Canvas Prints for Sale Using PhotoShelter's New Embedded Gallery

The above gallery contains some photos of Alberta prairie scenes including Balzac and Rosebud using PhotoShelter's "embed gallery" feature. It is designed to take advantage of viral marketing as it allows anyone to grab the code and embed the slide show in any web page or blog. It is also possible to get a link for the gallery and email it to people or post it anywhere. This is great for introducing new work or for contacting clients directly with the edits from a shoot, as the link can travel easily to stakeholders. These galleries are also much nicer than the Photoshop web gallery option, as it allows full screen playback and it always links back to your PhotoShelter account.

This is a very good option for people who aren't web savvy, as they don't need to know any code, nor do they have to upload the files anywhere once the gallery is made. I know of several photographers who do not update their own web sites, so this is perfect for them.

To post a PhotoShelter gallery on a Blogger page follow these instructions:

• When writing a new post hit the "Edit Html" link on the top right side of the Blogger editing window.
  
• Then copy and paste the code from the web gallery (available by clicking the "grab embed code" triangle on the gallery's bottom right corner).
  
• Hit "Preview" in the Blogger window and the gallery should be there. Make sure you copy the embed code, not the URL code if you want the gallery to show like mine does above.
  
• If you want to paste a link somewhere, then take the URL code instead.

The "embed gallery" option is one of the many new features of PhotoShelter which make it a great choice for photographers showing, marketing and selling their work. PhotoShelter is striving to remain in the game, and is working hard at adding new features to help both photographers and clients buy and sell images.

UPDATE: This embedded gallery process is not as simple on WordPress.com blogs as it is on Blogger. WordPress.org (software download) self hosted blogs seem to work though, but you need to install a widget. Instructions are here, though it still seems to be a rather complicated process.

Newsletter Marketing

I am still working on ways to market myself and reach potential customers and stay connected with my students. I have finally figured out how to use one of those e-mail newsletter programs. Pretty cool actually. I'm using MadMimi. I am focusing mostly on keeping current and past students and workshop attendees in my network for now and use it as a forum for passing on information on the local photo community, things like shows and seminars, that may be of interest to emerging photographers.

One of the benefits of using MadMimi as opposed to just e-mailing people directly from my e-mail software, is that it gives me stats. I know how many people open the newsletters and even how many people click on the links that I highlight. This way I can track people's interest in various topics and see if any particular subject area is popular. Popular topics will get more coverage. My philosphy in this is give them more of what they want!

Unlike a blog where people have to seek me out (either on purpose or by accident using SEO, links from my sites, etc.), I am utilizing the tool of permission marketing. Permission marketing is quite fun actually. It feels like I am talking to a group of friends and associates. People can opt in or opt out at any time. Hopefully one day this will generate sales. If nothing else, it will build my reputation as an educator and workshop facilitator. It does take time to research and write useful information, just like writing in this blog. Even the simplest posts can sometimes take a couple of hours.

Collage Re-defined

This week I worked on a couple of collages for a client. Of course when I hear the word collage I get scared. So many corporate clients want event photos arranged in a collage. They are hard to design and end up looking ugly. But the employees love them. As we say in the biz, "garbage in-garbage out".

Thankfully this client was open to my interpretation of what a collage is. I consulted a good friend who's an art director at Critical Mass here in Calgary, who also cringes when he hears the word collage. Since the posters were really for the kids of the client, he suggested something bold, and based some of his ideas on ads he had researched by Burton and Fox. He made me a sample low res file and I took some of his ideas and my own and came up with the highly "Photoshopped" images here. They might not be in everyone's taste, but the kids love them! I'm producing 16x24 inch plaque mounted photo prints to hang in the boys' rooms.

Catching up!

September was a busy month both personally and professionally. Early in September I did a shoot for Paige Smith, a Calgary craft artist. Paige takes fine bone china saucers and transforms them into beautiful jewelry holders. This was my third shoot for Paige. She's an excellent stylist and pre-plans everything to the nth degree, which makes working with her a joy.

The Prairie Chapter of CAPIC hosted an evening with Selina Maitreya of Port Authority. Selina is a photography portfolio consultant. I had a one-on-one session with Selina as well, to critique my current portfolio, and to plan out ways to improve my photography and marketing going into the future.

Selina's main tenet is that photographers should develop a signature style of photography, then translate that vision into all the work they do at the expense of their other (old) style of work. (I think that this type of thinking and working would allow photographers in the same market to be more collegial.) Clients would then hire someone based on their vision. Other photographers, in theory, would have different visions, so therefore would be less concerned with what each other are doing in the same market. It may foster greater community among photographers as a whole, and among those involved in photo trade organizations. It would also allow photographers to work in other market regions, as they would be hired based on their particular vision.

In her public lecture, Selina also recommended that all photographers read the book, The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield, and to reconnect with their inner creativity by reading, The Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron. The War of Art is a quick read with lots of "in your face" advice for breaking through creative blocks. It reminds me a lot of Camera Lucida, by Roland Barthes in the definitive style of writing of the author. One quote I'd like to share is:

The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.

I'm going to leave it at that for today. I encourage you all to read The War of Art. It is suitable for all entrepreneurs, not just photographers. For links to all books that I write about, see the sidebar.

My Favourite Photo Ops (and a few other things) in Halifax, NS

Favourite café – Wired Monk. Great location off the regular tourist trap, at Morris and Hollis. The owners and staff are very welcoming and helpful. Food is great. Go early for baked goods fresh out of the oven. Coffee – very good – and I’m hard to please in that area. Grab a paper, get a window seat and watch the world go by.

Favourite restaurant – Talay Thai. Best Thai I’ve ever had – ever. I ate there two nights in a row. A friend who recommended it said, “even better than Thailand”. I had the cashew chicken.

Favourite beach – Rissers Beach – Lots of room for your beach mats even on a hot Sunday afternoon. Clean water, white sand. Toilets! Be careful with the sand around your camera, especially if it's breezy as the sand is so light and unobstructed, it gets everywhere.

Favourite scenery – Peggy’s Cove - iconic, just go. You can’t help but take great photos. There is the tiny town with lobster traps and orange row boats strategically placed in the cove, as well as the lighthouse sitting atop the large mound of granite which leads to the churning sea below. Have the gingerbread dessert at the Sou’wester restaurant on your way out.

The town of Lunenburg is a close second for scenery, but most of the villages and farms on the south shore are colourful and very well taken care of, so make for great photos. Lunenburg also had the best side-of-the-road fish and chips shack. The haddock was fresh and tasty and melted in my mouth. I could have eaten there every day. The Bluenose II is based out of Lunenburg, so there is a good chance you’ll see it too.

Favourite way to see Halifax – from a tall ship like the Silva – but go in the morning so the sun is shining on the city – otherwise it’s back lit and harder to photograph. A friend recommended the Harbour Hopper, but I just couldn’t bring myself to go through town on the “green monster” with the tour guide screeching into the loud speaker. I’m sure kids would love it though.

Next favourite way to see Halifax – on foot. Great city for walking.

Favourite scenic walk – The Boardwalk. Lots of tourists, but also lots of locals flogging their wares and talents. Grab your morning coffee at the Wired Monk and walk two blocks east to watch the sun rise from the boardwalk at the bottom of Morris Street. Also, walk along Spring Garden Road and stop in at the Old Burying Ground at St. Paul's Cemetery at the corner of Barrington Street and Spring Garden Road. The other end of Spring Garden Road is the Public Gardens, which is also beautiful.

Favourite historical site – Pier 21, though the Halifax Citadel came highly recommended. The views from up there are fantastic. Out of town – visit the SwissAir Memorial, a stone's throw from Peggy's Cove. Sombre. The day I went it was slightly foggy and that added to the mood.

Favourite Halifax street for taking photos – Argyle Street - between Blower and Sackville. It has the most interesting storefronts: The Economy Shoe Shop, which is a pub on a very grande scale, contrasted by the "skinny" Seahorse Tavern, on one side, and Biscuit General Store on the other. They are all in a row on the east side of the street. Go in the afternoon so the sun is shining on the façades.

I will add some more Halifax photos soon. Just wanted to get the list up before I forget everything!

Refreshed ImageMaven Web Site

Today I finally had the chance to refresh and simplify my ImageMaven web site. The main look hasn't changed much, but I've combined a few of the pages so that there are only five menu selections: Home, Portfolio, Stock, Blog and Links. I purposefully haven't gone the route of the "large image" portfolio sites that most photographers now use. My site might be butt-ugly in some people's eyes, but the fact is I rank high on search engines and I'd hate to screw all that up by investing in a Flash generated site. Yes, I know Flash can be optimized for SEO, but I don't have those skills at this time, nor the time and money to invest in that right now. Truth is, my client base is not typically art directors. Sure, I sell some stock to art directors now and then, but most of my income comes from established corporate clients and the images are used in-house for very specific technical things. For the rest, I shoot a bit of travel, plus I just shoot what I love and flog everything I can through my PhotoShelter Personal Archive using rights-managed and royalty-free licensing models.

My role model in this is Dan Heller, SEO expert and sucessful stock photographer, who also has a butt-ugly web site (sorry Dan). His site is however, highly functional, and that is the most important thing. I originally wanted to sell stock directly from my site like Dan does, but I'm no web programmer. I just tinker with html and Dreamweaver. That's why I chose the PhotoShelter Personal Archive route for self-serve selling. It's cheap and efficient. Sure I give up 10% on every sale, but with all that back-end support I consider it a small price to pay for all those features. By the way, PhotoShelter is SEO friendly.

I have finally learned over the years that shooting what I love makes me happiest, along with a couple of good corporate contracts, some teaching, some family portraits and some work for artists to keep me afloat financially. PhotoShelter and Dan's expertise have helped me realize this, plus, as my mom says, "Do what you love and the money will come."

Farewell Nova Scotia

Left Nova Scotia today. What a great time, great people, great food, great shots. I will be writing a "best-of" entry soon to summarize my trip.