How to get Work.

This entry and more like it were inspired by Peter Lombardi. Peter attended and as far as I know graduated Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, CA. Peter got a better education than me, in that he actually attended and completed more classes. I didn't graduate, but that's a blog for another day. He's managed to find himself assisting in Los Angeles, where as I've heard through the grapevine, so many photographers get caught. The money's good, you're around creativity and you're learning. However you can get worn out from 14 hour days and forget that you're busy building someones photography career. (Hint: Its not yours.)


For some silly reason I think (myself included at some point in the past) that individuals pursuing a career in photography or design, think that the work fairy just appears one day or that there is some well kept secret. (another HINT: there isn't a work fairy or a big secret)

To make it in the photography/design freelance world, in my experience thus far, mostly you just have to be persistent, relentless, and CONSISTENT with everything you do pertaining to where you want to go with your photography. I realize that was a bit of a run-on sentence, but I really just wanted to get my point across to you. Maybe you have a great little portfolio, but you haven't shot/designed anything in awhile. Or at least you haven't posted anything in a while. If you have a job right now, this is going to require 2-3 hours PER NIGHT of your time after work... for potentially 2-3 years before things really start rolling. Even then, there are no guarantees. If you know you don't suck, then its time to fly. No offense but there are some dreamers out there, that really just aren't that good.

You can be the a great photographer and not know how to market yourself and waste talent. There is nothing worse than wasted talent. You can be a snapshot artist but a great business man/woman and make millions.

You need to be right between the two. Do NOT WASTE YOUR TALENT. You have it, you enjoy it, and if you're not working at it EVERY day then you're wasting it. And I don't mean shooting everyday (shoot often of course) I mean, searching for ways to be SEEN.

• If you don't have a current business card this is the most important. You should be giving out at least 2 cards a day at EVERY opportunity that you see where your talents can be used. How many times have you been asked for a card and didn't have one?

• Create a blog. (pimp the shit out of it on every social networking site) Creatives lately I've heard are looking to see how you see, the blog is the new website 2.0. Moreover you're inspiring others to create new work, its a great way to give back and its great creative karma. Artists are slightly narcissistic. We want some recognition. If you're an "artist" and you choose hold on to your art, and you want to make a living doing it, you have to be willing showcase it.
  

• Update your website, you know it needs to be done. Don't have more than one photo from a shoot. Ask for another qualified person's opinion. Your Aunty doesn't count. She loves all your shit.
  

• Set up a new shoot or three. Once you have one, it starts to get addicting to update with new images. Put the production images or anything like that in your blog. Since we're in a "recession" you have a ton of time to do self promo/personal work. PDN's (Photo District News) when questioning professionals, as to what they were doing in the "recession", their answer was spending time streamlining portfolios, their look, creating a blog, and shooting tons of personal work.
  

• Brand yourself. This is probably most important and should be in the number one spot. But it comes with time. Your website should match your blog, should match your business card should match EVERYTHING that goes out of your office. Down to the label on the DVD of images you give to a client. You're a professional, act accordingly. Even the Golden Arches took years and years to serve 90 billion hamburgers.
  

• Start using "normal" job money and invest it in your photography/design company. Skip the new pair of shoes and create a promo card and send it out. Pay for a user friendly up datable website like Livebooks or Sitewelder.
  

• Utilize Professional Photography Profile websites. These are KEY. Even if you're not getting work from them, you're still putting it out there. There is a list below.
  

• Craigslist. This is a necessary evil. There are so many people scrambling for the crumbs of work on this site. But really, I've wrangled in a few really nice jobs from it, as well as some great personal work.
  

• For your first logo save some money and come up with some designs yourself that work for you. They don't have to be perfect right away. Your brand and logo, everything for that matter, evolves into itself. My logo now is not the same as it was 4 years ago. It is the one I feel most comfortable with though.
  

• Last and not least is LET NOTHING STAND IN YOUR WAY. Nothing. If you have a partner that does not support what you do, they're fired. Student loans? Take care of them later when you're making more money, you're never going to pay them off anyway. Parents, dogs, cats, rats, pelicans, NOTHING. KIDS! Oh man this is the biggest excuse for people getting a grinding job and not pursuing a creative career. Don't you want to inspire your children to be what they want in life?? Kids are part of your life, don't use them as an excuse, put a picture of them by your desk and use them to inspire you! You are on a mission to become the best photographer/artist you can be. Perhaps you've paid a lot for an education pertaining to the field you wish to be in. It WILL NOT just come to you. You are essentially trying to become a ROCKSTAR, if I had a dime for every person that said it was impossible I would not have a career in photography, I'd have a career in money management.
  

You need to think, eat, sleep, breathe creativity in the beginning. Only now after 4-5 years of REALLY wanting to become a photographer have I been able to rest just a little bit. Metaphorically speaking, I have bigger hills I want to climb, my hill might not be as steep, but my pack is SO much heavier. The bigger my company gets and I want it to be, the bigger my costs get. That is just the nature of the beast. Once you tame the beast just a bit, its beyond a feeling of bliss, but the beast gets pissed you have to get stronger or beat. YOU WILL NOT BE BEAT.

The more profiles you have online, and the more places you are involved with, Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, Websites, the easier it is for the Googles, Yahoos, Bings, Leapfishes and other search engines to find you. Here's a couple that at reasonable in cost, but if you want to play with the big dogs then you have to pay. I'm not sure, but I'm almost positive there isn't any site that's FREE and you're going to get QUALITY work from. There may be some, but believe me, Saatchi and Saatchi creatives are not looking there for you.

Profile sites, these sites get thousands of hits a day looking for people like you:
www.altpick.com
www.workbook.com
www.photoserve.com
www.photographers.com

Companies that have databases of creatives looking for you:
www.agencyaccess.com
www.adbase.com

A great freelance site I haven't been on in a while but is great:
www.freelanceswitch.com

I know its not much but I feel good just getting this out there. Writing this has been as therapeutic for me as I hope it has been for you to read it.

Quirk Law Firm, LLP

Photon Concepts was, if you've read or seen our work before, based on the premise of building and branding businesses through pictures and designs. It started because I love advertising, and I love making pictures. But more importantly, I love putting words and phrases to pictures and designs. Thus the name is truly, Photon Concepts - Photography & Ad Design. We like the idea of acting like a boutique style advertising agency. After all we're in a smaller community, but we're growing pretty well and we really love to share what it is we do. We were commissioned by one of the brothers of Quirk Law Firm, LLP in Ventura, California, Logan Quirk, to revamp their image for an upcoming business expo they have at the Ventura Fairgrounds. We were much obliged. We were told Green is a must (they're Irish go figure) and the "Q" is something they really want to stick in the minds of potential clients.
New Business Cards with round corners, matte finish, 16pt thick card stock... front & back.




4x9" flyer front - these are handouts while they will be tending to their booth...


4x9" flyer back


Below is the 6'x3' Banner for top of the booth at the Business Expo. You want to make a statement when people first browse your booth, like a billboard. "Quirk will make it work" has been their motto... but in advertising as you know, its all about the customer. Adding "for you" at the end really makes the reader feel a bit of personalization in our opinion.



Beautiful design comes in odd numbers in our opinion as well... These two vertical banners below, for a total of three, really bring the whole presentation together. They tell a bit more info of how Quirk will make it work for you. They're clean and not to busy, sweet and to the point. Two vertical banners Left & Right side 79x31" both with collapsing stands, these look real nice and have a great professional presentation for any business doing a booth at an expo. They're also really incredibly priced.

You've Got Mail.

When we send out E-Promos like the ones from our "Come Create With Us" campaign (listed a few posts below) through Agency Access, we can track who opened our emails, as well as the individuals or Art Buyers that have clicked and gone to our site. On top of sending them a friendly, personal follow-up email, these babies will be sent to the "clickers" personally. A good friend of mine didn't quite like the "bleed" of the company name into the image, but I obviously did, so I kept it.

Originally I had the three image thumbs down on the lower left of the green half, so I could write a little personal note to the receiver in the green, but I opted to have them larger (to show off the work) and in the middle. Putting a line in the middle of the right hand side means the address label and stamp go in the top, and I can write a little note on the bottom square just below the line and just above our company name.


The front of the card will be UV coated, which I'm particularly against, but in this case it makes the 16pt thick paper feel thicker. Which hopefully screams quality. The back will not be UV coated though, so we can write in a pen or felt tip for a more personal feel. We also opted for round corners and printing on a 6x6" square to really make them stand out. Apparently Art Buyers get a bazillion of these a day and about 99% of them go to the round file cabinet. Its a simple design, not to busy, and usually "simple" stands out. Lets hope they do in this case. This is the first in a series of 3 that will be formatted this way. I will post the rest as we make them.

I've Done Better.

Photo a Day. -July 6 & 7

Ok ok... so it hasn't been quite "A Photo A Day". But hey I'm trying. Here's a couple from yesterday at the beach.. with my little man, Isaac. Monday and Tuesday I really just didn't have the hootspa to do anything. The Beach is at the end of the street and believe it or not we rarely take advantage of it. Seemed like the thing to do.

Photo a Day. -July 4 & 5

Seriously I wasn't going to post on the 4th... too much work! Yesterday I forgot again but pretty much I was resting my brain... (much needed). On the 4th though I went on a hike with my lady, her friend and my dog, which to my despair I almost killed the poor thing. She has blisters on every paw and one of her pads, in the center, got a bit ripped off. She's limping around like an old lady. For a boxer/pit she sure is a big wimp. It was only 5.5 miles round trip for Christ sakes. So I thought I'd post 2 images from the hike to make up for my lack of photos on my Photo-a-day. We could call it 2 photos every 2 days...

The hike is pretty vigorous, definitely not for children or the weak at heart. It was a pretty daunting 98 degrees, up hill both ways as they say. You get down into this Canyon where during the spring there's an amazing 14 foot natural water slide into a beautiful swimming hole. This time of year though its all dried up and terrible arid. There were a few small pools where some snakes, a lonely turtle, and some polliwogs chill in the moss, but other than that its quite dry.

If you look over to the Far left, the tallest peak is "The General", and all the little ones across, are the soldiers. Or at least that's what I call it. Use your imagination.


This is an old iron gate about where you park and walk in.

Photo a Day. -July 3

This is #3 on my photo-a-day month... I do have one for July 2, but it'll probably be a studio shot because I was pretty much there all day. Will post it later. This one however is a picture of singer/songwriter Anthony Miller or "AM" as he goes by. It was of course taken on the trusty iPhone. Karen and I saw him play last night with his band and I picked up a CD as well. He and his band were actually pretty great. I have to say though, that there is just something about music that I've been missing lately that just needs more. And by more I mean like to really let out what's pent up inside with your instrument... it seemed like just when they got rolling they finished. I've found that with several bands I listen to lately, they don't just let it ROCK out. I dunno.

Photo a Day. -July 1

Thought I'd start a photo-a-day when I passed a worker in this field. Sometimes I get caught up in just shooting for money that I forget the real reason I shoot. Because I just love it. I love the sound of that shutter.

Interview with a Photographer.

Hey! What's up, holy moly. I was interviewed recently by and Artist website called Jitzul.com. The girl that interviewed me was Alicia, she extremely well spoken and definitely asked all the right questions I thought. Actually I thought I talked a little too much but hey I'm a quarter Italian what can I say. Apparently she found us on photographers.com where for the most part we're always on the first page. Its a bit of a long interview about 30 minutes, so just work away and let it play in the background if your going to listen.

Yesterday I was chatting up my uncle, William F. Duffy. He's a world renowned sculptor in his class and he's carved everything from bronze, granite to white Italian marble. His works can be found literally from here to China. I've been to his studio in Baltimore, Maryland and he's just an incredible inspiration to me. I'm really stoked he called me yesterday to talk about art, politics and a possible new client for me largeart.com. They're located in LA and need their large statues archived so hopefully we'll be able to hook them up.

Also if you have the time have a look at this guy for Automotive Photography, yes his name is Michael Moore. Not the one you're thinking of though. We're photographing a sweet Volkswagon R32 this weekend, will post!

The "Why" of Social Media. (Repost from LinkedIn)

This is an awesome little blip about the reasons for Social Media in our generation. The gentleman who posted it to LinkedIn, Kyle Blades and his company Rebel, apparently do a ton of research in the evolution of what consumers want. I found it to be extremely upbeat and lifting.

The "why" of social media

For those of you that are sick of hearing me talk, here is what some other people have said about the power of social media:

Social media is not a fad. It is not going away. It is not just for teenagers. It is fundamentally re-engineering the way we communicate with consumers, with each other and the way we promote and sell our goods and services. If you are not making this a part of your business and marketing plan, know that your competitors are. The social media train is picking up steam. If you don’t get on board, you’ll be left at the station. (Chuck Schuele)

Social media is transforming marketing as we know it. Marketers should first of all listen or read what consumers are saying about their brand within these social networks before doing anything. They’re powerful communication tools and are becoming an essential part of successful marketing strategies. (Geri Weiland)

I use social media for networking and to reach additional groups of people that I may not otherwise have access to (those that are located in different states, etc). (Steffany Caputo)

I first got onto it out of necessity, as social media has become normal business practice. I’ve found that LinkedIn has allowed penetration into areas I would not have had otherwise. (Sue Rhodes)

If I don’t, I feel left out. (Scott S. Seroka)

I think it gives power to readers/audiences. They can come together and form communities either in support or against of anything. (Nitin Walia)

From a business, brand and internal alignment point of view, I/we use social media for relevance. Relevance for demonstrating truth behind a value proposition, relevance in demonstrating thought leadership, relevance in promoting/creating relationships and community interaction. (Lou Thurmon)

I have been using LinkedIn first and foremost to get connected and build a business network outside my physical area and secondly to use it to take the pulse of what is going on in with businesses–basically to see what the predominate thinking is on sales, marketing and the state of business these days. (Holly Rotman-Zaid)

Inbound marketing. From a business perspective, devoting a percentage of the marketing plan to allow for your audience to come to you, instead of you going to them. (Pete Iacovazzi)

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who put effort into describing why they choose social media.

-Kyle Blades

Agency Access.

Last year, I used this company to get in on some higher end clientele. It worked to some extent, but my subscription ended in January or February. Those were tougher months for us here and when things started looking up I jumped on the bandwagon of Photoserve.com, Photographers.com, and spent some monies elsewhere. Yesterday I joined Altpick.com and also took the time to rejoin in the fun of being able to get ACCESS to all the big wigs up at Saatchi & Saatchi for example with the service of Agency Access. So basically you build lists based on what you want to shoot. If you want to shoot Automotive Editorials, they'll have a list of the editor's emails for every vehicle magazine know to man. You purchase a region area with individuals, ad agencies, magazines, manufacturers, that are looking for the services of a photographer or artist. You also purchase an amount of emails say like 12,000. Meaning if I send out an e-flier/email to 600 agencies I can send those out 24 times. They also have the printing of postcards and mailers and so forth as well. Now, when you get this list you MUST come up with something catchy to send in your email blasts for your embedded e-flier. The idea is, say I'm an Art Buyer for a large Ad Agency sifting through TONS of photographers from all over the country, never mind the world, and I'm getting emails from a hundred everyday. So the Photographer that is emailing me THROUGH Agency Access (along with a hundred others that day) has to have a catchy "ad" and subject line to get my attention or else you get the old delete button. Its quite insane actually. Here's my three that I'm starting out with and scheduling today for the next four weeks or so. I'm going to tell them what I want them to do. And that's to "Come Create With Us." Enjoy.

A Tale of Two Photographers. (take two)

Part of posting these chats is, that you think, "Oh man, what is this going to do for my career." And my thought on that is, it will do incredible things! C'mon, not everyone is perfect or writes perfectly, or THINKS of everything in great taste... However its FUNNY at the time. I mean seriously, do you think that Dane Cook (as an artist) thinks twice about the jargon he's running on stage? Of course he doesn't, the better he makes it the more YOU laugh and the more success he has in his career. I'm sure he's a funny guy outside of his stand-up and movies, but I'm sure he's not running around chasing girls with his willy and talking about masterbation either. When you have two good friends with great chemistry and the atmosphere is full of laughs, shouldn't you SHARE that with someone? Otherwise it ends up in email box somewhere in cyberland. I say screw that. I want to show you I'm REAL. I think you can see from my work, I take it seriously and where I wouldn't post this stuff to my website, I think the BLOG is the website 2.0. made to let you understand that we as people can maybe be artists in every sense of the word.

I've changed my friend's company and name to keep it real for him. Just know he's a badass, just published a book and works for a major journalism publication.

11:36 AM Bob: "energy flows where attention goes" thats why I jerk off

me: lolol

11:37 AM no video chat with you??

11:38 AM Bob: haha, no... we just moved to a new building (its so fuckin dope by the way, posh, very posh... Greenwhich Village area) but I am closer to my boss and co workers so I can't be bustin a vid chat! haha

11:39 AM me: Ahhh

They upgrade the building

but can't pay the Bob huh?

Vanity Fare! spits

pa tooey

Bob: ? I get paid?

me: I meant keeping you

lol

11:41 AM Bob: oh, well hopefully they will... my tombstone isn't engraved just yet there's still the fleeting chance. Plus, they set aside money for this building like 3 years ago but yeah WTF come on... hire a Bob today and you won't regret a single day... well unless you come drinkin with me!

11:42 AM me: right!

11:43 AM Just put 750 labels on postcards

eeeeee

Shoulda paid a monkey to do it

11:45 AM Bob: like Chabot? he climbs things and slings feces

me: I heard he got a tree in the tooth once

11:46 AM Picture this

You're over there at Vanity Fare editing away with headphones on, impervious to your boss standing behind you

Meanwhile we're having a video chat and a game of charades

11:47 AM Bob: holy shit... I just turned around to make sure

me: and I'm dancing around like a spider monkey

That would be right out of a comedy

Bob: and I am laughing and clapping

me: lolololol

Bob: hahaaa

clapping LOL!

me: Making seal noises

aru!

ARU!

AURU!

Clapping

clapping

11:48 AM The funny thing

is I'm laughing and clapping right now

from that

Shit.

Bob: hahaa

me: That's funny

Bob: right

me: ooooo

Bob: until it really happens

me: right again!

Bob: and I wouldn't put it past us

11:49 AM me: yeah me niether

"There was a time son,"

11:50 AM when you father worked for Vanity Fare in NYC

Bob: and he got fired

cuz ....

me: But your Uncle Peter Came on a video chat

Bob: hahahaa

me: "What's a video chat?"

It was before holograms son

Bob: hahaha!

me: "Oh"

11:51 AM Bob: hey, what did you type on Brando's facebook page

?

?

me: Why?

Was he pissed?

I wrote

Bob: no, he told me to check out his page.. but I couldn't right away and then when I got the chance nothin was there

11:52 AM me: That I was coming down to see him this Friday

or Saturday

and that he should just order the Coke

NOT the hookers

Because the recession was killing me

lololol

Bob: Peter.... hahahaa :(

are you still goin down

11:53 AM me: I think he's out

but I am as soon as he's back for sure

Bob: out where?

me: I wanna shoot his Audi

Bob: Catalina?

me: Oh who knows probable

y

They're D-Bags to him sometimes

11:54 AM We talked about it last time he was here

11:55 AM Bob: yeah, its hard when you have so many ideas and the big companies move like Gian Sloth's

11:56 AM me: Ok buddy

I'm going to shoot a new

Cadillac CTS up in Santa Barbara

Life's tough

lol

Bob: right

haha

me: I move like

a mongoose

No sloths here

Bob: or a bunny rabbit that just had an enima

but thats good

lol

11:57 AM me: Gonna have a sweet portfoloi peice

HEY!

Check this

Bob: hahaha

me: This guys is going to mentor me

Bob: God?

me: www.khulsey.com

He does illustrations

for all the big car cos

11:58 AM but he's going to show me how to get some great effects from my images in Photoshop

Bob: shweet

me: Oh he's nasty

Check him out

I have to pay him

Bob: yeah, that industry is so much photoshop reliant

these days

me: but he's the shiz

Bob: cool

maybe if you sleep with him he will show you a few more tricks or two. LOL

11:59 AM LOL!!!!

me: Like trick pony

Bob: just joshin yuh

yeah

sure

ok dude

been slackin at work to long now

gotta jetta 2. slow outta here

me: ok

bye

Bob: adios

A Tale of Two Photographers.

I just thought that the chats that you get into while working sometimes are hilarious. This thought came to me last night and I copied and pasted to share in the funniestness. Maybe you'll find it funny, maybe you won't. I know we're having fun. He's currently an editor at a major publication on the moon.

10:34 AM Bob: you are somethin else Duffy

me: why?

10:35 AM Bob: hahaa, just jokin

me: oh

I was like

WHATDIDIDO?

Bob: hahaa, guilty kid

me: I nose

See the new port piece?

Bob: I sent you an email just about a minute

ago

10:36 AM me: #1 on the website

check it.

Bob: port piece? oh ok I am checkin it now

me: http://www.photonconcepts.com/index-slides.html?gallery=transport

10:37 AM Bob: yeah, very nice

me: mmmm

Bob: car looks clean

but I got an idea

me: Its brand new

uh?

idears?

Bob: that branch in the frame

me: go for it

yes?

10:38 AM Bob: it would be cool if branches were all around the car and it felt like you were catching a glimpse of rare unseen car like a forrest fairy... HAHAHAA!!! but seriously.,, hahaa you know what I am saying?

me: I do

10:39 AM Bob: like this majestic car/unicorn

me: but yeah no

Bob: hnhahaaa

me: lol

I wonder if this woman for the
3 day wedding event

has more money than brains

lol

Bob: but for real it could be kinda cool... "Introducing the new 4 wheel drive __ the only one like it in its class

10:40 AM yeah

me: Drivin by fairies

yes I get it

Talked to Brandon for awhile yesterday

Bob: hahahaa or San Franciscans or Cyboks... wait he has a bike... fairy

me: hahahahahahha

Bob: whats Brando up to

me: She could just hire a photobooth

10:41 AM or HIRE me to be there with a custom photobooth

Bob: yeah

right

I mean it sounds like there is some cash there

serious cash

me: Should I call her?

or email

10:42 AMBob: eh, think it through and then if you want to do it I would call

10:43 AM cuz when there's this much money there's usually bitches and fussy people so they may ask a lot of you but if the cash is right I would think about it. Maybe get a second shooter... a decent second shooter and both of you run the show

me: I can build a photobooth

no problem

small and nice

10:44 AM covered with whatever color

she has for the wedding

whatdya think

Bob: C stands or light stands w/ curtains pop a 50mm at 2.2 and you got a photobooth... oh straight on flash

me: right

Bob: right?

right

me: right

Bob: right

hahahaa

10:45 AM me: tight!

Bob: hahaaa

10:46 AM whats Brando up to?

me: redcheese.com

photobooth

10:48 AM Bob: word, where are they located

me: dunno

la maybe

Bob: col

cool

me: I love the word "dunno"

Bob: right

me: its funny and effective

Bob: I dig

hahaha

so whats brandon's deal dude

me: Like, "Duh... dunno"

Bob: hahahaa

10:49 AM me: He's good

Bob: lol

me: just working

Dylan: you goin down or he comin up..., lol

me: I was going to visit hime this weekend

Bob: wait

me: but he's Chief No-Cash

Got his car towed

$350

Bob: wha?

wow

me: Yeha

right

Shite'

6 minutes

10:55 AM me: NOT GOOD FOR BLOG10:56 AM http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/06/100-portraits-of-iconic-people-of-all-time/

10:59 AM Gonna buy a bike soon

Road bike

11:00 AM Bicycle if you will

28 minutes

11:28 AM me: Hey you there

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/bik/1213963542.html

what do you think of this?

The Retouch.

I know when I first saw an image in a magazine of a car or product, I simple thought, "Oh, nice picture." I also know that when you make something LOOK easy, to a client they think the same. Until I REALLY understood what went into creating a masterpiece or a portfolio piece. It requires a sophisticated attention to detail, the eye of a hawk and the skills that (I know now) can only be acquired over time. When you see a guy like this or like this, you know it takes years and years of the acquisition of that knowledge. You have to know though, within a shadow of a doubt and believe that you too can acquire such knowledge over time. I was terribly frustrated with myself and skills 4 years ago, and now I still know that I know nothing. It is a growth like success, its a process of knowledge that can't be forced, just nurtured and massaged into place. You have to start somewhere and where you'll end up is completely up to you. It takes time. However as you see yourself grow and get better at your craft, there is NOTHING more gratifying. I'm going to check out a location in Santa Barbara to shoot a 2009 Toyota Landcruiser next week. I can't wait.

This is the image that my camera captured.

This is 3 hours of digital retouching and post-production.

Ahhh. Bit Torrents.

Hey its a fight you know. I want to buy, buy, buy and buy software to enhance imagery and so forth. Its the age old, "you have to spend money to make it." I guess. LucisArt Pro allows you to get a very similar "look" of HDRi from a single 8bit image... thus making your images, more desirable. PLUS! you can get better details out of people, because trying to make people stay still for 7 exposures is often not too possible.

I've been working on a tutorial for the green Camry below... but its taken awhile because I never really thought about how much knowledge I've gained over the years in Photoshop. You just do it, over and over until you have major breakthroughs. Mostly I didn't know what I was doing until I did it. I may not be a Photoshop Genius, but its becoming apparent that I AM a whiz. I've never been a whiz. I've taken one...

The weekend has been pretty good... spent a ton of money (defeating the recession) clothes, food... and some other things I can't disclose yet but I shall....

Just got off the phone with a great friend of mine Lisa Seaman www.storylensinc.com she's great and does awesome vacation photography in Colorado and all over the world really. Also check out this site www.thewindypixel.com these guys just rock in Chicago... and one more for the road... my dear, dear friends, Joseph and Kristi Romain at www.kristilloyd.com who are killing the wedding photography industry.

Here's a little eye candy from me of Karen's little man just sleeping away.... love this little guy... when he's snoozing of course!

Marketing Monday.

Ahhhhhhhh! We've got blogs connected to tweets and tweets connected to iPhones and iPhones connected to your knee-bones! Holy Guacamole. Just got of the phone with a great friend of mine leaving for NYC and taking a paid internship at Newsweek. Its right up his alley cause he's a visual journalist with a fine art addiction and a major in video editing and production. dylanisbellmedia.blogspot.com When things were slow at the end of last year we'd just call and talk to each other with coffee, underwear, and craigslist.

I'm co-hosting a Mixer for the Oxnard Chamber of Commerce with Tomas Cafe and CIMA Associates, Inc., on Thursday, April 16th at Tomas Cafe in downtown Oxnard, California. The flyer had to be done on the fly and into the printer by 1pm so I did this in about an hour and a half today. Came out cool though.

Get on Board.

It has occurred to me that in the last few weeks of shooting for DCH Auto Group, that I will be needing to hire some individuals (photographers) to work with me. This client, while extremely lucrative, has taken up quite a bit of time. NOT that that is terrible at all, however I do need time to tend to other clients as well. What the plan is, is to leverage my time to come out to shooting maybe one day a week and have one or two other hired photographers on my staff to shoot the other two or three days. There is another DCH dealership, Audi, (very excited) and looks like Photon Concepts will handling that account as well. So really what we have is full blown double time job come the summertime. Its another breaking point for us and again we're incredibly excited. I can't wait to get a sweet RS4 or an R8 up there on the turntable.

Meanwhile we joined Photoserve.com a little while back, which is a collection of "The World's Best Photographers" according to them... and after looking at some of the talent, apparently we are! Check it out if you get a chance, and also look for my name, Peter Duffy under Automotive, Food, or Advertising photographers.

This is the guy we have out eye on to help handle the DCH account www.driftingperspective.com he doesn't have much, if at all any automotive work, but some pretty great imagery nonetheless. I'm excited about teaching a new person the techniques and works that I know so far about automotive photography. He's a great friend of Tom Kranzle, who owns Venturevisuals.com.

I haven't had anything too new in the past few weeks, so I'm hoping to pimp out some old work to keep my blog here visually entertaining as well. Here's one from a food shoot for Tomas Cafe in downtown Oxnard, California. Seriously one of the best lunches in Ventura County. The huge portions leave you full enough to skip dinner and want to take an afternoon nap.

Making it Happen.

Allright... so I'm a bit beat.. My girl's little boy had a ridiculous fever last night. He was hallucinating.... yes, "scary monkeys" apparently. My call time for the Automotive Studio at DCH Auto Group was pushed back yet again because of the gears on the turntable, but it looks like I'm gonna be back on track here in a couple of hours. Meanwhile I've been syncing blogs, websites and twitter feeds to all work together. I've also put the final touches on an image and uploaded it to all for everyone to enjoy. I really like this new client, the possibilities while somewhat limited are almost endless if that makes any sense. Anyhow time to rock and roll and get some real work done.

The New Deal.

So it has come to my attention that I have been slacking on something for some time. Its difficult to manage time with so many things going on. I have made the move toward MySpace (a long time ago), graduated to Facebook, and now off we go on Twitter and a blog. Here on blogspot. It should be a good ride.
I've been pressing for more exposure as well for a while now and I'm glad I have great friends to push me and to be pushed. Creative friends, ones that would really like to see you succeed. Real friends, great ones. Welcome to the wonderful world of Peter Duffy and what has come to be Photon Concepts.