For the foreseeable future many of us are going to be in virtual meetings on software like Zoom.

First get prepared before the meeting. Open Zoom (https://zoom.us/). If you are invited someone will send you a link. Just follow those instructions. Go to their website if you want to host meeting.

Once you have it on your computer open the Zoom App and you should see something like this.

Then go to the top left and under Zoom click on “preferences’

That will open this screen

We want to go to three of the icons on the left to be sure you are ready.

You can see now in the screen what everyone else will see. You can see my settings here. Those are the defaults. You can change them if you think you need to do so. The great thing is you can test all this out before anyone sees this during your meeting.

The next HUGE thing to check on the left is Audio.

You can be sure that the speaker and microphone settings are setup correctly.

I use wireless USB headphones [Sony Noise Cancelling Headphones WHCH700N] that have a microphone built into them. Great for many reasons, but I just select them from the pull down menu for speaker and microphone. Then I test my talking and adjust the microphone. I usually just play some music to test the speaker level.

I recommend sitting near a window with your face pointed to the window.

DON’T HAVE BACK TO WINDOW

I would even recommend putting some lights shining on your face as I have done here.

For $49.95 you can get this small LED light by Lume Cube to use.

“Virtual Background”

Now that you look good and sound good, you need to look into changing your background during the meeting.

Go back to the preferences and click on “Virtual Background”

You can pick anyone of those backgrounds that came with the software or you can create your own.

This is where I went and created my own background. You could just substitute your room for another one.

I wanted to try to promote my brand throughout so I created this background. I recommend using 2,880 x 1,800 for the dimensions.

My first attempt I had all the contact information at the bottom, but I quickly realized my body will block most of it. I wanted the background to work with me in front of it.

So this is what everyone was seeing while I am on zoom. The great thing on these calls is you may need to step away. Well your image you created becomes that “Billboard” during the meeting.

So this is how I looked this morning during the meeting to everyone else.

If you are on a long virtual meeting, maybe you have a few backgrounds ready to go to mix things up. I noticed when people change their backgrounds people are not just noticing, they comment.

I you need a Zoom Meeting Background created I can do that for you. You send me your logo and other graphics you have and for $20 I will create you a custom background to use.

I believe that when we are allowed to slowly start leaving our homes, business will no longer be the same. I put this video together to send out to my community to hopefully let people know how important it is to communicate to their customer base.

What are some ways you think someone with my skills can help businesses and organizations going forward? Send me an email and let me know your idea.

Here is the full interview of Bob White in his own words.

Photo above is from Honduras Outreach at Estabian Olancho in Honduras. [X-E2, XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS, Mode = Aperture Priority, ISO 6400, 1/60, ƒ/4, (35mm = 83)]

Today our world is suffering like no other time in my lifetime. For Christians we are celebrating today the day that Jesus Christ arose from the dead.

Last night Dorie and I joined our Jewish friends for a Zoom Virtual Seder meal. The significance of the meal is to retell the story of the Exodus from Egypt.

This morning Dorie said that today still feels like Saturday for Christians celebrating Easter. We are still living in the Pandemic and the numbers are still climbing in cases, those going to hospitals and sadly the death toll as well.

I have been thinking a lot today of those I have met around the world and how they will be celebrating Easter isolated and no longer gathering in churches to celebrate.

Christians re-tell the story of Christ and the empty tomb.

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I am also reminded of the hospitals I have visited and the prayer that is happening today is them. Most all of them do not have ventilators. Just imagine that much of the world if they get COVID-19 and need to be hospitalized and need a ventilator the best they can do is have someone hand press on a bag.

Well this past year has been a roller coaster ride for Mac users. Especially if you upgraded to Catalina.

This new operating system only works with 64 Bit programs.

When I upgraded I found out a few of my software programs didn’t work. One of them was Cumulus.

I had all my images catalogued in this software since I had gone to digital capture in 2002. I had even put most of the portfolio images of my film days into it as well.

I have about 500,000+ image in the system. Well now on the new Catalina Mac OS I no longer had this.

I was looking for something, because I wasn’t a fan of the Lightroom Library. It was slow as compared to Cumulus or Photo Mechanic.

Down on my toolbar I have both the Photo Mechanic 6 and the Plus version installed. The Plus is a Beta Version. So, it isn’t yet available without possible problems when using it.

The plus is similar look to version 6.

The left tab give you the Photo Mechanic 6 functions and the right tab gives you the Plus, which is the catalogue.

But the window below is different.

There is a search that lets you find all the images in your catalogue that you have “Scanned” into it. “Scan” they use rather than “Ingest” when referring to adding images to the catalogue. If the image is offline then there is a grey circle in the corner. You can see the image and see the IPTC, but the resolution isn’t the original file.

You can even create collections just like you can in Lightroom.

I will let you know more after I finish “Scanning” all my hard drives into the catalogue and have had time to play more with it. For now I am just adding the images to the catalogue. Stay tuned for more in the future.

A pivot usually occurs when a company makes a fundamental change to their business after determining (usually through market research) that their product isn’t meeting the needs of their intended market. … Companies will continue to pivot as these needs change or the company discovers new opportunities for the business.

You probably never heard that both Facebook and YouTube started fully intending to be dating sites, but pivoted to something more unique when they found that dating had already become an over-crowded market. Their pivots were early but real.

On HBO, Silicon Valley is a TV comedy series that follows the misadventures of an introverted computer programmer and his brainy friends as they attempt to strike it rich in a high-tech gold rush. 

The show explores their start-up “Pied Piper” when they realize what’s appealing to customers and what isn’t, then decide to focus their efforts on what’s working. In many cases, they find that the product or service that’s clicking with consumers isn’t what their companies were originally founded on.

Communicating the pivot becomes a very important component of the plan.

Here’s how to pivot strategically and boost sales.

1. Solve a problem. What your current customers have to say will help you to pivot your company and turn your solution into something that really solves a need.
2. Segment your market. Know your audience. Target those who will benefit the most from your services.
3. Turn your product into a service. In a product marketing, only 4 P’s of the marketing mix are applicable which are product, price, place and promotion, but in the case of service marketing, three more P’s are added to the conventional marketing mix, which are people, process and physical existence.
4. Outline the plan. Focus on a product feature and tell people how this helps them.
5. Become the solution. Communicate how you will guide them to the solution. A “brute force” communication of the new positioning with “relentless repetition.”
6. Communicate what failure to use your service looks like as well as what success looks like. Demonstration of product or service is one of the best ways to promote it. Further, word of mouth also helps in marketing them.

Facebook was aimed initially at college students, later aimed at consumers in general, and more recently found a lucrative growth path with businesses. Pivots thus are a normal and necessary process in expanding the market and recognizing cultural shifts as well as kick-starting growth.

Here are four local businesses in my Roswell, GA community that I helped pivot to a new model during this crisis.

I can help you now to create a new communications plan for life after COVID-19. Contact me so we can start work on brainstorming ideas.

photo by: Dorie Griggs

My momma always said, “Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” … I admit that if you are getting a box of chocolates gifted to you, yes, you will not know what is inside. Life is a gift after all, so it makes sense.

– Forrest Gump

Special moments when you want to show your appreciation are so often done with a big gesture like a: Wedding Cake; Birthday Cake; and seriously, is there anyone out there who doesn’t love cookies?

Right now people are going beyond to help each other. A great example are those in the medical profession like nurses and doctors who are risking their lives with this Corona–19 Virus to save lives.

While New Yorkers are applauding their medical workers, in Roswell, GA people are sending cookies and cakes that “I Canita Cake” makes to their hospitals and first responders.

One of the best ways to motivate kids who are all now homeschooling is snack time rewards. Canita came up with a special decorating kit for parents to use with any age kid.

People are putting gifts out for the mailman and Amazon delivery people that are helping them stay at home.

Canita says her customers are telling her how wonderful she is. This has never happened before.

Gratitude is a basic human emotion that is about our ability to feel and express thankfulness and appreciation. According to leading gratitude researcher Dr. Robert Emmons, the idea of receiving a gift is central to the experience of gratitude. When we feel deeply grateful, one of the gifts we might feel like we are receiving is that of unconditional love.

Some of us find it difficult to be thankful, especially during this time of life challenges. During the most traumatic phase of any tragedy is exactly when we need to connect with each other.

“Connection is why we’re here; it is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.”

Brené Brown

Listen to what they are doing to serve their Roswell, Georgia Community in this video we did to help them remind they are still open for curbside pickup.

This week I have done three different videos for three different local restaurants in Roswell, GA. This was my way of giving back and trying to help their people stay employed and pay their bills.

I created very similar format videos for each restaurant and there are some differences, but overall they are all telling customers they are open for carry-out only.

I posted them to my Vimeo account and I can track how many times they have been viewed.

Adele’s on Canton

Let me first share the stats for the most successful video at the moment based on those who have seen the video. That is the one on Adele’s on Canton. First here is the video again and then the stats.

The view rate for your video is simply your views divided by your impressions. We count an impression every time the Vimeo player loads your video, either on vimeo.com or embedded, and we count a view every time someone hits the play button on your video.

Slopes BBQ

Here is the video on Slopes BBQ and then the stats.

El Porton

Last is my video for El Porton and their stats

What makes one more successful?

Sharing is the number one thing that is determining success. There is one particular stat that shows by URL. Notice how many are on nextdoor.com. Those are posted by others to next door.

I have been creating websites for clients as well as for myself since 1995. One major problem most people have with creating content is they do not understand why people aren’t calling.

Your mailbox works just like your website, Facebook, YouTube/Vimeo, or other social media. It is an address.

If you want to get mail other than junk mail and bills then you have to market your address to the world or some category.

If you have a Facebook account then you most likely have friends. These friends are like an email list you might have in your address book for your email program.

Every time you post to your timeline those who are your friends and have you marked as someone to follow will get a message.

If you look at your profile you can see how many friends you have. Click on the “More” and then click on “Followers” to see how many people see your content.

This is where groups are important. If you are following the group guidelines and they let you post certain kinds of posts then everyone in that group will see your posts on their timeline.

If you want people to not just see your content but share it as well, you have to ask them. Also, you must make the post PUBLIC and not PRIVATE.

You can change privacy settings on an individual post that you want to make shareable by clicking the “Privacy” icon next to the post time stamp and selecting either “Friends” or “Public.” Select “Friends” if you want friends to be able to share the post or select “Public” if you want anyone to be able to see the post.

Tips to get people to Share

• Make it easy for people to share your content. Any more than 2 to 3 clicks of a button, and it’s too much work to share your content. 
• Ask them to share it. Don’t make people remember that they could share your content, either. Remind them with a call to action. Pinterest pins with a call to action get 80 percent more shares. Tweets that ask people to retweet them get 51 percent more retweets than tweets that never ask.
• Use images. Tweets with images are 94 percent more likely to be shared, and photos on Facebook get 53 percent more likes.

To get people to share your content you have to convince them first. Why should users do what you want them to do? Before a visitor is willing to complete a task, they have to recognize the need. 

My Post & Call to Action

[NIKON Z 6, 24.0-105.0 mm f/4.0, Mode = Aperture Priority, ISO 51200, 1/250, ƒ/8, (35mm = 24)]

My car loves to go to certain restaurants and El Porton is just around the corner from our home. I love good Mexican food and the staff at their know my order.

During this trying time of the COVID-19 Virus and restaurants having to close their dining rooms, I wanted to help them to continue to pay their employees.

During normal times we love to go out and eat to take a break from cooking. Now after self isolating for days many of us are wanting different food. Many restaurants are trying to stay open by offering carry-out and curb-side pickup.

Here some simple things to support your local businesses

• Buy gift certificates – This is like buying stock in a company. They get to use the money now to pay their employees and you get to use the gift certificate in the future.
• Buy merchandise – Buy T-Shirts and hats
• Promote them – Give your favorite local businesses shout-outs on your social media channels
• Volunteer your services – Maybe help pickup and deliver food to elderly
• Use Credit or Debit Cards – When you do go shopping, use a credit or debit card instead of cash. Paper money and coins pass through so many hands and carry all types of germs. Limiting the amount of cash you use can help limit the spread of those germs, which is especially important right now.
• Stay Home if You’re Sick – Don’t put others at risk if you’re sick.
• Contribute to or start a GoFundMe campaign – Consider donating to an online fundraiser or starting one on behalf of a business whose sales have been wiped out.
• Leave a Review – A great way to support small business owners is to provide review on Social Media

Photo by Dorie Griggs

What gifts do you have that others would benefit from right now? I am not a cook. I am not a medical provider. I am a storyteller.

I know that most people could use help telling their stories. I also know that seeing is believing.

The first thing I lead with on my stories is how these restaurants are solving the audiences problem. That problem is cooking meals at home. There is a point for most people these days that they could use a break.

The second thing most people are interested in is how they can get some of their favorite restaurants food during this crisis, since they cannot go the the restaurant and dine-in.

One of my good friends Greg Thompson talked about him being taught the lesson of do what you are good at and let others do what they are good at on a mission trip.

While in another country the team he was working with were doing some construction. Up on the hill watching them were what they learned were the local construction guys who could use the work. They took up money and paid the guys to work and Greg then did what he was best at doing and that was taking photos.

I am sure you have been in Greg’s shoes as well. I know many of my friends talk about how they tried to save money only to have to call the experts sooner or later to do it right.

Two things I hope this time of crisis is teaching all of us. First know what you are good at doing and help others using those gifts of yours. Second, hire those experts who do it better than you whenever possible.

It is together we do community. While we all need to practice social distancing we can still call and connect with our neighbors.

photo by Dorie Griggs

March Madness means something totally different for 2020. Just a few weeks ago all of our plans were so different than what we ended up doing for this month.

I am watching so many of my friends and neighbors feeling the stress of the uncertainty that CORONA-19 Virus has brought to our lives.

I think this is the best time to reach out and help rather than looking for every way we can survive.

I work with restaurants most of my time. These past two weeks I have looked at local restaurants in my town and could sense how they needed our support. So I reached out to Slopes BBQ where my family has been eating ever since I moved to Roswell in 1993.

I asked Bob White if he would let me do a video to showcase his restaurant and team.

I realized that the number one thing they do is provide a service that meets a real need for many people. Most people get cabin fever and need to get out and they also get tired of eating their own cooking. For some people they don’t even know how to cook.

Here is the video I did to help remind those near Slopes BBQ that they are still open for carry out.

Do me a favor and share the video to your social media posts if you live nearby. Hopefully this will inspire others to help your neighbor.

Proverbs 3:28 tells us “Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you.” In this verse, a neighbor is someone who asks for help. We are taught here that a neighbor is to be helped quickly, immediately. It also implies that our neighbor is someone we see regularly.

Operator Selection, Talent, Human Resources [NIKON Z 6, 35.0 mm f/1.4, Mode = Manual, ISO 50, 1/125, ƒ/6.3, (35mm = 35)]

Nothing can inspire you more than a crisis. The Chinese word for “crisis” is frequently invoked in Western motivational speaking as being composed of two Chinese characters signifying “danger” and “opportunity,” respectively.

I had already scheduled some photo shoots this week that I was able to keep; we just took the opportunity to show how my client was responding to the COVID-19 crisis.

I work most all the time with a formal shot list, or I have done something so many times that I know the list by heart.

I have had one complex list. The team I am working with had this one category they called “Something that embodies.”

Labor Cost was one of those topics.

I went online and Googled and looked for images others had done on the topic. This inspired me.

I wanted to get some small people figurines and thought of Hobby Lobby near me.

I called to see if they were open, and they were. I went and found two sets of people. A Family and Young Adults were what I found in the store.

While there, I went ahead and bought some matchbox-style cars and trucks. I used them for the theme of “Auto Insurance.”

I then combined the two for other possibilities.

While shooting images is fun, the photos are not all that usable without a caption and those important “Keywords.”

You can easily add keywords in Adobe Lightroom, and here is a video showing you how to do this. Now when it is uploaded to an online library and someone searches, as long as I have created keywords in the metadata, they are findable.

So for the past few days, I have been being productive and shooting images that some of my clients will use.

This has helped me keep my sanity and keep my focus. While many are just seeing the “DANGER,” I have chosen to see the “OPPORTUNITY.”

Haley Newbold, the team member at Chick-fil-A Roswell Corners FSU, expedites an order to a customer in the drive-thru. The Dining Rooms are shut down during the Coronavirus outbreak. Paul Joubert’s restaurant Roswell Corners FSU is closed on its third day in the dining room. [NIKON Z 6, 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6, Mode = Aperture Priority, ISO 100, 1/60, ƒ/5.3, (35mm = 98)]

I have enjoyed working with the Flashpoint XPlor 600 HSS TTL to help with some tricky lighting situations.

Using the transmitter to change the settings on the flashes allows me not to have to stop shooting where I am standing and go and adjust each flash and then do more test shots. As they say, I can shoot and make the adjustments on the fly.

The canopy had a white ceiling that I bounced off to get an even light to shoot these photos you see here.

Behind the guy’s head is one of the lights. The other is near the passenger door of this SUV bouncing as well.

On the other side of the building was the window to the restaurant for delivering food. I didn’t have the same size canopy and used a more direct flash that caught a slight overhang to bounce down.

They didn’t have the canopy at another drive-thru at a different restaurant. I just had my assistant man the off-camera flash and stay about 45º from the camera angle. That usually meant I was on one side of the car shooting, and the flash was on the other.

I was shooting wide open at ƒ/1.4 with my 35mm and ƒ/1.8 with my 85mm. Since the flash is TTL, it also is HSS. That stands for High-Speed Sync.

I shot most all the photos on an overcast day with the strobes at shutter speeds of 1/400 up to 1/2000 with the flash.

Using Nikon’s software, I could see how the camera was focusing. It was on eye-tracking. Here I zoomed in so you can see the focus point.

I love shooting at ƒ/1.4, but few images were as sharp as they are now with the Nikon Z6 mirrorless that has eye-tracking.

While shooting with the Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8 lets me blur the background, which helps me make the subject pop. Using the flash helps get a catchlight in the eyes on an overcast day. It also helps increase the dynamic range.

TIPS:

• Use fill-flash
• Use wide aperture like ƒ/1.4 or ƒ/1.8
• Use eye-tracking to get that precise focus on the eyes
• Use Dehaze Slider in Lightroom – Helps bring back detail in hazy BOKEH