We don’t have a budget.
we were hoping you could do (job duties) and we would pay you next time
This is a good portfolio building experience for all of us.
Could you show us how you did this?

This presents a problem for us, on one hand it is a job, income, and a chance to produce. On the other hand, it is an insult to our talent and our profession.

So where is the line?
For me, each job comes down to 3 components:

For me to accept any job at least 2 of the 3 aforementioned criteria have to be met. If I am doing portfolio quality work and the pay is good, then the client can be difficult. If the work is portfolio quality and the client is awesome then maybe this job is for free.

The biggest thing to remember is if you don’t assign value to your work then your client will not value your product.

Below is an example of what would happen in the non freelance world if our clients tried to pull some of the stuff they try with us

In order to achieve this level of comfort we must push our comfort zone beyond what we normally do.  to dothis, I ran across a great article on PhotoJoJo about impromptu street photography. -

Just follow these simple steps!

• Select a neighborhood. (The more unfamiliar the better!)
• Find a photo partner to accompany you on your mission.
• Bring: camera, lenses, notebook, pen, paper, masking tape, a seasonally appropriate form of barter (candy canes, candy hearts, candy corn, etc.)
• Run to nearest drug store and buy brightly colored poster board. We chose yellow, but grab whatever is in stock. It’s usually about $1 per sheet. Buy 2, one to make a sign and one as a back drop. Or, get creative, and set up multiple back drops.
• Setup on a busy block or corner and act like a car salesman would. Chat with all who pass by–the young, the old, the serious, the jovial. (Tips: Just strike up a conversation! Where are they from? Where are they going? How do they feel? Where did they get that hat? Do they like candy canes?)
• Ask each subject to stand in front of the posterboard at a pose of their choice. Meanwhile, take down their name and email address as well as any idiosyncratic facts.
• Shoot until you run out of candy or the sun goes down.

The result? A series of great and varied portraits from the street, many great conversations, and a number of new friends. Try it out!

Doing this will push your comfort zone beyond what you are used to and force you to interact with people that you normally wouldn’t.  all leading you to be a better photographer.

How to shoot Impromptu Street Portraits via PhotoJoJo

Matthew Gore on Vimeo.

Post via Peta Pixel

A couple days ago news giant CNN Terminated more than 50 employees, 11 of whom were established photojournalists.  The reasons CNN said they did this were because of budget cuts and also because they can scam photos from everyday citizens with no compensation via the iReport program

We also spent a great deal of time analyzing how we utilize and deploy photojournalists across all of our locations in the U.S. [...] We looked at the impact of user-generated content and social media, CNN iReporters and of course our affiliate contributions in breaking news. Consumer and pro-sumer technologies are simpler and more accessible. Small cameras are now high broadcast quality. More of this technology is in the hands of more people. After completing this analysis, CNN determined that some photojournalists will be departing the company.

My problem with this is that the average citizen has had no photojournalistic training.  There is no integrity that goes into citizen journalism, photos and stories can be taken/written as opinion instead of fact/documentation of an event.  you run into issues of photos being ‘shopped for content, (editing of a photo to convey something other than the truth of what was originally captured). You also have the question of ethics on CNN’s side, how can they ethically obtain and display images and content without paying for said content.  All in all, they are devaluing the media and the role they play in the media.

I ask all of you this, Please DO NOT participate in CNN’s iReport, respect the trade of Photojournalism and send a message to CNN that they need to hire photographers to capture the news, not scam it off the public.

Story Via The Hollywood Reporter via FillmakerIQ  Also Via Reuters

Thanks to Peta Pixel and Rick Oleson

Thanks Peta Pixel and Photojojo for the links.
Image Credit 

For years you have probably heard from your local camera dealer. “be sure to us a filter to protect your lens” referring to a UV filter that usually screws on to the front of the lens.

I say don’t.
In a general rule of photography I do not put anything in front of the lens that I would not want in the photo. You wouldn’t want someone standing in front of the bride when you take her portrait would you? Of course not, it ruins the image. So why would you place something in front of the lens (a filter) that could possibly ruin your shot? The more gizmos you have the more that can go wrong.

For more about this and a better reasoning why please check out Photographer Scott Bourne’s blog Photo Focus

My wife and I work on wedding videos from time to time and we ran across this while looking for inspiration, I felt that I really needed to share this with everybody.

Props to David Robin and davidrobinfilms.com for this awesome video