Head to a Museum

[by Susan Carr]

Last weekend I had the privilege of seeing the Henri Cartier Bresson retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago. The Chicago stop closes October 3th, so if you are in the Midwest take note. It is a not to be missed show. The show travels on to the San Francisco Museum of Art (October 30 – January 30) with its final stop at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta (February 19-May15).

The exhibit is massive, but it is worth the time required to view it thoughtfully. Diversity in print styles are displayed from vintage prints to prints made for magazine reproduction and others made for exhibition. The tonality and paper varies based on the intended use and the exhibit identifies it all carefully. The show also shows magazine spreads, corporate assignments, a map of Cartier Bresson’s travels and the back of one print that looks like a well used passport showing all the stamps of credit and permissions applied as the image traversed the distribution channels of the day. As a professional, I found the attention to the details of this working photographer’s career fascinating.

As an artist, I found the beauty of Cartier Bresson’s vision inspiring. There were many images I had never seen before and others that felt like reconnecting with old friends. In particular, one image of an unmade bed is fixed in my mind. It is an exquisite abstract from a distance and a lovingly intimate still life close up. I am reminded of the emotional power a single still image can invoke, I am reminded why I love being a photographer.

Whether it is this show or another, head to a museum and energize your senses.

Susan Carr is a photographer and ASMP’s Education Director. Her book, “The Art and Business of Photography” is scheduled for publication in early 2011.

Why Continuing Ed Matters: beyond camera gear and PhotoShop tutorials

[by Carolyn Potts]

Last week was filled with the energy of students returning to classrooms across the country. It was only for a couple of hours, but, I, too, got a taste of the September excitement when I dropped in at Columbia College and attended the Columbia/ASMP Midwest co-hosted event: PDN’s 30 – Strategies for Young Working Photographers

Photography students filled the CC lecture hall to capacity and were studiously taking notes–especially when the evening’s panel of working photographers and a local art buyer, was asked the perennial question ”How do I get work?”

One answer that the pro photographers, art buyer, and the panel’s moderator, all agreed on was: “Create a portfolio of images that show your unique vision or voice.”

When then asked “How can I best develop my unique vision or voice?” the panelists again agreed: They all acknowledged that to create interesting and unique imagery, you have to BE an interesting and unique person. And becoming an interesting person is most often the result of being interested in, and curious about, the world around you–not just the world of photography.

While technical skill and business smarts are essential for success, your unique vision is still your most valuable business asset. Time spent in the exploration of the world outside photography can add real fuel to developing your vision. Think of outside exploration as your CEU’s (continuing education units) that other professions, such as health care and accounting, require for their members to maintain licensed status.

My personal “CEU courses” are chosen to feed both the analytical/business and the intuitive/creative sides of my brain. I like to mix it up with books, magazines, and podcasts. Here are some of my personal favorites.

For re-charging your creativity, a book I always recommend is The Artists Way by Julia Cameron. On the audio front, one of my fave inspirational shows is “How beauty will save the world” from CBC Radio’s intriguing series called, IDEAS.

For left-brain inspiration, I like listening to NPR’s On the Media which covers all things media-related. I like the FCC and Media law segments as many of the issues they cover effect me as a U.S. citizen and will also eventually affect the photography business.

I also like to read what our clients are reading. E.g. here’s a book that many members on the account teams at ad agencies have read. Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies

And finally, since so many photographers already have iTunes–either on their desktop or in their pockets–my newest continuing education fave resource is: Apple iTunes U. Amazingly, over 600 institutions of higher learning such as SVA, Harvard, Yale, MIT, and UC Berkeley have posted free content for your downloading pleasure and further education. Additionally, you can download free content from MoMA, Public Radio International, PBS, the Library Of Congress, and so many others.

Be Cool. Stay in school.

Carolyn Potts, perpetual photo evangelist; international consultant & speaker; and former rep, shows seasoned & proactive photographers how to get more work. Find her at www.cpotts.com , http://bit.ly/FaceBookPottsConsulting and http://carolynpotts.net

Need a Creative Jolt?

[by Carolyn Potts]

Stuck for ideas for new portfolio images?
Try this cool tool to come at a concept from a different angle.

www.visualthesaurus.com

Carolyn Potts, international photo consultant & speaker; and former photo rep, shows seasoned & proactive photographers how to get more work. Find her at www.cpotts.com , http://bit.ly/FaceBookPottsConsulting and http://carolynpotts.net

Efficient Freedom

[by Charles Gupton]

I once had a strong disdain for franchises as a means of business ownership. It seemed to me to be a sell-out to a system that limited the freedom of an owner too much for my liking. Especially after I watched a photography buddy of mine give up his heart and passion for photography to explore, and eventually buy, a franchise business so that he could earn a stable income for his family.

Although I’ve not hit a point that I’m ready to buy a franchise, I’ve come to appreciate the value of having systems in place which allow me to have other people do repetitive tasks that distract from my creative idea generation and production. We all have basic duties such as billing, accounting, client follow-up, photo file backup, etc., which needs to be taken care of on a consistent basis but don’t require any creative brains cells to get completed.

Because I worked in the “solo-prenuer” mindset for most of my career, I found that I did most of the work myself. When I did delegate tasks to assistants, my directions were not very clear because there was no effective system in place to get consistent results until my assistants established them.

As it dawned on me that I needed more effective means of getting rote tasks completed, three different people – within a one-week period, no less – recommended the book “E-myth Revisited” by Michael Gerber to me. Having read it, I realized that great systems are less about limiting one’s freedom to work than they are about creating opportunities to be creative. Also, creative people need to see that systems require an ingenuity of their own and systems-oriented people often use creative process to manage and tweak their systems to make them more efficient.

I doubt that I will ever be a systems person by nature. But I’ve come to appreciate that a lot of my creative energy gets drained by a lack of reliable, repeatable systems to get the seemingly mundane tasks off my mind so that I’ve got the brain space to devote to the heart-centered projects that do fuel my life.

Charles Gupton photographs real people, really well, by understanding and telling the stories of his subjects and clients. Find his photographs at www.charlesguptonphoto.com and his writing at www.charlesgupton.com.

You Are Not a Photographer

[by Thomas Werner]

You are a producer, casting agent, editor, retoucher, creative director, manager, businessperson, curator, creative partner, educator and art director. You are a social media manager, pr person, advertiser, filmmaker, videographer, relationship manager, student, activist, and more….
 
I can hear people thinking, well, that is what a photographer is….no, these are just skill sets that you apply to being a photographer. A photographer takes pictures, creates imagery in some form, the other skills are what you apply to your art or business to make your self more successful. If your business is slow, or if you want to diversify, they are skills that you can apply to other fields, or other aspects of photography and your business. We frequently have the skills that we need to make a change, we just don’t recognize them, or how they fit together to make our businesses and ourselves more successful.
 
You are not a photographer, it may be the most important and enjoyable thing that you do, but it is only one part of what you can do.
 
Thomas Werner is a Curator, Educator and Lecturer. His new program “Rethinking Your Business” is an evening with photographers that helps them redefine themselves and their businesses. You can find out more about Thomas and his projects at Thomas Werner Projects on Facebook.com

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