farbled

Posted By admin on June 19, 2009

I might have mentioned previously that business is slow for me. It’s true, for a number of reasons. While the recession really has wreaked havoc amongst my client base, the simple fact of the matter is that I do not have enough time these days to actively (and aggressively) pursue new leads. Sounds like a cop out eh? I agree for the most part, but here it is:

I spent all of last year starting and building my small business, I spent oodles of money on equipment, insurance, licences and marketing. Oodles! I had a modestly successful year, but at the end of it we realized that I needed to bring in more income in order to make ends meet. So back to work I went as a temp. Seven months later, here I am, still temping.

I work out most days after work as part of my “get healthier” campaign. It seems to be working, I’m looking fitter most days, although sometimes I overdo it and I get a sharp reminder that I am not healthy yet (I have some ongoing issues that affect my stamina and strength).  After work I head home, we do some chores, make dinner, eat and then relax for a little. But this time its well after 7 or 7:30pm. If I am lucky, I spend an hour catching up on emails and/or trying out some lighting/photo stuff. By then its time to call it a day, we watch tv or read or surf, then its off to bed. For me to call customers and leave messages by then would just be counterproductive.

Weekends allow me some freedom to do some photo shoots to keep my hand in. I’ve been lucky to have some good friends who pose, plus a few places that ocassionally allow me to shoot their products for stock and practice. I have also been somewhat lucky at my temp job. I do some volunteer photography and also a paid gig here and there. So there is work, and I do look for it. Just not as hard as last year.

I’ve also gotten some repeat work from customers including some events.  I’m getting fairly profficient with event shooting. Still not as expert as I’d like to be, but good enough to show the difference between pro and amateur.

What does it all mean? Well, we have some big plans in the next few years that require me to work consistently for now. I’ll still do as many photo related things that I can, but even photography is taking a bit of a backburner to work. Obviously, if I can find a full time photo gig I’ll jump at it, as I do with any other photo gigs that I can do outside of work.

I’m also in with a stock agency that specializes in construction and industrial shots. They like my photos and I have a small, relatively unexplored niche that they (and I) hope to tap into with their customers. I’ve just given them my first submission (no fancy FTP programs for them, its a DVD off to the UK full of images). Now I wait and go get more photos to submit.

Also, after a depressing winter without taking many photos, I’ve decided to enroll in the Strobist bootcamp this season. The hard part is finding another photog who wants to collaborate (some assignments require 2 photographers if at all possible). If you’re local and interested, drop me a line!

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Posted By admin on June 18, 2009

So I found out Gadget Infinity came out with a new batch of radio triggers this spring, they look pretty cool and the reviews seems to be positive about them. I use the older V2 triggers (the days when I can afford Pocket Wizards are still far away unfortunately) and they work ok, but I find them awkward and clunky. These new ones look like they will be much better/easier to use.  And they’re only 40$ plus shipping. Not bad!

In other news…

Yesterday I was walking with the missus when a couple of punks walked past and forced us off the path while making rude gestures (to put it mildly).  Stupid 20-somethings. I felt (and do feel) quite upset that I could not do anything. Not that I would either, not with the missus with me, and not for something stupid like that. But its still a sharp reminder that when you are not built big, people assume they can walk on you. I’ve had that happen my whole life, and while I used to be quite good at fighting when I was younger, time and scars have worked against me. Sad to see that for all our advances, might still makes right. Punks… 

I’m back on Facebook again. I keep trying to quit and I’ve closed my account a few times already, but I keep coming back. I am not entirely sure why, I have few friends, and I don’t allow any applications. I suppose I should get more into the whole social networking side of things, but its exhausting just thinking about it. That’s why I blog.

I used to have a blog over at blogspot back in the day when everyone had one. It was quite popular and I had a pretty good circle going, I had amazing stats (for writing about nothing much) and I could always find a rant or two in me to keep things lively. I’ve been trying to get back into writing again, but its slow going (as you can see).

I’ll keep plugging away, sooner or later inspiration will hit.

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Posted By admin on June 17, 2009

I just purchased an extension tube on ebay last week. I’m hopeful that it arrives soon so that I can practice with it in anticipation of a shoot I’m doing at a local university. They are kind enough to let me come in and shoot mineral close-ups in their earth sciences museum and displays. Then I sell them for stock. they get some great images, I get some lucrative stock photos. Win-win.

However, new and specialized equipment is currently beyond my means. So usually I shoot with my 17-55 and crop, or go in with my 50mm with a lens adapter on the end (another ebay find). I have a x3 magnifier that does an adequate job. The DOF is pretty awful, but if I use a strobe instead of constant light I can go to an F11 or better and get more of what I’m shooting in focus. Hopefully, this new extension tube should do the same thing, without the shallow dof (see photo below for an example of the magnifier).

In any event, I’ll have a few more options available to me, and I’m looking forward to it.

In other news I finally inked a deal with a UK photo company that specializes in industrial photos. I have often felt like my niche was missed in the mainstream stock and microstock markets, so it’ll be nice to get into somewhere that has specific uses for rebar caps and hoists and industrial safety gear.

On the homefront the garden is growing like gangbusters (I love alliteration). It won’t be long before the neighbours get envious about our tomatoes. This year we’re doing string beans and peas too. Should be fun. I never knew I’d be someone who enjoyed gardening. Oh well.

I have also got in touch with a model who used to pose for me “ago”. She’s back in town and hopefully, we can get together for another shoot. I had an idea for something more industrial and I have all the props to go with it. Should be fun if we can agree on a time (damn scheduling!).

That’s it for now!

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