Photo Professional Magazine

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ANDY KRUCZEK’S FASHION PORTFOLIO HOW INFRARED IMAGES CAN SELL 11 WEDDING ALBUMS CLIENTS WILL LOVE BRONCOLOR MOVE 1200L TESTED BOOST YOUR BLOG: 5 WAYS TO GROW YOUR ONLINE AUDIENCE PREPARE YOURSELF FOR PRINTING Guarantee great results every time FUJIFILM’S NEW DYNAMIC DU0 The X-Pro1 and the X-E1 tried & tested ISSUE 76 FEBRUARY 2013 £4.50 Social studies How to get clients to market your work through social media SHARING YOUR SHOTS Don’t miss our advice packed 16-page special SETTING UP A NEW BUSINESS? 16-PAGE SPECIAL INCLUDED INSIDE: STARTING A PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS

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February 2013 sample issue

Transcript of Photo Professional Magazine

Page 1: Photo Professional Magazine

ANDY KRUCZEK’S FASHION

PORTFOLIO HOW INFRARED

IMAGES CAN SELL 11 WEDDING

ALBUMS CLIENTS WILL LOVE

BRONCOLOR MOVE 1200L

TESTED

BOOST YOUR BLOG: 5 WAYS TO GROW YOUR ONLINE AUDIENCE

PREPARE YOURSELF FOR PRINTINGGuarantee great results every time

FUJIFILM’S NEW DYNAMIC DU0The X-Pro1 and the X-E1 tried & tested

ISSUE 76 FEBRUARY 2013 £4.50

Social studiesHow to get clients to market your work through social media

SHARING YOUR SHOTS

Don’t miss our advice packed 16-page special

SETTING UP A NEW BUSINESS?

16-PAGE SPECIALINCLUDED INSIDE:

STARTING A PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS

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www.photoprofessional.com OnTwitter? Follow us at www.twitter.com/PhotoProUk

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WELCOMEAnother year lies ahead of us all and here’s hoping it’s going to be a good one, with plenty of opportunities for those who are already established or who might

be thinking of making the move into a professional career in the near future. This month’s issue features a special 16-page section aimed at those who are either contemplating making the move to become a professional or who might be looking at how to refocus their business so that it is set up with a proper professional foundation. Working in tandem with PhotoShelter, there’s stacks of crucial information to be found here and it’s all designed to help you identify your ideal client and then make sure they know you are out there.

Staying on the theme of managing the online side of your business, Tigz Rice has contributed an excellent piece this month that emphasises the importance of keeping control of your work. When I read this through I was struck by how much there is to be aware of these days, and I recommend that you definitely take on board the points Tigz is making.

Finally, don’t miss our tips feature – 16 ways to make 2013 your best year yet, contributed by a selection of great photographers. It’s the perfect time to put some fresh ideas into action, and there’s plenty here to get you thinking!

Another bumper issue of Photo Professional as we kick off the new year, and there’s plenty this month for pros at every level of the business

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CONTENTSISSUE 76 FEBRUARY 2013

Business MattersPro Academy Gear

Regulars

032 LIGHTING MASTERCLASSCOVER Still life and food photographer Hugh Johnson’s incr-edible images make the mundane look extraordinary. Just how does he do it?

040 PREPARE FOR PRINTING IN LIGHTROOM COVER Whether you’re printing yourself or sending your fi les to a lab, Lightroom takes the strain, guaranteeing great results every time.

046 INTO THE REDCOVER Think shooting infrared on fi lm is interesting, but frankly too involved? Then let us introduce the simplicity and beauty of digital infrared.

102 FUJIFILM X-PRO1 & X-E1 COVER Can Fuji’s latest CSCs cut it in the professional world? We road-test the X-Pro1 and X-E1 to fi nd out.

110 LIGHT BLUE V4It does everything for your business, except the washing up. Find out if it’s the ultimate management program for you.

112 BRONCOLOR MOVE 1200L COVER Mobile, cordless and rechargeable, is this new Broncolor battery pack going places?

114 BUYERS’ GUIDE: ALBUMSCOVER Wedding albums to wow your brides and grooms.

053 BUSINESS MATTERSWays to make your business better.

056 SOCIAL STUDIES COVER Share and share alike – how to make online image sharing work for you.

062 2013: YOUR BEST YEAR YETCOVER Tried and tested advice from pros to make your business boom.

076 BOOST YOUR BLOGCOVER Don’t simply plod along, fi nd out how to blog your way to success.

083 SETTING UP IN BUSINESS?COVER Not sure how to go about starting out? Read our advice-packed, 16-page special.

006 INBOX COVER We shed some light on new kit, bring you news of the winner of the Travel Photographer of the Year award, and talk to two snappers about their unusual wedding and event shoots.

016 PORTFOLIO: ANDY KRUCZEKCOVER He’s know what he’s wanted to do since primary school. Now with a successful career in full swing, Andy Kruczek is intent in passing on his knowledge to the next generation.

022 PROJECT: JAMES BELLIt’s a tall story, the tale of one snapper’s project to document our capital city.

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Subscriptions & back issues:

Starting out or relaunching your business? Read this!

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Photo Professional is published on the first Thursday of every month by Bright Publishing Ltd, Bright House, 82 High Street, Sawston, Cambridge, CB22 3HJ.

No part of this magazine can be used without prior written permission of Bright Publishing Ltd. Photo Professional is a registered trademark of Bright Publishing Ltd. The advertisements published in Photo Professional that have been written, designed or produced by employees of Bright Publishing Ltd remain the copyright of Bright Publishing Ltd and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.

Can’t find a copy? Finding your nearest Photo Professional magazine stockist couldn’t be easier. Simply contact: COMAG, Tavistock Road, West Drayton, Middlesex, UB7 7QE Alternatively call 01895 433600.

When you have fi nished with this magazine, please recycle it

Bright House, 82 High Street, Sawston, Cambridge CB22 3HJTelephone 01223 499450 enquiries@bright-publishing.comwww.photopromagazine.comeditorialEditorTerry Hope 01959 [email protected] WriterIan Fyfe 01223 [email protected] EditorsLisa Clatworthy 01223 499450Hannah Bealey 01223 499450Editorial DirectorRoger Payne 01223 [email protected] Director Dean UsherDesign & Production Manager Grant GillardadvertisingSales DirectorMatt Snow 01223 [email protected] Accounts Maria Francis 01223 499457 [email protected] Elliott 01223 [email protected] Development DirectorDave Stone 01223 [email protected] Sales ExecutiveNatalie Howlett 01223 499458 [email protected] advertising copy to: [email protected] Directors Andy Brogden& Matt PluckHead of Circulation Chris HaslumMarketing Manager Kelly Tarrant

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PORTFOLIO | ANDY KRUCZEK

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From an early age, Andy Kruczek knew he wanted to be a photographer. Now, entirely self-taught, he’s achieved his ambition and is instrumental in teaching others to do the sameWORDS TERRY HOPE PICTURES ANDY KRUCZEK

DREAMLIVING

PORTFOLIO | ANDY KRUCZEK

ery few of us can say we had a pretty clear idea of what we wanted to do before we even made it into primary school, but one of Andy Kruczek’s very earliest memories makes it clear that he was always destined to find his way

into photography. “I was fascinated by a folding camera that my father

owned,” he says. “It had a spring clip that allowed the bellows to pop out and, at first, I wasn’t strong enough to press the button and make it open. Dad promised me that he’d put a film in it for me when I could manage this, and I would have been about five when I finally accomplished this feat and shot my first film.

“By the age of ten I had my own darkroom. These were the days when every chemist sold photographic chemistry and paper, and I was lucky that the chemist on our estate in the West Midlands was also a photography enthusiast. He helped me a lot in those early days.”

Like so many others growing up in the sixties, Andy was never encouraged to be creative by his school and he remembers with a grin the many reports he received where an exasperated teacher reported that ‘If Andrew spent as much time on his homework as he did taking photographs, he could be quite good at maths, history, French etc…’

“At my first careers lesson I announced I wanted to be a photographer,” he says, “and two years later my careers master called me into his office. He told me he’d thought long and hard about my ambition and had found the perfect job for me. Had I ever considered becoming an estate agent? I must have looked somewhat doubtful, because he immediately justified it with the phrase: ‘Well, they take photographs, don’t they?’

“I was expected to go to university and study geology, but during the long summer after sixth form I saw a job advertised in the local paper for a

photographer to work in the training division of a large retailer. I applied and, largely due to the fact that the other three candidates there were even more unsuitable than I was, I got the job. I was taken on as junior assistant photographer only to discover on my first day that there was no senior assistant, or photographer, just me; my first task was ‘to build the best photographic department in the business’!”

Learning the tradeProving how far ambition and self-belief can often take you, Andy survived his somewhat inauspicious introduction to the trade to build a reputation as one of the most innovative and hard working ‘people photographers’ of his generation. He left his first job after three years to set up a studio, but, by his own admission, he was perhaps a little too inexperienced to make a go of it. “I guess, naively, I just assumed the phone would ring,” he says. By chance he then met well-respected fashion and beauty photographer Robyn Beeche who offered him some assisting work. That gave him experience, working on shoots for the likes of Zandra Rhodes and Boots No 7.

“I moved down to London and started a freelance assisting career,” says Andy, “working for a number of well-known photographers in Knightsbridge, Camden, Southwark and Maida Vale. Mostly they were fashion photographers, shooting for anything from Marie Claire to Good Housekeeping and Woman magazine to the Empire Stores catalogue.”

It was during this period that Andy was really able to evaluate his work and to get a clear picture in his own head regarding the direction he wanted to move in. Through assisting still-life photographers he realised his heart was not in this area. It was people he most enjoyed having in front of his camera, and that became his prime focus as he continued to learn his trade. “I particularly enjoyed working with models,”

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PROJECT

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PROJECT

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Given the opportunity to access some of the tallest buildings in the capital, James Bell set himself a personal project to record vistas of London that

revealed a side of the city very few people get to seeWORDS TERRY HOPE PICTURES JAMES BELL

LOOKING DOWN ON

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PRO ACADEMY

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f still life and food photographer Hugh Johnson has a passion in life it’s to make the everyday and the mundane appear

beautiful and extraordinary. He specialises in photographs where familiar objects are made to appear foreign and intriguing, and his portfolio is littered with simple combinations that work, without any need for them to be dressed up. Hugh describes his work as ‘egg and chips without the condiments’, and this approach has set him apart from others who share his speciality.

Since graduating from Eastbourne College of Art, where he was encouraged by George Rodger, the hugely respected co-founder of Magnum, Hugh has become a major international award-winner with Grand Awards at the International Advertising Festival in New York, Gold and Silver awards at the Art Directors Club, Association of Photographers, D&AD and Campaign magazine. He’s also picked up further awards for moving images and Best Design Series in 2012 and has had two commissions selected for Campaign magazine’s top ten press advertisements.

I love the perspective you have on these photographs Hugh. Tell me

more about them.HJ They’re a combination of commissioned and personal works, and they pretty much reflect my whole approach to photography. I guess the most straightforward of the three shoots in terms of organisation is the dead palm tree, which forms part of my personal portfolio. Occasionally, I see everyday objects and feel that they make interesting studies; I found this palm discarded in the street and thought that it had an interesting texture and beautiful outline, so I took it

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L I G H T I N G M A S T E R C L A S S

The remarkable still-life studies produced by Hugh Johnson for his personal and professional projects lift the everyday and make it something special,

thanks to his approach and lighting skillsWORDS CHRISTIAN HOUGH PICTURES HUGH JOHNSON

back to the studio! The other two shoots were for clients and were produced for their advertising campaigns.

I see you lit the palm with ringflash.HJ It was the outline of the palm tree

that was of primary interest to me, plus the complex network of roots that had grown within the pot. To my mind it didn’t require a lot of lighting to bring out the shape and texture. I believe if you start with the right props/subject matter, the execution of the shot is simple, whereas it can take you all day to try and light the wrong subject and it will never have the same impact. It was the simplicity of the subject that led me to use a ringflash against a white background, accentuating the silhouette of the palm and, at the same time, filling the shadows that would normally remain within the crevices and folds.

So was it done within a few frames?HJ Pretty much so. The palm looked

brilliant straightaway, but I still felt that it lacked something so I sprayed it with water to add some sparkle. This made some of the reflections slightly more spectacular on the underside of the leaves and added some punch to the finished shot. One of the things about using ringflash when shooting a subject close to a white background is that it can be difficult to get depth into the shadows around the edges of the subject, as the white background has a tendency to bounce light back and fill them too much. To alleviate this problem, I created separation from the subject and the background and used black polyboards to increase the depth of the shadows and the contrast on the edge of the palm. This ensured that the shot didn’t end up looking totally flat and milky.

THE ORDINARY

As you’d expect with advertising agencies, you’ll be required to attend several lengthy meetings to discuss every eventuality

IN PRAISE OF

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Didn’t this create a larger shadow on the background?

HJ Normally it would do, but the further away you are, the more diffused the shadows become. I wanted to minimise the effect of the shadow on the background, but not eliminate it, so I positioned two white polyboards on either side to lift the shadows. It’s still evident that I’ve used a ringflash, but it’s not overly distracting.

Tell me more about the bug jars.HJ Art director Richard Denney and

copywriter Dave Henderson came up with the concept for this award-winning campaign, which I shot for Land Rover. The idea was that a classroom full of kids had been told to bring in bugs from their garden, and one of them had arrived with a huge armoured beetle, indicating that he was going to be the Land Rover driver of the future. It was quite a bold step as it is one of the few car campaigns not to actually feature the car itself.

How did the campaign progress?HJ As you’d expect when dealing with

advertising agencies, you’ll be required to attend several lengthy meetings to discuss every eventuality. This campaign was no exception; however, the agency was young and fresh and they refrained from placing too many constraints on my creativity, instead putting a lot of faith in my ability. Once Richard and Dave came up with the concept, it was down to me to execute it.

I started by shooting reference images of jars, with pictures of classrooms, handwriting samples and even jar lids, so I could get a feel for what would work. It’s important to maintain the concept, so any shot needs propping carefully. This involved a lot of work and problem solving; for example, the classroom jars had to look like typical jam jars, but also be large and clear enough to allow the insects to be seen. I also had to take care that the set looked like a typical classroom.

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BUSINESS MATTERS

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S H A R I N G Y O U R I M A G E S

DIGITAL AGEWORDS AND PICTURES TIGZ RICE

As the world is caught up with social media, photographers risk losing control of their images. However, as Tigz Rice explains, it’s not all bad news and those who play the game can reach a wealth of new clients

SURVIVING IN THE

lash back to the start of the new millennium and the Internet was exploding with this new thing called ‘Social Networking’.

Myspace owned the market, Facebook was in its very early stages and Twitter was no more than an idea waiting to happen.

Over the next ten years (although Myspace fell by the wayside), social networking would develop into a regular (if not daily) habit for over one billion Facebook users and five hundred million Twitter users, sharing and commenting on a range of topics that can include news articles, website links and photographs. It’s easy to get involved and, providing you can make your content interesting enough, the power of social networking gives each and every one of us the potential to reach an ever-expanding audience of fellow online users, extending your reach to new contacts virally with absolutely no cost.

Given the sharing nature of all of this, it should come as no surprise that more and more clients are approaching photographers these days asking for high-quality images to be provided digitally rather than as prints. This then enables them to share this content more readily with their own online networks. However, therein lies a problem, both one of copyright control and also of the way that a potentially massive online audience perceives you and your services.

In a modern world, where we Google everyone and Instagram everything from stupid cats to our choice of dinner, it’s no longer about the content you choose to display online anymore, but the entire content that you’ve ever made available, via any source, to anyone outside of your studio. Gone are the days where we could all control our printed portfolios to show only the best of our very best work. If it’s possible for anyone other than yourself to get access to ‘that’ image you wish you’d never worked on – even just one client – you can be almost certain it will pop up in Google to haunt you over and over again.

Just think about it: assuming that your client has 140 Facebook ‘friends’ (the average number given by Facebook statistics in October 2012) and posts one of your images on their Facebook profile, only about 15 to 20 of their contacts will actually see the original post. However, if just half of those contacts click the ‘like’ or ‘share’ button, your image will then appear in these seven new people’s news feeds too. Your work has now been made available to an extended network of over 1,000 potential viewers within a matter of minutes.

Of course, the likelihood of all 1,000 of them actually absorbing your image in the midst of all the other online content is slim. However, the fluidity of social networking allows links to be formed between people with similar tastes and interests without the limits of geographical distance, and so this effect could be generated many times over a day and lead to multiple viewings of a single image. The same mushroom effect is true of Twitter and various other social networking sites too.

Look at it this way. If you know your images are going to end up doing the rounds on social media channels, perhaps it makes sense to beat your client to it and put up watermarked versions that you’re happy with, in the hope that the convenience of providing one-click sharing deters others from getting out the camera phone. There’s also the thought that all of those people who are looking at your images could be potential clients, and if they like what they see then this could be an unrivalled marketing opportunity.

For many of us however, this causes a moral dilemma. While it’s great that your work is being put out there and shared through an extended network far bigger than your own, your pictures have now entered a digital realm that you have no

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RIGHT Social media can be a huge benefit to the modern photographer, helping you to reach a huge audience around the world, but more than ever you need to be cautious about the material you make available online.

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16 WAYS TO MAKE THIS YOUR

MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR EVERThe start of a new year is the perfect time to take a long, hard look at your business and to ask yourself what you can do to shake it up in the 12 months ahead. Here are some top tips from a selection of the country’s most successful photographers to help you focus in on the task aheadWORDS GAVIN STOKER PICTURES VARIOUS

t’s tough out there, and especially so in the cold, dark and traditionally quiet months of January and February. So who better to turn to for advice than a phalanx of your peers? Over these ten pages, respected names from across the photographic spectrum offer you tips and hints on bettering your chances of

success in the coming months and boosting your business’ bottom line. Read and digest the sage advice we’ve gathered together here to turn 2013 into your lucky number…

TIP 1: Shoot more filmCraig Stephen, still shooting weddings on filmwww.craig-stephen.co.uk

My tip for making 2013 my most successful year ever is to shoot less digital and to concentrate on using film more regularly in my wedding and portrait work. In 2012 I was averaging a 50/50 mix of film and digital. For 2013 I’m aiming for around 80/20 film.

Shooting more film has multiple benefits; I’m more selective about what I shoot so my ‘keep’ rate increases. Images shot on film are much more to my liking – I’m constantly working with my lab to create a unique colour palette that helps my work stand out. I spend less time processing as the files come back from my lab requiring very little work, so I can spend more time on customer care and generating new business.

Photographing on medium-format film and using the best pro labs doesn’t come cheap, so I have to price accordingly. It allows me to pitch at a more discerning couple who naturally appreciate the importance of good photography and are willing to put a bit more effort into the session on their wedding day. It’s win-win. I get to blog nicer weddings, which in turn attracts similar bookings.

I also plan to experiment with different film formats in 2013. Up until now I’ve been shooting 6x4.5in on a Hasselblad H1. I’ve recently picked up a 6x9in Mamiya Press camera to shoot a wider neg – ideal for a double-page spread – and I intend to bring my Leica out of hibernation for shooting purely black & white. Oh and smoke bombs – I can’t get enough of them!

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N E W Y E A R , N E W B U S I N E S S

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B O O S T Y O U R B L O G

YOUR BLOG!WORDS KAT WILLIAMS PICTURES EMMA CASE

Everyone knows the value of a blog these days, but there are those that just plod along and others that build up an enthusiastic following and take on a life of their own. How do

you ensure yours falls into the latter category?

FIVE WAYS TO BOOST

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o you ever wonder why some wedding photographers’ blogs are so popular? Why they, unlike you, seem to attract thousands

of regular readers, have loads of comments on all their posts and are featured just about everywhere you look? Do they have access to some big secret you don’t know about?

The (not so secret) secret to successful blogging is that you need to have something different to say and a unique way to say it. You need to offer something that no one else does, but more than this you have to be useful to people. People go online for inherently selfish reasons – to be entertained, to promote themselves and to find answers. If you can fulfil these needs with your blog, you’re onto a winner!

In order to take your blogging to the next level, you need to offer people something valuable to them – advice, an opinion, a debate. This kind of content encourages casual readers to stop, read and engage, and will help to elevate your blog above the

hundreds of thousands of others out there.I’m all about practical advice, so here

are five key things you should consider if you’re looking at revamping your blog.

1: Be unique You need to have something different to say on your blog and a unique way to say it, and this is all about sharing your opinion – especially if it goes against the grain – and finding your voice as a writer.

Emma Case is a wedding photographer from Birmingham, who has been working professionally since 2009. “When I started my blog I wasn’t actually doing photography as a business so it was literally somewhere for me to document my journey... learning as I went along,” she explains. “I enjoyed chatting away without the pressure of anyone listening and I liked looking back over previous blog posts. It was like having a diary I suppose. I love the way a blog presents your thoughts, words and images. Being able to see your work

framed beautifully on a website and to see your personality naturally come out with each post is therapeutic, artistic, personal, engaging and nostalgic. It’s my space to do anything I want with.

“From a business perspective my blog was, and still is, my main connection with potential couples and other photographers. I think it has had a huge impact on this relationship. From the very beginning I was adamant that I was going to be honest and be myself, so when you read my blog it’s the same as if you were sat in a pub with me having a pint and a chat. I write pretty much as I speak and my readers can quickly get to know who I am, what I’m about and the things I like.

“A lot of people have told me they feel like they actually know me personally when they read my blog posts so it feels like they have an investment in this relationship. Then, when we do actually meet a couple or someone familiar with the blog, they tend to know quite a bit about

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THIS PAGE Emma Case uses her blog as a diary of sorts, one that helps potential clients get to know more about her as a photographer. It’s also her main connection with couples she’s already shot and other photographers.

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STARTING A PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS

LAUNCHING A NEW PHOTOGRAPHY

BUSINESSFor those considering a photographic career, getting yourself established and attracting

work can seem like a daunting task, but our comprehensive guide, presented in conjunction with PhotoShelter, shows how you can tell the world you’re out there

WORDS GAVIN STOKER PICTURES VARIOUS

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GOING PROFESSIONAL STARTING A PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS

ALL PHOTOSHELTER WEBSITES come with image search, e-commerce, high-resolution file delivery, advanced SEO and much more. You can also easily install Google Analytics to give yourself even more of an edge. Ultimately it’s crucial to have a modern, well-equipped site behind you.

Get socialOver one billion people use Facebook, while Twitter has about 500 million registered users and Google+ attracted over 400 million registered users in its first 100 days. Social media isn’t a fad – one could argue it’s the glue that creates highly sticky user interaction on the web.

Companies are amassing millions of users online with the ability to broadcast messages more frequently and more inexpensively than ever before. Celebrities are communicating with fans, news outlets are breaking stories, and photographers are finding they can enter the social conversation by tagging wedding guests in a Facebook album before the guests can.

RationaleNot every social media outlet will work for every photographer, but there’s enough real evidence out there to suggest that a strong social media campaign can translate into real marketing exposure and revenue. The key point to remember is your website is not a daily destination for your customers, whereas hundreds of millions of people log in to Facebook daily. Congregate where your customers do.

It’s a good idea to determine how your audience uses social media to follow photographers and identify new talent. For instance, if you’re a wedding photographer, you’re probably focused on how you can best harness the social platforms to promote yourself via word of mouth. Can you come up with new Facebook strategies that get your clients sharing your images with other

potential brides and grooms? And if you’re a commercial or editorial photographer, maybe you’re more interested in using LinkedIn and Twitter to keep former clients and prospects aware of your latest work? Many buyers use social media to stay in contact with photographers they’ve worked with, not necessarily to find new ones.

ExampleKen Kaminesky is a former commercial lifestyle stock photographer who more recently turned to fine art, with a focus on landscape and architecture. Ken relies heavily on social media and his blog to market his work. Tapping into Google+ and with over 62,000 Twitter followers, he’s reached a level of social media success by diligently tweeting, interacting with his Twitter followers and establishing

Sales tools

MORE INFORMATIONwww.kenkaminesky.com

Do this(time estimate: 2 hours)

Sharing your work

Social media isn’t a fad – it’s the glue that creates sticky user interaction on the web

relationships with social media influencers to help spread the word.

After notable shoots Ken writes a blog and includes images. He then shares the post with his social communities on Twitter, Google+ and Facebook. On each social platform, Ken has an engaged community of fans thanks to his regular participation in social conversation, frequent interaction with others, and the quality and diversity of the strong content he’s shared. In turn, his community frequently shares his work with others. This helps stimulate sales to unknown buyers who find Ken online thanks to social word of mouth.

Ken’s social presence helps potential clients easily find and engage with his work. These total strangers encounter his images, but get a dose of his personality as well. In an instant, it’s easy to form an impression that he’s well travelled, knowledgeable about his craft, and easy to work with – all ‘soft’ brand qualities that clients appreciate and might help to close a sale or booking.

ABOVE Tagging wedding guests in a Facebook album before guests do can help you enter the social conversation, and developing this kind of presence is key to getting ‘social word of mouth’.

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CSC TEST

Dave Kai Piper has just returned from a classic US road trip and the camera he used the most was the Fujifilm X-Pro1. So what’s the verdict? Find out and then read on to learn about the latest member of the Fuji CSC family, the X-E1WORDS & PICTURES DAVE KAI PIPER

Fujifilm X-Pro1

he classic American road trip is one of those subjects with everything required to inspire the photographer. The vast

open spaces offer a taste of adventure that’s addictive, while there’s a seemingly never-ending stream of atmospheric diners and gas stations, along with a succession of towns that still have a little of their faded fifties glamour about them. It’s up to the individual where you begin and finish your journey, and by scheduling to end up somewhere iconic you can be sure to have a treat waiting for you at the end of the road.

The road trip I was planning would take in both Washington and New York and several highly photogenic places in between. It promised me a golden opportunity to shoot a fresh selection of pictures for the next book in my self-published ‘People & Places’ series.

Obviously, as with any project like this, my planning revolved around what I was going to take with me. I knew I would have to travel light, but on the other hand, I wanted to come back with images full of the necessary quality. I finally settled on the Nikon D800, the Canon EOS 5D Mark III and the Fujifilm X-Pro1 – it was the latter that was set to become the star of the show.

The reason was simple. And it all tied in with the way that the X-Pro1 is so perfectly pitched at the photographer looking for a mix of flexibility and quality. I realised the camera’s potential as soon as it was announced at the start of 2012. My first experience with it was an assignment in Marrakech, where it did so well that it was a no-brainer for the longer trip to the US, along with the three primes – the 18mm f/2, 35mm f/1.4 and 60mm f/2.4 (the only lenses available in this new system at that time).

TPlaying to its strengthsSince I’d had such a great time with the X-Pro1 in the heat and dust of Africa, it was my first choice as my ‘day to day’ camera in the States. The idea was to use it to document our adventures on the road, while the bigger cameras were stored for flights and packed down, coming out when I wanted to do some ‘real’ shooting. The thing was, it soon became more hassle to stop, load up the right lenses on the DSLRs and shoot. Having the Fuji kit so handy in a highly portable Think Tank Retrospective 7 bag meant it was always to hand, enabling me to be ready to shoot at all times.

However, there was another good reason why it rapidly became my main camera; it was simply such fun to shoot with. I felt like a kid, learning about the world again. I remember walking into a country store where a bluegrass band was playing, while people bought their week’s shopping. A big DSLR would have been intrusive and I would have felt silly standing there with my English accent while I ‘papped’ – almost as though I was producing some kind ofBBC documentary.

The X-Pro1 is so understated, yet gives you great images. There is just no way to be subtle with a DSLR, and I loved that the X-Pro1 gave me that edge. I came back with several images that relied heavily on the speed with which I could react to a situation, including one moment when President Obama came over our heads in his helicopter and landed in front of us on the White House lawn. Shooting in the subway under Times Square was another occasion when only the X-Pro1 could have done the job.

In useNo one camera can ever be perfect because no camera is capable of offering you everything, and the X-Pro1 is no exception. If you want to shoot high-speed action, for example, the X-Pro1 is just not for you; when I first started using the camera the AF was slow and clumsy, and while a subsequent firmware upgrade has improved things, focusing is still not lightning fast.

While I’m on quirks and foibles… the shutter gets caught in the flash at 1/125sec. So you have to use 1/60sec in the studio

The X-Pro1 is so perfectly pitched at the photographer, who is looking for a mix of flexibility and quality

ABOVE Stylish and understated, the X-Pro1 is unobtrusive – it doesn’t yell ‘photographer’ when you’re trying to grab a shot subtly – and simple in use, yet it produces quality results.

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As a wedding photographer, you want to deliver a showcase for your images that lives up to the expectations of the couple booking your services. Choosing the right company to produce your albums is essential, because they need to complement your style as a photographer and be capable of enhancing the pictures they contain. There will also be other considerations as well, such as where you want to position yourself in the market,

personal taste, cost and time. The options in terms of sizes, styles, colours and finishes vary enormously, as do prices, and it’s important to shop around to find the right product for your own business.

Visit the forthcoming trade shows (SWPP and Focus) to get a hands-on feel for what’s out there, while we’re also taking a look over the next few pages at some of the latest options to be made available to the professional market.

BUYERS’ GUIDE: Wedding albumsEven in this digital age there is still a sizeable demand for a traditional wedding album, and some excellent new products are coming to market, designed to help wedding photographers maximise profitWORDS IAN FYFE

Colorworld is the UK distributor of Seldex albums, and also offers its own handmade Renaissance range. Seldex albums offer the choice of matted or flush mount pages, and over 1000 templates allow you complete control of the design in its StudioPartner ROES software. The Renaissance range is leather-bound but there is also the option of acrylic, image wrap, photo montage, metal, canvas or cameo covers. An optional satin-lined presentation box is also available for larger formats. A Fine Art album offers the same cover options, with un-textured fine art paper pages.

For 2013, Colorworld is introducing a Retail Marketing Collection to provide a complete point-of-sale tool. This will include a retail catalogue with no prices, a leather swatch booklet and a complete cover collection.

Also in the pipeline is expansion of the current Colorworld album ranges; you’ll have to watch this space for more details.

www.colorworldimaging.co.uk

Colorworld£75 – £767

Tetenal brings its traditional photographic printing to albums in the Silver Book range. Prints are made by exposing silver photo paper and developing with state-of-the-art digital techniques and professional chemicals. Books are handmade, with a huge range of design options.

Sizes range from 15x15cm to 40x30cm, in Perl Silver/Lustre, Silk/Semi-matt or Shiny/Gloss. There is also a choice of three weights, at 120, 300 or 700gsm. Pages lay flat, giving more options for presenting images, and you’re free to choose any number of pages.

For the cover itself, there are a multitude of options for both finish and colour, and they can be personalised. Cases are also available, with wooden frames – cloth bags fitted to size are more affordable.

For the professional wedding photographer, Bob Books offers a range of Photopaper Books, which have a hard cover and are made with 300gsm photographic paper, printed via a traditional chemical process. The binding of the books allows them to lay flat, perfect for double-page spreads, a feature only available with the Photopaper Books in the range.

Another development has seen the already popular line of Lustre Photopaper Books expanded, with more sizes now available. The complete range of options is: Small Landscape (19x15cm), Landscape (28x21cm), Square (21x21cm), Large Square (30x30cm) and Portrait (21x28cm). Also new is a range of Gloss Photopaper Books. Produced in the same way as the lustre, the pages have a high gloss finish. These are available in Landscape, Large Square and Portrait sizes.

TetenalFrom £56

Bob Books£25 – £126

www.bobbooks.co.uk www.tetenal-silverbook.com

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www.gfsmithphotomount.co.uk

Kenro’s Professional CD Folio range is set for expansion in Spring 2013 to reach a wider variety of customers. The current CD Folio presents a wedding or event in a professional way, finished with a black leather-style cover and opening like a book. Inside, a moulded section provides safe storage for the DVD, and there’s a 4x5in frame for a photo.

Kenro also offers a variety of traditional albums, including the Fleur Wedding Albums and the Harmony Series. The Fleur Albums come in a number of formats, with traditional to hold 240 or 120 6x4in photos. Memo formats have pockets with writing areas, and can hold 200 6x4in or 7x5in photographs. Each features a commemorative front page for wedding information and is supplied in a crystal-top gift box.

The Harmony series is available in traditional format – 180 6x4in photos, and memo format, holding 200 6x4in or 7x5in photos. Each has a white bonded leather cover with an embossed design, and is supplied in a protective dust jacket.

www.kenro.co.uk

Kenro

MTA

MTA offers a large range of albums, with its Madrid line amongst the most popular. These feature repositionable self-adhesive technology and a choice of size and page counts, with a black or white wraparound cover. Recently added to the range are the Ultima Madrid albums, which offer the same design, but in a new range of coloured materials. The Madrid CD Folio also provides a professional way to present the digital photos alongside the album in a matching style.

With the same repositionable technology is the Sara Ribbons range: a ‘chocolate box’ design which, according to MTA, is unique, featuring a wraparound coloured case secured with a magnet. The latest additions are Digital Books, designed through the Mosaic software, featuring photo paper with gloss or lustre finishes and a laminated image cover.

www.mtauk.co.uk

Parker Photographics distributes the highly acclaimed Mario Acerboni range of albums from northern Italy. These offer digitally printed interiors, or traditional interiors. They include slip-in books, the Madex Matted System that allows you to place matted images alongside full-page images, and the Pano Leaf Slip In System, which allows 18x10in single or composite images to be slid in.

An additional line of Italian digital albums will be introduced in 2013. The Perego range offers different texture and colour options for the covers. There are also smaller and cheaper products in the pipeline to give photographers options for professional presentation. Parker also offers a print and build service for busy photographers.

www.parker-photo.co.uk

The Expressions range of albums from GF Smith offers a variety of styles, with a range of cover colours and finishes, from leather to acrylic. There are also sizes to suit all, ranging from 6x6in up to 16x16in. The free-to-download Print Presentation Software gives you complete control over the design, and even allows you to work on ‘live edits’ with your customer so you know you’ll give them what they want before ordering.

The Expressions range continues to grow. The Elegance and Elegance Duet albums are bound in Swedish leather, while the Pampas, Fleur-De-Lys, Cosmopolitan and Artistic albums feature acrylic panels with designs for a specific feel. There is more to come at the SWPP Convention too, with GF Smith set to launch its new Expressions One range.

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Page 24: Photo Professional Magazine

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