Photography - Passion to Business

Photography is a passion for many of us. Many of us are interested in wildlife photography, while some of us are interested in still photography. Seldom do we think of concerting this passion of us into a profession. The thought may have struck us many times but we never pursued it. The reasons can be many. We may have second thoughts of leaving our cushy jobs and going out on our own. Secondly we may not have enough ideas to how to go about it. We have tried to elaborate in brief about photography business.

For starting any business you need to have a proper business plan, which should include your objective, your choice of photography and even the revenues that you are expecting. Next you need to make your business a legal entity with a proper registration, bank accounts and insurance. Now you have done it all, so how do you go about getting customers. The best way to get customers is by getting in touch with people who are professionally associated with the business and have an existing network. They can be friends or acquaintances who are associated with photography. If you are interested in still photography you need to develop a studio where you can have your photo shoots done. If it is an outdoor shoot you need to pack your photography kits and move to the location where the shoot is scheduled to take place.
Setting up a photo studio at the first instance may be overkill. We suggest that you use the infrastructure of an existing studio by paying an hourly rate for the initial period of your business. When your revenue stream becomes constant then you can go about and set-up your own studio.

There is another very important aspect of photography business. If you have decided that photography is what you want to pursue as your profession, you need to have a tie-up with a professional photography lab to process your photographs. To get a true finish to a photograph it is very important that they are processed by hardened professionals.

Since you are new you may not be aware of how much you should price your services. Check out the current photography service rates for different genres and price your service accordingly. Try offering discounts for long shoots which will benefit your customers. It is imperative that you always add value to your customers when offering services. Suggest locations for outdoor shoots, dress for the models and give other ideas which will benefit your customers. Always use your creativity to give a product that your clients have never experienced before at a price which they will appreciate.

There are other points that you should keep in mind. Take assignments which you think you can handle within your bandwidth. Keep to your commitments as it is important in photography business. Your delay can cost your customers on their model fees, location hire charges, lights etc. As a photographer always try to use the best equipment which goes a long way in producing that perfect picture.

Source: Free Online Articles from ArticlesBase.com

About the Author:

Tops-Reviews.com brings you the articles and reviews on products that amuse, inform and entertain. For more reviews and info on Starting a Photography Business, click here

Digital Photography Classes

Author: David Douglas



Anyone who wants to learn how to be a photographer doesn't have to enroll for many years to get a degree. There are colleges who offer this as one of the subjects which the student may take as an elective. Can you still learn how to be a photographer being out of school for many years? The answer is yes. The only thing needed is your dedication to learn from the proper techniques and a camera to take some shots.

Some students don't have to go to campus anymore. There are some institutions that offer distance education. A good example is the New York Institute of Photography.

You will learn everything from exposure, lenses, the various techniques used to cover different events, journalism and much more. Being affiliated with the school, you will be entitled to free online magazine articles such as contests and digital imaging.

Classes are composed of 30 lectures on various topics. You will get a brief introduction through each and then can specialize on a particular field of interest. The nice thing about the program is that you don't have to quit your regular job. This can be done in your free time so there isn't any pressure in learning everything about photography.

Aside from theoretical lectures, there will be a lot of hands on experience. This will make it easy for you to apply what has been learned as seen in the photographs that have been taken using the camera.

The common notion of being a photographer is that you must have a dark room to develop the photos. You will be happy to know that this isn't the practice anymore. Some of the best names in the business don't do this anymore which gives more time to focus on getting the perfect shots.

Education is something you can never get enough of even as you get older. The curriculum is there. All the individual has to do is acquire knowledge from some of the best then apply it after finishing the course.

The rewards of becoming a photographer are endless. It is up to the you whether or not you have the potential to win the Pulitzer Prize or be one of many who do this as a profession.

Photography school can be a lot of fun. You should just submit the requirements then enroll in the course.

Source: Free Online Articles from ArticlesBase.com

About the Author:
Learn Digital Photography - Is an excellent guide to Digital Photography and finding which camera suits your needs. For more information visit: digital photography classes

Effective use of Flash Photography

Author: Ziv H.



Did you ever put your flash unit in manual mode? Did you ever manually turn on the flash when taking a day time outdoor photo? For many the answer to both questions is “no”. In this article we will cover the various types of flash units available, the different scenarios under which they can be used, the advantages of using flash to achieve better photos and the common mistakes people do when using flash photography.

Did you ever put your flash unit in manual mode? Did you ever manually turn on the flash when taking a day time outdoor photo? For many the answer to both questions is “no”. For most amateur photographers flash is just a solution for taking photos when there is not enough natural light. Although a legitimate use of flash photography there is much more ways to efficiently use flash. In this article we will cover the various types of flash units available, the different scenarios under which they can be used, the advantages of using flash to achieve better photos and the common mistakes people do when using flash photography.

As with any other technology knowing how it works behind the scenes and what your options are can help in better utilizing it for your advantage. Flash photography has been around for more than a hundred years. It started with a dangerous and manually controlled technology that used a powder that was lit by either fire or electrical current. These flash solutions were both dangerous and hard to use since the flash was not automatically synchronized to the camera’s shutter. Modern flash units use an electronic flash tube that is synchronized with the camera’s shutter. When turning the flash on the photographer does not need to worry about flash timing - the camera takes care of it automatically. There are two types of flash units: Internal and External.

The internal flash unit is built-in to your camera. It can be controlled through the camera’s menus. Some low end cameras only allow the use of their built-in units. Some low end cameras and all high end cameras also allow the attachment of an external flash unit. External flash units are either attached to the camera’s body through a dedicated slide-in slot or are connected to the camera using a cable. They vary in strength – how much light can they generate for how long - and in mechanical characteristics – can they be tilted or skewed or are they fixed in relation to the camera’s body.

Regardless of the connection type external flash units are electronically connected to the camera and are synchronized with the shutter. When setting your flash unit to automatic mode the camera fires the flash in scenarios where not enough light is available. Many times the camera will make a wrong judgment and will either fire or not fire the flash when the opposite was needed. Also in some scenarios the camera will not be able to tell that firing the flash will actually result in a better photo. One problem when using a flash is washed out photos. When the flash is too strong or the object is too close to the camera the result is a washed out photo there are not enough details and the object appears to be too white or too bright.

Another problem is a photo with too many details: in some scenarios the flash can create artificial shadows and lights which result in a photo that includes details that are exaggerated relative to their appearance in real life. For example when taking a photo of an older person skin wrinkles and imperfections can look much worse than they really are in real life. It is important to know the limitations of the flash unit. Any flash unit has a certain amount of light that it can generate. Usually this amount can be translated to an effective range for using the flash. When trying to take a photo with the object too far – more than the flash unit range – the object will appear dark. When trying to take a photo with the object too close to the camera the object will be washed out or too white.

It is important to know your flash range and make sure that your object is within that range. If you need to take a photo with your objects not within your flash unit range it is better to turn off the flash completely and use a tripod with long exposure. Using the flash in such scenarios can fool the camera into setting a high shutter speed which results in a photo darker than a photo taken without using the flash at all. In some scenarios the camera will not automatically fire the flash although using the flash would have resulted in a much better photo.

One such scenario is taking a photo during day time when the object is shadowed. For example if the object is wearing a hat the hat can block the light from the object’s face or when the object is lit from the side the object’s nose can block the light creating a shadow. In such scenarios the flash unit can be set to “fill in” mode. The flash will be fired to fill-in those shadowed areas but it will not be fired strong enough to wash out the photo.

Another scenario is when the sun is behind the object. One example is taking a photo on the beach against a sunset. If taken without a fill-in flash the result will most likely be a silhouette of the object. If taken with a fill-in flash and the object in range the result will be a clear photo of the object against a sunset. In conclusion your flash unit can be a great tool.

Although for many using the flash in automatic mode is enough for the more sophisticated photographer who wants to achieve higher quality photos understanding and experimenting with the flash unit can yield great results. Following some simple rules such as making sure objects are within the flash unit range and using fill-in flash when shadows can appear on the objects is easy and significantly improves your photos.

About Author
Ziv Haparnas is a technology veteran. Ziv Haparnas writes about practical technology and science issues. More information on digital photo printing and photography is available on printrates.com - a site about digital printing http://www.printrates.com . This article can be published and used as long as the resource box including the backlink is included.

Article Source: http://www.1888articles.com/author-ziv-h.-694.html

How to Buy Jewelry Photography; Four Crucial Considerations

Author: Avi Roth


Are you buying jewelry photography for the first time? This brief guide will help you understand and navigate the process of buying jewelry photography.

Are you buying jewelry photography for the first time? This brief guide will help you understand and navigate the process of buying jewelry photography.

When buying jewelry photography, there are four key things you must consider. Before contacting a professional jewelry photographer, it is worth taking a little time to prepare to discuss your specific needs and the details of your project.

Do your homework by asking yourself the following four questions:

First: How do you plan to utilize the images of your jewelry?

Will the images be used primarily for a web site? Perhaps printed as postcards? Maybe in a catalog or magazine for advertising, or just for inventory record purposes? Perhaps you will utilize the jewelry photography for one purpose now and for a different purpose in the future.

Second: How much of your inventory you need photographed?

If your sample line is vast, will you photograph hundreds of items? This can be expensive. Could you start with photographing just the essence of your collection at the beginning, make some sales with those images, recover some of your initial investment, and get more images later? The technique of PII (progressive inventory imaging) is a practical way to acquire great looking images on a limited budget. Do you plan to advertise your jewelry online? The cost of getting people to an online store is not a negligible amount! The more striking images you display on your site, the greater the chances for customers to come back for more!

Third: Do you want to ‘own’ the images?

The term “buying” photography is not accurate because one does not buy the photograph, but rather buys a license or the rights to reproduce a certain image of photographed jewelry.

Federal copyright laws specify that the images created by the photographer become the creator’s intellectual property and thereby belong to the photographer. The photographer owns the images produced of your jewelry, and you, the client, buy the license to use or reproduce those images for your specific needs, for a specified length of time. When dealing with professional jewelry photographer, you will find those usage rights specified on the estimate sheet you should be receiving prior to commencing with the assignment.

If you expect to ‘own’ the digital image since you paid for the assignment, no problem, you certainly can, but you would be paying more than you actually need to. If the sole serving purpose of your digital image is to unlock your customers' wallets, displaying a digital reproduction of your jewelry will produce income regardless of image ownership. The question is in what proportion?

Look at it this way, what would you pay and consider fair value for a digital image that represents your diamond ring, which retails for $1200.00 in your online store? Let’s say you are comfortable with $15.00. Would you want to pay the same price for that same image if it was going to be used additionally in a national print ad campaign? Of course not, it has a greater value because it will produce more income. How about if it would be also used to create co-op catalogs? Definitely, the image has a greater value yet. A digital reproduction of your jewelry produces income!

The cost of your photography is relative to its income producing power; therefore, you compensate the asset-creator accordingly. That is called ‘usage’. Usage saves money. You buy only what you need. Why pay for the above-mentioned three usages if you are going to use it for the online store only? You can re-license the image for any additional usage, when needed, and save the money for inventory!

Here are some stock-house image "usage" examples:

Printed Marketing Material or Product/Packaging:

An image used in any brochure or other printed material such as direct mail, public relations or sales material distributed to a targeted audience for commercial purposes. Includes use in product packaging. Additional usage, brochure or direct mail, annual report, travel catalogs, packaging.

Web and Electronic Broadcast

An image used in any web, electronic broadcast media such as the Internet, email, television or presentation software. Includes use in any motion picture, video or theatrical production. Additional uses, corporate website, web advertisements, TV commercial, entertainment program, infomercial, feature film, music video.

Print Ad or Display

An image used in any print advertisement, billboard, tradeshow, or in-store for national advertisement, point of purchase counter display, in-store posters, store wall décor, tradeshow panel or presentation.

All Commercial Uses or ‘Unlimited Usage’ Use in any medium intended for commercial or promotional purposes.

‘Unlimited Usage’ would be giving you the greatest asset and the most costly option, but you probably don’t really need it all. Plan ahead, be specific, and save money.

Fourth: Who will be assigned to create those striking images?

The other day the phone rang in my studio and the inquisitive stranger on the other side asked: “How much?”

“How much for what?” I asked
“Well” he continued, “for taking pictures of my jewelry of course”
“That depends on the kind of jewelry you would like us to photograph” I said, to which he hurriedly replied, “What does it matter, jewelry is jewelry.”

This conversation went on for some time, ending with an agreement to photograph a single jewelry item for this potential new client, at no cost, through our Free Digital Capture (FDC) Program. We agreed to continue the dialog after he inspected the digital capture. He felt comfortable knowing that seeing the image of his product would help demystify the ‘unknown’.

A seasoned, professional jewelry photographer will want to take the time to understand the specific needs of your unique project. I would recommend discussing a project with more than one candidate. Describe your project as specifically as you can and provide the photographer with a layout or a sample of a style you like.

When discussing cost, do not confuse the real purpose of jewelry photography by thinking that the best value is from the cheapest price. Beyond cost, you must make sure to receive great photography that represents your jewelry line at its BEST, for those images will become the most valuable and least expensive Public Relations agent and SALES person your company will ever have.

In Conclusion: Thinking about the above four considerations ahead of time will help clarify your needs and will enable you to better communicate those needs with the jewelry photographer.

Applying what we discussed here will help you achieve a most desired outcome: Obtaining the best jewelry photography suited to both your unique artistic needs and personal budget.

For more jewelry photography tips and information, including info about the Free Digital Capture (FDC) Program , please visit http://www.jewelryphotographyonly.com

About Author
Avi Roth is the founder of Digital Jeweller: Digital Jewelry Photography Solutions. His elegant jewelry photography can be seen in Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Martha Stewart Weddings, and other prominent publications. Roth has received numerous awards recognizing his professional virtuosity, but he feels most rewarded by sharing his knowledge with others who share his passion for photography. For more jewelry photography tips and information, including info about the Free Digital Capture (FDC) Program , please visit http://www.jewelryphotographyonly.com

Article Source: http://www.1888articles.com

Improve your creative photography - part 1.

Author: Sahayak Plowman


I have always encouraged my students to be as creative as possible when photographing. If you would like to improve your photography then some of these creative tips may help you break out of your comfort zone.

• Most people compose their photos using the horizontal format of their camera. Spend one weekend photographing a variety of subjects using vertical format ONLY.

• When photographing people most photographers stand too far away. Practice on friends and move in closer. An easy way to start is to stand where you would normally then take two steps closer. You will be amazed at the difference.

• Are you one of those photographers who lean backwards when photographing. Now consciously lean forward you will immediately notice a more relaxed attitude.

• Instead of photographing from the normal standing position, now spend time photographing if you could see the world through cat's eyes. Get down and see how different the world looks from a lower angle.

• Now spend time photographing skylines ONLY. This will help you include clouds or open areas in your photos.

• Spend a weekend photographing everything as a reflection. Use panes of glass in windows, mirrors or even take a portable mirror with you to see how the world looks as a reflection.

• Spends time photographing without looking through the viewfinder. Take every shot from hip height. Besides being a lot of fun you will get some great angle shots.

• It makes a nice difference to see parts of the main subject matter visible. Choose you shot then move your camera until only a fraction of that object is visible in the viewfinder.

• Choose a subject that you least prefer to photograph. This can be fun with a group of friends, toss your least preferred subject into a hat along with your friend's least preferred. Then each draws out a subject. When finished compare all photos you can be inspired by the way others have photographed your subject.

• Spend time photographing in low light conditions, pre-sunrise or after sunset.

• Remember when you photograph any living subject whether it be animal or human get down to, or lower than their eye height.

• Always choose your background first, and then move if possible your subject into a position where the background compliments the subject.

• Always remember the basic compositional rules of leading lines, the one-third rule and horizons.

• With care photograph in the rain.

• Get to know intimately all your focal lengths, practice, practice and more practice.

• Photograph shadows, there can be some beautiful shots taken with shadows.

• Spend time photographing textures. These can be the textures of bark, stones, masonry, the smoothness of a baby's skin, the wrinkles of age, the moving textures of water - there are many.

• Use your tripod and get to know the different effects you get when choosing different shutter speeds whilst photographing moving water. Both slow and fast shutter speeds.

• Do the same thing by setting your camera and tripod next to a main road at night. Photograph the cars moving away from you and moving towards you, you will be pleased with the results.

• Photograph objects lit by moon light, or star light. Exposures will need to be several hours long. Try a variety of shots over a period of nights especially when you have a full moon.

• Look through photographic magazines and try to copy other photographer's techniques, this will only improve your creative photography - have fun!

About Author
Sahayak Plowman has travelled extensively through S.E. Asia and Australia as a freelance photographic journalist. He has had four feature articles published in the Australian natural history GEO Magazine and won first prize in an international B/W landscape competition. He taught photography for 6 years at University and has been studying meditation with Sri Chinmoy for the past fourteen years. He is also web master for Sri Chinmoy http://www.Books.com http://www.srichinmoybooks.com

Article Source: http://www.1888articles.com/author-sahayak-plowman-228.html

Improve Your Digital Photography Using Depth of Field (DOF)

Author: Jeff Galbraith


Depth of field (DOF) is probably a term you have heard used in photography often enough, but what does it really mean, and how can you use it to make your digital pictures better? This short article will show you how make DOF work for you.

The term depth of field refers to how much of your picture is in sharp focus. For example, in portrait shots you will notice that the background is often blurred and soft looking, while the subject is clear and sharp. Pictures like this have a shallow depth of field.

You have probably also noticed that in landscape shots everything in the picture is often sharp and clear, all the way from the dead tree in the foreground to the mountains off in the distance. Pictures like this have a deep depth of field.

There are two main things that affect depth of field:

1.) The aperture (or F stop) setting--this refers to how wide the shutter opens.

2.) The focal length of the lens--this refers to how much the lens “zooms in” your subject.

First we’ll take a look at the aperture settings. Most digital cameras have an aperture range of about F2.8 to F8, and this range usually compresses to about F4.5 to F8 when using full zoom. These aperture ranges vary somewhat from camera to camera, but we will use F2.8 to F8, with a full zoom range of F4.5 to F8, as our example.

At the lowest setting (F2.8), the object you focus on will be sharp, but objects in the background will appear softer and out of focus. At the highest setting (F8), everything from the foreground of your picture to the objects off in the distance will appear sharp and in focus.

Now the focal length--we’ll use a digital camera with a 4 times zoom (35mm to 140mm focal length) as our example. At the 35mm end of your zoom range (no zoom), pretty much everything in your pictures will appear in focus. However, at the 140mm end of your zoom range (full zoom), only the object you focus on will appear sharp.

So how does all this translate into making better pictures with your digital camera? Well, it’s like this.

Set your camera to “aperture priority”. Your camera’s manual will have simple directions on how to do this (it’s quite often just a matter of turning the dial on top). Once you have your camera on “aperture priority”, you will be able to select the aperture setting that you want, and the camera automatically chooses the correct shutter speed.

If you want to take a picture where only your subject is in focus (like a portrait for example), first, zoom in rather than get close, and second, choose an aperture setting with the lowest number possible, in this case F4.5.

If you want to take a picture where the whole scene is in focus (like a landscape for example), first, zoom in very little or not at all, and second, choose an aperture setting at or near the highest number possible, in this case F8.

So, don’t be shy, take your camera off of “auto” and try the “aperture priority” setting—you’ll be glad you did.

About Author
Jeff Galbraith is a photographer from Saint John, NB, on Canada's east coast. Jeff owns and operates a nature and scenery photography web site. Visit Jeff's site for more digital photography tips: http://www.jeffgalbraithphotography.ca

Article Source: http://www.1888articles.com

Jewelry Photography Lighting Tips from a Professional Jewelry Photographer

Author: Avi Roth


What is the biggest mistake amateurs make in jewelry photography? Read on to find out what the two most essential aspects of great jewelry photography are, and how the successful jewelry photographer manipulates these aspects to achieve dramatic and compelling jewelry photography.

Have you heard the term candela? Yes, it has to do with light that is part of the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation that the human eye can see. So what has candela to do with jewelry photography? Well, everyone knows that photography is a form of art made possible by light. Without light, there is no photography. Understanding and controlling light have always been the most essential aspects of great jewelry photography.

The biggest mistake amateurs make when taking pictures is expecting to capture the same range of light on a digital back as seen by the eye. Not so fast: the amount of light you see is a broader range than the amount of light a digital back can capture. While the eye can see a wide range at the same time, digital chips cannot. The difference is that a digital chip can capture light all across the light spectrum, but not all at the same time like your eye can. Let's examine a few lighting techniques used in digital jewelry photography.

FRONT LIGHTING

This is the simplest form of lighting for jewelry photography. It is achieved by placing the light source around the camera lens pointing towards the jewelry to be photographed. For example, flash units on top of cameras, ring lights, or soft boxes next to the lens. Front lighting is flat, and is best used for illustrative purposes. When used for jewelry photography, front light is unexciting and sometimes causes glare from certain areas on the reflective surface that reflects the light from opposing angles.

SIDE LIGHTING

Side lighting gives the impression of three dimensions. By illuminating the jewelry from the side, the viewer gets the impression of depth, as opposed to the flat, two-dimensional effect of front lighting. Side lighting can be most effective in accentuating the surface textures of jewelry. When using side lighting in jewelry photography one must be careful in placing the light to avoid unwanted reflections.

AVAILABLE NATURAL LIGHT

Available natural light completely surrounds a subject. This lighting situation is very even and already exists in an indoor or outdoor setting without adding any artificial illumination by the jewelry photographer. When combined with other reflective surfaces such as silver cards, it can be an effective technique in jewelry photography to achieve soft and pronounced edges on metals and gemstones.

DIRECT LIGHTING

Direct lighting results in high contrast, especially when it's coming from a single source such as the Sun or a fixture equipped with a fresnel lens. It produces high contrast captures with deep shadows and overall drama. In jewelry photography it's mostly used in combination with other softer light sources in order to add a certain creative effect to the general capture. Using high contrast lighting adds impact and accentuates jewelry textures. It can also be used to light through diffusing surfaces such as acrylic or cloth to create softer shadows.

DIFFUSED LIGHTING

Diffused scattered light rays, produce softer light, lessen contrast, and smoothes out details in the jewelry. The resulting images tend to be dreamy and romantic. This technique is very good for showing overall and shadow details. It is the most widely used method in jewelry photography.

SPOT LIGHTING

Spotlighting is a useful tool to focus attention on a certain area of the jewelry. Direct spotlighting is very dramatic, however, in jewelry photography most surfaces are reflective; therefore special techniques must be applied when spotlighting to diffuse and control the reflections and glare. The end result can yield compelling and dramatic jewelry photography!

For more jewelry photography tips and info go to http://www.jewelryphotographyonly.com

About Author
Avi Roth is the founder of Digital Jeweller: Digital Jewelry Photography Solutions. His elegant jewelry photography can be seen in Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Martha Stewart Weddings and other prominent publications. Roth has received numerous awards recognizing his professional virtuosity, but he feels most rewarded by sharing his knowledge with others who share his passion for photography. For more jewelry photography tips and info go to http://www.jewelryphotographyonly.com

Article Source: http://www.1888articles.com