Water Can Be Beautiful, But Don't Drown in Your Work by Over Scheduling! Photo © Steve Payne 2006

Under Promise, Over Deliver!  Over Schedule, Underwater!

I’m sure you’re familiar with the saying “Under Promise, Over Deliver”, but what about “Over Schedule, Underwater.” Well, I just made it up in thinking about this post, but nothing could be more true in scheduling your time! One of my good friends was working with a time management consultant who instructed him to never schedule more than 3.5 hours a day. And in practice, even that may be a little too much, at least to do everyday.

I think we all imagine that we can get a lot more done in a day than we actually can. All the reality shows we see on TV are so deadline oriented and stressful, that maybe we start to think that should be the norm. I guess if you want to have a heart attack and die really young, it is. But, I don’t think many of us want to go that route. I know that I can be my own worst enemy when it comes to time. I have made some major improvements over the past couple of years though, and not over-scheduling has been one of them. The one thing that has made the biggest change, is eliminating hard deadlines for projects. I know what you’re thinking, I’m just a lazy guy who wants to float through life on a cloud. Not so. But, I do LOVE a nice pace, and variety in my day. Plus, I’ve got to leave time to stay healthy and happy, or the payoff just isn’t there, no matter how good the business is doing.

I will admit that the Christmas holiday season, is the one thing that I haven’t been able to solve, since during that time I’m not in control of the deadline, and everyone’s is the same. But, in every business there are times to make hay while the sun shines, and that’s one of them in the photography business.

The rest of the year, I try to schedule in two hour blocks, since that seems to be the amount of time I can work on something before becoming unproductive and un-focused. I also try to vary my activities, between thinking and non-thinking. Editing is thinking, cleaning up my desk or studio is non-thinking, at least for me. Then when I really need a break, I get some exercise or run errands that need to be done.

I also try to complete photo job tasks such as a session and first edit in the same time block to make it more efficient and not get behind. I really feel the stress when I have a bunch of sessions that aren’t edited, and have the get them all done at once. It’s much easier for me to do the session, take a short break, and then edit the session while it’s fresh in my mind. It’s just a matter of putting it on the calendar that way.

I also use my iPhone calendar to keep me moving forward by having both scheduled and unscheduled activities on it. Unscheduled & not urgent activities are marked with the “All Day” designation to begin with. That way I can do them when I get a chance, and move them forward easily to the next day if they aren’t accomplished the day I put them on to begin with. Some items may get moved forward numerous times before they’re completed. If they don’t have a deadline, then it doesn’t matter… right?

Here’s some tips from the Mayo Clinic on time-management & stress:

-Prioritize your tasks. Time-consuming but relatively unimportant tasks can consume a lot of your day. Prioritizing tasks will ensure that you spend your time and energy on those that are truly important to you.
-Say no to nonessential tasks. Consider your goals and schedule before agreeing to take on additional work.
-Delegate. Take a look at your to-do list and consider what you can pass on to someone else.
-Take the time you need to do a quality job. Doing work right the first time may take more time upfront, but errors usually result in time spent making corrections, which takes more time overall.
-Break large, time-consuming tasks into smaller tasks. Work on them a few minutes at a time until you get them all done.
-Practice the 10-minute rule. Work on a dreaded task for 10 minutes each day. Once you get started, you may find you can finish it.
-Evaluate how you’re spending your time. Keep a diary of everything you do for three days to determine how you’re spending your time. Look for time that can be used more wisely. For example, could you take a bus or train to work and use the commute to catch up on reading? If so, you could free up some time to exercise or spend with family or friends.
-Limit distractions. Block out time on your calendar for big projects. During that time, close your door and turn off your phone, pager and e-mail.
-Get plenty of sleep, have a healthy diet and exercise regularly. A healthy lifestyle can improve your focus and concentration, which will help improve your efficiency so that you can complete your work in less time.
-Take a break when needed. Too much stress can derail your attempts at getting organized. When you need a break, take one. Take a walk. Do some quick stretches at your workstation. Take a day of vacation to rest and re-energize.

I really like that last tip, “take a day of vacation to rest and re-energize.” It’s really hard to do, but if you can make yourself do it when your are feeling totally overwhelmed, just to let your mind rest and to re-evaluate the tasks at hand, it can be amazing. You may in a relaxed moment think of the perfect person or service to delegate some tasks to, or realize that they don’t really need to be done at all, you just thought they did!

So, definitely Under Promise, Over Deliver, but instead of Over Schedule, Underwater…try under scheduling a bit more, and keep your head above water! -SP

If you would like to lower the stress in your photography business, and stay above water, sign up for info on my Think Like A Successful Photographer online course today!

What Can You Change This Semster to Improve Your Business?

Second Semester  Business Report Card
Consistent re-evaluation is an essential element for a healthy business and a healthy you. I’ve always used the school year calendar as a timeline for re-evaluation. During the Christmas holiday and the early part of January I look back at the year as a whole and see what went right and what went wrong. How would I grade myself in the various areas of my business? Quality of work, cash flow, profit, efficiency, personal satisfaction, are all areas to look at. How the business has changed versus how the world has changed, and what I need to do to make those match up for a healthy bottom line. What jobs did I enjoy and make a profit on? What jobs did I wish I had never taken? Where did I make money? Where did I break even or lose money?

If you keep good records in a professional accounting program, and keep a good calendar record, these things are easy to see by pulling up a few reports, printing them out and and then making notes on the printouts.

Maybe you’ll find it’s all about scheduling more realistically, or changing some of your policies for payments, or workflow through your studio. Whatever it is…make some changes, now! You can always change back! It’s your business, don’t worry that one or two people won’t like it. If you’re not in business because you didn’t change, then it doesn’t matter anyway, right?

Whatever it is, you’ve got to spend time working on your business to be as lean and mean as you can. So that you can withstand the changing conditions of the marketplace.

Then again during summer vacation, I like to reflect on things and make some hopefully minor adjustments for the fall term, so to speak. Doing this consistently over the years, I’ve made major changes in my business several times. Generally the major changes take a few years, but if I’m not constantly evaluating and re-visioning, they would be impossible.

Sometimes hard choices need to be made in order to maintain your place and or grow your business. And, it’s often hard to make those choices. But, if you want to survive and thrive you must make them.

In this digital age in which we live, things can change so fast that if you blink, you may miss a major development…or opportunity. Digital has affected just about everything in the world, and especially businesses. The saying, “here today and gone tomorrow” has a sobering reality to it, that it never had before.

If you’re running your business with your eyes closed, and just hoping that if you keep working really hard everything will work out, you may be out of luck sooner than you think. I’m not sure one could ever get away with that, but you certainly can’t today.

I like to refer to working with your eyes closed, as the pinball effect. You’re the ball and wherever the flipper of life knocks you, is what you’ve got to deal with. You need to be the person pushing the flipper and controlling the ball, not the other way around! So, look back at your year  to improve your grades and do something different! You won’t be sorry!

If you would like to improve your grades in your photography business, and make your dreams come true, sign up for info on my Think Like A Successful Photographer online course today!

Here’s to a more productive and profitable New Year! – SP

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl8YJkclhuU

When I first heard about the Lytro Lightfield Camera several months ago, I was intrigued by the thought, but really didn’t understand how in the heck they could pull that off. I mean missing focus at an important moment, or event is something that has been the bane of a photographers existence for ever. Could this new camera really define the term point and shoot? Can it really focus anything in the frame after the fact? Well…THEY say it can! And, I can’t wait to get one of these in my hands to play with. Now “play with” is the key here. On first look, I can’t imagine actually carrying this around to shoot with, when I have an iPhone in my pocket that does a pretty good job of focusing…but who knows, it may be the next big thing..or not. Judge for yourself.

According to the Lytro web site here are a few of the camera’s features:

- Form follows function: The Lytro’s unique compact design is driven by its 8x optical zoom lens, which features a constant f/2 aperture. The Lytro’s anodized aluminum body is lightweight yet sturdy. At less than eight ounces, the Lytro puts remarkable power in a pocket-sized camera.
- Proprietary light field science: The Lytro is the only camera that captures life in living pictures. Its innovative light field sensor captures 11 million light rays of data (or 11 megarays), including the direction of each ray, something conventional cameras don’t do. The light field engine then processes the data into a picture that is displayed in HD quality.
- Unparalleled speed: The Lytro’s speed ensures that people never miss a moment. It turns on instantly and has an instant shutter. With no need to auto-focus, the Lytro has no shutter delays.
- Low-light sensitivity: By using all of the available light in a scene, the Lytro performs well in low- light environments without the use of a flash.
- Significant storage: The Lytro is available in both 8GB and 16GB models, storing 350 and 750 pictures respectively. In addition, our first camera owners will enjoy free storage for the light field pictures they’ve uploaded to Lytro.com.
- Seeing in 3D: Coming soon! Captured as a full light field, all pictures taken with the Lytro are inherently 3D. Special light field algorithms, available in 2012, will be applied to the light field pictures to enable viewing on any 3D display and to enable viewers to shift the perspective of the scene.

For more information visit the company’s web site: www.lytro.com

A rainy day, a parking stripe, a clover plant, and the best pocket camera I've ever owned, the iPhone 4S, combine to make an image of urban beauty.

The Best Pocket Camera for 2012 is arguably the iPhone 4S and I’m not the only one who thinks so. As a professional photographer, one of the most common questions that I get is about what kind of camera to buy. For years the answer was easy, the Olympus Stylus. It was truly THE choice for an easy to use, high quality, low cost pocket camera. Then when digital pocket cameras started to hit the shelves the question became much tougher to answer. In fact for a number of years there, I would refuse to answer it. There were just way too many choices, and cameras were coming out so fast that it made my head swim! When I got my iPhone 1, the second day they were on the market, I was amazed at how good a photo it would take. I could actually make a 4X6 print from it that was plenty good enough for vacation photos and sharing ideas, and information with others. Fast forward to fall of 2011 and the release of iPhone 4S, with enhanced low light capability, great lens, 30% larger chip, etc. If the best camera is the one you have with you, then the iPhone IS the best pocket camera for 2012! When asked how they got the great photographs, the old news photographers used to say, “f8 and be there!” Now you might say, “iPhone and be there!”

A recent study by NPD showed some interesting figures for smartphone photography versus dedicated point and shoot cameras.

“There is no doubt that the smartphone is becoming ‘good enough’ much of the time; but thanks to mobile phones, more pictures are being taken than ever before,” NPD’s Liz Cutting said in a statement. In short, before smartphones hit the scene, most people found themselves without a camera during unexpected photo opportunities. But now smartphones help ensure we always have an image-capture device at hand — and they’ve trained us to take more photos.

What’s more, today’s smartphone cameras actually yield acceptable image quality. That 5MP or even 8MP hardware on the back of your mobile phone now rivals the sensors of larger point-and-shoots, giving us yet another reason to snap an image in the field.

Smartphone camera usage is way up in casual applications. Image: NPD Group

 

And it’s not just average Joes who think that smartphones make a decent camera. Famed celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz said that the iPhone is “the snapshot camera of today” and that it’s “accessible and easy” during a November appearance on NBC. And how’s this for a telling statistic: In June, the iPhone 4 surpassed the Nikon D90 and Canon EOS 5D Mark II as the top camera on Flickr.

The iPhone has even been used in place of a traditional camera to document war in Afghanistan and to snap memorable photos of the Tour de France. Apple’s decision to choose popular photo-sharing social network Instagram as its 2011 iPhone app of the year is also a nod to the trend and popularity of smartphone photography.

So, if you’re thinking of buying a new camera this year, and or you need to upgrade your phone, you may want to combine the two needs and opt for The Best Pocket Camera of 2012, The iPhone 4S!

You've Got To Love Your Small Photography Business!

First and foremost in a small photography business…you’ve got to LOVE IT, because you are married to it! No matter how successful and dreamy a business that you build, there are issues and times that will make you crazy… and you’ll wonder why you ever thought having your own business was a good idea! So, if you start your business just to make money you may be in trouble before you start. It’s not just about the money, it can’t be, if you’re going to remain viable for the long run. And, as some statistics below will show, photography is not a business to start if monetary riches are your goal!

You can’t fake it in this business! You can’t fake knowledge and you definitely can’t fake passion. Now if you’re selling widgets, you may be able to get away with faking it. But, the photography business, is a totally different animal. Our clients look to us for not only excellence in our photographic skills, but superior expertise and good taste in design, as well as framing, etc. We must be well rounded in our knowledge to stand out from the pack, so continual study and education in not only photography, but all related areas is essential!

Here’s some recent employment statistics from The Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Photographers held about 152,000 jobs in 2008. More than half were self-employed, a much higher proportion than for most occupations. Some self-employed photographers have contracts with advertising agencies, magazine publishers, or other businesses to do individual projects for a set fee, while others operate portrait studios or provide photographs to stock-photo agencies.

Most salaried photographers work in portrait or commercial photography studios; most of the others work for newspapers, magazines, and advertising agencies. Photographers work in all areas of the country, but most are employed in metropolitan areas.

And, here’s some earnings data from them as well:

Median annual wages of salaried photographers were $29,440 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $20,620 and $43,530. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $16,920, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $62,430. Median annual wages in the photographic services industry, which employed the largest numbers of salaried photographers, were $26,160.

Salaried photographers—most of whom work full time—tend to earn more than those who are self-employed. Because most freelance and portrait photographers purchase their own equipment, they incur considerable expense acquiring and maintaining cameras and accessories. Unlike news and commercial photographers, few fine arts photographers are successful enough to support themselves solely through their art.

These aren’t real encouraging statistics are they? Especially if you intend to make photography your main source of income. So, if you plan to do just that, then you’d better be absolutely devoted to it, and ready to learn the business and marketing and photography skills necessary to separate you from the rest. Did you notice that I listed photography skills last? Well, if you think being an amazing photographer is enough, and that you’ll be discovered and riches will follow…you’d better read those statistics again. It just isn’t going to happen like that.

But, if photography IS IT for you, then your passion and love for what you do will show through. It will be contagious. It will result in larger orders, because of the trust that is established, and because your clients will know if something’s not right you will make it right. Guaranteed! And, even though it may be just a small photography business, it’s your business and that’s got to be a good thing! And, who knows it may not end up being so small after all!

If you would like to make your small photography business beat the odds and statistics, sign up for info on my Think Like A Successful Photographer online course today! Check it out! – SP

This ad is for the first consumer camera ever, introduced by Kodak in 1889. It produced 100 small circular photos.

Kodak is one of those businesses that everyone knows, even if you have never taken a picture.  And if you have ever taken a picture, Kodak was responsible for it – because they invented the consumer camera.  But now photography business giant Kodak nears bankruptcy.

Of course, the switch to digital cameras, and then to phone cameras had to really hurt Kodak.  I assumed Kodak was late to the digital camera market, but that’s wrong.  It turns out that Kodak actually invented the digital camera decades ago.

This article from The Atlantic will open your eyes about….

What Killed Kodak?

Barring a drastic turn of events, Eastman Kodak, the 131-year-old stalwart of American photography, may be headed for bankruptcy. According to the Wall Street Journal, the company will file for Chapter 11 in “the coming weeks” unless it can sell off a valuable portfolio of patents. The business icon that brought picture taking to the masses is burning its furniture to keep warm.

Kodak fits the classic profile of a 20th-century corporate dinosaur. Its headquarters are cloistered in sleepy Rochester, New York. It built itself selling camera film, a business that’s been pushed into obsolescence by the digital revolution.

But the company isn’t in trouble because it stood still while the world turned. Rather, Kodak has spent the past decade attempting to adapt to the changing times, often creating innovative new products, but failing to turn them into a sustainable business. Its problems are almost reminiscent of another struggling giant: AOL.

AOL has been living off the vapors of its shrinking dial-up business as management has attempted to transform it into a major media-content company. Its Patch network of local news sites has grown like Internet kudzu. It bought up the page-view machine that is The Huffington Post. And yet, it’s not clear AOL will make the economics work before its legacy cash cow finally dies.

Kodak faced a similar story in the aughts, when it first attempted to remake itself as a leading digital camera company, and more recently, as a high tech printer maker. Kodak wasn’t a late-comer to digital photography. In fact, they invented it. Its engineers pieced together a large, boxy prototype in 1975, calling their new technology “filmless photography.” In 1991, they partnered with Nikon to market a professional-grade digital camera, and in 1996, they debuted their first point-and-shoot. Still, compared to competitors such as Fuji and Olympus, Kodak moved slowly, choosing instead to focus on its core business of making and selling analog camera film. That changed at the turn of the century, when then CEO Dan Carp vowed to invest two-thirds of the company’s research and development budget on digital projects.

The initial result was a smashing success. In April 2001, Kodak debuted its EasyShare line of point-and-shoots, which made it simpler to download photos onto your computer and featured a longer battery life than most competing products. By Christmas, stores couldn’t keep them on the shelves. By 2005, Kodak was the top-selling digital camera brand in the United States.

But while the cameras were a hit with consumers, they were a dud for Kodak’s bottom line. As early as that first Christmas of blockbuster sales, Businessweek reported that there were signs that the margins on digital cameras were about to drop. And drop they did. The cameras swiftly became commoditized, and it became harder to eke out a profit. By 2006, current CEO Antonio Perez was quoted calling digital cameras a “crappy business.”

 

Steve is getting ready to teach his method of running a successful, profitable photography business – one that keeps you loving photography, AND having a good work / life balance.

Check it out here ==> Master The Photography Business

First Shot

I was recently thinking about when I got my very first camera for Christmas. I was in middle school, and I was thrilled to finally have a “real camera”. It had 3 shutter speeds and a built in flash. Wow! So of course, I set out that Christmas day to make a bunch of really cool pictures of my friends and family. One of those shots was a self portrait very similar to the one you see here, that I shot into a mirror with a flash. Now, that’s just about as dumb as it gets, and when I got the prints back from the lab, yes we had to send them off in those pre-historic times, I was shocked to see this burst of light in the mirror. What was I thinking would happen? I guess I wasn’t thinking. Well…I did get better at photography and hopefully I can help you get better as well. It’s truly not about the camera, it’s about thinking like a photographer. Or…thinking like a camera. So, if you’d like to stop being disappointed with the pictures you’re taking, and start making photographs that you can be proud of,  sign up below. I’ll send you tips every week that will help you quickly improve your work. This week’s tip is: don’t shoot flash pictures into a mirror. I mean how dumb is that?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=szS5q85cC7E

Combine this with the Modahaus Steady Stand and you’ve got a winning combination for quick and easy emptying of that old shoebox of photos!

High dynamic range photos (HDR) can be garish and ugly when done poorly, or be beautiful and striking expressionist-like photos when well done.  Vandelay Design has put together a gallery of 25 beautiful examples of HDR photography.

HDR Photographs:

Wonderful Examples To Study

Click here for Vandelay Design’s gallery of HDR photographs

For those who love browsing through online photo galleries, HDR (High Dynamic Range) photographs are often some of the most intriguing. HDR photography involves taking several shots of the same subject at different exposures and then combining them in a program like Photoshop. (HDR effects can also be achieved using just one image with more post processing work.)

For more information on HDR photography and how to achieve the look with your own photography, you may be interested in visiting Stuck in Customs.

My friend Nate Siggard also has a good guide on taking HDR photographs.

What Does HDR Mean?

HDR is an acronym for High Dynamic Range and means that there is more light in an image than modern electronics and printers are capable of displaying. Luckily thanks to computer software and a few easy techniques we can reduce the amount of light in an HDR picture so that it can be seen on your computer screen or printed by a process called Tone-Mapping.

Traditional film photos have a dynamic light range of about 300:1 while the human eye has a dynamic light range of about 1,000,000:1. This is why photos can be over and underexposed compared what you saw with your eyes.

High dynamic range imaging is also a key reason that video games and movies with special effects look so real. As the technology advances for the big studios, there is no reason you shouldn’t be taking advantage of it as well.

Read more here, and take a look at Nate’s guide book on how to take HDR photographs.

Arthur Elgort

He began his career working as a photo assistant to Gus Peterson whose natural shooting style greatly contributed to the lively and casual style Mr. Elgort is so well known for today. He also attributes much of his style to a lifelong love of music and dance, particularly jazz and ballet.

Arthur Elgort has been shooting fashion and beauty photography for 45 years.  On his website, (see link below) he also has many jazz and ballet photos.

Here’s a wonderful slide show from the New York Times that Steve suggested to me …

Arthur Elgort: Inside His SoHo Studio

Books By Arthur Elgort

• Personal Fashion Picture, 1983
• Models Manual, 1994
• How To Shoot Your Kids, 1997
• Camera Crazy, 2004

More Photos and Info On Arthur Elgort

• http://www.arthurelgort.com – official website
• http://www.artnet.com/artist/5751/arthur-elgort.html
• http://www.photographerslimitededitions.com/index.php?cat=c61_ARTHUR-ELGORT.html