Let’s Promote Environmental Sustainability

Let’s promote environmental sustainability, as long as it doesn’t interfere with sales.

London Drugs and BC Hydro recently teamed up to hold a photo contest with the theme “Wasteful Behaviours”. The goal was to raise awareness about wasteful behaviour in BC.  Photos were to be judged on a number of criteria: Originality, relevance to theme, composition, lighting, and technical quality.

Obviously my submission comments on the wasteful behaviour of many people not only in BC but across North America. Honestly when I think of  blow drying my hair it is a senseless waste of energy. But beyond that the production and use of cosmetics and beauty supplies contributes mass amounts of environmental damage, and for what? I am a woman and I have cosmetics and a small beauty appliances  as you can see from the photo, but the more aware I become the more I understand the complete and utter strain this puts on our environment with no real contribution to our lives.  However to many companies, it’s big business.

Enter ethical dilemma. London Drugs one of the sponsors in the contest which boasts their many achievements in environmental sustainability on the website also makes large profits for its sales in cosmetics and beauty supply. From hair products, makeup, perfumes, electric shavers, and much more London Drugs sells many environmentally damaging and harmful products.

Despite my photo clearly fitting in the criteria listed in the contest rules and regulations it was potentially scrapped in favor of other photos that do not fit quite as well. Or in the case  of one winner which was a possible overlook in the breach of rules.  My photo while strongly depicting a common waste of energy across BC is also an 'anti-ad' for products that provide the sponsor with significant profits.

The more that I ponder the ethics of business, the more I feel ill to my stomach. There are no depths that will not be waded into by these so called “Green Retailers”. I am not perfect, I do not have  top notch energy efficient everything in my house. But I also don’t walk around pretending that I do, just to benefit myself. At the end of the day it’s just another promotional lie to make sales. There is no real and true commitment to saving the environment.

Outdoor Photos in Winter.

What do you do when it's yuck outside?

You want to take pictures, but not only are the trees bare, but what does have leaves looks dead. And there's mucky puddles or dirty, slushy snow.

You will want to find an area that is mostly void of vegetation, local buildings with interesting architecture are perfect, but you could also go to a playground. Even a backyard with a decent fence,  and nice patio furniture will do.

Look for interesting doorways, stairs, balconies, big windows, attractive railings, fountains, brick or stone walls. All these things can add to photos and look nice any time of year.

Basically you are looking for anything other than forms of plant life to be in the background.

Most of those are general ideas that would work for pretty much anything. I just wouldn’t suggest doing grandma and grandpas 50^th anniversary photos at the playground. 

I guess you could, but just sayin'  

Here are some Valentine’s themed photos of my children. These were taken at a museum in town.

Hobbyists ;)

Hobbyists,
(or enthusiasts as I call myself)

This is someone that loves to take pictures, it is a hobby and something fun but they are not actively seeking photography work or trying to break into the business.

Having a hobbyist take photos for you may also translate into savings. This is not their business and they are not trying to make it their living. They will have another means of income and won’t have many expenses associated with their photography, for these reasons they probably wouldn’t charge as much as a professional. However they are also not going to be using your photos to promote themselves and so have no incentive to do it for free. They will have knowledge of what their abilities are worth and have limited time available to be doing photos for people. Because of these reasons they may fall in an in-between range for cost.

A hobbyist will probably have the most flexibility as far as copyrights and usage is concerned. Since they are not looking to make connections or get new clients they probably won’t care as much about having credit given for the photos. They also will most likely not care if you print their photos at Walmart or not, but will have suggestions on where to go if you do want quality.

Hobbyists will know what their style and limitations are. If you ask them to do a certain type of shoot there is the possibility that they will just not be interested in doing it, and tell you no. They have a right to turn away potential clients as they are not running a business. If you ask for something that they don't want to shoot they might not know who to refer you to. It is less likely that they are actively keeping in the loop as to what professionals in the area are doing.

How do you find a hobbyist? You will have to be lucky enough to know one. Browse through photos that your friends and family post online and if someone you know takes great pictures you could ask them if they will do it for you. If a friend of a friend is a hobbyist, don’t bother asking unless you are prepared to offer them a professional rate.  Although hobbyists love to take photos they also have their own busy lives unless you are a friend or family they probably won’t want to spend their free time take photos of strangers.

Pros and Cons of Hiring an Amateur Photographer

Amateurs

Amateur is described in the dictionary as “unskilful” and “lacking of skill”. While this may be true for some amateurs it is most definitely not true for all of them. With this category the basic generalization is that these photographers are undefined. I would say that an amateur is pretty much a “grab bag” when it comes to services, products, abilities and so on.

Every amateur is different, the only difference is that they generally offer lower cost or sometimes even free photo shoots. For the amateur they are usually building a portfolio, building client base and gaining experience so that one day they can own and operate their own professional business. This is why there is such a wide gap in their services, because they could be anywhere on the range from starting out to about to go pro.

Amateurs may be more flexible with the use of your photos and generally are most concerned with just getting their name out there. So what is the downside to hiring an amateur that may be just as creative as a professional, more flexible with their copyrights, and less expensive or only asking to be given credit?? Like I said they are most concerned with getting their name out there which might translate into your photos being posted everywhere too.

Let’s say that you hire an amateur to do a boudoir photo shoot...and this person does not have contracts and waivers in place yet....’yo  ass’ may literally be posted all over the internet. Without contracts and release forms in place, there is a huge grey area as to who can use the photos for what and even with a verbal agreement something could go wrong and there would be no paperwork to back you up.

Amateurs don’t have experience in shooting everything, and they may not know what their style is yet. They are generally excited to shoot something new or try a new technique. If you need something specific done they will usually jump in and give it their best shot rather than referring you to someone in that area. For special occasions such as weddings when you only got one chance to get the right shot, if using an amateur you need to understand that the final product may not turn out as hoped.

Like the flexibility and low cost of an amateur?? A great place to look for these photographers is on craigslist in the small business ads.  Also you may find some through friends and relatives. They are a little harder to find than professionals because they may not have listings in phonebooks or have their own website yet but they are actively trying to get out there. If you can’t find one that suits your needs you could also trying posting a wanted ad online and see if anyone contacts you. 

**If you are looking for free photos please do not word it like you are really helping them out by letting them take photos of you. It is actually really easy to find people that will accept a free photo shoot...especially family/children shoots. Unless you are looking for a highly specialized photo shoot that would provide invaluable experience and exposure (like movie set photography, or magazine work) you are NOT really doing them a huge favour.

Professional Photographers

Let’s start with the professional photographers. Generally when you hire a professional-anything you are getting top-notch services and quality. In photography this would translate into high resolution photos, high quality prints and print products.

Professional photographers also have a clear understanding of their style and abilities. Some photographers like to use many props and studio lighting and some photographers might like to take candid’s only and with natural light, professional photographers will know where they fall on this scale and be able to communicate this with you.

With all the great quality and skill they are usually the most expensive option. This is their job, this is how they make a living. Taking into account that they are probably giving themselves an hourly wage, and have business expenses on top of that, 200$ for a one hour photo shoot is completely understandable. That one hour this person has spent with you turns into quite a few more hours sitting in front of a computer (or in a dark room)editing those photos and then either burning them to a disc, or creating a proof book/ gallery for you to choose print orders from. 

Professional photographers take their business and creativity very seriously, most likely they will ask that you do not infringe on copyright laws and tamper or alter their photos. They may ask that online photos have credits given to them so that other potential clients know where to find them. Professional photographers are the most knowledgeable about the laws surrounding photography and will typically have contracts and waivers, to protect you as well as their work. They usually have the most stringent limitations when it comes to copyright laws, always be clear about your intended use of the photos when hiring a professional.

Professionals strive to provide you with the services you need, and if they are unable to meet those needs for whatever reason they may be able to refer you to someone who can.

Sound like a good fit for you? Where can you find a Professional photographer? They usually have their own websites, you can try a search engine, you can look in the phonebook and you can click on friends pro-pictures on social websites to find a link to their photographers page (that is why they want their info there!). They are fairly easy and fun to find because their work is the most prevalent out there and you can literally spend hours online browsing through photos done by professionals.

Need Photos Done? Hire a Professional....Well Maybe.

When you are thinking of getting photos done, there are some things you need to consider. Before scouring the internet looking for a photographer that you like, first write down a list of what you need and want.  Ask yourself what is the subject of your photo shoot? Family? Product/services? Wedding? Do you want photos that are stylized and full of props or candid? What do you plan on doing with the photos? Do you want the ability to run off a few photos from Walmart to cut up and put in your child’s baby book?  Are you planning on posting them all on Facebook? Do you want to alter them yourself for digital scrapbooking or as part of a slideshow? Are there any other specialty products you need, do you want enlargements, and canvas prints?  And last but not least, what is your budget?

Once you have a complete list you can start to get an idea of what type of photographer you need. I know your first thought might be...”What’s the difference?”

There is a huge difference! Are you going to hire a professional, whose photography business is what earns them a living, or go through the trouble of finding a hobbyist that just enjoys photography in their spare time or maybe amateur that is looking to build a portfolio?

Before I begin keep in mind that these are generalizations to give you an idea of where to start looking. ALWAYS ask and talk to the photographer before investing in their services! Be specific and clear about what you want and ask questions!

Leaps and Bounds

Recently I was looking over old work of mine, which at best I can describe as painful. I really REALLY dislike looking at anything I've painted. The older the work is the more I hate it. The problem is that I learned so much just in the time it took to make it, by the time I am finished I already know how I would have done it differently.

But I decided to revist old ideas and use them for inspiration on new work...maybe just to prove to myself that I really CAN do it better. Here are two paintings I did about 5 years ago, around the time that I first started painting. I really liked this idea so I went ahead and tried it again...

The difference that I see in these paintings is crazy! I knew that I had learned and grown as an artist over the past few years but to see it side by side like this really made it sink in. Honestly it makes me wonder what my work will look like in another 5 years.

Now it isn't so painful to look at old work because now I am just using it as a starting point to something more, instead of just reflecting on how crappy I was.