Saturday, November 28, 2009

The gift of shooting fashion

A photographer who can shoot fashion, is gifted in my book. It's a skill that adds so much to a professionals portfolio, and has many benefits. The work of those with the gift usually looks effortless, instinctive.. Photo by master photographer, Elizabeth Messina.


From Elisabeth Messina Photography

Monday, November 23, 2009

"Best of ... The Knot"

Congratulations Jennifer Lindberg for being chosen one of the top photographers in Texas by THE KNOT!


From The Knot magazine

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Submission etiquette

I read about this little mishap over the use of a photo of Sarah Palin in Newsweek magazine which illustrates a fundamental point of mine called submission etiquette, and reason for use of a publicist. Read the article below by dailyfinance.com

Palin photographer breached contract with sale to Newsweek

From DailyFinance.com, photo by Brian Adams

What on earth was Sarah Palin thinking when she posed in a pair of teeny-tiny gym shorts for a photograph that ended up on the cover of Newsweek -- a cover
she has called "sexist"? Perhaps she was thinking that her image would only appear in the magazine she was posing for, Runner's World, and nowhere else, at least not for months and months. If so, she had good reason -- since, as DailyFinance has learned, the photographer who shot the picture violated his contract by reselling them to Newsweek.That photographer, Brian Adams, could not immediately be reached, and his agent, Kelly Price, declined to comment, saying, "I keep all of my clients' business private." But a spokeswoman for Runner's World confirms that Adams's contract contained a clause stipulating that his photos of Palin would be under embargo for a period of one year following publication -- meaning until August 2010. "Runner's World did not provide Newsweek with its cover image," the spokeswoman said. "It was provided to Newsweek by the photographer's stock agency, without Runner's World's knowledge or permission." The spokeswoman declined to say whether Runner's World intends to respond to Adams's breach of contract with legal action.
But while Newsweek's use of the photo violated the embargo, it's not clear to what extent Adams is at fault. A source with knowledge of the situation says multiple outlets, including Time, approached Runner's World after the photos
first appeared on its website in July to inquire about obtaining the reuse rights. Those who inquired were forwarded to Adams. Editors at the magazine were aware of negotiations to resell the pictures, and were primarily concerned to see that Runner's World received prominent credit, says the source. In the event, Newsweek credited Runner's World right on its cover. Another source says there is some disagreement over whether the exclusivity clause in Adams's contract is meant to cover all magazines or only titles that compete with Runner's World. Meanwhile, a post on Adams's blog seems to suggest he didn't know about the resale to Newsweek until after Price concluded it.
That leaves the questions of whether anyone at Newsweek knew that Adams was not contractually free to sell the photo, and whether the promised embargo was a factor in Palin's decision to pose for Runner's World. Spokespersons for Palin and Newsweek have not yet responded to inquiries from DailyFinance. Update: A Newsweek spokesman says, "We purchased the photo from an agency and were not aware of any issues with it."

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

CONFESSIONS OF A BRIDE


When a bride has something to say, after all is said and the "I do's" are done, it's important to us (the wedding industry community and future brides) to hear her out. After all, what she has to say is sound advice and the best feedback one could ask for.

"A nightmare, I never thought professionals could be so unprofessional" a bride from Aliso Viejo, California describes her experience dealing with the Video/Photo service she had hired for her wedding. This bride wants to set the record straight. She had a wedding of 400 guests, and hired a coordinator for the day-of-the-wedding only. As a result, she felt overloaded with all the planning and prep work involved. She relied on advice and recommendations from family, friends, and previous brides. “Our wedding was so big and costly, my husband and I ended up having to do a lot of the work ourselves.” she says.

"I hired a video service in San Diego that hooked me up with a photographer as a package deal. Because our photographer was through the video service, I was constantly calling the videographer to confirm our photography arrangements. Three weeks before our wedding, the video person informed us he was switching us to a different photographer claiming an over- booking mix-up. Interestingly, we discovered he was pulling the same excuse with my sister, who was also planning an event. The mistake I made was not getting the name of the original photographer into the contract. I thought his verbal promise was reliable. The video service tried to push a lesser quality photographer to do our wedding, claiming our contract did not promise a specific photographer.”

At that point, the bride and her fiance drove to San Diego to confront the videographer threatening to pull out of the contract even if it meant losing the deposit. The meeting made the videographer understand their seriousness as they began discussing other options. In the end, the video person bent over backwards by arranging a good photographer, one even better than the original one. I think he finally realized that unhappy clients = negative press.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Photography and Nature

Yes, the photography of a wedding held outdoors versus indoors is always more appealing. Natural lighting does wonders as all photographers knows. But it takes a true pro to know how to "work" mother nature to your camera's advantage. Tim Halberg's work blows me away, especially when I see him create magic in the midst of nature.

From Wedding Publicist Post

Monday, November 2, 2009

Stellar Image of the Month, November

It's time to unveil the latest gem I found! There are a select group of wedding photographers who have a way about them, and the way they shoot. They possess a creativity in their work, that you just have a hard time comparing it to other wedding photographers, because there's no one else like it! This is the work of Samuel Lippke.
I love the way Samuel describes this... "It's gritty and fashionable.. I love working with motion blur and pushing the sexy aspect of a wedding day."

From Wedding Publicist Post