the best ones and delete the rest.

This Christmas instead of having everyone stop what he or she is doing and look at the camera (or line-up behind the sofa) just photograph them as they are. Take photos of people interacting with each other this holiday season. Isn’t this why we look forward to this time of year—rekindling of relationships?

My daughter reacting to a present at her birthday party.

This season look at the edges of that LCD (screen) on the back of the camera just before you shoot. Do you need the back of Uncle Henry’s baldhead in the corner of the picture? Is that Aunt Mary’s foot sticking in the side? Do I need it in this picture? If my subject is my grandmother on the other side of the crowded room do I need all those folks facing all directions between my camera and her? Maybe I should zoom in or move closer or both.

But what if you do want the Christmas tree in the photo with the family? Move around and find an angle where the main subject is obvious and the complimentary subjects don’t take over the photo. Try being sure the main subject is closer to the camera and the other things are further away is one way.

Remember when people are talking—someone is listening. Be sure to take many photos so you can capture not just the enthusiasm of the talker, but also the interest (or not) of the listener. Wait for the conversation to switch and the roles reverse and make more photos.

Make pictures of people cooking, relaxing, in conversation with each other. Take photos of the outings to the ice rink, skiing, or whatever your traditions may be this season rather than just the posed shots.

Over time and through the years you will see some patterns. I had an uncle who took photos of my Dad each Christmas with his car. For several years my uncle made pictures of my Dad with his head under the hood of whatever car he had that year. It made a funny series when my uncle put them together in a slide show for the family one year. Here is David working on his Ford, here he is working on his Chevy, here his is with a new car…

So why is digital photography a real stimulus package? Because even Scrooge would take many more photos with his digital camera since it no longer cost more each time the button is pushed.

This digital stimulus package will improve your family photos and with no additional cost to take lots of pictures so you can edit down and just keep the good ones.

Keep your camera battery charged and remember to get those photos off the camera and into the computer so you can make even more memorable moments this holiday season.

Happy Holidays!

Learning from the Masters

2009-12-01T09:02:00.003-05:00

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery…

Last week someone said to me, “I love the Rembrandt lighting you used in the portrait of our CEO.” A day or so after that a photographer friend of mine mentioned that she could see Eugene Smith’s influence in my photography.

Well, I don’t mind telling you I felt really good. Those familiar with the work of Eugene Smith know how flattered I felt.

As my interest in photography developed (pardon the pun) I became fascinated with the work of great photographers. I studied their work until I felt I knew why they were considered Greats.

Several years into the profession I was privileged to work with Don Rutledge; an extraordinary photographer. Don had an encyclopedic knowledge of photographers both legendary and contemporary.

“Writers,” Don would say, “can talk at length about famous writers, but most photographers don’t know anything about the greats in our field. How can they expect to learn if they don’t study”?

An interest in learning from the masters can turn a trip to an art museum or a stroll through local art galleries into an exhilarating adventure.

What kind lighting did the painter use: Was it midday sun, window light or was it a single candle creating the mood?

Why did the artist choose this moment, that expression, those surroundings? This is a fascinating study and it all comes back to you as you are composing a photo a few days or even years later.

Just studying what was done alone doesn’t help much. It is necessary to learn how to replicate what you’ve learned. This knowledge along with your own way of “seeing” will one day result in your own style.

The best advice I ever received about developing a style of my own was, “Don’t worry about it.” That’s easy for some well-established pro to say to a fledging photographer.

However, he was right. Sure enough, someday someone will say how much they like your style. Don’t say, “Oh wow! I didn’t even know I had a style.” Be cool.

The style we see in other’s work is usually apparent in the way they handle (1) Lighting, (2) Composition and (3) the Moment.

Lighting creates mood. The warm light of an evening campfire sets the mood. What do we include in the photo we are about to make? What do we exclude? Is the girl facing the fire lost in thought when we shoot or is she looking into the shadows the texture of her skin catching the light? Do we wait to see her eyes or capture that tilt of her head that seems to say so much?

I cut my teeth in photography using the available light. It was a good five years before I started experimenting with studio lights. This was a good because I learned to see what is natural and then I learned to duplicate it with artificial lights.

Making a photograph that grabs the attention of the viewer is a good thing, but learning how to hold that attention can take time. Something that holds attention is called “the decisive moment.”

It’s easy to know the decisive moment in sports photography. A basket is made or the pass is caught. Knowing the decisive moment and capturing it with the camera is not exactly the same thing, but the capturing part can be learned.

At first glance a committee sitting around a conference table brings to mind all the excitement and action of a chess match. However, there is action there to capture just as in a sports event albeit more like golf than rugby. Still, there are pivotal moments that tell the story of what is transpiring in the meeting.

Some of the photographers I’ve studied and continue to study are: James Nachtwey, William Albert Allard, Sebastião Salgado, Dave Black, Eugene Smith, Carolyn Cole, Joanna Pinneo and Don Rutledge.

Google these names and check them out yourself. If you know of others whose work you appreciate please send me an email and let me know who they are. I am always looking to improve and grow.

Three Useful Doohickeys

2009-10-31T19:40:00.004-04:00

Some communications professionals shoot their own pictures instead of hiring a professional photographer.

Whatever the reason for doing it themselves here are a few things they need to watch for and correct: 1 - Is the color correct? 2 – Are there dust spots in the pictures? 3 – Are the photos truly sharp?

Let’s look at these potential problems and see how to avoid them.

Number One:

Color calibrate the computer used when working with the photographs.

Here is a list of just a packages that will do the job:

* Pantone huey – $89

* Spyder3Express Color Calibration System – $89

* X-Rite Eye-One Display LT Color Management Solution – $139

Calibrating a monitor is adjusting it to a known color
space. There are a few different color spaces that are standards. The figure to the left gives a few. All devices have tolerances. Calibrating is basically adjusting the monitor to the closest known factor. The software places a color target on the monitor and uses the hardware sensor to read the color and make the adjustments automatically.

A CRT monitor (similar to older TVs) must be calibrated more often than a LCD flat screen. For a good illustration as to why monitors should be calibrated step into a store showing the same signal on several TVs and look at the variety of colors.

Now that the monitor is calibrated adjustments made to the pictures themselves will be more accurate in color, contrast and brightness. Calibration also cuts the number of surprises emerging from a printer.

Number Two:

Cameras with interchangeable lenses (SLRs) need to have the sensor cleaned of dust. Many local camera stores offer this service for about $50.

I use the Delkins Sensor Scope Kit to service my cameras
myself. It comes with a magnifier that lets you see the dust on the
sensor once the mirror is locked up for cleaning. (See the illustration
on right) Here is a link to their website http://www.delkin.com/products/sensorscope/sensorsystem.html

There is a video on how to clean your sensor.

Clean sensors saves a lot of time spent in PhotoShop just repairing the
damage caused by dust. Often, with dirty sensors, a dust spot will be
almost impossible to remove with the software.

Number Three:

The last step - calibrate your lenses. No matter what camera/lens you buy, it's almost certainly been mass-produced.

Even with the close tolerances adhered to by the better manufacturers; it is rare that perfection is achieved. If the camera body is "off" by a fraction and so is the lens the combination produces an image that is
soft. To be sure this is not the case the lens must be calibrated.

One tool for this is the LensAlign that sells for $179. http://www.lensalign.com

Here is a video for you to see how this works:

If all this takes more time and effort than is practical perhaps the communications professional should just hire me and let me worry about (and take care of) all this for them.

Shooting a Sphere Panoramic

2009-10-03T12:15:00.008-04:00

This is a photo of me taken by my Uncle Knolan Benfield while I was shooting a Sphere Panoramic.

This shows the tripod head with the camera, special head and camera with 16mm lens. Here is the shot from this:

Clayton State University Center

Here are a few more for you to see:

Winshape Retreat - Courtyard

Winshape Retreat - Lower Patios

Georgia Tech College of Management Courtyard

LeCraw Auditorium at Georgia Tech

Collaboration

2009-09-29T06:56:00.001-04:00

My friend Tony Messano talks about what he looks for when he hires a photographer in this video clip. Here is his website http://www.tonymessano.com/ad/

The difference between two parties who compromise or collaborate is huge.

Compromising leads to disappointment with all parties. When the parties come together they have a creative idea or solution for a problem. Each party wants their idea out there more than the other one. In this scenario a watered down version of both ideas emerge. In the end no one is satisfied with the solution.

Collaboration isn’t about negotiating solutions. It starts where the parties come together and listening to each other. They are open to new ideas. This is where everyone realizes that alone no one gets their ideas implemented, but by partnering with others they can accomplish their goals.

Rowing is a good illustration on how to collaborate. It is the oldest intercollegiate sport in the United States.

The Harvard-Yale Boat Race or Harvard-Yale Regatta is an annual rowing race between Yale and Harvard universities. It is America's oldest collegiate athletic competition. It takes place each year on Thames River, New London, Connecticut.

In this sport the team must work together. Each person has to stay in sync with his teammates. For me it is the perfect picture of collaboration.

If just one person is out of sync the team suffers.

When a client hires me they expect collaboration and not compromise. Trust is the foundation of this process. You must first trust to your clients, lower your barriers and be exposed.

Listen. Take notes while listening to the client. Note taking prevents you from responding to quickly with your ideas. Active listening means you ask questions to clarify and be sure you have their perspective. You may want to paraphrase their idea and ask if you have it right.

The key is understanding what they want to accomplish. You need to also listen and learn where they have very little room for flexibility. When the client feels like you know what they want and the parameters they are under you have the necessary information to be able to collaborate.

Meeting and exceeding the client’s expectations is easy, if you listen and check with the client to be sure you understand their project.

Many clients will have done an excellent job articulating their project from the very beginning. You still need to explore with them to understand how much flexibility they have. You still need to articulate their project in your own words. Skip this step and you will experience friction with the client.

All things being equal, people want to do business with their friends. True friends collaborate rather than compromise.

The Ten-Thousand Rule

2009-09-09T17:31:00.005-04:00

Malcolm Gladwell tells us The Ten-Thousand Rule is a key component to how successful we are.

In his book Outliers Gladwell points to a 1990s study of violinists done by psychologist K. Anders Ericsson.

Ericsson and his colleagues divided the violinists at Berlin’s elite Academy of Music into three groups: great players, good players and those unlikely to play professionally and intended to be school teachers. The different groupings of musicians were asked. “How many hours have you practiced since you first started playing?”

Most of the fiddlers began when they were about five. By the age of twenty the great players had put in ten thousand practice hours; the good students about eight thousand and the future music teachers had fiddled around for four thousand hours.

In his book Gladwell relates how the Beatles, Bill Gates, Bill Joy and other extraordinarily successful people have not only put in the ten thousand hours perfecting their craft, but they have done so in a astonishingly short time.

Gladwell makes it clear that there is a threshold one must meet to complete in almost any field. He uses basketball players and IQ scores as examples.

Nearly all basketball players are over six feet tall. But the taller players are not necessarily the better players. However, to compete it will be difficult if you are not at least six feet tall.

There is a correlation between the six-foot threshold and an IQ of one hundred twenty. A one hundred twenty IQ is about the threshold for graduate school or other advanced learning. Just as being tall doesn’t bring success to basketball players having an IQ of two hundred or higher does not automatically insure success. However, there is a definite cut-off point for success in any business.

This holds true in the field of photography as well. David Lyman, the founder of The Maine Workshop, began each class with a discussion on creativity. Lyman says it is essential to “marry the intellect and the heart with the hands.”

He talks about how important persistence is to success and states that it takes about ten years to refine the craft of photography.

How do you get to be invited to play at Carnegie Hall? — by practice, practice, practice.

Bobby Fisher became a chess grandmaster in less than ten years, but it was close. It took him nine years.

Great artists are indeed talented, but talent can be wasted. The masters of their crafts combined their talent with the thousands of hours of work at the canvas, the instrument, the camera or the free-throw line. The Masters put in the ten thousand hours or more essential to master their chosen playing field.

This is good news for any aspiring professional photographer, rock star or whatever. Want to be one of the greatest in your field? - then put in the time. Ten thousand hours is a lot of time, but over the ten years it takes to perfect a task it breaks-down to fewer than three hours a day even if you’re Bobby Fisher.

Five Characteristic of Success

1. Persistence It takes about 10 years or 10,000 hours to refine a craft. Woody Allen says just showing up is 90%. The successful show up prepared. Watch out for the Draculas out there. They drain your time and you. Get rid of them.

2. Be Nice

3. Your Resources
Four people you need to get to know.
1. Teacher
2. Coach
3. Facilitators
4. Mentors
4. Be Skilled in Your Craft
5. Talent — Aptitude for the Profession

Earl Nightingale says that we can become an expert in our field in as little as five years. Malcolm Gladwell tells us the Great Players put in ten years. The trip of ten thousand hours can begin now.

Don’t just talk to your audience—Engage them

2009-09-04T06:48:00.005-04:00

I’m sure you are familiar with the concept of the “elevator speech.” The idea is that — if you are asked what you do for a living or what your company does — you should be able to give a complete, compelling answer in the time it takes to ride an elevator to your destination.

But what about when you have the opportunity to speak to a group for more than the length of an elevator ride — say, 30 minutes or an hour? Does that mean you can just relax and let yourself ramble?

Quite the contrary.

Don’t Talk — Teach

You should still be able to boil down your presentation in a simple statement; you should have an elevator speech that explains what you’re going to teach your audience and why it’s worth listening to. And then you must move beyond simply talking if you want to continue to engage your audience.

For example, if I were speaking to photographers about social networking, I would start with a simple premise — that the key to successful social networking is to listen. I would then organize my talk around the different ways to listen, would provide demonstrations to help make my points, and would engage the audience in discussion.

Why would I take this approach, rather than simply lecturing the audience?

Take a look at the illustration above from the National Training Lab in Bethel, Maine. It shows how information taught through different methods is retained by students or other audiences.

As you can see, just talking to an audience doesn’t do much to educate them. Even if the audience member takes notes during a lecture or presentation and reads them back later, he or she still only retains 10 percent of what was taught. If you demonstrate what you’re talking about and then engage your audience in discussion, however, retention jumps to 50 percent.

When your audience has an opportunity to “practice by doing” — e.g., homework — retention increases to 75 percent. And since “teaching others” is the most effective learning method, you can see why educators like to put students in small groups and ask them to present a project to the class.

It’s also why teaching photography (or anything else) is a great way to learn a subject you know even better.

Simple or Complex?

Another factor to consider when you are teaching — particularly if it’s in a classroom, over a period of time — is how simple or complex your material is. We all understand how easy it is to walk on a flat surface, but to climb a mountain takes more work.

Good teachers understand that there are stages of learning. Here are the six basic stages, listed from the most rudimentary to the highest levels of comprehension:

1. Knowledge (memorizing, recalling)
2. Comprehension (expressing ideas in new forms)
3. Application (transfer of learning to a new situation)
4. Analysis (breaking a communication down into its parts)
5. Synthesis (creating something new by putting parts together)
6. Evaluation (judging value based on standards)

When you think about these stages of learning, it’s easy to see why you might have struggled with some of your teachers growing up, as I did. Too many teachers are stuck at stage 1 or 2 in their teaching methods, but expect you to somehow get to stage 5 or 6 when it’s exam time.

Engage, Engage, Engage

Whether you are making a 30-minute presentation to colleagues in your profession, or teaching a semester-long course to college students, success begins and ends with your ability to engage your audience.

One of my favorite examples of effective teaching is from “The Sound of Music.” In the movie, Maria tells the children, “When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything.” Then she finds creative ways to engage them in the joy of music, again and again.

So don’t teach by talking. Teach by engaging.

Church Planting at the Houston Medical Center

2009-08-25T15:42:00.000-04:00

Celebrating 10 years of "The Week In Pictures"

2009-08-21T16:43:00.001-04:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Informative or Just Eye Candy?

2009-08-12T11:26:00.003-04:00

Before our children could even read, they could identify restaurants by their logo. Our oldest son was in the back seat singing “… the Simpsons,” when he saw a sky with a lot of cumulus clouds. Most everyone involved in communications understands how the audience is enticed by images.

Sometimes logos conjure up other thoughts. For many folks ATT’s logo is called the “death star.” This is another topic for another time though.

For many people working as communicator for corporations, nonprofits, or in the media they see the visual as the “hook” to their written story. The concept of using visuals as “eye candy” is a way to make you stop and at least start to read the article.

Love her or hate her, Catherine Zeta-Jones helped shape the image of T-Mobile during her first run with the company. To celebrate the launch of their Mobile Makeover advertising campaign, she's back again. The ads use her as the “eye candy.”

No question this works in advertising, but how does it go over with corporate communications or journalism?

My opinion is that those that use imagery as “eye candy” are like the tabloids or car magazines with women on the hood of the car. This approach must work or these types of media wouldn’t be doing so well financially. However, they are not taken seriously for their content.

You can use the imagery as the message itself and not just a hook. In journalistic example are the photos of the Twin Towers being hit by the airplanes or on fire? Michael Phelps touching the wall first with others still behind him is another example.

In journalistic media we also see visual “hooks.” We see mug shots which accompany an article, but tell us nothing about what the story is about. How is this a hook? On sports pages peak action moments showing the looser looking like they won is a hook.

I’ve learned the best images leave the viewer asking a question. “Why are the Twin Towers on fire?” is the question people asked when they turned on their televisions. It kept us glued to the coverage to understand and help us heal. Is this the photo of Michael Phelps winning the 8th gold medal or what race is it?

We can learn from the “eye candy” photography. If the image is interesting and has visual impact it will hook the reader. You need to surprise your audience. I have talked about this in past e.newsletters. Getting a unique perspective like a worm’s eye view or the bird’s eye view is a great “hook.” Making photos from the standing position straight on all the time is what amateurs do. You can make an informative intriguing image of most content to help tell the story with your images.

I shoot for different audiences. I often shoot for Associated Press, magazines, corporate publications, websites, college recruiting and alumni publications, and many other mediums.

When I shoot for AP, I must tell the story in one photo. I must shoot tight, which means close-up and filling the frame. The users of AP images may run the picture really small and will not want to use the photo if it isn’t close-up. It needs to have impact. They may run it on a front page of a paper to help tell the story, and sell the newspaper.

At an event where an AP photographer is there and I am there shooting for a magazine, I have to take a different approach. By the time a magazine comes out the readers will have seen the AP images of the event. My coverage must be more than one impactful image. I have a variety of angles, from close-up, to medium and overall shots of the story. I will use lighting to help influence the image even more.

I am shooting a lot of multimedia packages lately which require 30 – 60 images for a 2-minute piece to run on a website. I need photos like I would do for a magazine, and I need transition photos. I need photos of noises you may hear in the audio to help the audience understand those noises are seagulls in the background near the subject. You still need strong images, but they can help tell the story and compliment the audio.

Most communicators today are using the same content in multiple places. They send out a printed newsletter, post it on a blog, put it on a website, or send out an e.Newsletter . All of the pieces point to the website where more content and images can be placed, than before this existed.

If you do a good job of telling the story using visuals you will now have just started telling your story. That’s right—just started. People like to be in dialogue and comment on your stories on-line. This outlet wasn’t available in print.

In the most recent Scientific American Magazine there was an article on Celiac Disease. When you went to their website the article was there as well, but now will comments like this, “The illustrations in this article delivered to my mailbox today, allow the complexities of the science of gluten intolerance to be easily understood by everyone.” Here is a link for you http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=celiac-disease-insights&page=6.

Is your material getting as many comments as this article? Are your visuals helping your audience to understand the topic? Using visuals effectively and not just as a visual “hook” will improve how your message is communicated.

Stanley is available as a consultant to help you improve your visual communication for your organization. Give him a call or email him to set up a time for him to work with your team.

Behind the Scene With Stanley

2009-08-11T18:01:00.004-04:00

Watch this one first

Then watch how I did it.