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Read more about the article The Easiest Photographer’s Business Plan Ever

The Easiest Photographer’s Business Plan Ever

You’d rather be out shooting something awesome and getting paid a ridiculous amount of money for it so you can retire by the end of next week than read an article about a boring business plan for photographers. So would I. That’s why I turned a boring business plan into something fun and easy that will ignite sparks under your ass to take control of your business and make your annoying Uncle Arnie finally stop bugging you about going out and getting a “real” job.

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Read more about the article Low-Powered Strobe, High-Powered Results

Low-Powered Strobe, High-Powered Results

These two portrait sessions were all about breaking my f16 habit in studio, going in the opposite direction and using extremely low-powered strobe and wide apertures to recapture some of that vintage portrait magic. I used the widest aperture available, f3.5, on my Schneider Kreuznach 150mm LS lens. On a medium-format DSLR, this is equivalent to approximately f1.4. Both subjects were photographed using the same two lighting setups, one with strobe only and one with strobe and constant lights. In each case, the strobe served as the keylight.

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Read more about the article 3 Elements of Impactful Images

3 Elements of Impactful Images

We have many decisions to make during client sessions. Many of us tend to overuse clichés in our storytelling. If we’re going to call ourselves storytellers, we should be able to come up with an original vision and execute it in a way that best helps tell the story. Whether you are a wedding or portrait photographer, you have the ability to influence the mood of viewers of your work, which is the first step in creating an impactful image and a lasting connection with the viewer. There are three elements that are essential to creating this connection: light, composition and story.

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Read more about the article Shooting for Sales: Enriching Your Clients’ Lives with Printed Products

Shooting for Sales: Enriching Your Clients’ Lives with Printed Products

Sales is a dirty word in our industry. What’s even worse is having no idea how it’s done. While there are many factors that go into providing amazing service to our clients, the actual act of photographing them with product in mind is one that is most often overlooked. You may be surprised to read that shooting for sales does not involve creating the most epic photos anyone has ever seen. In fact, it’s much less important than the things you cannot see at all.

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Read more about the article 5 Ways to Speed Up Your Lightroom Classic CC Workflow

5 Ways to Speed Up Your Lightroom Classic CC Workflow

After shooting a wedding or any eight-hour-plus event, I dread spending countless hours working in Lightroom. Lightroom can be a huge time suck: waiting for my memory cards to ingest, waiting for each Raw to load for culling, waiting for adjustments to render in the Develop module. Are you struggling with the same post-shoot stress? If so, this article will forever free up these worries and let you get to work—at the pace of your computer’s speed, of course.

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Read more about the article Branding a Nonprofit

Branding a Nonprofit

Our mission at So Many Angels is to use photography to transform children battling cancer into whatever they want to be when they grow up. We are still in the launch phase, and I want to share some of the steps we have taken to hopefully become a brand that is recognized for being the best at what we do. This article is not about the legal stuff you need to do to be recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. These are just some thoughts that are fresh on my mind since the year I started sharing my dreams of this organization with others. Hopefully something here will help start you on your way.

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Read more about the article Building a Brand That Gives Back

Building a Brand That Gives Back

We​ ​have​ ​spent​ ​countless​ ​hours​ ​working​ ​on​ ​our​ ​brand—everything​ ​from​ ​identifying​ ​our​ ​purpose,​ ​to​ ​networking​ ​and​ ​building relationships,​ ​to​ ​becoming​ ​a​ ​recognizable​ ​symbol​ ​in​ ​our​ ​community.​ ​Before​ ​our​ ​organization​ ​took​ ​flight​, ​we had​ ​to​ ​establish​ ​every​ ​detail,​ ​including​​ ​behind​-the​-​scenes​ ​administrative​ ​aspects​ ​of​ ​running​ ​a​ ​charity​ ​and then​ photo​ ​style,​ ​color​ ​scheme​ ​and​ ​everything​ ​in​ ​between.​ ​We were​ ​laser-focused​ ​on​ ​the​ concept of​ ​giving through​ ​the​ ​art​ ​of​ ​photography. Whether​ ​you​ ​want​ ​to​ ​give​ ​by​ ​creating​ ​your​ ​own​ ​nonprofit​​ ​or​ ​by​ ​aligning​ ​your​ ​business​ ​with​ ​an existing​ ​cause,​ ​we’d​ ​like​ ​to​ ​share​ ​with​ ​you​ ​some​ ​insights​ ​based​ ​on​ ​our​ ​experiences​.

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Read more about the article The Evolution of a Brand

The Evolution of a Brand

One aspect of photography that has come into play in recent years is much more prevalent to photographers than it used to be. In fact, it’s now a crucial element for all businesses, big and small. It’s the brand. While most consumers don’t know the difference between good and great photography when looking at a single image, they now instinctively know it when looking at a collection of images. Thanks to social media outlets like Instagram and Pinterest, most consumers have been passively trained to appreciate a good, consistent brand image—and recognize a bad one.

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