Equipment

What’s are the three most important pieces of equipment for available light, performance photography? Fast glass. Fast glass. And, more fast glass.

It’s that easy. In low or changing light, it’s best to use fast glass. Both Alan and Scott try to shoot lenses no slower than F/2.8. Each carries at least one lens in the F/1.4-1.8 range. So do I.

Why? Because we face a dilemma when shooting in low light. We want to get a proper exposure without running the risk of capturing a lot of noise. Although there have been great improvements in the ability of our chips to capture data in low light while limiting the amount of noise, the general rule of thumb — the higher the ISO the more noise, generally proves true.

Here’s the challenge: the three variables that control the amount of light to reach our sensor are: ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed. Because we are shooting hand held, often with long lenses and subjects that move, most of us want to shoot higher shutter speeds; Scott and Alan often shoot at 1/250. For sports and color guard performances (where they toss flags, rifles and sabers), I often start at 1/500. These faster shutter speeds are a must.

And, to avoid noise, with even the best cameras, most people want to shoot at ISO 1600, or less (although with the newer cameras, people are getting good results at ISO 6400).

So, starting with a fast shutter speed, and constrained by the ISO, the best way to avoid noise and get more light to the sensor is with a fast lens. An aperture of F/2.8 lets four times more light reach the sensor than an aperture of F/5.6. Assume for the moment that we can get a proper exposure at 1/250, F/2.8, ISO 800. To get that same exposure using a lens at F/5.6, we would have to bump the ISO to 3200. That’s a huge difference — one that with many sensors will introduce serious noise.

Zoom lenses play an important role. I wasn’t surprised to find that Scott and Alan, both Nikon shooters as am I, carry the same lenses I take to most performance shoots, the 24-70 F/2.8,  and the 70-200 F/2.8. In addition, we usually carry a faster prime lens — I carry the 50 F/1.8 which is an incredible bargain and can be purchased for less than $150. Sometimes, to capture something different, I carry my 16mm FishEye which is also a F/2.8.

Why the zooms? Because, when we are stuck in one place and cannot move to or from our subjects we rely on the zoom lenses  to frame our images. In the studio or in a space I control, I choose where on the lens I want to be, and walk to and from my subject to frame it. That does not work during performance photography. Zooms are helpful.

But, fast zoom glass, though nice, is not essential. The best camera and lenses to use are the cameras and lenses you own. Some of my best shots were made with my Canon G11 point and shoot; in fact, it’s so good that I sometimes carry it as a back-up instead of my Nikon D2x. Want to shoot performances? Do it. Don’t let your perceived lack of equipment discourage you.

And, fortunately, there are post-production/processing work arounds for equipment imposed limitations. For example, there is some excellent noise reduction software that is quite effective; I use both Imagenomic’s Noiseware and NIK’s Dfine.

Another technique I share with Scott and Alan is to “take advantage” of noise by converting to black and white. Voila! The noise becomes “grain” and gives the image a nostalgic, old world “film look”. There are a lot of great ways to convert to black and white. My favorite is Silver Efex Pro 2.

What you carry in your bag will be defined by your style. Unlike Scott and Alan, I carry two meters, a Sekonic 758, and a Sekonic C500R Color Meter. I’ll talk about using both in a moment. The key is to travel light and self contained; everything should fit on our back or belt. Large, dark, crowded venues are not the place to leave unattended gear cases.

My favorite equipment tip from Alan? Carry ear plugs — lots of them — ear damage is an occupational risk for concert photographers. Why lots of them? Alan makes friends of his fellow photographers AND the security folks by passing them out. Hard not to like a guy who comes with “freebies”. (Actually, Alan and Scott are two of the most likeable guys I’ve met on the “photo teaching circuit”; both are self-effacing and unassuming. It’s hard not to like them and I think that goes a long way in their getting and maintaining access.)

The oddest thing I carry?  Knee pads. Often, we have to stay low, on our knees, to stay out of the spectators’ line of sight. Do that for a few hours, or in the case of a tennis tournament for several days, and you will hurt. The pads may look dorky — but it’s hard to make a fashion statement draped in camera gear, anyway.

So much for what we carry — let’s talk about how we use it.

Step 1. Location Scout — Locking In On The Lighting

Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. — John Wooden

Be it in a studio or on location, we all share a common goal — to get a perfect exposure, one that captures what we are seeing with our eyes. It’s a lot easier to do in the studio where we can control all of the variables. It’s much more difficult to do on location where we cannot.

So, to close the preparation gap, when possible, I scout a location before a shoot. Be it a stadium, church, auditorium or club, I want to know as much about the lighting as I can — particularly the quantity, quality, location and color temperatures of the sources of light.

More often than not, these venues  do not create  lighting schemes for each performance. They tend to have preset lights in place that they modify in intensity and change with gels and some times diffusion. By switching lights on and off, they control which parts of the stage are lit. However, there are situations where there is no one “switching” between lights — and the lighting pattern at the start of the performance is the same pattern that exists for the entire performance. Or, the exact opposite may occur; the lights may be programmed to randomly change, in every way — intensity, quality, color and duration. In either situation, with a couple of steps a performer can move out of the light, completely, or the light can change so significantly that we must adjust our exposures or lose the shot.

My protocol is simple: I draw the location, put symbols to represent the lights — their location, type (including color temperature for white balance purposes) and intensity. I also note how the light sources are modified — be it by barn doors, gels or diffusion.

To check the quantity of the light,  I use my light meter to take a series of readings — I walk across the stage, metering every couple of feet, marking my diagram to indicate every spot in which the light either increases or decreases by a full stop; if I cannot get onto the stage, I use the spot metering function of my Sekonic L-758 to grab my readings from a distance; the “spot meter” gives me a “reflective”  as opposed to the preferred “incident” reading. (“Reflective” reads the light bouncing off the subject and is less accurate than an “incident” reading which reads the light before it hits the subject. The meters inside of our cameras take reflective readings. So, one might do a scout metering with the camera — but it is a lot more difficult to get precise, consistent readings that way.)

To assess the quality of the light, I look at the modifiers; diffusion will soften it, bare bulbs will throw hard light, the closer the light to the subject, the broader the shadow transition line. More often than not, there is little or no diffusion on the lights; and, the light placement is controlled with something like barn doors which stay constant throughout the performance.

The next thing I do is figure out the White Balance setting for the shoot. This is usually the greatest challenge. Many venues mix light sources — we find tungsten, halogen and fluorescent and daylight all in the same space. This is particularly true in churches and reception halls. There are a couple of things I do to minimize the risk of color cast.

I take a reading with my Sekonic C-500R. This is by far the best way to deal with the situation. The meter gives me a specific color temperature reading, in degrees Kelvin. I then set a “custom white balance” in my camera to that number. Perfect.

Uh, except for the great Photoshop Gotcha. We cannot assume that Photoshop recognizes the Kelvin temperature settings we use in our cameras — either those that use a preset or those that use “custom” readings. For Nikon shooters, there appears to be a discrepancy at every setting. Nikon’s “Flash” setting is 5400K. When I use Photoshop, it opens those images in the 6000K range. It’s not a big deal; I simply batch correct all of the images to 5400; but if you don’t know to do that, you will have a color cast when none should exist. (As one might expect, Nikon’s own Capture NX2 reads the files, perfectly, and opens the images to the exact Kelvin setting used.)

If I can’t get a meter reading, I try to take a reference shot using a Gray Card or an X-Rite Color Checker Passport. This gives me an accurate starting point for post production. (And, when I can’t do that, either, in post production I’ll use teeth or the whites of eyes to set the WB point.)

OK, I’m a bit anal. I over prepare which may be especially foolish because I cannot control ANY of the variables I’m researching. But, it gives me confidence and, when necessary,  helps me make informed guesses.

Stadiums and gyms add another wrinkle.

When shooting sports, outdoors, in the early fall, we usually start in daylight and then must make the transition to artificial light when the sun goes down. For a time during the transition, we are in a mixed lighting situation — and, as the light changes, we have to adjust our settings accordingly.

Indoors, I’ve been running into some odd, off the chart lights — like those I found in a new, beautiful, high school gym in Bryant, Texas. Looking up at them, one would swear that they were tungsten bulbs. But, they were not. And, that became clear when I looked at images shot in “bursts”; adjoining images had different color casts. When the camera was set at “tungsten”, none looked good. So, out came the C-500R. I got a series of readings, all around 4150K. The set my D3 to 4170 for the shoot, which was the closest I could come. And, I shot bursts — figuring that some in each sequence would be right. It proved to be a good move. When I got home, I did some research on 4150K and found out that the lights were Xenon Arc’s — and that they “cycled” between two adjacent color temperatures at a very fast rate. With my custom setting, in post-production my starting point was close enough to make all of the images useful. Bottom Line: We cannot assume things are what they appear to be; there are all kinds of new, “green” lights out there and we’ll have to learn how to master them.

A. Virtual Scouting — We don’t always have the time or opportunity to do on site location research. Fortunately, there are great Internet resources to allow us to scout with our computers. One of my favorite online communities — The Texas Photo Forum — has a section in which lists gyms and playing fields and photographers set forth the type of lighting and conditions one can expect on a shoot. I’m sure similar resources exist elsewhere.

B. Thou Shalt Honor the Lighting Director’s Artistic Vision — In his Kelby Training session, Scott Diussa makes a very important point: Our job is to work to maximize the impact of the lighting director’s artistic vision. Our job is not to overpower or neutralize it. If the lighting scheme calls for a purple cast, our job is to get an exposure that best reflects that purple cast. Our job is not to neutralize it or replace it with a choice of our own — which we can easily do with camera settings or post-production.

(To me, it’s like a client taking one of my images into Photoshop and changing it. That may not bother some people, but it bothers me. That’s why I don’t “sell” my images, I “license” them; and, my licensing agreement makes clear that my images are not to be altered, in any way, without my written permission.)

At the end of the day, we are trying to get a perfect exposure. I find that I do a better job when I am well prepared, and scouting is a part of that preparation.

Winter Guard Concert: PrairieFire Productions, Inc. © 2010

Perhaps, the most difficult venue I’ve photographed was the stage upon which Jenny’s Winter Guard gave its annual performance. There just was not enough light. And, what light existed lit only very few small portions of the stage. This was one of those times where a performer would go from light to dark in a couple of steps. To make matters worse, group shots were almost impossible because some of the group members were in the black hole while others were lit. Why was it like this? Because the lighting was set to maximize the performance, not my photography. The performers were tossing things into the air; they had to look up to catch them and did not want to be blinded by the lights. To the audience, it looked great. And, that’s what mattered. Me? I got enough shots to fill in their yearbook.

Some times, that’s the best we can do.

Step 2. Camera Settings

A. Shoot RAW

This seems to be a universal practice amongst all sports and performance shooters. RAW gives us the ability to use post-production to overcome the limitations discussed above.

B. Exposure Mode

There are many people who choose to shoot in one of the Priority Modes — Shutter Priority or Aperture Priority. By doing so, they use the computing power in the camera to try to get a perfect exposure.

In low light situations, in an attempt to maximize the light to the sensor, many shoot in Aperture Priority mode; they set the camera to the greatest aperture the lens affords and tell it “Never stray. Stay here, no matter what”. And, the camera will. The risk in this setting? To get a shot in very low light, the camera will have to go to a very slow shutter speed — one that cannot be successfully hand held — thereby resulting in movement and out of focus shots.

Scott, Alan and I shoot in Manual Mode. We choose our shutter speed and aperture; they remain constant until we change them; the responsibility is ours, not the camera’s.

Our starting settings are discussed above. Scott and Alan are so good at doing this that they can get their initial settings by instinct and experience. They will look at the situation, tweak the shutter and aperture settings, shoot a frame or two, and then tweak again to optimize the exposure.

I’m not that good. I start with a meter reading from my diagram.

In manual mode, when the lighting changes — either because a performer moves to a darker or brighter spot, or because the lights themselves change —  we have to start twisting dials. To maintain proper exposure, we change either the shutter, the aperture, or both. With experienced shooters like Alan and Scott, this is fluid and seamless. It’s more difficult for me; I’m embarrassed to say that in the heat of the moment I’ve moved the wrong dial, or the right dial in the wrong direction; I am haunted by a series of flag performance images of Jenny, shot during a half time performance, that were so underexposed as to be unsalvageable, because I moved the aperture dial in the wrong direction.

There are a couple of “cheats” that help those of us who shoot in Manual Mode but are at risk of making mistakes.

First, even though we are in control of the camera, the internal meter continues to function. We can glance at it to make sure our settings are not too far off. To use it effectively, I set the camera to the “spot metering mode”; if I want to take a quick reading make sure to meter the face of the performer.

And, second, my favorite “cheat” — setting the camera to use manual settings while activating Auto ISO. As we’ve discussed, there are three variables we can use to get a perfect exposure — Shutter Speed, Aperture, and ISO. Most of the time, while shooting in manual, the ISO remains constant. We usually choose a value that gives us the greatest sensitivity while minimizing the risk of noise. Alan and Scott start with a very safe ISO in the 1600-2000 range.  I do, too.

However, in situations where I’ve not scouted, or in situations when I know that the light intensity will vary beyond a range I can control with shutter and aperture adjustments, I’ll use Auto ISO. In essence, I tell the camera to internally adjust the ISO to get a proper exposure using my selected shutter and aperture settings. In some ways, this is a “priority mode”; the camera can take some control away from me. But, I see it as an Negative Priority Mode. I’m telling the camera, “I don’t care about ISO, do what you want, but leave my shutter and aperture alone.” In the Nikon, I can limit the camera’s discretion. I can tell it that it cannot adjust ISO above a chosen setting — for me usually 6400.

Using Auto ISO has risks. One must be diligent because, like pure manual mode, we have set limits and unless we adjust them, when exceeded, we will not get proper exposures. And, if we set the ISO range too high, we will be be capturing noise. But, I don’t worry about noise. My noise reduction software takes care of it.

C. White Balance

Although most shooters, like Alan, use Auto White Balance, I do not. I prefer to use a Custom setting, as discussed above; if I cannot get a custom reading, I use the Programmed setting that most closely matches the source; most often, that is a “tungsten” setting. In the newer cameras, Auto White Balance does a very good job. However, I do not use it because one of my favorite instructors, Jim DiVitale, taught me that it is easier and more effective to correct the white balance of a batch of images all shot at the same color temperature than it is to run a batch process when all of the images have been shot in Auto — at different temperatures. Auto works and it’s easy. I’m stubborn. I never use Auto.

D. Continuous Servo Auto Focus Mode — Spot or Dynamic

There is a lot of movement in performance photography. Our subjects rarely stand still. Therefore, most of us use the Continuous focus mode. Once we initiate the focus mechanism (either with the shutter button or a programmable button on the camera), when the subject moves, the camera follows it and tries to keep it in focus.

Depending on the amount of movement, we have to decide how big an area we want the camera to read in establishing focus. We can use a Spot, or a Dynamic area. If the subject is somewhat still, or does not move too erratically or far, spot works well. If there will be greater movement, we can use more focus points in what Nikon calls a “Dynamic Area”.  Autofocus on modern cameras works so well that I don’t think the choice between spot or dynamic is critical in what we do.

E. Continuous Release Mode — Shooting Bursts

When I first started shooting sports, I had a film camera without an auto advance mechanism. I learned to shoot a camera the same way I learned to shoot a gun. One shot at a time. Aiming carefully, taking a deep breath, becoming still and at one with my tool of choice — making each shot count.

When I switched to my first digital camera, I retained my one-at-a-time shooting style. What a dolt. The failure to take advantage of the ability to shoot bursts, when appropriate, was just plain dumb. (And, a bit arrogant. I used to look down my nose at photographers who, at sporting events, were shooting bursts with so many frames that I thought they were shooting movies. My thought: if you can’t get it in frame with one frame, you don’t belong here. Arrogant. And, very wrong.)

Shooting bursts allows us to capture the nuance and subtlety that are the essence of an artistic performance. Things change in portions of a second and burst let us capture them.

For sports and color guard, I set my camera to shoot what Nikon calls “Continuous High Speed” (Ch on the dial) at 9 frames per second.

However, just because I can shoot 9fps, does not mean I use them all. I’m at my best when I use my film camera/gun training and use the trigger sparingly and carefully.

Final Thought: The most important thing to take on a performance shoot?

The answer is simple: Reasonable Expectations.

With so many variables beyond our control, it is unreasonable to expect that all or most of our frames will be keepers. They won’t be. And, we should not feel bad because of that.

The truth is that most of the great photographers I know throw a lot of images away. We see their work in magazines or winning contests and we assume that all of their images always turn out right. They don’t.

The key is to continually push ourselves to learn and get better — to increase our ratio of “keepers”. And, to never let unreal expectations take the fun out of what we do.

Thriller (©PrairieFire Productions, Inc. 2009)

This image was shot under some terrible conditions — strong backlight and movement made finding a shooting angle difficult. But, it is the strong backlight that makes the image.Images on either side of this one were not useable. But, this one was and, on that night, that was good enough for me.

But Wait! There’s More!

Kelby Media Group has graciously given me permission to incorporate a portion of one of the segments from  Alan and Scott’s Concert Photography course. I chose this sample because it represents a few of the things that make these guys such great teachers: (1) they are practical and to the point; (2) their images rock; and (3) they are really nice guys. I’ve watched these lessons a few times and have learned quite a bit from them. This is copyrighted material, to be used for personal use and not to be distributed in any way.

Note: Depending on the speed of your computer connection to the ‘net, you may want to allow a moment for the video to load before playing it; with slower connections, it will stop and “buffer” while streaming, only  to start up again; I find this very frustrating and prefer to wait until I can see that at least a third has loaded before I Double Click the arrow button.

Thanks, Kelby Media for allowing me to show this.

Note: My screen shots are captured in IShowU HD Pro. I tried several programs that capture screen action and found that this was both easy to use and offered  more bang for the buck. Although I have a YouTube channel, I don’t publish most of my  videos. I make a lot of them to capture “odd” things I’m doing in post production  so that if I later, if have a grey moment and can’t recall how I did something, I have a video that shows me each step. I’ll do a full review of iShowU, and explain more about why I got it, in an upcoming post.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2011)

But, from my friends and readers, I’m hearing that the most frustrating task they’re facing is creating and maintaining a powerful and productive web presence. At a time when many think a professional looking website is an essential component of a photographer’s business model, I know people who are spending more time on their sites than on their photography.

I empathize with them.

It took me three tries, and a lot of time and turmoil to get it right.

I created my first site in iWeb; it was easy, and looked OK — but it lacked the functionality and depth most professional photographers would find essential.

My second site was created in Dreamweaver by a graphic artist friend; it was beautiful, and powerful — but so complex and difficult that I could not make even the  simplest changes to it without invoking his help.

I needed something that I could master and control without spending more time on the site than on my photography and writing.

So, I put in a call to web developer, Nina Sossen, who turned me onto WordPress — and I’ve never looked back. Nina gave me a turn key site — one  that I can maintain and control on my own. She did the initial custom design work and set up, and I’ve done most everything else since then. Could I have done this site without her? No. This is a custom site.  Nina designed and implemented the “look and feel” of this site; she’s the reason this site looks the way it does.

R. C. Concepcion — The WebSite Novice’s New BFF

I’ve had this WordPress site for almost two years.

During that time, more and more photographers have been moving over to the platform. Unlike me, most of them choose a layout that is more of a “gallery”. Same platform. Different looks.

Many have made that move on their own with the help of one of my favorite teachers and WordPress evangelists — R. C. Concepcion. R. C.  has dedicated a great portion of his energy to researching the platform, pushing its boundaries to meet the needs of photographers, and developing a body of teaching materials that make the creation and maintenance of photography websites easy for most of us. For this, we owe R.C. a hardy “Thank You!”

You can find R. C.’s lessons on Kelby Training and/or on his DVD sets.

But, perhaps, the most useful tool for those of us who want to sit down and put our own sites up is his recent book: Get Your Photography On The Web: The Fastest, Easiest Way to Show & Sell Your Work (Peachpit Press ©2011) .

This is the fail-safe, step-by-step, skip nothing, follow these instructions and you will get it right, way to create, maintain, and expand a website. I wish it had been written years ago; it would have saved me a lot of struggle.

The book works for the following reasons:

First, it assumes that we know NOTHING. It takes tiny steps, which may be a bit frustrating for those of us who are not used to doing anything slowly. But, it is exactly this slow pace and attention to detail that protect us from the anxiety of sailing in the uncharted waters of website creation. Follow R. C. and you will not skip a step. Follow R. C. and you will understand how your site is put together. Follow R. C., and you will end up with a site you can use and control.

Second, R. C. eliminates the agony and indecision that often flow when we really don’t know enough to choose between too many “appealing options”. For example, one of  the first things we have to do is choose a domain hosting company. Should we choose FatCow, GoDaddy, bluehost, Hostmonster, or …. ? And, why? And, each host has a ton of different hosting plans and options. Without R. C., we could spend a week doing research so as to make informed choices.

If we are not careful, we will get hung up on these initial steps and NEVER get down to the business of putting our sites up.

R. C. understands the frustration that is the byproduct of too many good choices — what psychologists call “Approach:Approach conflicts”. And, in one fell swoop, he eliminates them. Like the infamous Soup Nazi, R. C. makes the decisions for us. Every time there is a choice to be made, he tells us something to the effect: “There are a lot of different ways of doing this. I’ve made the choice for you. And, here’s how to implement it.” Can we go our own ways? Of course. After all, this is America, the land of the free. However, R. C.’s choices are good choices and I strongly suggest that we all follow them UNTIL we have our sites up and running. At that point, we can always make changes and adjustments.

It seems that when making a choice amongst the potential options, R. C. has picked those that are “free” over those that are not. For example, when picking an “FTP client” (the program we use to move stuff to and from our sites) R. C. recommends FileZilla — because it does not cost a penny. He then shows us how to download and use it. (I have been using a different FTP Client — Cyberduck — for years; however, were I just starting out, I would honor R. C.’s choice. Doing so flattens the learning curve and speeds the plow.)

And, finally, the book works because R. C. followed the mandate of his good friend Scott Kelby — the book is practical, not theoretical. It is more about “how” than “why”. This is the book for those of us who just want a site and don’t need to fully understand all of the computer stuff that runs behind the scenes.

Why WordPress?

1. It’s Free!

Yes. Free. WordPress is what’s known as an “open source” tool, designed and supported by a community dedicated to creating a simple, yet powerful, platform for anyone who wants to make and maintain a website. There is no software to buy or load on our computers. WordPress resides on the servers of our domain hosts (which offers a lot of advantages not the least of which is that we can work on our sites from any computer including our iPhones and iPads), no matter where we are; if we can log onto our site, we can work on it.

And, it’s not just the platform that is free. At WordPress.com, you can get free hosting — albeit for a very limited site that probably would not meet most of our needs.

2. It’s Flexible

Originally developed as a blogging platform, WordPress has morphed into something much more powerful. In the words of my site developer, it is now a “Content Management System” — capable of managing and integrating all types of content, be it written pages, posts, images, sounds and videos.

What this means to photographers is that it can be anything from a pure “gallery” to a site that contains our images, writings, calendars, marketing materials, and more.

The importance of the flexibility cannot be understated. Many photographers are finding that in order to sell themselves and their work they cannot rely on a “pure gallery” — that they have to have something more so that their potential clients can get a sense of who they are and how they approach their work. At the end of the day, we often sell the “experience” of working with us more than the product. And, for a website to sell the experience, we have to have a way to interject our personalities onto it. Usually, that is done with some writing — the kind of stuff that once was called blogging but that has grown beyond “I had a burger for lunch, today” to something that is more focused on our work and how we approach it.

My site takes a different path — I’m far more interested in writing and teaching than I am in displaying my photography. WordPress has allowed me to write, show pictures, and incorporate video — easily and seamlessly.

One of the things I like most about R. C.’s book is that he includes 10 Case Studies telling the story of how a diverse group of photographers are using blogging platforms. Included are some of my favorite sites, those of: Joe McNally, David Hobby, and Scott Kelby.

To see how easily one can incorporate a dedicated “gallery” on a site built on a blogging platform, hit the “PORTFOLIO”  button on the left of Scott’s site. It will take you here. What we are seeing is a Flash portfolio linked to a WordPress site with a plugin; it takes a bit of work to set up but, once more, R. C. takes us through it, step by step — see Chapter 9 Creating a Flash-Based Portfolio. (As R. C. points out, one thing to note about Flash based portfolios — they cannot be seen on an iPad, iPhone, or iPod, all of which are becoming common ways to distribute and display our work.)

The flexibility comes, in great part, from “Plugins” — little engines that modify or enable WordPress to do many things. Created by a world wide community of developers, the choices are almost infinite. Many of these plugins are free; some are “shareware” — try it and if you like it, send a donation.

Want to add a function to your site? You can search from within the WordPress platform, find the plugins that do what you want, see the reviews of each option, and install it — without ever leaving what is known as your “Dashboard” or the place where you write and administer your site.

Here’s  what my Plugin management section looks like:

[Note: You can click on the image to enlarge it in most browsers.]

In the book, R. C. sorts through some of the plugin options, tells us which ones to use to accomplish specific goals, and then takes us through the process of loading them and putting them to work. Do I use only those things he’s vetted? No. But, they are a great place to start. With experience comes the confidence to experiment and find alternatives.

Before WordPress, I would not have dared to step off the path so as to modify my site. And, had I done so, I would surely have been lost. Now, I feel like I really “own” this site and I continually change it to meet the challenges I face in trying to keep my work current and interesting.

3. It’s Easy to Learn and Fast to Use

If you can work with a word processor, you can work in WordPress.

The best thing about WordPress is that you don’t have to know any HTML or web programming protocols.  In the “Visual” mode, WordPress does all of that for you, behind the scenes. With the push of one button we can go into the “HTML” mode — which sometimes one must do  to use some very advanced features and techniques; but, for most of us, working in WordPress will be not much different than working in Word or Pages. (In fact, there is a function that will allow us to write in Word and then paste the text into WordPress, where the text is instantly converted to web format behind the scenes; I don’t use Word anymore, I write in Pages, so I’ve not tested this feature. I’d probably not use it, anyway, because I find that the WordPress interface, supplemented by a few plugins, does all I need done.

When I add content to my site , I work in a window like this:

Looks a lot like a word processor, doesn’t it?

Inserting images is easy — one never needs to leave WordPress. Take a look at the “Upload/Insert” set of buttons right above the tool bar. By pushing the first one to the right, the one that looks like a picture frame, I open a window that will allow me to search my computer for the image, select it, import it to my site and store it in my WordPress Media Library.

Got it the way you want it? Push the “Insert into Post” and it appears. This works for one image or a bunch. It’s that easy. You can line them up like a gallery or place them in text The images can be set up to enlarge when clicked upon or set to run in a slide show. It’s all a matter of plugins. And, it’s all easy.

Not everything in WordPress is “push-a-button” easy, but most things are. For example, if you want to insert a video, like a diary of a shoot, or a sample of the video you shoot for clients — it’s very easy if you first publish it somewhere like YouTube or Vimeo. Most of the video’s I make that I use on this site are hosted on my YouTube channel, Studio 162. Embedding them, with a control window, is a simple matter of pushing the appropriate button on the tool bar OR simply including the channel URL in the flow of text one is writing.

However, there are some videos — created by others like Kelby Training — that should not be posted on our own channels because the copyright owners do not want us to do so. In those rare cases, it’s a bit harder to embed the video and a player. If you find yourself in that situation, send me an email and I’ll send you a set of instructions on how to do it.

The Bottom Line: Why WordPress — because it is easy and flexible.

The Bottom Line: Why R. C.’s Book?

Because it is the easiest and fastest way to learn to both put up, expand and maintain a WordPress site.

R. C. doesn’t stop with teaching us how to put up a site — he teaches us a lot more. For example, he spends a good bit of time making sure we know how to make our images look good online. What’s good for print is not always good for the web. There are major differences on how we should prepare our images — from color space to sharpening and sizing — we cannot use our print output settings.

And, R. C. makes sure we know how some of the little tips and techniques to do the little tweaks — like putting the right amount of space around our images — that take a site from ordinary to special.

Finally, at a time when many photographers are trying to master the use of “social media” sites, R. C. gives a chapter of instructions on Facebook, Twitter and affiliate relationships.

If you’ve  been struggling with creating a web presence, you might want to give R. C.’s book a try.

But Wait! There’s More!

With the kind permission of Kelby Training, which is generously allowing me to share this copyrighted video, here’s a portion of one of R. C.’s Kelby lessons in which he shows how easy it is to “enable” WordPress on a website. The lesson assumes that we’ve purchased a domain name and hosting plan — both of which are covered, in detail, in a previous lesson. So, here’s how to set up the WordPress platform:

[Note: To start the video, double click on the arrow. Depending on your Internet connection, it may take a minute to load.]

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2011)

That matter has now ended. And, I still cannot write about it. All I can say is that, pursuant to an agreement with the other side, a Federal Judge entered a judgment on my behalf; the terms and amount of the settlement are “sealed” and cannot be disclosed by either party.

It was a long journey to that judgment. Two important things shaped my path.

First, I had formally registered my image. Yes, we own the creative rights to our work whether registered or not. But, enforcement of a non-registered work is far more difficult. And, many lawyers will not take cases involving unregistered work. Register. I did my last batch of registrations online. It took about 10 minutes. And, there are plenty of tutorials and instructions to guide you through the process.

And, second, I had good lawyers — specialists in intellectual property law — leading the way. I learned that copyright law is somewhat complex — something that requires some specialization. I was lucky. One of my photographer friends, Jody Goldstein, is an attorney in a firm that specializes in intellectual property law. Were I to go down this path again, I would certainly start with a specialist.

Enforcement In Another Context

Intellectual property rights can be rooted in all kinds of work — including back drop art. So, I was not surprised to read that Denny Manufacturing Company had brought a lawsuit for copyright and trademark infringement against Backdrop Outlet; in the lawsuit, Denny alleged that the defendants had copied some of Denny’s artistic backdrops and that  Back Drop Outlet was using a trademark, Fautex, that was confusingly similar to Denny’s FlexTex mark.

Like many intellectual property cases this, too, was settled. The defendants, while denying any wrongdoing, agreed to an injunction that stopped them from selling the backdrops in question and the prohibited the use of the trademark at issue. Some money was also paid to Denny Mfg.

The key, in my eyes, is that Denny Mfg. had registered copyrights protecting the art on the backdrops.

Register. It makes cents.

OK, that’s a terrible pun. And, were there someone sitting over my shoulder editing me, that line would probably be gone.

Bottom Line: Register your work. You may never have to enforce your rights. I wish that for you. But, if you do, the registration will be critical to your being able to get a law firm to represent you and to your ability to win.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

So, it’s time for me to make sure I turn the “that” into the “how” — time to put the techniques to use and actually master them.

I think that holds true for all of us who study photography. How many of us have attended a seminar only to “forget”, in a short time, what we’ve learned? Research tells us it’s a lot of us.

So, my mission is to use the techniques I’ve learned — and to write about them, here.

What I Learned in Class, Today

A. From the Amazing Russell Brown — Camera Raw and Smart Objects

1. Setting Workflow Options for Specific Cameras — Here’s something I did not know: The “Workflow Options” in Camera RAW are camera specific. Once you’ve set them for a camera, they will remember that camera and open up the image with the proper settings. Here is the window:

We get to the window by clicking on the line on the front page of the Camera RAW processor that starts “Adobe RGB …”.

We set this window to reflect how we want the images from a specific camera to be treated; once set up, all images from that camera will be handled with the set workflow options. These settings reflect how I treat the images from my Nikon D3. I always want them at 16 Bits and at the greatest resolution for the chip, 12.1MP.

Obviously, the trap here is that if, for some reason, we have not set the workflow options correctly, all of the images from a camera may be processed at less than optimum settings.

Lesson Learned: These settings carry over. Set them correctly and reap the benefit. Fail to do so, and we may be getting less from our cameras than they can produce.

2. Holding down the OPT/ALT key when opening an image from Bridge will hide Bridge. How cool is that? How many of us have a cluttered desktop when working with Photoshop and Bridge at the same time? No more.

3. A good reason to open a Camera RAW image as a Smart Object in Photoshop is that it will embed a copy of that image in the file. So, if we move the image to another computer, we will still have the original RAW image with us. Too cool for words.

B. From Dave Cuerdon

1. Here’s one I really like. When trying to place a drop shadow from the Layer Style window, most of us use the “Angle” circle with the little clock hand like dial. It’s really hard to get it just where we want it using that technique.

Dave showed us a better way. We can grab the shadow with our cursor and move it around so that we get it exactly where we want it. When we are moving it, the dial turns. Here’s a short screen-shot-video that demonstrates the point: Just click and watch.

But Wait! There Will Be More!!!

There are things that need to be done, before I can write about them.

One of my favorite teachers, Ben Willmore gave an amazing class on painting with light. Just as fine chefs carry around holsters full of knives, guys like Ben have gun belts full of flash lights and high powered, portable beams.

One tip from Ben — start with the face. Since your subject will have to be sitting still, get the face first. Once free to move facial muscles, most people can hold the rest of their bodies still.

I’m going to work a lot harder on mastering blending modes. Now that I’ve seen what they can do, I’ll pay more attention to them. I’m particularly interested in shooting a subject against a neutral gray wall and then using a blending mode to replace the backdrop. I’ll try it and if I can make it work, I’ll write about it.

And, I will do more self assignments. Once more, my favorite event at PSW was The Art of Digital presentation, moderated by good friend Jim DiVitale. Jim, Julianne Kost, Joe McNally, Joe Glyda, Vincent Versace, Jay Maisel, John Paul Coponigro, and Moose Peterson showed and discussed their work. Much of what was shown was shot on “self-assignments”. If the world’s best photographers take the time to do new things, to stretch, to scratch their creative itches, I will, too.

Final Thoughts

What an amazing conference! As I’ve mentioned  before, the only problem I had was choosing between very strong classes in competing time slots. My solution? I’ll probably go to both the East and West Coast versions next year. There’s no way to take it all in in one fell swoop.

Thank you to NAPP, Adobe, Kelby Training, and all of the incredible instructors who sent me home enthused about what I had learned and passionate about what I am about to do.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

If I could have run away from Joe, I would have.

Most people would pay to have Joe photograph them. Am I some form of ingrate? No, I think it is cultural. As an academic I taught Native American law. I wrote about Native American legal history. I studied the culture. Strongly admired and identified with it. At one point in my studies, I told some elders about my having run away from the camera. They understood. They told me that in some parts of the culture, it was/is believed that a camera captures a part of one’s soul. Those of us with that belief choose to avoid being in front of cameras. But, this morning, I couldn’t.

The Upside: Some Quick Lessons from Joe McNally

Trauma or not, I learned a lot from Joe, this morning. I always learn from Joe. I’ve read his books, bought his DVD’s, attended his seminars, seen him at conferences, watched everything he has on Kelby Training, and written a lot about him on this site. No one has had a greater influence on the way I approach the use of “small” lights than Joe. I admire him as a teacher and I admire him as a man. If you’ve not seen any of Joe’s materials or taken his classes, you should; in fact, if you’re in or around Houston, he’ll be in town on September 18-19 — check out the calendar on my site for details. From Joe, we get inspiration and learn some important technical stuff. Here are some quick hitters from this morning:

1. When explaining why it is often better to use additive light rather than simply boosting ISO (which on most modern cameras allows us to shoot with very little ambient light), Joe responded, “ISO addresses the quantity of the light, not the quality of the light.”

Yes, we can get an image by simply boosting the ISO. But, by adding light we can create direction and/or control the color and nature of the light. Direction gives depth and dimension. Important lesson number one from the morning.

2. When an off camera light did not fire, “If something goes wrong, shoot it again. It’s often pilot error.” Or, it’s some random quirk. From Joe, I’ve learned to stay calm. To try another time, and if there’s still a problem to run through the variables. In my experience, the most likely cause of the failure of a light to go off when shooting TTL is that it’s not in the line of sight of the command unit. In Joe’s case this morning, one of the lights was not set in TTL mode. There’s always an explanation — we simply need to stay calm and find it — as Joe did in front of a class of a few hundred people.

3. Many of us have had clients who tell us “I’m busy, you have 5 minutes. Get it quickly.” We all panic. And, so does Joe. Then we get the shot. I love Joe’s internal response.

“I’m on a daily rate. I only have to spend 5 minutes with this guy? Hmm. My rate just went up quite a bit.” But, actually, because of his strong personal skills, and the fact that he is constantly engaging his subjects, I’ll bet Joe is rarely held to that 5 minute time limit. Joe lives up to his teachings — he does his very bet to make his subjects enjoy the session. He almost got me to like it. Almost.

4. And, finally, some very practical tips:

a. Joe often shoots at ISO 400 and around f5.6. Why? Because, with the increased ISO and lower f/stop, the speedlights have less to do — the situation demands less power. They will recycle faster and run cooler;

b. A camera in Manual Mode will ignore changes in exposure compensation — but the speedlights will recognize the changes. In iTTL, exposure compensation ALWAYS affects the flash setting. In the Priority modes, exposure compensation affects both the camera and the flash.

a. Crossing lights can drive iTTL nuts. If you’re getting wacky results, and you have lights that are throwing crossing beams,  the system may be going wacky trying to interpret and control them. Some times, you have to revert to Manual mode. It’s not that hard.

d. Both Nikon and Canon claim sync speeds of 1/250 BUT that speed only applies to their own flash units. So, if you are trying to sync to studio lights, Quadras, or a combination of  different lights, you will have to shoot at 1/200. I really didn’t know this. I’ve never run into the problem because I shoot at much lower speeds in the studio or when using my Profoto 600BR. But, it’s a very good thing to know.

OK. Even though I had to model, I’m glad I attended both of Joe’s sessions. I learned a lot.

A Few Other Practical Tips From the Day

1. From Alan Hess‘ class on Concert and Event Photography — perhaps, the most practical tip of the week. Always carry extra ear plugs. Offer them to the security guards — the guys who determine how long you’ll be able to shoot and where you can go; this simple gesture often builds trust, friendship and respect — all of which can lead to your being allowed to stay a bit longer or stray a bit outside the boundaries. Plus, you’ll be doing them a public service by helping save their hearing.

2. From Calvin Hollywood – perhaps, the most exciting speaker I’ve seen this week. Calvin is so out-of-the box in his approach to all things Photoshop that I’ve seen many of the most respected PS teachers sitting in his audiences with their mouths open. This guys stuff rocks.

One tip I’m going to try as soon as I get home: Some times we shoot someone knowing that we are going to put their image over a new and different background. Most of us approach the task by using some sort of selection tool to lift them off the original background.

Calvin demonstrated an easier approach. Shoot the subject in front of a neutral gray background. To substitute backgrounds, put the new background on a layer above the original. Set the blending mode to Soft Light. The gray will disappear giving way to the new background. Why? Because the Soft Light blend mode replaces the neutral gray in an image with the new layer. Because there may be something close to neutral gray on the subject, we may have to add a white mask and paint over the subject in black, blocking the upper layer’s impact on the subject.

I’ve got to try this. I deliberately painted my studio walls neutral gray because I didn’t want them throwing any color casts. And, now, I find out that, out of pure luck, I may be able to really make my compositing easier by removing the need to extract subjects from the original photos. I’ll try and demo this, soon.

–30–

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

I was up early watching the Tour de France. I’m an addict. Smack dab in front of my big screen, one of my heroes, Lance Armstrong, had an accident that would take him out of contention for the Yellow Jersey.

And, then, I got the phone call. My studio had been broken into. Someone had kicked in a large display window and ransacked the place. Storage room doors had been pried open, drawers and boxes emptied on the floor — and things had been stolen. Lots of things.

Not the least of which was my sense of serenity — the peace I felt in my “creative place”.

Since then, I’ve been trying to put my studio and that part of my life back together. This isn’t the first time I’ve been a crime victim. I’ve been car jacked — with a gun to my head and almost shot. I’ve had other things stolen.

Each time, two things happened. I searched my mind to figure out what I could have done differently, better, to prevent the crimes. And, I dealt with insurance companies, trying to replace the physical, tangible things that I lost.

In this post, I’ll write about both journeys — the critical analysis of my attempts at crime prevention, and what I’ve learned from negotiating the obstacle course that often makes a trip down the path of the insurance process difficult and unpleasant.

My goal is simple: To give you the benefit of the lessons I’ve learned.

Lesson #1 — There Is No Way to Prevent a Crime: At Best We Can Make It More Difficult

If burglars want to break in, they will break in. It’s that simple. We cannot stop them.

At best, we can try to deter them. We can make it more difficult. And, we can raise the risk that they will get caught.

But, if they are willing to break down whatever barriers we erect, and if they are willing to risk of arrest, there is nothing we can do.

However, that does not mean that we should not try. Many years ago, when my Pacific Palisades, California, neighborhood was facing a string of burglaries, we had a neighborhood meeting. The local police sent a representative. His message was clear — make it difficult, make it risky, and hope the burglars move on to another target.

Hide the “Given Objects”

Perhaps, the most important lesson I learned was “Don’t tempt them. Hide the ‘given objects’. Keep them out of easy view. Don’t let them know what’s behind the doors and locks.”

“Hide the given object.” Hmm. For many of us that’s kind of hard to do. We are photographers. We have signs on our studios. Pictures in our windows. Not  much of a secret about what’s inside. There’s a good chance there are cameras, computers, expensive things in there — whether they can be seen or not.

Actually, I had followed that advice — most of the time. My studio is in a Design Center — a place where there are showrooms full of expensive furniture and rugs. All of the tenant spaces share a common feature — our front walls are all glass, huge display windows that go from ground to ceiling. We live in a fishbowl. My front room is very plain and simple. Office furniture and computer equipment. Plain white walls — no prints (I know that’s weird but it’s me — I feel more creative in a blank space). All of the good stuff is in my camera room and a locked storage closet — neither of which can be seen from the outside.

But, on the night of the burglary, I left some “given objects” in plain view in the front room. On the previous day, my daughter Jenny was shooting some senior portfolios. When I shoot, I often wheel some of the lights and things I won’t be using out of the camera room and store them in the front room. That day, I put several lights on stands — replete with soft boxes, up front to get them out of the way. Since Jen was going to shoot the following day, I did not put them back. And, because I knew I’d be back the following morning, I left my MacBook Pro on my desk. (I usually take it down and home. Didn’t do it that night and I really kick myself, now. That day, while Jenny was shooting, I wrote two articles that I was going to post on this site, for the July “content”. I didn’t back them up. I’m unusually anal about backing up; but, that night, I let it slip. And, that’s why there has been a big gap in updating content.)

So, “given objects” in plain view. But, I don’t know. I’m not sure the stands, lights, and boxes were all that tempting. In fact they were not stolen. If anything “lured” them in, I think it was the computer. I’ll never leave one out, again. (Actually, that’s not quite right. I’ve got a collection of old Mac’s in the office — a virtual tour down Mac Memory Lane. I think they are funky looking. They are always in plain view. But, only the current and valuable model was stolen.)

Lock Things Up Tight

I did. And, it didn’t help.

The entry doors to my studio have a dead bolt. So, the burglars kicked in a display window. Why mess with a lock when one swift blow can create a huge entry way?

The door to my storage closet has a deadbolt. So, they pried it open.

One of the storage cabinets has one of those Kryptonite type bike locks on it; they didn’t try to break the lock; instead, they grabbed onto it, used it as a handle, and pulled the cabinet door off its hinges. (That’s the picture you see at the top of this article. I’ve diddled with the image; in its real form, the stark reality still upsets me.)

Yes, I could have used more dead bolts, stronger hinges, with better reinforcement — but I remain convinced that there is a way to break into most places, and the only thing we can do is make it so hard that they won’t take the time to do it.

And, that’s where the safe comes in. I have a large safe, bolted to my floor, in which I keep all of my most valuable gear. It has my Nikon cameras and lenses. They did not even try to get into it. What was bad could have been worse — but for the safe. If I could turn my entire studio into a safe, I would. But, I can’t.

Adding Insult to Injury

One of the things that upsets me most was also one of the hardest lessons to learn: the crooks used my camera bags and rollers to carry away my stuff.

First, they took my entire off-camera-flash kit that was thoughtfully and carefully organized in one large camera bag; 4 of my cherished, impossible to replace SB800′s, my supreme commander SB900 (not as loved but functional), dozens of batteries, several chargers and clamps, mounting hardware, and modifiers — all easily carried away because I had packed them in a bag. Frankly, I don’t think they knew what they were getting. It was just so easy to take that they did. More than anything, I’m going to miss that kit.

And, then, they took my Large Tenba Roadie, threw away the dividers and filled it. So, too several other bags.

Lesson Learned: I’m going to try to figure out a way to secure my bags so that they cannot be used against me. Maybe chain them up. Hang them from the ceiling? If you can think of a better way, let me know.

So, that’s the story of  Part 1 of the Journey — the burglary itself.

As painful as that was, more pain was to follow. I had to file and pursue an insurance claim. The burglars were in my studio for maybe 15 minutes; the insurance companies have been in my life for the last 6 weeks, and there is no end in sight.

Insurance: The Real Back Stop (?)

I think we all know that no matter what we do, we cannot stop a determined thief.

That’s why we buy insurance. We know bad things might happen. So, we get insurance to give us the peace of mind that should something happen we will be able to get back to where we were before the painful event.

Would that that were so. Although I’m sure that many of us have had very positive experiences with insurance companies, some of us have not.

Unfortunately, my experience with my carrier, so far, has not been pleasant. My claim has yet to be resolved. I am having a dispute with one of my companies as to the nature of the policy and the scope of its coverage. More on that later.

My goal in this section is to discuss insurance in broad terms — to raise some potential issues, to give you some things to think about as you insure your equipment.

Before I go further I want to make one thing clear:  Nothing in this article is to be construed as either legal or professional advice. Please, use what is written as the basis upon which you consult with your insurance agents and attorneys. Let them guide you. Each of us has different needs and only professional guidance will make sure they are met.

(And, therein lies my problem — and possibly yours, too, if you have a loss. I bought my policy through one of my professional organizations. I heard it described at a convention. I did not have an “agent” in the traditional sense of the word. I did not see the actual policy. I did not have a personal connection to the protection of my equipment.)

Before we start talking about the different kids of insurance policies, we need to talk about something that crosses over whatever type of insurance we get.

We Need to Keep An Up-To-Date Inventory of What We Are Insuring

Most insurance policies — be they special schedules or professional coverage — demand that we keep an accurate inventory of the equipment we want insured. And, they ask us to file that inventory with them on a set basis.

Most of us keep our receipts. I’ve gone one step farther. Several years ago, I created a database in Filemaker Pro that lists my equipment and keeps track of what it is, when I bought it, what I paid for it, and the serials numbers, when applicable.

Creating it took a couple of days. I carried my laptop around the studio and entered everything I thought should be insured. I did the same thing at home. It wasn’t fun, but it was essential.

Now, I have a ritual. Whenever I buy something, before I take it to the studio, before I start to use it, I enter it in the database.

Here’s a copy of the base form I use. This is the data entry layout:

To make entry easy, almost all of the categories have drop down menus so that I do not have to type in much data. Here’s an example of the drop down for the “Vendor” entry:

Most of the columns are self-explanatory. The “Total Replacement Cost” column keeps track of all of the items in the database. When I get rid of something, instead of taking it out of the database, I “retire it” from use and take it off the insurance policy. There are some things I do not insure or do so with another carrier — so I have a drop down “Yes” and “No” in the form.

Actually, my current database has more options. I have an entry that tells me what was stolen on July 11. And, to which insurer I am submitting the claim. I also added a column with a URL for the insurance company showing what the current cost of replacement is; all the claim adjustor has to do is click and the item and price pops up. The easier we make things for the claim adjustor the faster the claim will be adjusted.

Over the days following the burglary, I took a print out of the schedule to my studio and used colored markers to mark what was there and what was not. I then entered the data into the form and printed out the inventory of what was lost. That’s what I sent to the claim adjustor.

Whenever I want to update my insured inventory, I use a second Layout to send information to the insurer. Here’s what it looks like:

Without this database, I’m not sure how I’d have gone about proving my loss. I would have taken a lot of searching through old records — some of which are in storage.

For me, the maintenance of these records has been well worth the effort. I strongly suggest that you develop a system of your own.

One last point: Make sure to put everything on the schedule; if it is not listed, most companies will say it won’t be covered. I lost a hard drive and cable; the hard drive was listed; the cable was not; the cable was not covered. It’s a pain in the butt, but to be on the safe side we have to list every little thing that we want insured. And, that’s understandable. They need to know the nature of the risk they are covering. When filling out the inventory, pay attention to the details.

But Wait! There’s More!! Something Free!!!

To make it easier for those of you who don’t want to “program” a database, I posted a copy of my template for you to download. To use it, you’ll need Filemaker Pro which runs on both the Apple and Windows operating systems. From what I understand, but have not tried, you can import this template into other databases and spreadsheets. You can edit the drop down menus such as “Type”, “Manufacturer”, and “Vendor” by going to the bottom of the list and hitting “Edit”; you will be able to add or delete at will.

To get your free copy, click here. You will be asked for the password which is — FreeTemplate. Duh! Not too creative. But, it will work.

Choosing the Right Insurance Policy

Most of us have insurance on our equipment. But, do we have the right policies?

There is nothing worse than having an insurance policy only to find out, at a time of loss, that the policy we have is not the policy we thought it was. That’s where I’m caught right now. In “coverage hell”.

I bought a policy that I was told would pay for the “replacement” of lost or damaged equipment. In the world of insurance, “replacement” usually means that we will get something of “like kind and quality” — whatever the cost of doing so. My written policy was consistent with that representation.

But, when the claim was sent to an adjustor, the ground rules changed. I was told that I would be paid the “scheduled amount” of my loss or the cost of replacement — whichever was less. The scheduled amount was the amount I listed in the “cost” columns of my spreadsheet. When I told the adjustor that under that interpretation, one that I did not accept, I would not be able to replace all that was stolen, I was told something to the effect of “Well, you’ll just have to decide what you can do without.” In other words, the policy that had guaranteed that I would be able to replace whatever I lost had turned into a policy that would not.

With this type of policy interpretation, we, as photographers, face a scheduling dilemma. Our photography equipment often appreciates in value. That’s rare in the world of consumer spending; most of the stuff we buy goes down in value. However, for example, I paid about $100.00 less per SB800 than I will have to pay to replace them with SB900′s. Why the 900′s? Because I can’t get the 800′s anymore. Wish I could; in my eyes they are a far better unit. But, the 900 is considered the unit of “like kind and quality”. The same can be said about the prices of some Nikon lenses. They’ve gone up, not down, in value.

And, that’s why most of us want true “replacement value” insurance. If we buy a policies that pay the “scheduled amount”, we are forced, on a daily basis, to track the value of each piece of equipment to make sure it is listed at its current price on our database. In essence, our equipment becomes a commodity and we are tracking its value; it’s like following the stock commodities markets on a daily basis. And, with each move up and down, we have to file an amended schedule with the insurance company. We are in the photography business — not the scheduling business. With policies that demand daily updates, we are at risk because, most of us will not have the time to do it.

The “daily update policy” is a nightmare. And, one that both the professional organization that represents my plan, and the broker that sells it for the organization, claim is not what I bought.

But, today, as I write this column, that is how the adjustor is handling my claim.

To the credit of my professional organization, their officers are strongly and steadfastly working to clear up this coverage mess. I am confident they will do so. They want the best policy for all of us, the one that will give us true coverage, and I’m sure they will get it.

The Bottom Line Is: Most of us want to know that if we lose a camera or lens, we get it replaced by a camera or lens of like kind and quality. We want “replacement” coverage.

There are other types of policies. Some pay the “actual cash value” of the loss — which to most insurance companies means the market value of the lost item on the day it was lost; in most cases that’s a depreciated amount; we’d have to read the fine print, but I’m pretty sure the companies will not want to pay the “appreciated value” should that be the case.

One last note on “replacement policies”. Many pay you the actual cash value UNLESS  and UNTIL you replace the item. If you replace the item you get the replacement cost. Under this scenario: you lose a lens that will cost $1,000 to replace; it’s current value, depreciated, is $750; if you take the money, you get $750; if you buy a replacement lens and pay $1,000 for it, they give you the remaining $250.

I write this so that when you buy your policies, you will know to ask careful questions to make sure you are getting exactly what you want and need.

Important Lesson Learned: We have to do more than ask the right questions and listen carefully to the answers — WE HAVE TO READ A COPY OF THE POLICY BEFORE WE BUY IT. And, that’s not the way most of us buy insurance. Most of us talk to an agent and buy a policy without seeing the actual language of the policy we are buying. Later, we receive what is known as a “binder” or “dec page” — a summary page that commits the company to coverage and states the nature and limits of the policy; the “dec page” does not contain any of the fine print that sets the scope of the coverage. Later, we get the actual policy. In the best of all worlds, the policy we are told we are getting will be the policy we actually get. But, we don’t always live in the best of all worlds. Best Practice: Ask to see the actual policy before you sign the dotted line.

Here are some things to think about when you talk with your advisors and agents:

1. Household Insurance

Relying on your home owners or renters insurance carries some risks. Most policies will not cover “professional” equipment. I’m not sure how they define professional, but I do know that the more you have, and the better it is,  the more professional you look. For most of us this is not a safe insurance path. First, you run the risk that your loss will not be covered at all. And, second, even if it is covered under the general “personal property” coverage, you run the risk that the deductible will be so high that you will not be able to replace much of what is lost.

2. Business Policies

Most of us who rent space have liability policies that cover the premises and some of our belongings. However, once more, there are risks involved with relying on these policies to insure our equipment. These, too, are often limited to a percentage of the policy coverage. And, they, too, may exclude specific “tools of the trade”. But, most of these companies will insure our equipment if we “schedule” it.

3. Equipment Policies

Therefore, most of us will want policies specifically designed to cover photographic equipment. There’s nothing exotic about this coverage and many companies can do it. It’s simply a matter of finding an agent who knows what we have, understands it, and helps us get the right coverage. In almost all cases, a proper inventory will be essential to the process.

A Few Final Words About Insurance

We buy insurance to give us peace of mind. We buy it to know that if there is a loss, we have a partner standing beside us who will help us get back on our feet. Each year we go without a claim is a good year — for us and for the company. And, we think little about the relationship.

It is at the time of loss that we need that partnership to work. We need a company that takes our claims seriously and responds, promptly and diligently to perform the promises it has made to us. And, we need to do everything we can to facilitate the company’s handling of our claims.

The more prepared we are for a loss, the more we can give the claim adjustor, the more likely we will have a prompt and proper administration of the claim.

My claim has been delayed for other reasons. There is a dispute as to what coverage my association was selling and the nature of my policy. As soon as that conflict is resolved, I’ll update this article, name names, and give a bit more insight as to what I perceive the value of the policy to be. I will say that at this time, I’m investigating other policies. I’ll share what I’ve learned, soon.

In the mean time, it might serve all of you well to take a good look at your own policies and discuss them with your agents. If you want “replacement” insurance, make sure you have it. And, make sure what responsibilities you have in terms of tracking and updating the values of your equipment.

But, Wait! There’s More!! A Word About Alarm Systems!!!

I know it’s a little late. The cameras are out of the corral. But, I’ve installed an alarm system at my studio.

I did it with mixed feelings. Truth be told, I’m not sure how much it will help.

The idea is that if someone breaks in, an alarm sounds, and a call goes out to the police. The police come and arrest the bad guys.

In theory, that’s great. But, it’s all dependent on one thing — the response time of the local police, how quickly they get to the studio after the alarm goes off.

If they can get there in less than 5 minutes, the chances are that they will catch someone.

But, in most cities, response times are much slower — and burglars know that. I’ve been told that most burglars count on being in and out in less than 10 minutes and know, if they are that quick, they will most likely get away.

So why did I put in the alarm? To raise the risk of getting caught AND to give myself peace of mind (even if it is a bit “false”).

The burglars cannot count on a response time. They will not know if there is a car in the vicinity of my studio that will get there in a couple of minutes. When that siren goes off, they will either leave or rush their survey of my stuff, both of which are good for me.

I did a lot of research on alarm systems and have chosen one that I think best meets many of our needs. I’m in the process of testing it. If it works well, I’ll write about it. I’ve also negotiated a discount program for my readers. So, if I think it’s worth installing, I’ll do a complete article on my research, why I chose this system, and offer a discount code for all of you.

More on this later.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

Because, if my head is not in the right place, if it doesn’t see clearly, if it cannot execute — no matter how creative my vision, I will fall flat.
That’s why I love books, video’s, conferences and seminars. And, that’s why I bought a subscription to Kelby Training — a subscription that has proved to be a very worthy long term investment in my creative future.

Simply stated, Kelby Training is an online site that gives us access to world renowned instructors teaching lessons in the things they know best.

The Faculty: Kelby Training modestly proclaims that it has “The Best Teachers On the Planet — All In One Place”. Actually, I think that might be true. Of course you get the “Photoshop Guys” — Scott Kelby, Dave Cross, Matt Kloskowski, and Corey Barker — all of whom are different, both in approaches to the material and teaching styles. And, then you add in 25, or so, more greats like Rafael Concepcion, Vincent Versace, David Ziser, David Cuerdon, Lesa Snider, Julieanne Kost, Laurie Excell, Eddie Tapp, and, one of my all time favorite instructors and personalities, Joe McNally.

This is a very diverse group of people. What I like most is that their differences show. And, because they are teaching things they do and love, their enthusiasm is catching. I’ve watched at least 50 hours of lessons, from a vast number of teachers and have not had one that I found boring, too confusing or hard to understand.

The curriculum matches the diversity of the faculty. As one might expect, the classes are heavily weighted toward photography. And, many are rooted in the Adobe Creative Suite. But, there are classes on Nikon’s NX2, Apple’s Aperture, and some on video. Some classes deal with creating images in the camera and others on post-production. Some deal with Illustrator, In Design, and Dreamweaver. Then there are those that teach us how to disseminate our work, either in print or online. Will we all want to watch every lesson? Of course not. But, the curriculum is sufficiently broad that most people will find relevance in most of the classes and never run out of new things to learn.

The lessons are timely, too. As soon as CS5 was announced, a host of tutorials appeared on the site — some for beginners and some for those who are more advanced. I’ve been watching them this week and I feel prepared to take advantage of the new features in CS5 as soon as I get my hands on the final version.

The interface is simple (with one hidden “gotcha”) and the production quality very high. The “gotcha”? When we go to watch a lesson, there are two checkboxes under the video window. They are easy to overlook. One, “Continuous Play” does what it says. It plays one lesson after the other without stopping between them. Cool. The other, “Remember My Position” is the one that got me; it keeps track of where you are in a lesson; if you log out, and come back later, it will take you to the exact spot where you previously were. Great. Unless you don’t want to go there. And, that’s how it got me. I wanted to look at something else. Try as I might, I couldn’t change classes. Until, in unchecked that box. It really is a good feature so long as you know to turn it off when you want to move to a new starting point. I do, now, and so do you. Other than that, this interface is strong and simple.

Enough general talk — let’s go to some lessons.

Note: All of the video’s of  the class segments below are the sole property of Kelby Training which owns their copyright. I am including in this review pursuant to their gracious consent to do so. The actual production quality on their site is better than that which I’ve been able to reproduce, here. However, they will give you some idea of the scope of content and quality of the teaching.

Why is this post in 3 parts? Because, with so much video embedded, the pages may load a bit slowly; PLEASE BE PATIENT,  give them some time; it’s worth the wait.

So, what have I learned?

1. From Dave Cuerdon: The Beauty and Retouching Kit

By giving me a set of techniques and the tools to implement them, Dave Cuerdon allowed me to take a quantum leap in the quality of my portrait retouching. And, he did it in a way that was so simple to learn that I was able to implement his lessons the day I learned them.

What do I mean by “giving a set of tools?” I mean that Dave gives us a toolbox full of things we’d have to buy elsewhere or create ourselves. From within the lesson, we can download a folder that contains some very sophisticated stuff. We get Actions, Brushes, Color Swatches, Custom Shapes, Textures and Tools. Not sure what to do with them. No problem. Dave teaches us how to load them into Photoshop and then, in the lessons that follow, he shows us how to use them.

Here’s a look at what’s in the Cuerdon toolbox:

If you do a lot of portrait retouching, this free toolkit will more than cover the cost of the online subscription.

Dave’s lessons focus on the face and its components.

The Eyes

We’ve all been taught the importance of getting the eyes right. Ever notice how new born babies stare into their parents’ eyes? Psychologists tell us that eye contact is the cornerstone or our interpersonal connections and communications. When we meet people, we look them in the eye. So it makes sense that when most people look at portraits, they look into the subject’s eyes. If they can make a connection, they are drawn into the image. If they cannot, they move on.

For many of us, eye retouching is a struggle — it’s often hard to figure out exactly what the goals are and what tools to use to achieve them.

Dave, inspired by Fay Sirkis, has created a system and set of tools to make this an easy task.

Simply stated, Dave has produced an action that creates a layer for each task we face in retouching eyes.

For each layer, Dave has selected the appropriate tool and settings. For many, the tool is the “right brush” (often one he has created and given us), set to the “right opacity” so that one can paint on the effect or localize it on a mask.

We get a complete brush set — the one’s I like best allow us to remove catchlights and replace them with better ones; to really make things look cool, we can also create a moon — that little curved reflection opposite the catchlight. Lately, I’ve been putting a little “creative confusion” in my images by removing the original catchlights and replacing them with something more “artistic”; I particularly like taking images that were clearly shot in the studio and putting in large “window” catchlights and moons.

Here’s a look at the layer set that I’ve put in a folder called “Eyes”:

Starting at the bottom of the stack we can see the logic in the order of Dave’s approach.

The first step is to clean up the eyes.

Then, if we don’t like the catchlight, we remove it; it will be replaced, later.

Most often, we will want to brighten the eyes; we do this with a curves layer that lightens the entire image and then covers it with a black mask; we paint, in white, on the mask over the part of the eyes we want to be brighter.

We do the same thing with Redness removal — this time using a Hue/Saturation layer set to diminish the amount of red in the eyes.

The Pupil layer allows us to create a nice, dark pupil — and to change its size .

The Iris layer allows us to either boost (saturate) or change the color.

On the Iris Ring layer we use one of Dave’s custom brushes to create a dark ring around the outside of the iris; a little free transform work will get the placement spot on; this ring really makes the eye jump off the page.

In the last two steps, we use more of Dave’s custom brushes to paint in a new catchlight and moon; sometimes I’m pleased with what I’ve captured; in that case, I don’t use the catchlight and moon layers.

At first, I was a bit intimidated. Nine different layers, each with a distinct set of tools and task, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to remember what to do.

Dave was 10 steps ahead of me. Knowing that there would be a learning curve, he created two versions of the same actions — one for beginners and the other for those who have mastered the techniques.

The beginner version — the one I still use even though I could use the advanced — lets us run each layer as a separate step. Push the start button and up comes an instruction window telling us what we will be doing. Push another button and we do it. When done, we go back to the play action button to bring up the next layer. There is no way to make a mistake in this system. It is fool proof.

Here’s an example of how the “Action with Stops and Instructions” guides us through the process:

The tools are all set to the parameters in the box. Once we understand the task, we push the button and do the work. When we are done, we play the next step in the action, get a new layer complete with instruction box. This really could not be any easier.

The “advanced” set is a bit different. Push the Play button and all of the layers appear without the instruction boxes. Once we understand, we can just push through them. (Why do I still use the beginner version? I like the rhythm of reading, doing, and moving on.)

Eye retouching? With Dave’s instructions and actions — a piece of cake. I do it in almost every portrait I retouch.

The Rest of the Face

Dave gives us the tools and knowledge to work on eye brows, eyelashes and eyeliner, skin retouching, lip treatments, teeth whitening, and, as a special treat — the application of digital tattoos. To give you a sense of the nature and style of these lessons, here’s the one on “facial contouring”:

As taken as I am with Dave’s creativity and native teaching skill — I think I’m most impressed by his generosity. Not many instructors would GIVE us these tools — tools most of us are used to paying for. I look forward to taking Dave’s other Kelby Training class – Fantasy Portraits.

Please Access Part 2 from the Home Page

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

A month or so ago, I was able to download and Beta-test the new Photoshop release. There are some incredible new features — things like:

• “Content-Aware Fill”  – you know that odd shape you get when you stitch together a panorama? This tool will fill the gaps and make the image rectangular WITHOUT cropping away stuff we want to keep; I also think it will help with facial retouching in those tight areas where other tools often pick up dark spots or lines;
• a beefed up HDR section — which, for some users, may obviate the need for third party programs;
• a beefed up Refine Edge tool — which will make complex extractions a lot easier;
• an improved brush tool and interface — so those of us with Wacom tablets can change the way the brush interacts with the image by tilting the brush or applying differing pressures to it;
• “painting” tools — the ability to alter brushes and use color mixing to replicate painting styles — not a replacement for Painter, but an interesting alternative;
• A “Mini-Bridge” that minimizes the need to back and forth between two programs, Ps and Br; and,
• the new “Puppet Warp” tool — which, through some amazing magic, will let us correct posing flaws by simply bending the body; I think it will also be useful in doing some of the things we used to do with liquify in a much more controllable format.

Perhaps most important for Mac users is that CS5 will allow us to take advantage of the full power of our Intel processors — it will run in 64 bit mode. Posts on those features will come in due time.

But, before we get to use all these new tools and exploit all that horsepower, those of us who have an older version of Photoshop, like CS4, will have to successfully upgrade to the new version. Doing that is the topic of this post.

The Risk of Going First — And Some Safety Nets

I know a lot of people who won’t load software until at least two or three updates have been issued. I am not one of them. I ordered the Adobe Master Collection the first moment I could, and I will install it the day it arrives. Will there be issues? Probably. But, I’ve found that Adobe software, when released, is usually stable. However, sometimes there are issues not of Adobe’s making.  Once you’ve decided to go forward, here are some things to think about:

1. If you are cautious and risk averse — if you are the kind of person who does not want to take any chance that there will be hiccups in your installation — the cleanest path is to uninstall the old version and all of your add-ins and add-ons, and re-install everything from its original source discs. I know people who do it that way. However, doing so takes a lot of time. I’ve never done it that way and have yet to be punished for taking the route described below. But, I’m aware that there is always a first time.

2. More likely than not, when moving to the Mac 64 bit platform, we will have 3rd party software, usually plugins, that will have to be upgraded. As I write this article, I know that many of the plugins I use, on a daily basis, are not 64 bit compliant. Most of them should be by the time I receive my Master Collection.

However, if they are not, there are a couple of “work-arounds” I plan to follow:

1. I will leave my copies of CS4 installed on my computers until EVERYTHING in the new installation, including the new plugins, is working perfectly. I did the same thing when I moved from CS3 to CS4. I figured that if something failed, the older, stable version, was my safety net;

2. If my plugins are not updated by the time I’m using CS5, I will still be able to use them in CS4. I’ll start in CS5 and work there until I need the plugins. I’ll then save the file as a .psd, and both EXIT and SHUT DOWN CS5. I’ll then re-open the .psd in CS4 — where my plugins will be available and finish off there. Following this route, it is critical to shut down CS5. Both versions should not be running at the same time; and,

3. Another way to handle the plugin problem is suggested by NAPP’s Peter Bauer (more on Peter in a moment.) The “older versions” of the plugins, which are 32 bit, can run CS5 in 32 bit mode. To set that up, right click on the program icon, select Get Info, and activate “Open in 32 Bit Mode”. Of course, this will be like running a V12 Ferrari with 6 spark plugs disconnected, but it is a solution.

More likely than not, by the time most of us get our copies of CS5, the plugins will have been updated. But for those of us who will jump in early, no matter what, the work-arounds should keep us productive.

The Protocol I’m Going to Follow

A couple of years ago, before I started this blog/site, I wrote a newsletter and distributed it by email. One of the articles I wrote set forth a protocol for upgrading from CS3 to CS4. At the time, I had both versions, in hand, and could do the screen shots necessary to illustrate the article.

Unfortunately, as I write this,  I don’t have CS5 in hand. Knowing that most of us will be upgrading before I post the next round of content, I’ve decided to use that old newsletter article as the basis for this post. The screen shots may be different (or they may not), but the concepts and techniques are the same.

How do I know they will work with CS5? I asked Peter Bauer, that’s how.

Who’s Peter Bauer? The guy who knows the best way to do everything Photoshop.

Actually, until I met Peter Bauer at Photoshop World a couple of years ago, I didn’t think he was a real person.  I thought he was a computer. Peter is NAPP’s “answer man” – the guy who responds to all the tough support questions. The fact that he answered them so completely and quickly led me to believe he was a “virtual person”, not a human being. But, then I met him in the flesh. Peter is both knowledgeable and generous with his time.

So, when it was time to upgrade to CS4,  I wrote Peter to get his preferred protocol. I followed it and everything worked perfectly, from Day 1. In fact, it worked so well that, within a week, I deactivated and uninstalled CS3.

Note the “deactivate” part of that sentence. If you want to give your previous version away, or sell it, you have to “deactivate it” before uninstalling it. Adobe keeps track of he number of computers running a product on one serial number. Without a special license, I’m pretty sure the limit is 2 computers. If all one does is “uninstall” Adobe does not know that you aren’t using it. Only “Deactivation” sends the message that the license is not being used. On a Mac, the path to deactivation from within CS4 is: Menus>Help>Deactivate.

Step 1. Preserving 3rd Party Plugins, Actions, Custom Brushes and Textures

The upgrade process is as easy as putting in the new discs and letting them run. However, there are a couple of preliminary steps one must take to preserve and reinstall 3rd party plug-ins, and special things like custom actions, brushes and textures so that you can move them from CS4 to CS5.

Once more, if you are totally risk averse, the preferred procedure is probably to re-install all 3rd party stuff from the original discs or downloads. As anal as I am, that’s still a cumbersome process I avoid.

Before starting, we need to make sure we have the most current versions of all of the non-Adobe stuff – the stuff that will not be installed by CS5. And, we need to note which of those versions are CS5 compliant and which are not.

Non-Adobe Actions:

In saving and re-loading Actions, we work with “Action Sets”, not individual actions. So, it’s wise to put loose actions in a set.

Then, from the Actions Panel drop down menu, select “Save Actions”:

I’ll create a new folder on my desktop, “Saved Actions”, in which they will be saved. Follow the same procedure for all non-Adobe actions. The action sets will be saved with an “.atn” file extension.

Custom Brushes, Styles and Things Like That

One uses Edit>Preset Manager to create sets and save them in a manner similar to the one set forth above.

Here’s a picture of the Preset Manager. A couple of things to note: It, too, saves “sets”. When you first open it, the “Save Set button is likely to be grayed out. By selecting my custom brushes (more than one brush) I got the option to save them as a set. From that point on, the process is similar to the one that saved the actions. Just save them to a clearly labeled file on your desktop. The “Preset Type” drop down menu let’s you save other custom things. Here are your choices:

Just to be clear, by going through this process, we are trying to save all of the 3rd party or custom things that are not a part of CS5 and will not show up in CS5 unless we save them from CS4 and load them on our own.

When we’ve gone through all of the things in the Preset Manager and saved what is non-Adobe, we can Quit CS4. We’re done there.

Step 2. Installing CS5 and Loading the Non-Adobe Things We’ve Saved

Now, it’s time to install CS5 from the original DVD.

Peter reminds us to disable any anti-virus software (I’m a Mac, what is that?) and/or automated programs we might have. When I’m doing an upgrade like this, I turn every other program on my computer off.

After loading CS5, it’s time to upgrade it to make sure it has all of the current components. I use the Adobe Updater which, on the Mac, is under the Help Menu.

Peter also reminds us to get the latest Camera Raw plug-ins,by clicking here.

It’s now time to re-load your custom actions, using the LOAD ACTIONS button in the actions menu. And, in a like manner, it’s time to load the custom things you saved with the Preset Manager using the LOAD function there.

We are not done, yet. We still have one task left, we’ve got to install all of the 3rd party plug-ins, things like our onOne, Imagenomic, and Nik software.

For this task, Peter recommends something I’ve been doing since CS2 – something that has made my upgrades to CS3 and CS4 a lot easier.

Peter tells us to install those plugins to a new folder on our desktops. I’ve been calling mine “3rd Party Photoshop Plugins”. (I’ve also made similar folders for my 3rd party Actions and Presets.)

Once the plugins are loaded, we put them in the Photoshop CS5 folder. Then, we create an “alias” of those new folders and place the alias in the official CS5 plugins folder. The alias tells Photoshop that there are more plugins available and sends the program to the actual 3rd party folders, where it finds and loads them. Here’s my folder set up:

Notice the “3rd Party” folders. I’ve made an alias for each and put it in the appropriate “stock” Photoshop folders.

Here’s what the Plug-ins alias looks like in the Plug-ins folder:

I have a similar “alias folder” in the Presets file.

For the move from CS3 to CS4 all I had to do was move that folder from the CS3 file to the CS4 file and make and place a new alias. I’ll do the same thing when I move to CS5.

There is another advantage to segregating the 3rd party stuff from that which comes from Adobe. If ever you run into quirky program behavior, you can remove the aliases; that will bring the program back to its “native state”. If the problem goes away, you will know it is in the external folder. If it does not, you will know that the things in that folder are OK.

Either way, the “3rd party folder path” is really the way to go.

After the installation is complete, I open a file and run through all of the plugins. If they work, great. If not, I’d do a clean install from their original media. So far, I’ve never had to do a clean install. Everything has worked.

From what I’ve seen, we will want to make some changes in Adobe’s preferences file. I’ll write about them, later.

That’s it. That’s all there is to it. Not very hard to get right.

Once more, I want to thank Peter Bauer of NAPP for generously allowing me to share this protocol with you. As I’ve said before, my NAPP dues are probably the best investment I’ve made in my photography. I get the fabulous Photoshop User Magazine, a web site filled with tips, tutorials and forums, product discounts AND Peter Bauer. Can’t beat that for $99.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

The number one complaint I hear from my photographer friends is not about photography. It’s about web sites.

Web sites. The bane of our existence. Essential to our success but, until recently, frustrating to create and maintain.

For a couple of years, I struggled with a beautiful Dreamweaver site created by an artist friend. It looked great and worked well. But, I could not interact with it. If I wanted something done — the smallest thing like posting an article or image, I had to call the artist; and if he was busy, it didn’t get done. As much as I wanted to do it myself, to do so would have required learning Dreamweaver and probably some HTML. My head was too full. No more room at the inn. Didn’t want to do it.

And, then my web developer extraordinaire (who is also my cousin), Nina Sossen, told me about WordPress, and created this site. We bought a theme from Elegant Themes; but it did not look anything like what my site looks like. Nina skillfully designed and  implemented the look and feel of the site. I’m not sure any of us would be able to do what she did; it takes a real code jockey. If you want something unique — something that aesthetically expresses who you are, I strongly recommend that you contact Nina.

Once Nina got me up and running, WordPress has been a saviour. Today, I can do most anything that needs to be done to add content and maintain the site. When I get stumped, Nina is but a phone call away.

WordPress is FREE! I still pay for my domain names and for hosting, but the basic software is free.

Much like Photoshop, there are plugins that extend the functionality of WordPress. My calendar and galleries are controlled by plugins. So is my ability to embed my YouTube videos and other media.

I cannot tell you how happy I am with the switch to WordPress.

You don’t have a cousin Nina to teach you the basics? Don’t worry. Kelby Training has a great WordPress teacher.

R.C.’s Step-By-Step Tutorial — At the End, We Have a Web site

Want to create your own WordPress site? A total novice as to all things web site? No problem.

In two classes, in 31 easy lessons, R.C. Concepcion takes us, step by step, (and I mean small step by small step — there is no way to fall behind in these lessons) through the creation of our very own photographic sites. He starts with showing us how to get a domain name and set up a hosting account. Then he introduces us to FTP, the file transfer protocol we will use to send things to our site. From there we learn everything we need to create the look and feel of our site and load our pages with content.

These lessons are framed in a way that encourages us to build our own site as we watch them. Amazing, in a couple of hours, we can have a fully functional web site that we know how to run and modify.

Yes, WordPress is designed to be user friendly.

R.C. gives us the knowledge and confidence to take the first steps on the WordPress path. ALL new software is intimidating. But, not with R.C. guiding us through it.

He is an amazing teacher — well organized and calm. He just makes it seem simple. And, one of the nice things about creating the site while working through the lessons is that if we stub a toe, first aid is simply a button away — push “rewind” and watch again.

I first saw R.C. teach at a Photoshop world a few years ago. I so wanted to learn how to control my Dreamweaver web site that I took one of his classes. Although I soon realized that I did not want to make the investment in learning Dreamweaver, I watched a couple more — just because he was such a good teacher.

So, I was thrilled when I found the WordPress lessons on Kelby Training. This is the software for most of us who really don’t want to learn a new, difficult program. And, with R.C. leading us, we will get what we need, quickly and painlessly.

Want to go the full bore, hard core Dreamweaver route? R.C. has 5 different sets of lessons to guide you. And, he’s pulling a heavy oar in getting us up to speed on CS5 with courses on the new Camera RAW and Illustrator. R.C. is a rock solid, steady teacher — easy to follow, easy to like.

3. From Joe McNally: Perspective

Sometimes we get so focused on the technical aspects of photography that we lose sight of the fact that we are really in the “people” business. Joe McNally never lets us forget that:

I’ve written about Joe several times in my newsletters and on this site. He is an incredibly gifted teacher. Most see him as THE “off-camera-flash” guru of our time. He is that. But he is a lot more. Mingled in with the technical information in his DVD’s, seminars, books, and classes (there are nine of them on Kelby Training), are important philosophical and inspirational themes presented in the least pretentious way possible and in ways that make a great impact.

Want to learn everything there is to know about off camera flash? See Joe’s lessons on Kelby Training.

Want to learn things we need to know about being the kind of photographers who get the most out of their subjects and team? Look at those same lessons. Read his books. Watch his DVD’s and take his seminars. Joe McNally has made be a better photographer in all senses of the word.

Please Access Part 3 from the Home Page

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)

When I was an embryonic lawyer, my office had an IBM system that created templates for most legal forms and allowed the secretaries to fill in blanks rather than type long originals; the computer took up a full sized office.

Today, my D3 puts much more computing power in my hands.

The upside of all that computing power is that I have an almost infinite variety of settings with which to create and control my images. The downside of all that computing power is that I have an almost infinite variety of settings with which to create and control my images.

The bottom line — to get the most from our cameras, we have to know how to harness that power — we have to master the menu and setting choices that tell the camera what to do. For most of us, that means spending many hours in manuals that make little or no sense.

Fortunately, for those who learn better seeing than reading, Kelby Training has complete classes on many current cameras — including many Nikon and Canon models. There are even lessons on shooting video with the latest DSLR’s.

I really know my D3 — I’ve actually read the manual several times. I know, boring. But, hey,that’s who I am.

Even thought I knew my D3, I still took Laurie Excell’s class on it and learned some new things. Laurie is well organized, clear and concise. In 2 hours I learned as much from her as I had from many more hours in the manual.

Laurie goes one step further. In a separate class, Cleaning Your Digital SLR Sensor, she takes the fear out of sensor cleaning. Before watching this tape, I hesitated to clean my sensor; I knew that the slightest mistake could lead to an expensive repair. Laurie demystified the process, and took me through it in small, easy steps. (One lesson is aptly entitled “Dont Be Afraid”.)

Here’s Lesson 7 of the 10 in this class:

Conclusion:

I’m glad I subscribed to Kelby Training.

I  like the deep curriculum and the fact that it is expanding every week. I like the ability to “dabble” in a subject; I can try a topic and if I find it’s not for me — nothing is lost; I’ve not had to buy anything and nothing will sit and gather dust on my shelves.

Those who study the psychology of learning tell us that repetition is the key to retention. One of the strong points of online content is that we can watch it over and over and over — and then again, if need be.

And, so long as I can get an Internet connection, the lessons are always with me. I find them a good way to pass time in airports or hotel rooms.

Kelby Training is the real deal — and for those who want to up their games, a “continuing education” course well worth the price of admission.

(Copyright: PrairieFire Productions/Stephen J. Herzberg — 2010)