Simple Click – Lunch!

We’ll be in the air heading to Osh when you read this, this is Ponca City OK, lunch spot on Wed.

Simple Click – Fine, Big Guns!

OK, so security came and talked to me when I started shooting with the 200-400VR2, I got the shot!

Simple Click – I’ll Shoot Through The Glass!

OK, I can shoot some of the cool clouds, but it’s just not the same. I wanta make some clicks!

Simple Click – Locked Out!

This movie requires Flash Player 9

Some amazing, amazing clouds, part of our summer thunderstorms are just right there and where am I, locked in an airline terminal! Let me out!

Where to Go From Here? – part 2

The first post drew a whole bunch of responses and emails. I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of “wannabes” with tons of talent come and go over the decades. I know of some out there right now who are traveling down the road of disappointment. I remember the tough times when to pay bills, a lens had to be sold. I also know that if I can make it, anybody can make it but nobody including me, but, never said it was easy. There’s just no crying in photography!

This weekend I went to the Dayton Ohio Air Show and had a great time doing some aviation photography. Knowing my lens just wouldn’t be good enough I went to a camera store and rented the Nikon 300MM 2.8 lens, a beast of a lens, and boy does it turn heads! I’m still processing the photos but they seem to be pretty good for my first air show attempt. I’ll attach a couple of them so you can see a sample of my work. By the way, hats off to you for your aviation work. You just can’t explain to someone how challenging it is to photograph a jet going 600mph, it must be attempted to fully appreciate it.

And here is how a business begins. A spark of an idea, the “what if’ moment I’ve written about before and following through with it. And here is how ones discovers the smart way the answer to the what if moment. I’ve heard from a number of folks who have been wondering about aviation photography or have been bitten by the bug because of my photography (one of the greatest compliments any photographer can receive). In this case, the what if question was answered using great business sense that anyone can apply to any genre of photography.

How do you find the answer? You get behind the camera for the least amount of capitol while investing the greatest amount of time. Wanna know about aviation photography, go to a local airshow and see if it’s your cup of tea. You have the smallest investment in travel, really only paying for gas and parking. I know of so many folks who want to become wildlife photographers and the first place they go is Africa. Holly cow! Could you waste anymore money?! Going to Africa after you have skills, after you have the gear and after you know your market, that’s when you go to Africa. But you don’t spend all that time and money to find out if wildlife photography is in your future!

Next, he went to the airshow and after doing some research (in part reading the material here on this site), realized he didn’t have the lens for the event. Rather than going out and buying the big piece of glass, he rented! That’s simply damn smart and good business!

This is also how your learn that YOU CAN DO IT TOO! When it comes to aviation photography, I’m in the learning curve. While I might have started up the curver higher then the newbie, I’m still on that learning curve. What’s moving me up that curve is the passion for those silver gas hawks. There is nothing in photography that only one photographer can do and no one else!

Ok so let me get to my question finally, I loved doing the aviation pics how but can I turn this into a paying and maybe profitable career? The expense for the lens that I want to get, the Nikon 200-400MM VRII is about 7,000 as you know. While my wife does love me she laughed when I told her how much the “perfect” lens for this type of photography cost. Is there mostly just a market for selling prints or is there an association that I can contact? Also how do you handle licensing, can you even sell prints of airplains that you take without property and model releases? I know I’m probably not asking the right question or in the right way but I sure would appreciate any information you could provide.

And here lies the six million dollar question for any photographer in any sector of the profession! And you know what, there is no secret answer, there is no one answer, there are years of answers that for the most part only work for you!

Answering the very specific questions here, I’m not sure I can even begin to give valid answers. If he were asking about wildlife photography, I might have some past experience that, after a four or five day discussion be of value. But aviation, hell, I’ve only been thinking of making it a segment of our business for a few months. And in the very short time of the three years I’ve been building my aviation slide library the one thing I do know, it’s nothing like the business of wildlife photography other than a camera and lens is involved. The bottomline to answering the question, “…loved doing aviation pics how but can I turn this into a paying and maybe profitable career,” I’m just figuring that out for myself.

This email made it through with two images attached so I have some hint of the writer’s abilities. While the two images attached were good, they aren’t a cut above the rest. What raises a warning flag for me more is his statement he has only “processed” some of the images. Even in this day and age, the reliance of the digital darkroom to make a visual difference has evened out the playing field for so many that if you don’t do it better at the camera, you ain’t going to stand out. The photograph is everything and as I learned so long ago, you are only as good as your last photo.

I know probably the best thing I can do is to continue saving money up so I can do a one day private tutoring session with you. Then I can have an opportunity to not only improve on my photography skills but to also cover some of these types of questions. I am working on saving up the money for it but it sure feels like its taking forever, lol.

While this is a compliment, as a business plan it’s a little weak. Saving money to spend time behind the camera, that’s a smart business plan! When it comes to learning the business of photography, no one day tutoring or even five day workshop with me is enough. it just takes one thing like the start of the Gulf War to make you realize that if you’re in the wildlife photography business, you’d best start looking for other work unless you have photographs of oil soaked wildlife from the gulf.

Time is still the one answer that is universal and works. The problem though with this answer, most can’t or don’t give it time. That’s where passion comes in!

Well I certainly appreciate your hanging in during my ramblings, I tried to narrow my thousand questions down to just a couple to help get me pointed in the right direction. Thank you for any input that you may have to help me out!!

I hope this helps not only the writer but a couple of you as well. Photography to me is the only and best profession on the planet! It has been very good to me and we have been very fortunate that hanging in for the long run, things have turned out ok. I know that if you have passion for photography, it will take care of you as well!

Remember, YOU can change the world with your photographs!

Where to Go From Here? – part 1

What a bloody valid and pertinent question! Normally my spam filter prevents emails coming in with attachments from folks I don’t know but for some reason, this one made it through. I took that as a sign, it’s a big ass question that I should attempt to answer for all wanting to read. So Mark, here’s some answers for you, they’re just my two cents worth and hope they help. Just keep this in mind, I think anybody can make it in this business if they have just one thing, passion for photography. If you’re in this business for any other reason, you are doomed. Because you will need that passion to push through the tough times and you’ll need it to cherish the great times.

Hello Moose,

Well I don’t know where to start. I am starting out as a professional photographer and feel a little bit lost and overwhelmed.

For the record, this is exactly how I started and as far as I know from conversations with my peers, how they started as well. And the reality is, there is no easy way past this point. It’s what weeds out many from the get go. So, how do you get beyond being lost and overwhelmed?

There is only one answer I know of, time! I’m sure you’ve heard that old saying of paying your dues, but we’re talking about more than that. When I talk to folks about the business of photography, the first thing I tend to ask (once I feel they are sincere) them is where they want their photography to take them in five years. A common answer is the ‘ol “fame and fortune” which is an instant ticket to nowhere. The “I don’t really know” or the “I never thought of that” are the more sincere answer you should have. And once you realize you need to think that far out and then, to the best of your ability, find a good answer to the question, you’re on the road to not being lost or overwhelmed.

In practical terms, you’ve got to think of it strictly as a business. Money in – money out, they say for every dollar you spend you’ve gotta earn five. With this in mind comes my signature mantra when it comes to the business of wildlife photography. The only time you make money is when you are behind the camera! Without that photo, you’ve got nothing for the wall, the screen or printed page. And when you think about it, putting you efforts, time and money behind the camera all you can pays more dividends then just more inventory. I know, this is easy for me to say to are thinking. You might be working a 9-5 job when time to shoot is short and precious. If you think it’s tough working a 9-5 job, just wait until you’re self employed! No matter how hard you work monday through friday, no one pays you for all that hard work. You only get paid when you earn it with your camera. So, if you’re lost and overwhelmed in the beginning, get use to it and learn to use it as your motivation to put the right foot in front of the left foot in front of the right foot and keep moving forward.

As far as my professional work goes I am finding it very difficult to get portrait or senior photo work with the economy being what it is. I have been doing mostly wildlife and some landscape photography to help improve my skills. I am in the process of setting up my website so I can hopefully sell some of those types of prints online but I’m not sure of a better way to showcase them to bigger buyers.

I’m not sure where this notion got started that having a website is how one starts a photography business. Seriously, do you think those with money to spend on photography search the web for a place to spend it? “Well gee Moose, you have a website or two or three!” Yep, had one of the first wildlife websites in the world back in 1994 but it’s never been for the sale of my wildlife photography. I don’t wait for the buyer to find me, I go and find them. There is nothing passive about our business plan, it is very aggressive going out and finding the clients we feel our photography in our inventory will help their business, their message. I don’t wait for the phone to ring, we ring it!

With that kind of business plan, in this day and age if you don’t have editorial credits (and I don’t know how any wildlife photographer can survive as a shooter without them) you’d best have at the very least a very professional website that screams professional and not “lost, scared and praying you’ll use my images” kind of site. I mean when you’re making your website, ask yourself what it is your selling? Because if it’s photography, then that best be what your site screams from the very first click to the very first page.

And to address the “print” sales as a means of producing a secure income (and there is no such thing in this business), forget it! Yeah, you can and will sell prints here and there but just do the math. A print costs you how much to produce and you’re going to sell that print for how much? Now with that profit figure in your mind, how many prints would you have to sell each month just to pay your basic cost of living? After being at this for thirty years, I can honestly say that we have a print sale business but if I depended on just that income each and every month, well let’s just say I would weigh one hell of a lot less then I do. They are great when they happen but I’m very thankful I don’t have to depend on them day in and day out.

Sharon & I wake up every day and count our blessings that we are busy because there are lots of folks who aren’t. How do you get busy? You gotta open up your mind and imagination and find work. I tell most these days that I’m in the content creation business. One of the biggest benefits of being behind the camera all the time is that it feeds the mind and imagination. I realize the economy is weak and certain sectors are simply hurtin but if you’re in business and you are relying on those sectors you can’t help but be hurtin as well. This means only one thing, you find the sector that isn’t hurtin and then supply them with a product that only you can provide and provide it. I’m under no illusion that is easier said than done yet at the same time, it’s what any photographer who is busy is doing to stay busy.

Wildlife photography, any photography business for that matter is not for the faint of heart. It’s not for every hobbyist to take to a profession and it’s not the answer for when times are tough. To repeat myself, I feel anybody can make it in this business if, if they have the one magical ingredient, passion for photography!

mtc

Simple Click – Airport Run

Had to put Stephanie on the plane home and whenever I head to the flats to the airport, the camera goes too. This is why! That’s the view lookin back up at our home on the mtn. Schweet!

Simple Click – And Five Minutes Later

And after the gorgeous light, it peaked out for a moment before going behind the clouds.

Simple Click – Light We Found

Tuolumne Meadows is just gorgeous right now!

Simple Click – Up The Hill

From 6000′ to 10000′ we went chasing the light up Tioga Pass.

Next Page »