I just got news that one of my favorite models, Ryan, will be working as a real model in one of the Hollister stores in South Florida over the Christmas minus shirt style. I’m glad to have been the first to photograph this handsome lad.
Tag: Photography
The Freshness- Rumi
When it’s cold and raining,
you are more beautiful.
And the snow brings me
even closer to your lips.
The inner secret, that which was never born,
you are that freshness, and I am with you now.
I can’t explain the goings,
or the comings. You enter suddenly,
and I am nowhere again.
Inside the majesty.
Fall Slideshow
I’m taking a moment for a little shameless promotion here. As some of you may know, I’m a photographer as well as a blogger/writer. The photography on my website is not only available for print onto photo papers of every variety, canvas, cards and merchandise, but it is also available to bloggers as a download for $5 an image (web version download in “personal”). If you see an image you like in one of my galleries covering holidays, travel, things, and random people, click on the download area when you select an image. Here’s my fall gallery if you’re looking for fall imagery in your blog post. Please take a moment to peruse my other galleries on http://www.chattergoldstudios.com …and enjoy by clicking on the link below.
Thanks for taking the time to view my gallery and thank you for supporting small business!
Why Small Businesses Should Use Instagram
As a photographer and a producer for the advertising industry, it’s par for the course that I know the latest and greatest in social media. Not only do I create content for my clients to promote and share on social media platforms (sites), I use a variety of social media platforms to promote my own personal brand and services. I’ve always assumed that the masses knew how to use twitter, facebook, instagram, pinterest…
I was wrong.
I stood corrected a couple of weeks ago when discussing social media for restaurants with a bartender friend. I was surprised to find out that many do not use instagram or even upload promotional photos to their facebook and/or twitter accounts. Some don’t even have facebook accounts for their small businesses! How could this be in 2013?
If you own a small business, or any business for that matter, you need social media. You have a smartphone? Then you have no excuse not to promote your business with photographs on social media… and Instagram, quite honestly, is your best friend.
Instagram is a fast, easy, and efficient platform that brings more exposure to your business. How? It allows you to post your images simultaneously to your facebook, twitter, tumblr, flickr, and foursquare accounts all in one shot. It will take you all of five to ten minutes of each day to promote your company. Not a bad investment of your time, I’d say.
I could get very specific for each industry about what your social strategy should be, but to keep it simple and short for this blog post, here are some suggestions for three different industry categories:
- If you are a restaurant, you should be uploading/posting photographs of your drink, food menu items, specials, and photos of the staff.
- If you sell a product, you should be uploading/posting photographs of your product line with information about each product.
- If you sell a service, you should be uploading/posting “Behind the scenes” photographs of your set up and/or process that makes your service unique.
Here’s a list of businesses who use instagram successfully; check them out for ideas of how you can promote your business:
http://instagram.com/sephora#
http://instagram.com/bucadibeppo#
http://instagram.com/burgerfi#
http://instagram.com/thorstenroth/#
http://instagram.com/josevilla#
Once you’ve set your account up, here’s a great article to get you started on the basics of posting to your instagram accounts. Now you are ready to rock the marketing world.
Not sure how to set up your instagram so that it shares the image to your other social media accounts? Coming soon: “How to Set Up Instagram For Your Small Business.”
The Least Figure – Rumi
I tried to think of some way
to let my face become yours.
“Could I whisper in your ear
a dream I’ve had? You’re the only one
I’ve told this to.”
You tilt your head, laughing,
as if, “I know the trick you’re hatching,
but go ahead.”
I am an image you stitch with gold thread
on a tapestry, the least figure,
a playful addition.
But nothing you work on is dull.
I am part of the beauty.
Another Rumi Moment
We are the night ocean filled
with glints of light. We are the space
between the fish and the moon,
while we sit here together.
Gamble Everything For Love- Rumi
Gamble everything for love,
if you’re a true human being.
If not, leave
this gathering.
Half-heartedness doesn’t reach
into magesty. You set out
to find God, but then you keep
stopping for long periods
at mean-spirited roadhouses.
“Tattooing in Qazin”- Rumi (Excerpt)
What is it to praise?
Make yourself particles.
What is it to know something of God?
Burn inside that presence. Burn up.
Copper melts in the healing exlixir.
So melt your self in the mixture.
that sustains existence.
You tighten your two hands together,
Determined not to give up saying “I” and “we.”
This tightening blocks you.
“Quietness”- Rumi
I recently unearthed my “Rumi” book from college and the page with this poem was marked. This poem is as perfect now as it was to me 14 years ago when I marked the page. I hope you enjoy this poem as much as I do.
Quietness
Inside this new love, die.Your way begins on the other side.
Become the sky.
Take an axe to the prison wall.
Escape.
Walk out like someone finally born into color.
Do it now.
You’re covered with thick cloud.
Slide out the side. Die,
and be quiet. Quietness is the surest sign
that you’ve died.
Your old life was a frantic running
from silence.
The speechless full moon
comes out now.
Product Photography for Civilians
As I peruse the internet (namely Etsy, Ebay, and various blogs), I’m noticing that there are a lot of really bad product shots happening. I’m talking dark photos, blurry photos… or you just really can’t see what it is the person is trying to sell.
Whether you’re a blogger or brand spankin’ new entrepreneur, there really is no reason for awful photography. I’m not saying that everyone has a pro photographer in them, but allow me to give you a few tips.
(All of you professional and newbie amateur photographers, stop reading now. I’m using my getto gorilla style methods and this may pain you to see).
(Product shot I took this of my favorite night skin oil from a little shop down south in Boca Raton, FL. This was taken with my iPhone at about 9am this morning in the shade.)
Here are a few very low budget methods and steps in taking a product shots for your small business or blog:
The camera: You don’t need a professional camera to take photos. Get started with your smart phone or even your cheap Kodak point & shoot will do the trick (if you can turn the flash off). It’s amazing how beautiful iPhone photographs come out.
Lights: You can get by without one of those fancy shmancy light kits, just photograph your items outside. Lighting is best in the early morning, late afternoon just before dusk, and on cloudy days. On cloudy days, clouds act as filters and distribute the light more evenly, therefore omitting ugly shadows. We don’t want dramatic shadows in your product shot. We want attractive, softly lit product. You want to be able to read the detail on your product.
Background: Keep it neutral. As a general rule, I use white craft paper. For this face oil product shot, I used a towel to give texture and because this product is something you usually use in the bathroom as your nightly beauty routine. There’s a good article on Etsy about styling photos and showing how they’ll be used.
Edit: There are so many easy and FREE photo editing tools available online that you can use. If you use your iPhone to shoot your product shot with, you can use instagram to lighten your photos (and promote your image/product at the same time) or use other photo apps like Phototastic, Fhotoroom, and many more. In these programs you can lighten your image by increasing the exposure if you get a dark shot or shadows. Bump up the contrast to bring more depth and color. Even your gmail (Picasa) or Google+ account offers a totally free photo editing suite for you point and shooters. Just go into the “picture” area of your Google+ account and upload your photo. You’ll be awestruck at what you can do with it in there. You can even crop in the Google+.
This is just to get you started on photographing your products effectively so that people can actually see what you’re trying to relay or illustrate.
Next up: how to photograph product shots once you get that mid-level Nikon or Canon.
Tricia Chatter 
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