The Pro Photo Business Forum

Each week the PPBF gives its readers a new challenge designed to help their studios grow. Sometimes the assignment involves shooting, and sometimes the assignment calls for a particular action to be taken. Whatever the assignment, you can be sure we will do our best to help you grow as a professional photographer, and not just as a photographer.

Congratulations to Last Weeks Challenge Winner, Jonathan L Golden Photography!

Jonathan has won three moths of free access to the PPBF and to the Swag Bag! In addition, Jonathan has also won a $50 gift certificate to be used on his next order to BWC! Congratulations Jonathan!

This Week’s Challenge: Round!

A simple project this week… or is it? Photograph a round object, but light it in such a way as to make it’s round shape greatly apparent.

We have two prizes this week!!!!

First Place Prize:  A FREE copy of “Social Media Marketing for Photographers” by Jeff Smith!!!!

In my book, Social Media Marketing for Photographers you will learn how to create content that reflect the right image of you and your business, while linking all of your internet marketing resources together to convert potential clients as quickly as possible.

- Jeff Smith

Second Place Prize: $50 off your next regular priced Leather Craftsmen Print and Bind Album. Offer expires 10/1/10. Contact david@leathercraftsmen.com to redeem.

How To Enter:

1) Complete the assignment and place the results on your own blog, linking back to the challenge post.

2) Post a comment on this blog entry that you have completed the assignment with a link back to your blog entry. A link will be posted at the bottom of this assignment pointing back to your blog entry, thus creating a reciprocal link and helping with your SEO.

3) The winner of the assignment will be posted in the following weeks assignment.

We would love it if you can place the Weekly Challenge Icon at the beginning of this post in your blog post to show your readers your participation in the weekly challenge.

Here are the entries for this week’s Weekly Challenge!

No entries have been entered….. yet. Be the first!

Every professional photographer knows the importance of backup gear.  At least two cameras, two flashes, two lenses, etc.  And I submit that most professionals have way more gear than that.   However, the other night as we were preparing for a Wedding a thought came to me.

Let’s set a scenario right quick:  It’s Friday night, 5PM.  You’re getting your equipment together for tomorrow’s Wedding in which you need to arrive at 9AM.   You’ve cleaned your lenses, formatted your CF cards, verified time and location, and are working on charging batteries.   You take the batteries out of your cameras and insert one of them into its charger….. and nothing happens.  You chuckle to yourself as you remember you need to turn on the power-strip that the charger is connected to… except.. it’s already on.   Perplexed, you switch batteries on the charger with no avail. You come to the realization that your battery charger is no longer working.  You do have a back-up, right?

Now.. if you’ve purchased two similar cameras at retail, then you most likely have two identical chargers… regardless of the brand.   I chose not to sell my extra chargers because it made my task of charging all the batteries that much simpler.  But as I was looking at the charging table we have set up at the studio – I thought about how problematic it could be to not be able to charge batteries the night before a wedding or big event.

Fortunately, many cameras that accept battery grips have AA battery attachments that can be used to power the cameras.  But, that assumes that you know where that attachment is.  However, full body professional cameras rely on their brand specific batteries for power with no other (easy) alternatives.

I’ve attached an iPhone photo of my charging station that I’ve temporarily made for our studio.  Since we’re still settling in after a big move – this will be a little more permanent as soon as I find the appropriate place for it.  Until then – you can see the redundancy we have in battery charging, which allows us to recover from a problem should one ever occur.

One final note, we keep our chargers unplugged when not in use.  This saves on the minuscule bits of power they use when not actively charging – and also helps to prevent any stray power surges from wiping out our entire collection of chargers.

It may not seem important at first and I’m sure it doesn’t happen often – but small bits of preventative action can save you loads of stress down the road.

Each day we clean the studio. All the lights are put up, and the cords wound and put in their places. The cameras are placed in the safe. Our presentation room is cleaned.

This way, when our first session of the day comes in, we start fresh. The selected background is rolled out for just that client. The lights are put out for just that client. The camera is assembled for just that client.

It may not be the most efficient way of doing things, but for that customer, we are providing custom customer service.

Lucky you. You’ve received an inquiry about your wedding photography services. Nice!

You immediately reply back via email… only to be greeted by the sound of crickets. A day later you reply again, and still nothing. One more time? Sure. Why not.

At some point though, you’re going to draw the line and give up on that lead. You walk away scratching your head wondering where you went wrong.

But wait! Don’t through that lead away. Why not refer the lead to your friends? You do have friends in your area that shoot wedding also don’t you? Why not refer that lead to your friends? They may have better luck, and refer you back in turn.

Each week the PPBF gives its readers a new challenge designed to help their studios grow. Sometimes the assignment involves shooting, and sometimes the assignment calls for a particular action to be taken. Whatever the assignment, you can be sure we will do our best to help you grow as a professional photographer, and not just as a photographer.

Congratulations to Last Weeks Challenge Winner, Michael Bromley Photography!

This Week’s Challenge:

Create An Executive Portrait!

When I went to college, I already knew I was put on this planet to be a photographer. My goal was simple. When I graduated, I wanted to be so prepared that I could take on any kind of photographic assignment. Food, architecture, family, landscape.

Well, this is what I want this month’s challenge to do for you. This is the PRO Photo Business Forum. If you are an amateur photographer, then this is going to bring you one step closer to becoming a professional, and unless you are an extremely successful professional photographer, you are going to need to take whatever kind of job comes your way. So lets get you prepared.

This week, I want you to photograph an Executive Portrait. Your finished portrait does not have to be created in a studio. It can be done in someone’s office, or wherever you like for that matter. It should be sellable.

Approach this assignment like a real shoot. Not that it is part of the contest, but I want you to also think about how you will be delivering this image to your client. Will it be on a DVD, or will you send them a link allowing them to download their image directly from their computer? How long a turnaround time will you promise your finished product in?

First Place Prize:  Three Months of Free Access to the PPBF.

If you are already a member, then your current subscription will be extended by an additional three months. Access will also be granted to all the goodies in The Swag Bag!

Our first place winner will also receive a $50 lab credit to BWC Photo Imaging! This can of course be used to produce prints for your client from your Executive Portrait session.

How To Enter:

1) Complete the assignment and place the results on your own blog, linking back to the challenge post.

2) Post a comment on this blog entry that you have completed the assignment with a link back to your blog entry. A link will be posted at the bottom of this assignment pointing back to your blog entry, thus creating a reciprocal link and helping with your SEO.

3) The winner of the assignment will be posted in the following weeks assignment.

We would love it if you can place the Weekly Challenge Icon at the beginning of this post in your blog post to show your readers your participation in the weekly challenge.

Here are the entries for this week’s Weekly Challenge!

Houston Photographer Jonathan Golden has completed the challenge!