Protecting Your Photo Proofs Online

Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it.  Autograph your work with excellence.  ~Author Unknown

Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.  ~William Shakespeare
 
It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.  ~Noël Coward, Blithe Spirit

Duane Hoffmann / msnbc.com

I've been noticing a trend here lately with "some" of our clients and a problem that some fellow photographers that I know are having. It seems like ever since the economy went down the tube many people have become ... lets just be nice and call them "penny pinchers". Everyone wants to get something as cheap as absolutely possible.

In theory I don't blame them, but photography is not equivalent to buying groceries or a DVD. When your are trusting a once in a life time event to your photographer, you don't want cheap (believe me, I've seen cheap and its not pretty...). In the portrait and wedding realm this usually means they are the type of customer that only want the digital files or pictures for Facebook (WHY!?!? more on this in a minute). Some will even go so far as to pull your low resolution files off of Facebook, or remove your branding logo and try to use your photo without even giving you credit for your hard work!

Choose Two!

Even though this is a painful concept for photographers as business owners, it is, and has always been a common marketing and economic concept. There will always be customers at the low end and people that will try to scheme and scam anything they can for as cheap as possible or, better yet, for free. I've seen it at every job that I have ever worked and the trend has gotten a lot worse the past few years. Lets expose a few of these common scams so you guys won't be surprised when you see them:

Common Scams

• Downloading and printing out or using a low resolution proof that the photographer has updated to a proofing site or a social media site

Surprisingly enough these people will pay for the photo session but not the final product? I don't get it... Did the customer REALLY want to pay $50, $100 or more for a few 72dpi Facebook pics? I've seen it done time and time again and ... its just sad and dishonest.

• Cropping or Photoshopping out the photographer's logo

I know just about anyone can "aquire" Photoshop or some other editing program these days but is the common person's Photoshop skills really that good? Have you ever seen a bad Clone Tool scar? (Ahhhhh!!!) The reason we charge what we do is that we use PS every day. We are professionals, we have studied the techniques and know the secrets that the customers don't know.

And, cropping, (if the aspect ratio is not kept the same) results in a photo that is not standard size to print out. Also, most people don't know how to re-sample a crop to make sure they don't lose resolution. They are losing again and making your work look cheap and amateurish.

• Only ordering a disk of digital files

Most customers think that this is the cheap way out. What they don't realize is that you, the photographer, actually owns these images forever until you legally sell, or give them away by signing over the rights. This is done on a legal contract and both parties sign. Only then are the high resolution files given to the customer on disk. What the customer doesn't realize is that Wal-Mart doesn't use acid-free or high quality papers and inks when they go print out their "awesome" 8x10. Thus the prints fade, smudge, have bad color interpretation and are generally dull and bland, when they could have had so much more for the same price.

Preventing Scams And Protecting Your Art

• Upload only the smallest size and the lowest resolution proof image that you can without compromising the photo

The magic numbers for this is usually around 72 dpi at  400x600 (or equivalent). Yes, that means pull out Photoshop or your editing program and manually or batch resize and save each photo that you want to proof to these specs before you upload them anywhere. What this does is allows the photo to look decent on a computer screen but is horribly small and low resolution when printed out.

• Digital Watermarking and Digital Fingerprinting

Copyright Bay Photo

This seems like the obvious answer to protecting your photos. And it is if you do it the right way. There has been arguments made that physically watermarking your photos detract from the impact, beauty and style of the photo. True, but just a little :-). Wouldn't you rather create buzz (now I've GOTTA see the high resolution version!) and sell albums, prints or even a disk than someone hijack your proof? In the wedding and portrait world, I almost always suggest that you physically watermark your proofs. There are rare exceptions when you are doing a fine art or print piece for a publication that you could proof without a physical watermark.

How to Watermark: In Photoshop, make a new transparent layer and paste the logo or name over the most interesting part of the picture and slightly reduce the opacity of the text (about 60%). Then re-save as a .JPG. Note: NEVER paste a logo over faces or eyes (see above). That WILL kill the impact of the photo. Also be consistent with the placement and angle of your watermark (ie. if you do one angled, do all angled).

Another way to protect your photos digitally is a digital fingerprint that is saved in either the EXIF data or encrypted in some other way. I won't go into how to do that here, but both Adobe Photoshop and Acrobat allow you to make a digital encrypted watermark / fingerprint. Read the help files in either of these to learn how.

• Charge Competitive Prices For Disks

When digital photography first became popular getting only the disk was a common scam. Now most smart photographers have started charging the equivalent of what they would make on a standard album or photo package for the disk (some higher end studios charge from $500 to $1000+ for their disk and copyright release!). Remember, be honest and do the math so you can show your client what you are losing when someone buys a disk instead of prints and albums and why you charge that amount. This will stop that scam dead in its tracks.

• Educate you clients!

Most people are good honest people that are simply ignorant of the process of photography and weddings and all the work that goes into it. Be prepared to explain calmly and tactfully WHY they should pay what they will pay (editing and sorting time, wear and tear on gear, years of education and experience, gear expense, specialty lab, high quality papers and inks, etc.). The short answer... because their day is worth it!

Judge Joe Brown knows his wedding photography...

...and can spot amateurs shooting their first weddings. When you get a second, watch this segment of Judge Joe Brown getting on to some wedding photographers that didn't know what they were doing. The bride ended up winning the case and rightly so. These "wedding photographers" had horrible attitudes, knew nothing about their gear, used low end equipment and Judge Brown knew more than they did about technical photography terms and lens apertures.

Originally Posted by shphoto32

I watched this video and it scared me: YouTube - Judge Joe Brown - Cheap wedding photographer

This video SHOULD scare all of you.

You should be scared to death doing a wedding for the first time: If you don't know what you're doing, if you're not covering your ass, if you don't have back ups, if you don't have somewhat professional gear, you haven't communicated with the bride, family and venue/church and if you don't have professional post (editing) software and computers.

The bottom line is, you can ruin your own reputation and the reputation of other photographers before you even get started and you can get your butt sued off!

If you've never done a wedding before, DON'T DO IT!
Do something else first:

• Be a 2nd shooter
• Intern for free with an established photog
• invent/create a fake wedding portfolio using models in wedding dresses and shoot scenes from weddings
• read every book you can find on the business of wedding photography and practice every chance you get

Get a portfolio together before you EVER shoot a real wedding where the couple is counting on you for capturing a ONCE IN A LIFETIME moment. A portfolio shot means that you have experience shooting "this kind" of shot and you can do it with ease and artistically every time. Each of these moments could be missed just because you:

• weren't zoomed in enough
• made the shot blurry or under-exposed because you didn't know how to shoot in low light
• weren't paying attention
• had gear that wasn't fast enough, powerful enough or didn't respond when needed
• had a bad/low battery.

You Are A Business

Get a business plan together. You will be presenting yourself as an independent contractor, a business person. Are you ready to start your own business yet? What do you know about LLCs? Insurance? Do you know about releases? Do you have access and use basic legal documents to cover your ass? Do you have enough capital to cover yourself if you get sued? (usually around $5000) (Its not IF you'll get sued, its WHEN you'll get sued). Do you know how to explain the value of professional photography to your client (why they should pay you so much, or anything at all?) Be VERY careful if you don't have some kind of insurance. I'm not saying it shouldn't be done, but just know that the above can happen.

Get to know your gear...

...and all of the manual settings like the back of your hand, like your camera is a cybernetic hand and each manual button is attached to your brain.

This is going to sound harsh to many but, don't use bottom of the barrel "pro-sumer" type gear (this includes Canon's Rebel series (XS, T1i is ok), Nikon D-40, D-50 (discontinued for a reason) D-3000, Pentax K-x, Sony A230). The reason for this is:

• most of the external buttons and knobs that you need to access essential features fast in a pinch are hidden inside software menus
• plastic camera bodies (easily cracked)
• smaller LCD screens
• smaller bodies are more awkward for hands

You can't make your camera part of you if you are always hunting and pecking through 3 nested levels of menus to find that manual ISO setting that you need for the kiss shot because the lighting changed.

And that's just the basics. I'm really not trying to crush anyone's dreams of being a wedding photog. Just wanted everyone to know the realities and the work that goes into being a wedding photog. Good luck to everyone and keep learning!

What Do I Shoot In The Wedding Off Season?

Everyone photographer goes through a lull or off season especially in the wedding photography business. Typically spring and summer are the peak times for wedding photographers and fall starts the slow down into "dead" winter (as I like to call it). During these times photographers get the equivalent of writers block and the creativity just doesn't seem to be there. Try some of these ideas during your down time...

So, what do you shoot during off season?

• Fun, Themed Portfolio Stuff - pick a theme and shoot as many pictures as you can using that theme. Even though this won't directly make you any money, it will boost your portfolio and keep the creativity churning. Some examples of cool themes are: pick a color, something dirty, shiny things, old people, people that work in restaurants, people that work in gas stations, flowers, etc.
• Shoot business head shots - shoot head shots for business people that need profile pictures for their new found social media sites.
• Shoot kid portraits - get the word passed around your local church or new mothers at work that you'll give them a discount on a kid session at the local botanical gardens.

Hopefully these ideas will give you a boost this fall. Don't let the seasons get you down! Keep the creativity up!

How To Be A Good Subject of A Photo Shoot

What are some things that your subjects have done or worn that have made you cringe?

Yesterday I had the chance to have the tables turned on me as I posed with my beautiful fiance for our new engagement photos that our photographer Shannon (of Shannon Ludlum Photography) shot. She had some great ideas and I'm sure that they will come out great, but I was having a hard time making myself not think about framing and focus and location details, but she did a great job of putting us at ease and having fun so she could get some great photos for us.

As a portrait and wedding photographer you WILL run into bad colors / clothing or just general ignorance on the part of your client, so I'm going to help you prepare for how to deal with unruly clothing or behavior from your subject and if you are ever the subject you can more easily show or tell your subjects how to BEHAVE . First I'll give you what you should do as a photographer and then what to expect if you are the subject.

The behavior isn't on purpose

... so don't blame the subject. If anything, blame yourself for not telling your client about these rules before hand. Most wedding couples or solo portraits have not had much camera face time if any at all, so be prepared to give detailed instructions or have a good "beside manner" (as if you were a doctor) and keep your subjects smiling, laughing and in a good mood in general.

If you are the subject: remember that you are not expected to read the photographer's mind or be a professional model, just take direction and don't be stubborn. Your photographer knows how to make you look good and is putting you and posing you in the best way to make sure you stay that way.

Put your subject at ease

This is a tricky technique and is easier for some photographers than others. Basically you chit chat with them and develop a rapport with them. Make jokes (have some jokes pre-planned) get them to be playful with each other. This includes tickles and neck kisses ;-)

If you are the subject: don't be nervous. Be yourself and just have fun. Breathe. Stop worrying how the pictures will come out and let your photographer do their job.

What not to wear

You may have seen a book or TV show about this. As a photographer you know that there are certain colors and styles of clothing that look horrible in photographs. Be sure to let your clients know ahead of time "what not to wear" to their photo shoot. Don't assume that they've read up on it. So here are some colors that are not so great on film:

• Bright Red (or any red) - red bleeds on film. Digital sensors handle it a little better but its usually too much contrast for the human eye and your eye bleeds the color in your brain. STAY AWAY!
• Bright or fluorescent yellows, lime greens, etc. - The 80's called... they want their clothes back
  
• Pure White - white is a great contrasting color but most digital meters have a hard time reading the correct exposure and thus under or over exposes the white making it blow out and losing the detail of any folds or patterns in the material. Tell your clients to stay away from pure white unless you plan on doing some time consuming hand metering every other shot.
• Large stripes, bold designs, polka dots - while not a problem for sensors, stripes and polka dots either make people look fatter than normal or skinnier than normal. It is also distracting to the viewer, where you want the focus to be on the face of your subject, not the beer gut.
• Funny print shirts - or any interesting artistic designs. Tell them leave their hilarious Borat t-shirt at home. Because that's all that a viewer will notice and laugh at when looking at the picture
• Trendy / Hot /Goofy designs - tell your clients to keep it more traditional and subdued. Not that they shouldn't wear something striking or vibrant, but they need wear something that won't distract from their faces and eyes.
• Short sleeves / tank tops / shorts - if you're not a professional model with a perfect body, stay with pants/jeans and slightly loose fitting short or long sleeve shirts/tops. Lots of skin flopping around isn't attractive.
  

Basically some great colors would be:

• medium to dark greens
• purples
• khaki
• blues
• browns
• black
• creme whites

I'm not going to pretend to know everything about women's fashion (maybe some of the ladies could share some good options for clothing in the comments section?) but I'll give some advice for guy's clothing.

• Blue Jeans: good fitting but not too loose or too tight (no skinny jeans)
• Black button down shirts, long sleeve
• Nice plain polo (no logos) in the above colors (if you have decent looking arms)
• Casual but modern suit coat (not buttoned)

DO NOT wear:

• "Urban Wear" - sagging, big print shirts, poorly made clothes
• Camouflage - if you are a real soldier, wear your dress uniform for pics.
• weird ties - bolos, Sponge Bob, Tabasco
• popped collar polos or layered polos - save that for the frat party

The final details that most people don't think about till the last minute are:

• Hair - bring some hair gel or hairspray and a comb or brush with you to the shoot.
• Makeup - obviously for the ladies but some concealer (for blemishes or zits) or translucent powder will do wonders for the guys as well. The powder keeps the shine off your face and forehead. (just ask your wife/girlfriend to borrow some). Its done in Hollywood and on TV all the time guys, don't get too weird about this.

So, remind (or even print out this handy list for) your clients before their photo shoot and you'll have a great time and everyone will look hot!

Lightroom Plug-Ins for Flickr and Facebook

For those of you using Adobe Lightroom, I am going to keeping you up to date on the inside workings of Lightroom and showing you how to use some of the more powerful features of the coolest photo editing software out there.

First of all if you are a wedding photographer and you don't have Lightroom. You can buy it here from Amazon:



Once you already have Lightroom, try these great plug-ins created by Jeffrey Friedl. These are available as a free download from his blog:

• Jeffrey’s “Export to Flickr” Lightroom Plugin -This is the only Flickr upload plug-in to get for Lightroom. It makes everything super simple and gives you tons of options as to your meta data and size and resolution. You can also select which album you want to upload to.
• Jeffrey’s “Export to Facebook” Lightroom Plugin - same great features as the Flickr plug-in but compresses and resizes just for Facebook and also gives you the option to select which album you want to upload to.

Both of these are free to download and use but after a few weeks, if you don't "donate" the batch usablity is shortend to 10 photos or less at a time. Still good enough for most of us out there who aren't uploading massive shooting projects to Facebook. But I would definitely suggest donating to Jeff's cause. He spent alot of time working on these plug-ins and they are a huge resource to all Lightroom users.

On to the installation...

1. download the plug-in
2. unzip the plug-in
3. move the plug-in folder to your Lightroom Plug-In directory
4. Open Lightroom and go to File -> Plug-In Manager
5. Click on the Add button
6. Find the Plug-in directory where you saved the unzipped Plug-in and select it.
7. The plug-in should install itself
8. The first time you install it it will ask you to verify and authenticate with the service you are using. So, you will have to put in your password.
9. after that, you will be able to use the plug-in in your Export feature. Be sure to click on the top menu bar to select which plug in you want to use or edit.

Next, Cool Develop Presets for Lightroom...