Four and a half long years ago I wrote How not to hire a wedding photographer, an article that was a response to a Craigslist ad about someone who had very unrealistic goals about what they wanted.  In the article I broke down each and every absurd request the person had and gave reasonable answers.  I’m going to attempt to do the same thing with a recent Craigslist ad where a bride is flying off the chain at what she seems to think is a case of hanging out and shooting photos.

The original ad posted to the Seattle Craigslist:

Attn: Wedding Photographers (Puget Sound)

WHY is finding an amazing wedding photographer so difficult? :/

I am a Bride who is getting married this summer and have yet to find a decently priced, exceptional, amazingly talented, fun photographer.

WHY because the word “WEDDING” is involved photographers think they can change you $ 3,000.00 for wedding photos? Oh, because no bride is going to go without so they are going to pay it, because they HAVE to. They are ripping people off for all they have! Why when you want to get married it costs you AT LEAST 15 grand after all is said-and-done? Its such CRAP!! I love all you $ 3,000.00 photographers out there but i think your prices are WACK. All your doing is hanging out at a wedding taking tons of photos and editing them.. and thats owrth 3 GRAND!!! You’re making so much money its crazy. I just wish people would be more realistic. I mean the “average” persons salary for 1 freaking month is somewhere around 3 grand. (Thats making 19$ an hour) So you’re going to take someones WHOLE MONTH paycheck for one flippen day of photos? Just because you CAN!!?????? So that maybe they will not be able to feed themselves or pay any other bills they have, right? It makes me SICK!

I know im speaking for more than just myself right now. Alot of brides out there think the same thing. & I bet all you fancy photographers wont even read this. oh-well.
Maybe there are cheaper photographers that will read this and LOVE to take my photos

Like last time, I’ll pick this apart and give some depth to her requests.

WHY is finding an amazing wedding photographer so difficult? :/ Truth be told, it’s not.  There are more options now than ever, magazines and websites like The Knot that specialize in city searches and the abundance and growth of Facebook alone in the last two-three years means it’s only a matter of updating your status with Looking for a wedding photographer, can someone please make a reccomdnation? If you’re like most users, you should have a dozen replies within the first thirty minutes.

I am a Bride who is getting married this summer and have yet to find a decently priced, exceptional, amazingly talented, fun photographer. Well the old saying is, you can have two but never three of the following: Cheap, Fast, Good.  Also, what is decently priced to you may be very affordable to someone else.

WHY because the word “WEDDING” is involved photographers think they can change you $ 3,000.00 for wedding photos? Oh, because no bride is going to go without so they are going to pay it, because they HAVE to. Actually, yes, it’s partly because the word wedding is involved, but you’re also not fully understanding the pricing structure for a wedding.  We’ll talk about that shortly since you’re going to continue going off into the deep end about it.  And photos are optional, just like a wedding is.  I’m no expert at law but I’m pretty sure most states in the USA only require some paperwork to be filled out at a county courthouse, the actual wedding ceremony, for the most part, is totally optional, along with the reception.

They are ripping people off for all they have! We are?  If all you have is $3,000 then you should probably put that towards your cost of living, student loans and the such, not towards a photographer. 

Why when you want to get married it costs you AT LEAST 15 grand after all is said-and-done? Its such CRAP!! As I’ve previously stated, it’s actually not $15,000.00, that’s the to hire people who will provide you with the setting and facility to celebrate your wedding.  If you want a professional chef to come to your house and make your dinner, you can expect to pay more for it than if you went to their establishment.

I love all you $ 3,000.00 photographers out there but i think your prices are WACK. All your doing is hanging out at a wedding taking tons of photos and editing them.. and thats owrth 3 GRAND!!! You’re making so much money its crazy. I just wish people would be more realistic. Thanks for the love, can never have enough of that.  Now, I’m not going to argue the $3,000.00 figure you keep because that’s somewhat dependent on where you live, you’d be lucky to find a photographer in New York City for that much and in Po-Dunk, Anywhere it might be three times the going rate, so for this we shall stick to it.  We don’t hang out.  We run a business.  A business that has overhead, such as insurance, gear upkeep and maintenance, transportation, advertising, web design and deployment, brochures, sample books, etc.  All at a cost.  While most wedding photographers don’t have the overhead of an actual storefront, they still incur costs in their home / home offices such as lines for fax machines, Internet, computers, etc.  Also, there is no W-2 form when you are a sole owner or LLC, this means you need to pay taxes in most states quarterly, most photographers off-load this to an accountant, an added cost.  There are no paid sick days, vacation days, personal or doctor days, those are luxuries not afforded to a wedding photographer.  Likewise, business hours are virtually every hour of every day.  There is no show up at 8am, take lunch from 12:30-1:30 and leave at 5pm, it’s in your best interest to answer phone calls at 8pm while you’re enjoying a movie with your family or reply to emails at 1am, so the client always feels their wedding is the most important in the world.

I mean the “average” persons salary for 1 freaking month is somewhere around 3 grand. (Thats making 19$ an hour) So you’re going to take someones WHOLE MONTH paycheck for one flippen day of photos? Just because you CAN!!?????? This is the part in the story where I honestly hope you are good at math.  I’m going to break down for you very simply what an average wedding consists of, time wise.

• 20 minutes: Initial in-bound inquirer from potential client via email or phone call + response
• 10 minutes: Follow up to schedule a meeting
• 60 minutes: Initial meeting, this is usually in a home office or a coffee shop of some sorts
• 30 minutes: Time it will take to draw up contracts, review discussions during initial meeting, send to you for review
• 10 minutes: Email reminding you that the first deposit needs to be sent to positively reserve your date
• 10 minutes: Email reminding you the remainder of the deposit needs to be paid in full 1 week prior to the wedding
• 60 minutes: Driving time to and from the wedding and between the wedding and reception.
• 10 hours: Provided you are getting married at 4pm and reception starts at 6pm and ends at 10pm, figure being at the Bride’s house by noon for the getting ready photos, the Groom’s shots, pre-bridal party posed shots, shots between the wedding and reception.  Basically starting at noon and ending at 10pm.
• 60 minutes: To import all digital photos and start the work-flow of editing, backing up originals and preparing for final images.
• 5 hours: Time spent editing photos.  This number varies for everyone, I’ve generally found in my experience that for every hour I’m shooting I can expect to spend one-half hour in the chair editing.  This is also weeding out bad photos and getting the final selection ready.
• 60 minutes: Time to export fully edited photos, catalog them and burn to DVD
• 30 minutes: To back up the edited photos and keep copies safe via external hard drive or more DVDs.

At this point we’re now at 21 hours.  This time has several variables in it and does not include sending files to a printer for photo prints, books, etc, plus picking them up, assembly of them or delivery to you, the client.  Rough math says that’s equal to about $142.86 per hour worked.  That is gross profit per hour.  Let’s factor in 15% taxes, that chops $450 off the top right there, factor in another $25.00 per month for insurance and a solid $150.00 per month for an accountant.  Then of course there is the cost of running a website, Facebook and Google paid ad campaigns, attending wedding expo’s, printing promo material, print advertisement in The Knot and similar magazines / websites.  Gas, car insurance and wear and tear on automobiles traveling to and from meetings and events.  All of this and I still haven’t said one word about the cost of actual camera equipment.  A wedding photographer who is charging $3,000 is probably doing so because they don’t want to undercut their competition but also because they’ve been doing it for a while and understand what it is to run a full business.  That said, they are probably bringing between $4,000 and $20,000 worth of camera gear with them to shoot your wedding.  This stuff is all wear and tear items that routinely need to be sent out for repair and replaced over time.  Let us not forget that this is for a paying client, not everyone who emails / calls will be a paying client due to schedule conflicts, priced too far above (or below, yes I’ve heard of clients saying photographer is too cheap for them), or other various reasons.  Same goes with the initial meeting, you don’t get up to bat and always hit a home run.  All that time is unpaid time spent working.

So that maybe they will not be able to feed themselves or pay any other bills they have, right? It makes me SICK!  It’s interesting you bring this up, as mentioned before this is a luxury, you actually don’t need any of this to get married.  I think what’s also worth mentioning here is that it’s customary here in the USA to expect an engagement ring equal to roughly three month’s salary of the groom-to-be.  By your numbers of the average salary, you’re expecting a $9,000 ring?  That’s a really nice used car.  Moreover, it’s worth probably about $1,500 if you try to actually sell it because the only thing of real value is the gold or platinum in the band, the diamond for all intense purposes is a thing of value only to initial purchaser, there is no publicly traded diamonds out there in the same fashion as precious metals.  It’s a number made up by those in control of the mines, that however is a whole other article.

I know im speaking for more than just myself right now. Alot of brides out there think the same thing. & I bet all you fancy photographers wont even read this. oh-well.  Well this photographer did read it and I’ll be sharing it with other ones for sure. 

Maybe there are cheaper photographers that will read this and LOVE to take my photos Pull your nose out of the clouds, photographers love to photograph, it’s one of those service oriented jobs where most who do it chose to do it, and they truly love their craft.  They also love to get paid for it, and if you aren’t willing to pay for their experience, talent, skill and professionalism, then you have missed a great opportunity.  There are plenty of new shooters who bottom-feed and try to start at $500 a wedding, your photographs are going to look like they were shot by a $500 wedding photographer.

You complained a lot about a wedding costing you $15,000, if the photographer is going to make up roughly one-fifth of your total investment.  That means that four-fifths of your budget is going to be spent on consumable, forgettable items.  I’m sorry, on your one-year anniversary no one is going to post on your Facebook wall about how much they loved the duck breast and mashed squash they had for dinner or how great the DJ was.  They are going to leave comments on the photographs, that’s how people will remember and more importantly, relive and rejoice at your special day.  For your guests, it’s just a day they had to get dressed up, eat some marginally OK food, listen to music they probably don’t like and give you a gift that you probably don’t need or money that will be used to re-coupe the cost of this whole event.Similar articles that might also interest you:

• How not to hire a wedding photographer
• The Corpse Groom
• Wedding Season for the Bachelor
• Make money selling digital photos Part II
• Sorry, you are not allowed to photograph that

Click here to view the embedded video.

Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Amazing Time-lapse Videos Shot on Canon 5d mkII
• 6 Stunning Videos Shot on DSLR Cameras
• San Francisco to Paris in Two Minutes
• Lost Soul Skateboards video
• OPENhulu now streams TV full screen!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video made by beepshow.comSimilar articles that might also interest you:

• Amazing Time-lapse Videos Shot on Canon 5d mkII
• 6 Stunning Videos Shot on DSLR Cameras
• Finding Oregon, The Most Amazing Time Lapse Video
• Nikon D90 real world video footage
• Free hugs campaign

You were recently featured in an article I wrote for Light Stalking entitled 7 Photographers you will probably hear about in the future. I chose to feature you in there because of the urging of several on a Canon photography forum and your Flickr portfolio, one that is heavily commented by viewers and admirers of your work.  How do you feel about this?

I still can’t believe I was mentioned, because there are thousands of good photographers out there, really quite an honor to be included in that article.  It hasn’t sunken in yet, on what I do with my photography and how many I have inspired and where it is leading to…

A while back a member on the Canon Forum (Phil) created a “Phamster Fan Club”, I didn’t think much of it, because he was witty and made it for fun, but as time went by, it evolved to reality and more members stated they are also a Pham Fan – I didn’t think of this too much, because the forum was mainly Users of Canon Equipment, and mainly for people who are there to learn photography..  heck that is why I joined because didn’t have an SLR or DSLR until April of 2008..  (xti rebel)I joined the forum to learn, improve and get feedback.  (thanks Phil for the fan club !)

But the point of this story is this:  it is easy to impress others who are beginners and I have been at it for a while.   So in my mind,  Phamster Fan Club is a small niche group on POTN only.

So what happened next was a talented member from POTN (Ryan O Hicks) and I hung out more and did 2 successful projects together, eventually became good friends, he bought me a Flickr Account for Christmas 2009; Probably the best Xmas gift I received in 10 some years.

At this time, I was thinking to myself, I am a big fish in a small pond @ POTN, but in the vast OCEAN of the Flickr Pool, I didn’t know what to expect.  So I just posted some photos and do what I do.. talk about how I did the shot, show the info and help others become better photographers and from there my Flickr account and views are where it is now.

Tell me about yourself, how and when you got started in photography, what motivated you to start shooting more seriously.

Who is The Phamster?  I ask that my self all the time…   in a nut shell: I was brought from Vietnam by my grand parents in 1973 , the family escaped the war and settled in the Midwest,  raised by my Aunt and Uncle ,went to high school in a small town, was an all state tennis player and went to college on a tennis and golf scholarship, and currently I work for Subaru as a quality engineer; happily married with no children, still a scratch golfer and a county champion, now hobbyist – part time photographer (39 years of age).

I started shooting junior tennis events locally, being tennis paid for my schooling and I wanted to give back a little and always remembered when I was playing junior events, how cool it was to have a  photographer line side taking shots of me.. this was June of 2008 ,  after doing a couple of events successfully, it started to click with me, I can reach out and do more with photography, at this time was when I joined photography on the net and started to learn about what I can do with my XTI.   Some how I was able to do a couple of senior picture jobs, and 2 weddings that year.

My biggest discovery was when I took a shot during a wedding with a softbox and it turned out amazing, At this time I didn’t fully understand the powers of  “off camera lighting” at all, but after that one shot I realized the power of flash photography and what I can do for your images..    so I started to practice off camera lighting with a single speed light and a single modifiers, read what I could off the net, and better yet practiced in my living room with the one light set up. ( in manual mode, both camera and flash unit)

I can not emphasize enough about how important lighting is to photography and how it is helped me get where I am now.

Good sources to learn about Off Camera Flash is Strobist.com and Ali Hohn’s Rock that Off Camera Lighting, and of course Lighting Forums and strobist blogs.

My goal was to be able to walk into a room, a set, or an outdoor location, and engineer a one light set up in manual (camera, and Flash) with limitations of shutter speeds under 1/200 and make a good photo all under 5 mins..  and if you can’t do this under 5 mins, I would recommend spending some time learning or training your self  so you can get good exposures in bright conditions or even at night with a one light solution in manual..  it is really a must for you to have this fundamental stobist skill before you start working with clients or even hobbist level, having this fundamental strobist skill will make your personal work more rewarding.

Where do you see yourself going with photography in the next few years?  I know you aren’t a full-time shooter, what would it take to leave your job and shoot for a living?

I have been with Subaru for 17years.. and I don’t like change too much..  what I plan on doing is collect data for 3 more years before i make a transition to full time photography.. heck I might be burnt out of photography.. (need to evaluate the market because there are so many good photographers out there; consider if I still love photography or go into teaching or do day seminars)

I have started a book project and would  like to complete it this year..   the book will show an image one page, and the opposite page will show the light set up and my thoughts behind the composition and how I did the photo and the post work and any special comments about this photo, like what I would do different. Also include pitfalls about doing a photo like that.   I am very excited about this project and wish I had more time to complete this.

Right now I do photography not for the money but for the art of it..  I know I don’t charge enough to make a living out of it and it would be a huge leap of faith to jump into it full time, if photography becomes full time, then it is like a job, and the love for the art might not be there and viewed strictly as Dollars signs.. and it quickly becomes cookie cutter approach.. I don’t want that to happen..   so for right now it is classified as a hobby I love and look forward to the next shoot.

What’s your current setup / photography kit?

I carry all Canon Equipment,  (2 x 5DMKIIs and 40D as my back up)

I have 4 lens from Canon,

• 35L 1.4
• 85L  1.2
• 24-70L 2.8
• 70-200 2.8L with IS

I mainly use the 35L on one of  the 5D and the 85L on the other 5D.. great combo.. and this combo is all the camera equipment I will ever need..  (love the primes)

But lighting is KING,  here is what I currently carry ..

• 2 AB1600 2 VagabondsII
• Speed lights( 580’s, 550’s , 430’s, )

Radio Triggers (in the order I use the most)

• Radio Poppers RX system (for senior and wedding run and gun style)
• Cactus V4’s (for my alien bees)
• Pocket Wizards (flex models)

Modifiers are important as well, many shoot thru umbrella, (broke 3 this year already), beauty dish, and PLM system from Paul C Buff..  probably one of the best modifiers out there (PLM).

Your work is mostly location based and seems to utilize off-camera flash(s).  How did you go about learning how to use / setup / configure these sometimes complex location setups?

Setup knowledge comes from having experience and experience comes from multiple shoots,  trial and error; and the will to succeed.

You have to know what type of look or image in your mind first before setting up on a shoot, also after you set up a shot, there will be adjustments and tweaking.  for example my Blonde Bikers shot took about 30 mins to engineer up the light, and about 10 mins for the shoot..

So in the past 1 ½ years:

1. I have had a lot of shoots, client work and personal work
2. I try different things (and not all of them work out, but I try to countermeasure it right away and improve on the next shoot)  I usually reflect on what I can improve on during post work.

What beginning shooters must ask yourself:

Now you just made a good photo.. why was it a good photo? and can you duplicate it?

And if you can duplicate it, can you duplicate it in a bright and dark environment? (and what can you expand this success to?)  Meaning a different Location? Different Subject?  Different Genre?

On the other hand, when you make a bad photo, what was bad about it?  And what can you do to improve it next time?  Was it your equipment? Was it your settings? Was it your lack of patience, did you panic and why? Etc…

Are you using a light meter with these setups?

No I don’t have a Light Meter, I Chimp and since I use the same Camera body for over a year now.. I pretty much know my settings..  so in about 3-5 chimp shots I should  have my settings nailed to where I like it.

People are your main focus, how do you find subjects / clients?

When I first started off, I had to recruit a model to practice with (Molly M)  she had the patience to work with me and allowed me to learn lighting and for that she got some good files..  but after working with molly and becoming friends with her I put up an album on Facebook and tagged her name, and then I noticed a thousand of her friends/contacts saw the photo I just created.  Right there is when I realized that Facebook was a marketing phenomenon.

The Core of my Clients have come from Facebook.  My Senior photography strategy was to recruit one person that is active in the local high schools, and work with her exclusively, doing multiple shoots and each time I tagged Tori’s name, over a thousand of her friends saw my photography and from there the rest is history.

It does help that Tori was a cheer leader and her mother was very active in the community; ironically I used to work with her aunt so it was like fate that this family contacted me to do Tori’s senior photos.

Also from there I did weddings and had multiple new friends request on facebook and the social network just catapulted my photography into the community.

The vast majority of your work is location based, do you spend a lot of time scouting or do you rely on a few key spots?  How do you keep from getting bored shooting in the same locations?

It is true I have one favorite spot at a local university (Purdue) but I don’t ever get bored of this location, because this location will yield a different look every night, I use this perfect little hill that faces west and the Indiana sunsets does the rest..   I have countless colorful skies because of this one location and every night has a different look and feel..

As for scouting I have made contacts and friends that have property of old rustic farms for future shoots, and I always keep an eye out for unique locations that will yield that jaw dropping photo.

Your Flickr portfolio seems to get you the most noticed, but your website has you listed more as a wedding, engagement, sports and events photographer.  Is Flickr your outlet for showcasing creative work?

Truth is I have not had time to update my website as I would like to.  Flickr has a great user interface, I can post once on Fickr and update my blog all in 2 simple clicks.  Plus Flickr has this Addictive interaction about it.  And the Vast Art that is on Flickr is amazing..  I spend alot of time on Flickr studying and learning from the worlds best every day.  Seriously I am sure Hollywood Art guys are looking at the EXPLORE section for inspiration on the next Hollywood block buster poster.. Guaranteeing that !

How do you choose what goes on Flickr vs what goes on your website?

Pretty simple what goes on Flickr is that shot from the shoot that has great light, and the wow factor!  That one jaw dropping shot you can’t wait to go home and start your editing on.

I still don’t have a Flickr account, between running my own site and Facebook, do I need one?  I obviously found you via Flickr, but do clients find you that way or is it more just for showing your work?

My flickr history is this.. Ryan O Hicks gave me the Pro Account as a Xmas Gift, I didn’t think much about Flickr, just thought it was another place to put up photos but after the first week, I realized that the world looks at Flickr as the biggest photography social network and with my will to improve I discovered the Explore section of Flickr.  Just spending 20 minutes in the Explore section made me realized I have so much more to learn about photography, composition, and post processing.

My work has evolved because of this membership on Flickr, it has forced me to learn new post processing skills, become more editorial on compositions with models, etc..   bottom line , if you want to become better photographer, spend some time on Flickr and interact with the members, it will make you a more dynamic photographer…  like I said before it is one of the best gifts anybody has given to me… growth in my photography.. Thanks Ryan!

What inspires you / how do you stay motivated?

What inspires me is how some photographers makes such amazing photos with normal ordinarily concepts in a basic environment but the out come is amazing

Motivation is coming from my normal will to create a jaw dropping photo, but since i haven’t had a Number One Explored photo, that is motivation enough.. to create a portrait that becomes Number One on Flickr’s Explored section would be a great accomplishment.  Most of the time this #1 spot are landscapes, objects, and abstracts, rarely is it client work portrait.  So motivation is for me to create a photo normal client (senior – wedding, ect)  would awesome.

What photographers have had and influence on how you shoot?

Zack Arias aka Mr One Light, David Hobby the Strobist, both got me started with their strobist ways.

But for Senior photography, people that have influenced the way i shoot are (Tony Roberson, Ali Hohn, Marci Ralph) In Fashion i follow Misha Mikhaylov, Alejandro Sandoval, Oleg Igorin.  And with band shoots Peter Place of 40/60 photography, and other fellow photogs that I follow are Ericson Calderon, Brian Story, there are so many names that I know I have forgotten to mention.. sorry

Do you think anyone in photography really creates new concepts or are we just re-using the same things in different ways that someone else has shot at some point in the past?

I think new concepts are being created in the post processing genera of photography all the time.  The way light and colors can be manipulated completely changes the feel of the photo vs the way it came out of the camera.

Ways to take a photograph has been beaten over and over, and there are only so many ways to light up a subject and all iterations have been exhausted.  So it leaves innovations in Post processing, Compositions, and the ART of photography lays with the Artist him or her self.. (the jaw dropping photo created in the artist mind is conceived way before the actual lighting set up is done and the execution of the conceived photo is the easy part.. then the post processing becomes the signature of each Artist.)
So short answer is yes.. new concepts are being created only in the sense of the Art and Conceived Concepts, throw in post processing and you will get an infinite New Concepts in photography.

Your day job is technical, to say the least, as an engineer for Subaru.  As an engineer, what technology or advancements do you want to see implemented in the near future in digital photography?

My work is very technical, but a simple way of seeing what I do is to assure quality, making sure what we do is what the design intent was, and preparing for the future builds.  Putting 3000 some parts on an assembly line in a certain logistical manner with vital safety components, day in and day out is very challenging to say the least.

With that, the technology to assist the human build process to control all of this is amazing.

What I see in the future is digital cameras with the ability to become smarter, more fool proof, and speeds increasing.  More like the digital video systems that film makers are using, but each still is capability of being printable and have the clarity of the current full frame bodies.

Also I fore see a binocular lens system coming forth, similar to what the human eye can see, a very wide screen view and similar to what the director of Avatar James Cameraon Co created,  making a 2D image capable of 3D viewing perhaps printing too.  Who knows.. with all new technology, either the market dictates it or a manufacture just breaks the mold and puts themselves out there and risk everything.  Like Apple with the iPhone, or iPad.

What one photo are you most proud of and why?

My OMG Crazy Blonde Bikers”  must be one my favorite, because it involves 2 subject matters, Motion from the bike moving and the hair and scarf flying in the wind.  In addition the comedy of it all, a calm cool biker driving the bike while putting on lipstick and the passenger is scare out of her mind… this the title OMG Crazy Blonde Bikers..  haha

Also proud of my 4 seasons series, Winter Wish

and Beauty of Spring

Promote yourself – website / facebook / flickr / twitter / can I buy prints?  / shout-out and thank you’s…

I am really not about promoting my self at this time, just want to help other photographers with understanding lighting is the most important part of this photography and focusing on keeping quality high with every shoot I do for my clients and have fun creating personal work for myself, and as for what the future holds for me?  IDK..

Shout outs goes to my parents first, for giving me what I needed to succeed in life. Teaching me the values, knowing when to step in to help and let me learn some lessons the hard way..  having this support from a young age has really given me major advantages over many people that I have encounter so far, and for this I can’t thank my parents enough.

The second shout outs go to one Forum.. Canon’s Photography on the net.. with out this forum and the Members that makes this forum Great are the reason I am here writing this now…   I couldn’t have done this with out this Forum…

To the members that interact with me on this Forum (Tony Roberson, Mish Mikhaylov AKA Korrektor, Allen AKA Airfrogusmc, Vigs, Shimmishim, AlexanderGarnder, Geno.ca, Peter Place AKA GenuineRolla, Erison Colderan AKA Alas, Zach, DJharmonix, Echo, Robert of TMR Design, Photophil, (Veemac and Yagit80 and others for the nomination)

To my Purdue Friend Ryan Hicks and Molly (friend and model) who have spend many shoots with me.

Since he won’t, I will.  Visit Phamstr’s website PhamPhotos.com for information on booking a sitting with him in Lafayette, Indiana and keep an eye on his ever expanding Flickr Portfolio.  Big thanks to CT for taking the time to do this and share his information, totally down to earth fellow shooter with a great style and willingness to share information.Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Q&A with Olaf Starorypinski – Fine Art Photographer
• 5 Tips For Getting Better Photographs
• Blog Action Day: Poverty in Photos
• How relevant and effective is email?
• Interview with Ray Gurz, Broken American & Influence Victim

Photo By PatrickSmithPhotography

Photo By will.chamberlin

Photo By .:Philipp Klinger:.

Photo By kerlerikbrondbo

Photo By Konaboy

Photo By nickwheeleroz

Photo By supertoasti

Photo By Ben Heine

Photo By mackelundberg

Photo By code poet

Photo By Katarina 2353

Photo By isayx3

Photo By ~jjjohn~

Photo By nicadlr

Photo By Hoot OwlSimilar articles that might also interest you:

• Blog Action Day: Poverty in Photos
• eBay Coming in June: 5 Free Insertion Fees Every 30 Days
• Free $25 Gift Card for Canvas on Demand
• PA: Tell Legislators it’s Time to Vote on Puppy Mill Bill!
• Make money selling digital photos Part VI

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• Nikon D90 real world video footage
• Amazing Time-lapse Videos Shot on Canon 5d mkII
• 5 Tips For Getting Better Photographs
• San Francisco to Paris in Two Minutes
• Go Fly Yourself: Must-See Video

They arrived last week and I’ve shot about 30 photos on it.  Keeping in mind that this is a toy, the Bean Sprout sports a whopping 640×480 resolution, that’s one-quarter of a megapixel.  To put that in perspective, my cell phone’s camera is four times as powerful!  Again, this is a toy and I bought it for the sole purpose of it.  The box comes with a non-standard USB cable (don’t lose it!) and a mini disk that contains the software that must be loaded to download photos from the camera to your Windows only computer (UGH, no Mac support?).  Luckily I have a Windows based computer to use since the mini disk is no bueno in the Superdrive slot of my Macbook Pro.  Got the software installed, rebooted (seriously, what software needs a computer reboot these days?) and plugged the camera in the charge.

I was a bit astonished when it told me it was connected at USB 1.1 speeds, I was unaware anything made in the last ten years was that slow, but whatever. The camera actually has a pretty nice feel to it, aside from the shutter button is one mode button on the back that allows you to select from the few available options, like high or low resolution, video mode or clearing the camera of all images.  In high resolution mode the Bean Sprout will hold 26 photos.  The small, two character LCD on the back has abbreviation for all the functions as you cycle through it by pressing the mode button, and confirming your choice by pressing the shutter button.  The user manual is actually really well laid out and explains these functions but I only really paid attention on how to clear the camera.

Six hours later I went to meet up with some friends and test this thing out (the manual says at least an hour, but I wanted to make sure).

The concept is that you can clip the camera to your backpack, belt loop or just about anything else and always take it with you.  But why would I want this when the camera in my phone is 4 times better?  Why not?  It’s a toy, it looks funny and when I was taking photos of my friends and other random things they all asked what it was, how it worked and where they could get one.  My co-worker even bought two for his kids.  The Bean Sprout takes all the seriousness away from photography and lets you take somewhat crappy photos, for fun! No other reason.

Following a night of taking photos I connected the camera back to the computer and launched the horrible software that lets you download them to your computer.  Because the camera doesn’t have the advanced computer chipset of a real camera, the file names reset when you clear the card, so make sure that you don’t over-write any other files on your computer from previous shooting.  So, what do the photos look like?

There are more photos that I’m adding to an album on my Facebook page.  Sure, they are grainy, blurry and there’s obviously no way to focus this thing. So again, why do I like this? Because it’s fun, I can twirl it on my finger, clip it to my keys and always have some fun with it. If it gets dropped, lost or stops working, I really don’t care.  One of my friends called it a digital version of a Holga, a cheap and fun camera that isn’t meant to be taken too seriously.  For better results (I won’t say best results) use it in brightly lit areas and hold it very still, there’s no flash and no settings at all.  I’ll continue to update my Facebook album as I shoot with it, but I have no regrets at all about buying a pair of Bean Sprouts.

Since woot may or may not have them again, you can buy them for under $4 here at Amazon or search here on eBay to find them even cheaper.  They make fun little toys for kids or adults.  Want something a little beefier and substantial? Check out the 5mp Bean with SD slot and LCD on the back for under $50.Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Mac word processor review: Bean
• 11 Tips for a healthy camera memory card
• Online poker is the next killer app
• Just how unlimited is unlimited?
• How to recover lost files

Nearly two months ago I wrote a post about my favorite iPhone 3G App. Well, I am happy to report a lot has changed in two months. I am now currently (and probably forever will be) obsessed with ShakeItPhoto. It’s a digital Polaroid in your pocket, and you have to buy it. For only $0.99, it’s completely and utterly worth it!

As a Polaroid camera owner myself, I thoroughly enjoy each photo that pops out in all of its graininess glory. Keepsake photos, as I like to call them. I tuck each away in a specific Polaroid-photos-only album.

But now, with ShakeItPhoto, I can take Polaroid-esque images with my phone and upload them to my computer, onto Facebook and send to friends.

The App’s uniqueness encourages you to shake your phone and watch as the photo develops on your screen. You can now even take your existing photos and instantly turn it into a Polaroid. I truly cannot get enough! Sorry, Remote, but you’ve just been demoted.Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Interview with Ray Gurz, Broken American & Influence Victim
• My what a nice glory hole you have there
• Just how unlimited is unlimited?
• Firefox add-on: Gmail Space
• Review: Bean Sprout Digital Camera

In photography, a bellows is the pleated expandable part of a camera, usually a large or medium format camera, to allow the lens to be moved with respect to the focal plane for focusing.

The bellows provides a flexible dark enclosure (the camera obscura) between the film plate and the lens. In some cameras, the photographer can change the angle of the film plate with respect to the optical axis of the lens, providing alterations of perspective distortion and of the object plane of focus.

The Horseman model I was given comes with the ability to use darkroom enlarger lenses, which means finding them shouldn’t be too hard. It’s still not worked out if Horseman will sell the bellows with or without a lens, though.  Needless to say, I was very excited to get this thing out and play with it.

The overall build quality is everything you’d expect: Solid aluminum, smooth rails, knobs that are easily accessible, and the look of a serious camera when mounted to a tripod.  The base is solid, flat and easily accommodated the tripod mount with no question as to how stable it would be.  Fit and finish are also top notch, although I’ve been told there will still be some more minor tweaks to the production model.

I mounted my Canon EOS 5d to the Horseman bellows and put it atop a tripod. This one was equipped with Manfrotto 410 geared head, which, in my opinion, is one of the best heads made, especially for this application.  The lens was a 105mm f/5.6, a bit longer than I would have liked, but it was what was available to me and I was hell bent on making the most of it.  The bellows would be more at home on a 5d Mark II with its live view LCD screen, but I am not ready to upgrade just yet.  Once mounted, I was ready to start shooting.

The first time you look through the view finder and tilt, shift or swing the bellows and micro-adjust to focus, it all makes sense.  Little bells go off in your head and a warm feeling takes over inside.  This is what photography is all about.  Digital photography has taken something away from traditional film based photography: Shooting on the Horseman bellows really makes you plan a shot out, think about composition, focus and conceive how it should be before shooting.  That aspect alone is probably what was most enjoyable to me, spending 5 or 10 minutes composing each shot I took, swinging and tilting the lens around to find the optimal angle at which I’d shoot my subjects.

Because this has no electronics for the EOS system to focus or give feedback on, (Nikon mount will also be available) shooting the lens in manual or aperture priority mode is a must.  Additionally, the auto-focus confirmation points don’t work so on a full tilt or swing of the bellows where focus is critical; you’ll be chimping and zooming on your LCD to see if you did hit your focus point or not.  Again, with the 5d Mark II this won’t be as much of a problem with the live view, but still fully expect to be zooming in, possibly shooting several of the same shot, and adjusting the focus rail slightly just to make sure.

Getting familiar with the bellows is straight forward, as the knobs and locks are all in somewhat standard locations.  I utilized the left focus rail knob to focus while tapping the shutter button to check for exposure, which worked out well.  Also on the right side is the knob for tilt adjustment while the shift lock release lever is on the left side.  The tilt needs to be operated with both hands, and I accidentally moved the lens board release lever a few times while adjusting everything but quickly got the hang of it.  The first attempt with the bellows is probably the most frustrating because as you look through the lens, it’s hard to do anything but focus: It took me about an hour of using it before I could start to remember where the knobs are, and what they did, so I could utilize the bellows efficiently without having to peak around the camera body to see which knob I was on.

Shooting, like I said, was a pure joy for me.  Most every shot I took was at a full swing, tilt or shift, or combination of some sort for maximum depth of field effect.  I didn’t have much in the way of subject matter to shoot to test out the perspective on it, but I can only imagine the bellows would nail it.

My style of shooting tends to lean more towards people and fashion than landscapes, where a bellows is traditionally at home.  This didn’t stop me from shooting people though, and I got a few other fun items in the mix, too.

The above two shots were taken in the middle of nearly cloudless day, so reviewing on the LCD playback proved to be very hard.  Truth be told, they are slightly back-focused when viewed at 100%, but the first shows a full swing and the second shows the ability to pick a focal point of two subjects standing side by side.  Traditional lenses simply can’t do this. Shooting people tends to be a bit more tricky since they are always moving, no matter how hard they try to stand still. This is where digital photography really comes in handy.  The ability to shoot many frames of the same subject of focus will ensure you get the shot you want when you can’t see through the viewfinder or in review well enough.

This telephone booth was a blast to shoot; it was the first still object I put in front of the camera.  I tried my best to focus on the telephone inside, but with more than 40 shots, I simply couldn’t.  Maybe with wider angle lens I could have, but I still really like this shot and how it came out.

Right down the street was an old sedan rotting away; it seemed as if time passed by this little town in rural Pennsylvania.  Knowing right away how great this would look if shot on black & white film, maybe even high ISO film for added grain, I set the tripod back up in front of it and went to town. Pulling the image into Lightroom then Photoshop later, I used a filter to emulate Tri-X  400ISO film.  The full sized image has a wonderful grain to it.

As I adjusted the focus point to the other headlight prepping for the next shot, it dawned on me how much fun I was having, and how amazing the creative control being put in my hands was.  There are effects and filters in Photoshop that could give you similar results, but nothing could get this close, not without a lot of work.  Additionally, I could still use Photoshop and Lightroom to develop the RAW files from my camera and add virtually any film effect with plug-ins and add-ons that I use for my normal photography.  Truly, the Horseman gives the best of both worlds; all the advantages of a bellows and the flexibility to post process however I see fit, as is the case with this similarly composed yet drastically different image below.

The next day I called a friend to see if she could meet me in a field for some quick shots before the sun went down to give the lens one last go before I had to hand it back.  She agreed, and we went out for the following images.

The bellows has a lot to offer, and I wish I had had it longer both to learn how to use it better and to shoot more with it.  I’ve been promised a second go at the production model when that is released, which will hopefully be soon, as I’d like to expand on how I’ve used it, and continue to learn more about it.  Currently, I have no technical specs on the bellows or a release date. Hopefully, it’s due out this summer.

The production model is said to have a thinner mount, and hopefully slightly larger knobs and a notch on the rise/fall portion, so you can feel when you’ve hit the middle rather than have to look around the camera. Horseman will also more than likely put this into some sort of protective field box as well to make transportation safe.

Who is this lens for?  I’d say landscape photographers right off the bat, but also commercial photographers who shoot everything from architecture to catalog work and even food photography.  The price point is rumored to be around $1,700 without a lens. I’d like to see this sell for $1,500 with a lens, but still not 100% sure on any of it.  It’s a very spendy setup, but the results and the pure enjoyment I got from shooting it would put it right up there on my want list of camera gear.  It’s not for everyone, though. A tripod is essential, and so is time – there isn’t much that’s quick about shooting a setup like this. 

I think aside from the joy of shooting, the results speak for themselves, even if I didn’t really get to play with as much perspective as I would have liked.

More photos from my weekend of shooting can be seen here on mikepanic.com.Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Nikon D90 real world video footage
• 5 Tips For Getting Better Photographs
• Make money selling digital photos Part III
• Q&A with Olaf Starorypinski – Fine Art Photographer
• Make money selling digital photos Part II

One of the more fascinating things these new videographers are doing is time-lapse video footage.  A time-lapse photograph involves setting a camera on a tripod for several minutes to several hours, leaving the shutter open and allowing movement to be captured.  In the amazing photo below, a film camera was used for several hours at night and the circular motion of the stars is actually from the earth’s rotation.

Using the basic idea but with snippits of short video that is then merged together, very high quality time-lapse videos have started to appear on the Internet.

One of the first that really caught my eye was done by William Castleman entitled Galactic Center of Milky Way Rises over Texas Star Party.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Tom from Timescapes specializes in time-lapse cinematography and has a great collection on his website and Vimeo.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

And here’s a short stop motion trip through Barcelona by dubassy.

Click here to view the embedded video.

As a photographer I find this stuff amazingly intriguing, yet don’t have the patience to create them on my own.  I do look forward to seeing this new trend evolve though.

Similar articles that might also interest you:

• Nikon D90 real world video footage
• 6 Stunning Videos Shot on DSLR Cameras
• Finding Oregon, The Most Amazing Time Lapse Video
• San Francisco to Paris in Two Minutes
• Stop motion human skateboard video