Shooting in the Capital Episode 2: Two Great Shoots, Love This City, Keeping Photography Simple

Hey All,

Sorry for the delay in this blog entry, things have been getting really busy - and even though I pretty much touched base on this very topic in the last blog - determination and professionalism keeps me working at this in a positive light.

The day before I left to return home, I had set up two shoots with some models.  One was a young and talented newcomer named Anna Chernykh, Anna was a natural and a joy to shoot, she's shown below:

My second model was Sarah Foley,  Sarah was great to shoot with, she had terrific energy and new what the camera liked.  See her images below.

I totally loved Ottawa, it is truly a great city to visit and live in.  There is a wide variety of culture, knowledge and people there from all over the world and it all comes together in a unified way.

Just as a sidenote, my flight back was great, white clouds, sunshine.  That is, until we landed, there was a windstorm at home and I could literally feel the plane slide sideways in the air as we were landiing.

I'm planning a new photography clinic next month, and I am taking a very different approach to it than my past clinics.  Simplification.  That is key in teaching anything.  So NO LCD tv screen with visuals - all visuals will be hands-on tools.  Experience with equipment will cement the information in these classes. 

Below is the ad I created for the class, I hope you can attend.

That's all for today, chat you later on the busy projects coming this month!

Michael Carty
www.wix.com/michaelcarty/photography

Shooting in the Capital Episode 1: Planes Falling, Great City, American Embassy

It was a pleasant drive in the new EDGE.  The sun was shining, the tunes were playing, I had everything I needed for this almost 1200 km trip to the capital of my beloved Canada.

After stopping to a few places along the way, buying books and having a bite to eat, we finally made our way to the airport to complete my check-in.  My mothers boyfriend Terry helped me with my bags and the nicest receptionist at the desk informed me of the precautions taken in case my luggage didn't arrive at the same destination as I.  She then assured me with the utmost seriousness that that situation would NOT happen.  Believing now that if my baggage were to get on the wrong plane, that this lady of aeronautical authority would fly them back to me safe and sound - even if it meant she would flap her own arms to do it - Terry, my mother and my wife settled down in the airport pub for a last minute bite to eat.

The tomato bisque was DELICIOUS, seriously it was.  The giant slice of cheesecake with drizzled chocolate syrup on it was even better.

Anywho, after all that good stuff, I grabbed my carry-ons, said goodbye to mom and Terry, kissed my wife(I got a little misty here) and started towards the gate.  Security was very thorough and professional, and yet they were also very friendly - which was nice.  The plane was a little cramped, but the service was excellent.  Our craft rolled speedily down the runway and took flight, reaching speeds of over 600kms/hour.  It was a great view, and I would've said that it was an excellent flight, except for the turbulence.

Now turbulence isn't anyones fault.  It happens and you have to deal.  I haven't been on a plane since i was 15 years old, and since this was my 31st birthday it had been a while.  It would've been okay if we only hit one pocket, but we hit 5 consecutive pockets of turbulence spread out evenly over the entire 1.5 hour flight.  NOT FUN.  Let me just say that there are different degrees of turbulence.  Little bumps.  Big, jarring bangs.  Sudden drops of 200ft before you slam into a high pressure system below.  Luckily - and I use this term loosely - I was somewhere between the first two.  I would describe some of it as hydroplaning a car, the back end swinging out a bit to the side and then righting yourself again.  Still:  NOT FUN.

Needless to say, I was white-knuckling my tray, sweating profusely, thinking of my wife and unborn child that I so foolishly left behind, and reflexively starting to make a deal with ANYBODY who would make the plane stop bouncing, before cutting myself short because I would realize that I would never come through with my end of the deal.  After chatting with Tom, my flight-mate in the seat next to me(he's a veteran flyer who has often seen those 200ft drops in elevation and shrugged them off), I survived the trip without snapping and sending the entire group of passengers in to hysteria(thx again Tom!).  I arrived just before 8pm(7pm Eastern), kissed terra firma like a lost lover and continued on to the baggage claim.

**SIDE NOTE**
You know when the flight attendant thanks you for flying with them and tells you to watch your head as you disboard?  Well it's good to listen to the "watch your head" part because I almost got a concussion trying to hurry out of there.

I was tired but excited to be here, Ottawa; the Washington of Canada and the home of most of Karsh's work.  I was already impressed before I arrived.  Most of you probably don't know that it has the second highest quality of living of any city in the Americas and is the third cleanest city in the world.  I can tell you that the facts are true.  Out being the tourist today, I commented on how clean it seemed, even the air seemed extremely clear for what you would expect from a major city.  It feels safe too, safer than any city that I have been in, and after some stat checking - I found out that it IS.

The culture is incredible, the food is a explosion of flavor and the people are diverse and yet cohesive.

My uncle's picked me up and we drove to their incredibly fantastic home where my Uncle Gerry fed me gin and tonics until I went to bed(bless his heart, he makes the best gin and tonics).

As I mentioned earlier, I did the tourist thing and below you will find a few of the shots I took, of course there will be the generic shots of the hill, but I tell you they are incredible feats of architecture.  Tomorrow we are off for some more shooting, I got close to the impressive and depressing American embassy.  I have to say, it is the ugliest building that I have ever seen - it looks like a prison, seriously.  If you don't believe me I promise to get a good shot of it tomorrow.  From what I hear, the paranoia is so great that if I went to the front door to snap a shot, security would probably detain me after smashing my camera to bits.

That's all I have for now, time to go eat some lemon pie and drink some wine, later folks!!

Below: The Prime Ministers office is on the third floor

Below:  Canada Revenue - Boo!

Below: An eight-legged freak attacked the city

Below: Oh jeez, it doesn't like its picture taken!!

Your Art And Your Health

Now I'm not sure if this is something that a lot of people in the business talk about, but I have noticed - from a handful of photographers at least - that exercise or at least keeping an active lifestyle can mean the world to them.

There are a few reasons for this, the obvious being that you are healthier, you have more energy, positivity and - believe it or not - creativity.  I personally try to stay as active as I can, not only is it good for me but I actually like keeping busy.  I do occasionally hit those walls, days that I just don't feel like doing anything, but the least that I can do is run.  Running is freedom, easy and challenging, requires no equipment(unless you count running shoes), can be done with others or alone, is meditative and is self-competitive.  When I say self-competitive, what I mean is that you can completely compete with yourself, with what you've ran before, for time, distance, whatever.

Now what the hell does this have to do with photography or any other type of art?  Well, let's think about this for a second.  I'm healthier and happier, which are definately big pluses when dealing with clients, models, assistants and people in general.  What about your family?  Do you have children?  Do you find that if you are happy at home you will be happier at work - and vice verca?  Say you are an action photographer, would it be easier to hike up a mountainside or through brush if you were fit instead of flab?  The answer is a big, emphatic YES.

Also, leading neurobiologists agree that the added bloodflow from cardio exercise, in addition to specific chemicals released(and others whose levels are decreased) increases brain function, which can help us be more productive, less prone to mistakes which saves time, and allows us as artists to better create images of higher quality.

Let's face it, we spend hours behind the lens of our cameras, or putting make-up and doing hair for models, or even sitting getting these things done as models.  We also spend hours reading up on the latest technologies, techniques, styles, etc etc etc.  Photographers(unless they hire photowizards) also spend hours on their computers, transferring files, backing them up, processing and posting images.  We all also spend hours updating, texting, messaging, emailing, networking, posting, blogging, tweeting and a thousand other things in front of a computer screen.  So if we spend so much time on all of these things, I would say that setting aside some time for our health is crucial not only to ourselves and our well being, but our business, its growth, and our families and our futures with them.

I want to know what you do to keep active.  Do you run?  Lift?  Greeko-Roman wrestling?  Do you do nothing and disagree with my opinion?  I WANT TO HEAR IT!!

Last week I promised images, well I do have images, but you will have to check them out on the link below:

www.wix.com/michaelcarty/photography

This is my new(and favourite) website, I love it, it rocks, it is so easy to control and change.  I hope you like it and send me a message sometime to tell me what you think of it or if you would like to work together.

Later players

Why The Hell Did It Take So Long to Write This Blog? And Inspiration.

That's the first thing that I thought of when I sat down to write this.  So why the hell did it take so long for me to write this blog?  Short answer: Life.

Long answer:  I hope you're sitting down because this answer will be half of this blog.

I don't have to explain how life gets in the way of your goals sometimes.  You want to exercise in the evening, but you had a long day at work.  You want to eat better, but you have no time to cook.  Etc, etc, etc...

The important thing is not to get discouraged when these things happen.  Life happens, as they say(whoever they are), and instead of beating yourself up for what you're not doing, you should plan on when you will do them.

See that?  Well no you wouldn't, but after I finished that last paragraph, I was distracted by an episode of Doctor Who on television and then I switched over to The Biggest Loser.  But thank the gods for the 'mute' button, or I would probably still be staring at the tv with a stunned look on my face and not continuing this blog.  That's life too though, the unexpected, the path that's tangent from our plans, and when these things occur we should take it as it is; life happens.

So that's the 'why' to the question, but what was the 'what'(I understand there was no 'what', but I'm doing it anyways)?

This week(like most) has been a little hectic and stressful.  I'm scheduling and rescheduling shoots, work is busy and stressful, I'm still planning out my trip to Ottawa and trying to create a more minimilistic home and lifestyle before our baby gets here(I know it's 7 months away, but it's 7 months away!!)  I could've just passed this weeks blog, but I really am committed to it, to you, and to my life and how I wish to live it.  The good thing is is that this is not something that will be normally happening.  I will not have week after week of late blogs.  You see, the later a blog gets written - the less time I have before I have to write the next blog.  So it's designed to be in my best interest to keep it on schedule.

That's the first part of this blog.  The next?  Inspiration(which was the original blog topic).

First I'd like to thank Fallen "Kittie" Matthews(http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Ffallenkittie.blogspot.com%2F&h=823ca) for giving me this topic, she is a talented model from the Halifax area.  Great idea Fallen, thx again.

So inspiration, where does it come from?  Where do you get it?  Can you get it on command?  Anyone would love to know the secret to finding the muse, whether you're a designer, writer, photographer, painter, etc.  The funny thing is is that like most questions like this, the answers that we look everywhere for are within us.  So what inspires you?  Looking at artwork?  Listening to music?  How about something that has nothing to do with what you want to accomplish?  A 5 or 10km run, playing with your kids or even having a nap.  I've done all of these things(well not playing with my kids, but I am working on it) and gained not only inspiration but concrete ideas and concepts that fill me full of ambitious energy and excitement.  Personally, I would choose anything that I love to do(besides photography), that enjoyment bleeds into my work and somehow helps my creativity. 

My best advice, in case none of these things interest you, is to keep special attention to when you are inspired or suddenly get that instant stroke of genius.  What were you doing?  Maybe there are a few things that you do when the muse visits you.  Remember what you were doing at the time for when you get a block again or even just to get your mind in the right zone for creativity.

Most people that I have talked to say that music is a huge influence on their creativity, and I totally agree.  Music can influence emotion and this will access memories, which in turn will enhance the emotions that we feel.  Depending on the type of music, I could sit and let my mind dance to the tune, my imagination creating images of scenes that could be heartbreaking, terrifying or joyous.

So what inspires you?  Any of these things or something else?  Let me know, and try not to let life get in the way of living.  I'm going to get some images here in the next one, so no worries.

Now back to Biggest Loser...

Finding a Niche as a Photographer

When one wants to be any type of professional photographer, a good piece of advice is to find your niche.  Choosing a niche is important for a number of reasons;  it gives focus on your subject matter and client demographic, it assists in promoting yourself to the public with a clearer sense of what you do and it better organizes your business plans.

Your niche is the type of photography that you wish to specialize in.  It can be difficult to many new photographers which niche to choose from since most like to make photographs of a multitude of topics.  An important thing to remember is that choosing your niche does not mean that you can't shoot other subject matter, just that you specialize in a specific type and that is what your business primarily works on.

I'd like to note that many photographers never choose a specific niche, are labelled as "generalized", and still find success in their work. 

Having a genre to work towards creates a better focus on what you are doing in your business, you gain a better sense of what to shoot and who to approach with your work.  This can save a lot of time and planning, it also has the potential of increasing your skill in said niche since there will be less time spent on other genres.

So, just for example, you want to shoot portraits.  What does this mean?  Well it creates a specific client base:  grads, families, models.  Since people are the main subject in this niche, you could also use this to bleed into related genres, like fashion and commercial photography.

Any comments?

Cheers

I'm Pregnant and the Importance of Social Media for your Photography

Well yeah, I guess the title says it all.  My wife and I are pregnant with our first child, due in May, and I can't wait - really, I can't.  That also means that I need to work my ass off as much as possible in my craft and business because I'm sure my spare time will drop to a minimum once he or she arrives.  So does anyone have advice?  Some sage-like knowledge, first-hand possibly on raising children and still finding time to keep the work going? I'd love to hear some.

Now social media, you know: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc, etc, etc....  I bet a lot of you out there have a pretty good idea on how important it is to your business, no matter what it is.  But just to show you some stats on how powerful and all-encompassing social medias are between you and your clients, I have a video that was shown to me by Justin Hyslop, a Field Marketing representative from Samsung Electronics Canada Inc., whom I met this past weekend at a Bell dealer conference.  Justin is the only rep at this conference that I really had any extended dialogue with and I have to say that his was by far the best planned and receptive presentation there.  I'd like to share this video with you now, and believe me, you will be completely entertained:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFZ0z5Fm-Ng

So hopefully you've watched this before continuing to read on, otherwise you won't nearly grasp the real impact that social media can do for(or against) your work.

Communication is key in every business, and every type of communication or social media is another way into your potential clients lives.  But that's not all.  It's also how you use the social media that makes the big difference in the impact that it will have on your business.  Alec Brownstein is a talented writer and director who used Google AdWords in an out-of-the-box way to score a job with Y&R in New York.  To see the "Google Job Experiment"(and I highly suggest you do, if only to bask in the simplicity of this idea) click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FRwCs99DWg&feature=player_embedded

Amazing eh?  Is it getting through?  Social media(any and all) is the advertising of now and the future, customer testimonials are the ad slogans and guarantees, consumers will not trust the company completely, why should they?  But clients will always trust(more so anyways) previous clients word because the testimonials are from clients who gain nothing from your businesses success or failure.  They tell it how it is, from their perspective and from their experience.  Social media is practically a stewpot of testimonials.  Not just of business, but life itself.  What do you think tweets or status updates are?  What are wall posts and links?  These are all opinions, of people telling other people what they think.  They are testimonials, personal or professional.  So use that knowledge, and figure out what you want them to say about you.

Questions, comments, stories?  I love to hear them.  Cheers, and thx for the well wishes from the expectant parents!! :D

Oh, and while I'm at it, join my twitter if you like lol, see what I did there?

Big Company Customer Service Is More Than Bad: It's Backwards

The customer service that we all normally get from businesses can be downright insufferable.  It's either the long hold times or hard to understand - and sometimes incompetent - reps.  The general system for customer service is to focus on driving new sales and clients, while giving existing customers the bare minimal service just to keep them hanging(anyone have a cell phone?  then you get it.). 

This is a TERRIBLE way to do business - any business.  There are few but still important differences between new clients and existing clients.  It takes more time and energy to seek out and sell to new clients than to existing ones.  The reason being is that existing clients are already sold on your services/products.  They should be comfortable with dealing with you and know what to expect from working with you.  New customers need to be introduced to you and your business, taught how a relationship with you will work and they need to be "sold" on your business.  Also, some new customers have objections because they have heard through different means negative things about your services. 

If you've ever worked for a large company and gone to any training sessions, you might have heard of what they call "overcoming objections", which is a buzz term that means,"Let's find an answer to get around all of the main objections that customers give to not invest in us."  Now at face value this sounds like a smart idea, although it can do more harm than good.  To actually train to overcome objections adds more stress on the customer-based worker to drive new sales by remembering a list of scripted answers instead of the actual product/services they are trying to sell,  it does nothing to benefit existing customers(the lifeblood of a business) and it doesn't eliminate the source of these negative ideas about your business.

Most potential clients will hear negative things about any business through word-of-mouth.  It makes sense, since word-of-mouth is one of the most powerful means to advertise, why wouldn't it be just as good at damaging a business image?

So who are these people saying these bad things?  EXISTING(and past) CLIENTS.  There are some good reasons to treat your existing clients like gold.  The most obvious one is that they invest in you, some over a long time period, which means that they keep you working when there is a drop in new clientel. That means that they are your lifeblood, your buoy, what keeps you from going under in the long term.  If you have enough existing clients to keep your business running and make a good living for yourself - then you wouldn't technically need new clients.  But things don't stay static like that, and it is always a good idea to make more business for yourself.  Another reason to treat them well is that they not only pay you for your services, but they advertise for you too.  If you treat them second class then they will spread the word as such, if you treat them like gold they will do the same - but they will do it even more.  People tend to tell others what is really good and what is really bad, which of these do you want to fall under?  Treating existing customers with appreciation also has the benefit of decreasing the # of them that will leave you for your competitors, which means that you are even less desperate for new clients - which is great!  When you approach new clients, you don't want to seem desperate; desperation shows a lack of confidence in your work, and no potential client wants to invest in a business where even the owner isn't confident. 

As I stated before, existing clients will spread the word like wildfire, and if you treat them well they will only spread good words.  Do you know what this does?  It makes it even EASIER to get new clients.  Your competitors still flash their smiles like a shark waiting for the kill, sputter over half memorized scripting, trying to overcome objections or downright lie to a customer to get just one more sale.  You on the otherhand have new clients that haven't heard a word of negativity about your work.  Their friends have boasted about how wonderful it is to work with you and how you really care about their needs.  These are the clients that instead of saying,"Well I like this about your package, but someone told me *insert objection here*."  you will hear,"My friend told me to come here because you were the best, I want *insert client details here* and I may have some more future work if this is as good as I've heard."  I've had these clients, I LOVE these clients and I appreciate these clients.  All they've heard is goodness, so I know I've done well taking care of my existing clients.  This saves energy and money, to be spent on more crucial things, by not having to go all out on advertising or thinking of ways to "trick" new clients by taking some type of training in underhandedness.  I don't need to stress myself out by thinking of new flashy ways to attract new clients or how I can twist words around so that I can get more work.  I keep afloat with existing clients that stay with me because I treat them right, my existing clients generate new clients(and remember they're paying me while doing this) with no objections to overcome, this keeps me confident that I can meet their needs without having to resort to hard(and sometimes uncouth) tactics, and the cycle continues.

So by being decent, no, by being dependable to the people that know me already, I can increase my client base with hardly any effort.  There is still the selling point to my business, but all the talk is about how I can help my clients - not how they can avoid problems in my business plan.  I eliminate the problems from the source and I am a reminder to my clients of what real customer service is.  It's almost karmic.  It feels clean and fresh and good.  There's so much "corporate pollution" out there, it can make one feel sick - I'd rather do something different.  I'd rather do something right.