Smartshots

Technology is your friend

Posted on 08/08/2011by Steven Pam1 Comment

Most of us have different friends who fulfil different roles in our life – we don’t ask everything of one friend. And with some friends, it’s always a good idea to have a backup plan.

That’s about as far as I want to go with the “technology is your friend” analogy… but my point is, having great technology at our disposal can be a great ‘enabler’, but it needs to be used with common-sense, and an understanding of the underlying principles. All the greatest ‘tricks’ and techniques are useless if the situation completely changes all of a sudden, and the particular trick or technique you had in mind is no longer available.

Furniture designer Anton Gerner

Speaking of friends, this morning I did a shoot for furniture designer Anton Gerner. Anton and I have known each other since we were kids, so when we work together, it’s an opportunity to experiment with tools and techniques that I might not try with a new client.

Today I was able to combine some tools I’ve been using for a good while, with a couple of newer tricks, to good effect. Actually, ‘effect’ probably isn’t the right word here, since the photograph we made is quite straightforward and very free of effects. The important part was the way in which we achieved it, from brief through to delivery.

Anton is having a new web site built for his business, and the designer asked for a portrait in a very specific size and shape. In the bad old days, when we were ‘shooting to layout’ for a magazine cover or advertisement, it was a rather clumsy process. There were the black “L” croppers we used on Polaroids, and there was the overhead transparency film which had been drawn on with a fine marker pen (or put through a laser printer if you were really high-tech) and then placed on the viewfinder ground glass as a reference.

Today, I just entered the proportions into Lightroom, and since I was shooting with the camera tethered to my laptop, I was able to apply that setting across all the photographs as I was shooting, to instantly see the exact crop and make sure we were shooting an image which would sit well within that frame.

The second benefit of shooting tethered (apart from all the usual ones, like being able to check focus and exposure with complete accuracy), was that once we had our ‘hero’ shot, I was able to immediately upload it to my Photoshelter account, using the Personal Hotspot on my iPhone. Once uploaded, I put it into a gallery and e-mailed the link to Anton, for him to forward to his designer. Within minutes of having made our photograph, the designer was able to check it over from their office.

This may not seem like that big of a deal these days, but there’s nothing worse than packing everything up and then getting a call to say that some thing or other was unsuitable in the photograph. Particularly in cases where the client is located in a different city and unable to send a representative to the shoot, it provides terrific peace of mind (to all parties) that everything is perfect.

My final trick was to raise an invoice on the spot from my iPhone. I use the Xero online accounting system, and thanks to their new Xero Touch app, I was able to send an invoice before I had even left the building.

…and thus I was able to go off and enjoy a Warm French Lentil Salad with Goats Cheese at my lunch meeting, smug in the knowledge that the job was complete, with not a thing more to be done.

That didn’t hurt a bit!

Posted on 04/08/2010by Steven PamLeave a comment

So, I had been using CMSimple as the platform for the smartshots website for several years. It pretty much does what it promises, i.e. it’s a simple content management system – and although it has served me well, it was a little rudimentary for where I wanted to go with the site. Well, a lot rudimentary, actually 🙂

WordPress is pretty much the de facto blogging / content management platform these days, thanks to its ease of installation and use, and its extensive customizability and extensibility. Plus there is some integration with Photoshelter, the home all of the images that I deliver to clients, as well as my nascent stock image collection – so I can easily do stuff like dropping in slideshows or individual images, like this:

I can even blog from on location – although usually there’s no time for that because I’m busy, like, taking photographs! I guess that’s what Twitter is for – you can follow smartshots, (although I don’t post from that account too often), or if you’re game, my personal account, stevenpam.

The new site has been in the works for some time; but all my other projects, and the daily demands of photo shoots and just running the business, all seem to have got in the way of the launch. But we got there in the end (we being me and my friend Brent Danley of Saco Bay New Media. Do let me know what you think. Oh, and if you use a feed reader, point it at http://www.smartshots.com.au/feed/ to get new posts as I add them.

Anyway, enough of the geeky tech ramblings… we’re here to talk photography, right? My own little brand of commercial photography, more specifically. So here’s a glimpse of some topics I may have in the works (let me know in the comments if you’re curious about any of them in particular)

My expedition to Tasmania in which almost all of my favourite shots were from my point-n-shoot pocket camera
Taking photos in the dark, with earplugs
My dalliance with being a food photographer
What I’ve learnt from teaching photography to 8 year-olds

Insert Lame Pun Here

Posted on 14/01/2009by Steven PamLeave a comment

OK, I guess we should pick this thing up where we left off…

Since I haven’t written a post here since September, I thought I’d thought I start off with something different, and not force you to endure one of my silly puns as the post title.

I won’t mix things up too much, though – still plenty of pictures! But I won’t try and fit everything that’s been happening into one post. A bit at a time. More fun for all of us that way, don’t you think?

25 Sep 2008: Australian Anthill Cool Company Awards

Always a fun night… and, like many corporate awards events, always a bit of a b**ch to shoot thanks to the low light levels. But with some fast glass and a steady hand, good results are possible.

26 Sep: Veggie Fun with Matt & Monica

Long-time clients and all around fun people Matt and Monica have a book out. The “muscle” version of the cover was a bit too scary for some, so we shot this alternative version as well.

Nice and non-threatening, don’t you think?

And finally (for now)…

25 Oct: Bentley Stylez

I went all hip-hop and photographed this guy with just a hint of strobist action:

That’s enough for now… join me next time (soon, hopefully!) and I’ll see if I can find a few more pictures worthy of your attention.

Never lie to an x-ray technician

Posted on 21/09/2008by Steven Pam2 Comments

Never lie to an x-ray technician… they can see right through you.

As you can see, I thought it was about time I revived the lame jokes… I actually considered recycling a couple I’ve used before, they were that bad.

Anyway, enough of that nonsense… on with the photography stuff. I just wanted to tell you quickly about a company that I’ve been working with that I’m very impressed by…

Client Success Story #273

So, I recently went to see long-time clients Starfish Ventures to do a few shots of their team, for use on their web site and also to accompany any media stories:

This is a company that seems to have gone from strength to strength since I started working with them. That they take seriously the image they present to the world is no doubt a factor. Which got me thinking…

Ten or even five years ago, you could kind of “get away” with having a crappy website. Nowadays, everyone does their research on the web. And that’s often where they get their first impression of you. So… what are you doing to make sure your organisation looks its best?

One more thing – “event season” is pretty much upon us. Christmas parties, annual awards dinners, conferences, it’s all happening. Things can get a bit hectic. So if you do have any photography coming up, I suggest you book it in, like, now. Our operators are standing by for your call (well, OK, it’s just me, but you get the idea…).

Catch you next time.

Life is like riding a bicycle

Posted on 01/09/2008by Steven PamLeave a comment

Albert Einstein is reported to have said, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”.

Not one to turn down the advice of someone of Einstein’s intellect, I’ve decided to move Smartshots WHQ (World Headquarters) once again.

WHQ in Richmond has served me well for two years, but a number of factors have converged to make right now the perfect time to move my business back to the kitchen table at home in Preston:

Landlord and co-tenant D&D Global Group have shut their business down.
The vast majority of my work is on location – having a swanky studio is nice, but I really can’t justify the overhead
Working from home massively reduces my carbon footprint on non-shooting days

How does this affect you?

Well, it doesn’t, really. It’s business as usual. My contact details remain the same, apart from the land line telephone. It’s usually best to call me on my mobile (0412 206 437), or you can skype me, if you’re that way inclined.

If you have a job for which we need a studio, there are a number of excellent hire studios around Melbourne.

And for those important production meetings, I’m happy to come to you – or your favourite cafe 🙂

If you have any questions about all this, please drop me a line.

What photographers do

Posted on 24/07/2008by Steven Pam1 Comment

(Warning: this post is kind of long. But it’s mostly pictures. So while your scroll-wheel finger might get tired, your eyes and brain should be fine. Reading time approximately 2 minutes)

Ever wondered what photographers do? Probably not… it’s pretty obvious – they take pictures. Well, I have been taking a stack recently, and I went on a little road trip (with my family), too. So I thought you might like to see the evidence.

First up I went to see long-time clients Davies Collison Cave to update some of their profile shots:

I caught up with my old buddy the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, John So, at a little birthday celebration (85 years of the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation):

Then the CFMEU summoned me to photograph Vice President Noel Washington, who faces a jail term for not talking to the ABCC:

But I wasn’t finished with unions… AMWU asked me to go down to the Waubra wind farm and shoot one of their guys with his handiwork, to illustrate a story about what the union is doing about climate change:

(funny how those two shots are kind of the same)

It had only been a week or two since I had seen John So, but I was missing him already. So we got together again for “Melbourne’s Biggest Community Lunch” at the Royal Exhibition Buildings (complete with “Christmas in July” theme). I got to mix with bigwigs like Mike Brady, police commissioner Christine Nixon, and the entire Melbourne Football Club:

My last bit of work before our little family road trip was for Amphibian Creative, who commissioned me to shoot a bunch of portraits for a staff incentive program:

After all of that work and what with the school holidays and all, it was only fair that we take a nice family road trip. First port of call was my Mum’s place near Merimbula. We managed to get a trip to the (beautiful but rather cold) beach in, as well as a visit to Potoroo Palace animal park:

Finally we stopped in Canberra to spend some time with the family of my beautiful bride, Jen.

All good things must come to and end, as they say (come to think of it, who does say that?), and now it’s back to work… as always, if you need me, you can find me at smartshots.com.au

See you around!

Cheers,
Steven

Do a photo shoot with me – and save the world

Posted on 01/04/2008by Steven Pam1 Comment

Well folks, Easter is over, and the school holidays will be finished soon too. So I guess it’s back to work until Anzac day or something.

As you’re probably aware, “Earth Hour” took place on Saturday night and so I did some thinking about the way we do things around here. As a result I have some big news for you!

Now I like to think I’m a bit of an “early adopter”, and I embraced a fully digital workflow fairly early on. In fact it was around 2003; so while I certainly wasn’t among the first to change over, I still remember distinctly having to explain the benefits of digital to a lot of clients.

But like I said, I did some thinking during Earth Hour (there was nothing much else to do with everything switched off – and the children still up), and got to wondering about my “carbon footprint” as a photographer.

It seemed to me that digital was definitely ahead of film from an environmental point of view – I mean, think of all that film and all those chemicals. But then I started to think about all the power my equipment uses – not just the camera, but also the lights I use and of course my computer, which is integral to the image-making process these days.

I remember my Environmental Science teacher back in high school, Bill Cleveland, saying that “if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem”. Which has given me a bit of a complex ever since. I mean, I feel kind of responsible for the whole Middle East business, because I have to admit I’ve done bugger all to fix it, personally.

But that’s beside the point. What I’m getting at is that I decided to change the way I operate the photography practice, so that you and I can be a part of the solution.

So what actually changes, and how does it affect you?

Well I had a look in my equipment cupboard to see if I could do any recycling. It turned out I have a perfectly serviceable Olympus 35RD rangefinder film camera from the seventies, and a 1958 model Kodak Box Brownie.

The Olympus takes great pictures but does use a small amount of electricity from a small “button” battery for the light meter. The Brownie, however, is fully manual (well, technically, it’s not even manual – there’s just nothing to adjust on it) and power-free, and is therefore my “enviro-camera” of choice.

So from now on I’ll be shooting all corporate portraits and headshots, events, and that kind of thing on the Brownie. Don’t worry, the quality is top notch – the pictures are a bit kind of – blurrier – than you’re probably used to now, and the exposure is a bit hit and miss, but the effect really grows on you.

If you’re after something a little sharper, I’m happy to get the little Olympus out. But because it uses some battery power for the light meter, I’ll need to add a small “carbon offset” charge of one cent per photograph to your bill. This money will go directly towards planting trees in my backyard.

As I mentioned, the other big power guzzlers are my electronic flash units. So it’s strictly “available light” from now on. This may necessitate slower shutter speeds at times – so if you have a booking for corporate head shot portraits, I recommend that you advise all personnel to avoid coffee before the photo session. If people have “the shakes” while posing, they may end up with a rather fuzzy portrait.

The new setup may take a little getting used to, but hopefully you’re as excited as I am about changing the world in our own little way. I look forward to our next shoot!

Cheers,
Steven

P.S. I know it sounds a little extreme – and I was hesitant at first myself – but to further reduce my environmental impact by lowering water usage, I have placed my “old” digital SLR camera in the cistern of my toilet.

P.P.S. What are you doing at your workplace to reduce your carbon footprint or save the world? Please add your own environmental suggestions in the comments.

The best summer holidays in the world ever

Posted on 22/01/2008by Steven PamLeave a comment

Well, the last week of January is here, so you’re probably back at work by now, doing stuff like this:

2007

I thought it would be a good time to reflect on 2007, talk about a few nice things that happened over the holidays, and start thinking about how you and I can have a ‘bumper’ 2008 together!

First and foremost – thanks for everything in 2007. It was awesome working with you all… I had a blast! Particularly memorable highlights:

Serving on the board of ACMP (Australia’s industry association for commercial photographers)
“The Sopranos” influenced shoot for Centurion Metering Technologies
Meeting and photographing MYOB co-founder Craig Winkler
Flying to the Coonawarra and Mildura to shoot the Katnook Estate and Deakin Estate wineries
Traveling to England to visit my daughter Louise
Going for a ride in not one, but two King Airs

The ‘Holiday Season’

I kicked off the holidays by starting (another) website! It’s called “Woop Guy” and it’s completely pointless but I enjoy it. Try and stop me 🙂
We spent Christmas at home for once, and our families trekked in from Canberra, Sydney, and Adelaide.
After all that we were ready to escape the heat in Melbourne and take a quiet relaxing family holiday. We spent a week in beautiful Inverloch, where as well as getting plenty of beach time, we got together as a family and wrote down our goals for the year (see also this article by my lovely bride Jen for more about new year goals).
As if that wasn’t enough holidaying, Jen and I managed to sneak away to Coffs Harbour for a few days without the kids. A friend was getting married and twisted my arm (very hard) into shooting the wedding. Who could resist staying at a resort right on the beach?
And to top it off I went for a ride in a Tiger Moth last Sunday, including some aerobatics! Jen had bought me the ride for my birthday back in November, and I finally got to take it.

Let’s have a bumper year, you and me

Is 2008 going to be your big year? My objective is to help your wildest dreams come true (seriously!) by providing you with outstanding, engaging photography that helps you meet your goals. I hope we get to work together soon. Happy new year!

Fitness photographer

Posted on 30/11/2007by Steven Pam

I just did another shoot with my friends Matt and Monica of Fitnesskick.

The last time we worked together was in May 2006 (and I blogged about it then, too)

The main purpose of the shoot was to photograph step-by-step illustrations of the exercises for their new book.

But while they were here at the studio, we shot a few portraits, too, and I even challenged Matt to an arm wrestle 🙂

I think we all had a good time – we worked through the exercise shots quickly and with determination, and then enjoyed letting our hair down for the portraits.

All in all we took over 600 shots, so we needed to be fairly organised about what we shot and how. Of course having a controlled, distraction free studio environment helped too.

Side note: Matt was smashed up badly when he was hit by a train five years ago.

Hot news: Picture tells way more words than previously thought!

Posted on 12/09/2007by Steven PamLeave a comment

We’ve all heard the old adage that “a picture tells a thousand words”. And of course it’s one that we photographers in particular love.

But it turns out that far from telling a measly 1,000 words, a picture tells nearly eighty thousand!

How do I know this?

Small Business Marketing blogger John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing told me so with his link to this picture of his book.

But seriously… It does go to show that the right photograph can make a big difference to your message! Contact me to discuss how we could work together to make yours more effective.