An alternative to paypal

I just signed up for my free account with revolution money exchange and got my $25. Hey free money is free money right? So I thought I would share it with the readers of my blog... This offer is good through April 15th 2008




The account is free and it is free to send and receive money unlike paypal which takes a chunk when people send you money. It is easy to use and you get $25 free when you sign up.... Just wanted to pass it along. I like the idea of not having as much of a chunck of my money taken when I receive money.

How do you get the word out about your business

So you have taken the plunge and you have started your own photography business. Now you are trying to figure out the best way to get the word out and generate some business for yourself.

There are all sorts of marketing tools that can be used. One I recommend starting with is a business card. Easy to carry and you should always have some with you in case you are out and someone asks you for your information. If you have photoshop you can easily design your own to be just how you want it to look.

Another great tool is a website. This will be an entire post by itself at some point. There are so many things to consider when creating a website.

You can also do free things like bloggs and online galleries like Photoshop online.

Now if you are one of those people that really doesn't feel creative in this area or you just don't want to spend a ton of time creating marketing material and would rather use some templates I came across a beautiful and customizable set of templates here
LCH Photography - Click on photography designs to see all of her beautiful Templates.
I also love the stuff available from
Orange Gecko Designs She has great extras for photoshop also, check out all she has to offer.
So start spreadign the word.

Macros - lenses, filters, extension tubes

So you want to get up close and personal with you subject but you are not sure what the best way to go is.

Probably the least expensive way is close up filters.

Your second option is Extension tubes, a little more expensive that filters but more effective.

The last option and the best one is a true Macro lens. Don't worry you can use this lens for more than Macro shots. I have a 100mm Macro and love it because I can get nice close up shots without having to be right on top of the subject. I actually love this lens and have found a ton of uses for it.

As you will see recomended through out this blog you can always rent lenses and try them out before taking the plunge and purchasing it.

Tripods and Monopods

I have to steal a quote here from Theresa over on 2 Peas for this post

"When it comes to tripods, buy cheap, buy twice."


Inexpensive tripods typically have lots of plastic. As I am sure you are aware Plastic breaks easily. If you take it out in cold weather and it can become very brittle and cold doesn't mean below freezing. Plastic also has some Give to it so stability is a little lacking. My first cheap tripod had a handle snap right off in cooler weather. Also cheaper tripods can have a wobble to them and do you really want something with your precious camera on top to be all wobbly? No, I didn't thunk so. Monopods can take a real beating and get dropped often when not in use and get banged around. I have seen cheap ones shatter. (OUCH)

I personally own Bogen/Manfrotto. B&H has some great kit deals, you can get a decent setup for under $200. I have the carrying strap, and that is all I need, I can't see the need for a carrying bag. there are all sorts of options out there and my recommendation is buy the best you can afford so you don't put your camera at risk, or end up with a tripod graveyard.


It all boils down to the amount of stability that you need. So study and find a sturdy and well made tripod or monopod. Look for poundage ratings, you want oknow how much it holds. & how tall it can extend.

As for when you want to use a tripod and when you want a monopod that really depends on what and where you are shooting. Tripods are used more often then monopods but both have their advantages. I am currently without a monopod but looking to add one to my collection again. Monopods are great for that extra stability in places where you are not allowed to use a tripod like museums, sporting events and a lot of tourist attractions.

Lightroom - Blogs and books

Lightroom can be a photographer's best friend for managing work flow. But for some people it is not as intuitive as it is for others. So here are a few books that might help you out.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers- By Scott Kelby

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for Digital Photographers Only - By Rob Sheppard

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Workflow: The Digital Photographer's Guide - By Tim Grey

Also if you want to keep up on the latest happenings be sure to check out this BLOG. and be sure to download the free weekly presets.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Killer Tips

I love Lightroom, it has made managing my work flow SO much easier. It saves so much time when editing large amounts of photos in Raw.

***Edit in December 2008****

Since I wrote this there has been a new release of Lightroom and hence new books on the sunject. I personally have not upgraded at the time of this update but I have heard good things about the Scott Kelby book for Lightroom 2.

How do I share all my digital images with my family

Now there are probably hundreds of ways to share your photos with your family and friends. The first step is what do you want to be able to share.
Do you want something for free or are you willing to pay for some extra protection?
Do you just want them to view them?
Do you want them to be able to view and order prints?
Do you want to be able to password protect your galleries?
Do you want people to be able to add to your galleries with their own images?
Do you want people to be able to download full size images?
Do you want to be able to watermark your images?
Do you want to earn a little money selling your images?
Do you want to personalize your gallery with your own logo?

The list goes on. Once you decide what you want your gallery to do for you then it is time to start looking into all the options out there. For me I was willing to spend some money for extra features and I finally narrowed my choices down to smugmug and Zenfolio.

I ultimately chose Zenfolio. I went with the Premium account for $100.00 so I could also use it as a proofing system and maybe make a little money from this hobby of mine. If you go with Zenfolio feel free to use the referral code SQS-B4T-17R to save yourself $5 off your account.

Why did I choose Zenfolio over SmugMug? Simply it offered everything I was looking for and was $50 less. Now SmugMug has some different features but they just were not what I was looking for at the time. Plus Zenfolio seems to be constatntly addign things to their services.

Some of the features I was looking for and got were.
Unlimited Storage
Full size uploads
galleries
collections
password protection
batch uploading
custom layouts
can use my own domain name once i get one
watermarks
Ability to let peopledownload full-size images
Achoice of print labs Mpix or EZ Prints
ability to set my own prices
and many other things..

Can't decide by just reading the features then sign up for the free trial of both and see which one fits you best..

I was looking for a recent comparison of both but could not find one more recent than 2006 but if I find one I will add it here.

SugMug users feel free to share your referral code in the comments section for folks that decide that is the way they want to go.