Anticipating Change

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Digital media (such as photography & video) is and has been a fast growing field, and it doesn't seem to be slowing down. Technology is making it easier and easier for the average joe to take a good picture. So how would the professional photographer be able to survive in an over-saturating field like photography or video?

My prediction is since photography & video is becoming easier to capture, soon (if it hasn't already happened) there will be an expectation to be able to do both. There is a consistent reoccurring pattern, as technology grows so should the skill sets of industry professionals. Besides having my own personal reasons, this is why I strive not to just master photography but video as well. Professional photographers are dying, professional media generators are thriving.

In addition, I anticipate a hunger for people to learn how to capture better images since more people have the ability. I'm currently honing my teaching skills to so I can be a better instructor to those who want to learn to capture quality media.

Anticipate where trends will go, think hard about where people will be in the near future and how you can hone your skills now to accommodate them. In a fast moving field like digital media; if you wait until the new standard is set to catch up, by the time you catch up you have fallen behind.

Know what your clients want now, as well as what they will want in the future

Simply providing a client with what they want is good, but not the best business practice. If you can expand what they want with what they could have, then you're leaving the door open for more work in the future. The truth is, most of the time the client doesn't know what they want because they barely know what is possible. It is you're job to inform them of the scope of possibilities.

I recently had meeting with a client which initially only wanted a short 3 minute promo video. By the end of the meeting they were convinced to start with a 2 minute promo, fallowed by an additional 10 minute in depth descriptive video to be produced later on. By using the strategy just mentioned I effectively increased their initial budget and potentially doubled the amount I could earn from the client.

Compromise is the essence of doing business

While reading Chapter 5 in The ASMP Guide to New Markets In Photography I'm slowly discovering how important it is to stay in the business mindset while working with clients, especially when it comes to pricing and usage rights. Almost everything has a price as well as a middle ground. Clients may want full limitless usage rights, but they also don't want to spend a lot. It becomes your job to explain they why they can't have both as well as come up with compromising options so you don't chase them away. The compromise is essentially the essence of doing business. Thus when doing business, you should always be able to come up with a fair compromise that doesn't lower your worth.

"new technology will continue to create new styles"

I'm constantly told "a technique is not a style", being able to decipher between the two seems to be key when talking about work. The reading this week keeps eluding to the fact that new technology or technique can become someones "style especially if they happen to be one of the firsts to utilize the technology first.

I personally always strive to learn/discover new and creative ways to capture images. Technology is one of these avenues that I'm constantly checking out. However, I always try not to be awestruck for the "New" factor within technology and focus more on what it can do. I find there are plenty of techniques and technologies that have often been lost in time which are still underutilized. Digital filters are all too commonplace now-a-days, I love the organic honest look of discovering your own real life filter such as a translucent fabric and shooting it within the camera.

“Brand is how people percieve you, not how you tell them you are” — Colleen Wainwright, The ASMP guide to new Markets in Photography

There has been a lot of reading about branding this week. What intrigues me the most is this notion that you can create / control your brand. To me it seems like the only way to “create” your brand is not to focus about creating a brand, but to focus solely on what you enjoy or are passionate about. Others dictate what your brand is, you basically have no say in the matter other than choosing what to show them. So show them only the work you love

Always have something handy to jot down notes & ideas

The ASMP guide to new Markets in Photography tells you to always have something handy so you can jot down notes and ideas. I've been doing this for quite a while now, even before I did this reading. The hard part is constantly trying to stay organized with all these random ideas. Organization often gets pushed to the side for more pressing issues like assignment deadlines. I've come to accept creativity will always bring a bit of chaos with it, the best I can do is make sure it's at least livable.

“A specific vision, style, or point of view directed toward a particular passion or interest is our one true unique offering” — Susan Carr, The ASMP guide to new Markets in Photography

I came across this quote within one of my assigned readings. The overall article talked about how to make a living in a content saturated field such as photography. A difficult task considering now-a-days your not just competing against your peers within your profession, but also amateur photographers as well. The fact is there are many photographers out there that can produce high quality images. To separate yourself above the rest, you need both skill and a unique vision. A skill can be learned, but a unique vision is driven solely by your own natural curiosity.