Business

Have you ever wondered what it takes to take the best sports images in the world? You know, those photos that become posters and magazine covers? Well recently we caught up with four of the photographers from Sports Illustrated during the biggest game in college football and asked them what makes a great sports image. Click the full post to read about our experience and hear from the masters themselves.

We’ve featured Yuri Arcurs, the worlds most successful micro stock photographer, many times here on Fstoppers. In a time when people complain that the value of photography has gone the way of the buffalo, Yuri has created an empire on images that cost less than $1. In this video Yuri explains exactly what makes a great stock image and what it is specifically [read full story]

The vast majority of Fstoppers readers are part-time or full-time photographers. Everyone who creates a business is faced with the challenge of coming up with their own logo. How memorable is your logo? A timeless, unforgettable “mark” can help your business stand out of the crowd. Check out this video of a 5 year old responding to brandmarks to see what I mean.

Name a celebrity. Yep, go on. Arnold Schwarzenegger, George Clooney, Zooey Deschanel, Ben Stiller, Samuel L Jackson. How about an athlete? Serena Williams, Jeff Gordon, Shaquille O’Neal. Brian Smith has worked with them all. I recently sat down with Brian for an Fstoppers exclusive interview and he was glad to share his insight, techniques, and advice with us. Check out the full post for the entire text.

It’s always good humor when someone makes a career path diagram outlining possible jobs within a particular field. If you aren’t sure about whether your skills are best utilized as a Director, Studio Head, Screenwriter, Producer, or Film Critic then this is a great starting point. Hopefully someone makes one of these based on art buying and photography publishing. Without cheating, which path do you naturally fall into?

Trey Ratcliff is a very successful photographer who also runs a very popular blog Stuck in Customs. In a recent lecture for Google, Trey explains what makes the internet so exciting for creative professionals, and how you too can put your own internet stimulus out there for others to enjoy. It’s interesting watching this watching this… [full post]

The response Peter Hurley’s downloadable tutorial The Art Behind The Headshot has been receiving over the last few months has been unbelievable. Peter’s technique has changed the way so many photographers approach working with models, and it’s apparent by his facebook group that photographers of all skill levels are taking the best headshots in their portfolios.

So we have decided to release one free lesson from the DVD for those of you who might still be on the fence. Peter’s knowledge is expensive sure, but it’s guaranteed to change the way you shoot headshots for the rest of your career. We believe in this so much that if you don’t think your headshots are any better after watching 4 hours of Peter’s instructions we will give you your money back guaranteed!

If you are a sports fan, you are going to love this interview. Grover over at Photoshelter recently interviewed Sports Illustrated Director of Photography Steve Fine. Steve’s job is to pick out the absolute best “super selects” from a handful of sports photographers and publish those photos in record time (sometimes within hours).

I recently met Steve and what I found interesting about his job is not only the insane amount of work that goes into finding the absolute cream of the crop photos but also how important Steve’s eye has to be to tell the story of each game in only a handful of frames. With SI, their photo team winds up with dozens if not hundreds of great images but only a very select few can be published to represent the final theme of the game. The following interview is pretty long but definitely worth checking out, especially if you are interested in knowing how sports photography or wired images are used to create the magazines we see on newsstands daily. Enjoy!

Peter Hurley is pretty well known among the Fstoppers crowd but after the release of his highly anticipated DVD, The Art Behind The Headshot, Peter has become an inspiration to hundreds of photographers around the world. If you’ve purchased his 4 hour training session on how to take the perfect headshot then you know just how powerful his teaching techniques can be for your career. But what you might not know is Peter has created an interactive community on Facebook for those of you who want even more instruction!

If you’ve already purchased The Art Behind The Headshot, you need to join The Artists Behind The Headshot Facebook Group. Not only can you post your own photos and have Peter critique them directly but you can also talk business with other photographers who have purchased Peter’s digital tutorial or attended his Headshot Intensive. I just got off a private conference call with Peter and his guest speaker Delane Rouse (who photographed over 800 lawyers in 2011!) It was really amazing to have over 25 photographers logged on and sharing business tips on exactly how they are making money in their local communities. These extra help sessions are only available to those who are members of the private Facebook group so join now! The information shared tonight was worth it’s weight in gold, and it’s inspiring to hear how people are turning their photo hobbies into full blown careers!

Well it’s the end of the year again which means those of you who run a photography business are probably thinking about tax write offs. We have been getting a few emails about this topic so we put together a little list of some expenses you might want to take care of before the end of 2011. Now many of our readers might not yet support themselves with photography, and that is okay; but at some point down the road you will want to consider how to spend your income so you can maximize the growth of your business. If any of our full time photographer friends have any other suggestions or resources, please leave them in the comments so everyone can benefit from your experience.

Warning! You now have 3 days to submit your behind the scenes video for our big 2011 contest.

I’ve been a professional wedding photographer for 7 years now and I’ve seen tons of absurd wedding advice online. Anytime I see a wedding related video submission I think “oh boy, here we go again.” I just stumbled upon a video from 375 Photography on our forum that broke the mold. Not only is this video good, it may be one of the best wedding related videos I’ve seen online. It’s informative, entertaining, and the images speak for themselves. No matter how long you have been shooting weddings, you will learn something from Justin and his team.

Okay, I know my title is a bit dramatic but nevertheless I really think this is one of the best videos I’ve seen this last year for any working professional. Yesterday, Chase Jarvis had Ramit Sethi on his Chase Jarvis Live site, and the conversation was a cornerstone pillar for any working professional photographer. You see, Ramit is a New York Times and Amazon best seller book author (his book I Will Teach You To Be Rich is a classic), and he dropped by Chase’s studio for some candid yet blunt answers on how a professional should run his career. Ramit covers how to book worthwhile jobs that satisfy you both creatively and financially and a ton of great advice that can be very psychological at times. The interview is super long so pace yourself, but if you stick with it I think you will be 10x more successful than you currently are (but hey I’m no fortune teller). Oh and if you want an early start on a great career in photography, why not let Chase Jarvis judge your own work by entering into our behind the scenes contest he is judging! Sorry about the sound at times.

I recently came across this video produced by [Framed] Show, and it really made me stop and think about how I run my business…and this is not just for wedding photographers! Sal Cincotta takes a second to put all of the gear, lighting diagrams, inspiration, and BTS videos aside to talk about something that a lot of photographers fail to capitalize on in their own businesses. Treating your clients to “an experience” they will remember and appreciate is probably THE most important thing you can do for your photography business and gaining future clients. Little things like answering your phone and email within 24 hours seems like a no brainer but how many of you take time out to send handwritten thank you notes or personalized gifts as a token of appreciation? The winter season is a great time to revamp how you will engage your clients in the spring and summer so let me ask you this: What are some things you do to improve your relationship with your clients? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and if you have any ideas that aren’t wedding based I’m sure everyone would love to hear them.

For any of you DSLR video shooters out there, you might not know why you may need some of the equipment you often see on some of the larger rigs found on major studio sets. Well the guys over at Cinevate show you exactly why you might need one of those tools called a mattebox. Matteboxes are essentially barn doors for your camera lens and allow you to control flares and the subtleties of light that make a good film into a great film. Cinevate also shows you how using different filters can really make parts of your movie stand out.

Read the full post to see some side by side examples so you can really examine the differences closely.

Last week we featured part 1 of ReDefine’s interview with Chase Jarvis. The second half of the interview was just released and Chase talks a little about pushing yourself and being your own biggest critic while at the same time taking all the negativity that comes with being in the spotlight with a grain of salt. Lee and I have seen so many ridiculous comments about photographers and their work here on Fstoppers and other popular websites (heaven knows I’ve taken a few punches myself). In today’s uber web social world, sometimes it seems if you haven’t caused a stir of criticism of some sort then perhaps you haven’t made something profound. It seems as photographers, most of us are driven by creativity and competition but the best competition you should have is with yourself. I hope you guys find Chase’s words encouraging as he reminds everyone that even at the top of your career you are going to face people who question your vision. Stay strong and keep truckin’ because the light at the end of the tunnel, may be you! Goodnight!