Category: Photography

Storytellers: Who’s Your Audience—NO REALLY!!!

by Stanley LearyPhotography
James Gregg, Staff Photographer, San Diego Union-Tribune [Fuji X-E2, XF 55-200mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/4.8, 1/10]

All photos from the Southwestern Photojournalism Conference

At every conference I attend today, I am passionate about “Storytelling” and “Giving a Voice to the Voiceless.”

I don’t think this is all that new, but what is new is the focus on moving from bullet lists on a PowerPoint presentation to telling a story instead.

We have always done this, but now we are more aware of the power of an authentic story.

However, with all this emphasis, I am still not feeling the stories that people are sharing. The reason I am not feeling it all that well is pretty simple. The storyteller forgot all about me.

I can tell they got lost in the story and the subject and forgot all about the audience.

I am sure there are many ways to connect with the audience, but let me talk about one that I believe is the most powerful way to connect your audience and subject in a truly engaging way.

Andrew Silk, lecturer at California Baptist University [Fuji X-E2, XF 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/200]

Authenticity

Preaching to me turns me off, primarily lecturing about what I need to do.

Here are what I think are three elements you need in storytelling to engage an audience.

Tension—You need to have the audience asking the question about the outcome of the subject. The narrative of your story must incite the audience to want an answer. Many a screenwriter talks when an account is not moving you along that you need a “dead cat.” You are missing the tension, and then there is no need for the audience to need to read the story.

Unpredictable—I think of Disney’s latest movie, Frozen, and how the ending has a twist so different than all the other princess movies I have seen. This twist has people talking and loving this movie. As a visual storyteller, I sometimes use visuals to help create the unpredictable. The unpredictability should be full of suggestion, foreshadowing, and recall. Not gimmicky shots and tricks; instead, One should design the video to tell a story in a not predictably sequential way.

Personality—The salesperson sells himself before they can sell the product. The narrative must have a warm and inviting style, not boring and dull.

Mike Martin, pastor [Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 2800, ƒ/10, 1/2000]

The last one on personality is often where the subject reveals their flaws. The best stories are where the main issue is flawed and not a perfect Barbie Doll or Ken Doll.

Too many people will go to a church revival, and the testimony of someone who had a terrible life moves them. They were on drugs, beaten, or even raped, and the power of their story about how awful their life was.

I often hear people say I wish I had a story like that. They even may jokingly say they wish they had a drug addiction. But, they feel like they don’t have an account because they don’t have a “dead cat” in their story.

I know of people who are the most attractive people you could imagine that appeared to have it all who attempted suicide. The key is not that they tried or thought of suicide, but the power of the story comes in the authenticity of why they thought their life was not worth living.

Giraffes at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center [Fuji X-E2, XF 55-200mm, ISO 200, ƒ/4.5, 1/200]

You see, they compared themselves to their siblings or someone else who had what they thought was a successful life. They maybe had older siblings that were star athletes or straight “A” students. In their eyes, they are a failure.

The key to this person telling their story is not in how bad they thought they had it; the power tells the story of how they are a broken vessel.

I think great leaders are the ones who do share a little of their humanity and do not try to appear that they have it all together.

Every person feels adequate. They all feel they are not as good as those around them at some level—even those who are the most successful in life struggle sometime during their day as missing the mark. Learn to connect to the audience on how this story you want to tell is similar to their account.

When we tap into the audience and where they are in life, we will have a better time engaging them in the story. Nonprofits can tell their story as long as they connect to the subject’s struggles and how the audience can make a difference. But to do this, they must establish how and why the subject cannot do it alone.

They must show how the audience can make a difference and connect the emotional part of the story to the message.

[Fuji X-E2, XF 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/7.1, 1/25]

Knowing more about the audience before you work on the story can help you find those emotional connections between the two. Appealing to an entrepreneur to help support microloans or even macro loans to help another entrepreneur achieve their dream changes the world. But, first, they must establish why they cannot get a traditional loan.

If your organization is struggling, I would guess that one of the primary reasons is they forgot about their audience.

Fuji X-E2 shots at the Southwestern Photojournalism Seminar

by Stanley LearyPhotography
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 200, ƒ/5.6, 1/1300

These are all JPEGs right out of the camera from my time here in Fort Worth, Texas, at the Southwestern Photojournalism Conference.

Tonight was the start of the student workshop.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/85

These are some photos of my friends trying out the Fuji X-E2. My friends Bob Carey and Ron Londen both had the X-E2 and had just bought the new X-T1 camera. Unfortunately, I have only been able to play with their cameras.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/60

Enjoy the photos and see how great the camera does on Auto-White Balance and shooting JPEGs.

By the way, I also have a RAW file for each of these.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/110
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/240
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/210
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/3.6, 1/220
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/220
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/200
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/210
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/280
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/4, 1/170
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/160
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/150

Fuji X-E2 is excellent for meetings

by Stanley LearyPhotography
 
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 4000, ƒ/3.2, 1/500

I am on my feet for the second day of a four-day meeting. The day starts around 6 am and goes past midnight every day.

Walking around from place to place with gear for this many hours can take its toll on you.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/4, 1/105

The Fujifilm X-E2 holds together the dynamic range I regularly see at this meeting. I love the color and the detail it captures.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 2000, ƒ/4, 1/500

I only regret this meeting because I only have one Fuji X-E2. If I had two, I could run around with just two lenses and get everything I needed with the cameras. I would keep the 18-55mm on one camera and the 55-200mm on the second camera.

Of course, the only downside I see with the camera compared to my Nikon D4 cameras for this event is the battery life. So, I am going through about three batteries a day.

The best part of carrying the cameras all day long would be the simple fact of the weight and size. I feel so much better if I all had two cameras and two primary lenses. As soon as the 10-24mm comes out, I would add this to the other two and have everything I need to cover meetings.

Photographers: How to turn a “Cold Call” into a “Warm Welcome.”

by Stanley LearyPhotography

Whether using a phone or meeting someone you do not know, you are “Cold Calling.” If you play it right, this could be a “Warm Welcome.”

COLD CALLING is the sales process of approaching prospective customers or clients—typically via telephone, by email or through making a connection on a social network—who were not expecting such an interaction. The word “cold” is used because the person receiving the call is not expecting a call or has not specifically asked to be contacted by a sales person. A cold call is usually the start of a sales process generally known as telemarketing.

WARM WELCOME is a hearty, hospitable reception or greeting, as in We got a very warm welcome when we finally arrived.

My friend and I have met with a few photographers who are struggling these days. Today, we had lunch with another newspaper photographer who lost their job. Sadly, this is happening a lot these days.

First, this feels like crap for anyone going through this, and I have been through it two times. From the get-go, we wanted to let the person know that this had nothing to do with their skills but was most likely a numbers game. When that happens, you often will see some folks who kept their jobs while you lost yours, and it is hard to see the logic.

The great thing about these photographers is they are taking their time to asses their situation. They are also not sitting still either. This photographer had already created categories he will put on his website later. Personally, this photographer’s work was excellent. I wish I had all those images in my portfolio.

The photographer had some names of folks he was going to call. The plan is excellent; he had a portfolio just moments from being on his website and had some contacts already.

My friend and I had about 70 years of experience. However, this tip we shared with him didn’t become relevant to us until later in our careers.

What to avoid

The surest way to hit a dead end with a potential client is to ask them questions that are simple “Yes” or “No” answers.

Do you have any photography jobs that I can do? The answer is “Yes” or “No.”

What to do

Ask open-ended questions, more about the person and less about you and your photography. For example, someone just laid off can call someone and ask if they would meet with them. They explain that they were just laid off and want to pick their brains.

Ask questions from your experience. If you could go back and start over, what would you recommend to someone like me? People like being asked for their expertise and will likely talk to you.

Asking them for guidance and suggestions creates the sense that you are seeking advice, which is much different than asking for a job.

Some of the best people to talk to are those who also went through a layoff. Surprisingly, many people have been through this before. Most have a great deal of empathy and will offer some words of wisdom.

Ask them before you leave if there is someone they recommend you talk to that could help them. Also, ask if they tell the new person that they referred them; most of the time, they will, which will help you get that next appointment.

Asking someone to look through your work and recommend how they might arrange it is a great way to get your work seen and keep the dialogue open with them.

You are starting a relationship.

It is much easier to follow up with them and say you listened to them and took their advice. You have done some things, and I wanted to review the changes you have made with you. Again, no need to ask for work.

The best advice I could ever give here is a simple observation: Those who are genuinely interested in building lasting relationships with people and not just using them are the most successful in life.

If you ask for all this advice and never follow up to show the person how you listened and would like them to see what you have done, they know you were there only for a job and not a relationship.

Tom Kennedy, the director of photography at the time for National Geographic, had Don Rutledge, my mentor, contact him and ask to take him to lunch. Don continued to stop by every few months and enjoy lunch with Tom. Tom would also do the same thing with Don after a while.

One day, Tom asked Don why Don had never asked for work from Tom. Tom then said that Don was the only photographer he had ever met who had done this. Tom discovers that Don is genuinely interested in having a friend.

Throughout the years, many people have done the same to Don that photographers did with Tom. They were not interested in a friendship; they just wanted a job.

My long-term career goal is to one day work with my friends. Guess what–that day is now for me. I want a relationship with people, not just their money.

12 week photography workshop for those who believe photography to be a calling

by Stanley LearyPhotography / workshops

Dennis Fahringer has been leading a photography program in Kona, Hawaii for more than 25 years. I first heard of the program back in the 1980’s from my friend and mentor Don Rutledge.

Don was leaving on a trip to do work in Hawaii and at the time Don worked for the International Mission Board for the Southern Baptist. I joked with Don and asked what Hawaii had to do with international missions since it was a state.

This is when Don told me he was just teaching at the Youth With A Mission’s University of the Nations campus in Kona, Hawaii.

Dennis Fahringer teaching in SOP 1 [Fuji X-E2, 55-200mm, ISO 6400, ƒ4.8, 1/250]

Some of the past guest speakers that Dennis brings in for every class have included Gary S Chapman, Louis Deluca, Joanna Pinneo, Don Rutledge, Patrick Murphy-Racey, Gary Russ, Anacleto Rapping, Ron Londen and many, many more.

Most of the students are just starting out. The ages range in the class from 17 to 69 for the class I am presently teaching. Most of the classes I have taught the majority are from 18 to 30.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/6.4, 1/25

Dennis has collected a large selection of books and videos for the students.

Dennis shares with his students many of his notes he has collected through the years on photography using Evernote app.  Dennis has shared some 3,700+ notes with the class that he has in Evernote: just short of 30,000(!) Just this alone is worth the price of admission.

If you are really wanting an intense photography program for twelve weeks then this is it. Before you can take this class you must do a DTS.  This is a 12 weeks lecture phase, plus 10-12 weeks outreach phase, thus 6 months total.  This is a Discipleship Training School where for part of your time will be a cross cultural experience. Many of these DTS groups go all over the world.

In my present class we have nine different nations represented. Those perspectives are great when learning photography.

Here is the YWAM Kona webpage for you to learn more about the program here.

Many who take the class go into business as photographers, other may use this in missions and even some just keep it as a hobby.

Why travel with other photographers and a pro?

by Stanley LearyPhotography
 
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 200, ƒ/9, 20 sec

If you want to be a better tennis player, you play with better players. If you want to grow as a photographer, then surround yourself with other photographers and better photographers.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 400, ƒ/7.1, 1/640

This past weekend I traveled around The Big Island of Hawaii with 8 of the 16 students in the School of Photography class at Youth With A Mission. We were sightseeing together some of the sights of the Island.

The top photo is of the Volcano National Park during the evening. Here most of us were using tripods. This advantage was that you could see each other’s work and ask what they were doing. Again, this helped people learn how to capture such a problematic situation.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 400, ƒ/6.4, 1/500

Now when you are on these trips, take the time to find those who are better than you or at least have more experience. Ask them questions and learn what you can.

 
 
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 5000, ƒ/11, 1/500

Karen Walker is one of the students in the workshop I am teaching this week. She would find me and ask great questions. “What are you looking for here?” might be one of the questions Karen would ask. She was just a sponge and sought me out as much as possible.

She then wanted to be sure she wasn’t annoying. So I told her this is why I am here to help teach.

Fuji X-E2, 55-200mm, ISO 200, ƒ/5, 1.1 sec
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 200, ƒ/5.6, 2.3 sec
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 200, ƒ/5.6, 5 sec

What surprised me was how many students never asked me a question about photography. Every year this happens. I come as a visiting guest speaker, but the students often will not take advantage of my presence to grab me and ask questions.

My recommendations:

  • Find a group to do some photography
  • Find a professional to take a class with
  • Ask questions beyond the lecture time
Remember, why take a class in person or buy a video if you don’t ask questions? Take advantage of the instructors and people around you. Ask why they are doing what they are doing. Ask how they are getting the photo. Clarify how they knew to do that. Sometimes they don’t know, and if it was just luck.
 
You learn from being engaged with others.

Winter Storm and Epic Traffic for Metro Atlanta 2014

by Stanley LearyPhotography

Winter Storm and Epic Traffic of 2014
[X-E2, XF18-55mmF2.8-4 R LM OIS, Mode = Aperture Priority, ISO 6400, 1/12, ƒ/5.6, (35mm = 27)]

Note: All photos were shot on the Fuji X-E2 and while I was sitting still I would use the Wifi connection and upload these to my Facebook page.

While many people want to judge the south as not knowing how to handle snow, this was not just a snow storm. The main reason for the traffic standing still in the south is the ice.

In the photo above you can see the ice all over this semi-truck and on the road. this is on Georgia 400 around exit 7a.  The truck continued to spin its wheels and slide toward me.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/15

The guy in the red KIA Sportage was spinning his wheels so much that if he did get traction would have rammed the people in front of him.  Most of the cars with front wheel drive and good tires were moving slowly and taking their time. The front wheels had enough weight from the engines to keep traction.

My trip started with excitement.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 320, ƒ/5, 1/500 TIME 12:51 pm

I was doing some work down at Chick-fil-A’s corporate office. As I went out the door at 12:50 pm I took a photo of their billboard that is on their tour. Many people get up on the platform and get their photo taken with the cows.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 800, ƒ/5, 1/500 TIME 12:51 pm

Many people also like to have their photo taken with Truett Cathy, the statue that is. If he is at the office he will meet with folks in his office. Well as you can see the cows and Truett had a light dusting of snow.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 1000, ƒ/5.6, 1/500 TIME 12:54 pm

As soon as I drove out the the parking deck and got on the road I called the office and told them to leave now.  The roads already were slick. I could tell the snow was melting and turning to ice almost instantaneous.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/80 TIME 15:03 pm

This firetruck is going in the opposite direction to get to wrecks.  This was about halfway through my 11 hour commute.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/8 TIME 8:48 pm

I am assuming the sign had some lights burned out, but this should say:

JACKKNIFED TRUCK  

PAST HAYNES BRIDGE 

ALL LANES BLOCKED

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/5.6, 1/8 TIME 10:45 pm

This photo here is on Holcomb Bridge Road, Roswell between Old Roswell Road and Warsaw Road at 10:45 pm or less than 1.5 miles from my house. It would take me another hour and half to drive that. When I approached Alpharetta Hwy I knew the road would go down a hill and back up. Knowing this was where most problems would be for vehicles, I turned right and no traffic at all for me to go north to Houze Way and take that road through the back of our neighborhood.

I got home at 12:05 am today. There is now color back in my knuckles from them gripping the steering wheel for 11 hours.  Seeing a semi-truck sliding towards you and you cannot do anything is enough to give someone a cardiac arrest.  Thankfully all those trips to the gym are paying off.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/8, 1/500 TIME 9:10 am

Sitting at home now enjoying my coffee and I can say relaxing as I see this out my front door. There are still many people still on the road stuck until the ice either melts away or DOT clears the roads.

Keep those affected in your prayers until the roads are all cleared.

The use of color is essential to the overall look of a project.

by Stanley LearyPhotography

If you want your portfolio to go to a new level, maybe you should pay attention to color pallets [color schemes].

One thing that sets professional work apart from home videos is control of the color scheme. The color scheme is simply the collection of colors in the film or video: the clothes, the backgrounds, the props, the makeup, the locations, etc.

Deciding on a color palette before you shoot and sticking to it in production will work wonders for the production value of your project.

When you dress daily, you coordinate your outfits, or at least I hope you do, so they work together. For example, when you go to the office, you may have a color pallet that is quite different from what you might wear if you go to the town at night to a theater or clubbing.

You are creating a mood around you just by what you wear. Now, if you were in control of more than just your clothes, you could impact people’s attitudes as they come into contact with you. But unfortunately, this is what Hollywood does for the big screen and TV.

Besides using music to create a mood, they use color pallets. For example, watch this clip from Parenthood. See how close I came to picking the color pallet below it for what colors you see in each scene. Pay attention to the floors, walls, outside-the-window colors, and what each actor is wearing, and you will notice every little color is part of a theme.

When Hollywood goes back in time, I noticed they like to use a lot of blue. Take a look at the Lincoln movie trailer. See the colors below and see how close these match.

https://youtu.be/qiSAbAuLhqs

Another TV show that exaggerates the color palette is CSI Miami.

If you want to see a large selection of color pallets like above, go to https://kuler.adobe.com Click on Explore to see all types of themes, and they will even let you sort them from the most popular.

Traveling worldwide, I find specific locations with a more consistent color pallet, as in this photo from West Africa. I guess that when they make many of their clothes, they use the natural colors they can find, whereas, in the US, we import from all over the world, making things more eclectic.

In this scene above, it is like Hollywood coordinated the color pallet, but what is happening in Hollywood knows that they are just duplicating natural settings.

The most significant difference between what Hollywood is doing and what we might find in everyday life is being sure they control where the subject’s eyes go in a scene. For example, if one person walked into a set and was not part of the color pallet and everyone else was, then your eye goes to them immediately.

For example, the purple shirt is so different that your eye goes to that person.

In the photo of the two boys, they are both wearing blue, and the blue is also on the wall and the floor. Then you have the green and a touch of red in the boy’s pants, base, and flowers. So we have three colors in this photo that play off each other. Interior designers try to use three colors when decorating and what Hollywood does to help create a mood.

Sometimes you have to move a step to the right or left to recompose a photograph; that will help simplify the color pallet and make the photo stronger.

A color pallet is why going to the home of a family you plan to do a family portrait of and help pick out all the clothes and location before you show up later to do the shoot. If you do, you are managing the color pallet, which will make for a better photo.

The use of color is essential to the overall look of a project; like most other things, although the viewer may not be discussing the color palette after watching your work, you can rest assured that the color scheme – or lack thereof – most certainly affected their perception of it. For example, in big-budget Hollywood movies, a lot of attention is given to the color of even the finest detail, and with good reason!

Ideas for working with NGOs & Companies using Storytelling

by Stanley LearyPhotography
 
 
A friend wrote me, asking, “Were you ever able to make progress on ideas around working for NGOs?” Here are my comments to help him navigate this from what I have learned.
 
Today, it is easier than ever to become a photographer and publish. The gatekeepers are no longer in the way for the most part. So you can go and shoot a story and post it today for the world to see.  
 
Today worldwide travel for us is the easiest it has ever been—minus some visa and security issues. So the ability to go and cover the world is somewhat attainable. More accessible travel is why many today have traveled internationally compared to years ago.
 
 
What is the one thing stopping then most storytellers? The finance side. 

Matthew 6:26 reminds us “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”

The scripture reference doesn’t mean you sit back; you are just like the birds—The early bird gets the worm.
 
NGOs
 
I think I have found that these NGOs tend to be run by people who are now experiencing an all-time high in volunteerism. Volunteers include the “GWC Guy With Camera,” which in a way, makes what we do more difficult to sell to the NGO.  
 
Today we need to create better PR for ourselves and what our work can do for them. We have relied too long on results our results and expected the person to get how this can help them.
 
You are also competing with untold numbers of great storytellers trying to do the same thing. They are not just GWC but great storytellers. So, how do you stand out and get the attention that can pay the bills?
 
 
ROI—Return On Investment
 
You need to do more than creating a portfolio of your work for an. You need to develop a portfolio of success stories. Stories are different from the portfolio. You illustrate in the report how there is an ROI. 
 
Two essential elements are needed to convince NGOs to spend money when they already get so much for free. First, they need to see numbers and testimonies.
 
If you can demonstrate how one of your packages helped increase the support for an NGO, then you have their ears. Once you have their ears, you give them the second punch for the knockout—a testimony from that client. 
 
 
Two ways for you to market
 
First, if you do an excellent job for a client, others will see it and ask who did their work. Also, often they are so excited they tell your story for you. Clients telling your story is the best way for your marketing to work. The second way is for you to capture this from a client and use this material to market to other NGOs. Maybe this is a brochure with photos, some charts showing giving going up, and then quotes from the clients.
 
 
 
Why do I not see this?
 
It is being done by many. Most of us stumble into it. We go on some missions trip or go volunteer and create a package for telling the story because we like to do that. Then we share it. A personal project is how Jeremy Cowart jump-started his business. He covered a trip to Africa and put a book together. He shared it, and then Britney Spears people saw it and asked him to work on their next tour.  
 
I think those who can find a great emotional story and invest in doing the story can best show their abilities for Storytelling and capture how this story helped as a change agent [ROI] may launch quickly into more NGO coverages.
 
I can tell you NGOs may not be the best place to monetize what we do with Storytelling. However, today the trend in marketing is to use Storytelling as the content for marketing. Here are some links about this today:
 
  1. Five Storytelling Strategies » Digital Marketing » 435 Digital Internet … 
    Nov 13, 2013 – When it comes to the content on your site – whether it’s a weekly blog or occasionally updating a module on the homepage – it’s never a bad 

     

  2. How to Use Storytelling as a Marketing Strategy | Wired Advisor Blog Everyone has a story to share. We are shaped by our life experiences, both personal and professional. Sharing stories about our own lives and also the lives 
  3. The story as Strategy, How Social Storytelling Leads to Business | Social
    Social Media Marketing Podcast 69, in this episode, Gary Vaynerchuk Gary shares why Storytelling is essential for your business.
  4. 5 Secrets to Use Storytelling for Brand Marketing Success – Forbes
    Learn the five secrets that brand storytellers understand and use, and indirect brand marketing initiatives have become a strategic priority.
  5. Integrate More Brand Storytelling in Your Content Marketing Strategy Jun 26, 2013 – Discover how your company can easily integrate characters and stories consumers want to share into your content, as well as examples.

Carrying my Fujifilm X-E2 every where I go–for a good reason

by Stanley LearyPhotography
Fujifilm X-E2 with 55-200mm, ISO 2500, ƒ/5.6 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld.

Being ready is why it is essential to take photos all the time. I tested my new FUJINON LENS XF55-200mmF3.5-4.8 R LM OIS on Sunday.

Cropped to about 100% from the photo above

My daughter’s choir was singing as well as the kindergarten class singing “Deep and Wide.” I was sitting on the balcony. You can get an idea of how far back I was with the photo below I took last year with my Nikon Coolpix P7000.

Nikon Coolpix P7000

Here is that photo above cropped at 100% approximately.

By shooting when I can for myself and not a client, I am building experience with the camera, and this results in my knowing what I can and cannot expect from the camera.

Fujifilm X-E2 with 55-200mm, ISO 2500, ƒ/5.6 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld.

I love the Fujifilm X-E2 from tests like this that I am doing. I am comparing it to the Nikon P7000 I carried all the time until I got the Fuji X-E2.

100% size cropped from the photo above.

I attribute the photo above blur to hand motion. I now know the shutter speed is up to 1/250 or faster when zoomed out. Better to know this now than with a job.

You need to know your camera like your stick shift car. You have to know when to make those adjustments so they are second nature, or just like a car, you could stall out and miss the moment.

I continue to play every day with my camera. I just went out one afternoon and played around near City Hall for Roswell, GA, near my house. So here are those photos for you to see as well. Can you tell I am having fun with this camera?

Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 640, ƒ/16 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld.
Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 1250, ƒ/16 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld.
Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/16 & 1/40 with OS turned on and handheld.
Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 800, ƒ/11 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld.
Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 1250, ƒ/11 & 1/125 with OS turned on and handheld, Macro mode.
Fujifilm X-E2 with 18-55mm, ISO 400, ƒ/11 & 1/420 with OS turned on and handheld.

Successful photographers focus on two things others do not

by Stanley LearyPhotography

Benjamin Franklin says he wasn’t sure if the painted image carved on the chair used by George Washington during the Constitutional Convention was a sun rising or setting. However, when the Constitution was finally approved and signed, he declared, “I have the happiness to know that it is a rising, not a setting sun.”

What Changed?

The key to seeing things in a positive light, like Benjamin Franklin, is to focus on the future and not on the past.

I cannot go to a single photographer forum online and not see a lot of heated, sometimes bitter debates going back and forth about how things used to be and how something has now changed.

Instead of people looking at how to go forward, they are looking for whom to blame.

Years ago, executives didn’t write their letters. They didn’t even have a typewriter. They had secretaries do all this for them. They dictated their letters and memos. I remember this being the case until the mid-1990s for many companies.

Then came along computers. It took a while for their adoption in the workplace. Executives today do all their correspondence for the most part and may have someone help if they are that busy and have the funds for the assistance.

I can see more and more executives in the future doing even more due to the ease of the technology to create.

Where professional communicators are going to be finding work in consulting and helping executives but doing the day-to-day work will disappear.

The problem is monetizing the new model of the future–whatever that will be, I don’t know.

Facebook is one of the ways I get a lot of news, and no, it isn’t all from newspapers. Instead, many are from Twitter feeds and people posting their content–what Patch is doing.

We need to quit bitching and complaining about the model we know is disappearing. Instead, we need to be relevant and create content that commands attention. Just because you have been shooting for 20 years does not mean everyone needs to hire you to accomplish their goals.

Stop overanalyzing what was and focus more on the clients and your audience. We have focused way too much on the subject and gear and forgotten what we create is for–an audience and a client.

1) Audience and 2) Clients

To get a job as a photographer, you must have a portfolio showing that you are what clients need to solve their problems today and in the near future.

You must first master the craft before people can hire you to shoot. The problem is that this is where most photographers stop in their growth.

Like their clients, most photographers’ problem is understanding what their audience wants and needs. Unfortunately, too many photographers focus so much of their attention on a subject that they are unaware that the audience doesn’t care about it, or just as bad that photographers are crowding the market shooting that subject that it is almost impossible to monetize that subject.

Great examples of two markets saturated with photographers are weddings and sports. Even with many in the market, it is not to say you cannot be highly successful, but just hanging a shingle out and offering photographic services will not make you successful.

Successful photographers are migrants.

A migrant is an itinerant worker who travels from one area to another in search of work.

If you are also willing to learn another language, you open the door to even more possibilities with your camera. While one town may have its market saturated with photographers, other communities worldwide do not. If you desire to stay where you are in the house you grew up in; then you may have to become quite creative to find or create the market for your talents.

When the Audience and Client are the same, this is when you have a Business a Customer [B2C] model. For example, B2C is the wedding photographers and most portrait photographers market.

When the Audience and the Client are separate, this is the Business to Business [B2B] model for a photographer. B2B is where the media, corporations, and small business use photography to reach an audience.

Whoever pays you is the Client. The audience is not always your Client.

The thing that is appealing about B2C is you only need to understand one group rather than two when doing B2B.

When you are staff, it is pretty easy not to understand the industry’s business side. Someone else, your employer, is taking care of it for you. Not knowing your business’s audience is where the lack of understanding can mean that your employer turns many of your ideas for subject matter down. For example, you fail to understand how this story has a Return On Investment. As a result, the idea you pitched lacks an audience. Start thinking like the publisher and connect with your audience; you will help grow the business.

“If you build it, they will come.” — Field of Dreams (1989)

“This is bad advice from the movie Field of Dreams. Why bad advice? Most startups focus so much on the product (building it!) that they forget about customers and network: Customers, because they need to pay for it, and network, because without a community of power fans around your startup, it will be very hard to scale.” — Scott Case, chief executive of Startup America and founder of Priceline

I love the movie Field of Dreams. There are some great things to learn from the movie, but I would have to agree with Scott Case on the odds of this model working.

Your success will determine if you are forward-thinking like a chess player. While you might still be starting, you must think and move ahead.

You can still have problems just like a chess player. But by planning and thinking about the Audience and Client, you are now focusing on your revenue stream and not just the fun of shooting photos.

How to make the change

Let’s say you have been photographing a subject for years and are an expert on it. For example, maybe you have been covering coffee as I have been.

Take a moment and write a list of all the people who would be interested in your subject. For example, here is mine on coffee.

  • Coffee Farmers
  • Coffee Cooperatives
  • Coffee Roasters
  • Restaurants
  • Coffee Industry
    • Trade Organization
    • Media for the market
  • Coffee Drinkers
You get the idea that there could be more to add to the list. So first, go back through the list and distinguish if a client or the audience. Further, break it down by identifying the audiences for each Client.
Here is an example:
  • Coffee Farmers’ Audience
    • Coffee Roasters
      • Cooperative
      • Local
      • International
    • Coffee Drinkers
      • They roast and sell directly
      • Providing content to their clients that help them connect to their customers [drinkers]
After doing this, you go and start looking for content that will help them. Then, when you pitch this to those clients and audiences, you do so with a hook that addresses the simple question-WHY?
The second question that follows the Why?–is the How? Question. How will this help the audience and connect with them?
Focus your action plans for your business on the audience and the Client to succeed.

Photographer how’s your memory?

by Stanley LearyPhotography

I bought some of the Case Logic hard drive cases, which I continue to use today. The cases outlast the drives.

Here is a link to those cases in Case you want them.

I haven’t done a lot of research on hard drives. I have read about which ones are doing well, but when I get to the store, often there are newer models available.

My preference is the firewire connection hard drives. But with the prices on these so high and the availability of choices so low, I have only a few of the firewire drives. Most of my drives are the newer USB-3 or, the older USB-2.

Whatever at the time is the largest hard drive with a competitive price is what I have been buying, and most of the time, I drive to Frys, which is close to my home in Roswell, GA.

Two external hard drives

When I travel, I always carry two external hard drives. One is a complete mirror backup of my Macbook Pro 15″ computer. I use SuperDuper! For cloning my hard drive. I do this about once a month. Usually, my next trip is what prompts me to back up

If I ever have trouble on the road, I can do a complete reinstall from this hard drive or launch from this hard drive by holding down the option key when starting my computer. In addition, by choosing the external hard drive, I can now run off of it. The advantage here is now I can run DiskWarrior to clean up any problems on my hard drive while I am on the road.

I have had to save my bacon more than once with this backup.

The other hard drive is for images and photos. So I ingest all my memory cards using PhotoMechanic; the destination is always the external hard drive.

I will leave you with one last tidbit. I also have CardRaider Photo Recovery when I need to recover images from my memory cards. I accidentally mixed cards up and formatted them before I ingested them. I thought I had one card in my hand and had reversed them. This software is for the Mac.