SEVEN Simple ideas worth Knowing

Dave Newman

Dave is a Fellow SWPP, the MPA and a PPA Master/Craftsman with the rare degree of PPA "API" (PPA Approved Photographic Instructor) and has presented several UK professional programs. An author of four books, he recently won the SWPP Overseas Photographer of the Year and received his award in Las Vegas. Dave teaches weeklong PPA courses in the USA and has an internship program in Salt Lake City. Successful seminars around the world (Korea 7 times) have filled much of his travel-teaching time. Dave Newman is coming to the UK to teach three seminars in May 2004 - 9th (Midlands), 10th (Northwest) and 11th (Scotland). These are not to be missed, it is a rare opportunity to learn from a master! Ed

Idea 1 - Better Digital Exposure - Colour

Here are some thoughts on quick and easy digital exposure, contrast and color balance with simple aids and devices. Some color labs are offering cardboard or paper "targets" to their customers who need help with digital control. Start with the simple use of a grey card, which can really help to gain very accurate exposure. Would you believe, experts are now saying digital cameras provide the most accurate exposure when using the histogram/gray card method, as the same model cameras seem to be inconsistent. Some photographers have developed their own personal testing (color chart) targets…this is great, if it works for you.

Recently I located a slick inexpensive item that saves me loads of time and gets me to correct contrast and removes strange colour casts while providing the most accurate digital exposure I have found. Lite-Balance is a simple 31" springtype reflector disc, which has on one side a soft silver reflector for use as a general reflector but with tricky digital target on the other side. One could easily adjust a digital image if present were those three sacred items: black, white and neutral gray. This target comprises a white and black contrast target plus an oversized 18% grey area section, which provides, via your camera’s histogram, a most accurate exposure reading (when adjusting and centering the histogram's singular spike). The Lite-Balance, when included into the first start-up frame, now provides a nifty little printing adjustment aid while using your computer's Adobe Photoshop. How does this work? Simply touch the appropriate Curves (or Levels) eye-droppers to the black, white and grey areas in of this start-up frame and while using the eye-droppers in Curves the image jumps into very simple contrast and color cast corrections. These changes can be saved and reloaded (Curves) to correct each new similarly lit image. Change to a new light source or location and one needs to use the target (Lite-Balance disc) once again.

Idea 2 Beat the No-Show Appointment Dilemma

Attention studio owner! Take my advice and set up this procedure with C this dilemma deals with the initial appointment phone call. It’s just a simple phone statement that ends your constant no-show problem ( which plagues us all on busy scheduled days). We were checking out our figures of the actual number folks who don't bother to call and cancel their appointment. Not arriving for their scheduled appointment is the demon. Well, we arrived at the striking sum of 22% of all booked appoints were not even bothering to notify us of their changed plans. Now, we never see these no-shows and rarely get cancelled with a phone call. How do we do it? Simply state this as you book the appointment: "We asked that you lock-in your studio appointment with a payment of your camera room charge at this time, which is X dollars; will that be credit card or do you wish to mail in a cheque!"

Even though I have degrees on three continents, loads of experience, and one of Americas best studio facilities, if a client has nothing to loose, why should they bother to call me and cancel. Doctors of medicine and even dentist are now billing for no-shows in their practice. In fact, this is where we received the idea for this concept. Appointment slots at my studio are often precious few, and this means money. So, the big secret or solution to this problem is simply to get the cash commitment upfront as the appointment is being booked. Folks don't mind locking in your time and your studio staff with cash as part of this appointment commitment. This actually makes most folks feel good about the solid commitment they now have with you. Then as an added bonus for your studio, you will have less "money talk" on the appointment day since the basic camera room charge is pre-paid. Its even much easier if you do add-ons, to this basic camera room charge, for extra requests, since the added fee will seem less burdensome at the actual session.

Idea 3 So you want Prints and Digital Images too

convinced" and they wish to capture groups and very important wedding shots and portraits on real film*. If your client, out of habit, or wishes prints to order from, you're now stuck with both digital files and prints. Well, here's a great solution to getting the print images into digital format quickly, with no cost to you at all. The HP Officejet V40 is allin- one machine which costs only around 100.00 US dollars and is able to fax, copy and scan and print. The totally cool concept here is that one can now drop a stack of 50 5x5 wedding prints, as an example, into the V40's tray and it will automatically scan each for online ordering or photo CDs or ??? The quality is marginal, but for providing quick usable low-resolution scan on each of your prints, it really works. We now can project or show digital images from film/print images together, all On-Line for those great Out of Town relative to order from, without having the costly film scans to purchase along with the 5x5 prints.

*Note: I consider a typical film 6x6 negative image akin or equal to a whopping 250 mb digital image.

Idea 4 Infrared Simplified

Over the years, I have found infrared photography to be a challenge. Focus was a problem, exposure was a challenge and the uncertain outcome was dodgy at best. Now, however, I have a much better feeling about the world of infrared since discovering this digital infrared system I'm about to unleash. This is fun stuff and, many times, adds the necessary excitement into the wedding or outdoor portrait session. Every exposure is now viewable on the cameras LCD screen. Everything seems to turn out with limited predictability and excitement. It's rather a challenge to see what the outcome is. To begin playing with infrared use a #87 filter over your lens (my experience stops with Fuji S2 and Nikon D1x…so this might or might not be a suitable formula for you and your camera), then set the camera ISO to 400. The camera must now be set to its black and white setting. The f-stop will vary so you might want to start with f-8 and go from there. Most often when using f-8 @ 400ISO I will be at about a 2 second exposure. Focusing is rather difficult since one can't view with the filter in place. Naturally, a tripod is necessary for such long shutter speeds. Vibrant green scenics with distant human forms, i.e., bride and groom full length at 50 ft, seem best for instant quality results. Infrared has always been well received as "funky", but now you don't have to wait a week to see if it really worked. Digital cameras have aided in the immediacy of results. Have some fun with this one!

Idea 5

Here's a super quick Adobe Photoshop adjustment for bringing an underexposed image into "healthy" range with just a click or two. The beauty of this quick method is the fact that it brings your underexposed image into a healthy lighter version of that image, without too great a loss of the range. Open your sick, underexposed, image file in Photoshop. Next, duplicate the background (do this in Layers tool panel) then, in this same Layers panel, go to the NORMAL drop-down menu and click on SCREEN, and POW! Wow, this is so cool, I can't believe it! If it seems to over compensate, go to levels and readjust the image. The beauty of this quick method is the fact that it brings your underexposed image into a healthy, lighter version of that image, with some optimum Photoshop magic, better than manually tweaking with levels or curves.

Idea 6

One of the dodgy areas of our business has been working with the "quick and dirty" head and shoulder only business portraits. This alludes to a salesman who wants the cheapest, fastest product you can hand him or her. The profit from this category of client is often questionable. Here's our recent profitable handling of this type of client. We attract this client with a competitive, low price. This is a brief, simple session with one 4x5 black and white retouched print. After the instant ULEAD selection session, offer the magic of a CD image as an option. They need a photo, but would crave a CD, which they would own. One image is then processed and retouched in black and white for a take-home CD. Color image would be at a higher price. You then explain that a CD can be used for many production areas and Is sold only with a COPYRIGHT release, sold at an additional price. Then explain that this is a very low resolution and suitable for web/internet use only and that a higher resolution can be purchased at a yet higher price. You total materials cost, for a digital image to CD, is now next to nothing. Now you have profit for your efforts. Handle this carefully and skillfully and you will see the profit you deserve and a load of satisfied clients.

Idea 7

Internet Website, worth the effort? How much do I love thee (websites) let me count the ways. Did you know that, other than third-world countries, websites, i.e., the internet, will create sales or at least influence buyers in about 30% of all sales in the years 2004 -2005? Wow! That's a whole lot of sales. But, does it work for a photographer? My answer is yes it does. Well, let’s take a look at some positive reasons for owning even a small website. 1. Provides map/address information to your clients. They can now find you. 2. Establishes your hours of operation. 3. Provides insights into your photographic emphasis, i.e., children, families, weddings, etc. 4. Provides visual "show off" arena for awards and ribbons and degrees. 5. Allows a place for your "picks of the week" an area, which you are constantly updating for client interest. We call clients to inform them that their family is our staff's pick of the week family. Clients, then, in turn call all their relatives and friends with the news to check out Newman Photography's web page. What an inexpensive form of advertising and referral. (Note: I would place into your webmasters contract that he train you to change the photos in-house, to avoid webmaster charges for this revolving client section of your web page. ) 6. Website or WebPages are very inexpensive, since, web hosting companies offer free "do it yourself" website construction that your 12 year old son or daughter can handle. One studio I know gave the project to a local school for experience and now has a great little website. 7. Obtaining web addresses from your clients allows your to do web mails and email advertising of you VIP specials. 8. You can also present your Mission Statement for all to read.

More Ideas

Next issue we plan to feature some of the images created by Dave Newman along with his lighting diagrams showing just how he set them up. We have also received a review model of the Lite Balancer and will give you more detailed information on how we found it in the studio. A good time also to talk about lighting ratios, a topic that has not been covered for a while but is essential for quality work.

Photo Quote: The world can only be grasped by action, not by contemplation. The hand is the cutting edge of the mind. Diane Arbus