Last week a team of Pacific Northwest photographers, including myself, launched the website for and officially announced our group photography project called Photo Cascadia. The launch of Photo Cascadia was met with excitment and interest from friends, colleagues and the photography enthusiast community in general. If you missed it, you can read my previous postfor the basic introduction to the Photo Cascadia team.
The launch of Photo Cascadia also generated some great discussion and several questions about the future plans of the group. Group founder, Adrian Klein, has posted answers to the most common questionsabout the group that we have recieved to date. Perhaps they are questions that are on your mind as well. Questions include:
There are few groups out there already that have collaborated on websites and other efforts in relation to Nature Photography. What makes your team different and how was it started?
Why is the Photo Cascadia team all males? Where are the female photographers?
Does the Photo Cascadia team have Photo Cascadia specific workshops available?
How can I buy fine art prints of images I see in the Photo Cascadia galleries?
When will the Photo Cascadia team have additional products available for purchase such as calendars, books, cards, etc?
Read Adrian’s Q&A for answers to these questions and to submit any other questions you might have about Photo Cascadia.
I am very proud and honored to be a member of Photo Cascadia, a group of talented photographers from the Pacific Northwest who are now pooling their vision, knowledge and imagery to inspire others to learn, create and explore. The group includes Kevin McNeal, David Cobb, Chip Phillips, Adrian Klein, Zack Schnepf and myself. I am very privileged to be associated with such accomplished and creative individuals who are helping to push the boundaries and recreate the art of outdoor photography.
This is our announcement video that is being released around the web:
So, what exactly is Photo Cascadia? Photo Cascadia is a team of six of the Northwest’s best outdoor photographers who were brought together by their mutual passion for pushing the envelope in creating powerful fine art photographs of the natural world. Photo Cascadia forms a platform from which we can have a meeting of the minds and a way to a share our imagery, knowledge, experience and vision. Our goals are to promote conservation, provide learning opportunities for aspiring photographers, be a valuable resource for publishers, photo buyers and photographer colleagues and to share our photographs with a large and growing audience of like minded adventurers, nature lovers, photography appreciators and art collectors.
We see great potential in the future of our collaboration. To start, Photo Cascadia will be a source of photography instruction and a place to be inspired by the beauty of the natural landscape and the need for conservation. The blog already contains a wealth of photography information and all six of us will continue to share our knowledge and passion there. The workshops and photo tours offered by members of Photo Cascadia provide another way for enthusiasts to improve their photography skills and visit some of the most spectacular wild and scenic locations in the Northwest and around the country. You can also connect with Photo Cascadia on Facebook and Flickr.
I’m looking forward to a great adventure as a member of this exciting group. I hope you will find Photo Cascadia a place to access helpful information, get inspired, appreciate natural wonder or just take a break from your day to enjoy some breath taking photography.
Social networking is quickly surpassing more
traditional means of communicating and
sharing ideas and information on the web,
such as email and bulletin boards. In the
month since I started the official Sean
Bagshaw Photography page on facebook the
number of fans (facebook’s term, not mine)
has grown to nearly 900 with members from every part of
the world. Facebook is an efficient way for
me to quickly share Outdoor Exposure Photography information, new
photos, photography tips and signed print
give-aways, much more efficient than my blog
or newsletters. Best of all, it provides a
platform for fans to participate by posting
their own thoughts, tips, questions and
photos.
Twitter is a social networking site that I’m
just starting to experiment with. The idea
is that I can use twitter to post very short
dispatches from the field, photo tips of the
day and random thoughts from the day in the
life of an outdoor photographer.
One of the groups of photo buyers that I market my photography to is professional and commercial office spaces such as law offices, medical clinics, dentists, banks, financial services, educational institutions and commercial buildings. The following are some helpful tips to consider when selecting photographs to decorate a professional office or commercial space.
Choosing a theme for a photography collection helps create continuity and flow. A theme might include a subject, such as mountain landscapes. It could also be a color palette, patterns, abstracts or something more conceptual, such as grandeur, grace or simplicity.
Simple, bold composition and abstracts can create a contemporary and sophisticated environment, while grand landscapes, colorful nature scenes and dramatic lighting provide a sense of place and visual intrigue while bringing the outdoors in. Intimate scenes, florals and close ups can provide a sense of peace and well being.
Arranging photos on the wall in groups can help break up a large space and allow groups of images to tell a visual story.
Wide mattes and frames create a neutral zone around the image that draws the eye inward toward the image and sets it apart from the wall. Narrower frames and mattes provide a window on the world feel and allow the image to speak for itself.
Colored walls and frame/matte combinations that bring out colors in the print or in the interior décor, help the photos stand out and help tie the room together.
Consider non traditional way of presenting photography. The current technology in photographic printing allows for a wide variety of print media and display options in addition to the traditional framed photographic print. Photos can now be printed on canvas, vinyl, fine art paper, linen, metal and transparent or translucent surfaces. Photographs can also be printed to wallpaper media and applied directly to the wall surface to create stunning and unique wall murals.
The Internet is an amazing resource for finding the right photography. Photographers are now able to market their work to a world wide audience through personal websites and on line photo agencies and forums. Photography buyers and collectors can easily access, browse and order prints right from their computers.
Distinctive contemporary professional office spaces including the lobbies of businesses , medical clinics, hospitals, law offices and financial services offices benefit from carefully planned interior design and décor. One hallmark of a well appointed office is original artwork. One way that high end professional and commercial offices put forward an image of sophistication, intellect and prosperity is by incorporating a collection of fine art within the interior design of their public spaces.
The right photography can very visually distinctive, and offer a wide range of choices in subject, color, style and mood. Landscape and nature images can also provide a powerful counterpoint to the urban office setting, bringing the outdoors in and helping to create a serene, peaceful atmosphere. The best part is that it is often possible to decorate an entire office with original, signed photography for the price of a single original painting from an established painter.
The office pictured in this blog was completely decorated with my images (www.OutdoorExposurePhoto.com) for less than $6,000 including framing. This cost would be what you could expect to pay for a single piece of art when considering other fine art forms.
Interior decorators, designers and art consultants can be a critical component in selecting, framing, hanging and lighting a fine art photography collection so that it has the intended visual impact and properly compliments the rest of the interior design. In addition, they will often have contacts with top photographers and will be able to provide samples of high quality imagery.
While a fine art photographic print is still my favorite way to enjoy great photography, technology is rapidly changing the ways it is possible to view, access and share art. The images that move and excite us no longer have to be confined to a wall or the pages of a book. I love to share my photographs and want people to be able to access them in a way that best suits their needs and purpose. A large fine art print will always be available to those who have the resources and space, but size, cost and location are no longer limiting factors to accessing photography and other visual art.
The iPhone is one of the most innovative pieces of technology to recently come on the scene. It can be very valuable as a tool for communication and storing and accessing information, but it also has great potential in entertainment, education and access to media and imagry, includinig art.
I recently partnered with the folks at Open Door Network in creating an iPhone application of my photography. The application is like a collection of slide shows that allow iPhone users to have a portable art gallery of my photographs right in their pockets. Photographs in the Outdoor Exposure for iEnvision appare organized into three collections including Landscape, Nature and Travel. Landscape includes photos of canyons, deserts, forest, lakes, mountains, oceans, streams and waterfalls. Nature displays abstracts, fall color, flowers, trees and winter. Travel takes you to Hawaii, Mexico and Nepal.
In addition to viewing the gallery shows, the images can also be saved for use as iPhone wallpaper and each image links to the Outdoor Exposure Photography website for more information.
Open Door Network’s flagship iEnvision web image browser, as well as their line of Envi iPhone image applications access and organize images from the Web into fun to view and share slide shows for the iPhone. Other iEnvision “Envi” apps include Art, Earth, Space, Mountain and Yosemite.
Gripped perpetually by subfreezing temperatures and cloaked by five massive glaciers, the world famous mountain known as Denali (“the Great One”) beckons intrepid mountaineers from around the world. With a summit peak that is 20,320 feet above sea level, Denali (also known as Mount McKinley) is the highest peak in North America. An aspect that is painfully evident to climbers is that the peak rises 18,000 feet from its base (which is 6,000 feet more than Everest rises above its base, the Tibetan Plateau). There is also a higher risk of altitude illness for climbers than its altitude would otherwise suggest, due to its high latitude. It all adds up to a long and merciless climb to reach the summit, where climbers can encounter temperatures as low as -100 degrees below freezing.
So, you might ask, “What’s the big attraction?” I’ll be answering that questions and others as I present my multi-media program, “Above The Shadow Lands“ on Wednesday evening, March 4th, at The Stage Door Coffee House in Mt. Shasta. The presentation will focus on the story of my second ascent of the mountain in 2005.
In 1998 I climbed Denali as part of a six person team. It was a great adventure, but we had a few difficulties. The size of the group was a challenge and the weather kept us on the mountain for three weeks. In 2005 I went back with my climbing partner, Brock. Better conditions, more experience and an efficient two person team made for smoother ascent. However, I still almost didn’t make it.
Climbing Denali is one of the hardest things I have ever done twice. The route we climbed isn’t particularly technical and I’m not a great climber. However, the mountain is big and cold. Setting the goal and then preparing for and experiencing everything it takes to live, survive and reach the summit in that harsh environment made it an enormously powerful and rewarding experience…both times.
This program is presented by the Mt. Shasta Trail Association. Admission is by donation at the door, and guests are encouraged to have dinner at The Stage Door previous to the program.
Stage Door Coffee House, 414 N. Mt. Shasta Blvd.
Wednesday evening, March 4th, 7pm.
More information: 926-5966
Over recent months there have been some new developments for Outdoor Exposure Photography that are worth sharing. A new lifestyle magazine called Northwest, which is being distributed in 15 States through Barnes and Noble and Borders Book Stores, has begun publishing many of my images, including the cover of the upcoming issue. Photo Researchers, a large stock photography agency in New York, is now representing my photography and marketing it to publishers across the US and in 35 other countries. I am also being represented by a new art consultancy out of Colorado called Western Photo Gallery which sells fine art prints to corporate clients. BetterPhoto.com is the premier website for online photography courses and critiques from top professionals. Their monthly photo contests receive as many as 40,000 entries and their newsletter goes out to over 25,000 individuals. Several of my photos have recently been recognized by BetterPhoto including two second place awards and two photo of the day features.
I recently went through a significant change in the way I have my photos printed. For about 7 years I produced all my own prints using ink jet printers. First a Canon and then an Epson Stylus PRO 7600 with Ultrachrome ink. I loved that I could be in control of the entire process, print on demand and easily print test proofs. I also thought it was the most cost effective way of printing and that the quality was on par with any print lab.
Within the last year I have had a change of perspective and have now switched over to using a professional print lab to produce all my prints. Two factors contributed to my switch. First, as my 7600 got a couple of years under its belt, combined with the fact that I sometimes go for a couple weeks without printing anything, it began to have issues with ink nozzles clogging, creating banding in my prints. I would then need to spend as much as two hours running the cleaning cycle to clear the nozzles. The time lost, as well as the cost in wasted paper and ink, became a source of stress and frustration. Admittedly, I have many photographer friends who properly maintain their printers and don’t suffer similar issues.
The second factor was my discovery that when printing on coated, non-absorbent papers (referred to as RC papers), such as glossy or semi-gloss, solvents in the inks are not absorbed by the paper and instead evaporate over time. When such a print is framed, the evaporating solvent condenses on the inside of the glass leaving a visible foggy residue. The issue is widely commented on in web forums and the offered solutions include waiting several weeks to frame prints, or to layer newsprint between prints and stack books on them for 48 hours to draw out the solvent. I didn’t have any luck with the newsprint approach, and some other prints that I let cure for a month and a half still fogged the glass when framed. To read an article specifically about the fogging problem click HERE. Much more can be found with a quick Internet search.
The combination of the two problems drove me crazy enough that I began having West Coast Imaging produce all my prints. They aren’t cheap, but the quality is amazing and they deal with maintaining the equipment and stocking paper and ink. Since the evaporation issue isn’t a problem with canvas and fine art papers, I have them print these with their Epson ink jet printer. For all my glossy and semi-gloss prints, I have them use their Chromira printer, which uses traditional chemistry based “wet” printing. In the end, I think that wet printing on glossy paper give superior results in color and contrast and it eliminates the strange reflections created by different ink densities when viewing ink jet prints at an angle. In addition, I like the selection of papers, such as Fuji Crystal Archive and FujiFlex super gloss, that are available with Chromira prints. Most importantly, the prints can be framed right away and don’t leave any residue on glass.
I still think that ink jet printers offer great color and quality and a lot of control and convenience for amateur and professional photographers alike, as long as one has the time and patience to maintain them and the evaporating solvent issue isn’t a concern. If you know anyone who wants to buy a 7600, mine is available for a really good price. I’ll probably get a 13″ ink jet for test prints and printing cards and small prints on matte papers.
Q: How would you advise a budding photographer such as myself or classmates to begin marketing themselves? And how do you market yourself now if different than before?
A: A lot of marketing depends on the type of photography you plan to specialize in. Portrait and wedding work is a very different business from commercial photography or photo journalism and they all require different approaches. Landscape, nature and travel photography like I do is different again. I can’t speak too specifically about portrait, commercial and journalistic photography, but there are tons of good websites, books and seminars out there. Portrait and commercial photography probably have the greatest potential to make money.
My goal is to work for myself, shoot what I want to shoot on my own schedule and then find markets for the images I create. At this time, my main markets are art collectors, corporate art collections, print media (magazines, calendars, cards, posters, etc.), advertising and web design. For students interested in this type of photography, word of mouth and name recognition is huge. Developing a web presence is critical these days by building a professional web site, blogging, posting on photo forums, and entering contests on a regular basis. I also keep a growing email client list and send out regular email newsletters. At the student level, this is also a good time to begin making contacts in the industry and getting to know publishers, gallery owners, seasoned photographers, art consultants and so on. Assisting an established photographer or working for a publisher can give a good idea of how the system works. Getting your work out in public is another key factor. Look for contests, community art shows, restaurants, banks, galleries, art fairs, offices and any place else that shows photos to the public. Don’t count on selling a lot of work early on in these venues, but look at it as good exposure, a chance to meet people, share your ideas, get reactions from the public (wear your thick skin), see what others are doing, learn how to develop a first class way of presenting and try to stir up some buzz around your name.
I’m at the point where I also give presentations to groups, send out postcards to potential photo buyers, submit images to magazines and publishers and work with galleries, art consultants and stock agencies that help to market me and get me out to even broader audiences. It takes time and constant work to build this all up. I’m not sure I’m doing much different now than before, I just keep adding new branches to my strategy, improving my approach and broadening my reach.
Q: Have you dealt with stock photo companies at all? If so what are your thoughts on them?
A: I work with a couple of stock agencies that represent my work. There are many dedicated stock photographers who make a good living. To succeed solely as a stock photographer, you have to be willing to shoot any subject that there is a need for (puppies, babies, medical equipment), have an understanding of the elements of what makes a valuable stock image and produce huge quantities of work every month. There is an old adage that says you can expect your stock sales to average out to $1 per image per year. That means to make $30,000 a year you need to have 30,000 images on file and being actively marketed, and those images need to be constantly added to and updated.
That being said, I know that I can’t produce enough quantity, nor am I willing to shoot things I’m not interested in, to support myself strictly on stock. However, I have an ever growing collection of images that I might as well have available for licensing as one of my sources of income. I license stock through my own website and with two other agencies that market to different types of clients. Some agencies will want you to sign an exclusive contract that doesn’t allow you to work with anyone else. Almost all stock agencies will want exclusive rights to market the specific images you submit to them for a period of a few years.
It is important to find the right fit when deciding how to represent your stock. Self representation gives you the most control and the most profit, but it is hard to have the kind of reach and connections that an agency does. The right agency can get your photos out to a much bigger audience, but of course they take a cut.
The big thing to watch out for is the new trend of stock agencies on the web that will take pretty much anyone and all you need to do to be represented is pay a monthly or yearly fee for hosting your gallery. Such outfits don’t actually care if they sell a single image since their income comes from the fees and the more photographers they get to join, the more they make without the need to sell anything. Agencies that only get paid when they sell images have a much bigger incentive to bring in good photographers, aggressively market your images and actively search out and stay in contact with reliable photo buyers. Avoid any stock agency that wants you to pay them a fee to represent you.
Q: As far as your intent goes when it comes to taking photo’s do you have a client or market in mind when you shoot a photo? Or do you seek potential clients after you have the images?
A: I do some of both. I really like to shoot for myself and chase my personal vision, but I also go after specific shots if I think there is a market for them. However, I do this all within the framework of my style of landscape, nature and travel photography. I have never set up a studio shoot, or hired models to create photos that I thought would sell. However, when I’m out shooting the landscape, I will also look for compositions that include roads in them because I work with an agency that provides backdrops for computer generated car ads. Normally I would rarely include a road in my photos. I also try to shoot some of my images composed in a way that would allow for text to be added or to be conducive to fitting in an ad layout. I also do assignment work from time to time, where I’m hired to create specific photos. This is when I most often end up shooting something I wouldn’t otherwise, such as furniture, architecture, cars and people.
Q: What would you have done differently (in regards to your photography career), knowing what you do now?
A: If I could start all over I would get into it as a career much earlier, when I was still single, so that I could have moved around, taken a variety of types of jobs, spent time on the road, lived on a modest income and spent more time being in the main flow of the industry. I also would have looked for some formal education in running a business instead of learning it the hard way. On the other hand, I think starting out later like I did I’m much more confident, focused, mature and world wise than I would have been starting out in my early 20’s, so perhaps I’m doing it right.
