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There is a Message (and Sunshine) Out There!

I find that I am not very inspired to take pictures (or do much of anything) when the weather is grey and damp. Thank goodness I could escape for a short while to the #Palm Springs Photo Festival last month. This was my first trip to the festival, and proved to be a great opportunity to recharge those creative batteries, and refocus on the business and marketing side of things. (Did I mention there was also lots of sunshine out there?)

When I wasn’t enjoying the sun, I learned a few things in Palm Springs, and met some great people. The most important message I’m bringing back and delivering to you is this -- marketing is hard, but necessary. Even for artists! Although my professional background is in marketing, I don’t do well marketing my own work. This is one of the hardest things for most of us. And it just might be the magic that separates successful artists from the millions who toil in obscurity.

My advice is to learn everything you can about marketing, and apply it to your work and your life.

Here’s just one quick lesson on “branding.” It’s a buzz-word that’s been around a long time, and it really just means creating an identity that encompasses everything from the colors a company uses, its logo, dress style of its employees, and lots, lots more. It’s about consciously presenting an image that helps people remember you in a positive way, and makes a positive association to whatever it is you have to sell. And yes, artists do have something to sell!

I took the adjoining picture on Palm Canyon Drive. And while the gentleman with the flag may have a powerful message to communicate, his lack of branding hurts the delivery of his message. First of all, dressing as a tourist may make him appear less threatening, but makes it hard to take him seriously. Let’s focus on his sign: The slogan is not bad “Help Save American’t.” Catchy! But the hand-written font is hard to read, the choice of color is weak, and taping his banner to an old Ron Paul campaign sign undermines its importance.  I considered giving him some advice, but it turns out the guy was a little crazy and just wanted to ramble on about the state of the country. For him, ignorance of branding is bliss, and I’m not sure I want to help him to more effectively deliver his message.

You’re different. Think about the way you present your work. From the style of display you use, to the style you wear, your business card, website, etc, etc. Everything about you makes an impression on how people remember you and your work. We can all do better. And being aware of that is the first step to improving.

Online Image Stolen and Now Viral!

Just wanted to post a short update on my earlier copyright posting.

Really interesting story making the rounds about an Israeli photographer whose picture was stolen and went absolutely viral. Whatever your feelings about an artist's right to his or her own work, this is worth taking a look at just to understand the times we're living in. As always, my opinion is if your work is important to you, slap a copyright on it before you put it online.

VIDEO HERE:
http://vimeo.com/20718237

How Much Self Should Be in a Self Portrait?

I don’t spend much time in front of the camera. Even for family events I’m often behind the camera and have to be reminded to pose for somebody else’s pictures. So what’s an inveterate behind-the-scenes person to do when the need arises for a “good” picture of them?

It’s self-portrait time!

As I put more of my work out in the world for art shows, contests, and publication, many ask for an artist bio that includes a photo of the artist. I did this for the first time last year. I set up the scene, set the camera on a tripod, and had my wife snap the shutter. I rather liked the result, but I got feedback that it was difficult to see what I looked like. (Thinking back, I’m pretty sure this was partly on purpose.)

The headshot

I decided this year it was time to try a close-up picture that showed more detail. This prospect was a little scary for me. (Knowing that no portrait is complete ‘till it spends time in Photoshop eased that fear a bit). After a recent portrait session, I sent the client on his way and took my seat under the lights with my trusty camera remote. I hadn’t had this kind of portrait done since college, and I was a bit surprised how much the results looked like a school portrait. A little self-conscious looking, for sure…but overall not a bad photo. I took a more playful take from that session, and adjusted the contrast, converted to black and white, and got results I liked even better.

An artsy alternative

For my last self-portrait try, I decided to use a technique I’d wanted to experiment with for a while. Using a slide projector as my main light source, I set myself in the path of a projected slide and shot five or six takes. The results are cinematic, and very much to my liking.  But maybe too far back in the direction of not showing enough facial detail.

All in all, this exercise in self-portraiture was a good experience, and I think it will improve how I shoot portraits of others. I encourage other photographers to try this yourself. But for anyone who needs a business portrait, find out how great a professional photographer can make you look.

By the way, if you have an opinion on my self-portraits, please share your comments below or visit my website at jacksonscott.com

Copyrights for Artists

Intellectual property rights are not sexy. But for most artists this is the only thing that protects our creations from being stolen and used without our permission.

It’s why I put my copyright on the face of everything I post online. The law is very black and white, but the way most people apply it is full of grey areas. One of the ways I’m trying to improve the situation is simply understanding the law and talking to others about it.

Several months ago I ran into an acquaintance who makes a significant part of her income hosting big events – not incidentally, she’s also an artist. I complimented her on some recent promotion she had done, and asked about the photograph she used. (I thought it might have been by a local photographer whom I know). She looked a little embarrassed and admitted to having appropriated it off the Internet.

We had a good conversation about it, and I told her what copyright laws meant to me as an artist. I suggested that next time she could try to ask a photographer for the rights to use their photo. Some need the exposure, and might do it just for a photo credit. I also suggested if she could afford to pay even a small amount, she could approach local photographers – or even photography students -- to get the image she wanted. She listened, and seemed to appreciate and understand. I felt good for standing up for the rights of all my fellow image makers.

Flash forward to last week. I saw this person’s latest promotion for another of her events. Again, she had used a very striking image on the poster (above).  I noticed there was no photo credit, so on a hunch, I did a quick web search and found this photograph, and others from the same photo shoot, were being used all over the place.  This makes upsets me, but it also just makes me sad for the photographer. It doesn’t surprise me that the general public doesn’t think about artists, our concerns, or our ability to make money from our creations -- but I do expect other artists to respect this.

I tried to track down the photographer who created this image, and make sure they knew what was going on. But for all the instances of image use, I could find no copyright or photo credit anywhere. I gave up on tracking the photographer down...I've already invested too much time in something that when you take it down to the personal level is none of my business. Instead, I want to learn from this incident in a general way, to serve as a reminder that artists need to protect their images!

Nice Portrait Session Yesterday with Kaley

I got an urgent call a couple days ago from one of my recent family portrait clients, with an emergency portrait need. Daughter Kaley has done some school plays, and now wants to move on to community theater at The Lakewood Playhouse. Auditions are next Monday, for Sweeney Todd (one of here favorites), and Kaley needed an 8x10 headshot to leave behind after her try-out. Could I do the job that quickly?

Well, I just got my home studio up and running last week, and was eager to give it a real-life tryout. So of course my answer was "yes."

We kept things pretty basic for Kaley's shoot, with dark clothing, plain background, and soft lighting to show off her pretty, fresh face. Kaley's not a big smiler, but I'm told she has a sassy and mischievous side. That's what we tried to bring out, and I think that's what we got. She and Mom were both happy. And I'm sure her headshot will help the casting director remember her after the audition. All I can say is "break a leg," Kaley!

Motionless Motion with Emotion

I'm not over this cold yet, but I am back to work. On my plate today is continuing to explore movement in still photography. I find it interesting that our minds can make the leap between seeing an image of a blurred object, and knowing that what we're actually seeing is an object in motion. It's not how we see motion, yet we know that's what's pictured. Has the human mind always been able to make this leap, or is it only through conditioning and repeated viewing that we now recognize the blur for what it is?

On the flip-side, when we see a photo of something perfectly frozen in mid-motion, our first reaction is often momentary confusion. If you see a picture of a person jumping, and both feet are caught off the ground, it often causes a double-take moment where you have to engage your brain to decipher what you see. How is that person frozen in mid-air? Why does their hair seem to defy gravity? Similarly, when we see super-slo-mo video depiction of fast movement, we suddenly see details we never imagined were happening - it seems unreal, but because we're seeing the full movement we don't questions whether it's real. It's just an undeniably weird thing to see. The Discovery Channel has a fascinating series on movement called Time Warp.

A different take on movement comes from an arts collective in Los Angeles that goes by the name of Syyn Labs. They did brilliant work last year in creating a Rube Goldberg machine for the song This Too Shall Pass by Ok Go. The video has been a huge YouTube sensation, and really good fun.

There are my thoughts on movement and still photography for today. Now I'm going to take advantage of the beautiful day we're experiencing and get myself in motion to go find some interesting movement to photograph.