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DPChallenge Forums >> Business of Photography >> What I have been up to
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Showing posts 1 - 18 of 18, (reverse)
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04/09/2013 02:36:40 PM · #1
Well I have not been as active on here lately but that is because I am putting 90% of my free time into my photography business. I am planning on switching over full time at the beginning of June so I would say cross your fingers but I believe more in hard work than luck anyway. I am still working on a site redesign but here is my latest project. 2 minute slide show

Slide Show

For those of you who do slide shows, you should have a look at photodex, pretty nice software. I will keep checking in here as often as I can but my submissions will likely be a bit slim.
04/10/2013 07:00:25 AM · #2
hmmm... have things really gotten this slow around here?
04/10/2013 07:08:23 AM · #3
trending in the right direction, joshua! keep it up and you'll be creating your own luck!

a few quick comments:

the thing that comes across immediately from your slideshow is that your business is about making regular, normal, everyday people look special. you're not doing whacked out cosmetics, trying to make people look like something they're not, you're simply showing them in their best light. i have a feeling that if you sit down with clients and walk them through what they're looking for and what you do, you can easily charge a sustainable rate for your business to be successful.

when shooting in the shadows, be careful not to let your wb run too much to the cool side. i'm not sure if this link will work, but try viewing this gallery.

i used to use photodex. while i liked the absolute control over building a slideshow, i grew to not liking the overhead and workflow; every slideshow was a project that took a fair amount of work. even though it's pricey, i've found animoto a better fit (here's one). simply pick a theme, pick or upload music (they have a pretty large RF library), drop in the pics, and let it roll. one thing about your slideshow was that i got terrible buffering with my wifi connection. that's something that plagues me from time to time and it's something you really have to manage to keep from losing your audience.

lastly, don't worry about not being able to shoot for challenges...the real world will provide you with as much of that as you can handle ;-)
04/10/2013 07:36:36 AM · #4
Thank you for the response Skip. I shoot Raw and generally adjust my wb from there, I will keep a better eye on that. With the photodex web I pretty much just upload and the site builds the show and all I have to do is tweak a few things but I will have a look at animoto. Thanks again for the response.
04/10/2013 07:53:33 AM · #5
Originally posted by MinsoPhoto:

With the photodex web I pretty much just upload and the site builds the show and all I have to do is tweak a few things but I will have a look at animoto. Thanks again for the response.

interesting...it's been at least 3 years since i looked at photodex - i should have expected them to build a web service. if it's anything like their desktop version and reasonably priced, it might be worth ditching animoto. i'll have to check it out.
04/10/2013 08:25:33 AM · #6
Beautiful slideshow. Congratulations on making the step. Wish you all the best.
04/10/2013 11:13:21 AM · #7
good on yer

(Edited as it sound real unfair)

Message edited by author 2013-04-10 11:26:41.
04/28/2013 08:35:32 PM · #8
Still haven't entered here but staying busy.

Headshots for my dad tonight

And I covered a martial arts tournament last weekend, new experience for me. Slide Show of tournament.

also shot for a local business starting up a local magazine this weekend. Busy as I can handle for the moment.

Message edited by author 2013-04-28 20:36:18.
04/28/2013 08:44:46 PM · #9
Looking good, best of luck in the future.

Minso if you look at Animoto, you might be interesting in looking at their free demo version just to get a real feel for the way it works. Also Smardazz in our forums offers $5 slideshows using their services. Just information i thought you might find useful.
04/28/2013 08:46:04 PM · #10
that was pretty cool. a little repetitive (I know nothing about slide shows), but overall the transition was really accessible.

Message edited by author 2013-04-28 20:46:57.
04/28/2013 09:52:57 PM · #11
That's awesome, Joshua!! Keep us posted.
06/26/2013 03:47:18 PM · #12
Well how are things going? I've gone down the same path, too.
06/26/2013 05:48:32 PM · #13
Been hitting the pavement hard and while I am sure things are lining up I am just treading water at the moment. Struggling to get my calendar booked up. Lots of interest but few confirmed sessions.
06/26/2013 06:10:36 PM · #14
Hope it picks up for you Joshua. You're doing a grand job. Keep hitting that pavement, if you build it, they will come!

I'm in a similar boat. I've got my wedding bookings up to 20 this year so far (my target was 15 so i'm well ahead) but the worry sets in for next year as i only have a small handful. Hopefully they'll come in and i can build but it is a worry when you go fully self employed. I guess just trust in your abilities and get that marketing going. Good luck!
06/26/2013 06:12:21 PM · #15
Your website and recent work are looking ace by the way.
06/26/2013 07:41:35 PM · #16
Thanks all. And Rooum, 20 weddings, nice work. Are you seeing much in the way of bookings from those weddings?
06/26/2013 08:25:30 PM · #17
Do you mean in the way of follow on bookings after weddings i've already done? A little, yea. I had a wedding couple a few weeks ago who booked because she liked the photos of her cousin's wedding last September. I've also got a father of the bride get in contact for some photo training, which was good timing as i'm in the process of setting some more solid, photo training holidays with a couple of people who have some lovely accomodation (i'm lucky as i'm in a very touristy, picturesque, part of Wales). I've also had a booking from a couple who really liked what i did at a venue where they are getting married in September. They'd done a google search and i came up.

I think, for me, it's just a slow, gradual, slog up to be where i want to be. It's weddings, so every venue i do is another contact, and if i do a good job there then i can add them, make a blog post and get more visable online. It's just building a presence. I imagine, as you do more portraits, you don't have that extending network.
06/26/2013 10:04:28 PM · #18
Yes that is what I was wondering. Word of mouth is big for portraits, unfortunately many of mine have been out of the area so while I do have work I really need it to build up locally more and to do that I need to get several clients with big mouths and lots of friends :)
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