Well, it is Valentine’s Day! Instead of buying cheap chocolate and out-of-season flowers for your hunny bunny, why not do something more meaningful and takes zero time?
By this, I mean: back up your wedding and portrait images onto a new media source.
Making a complete and new backup of your digital files will keep your images safe and readable for years to come. Generations later will want to see how young you were and how silly your clothing fashions are….
MP’s recommended procedure is to back up the entire event on a new DVD and also a new hard drive. Keep the DVD backup at work or some off-site location. Using a cloud service works great too. I use Dropbox and love it. Hard drives fail pretty regularly, so having another copy is ideal.
Copyright Law and terms:
Brief introduction to Copyright: http://www.templetons.com/brad/copyright.html
Offering clients a usage license allows me to maintain ownership of the copyright, while granting the client the right to use the images in a specific manner, for a specific purpose or during a specific time frame. Since McKay’s Photography maintains the copyright, a usage license gives MP the most flexibility in deciding which rights I am releasing to the client.
MP’s Reproduction Release allows former clients to make unlimited prints for personal use. The images are not allowed to be resold or used for commercial uses without further written permission. Any images used in web or print must credit McKay’s Photography or Heather McKay, even on Facebook.
Copyright myths de-bunked: http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html
Local Rochester photo labs:
Lumiere Photo: They print on fine art paper and will frame your piece. They are much cheaper and better quality than the chain stores, even with those 50% off coupons you see. Pat Cain is the master framer and he does such a great job that I let him pick the mats and frames every time. Tell him I sent you and he’ll take great care of you and he’ll show you my preferred frame choices (they are all eco-friendly and affordable).
Scott’s Photo: This is where I still get my film developed, yet they have self service kiosks as well. When using a self-serve kiosk, always ask if the prints are printed on traditional photo paper with chemicals. Matte finish is recommended.
Do not print my images on a dye-sub printer (instant prints). These dye-sub printers inside kiosks are the worst possible quality and extremely hard to calibrate for color, etc. Some labs can take your order on the kiosk and print traditionally. This is what I prefer. To make it even easier for the photo lab, create different folders on a USB drive or CD and name them according to what you want “one 4×6″ for example. If you make a folder of images that you want in each size, they can quickly run them off for you.
Do you know someone who has the digital files from their wedding and no album? I will create albums for any couple wishing to preserve their wedding in an heirloom wedding album that will last generations.
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Life is indeed a wild ride. As an RIT alumni, I was recently invited to participate in a panel discussion about the reality of life after college. I can’t even imagine my career had I sat in on this discussion when I was attending the Rochester Institute of Technology!
There is no way I would have believed you if you told me back then that I would return 16 years after graduating to pass along my wisdom. As a Wedding Photographer, no less!
The panel discussion was lively. With all different creative artists on the panel, I was struck most by how similar our stories and struggles are.
Panel Discussion Topics:
1. What is the biggest misconception about life after graduation?
2. How has your creative work changed? Did you notice a shift in perspective or belief after you were out of school?
3. What do you do to make money? Do you make a living selling your creative work?
4. Were you prepared for the realities of finding opportunities? (i.e. employment, exhibitions, clientele, access to studio space/equipment, etc.)
5. Explain the significance/importance of networking.
6. How do you come up with a pricing structure? What do you charge people for your work or your services?
7. What are your goals for the near future? And for the long term?
The highlights that I hoped the students would walk away with were:
* You don’t have to afford your own work
* Someone wants whatever you are selling – Find them
* Create trends, instead of following them
* Join professional organizations to learn pricing, marketing, business and networking
* Try to be humble, yet don’t hold yourself back
The panel artists were:
Peter Pincus http://peterpincus.com/
Mahlon Huston http://www.mahlonhuston.com/mahlonhuston.com/HOME.html
Andrew Cho http://www.theandrewchoartshow.com/index.html
Bradley and Sarah Butler http://thebutlerstudios.com/
Romy Hosford http://romyhosford.net/
Myself, Heather McKay http://mckaysphotography.com
Thank you Bradley Butler for inviting me to participate. I hope that someone found some value in whatever I had to offer the discussion. At the very least, it was nice for me to meet the other artists and some students afterward!
Was there a favorite nugget that you received that night? Any insights since? What do you wish you could share with someone else??? Please use the comments below to continue the discussion!
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I just returned from a week in New Orleans for Imaging USA, the annual convention for the Professional Photographers of America. Several of my Rochester and PPSNYS colleagues attended and it was fun, warm and motivating.
The last time that I was in New Orleans was in 1997, for Mardi Gras, so this was quite a different trip. The days were sunny and a perfect 72 degrees. As you can imagine, we all walked a lot and photographed all of the little vignettes of the French Quarter, cemeteries, the trolley car and more.
Thanks to everyone who gave me great tips on where to eat and what to see while there. I even tried fried alligator! Thank you, Chris, for the extra photos of me….
The professional highlights of the trip were:
* Cheering as my good friends, Patrick Luke and Deb Woodard, received their Craftsman degrees. Many of you know Pat, as he is my super awesome Second Photographer/Assistant/Lighting Guru for some weddings.
* Cheering as friend, Dana Shaffer (of Fort Plain), received her Masters degree.
* Cheering as my biggest fan, Chris Kogut, received a Silver Grand Imaging Award for her International Print Competition successes.
* Attending classes about marketing my Certified Professional Photographer designation, and an intimate class by Allison Rodgers about running successful charity events.
* Mentoring several newly minted Professional Photographers.
* Finally figuring out how to make Twitter work for business/networking.
* Photographing the streets with other talented Photographers.
* Getting out of the trade show without buying ONE thing, yet made new connections for Greener Photography.
Congratulations to Chris, Pat, Deb & Dana on their hard work and recent awards! It was an honor to be there as your cheering section. Sitting in the awards ceremonies made me so proud to be a PPA member. Below right, we are using the Flashlight App on the iPhone to light Chris so I could take a picture! Fun!
Personal highlights of the trip:
* seeing a bicycle tricked out with Mardi Gras beads!
* strolling through an old cemetery near sunset
* walking every day
* having a latte and beignets at Cafe du Monde
* getting my Tarot cards read in Jackson Square
* making so many new friends
* walking around the streets with a beer!
* meeting a Photographer at the French Market who did a movie documentary about train hopping and their culture (Cure for the Crash). The soundtrack uses all hobo bands. I purchased the soundtrack and the movie and received a free photograph as a bonus! The soundtrack, “Listerine on Sundays” is amazingly good. Luckily, it is all music that I am really into right now.
Fun Fact: One of my past Portrait Clients, turned Professional Photographer…. Kiera Slye came to the convention with us to learn how to start and grow her business. She is sharp as a tack and will be very successful. We’ve met several times over the years, because I’ve known her Grandfather since I was 19 or 20. As I’ve been thankful for my early mentor, I’m happy to now be able to mentor someone else….
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Happy New Year!
Today was the first real day of winter in Upstate NY, so I finally grabbed my snowboard and headed to Bristol Mountain for some morning shredding…
Last year, I was able to ride a lot in December, so this was a much anticipated day for me. Also, I finally got to try out my new snowboard bindings that I scored for free!
This was the beautiful sky from my first run:
The image was from my brand new iPhone 4s, which I purchased this past Fall. Many more images and posts to come, I’m sure. I’m learning how to blog from the iPhone, using WordPress, so be patient with the quality or formatting. Hopefully the ability will help me keep the ‘ol blog more up to date!
Trisha, you were right! Having an iPhone is awesome! Maybe if I’d had an iPhone instead of a Blackberry, I would have never rebelled against cell phones last year.
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