Open Camp and Open Sky!

A while back I was invited by none other than Cali Lewis (GeekBeat.tv) and John P. (OneMansBlog.com) to attend OpenCamp 2010 in Addison Texas (near Dallas). Being the conference organizers, they thought it’d be good if I did a talk on social media. I was very honored that they asked me and of course I accepted.

We kicked off OpenCamp Thursday afternoon with a speaker tandem skydive courtesy the United States Army’s Golden Knights! This was my first time jumping out of a plane… and technically, I didn’t even have a parachute strapped to me, though @GKMikeTT did. Check out more photos of the jump here.

I was invited to do a talk on Social Media and was scheduled to take the stage day 2 of the conference at 9:30 am, so I had plenty of time to spy the other presentations and adjust mine for the audience. And man, were there some good presentations during this event.

My talk was entitled “Avoiding Social Mediocrity” and was centered around how to best use social media, and goal definition to attain your marketing goals. If you’re interested, you can see the slide deck here. Though the This Week in Photo podcast and blog audiences are huge, I always get a little nervous in front of “real” people. But folks seemed to dig the preso as evidenced by the number of requests I received afterwards for copies of the slide deck.

OpenCamp was kind of a perspective changing event for me. And not just the obvious shift of perspective that people say you get after first skydiving. I’m talking about the volumes of information I soaked up, catching up with old friends and making some new ones.

I’m really looking forward to next year’s OpenCamp—and am seriously planning to make a habit of skydiving.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Photographers

John P

Audio MP3

There are tons of issues facing photographers in todays connected world. Increasingly, professional shooters are finding themselves needing to know more and more about technology in order to remain relevant and competitive. Not only do photographers need to know the basics of their craft (light, composition, exposure, etc.) but they also need to be technically savvy about things such as megapixels, cropped-frame vs full-frame sensors, noise reduction software, digital asset management software, digital retouching, and the list goes on and on.

I realize I’m painting a somewhat bleak picture, but really it’s not that bad. In fact learning that stuff is actually fun in some cases. One thing I didn’t mention above was search engine optimization, also known as SEO. This is the practice of creating web pages (and blog posts) in a way so that the search engines (Google, Yahoo!, Bing, etc) can find them easily. You see, you could be the best photographer in your city, but if a potential client Googles, say, “Wedding Photographer, Anytown USA”, and your website doesn’t come up… or comes up AFTER your competitor (who’s photography sucks), guess who’s getting the job.

But there IS HOPE!!! In this interview, I have an in-depth chat with John Pozadzides (aka John P). Not only is he a SEO Ninja, but he also runs a company that aims to bring REALTIME web traffic analytics to your website or blog. That means, using their software you can literally watch people bounce around your site in realtime… and even open a chat window to freak them out! John gives some golden tips that photographers can start using today to begin increasing their search engine rankings.

You can find out more about John over on his very popular and SEO friendly blog “One Man’s Blog”, and be sure to check out Woopra.

TWiP Joshua Tree Weekend Workshop

On the weekend of Feb 19, 2010, This Week in Photography co-host Joseph Linaschke (the guy behind ApertureExpert.com) and myself conducted the first TWiP workshop – in Joshua Tee, CA. And what an amazing time it was. The TWiP audience had been asking for something more intensive than the informal (though very fun) Meetups I’ve been running, and Joseph and I had been kicking around the idea of a “workshop done right” for a while. We had the option of creating a “safe” workshop… e.g. local (or major metro), one-day, low cost, etc., or going all out and doing it right.

We figured if we were going to do a photography workshop, especially the FIRST TWiP workshop, we should go all out — and doing it “right” meant pulling together an all-inclusive, multi-day event set in an amazing location with a professional model, make-up artist, video crew, sponsors, meals, etc.

Long story short… we did it right.

The workshop consisted of model lighting and posing demonstrations in a variety of amazing locations around Yucca Valley, CA. Over dinner after the first night of shooting, we reviewed some of the students images, like the one above captured by the talented Topher Martini. And day two was a demonstration Aperture 3 by Joseph, and Lightroom 2 (and Lightroom 3 Beta) by me. Followed by studio lighting technique training and model posing demonstrations.

At this workshop, every student got a chance to shoot and direct the model, and every student left the workshop with wonderful prizes, and some amazing portfolio shots.

Check out this incredible work from a few of the attendees…
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My deepest gratitude to all of the students who came from far and wide to attend this event. And a very special thanks goes out to our beautiful and amazing model Latoya “Latti” Hawtorne, and our talented make-up artist Alma Anguiano. Video wizard Chris Fenwick created the amazing video you see above. Be sure to check out his blog, or hire him here.
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And a HUGE bear hug to these companies who generously donated fantastic prizes to our students:
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If you’re interested in being notified of upcoming workshops, Meetups, or classes (space is always limited), please be sure to sign up for my newsletter/mailing list.
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On to the next one…

WIN a Photography Book – Comment on this Post!

The folks over at Peachpit Press saw how many folks entered my last (first) book give-away contest — so they kicked down a few (TEN!) more for me to hand out! These are from their new book series, “From Snapshots to Great Shots” … these books are focused (no pun intended) on teaching you how to make great photographs, not just on every little dial and button.
To win one of these books all you have to do is comment on this post.
RULES: You can only pick one book, and make sure you specify in your comment which book you want. And if you win, Peachpit will pay for shipping! All you have to do is COMMENT! But, PLEASE be sure to enter your email address on the comment form or else I won’t be able to contact you.
The books you can win cover…
  • Canon 50D
  • Nikon D5000
  • Canon Rebel T1i
  • Canon PowerShot G10 or G11
If you own one of these amazing cameras, you need a book that goes beyond a tour of the features to show you exactly how to use your camera to take great pictures. With these books, you get the perfect blend of photography instruction and camera reference that will help take your images to the next level! These books are illustrated with large, vibrant photos from the author and the Flickr community — and they teach you how to take control of your photography, to get the image you want every time you pick up the camera.
Remember, to win one of these amazing new books all you have to do is write something clever in the comments area below — and mention the book you want to win. That’s it! ….

Good luck!

Fight, or Light?

On the most recent This Week in Photography show we tackled a topic that lately has been coming up more and more. Photographers covering a disasters like Haiti, Katrina, 9/11, the southern California fires, etc. have to ask themselves – when is it appropriate to put the camera down and help your fellow man?

Or, is documenting the situation, and helping with your skills behind the camera – documenting history, the correct course of action?

Of course there is no “correct” answer. Military photographers in active war zones have to deal with this question, sometimes on a daily basis. Imagine needing to make the choice between shooting with your D3, or your M16. Not getting the “shot” is probably always better than having to get a shot of morphine—or worse.

We “casual” photographers rarely have to deal with this choice. But when it does come—and you have to make the choice—what would YOU do?  [Read more...]

17 Amazing Photographer Interviews from 2009


What an amazing year 2009 was. I had the privilege of interviewing some of the most talented people in the photography industry. In the series of interviews below you’ll hear from; Flickr mavens, stock photography experts, photojournalists, commercial photographers, authors, and more. My thanks to all of the folks who allowed me to interrogate them in 2009… and I’m looking forward to doing many more interviews in 2010!

Happy New Year! Click through to learn from some of the most talented movers-and-shakers of 2009. If you’d like to get these interviews automatically, just subscribe to my Interviews Podcast in iTunes[Read more...]

liveBooks.com – Helping Photographers Flash the Web

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One of the many problems facing photographers today is the necessity of having a slick looking website, however most shooters lack the skill-set (or desire) to get into the “weeds” of building a site reflective of themselves. We’re long past the age where having a website is optional, today it is imperative that every photographer who intends to do any level of serious business on the Internet has a web presence that reflects both their art and skill, while also providing a way for potential clients and customers to get to know and contact them. Easier said than done.

liveBooks logohas been around for several years now — their main goal is to help build websites that reflect Photographers’ craft and artisanship. The problem facing the liveBooks is that their audience is faced with a sophisticated problem, that is, creating a website that’s beautiful and functional while remaining flexible enough to allow the owner to keep it up-to-date and fresh. When you’ve got ISO, F/Stops, raw, etc, who wants to deal with CSS, Flash, HTML, CMS, FTP, and browser compatibility?

…a little known fact is that liveBooks sites have mirroring HTML counterparts to optimize SEO and to help make them Google-friendly.

Like I said, it’s a sophisticated problem but this isn’t to say the audience isn’t sophisticated, they’d just rather be out taking photographs and building their businesses than dealing with the complexities and the code behind designing a competitive website. liveBooks aim to take away the pain [Read more...]

David duChemin – Visionmonger

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I recently had the honor of sitting down to record this audio interview (via Skype) with author/photographer David duChemin. David is one of those “next generation” photographers that “gets it”. He is fluent in the latest and greatest photographic trends, technology, social media, etc. And along with being a sickeningly talented photographer, he’s also a brilliant marketer. Wrap all of that up and you’ve got an artist who can not only create masterful visual imagery and write about it — but one that can also publsih it. He’s a one-man creative ecosystem. Click through for the full audio interview…  [Read more...]

Katrin Eismann — The Photoshop Diva

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This audio interview is with Katrin Eismann – an internationally recognized artist, author, and educator. She’s been involved with digital imaging tools since 1989. She regularly teaches creatives about the latest tools and techniques of digital imaging and the impact they have on creative professionals.

She’s author of several books on digital imaging such as The Creative Digital Darkroom, Photoshop Restoration & Retouching as well as several online titles on Kelbytraining.

I first had the pleasure of meeting Katrin at the last PhotoPlus Expo in NYC where she gave an outstanding talk demonstrating Lightroom tips and techniques. I was really impressed at her uncanny ability to relate to, and inform an audience while keeping things light-hearted and candid.

Katrin is an wonderful educator, and along with chairing at the NY School of Visual Arts, and schooling flocks of right-brained hopefuls — she’s also an amazingly talented photographer.

Sleepless in San Jose

Have you ever had one of those sleepless nights where your brain is preoccupied with so many things that you just lay there, staring at the ceiling… for hours (and hours)? I had a night like a week ago. It was the night before I was scheduled to do a presentation on model photography and Photoshop Lightroom techniques for the Silicon Valley SmugMug user group.

My brain is weird. When I have something big coming up, it (my brain) starts running “what if” scenarios; What if no one shows?  What if too many folks show up? What if the model flakes? What if my gear breaks? What if I come off like a doofus? And on and on it went… for most of the night. Now I’m not saying I wasn’t prepared, because I was. I’m very comfortable teaching folks about photography, and even more comfortable behind the camera.

But for what ever the reason, I was still nervous. Not stage-fright nervous, “Murphy’s Law” nervous.
Ok fast-forward to the next evening. Showtime! Thankfully everything went extremely well, and my “what-if” scenario nightmares stayed just that — fiction. Ok, yea maybe more folks showed up than I anticipated (150+), but that’s a good problem to have right? To manage the meeting, I used Meetup.com, a service that’s designed to help manage events, attendee lists, RSVPs, etc. It worked like a charm, in fact within hours of launching the event, and with the help of a few Re-Tweets from Alex Lindsay, Steve Simon, and Aaron Mahler — all 75 RSVP slots were taken!

That’s the power of Twitter, a few bursts of 140 characters to our Twitter followers and we filled an event. Nice. Still nervous though.

Ok, deep-breath… it’ll be fiiine Frederick.

Then boom, SmugMug sent out an email to their Silicon Valley customers — and the waiting-list started to grow… and grow. Again Gaaa! This was great! I mean, people were actually interested in coming to see me talk? Oh wait, I DID mention on the Meetup page that there’d be a “hot model” there, hmm. Yea, that must’ve been the draw, either the hot model or the chance to learn some cool Lightroom digital make-up techniques.

To make a long post short, the event went off without a hitch. OK maybe there were a few hitches, but because there were some really great folks there supporting me none of the gremlins that popped up were show-stoppers.
A huge thanks to Ziv Gillat, Co-Founder of Eye-fi, and Jeremiah Njoroge (also on the Eye-fi team). And a few other members of the user group as well for helping with set-up and break-down of the gear.

Having help from friends made the event far less stressful, and I was able to concentrate on trying to get my message across to the 150+ attendees which was; how to photograph models, and how to retouch them to perfection in Photoshop Lightroom.

I’m really looking forward to hosting upcoming TWiP, SmugMug, and other photography-related events. If the success of this one was any indicator of the future, it looks like these Meetups might become THE Bay Area photography event to go to each month.

And a HUGE thank you to everyone who came out to learn, meet, and mingle with other photographers. The turn-out to this event shows just how strong the photographic community is.

To keep track of these events and be notified of upcoming Meetups, be sure to join the This Week in Photography Meetup group.

I’ll look forward to seeing you at the next event!