Photographer Bruce Dale Captures a Halloween Festival

The exceptional work of former National Geographic photographer Bruce Dale has come together with video on the following Halloween Festival production he put together. Shot on Halloween 2010 with a Lumix FH1 and GH2 cameras with 14-140 lens, the photographer also used a 45mm f2.8 lens for some of the portraits.

The Halloween Festival was shot in the countryside of Rappahannock County, Virginia. The event was filmed on the Stone Hill Farm, with border collies, sheep, bagpipers, and a dramatic play providing the entertainment - with a symbolic "sacrifice" at dusk.

Halloween provides all photographers with a wealth of imagery to capture, from a single child's trick-or-treating escapades to parades and costumed revelry. Take your camera with you as you explore creative opportunities on Halloween eve to add some colorful and atmospheric pieces to your portfolio.

Join the conversation on Twitter.  Follow along with Facebook.

Tune in on YouTube.  Visit the Official Site at NYIP.com.

Photo Marketing 101: Start Blogging

Welcome back to Photo Marketing 101, our series of blogs on Marketing for Photographers. Last time, I shared with you some ideas for using video to market yourself.

This blog post is all about blog posts. In that you should be writing them. And to make that even easier for you, we have a special gift for you.

But first, all of the reasons you need to have a blog:

• It’s the simplest way to create searchable, shareable content that will help you get noticed
• It’s a great way to showcase your work
• It’s a marketing tool that allows you to be personable and show people who you are
• It’s a way to connect with past, present, and future clients online
• It’s a great way to connect your various social media profiles with your business

A blog will do more for your online presence than anything else we’ve covered in this blog series. In today’s world, photographers (just like any other profession) are under more pressure to market themselves and stand out from the crowd. But at the same time, there are more opportunities out there that allow you to do just that. Blogging is one of those opportunities.

And now for the gift!

We’ve partnered with Squarespace, the leading blog and website platform, to offer you 10% off a 1-year membership. To sign up and take advantage of this offer, visit www.squarespace.com/nyip.

Starting a blog or website on Squarespace will allow you to quickly post photos and content without knowing anything about web design or development. They make everything as simple as it can be. And if you ever get stuck, they have 24/7 assistance that comes free with your membership.

It’s easy to get started and a surefire way to improve your marketing strategy.

Homework: Sign up and get started. Visit www.squarespace.com/nyip.

P.S. If you have a marketing question, feel free to ask it in the comments here or Tweet your question to us with the tag #PhotoMarketing101 . Your question may be the next one we answer on our blog!

Short Film Project: The Halloween Kid

If you love Halloween and horror films, then this short film project, The Halloween Kid, is your cup of tea ... and that's appropriate because this is a UK project, too. 

Writer-director Axelle Carolyn is a Halloween fanatic, as you'll see in the following video shot for sponsors. As a photographer or videographer, it's likely you'll one day want to put together your own short film project - the usual preliminary step to hitting the film circuit, winning awards, and creating larger feature projects. Good luck to you - and Axelle - as you dream big with your photography and videography projects. 

For more information about the project, and even how you could help raise funds to complete its budget, go to The Halloween Kid project summary on Sponsume.com (they've raised almost all of their project monies, but there's still a bit more to go, and a more days in October to raise the funding). 

Join the conversation on Twitter.  Follow along with Facebook.

Tune in on YouTube.  Visit the Official Site at NYIP.com.

NYIP Student Success

Many NYIP members have won prestigious awards in contests and photo fairs or have had their work exhibited in galleries. Other NYIP members are building careers shooting weddings, press events, corporate and commercial assignments, or have received professional recognition and publication of their photos. Here are some recent NYIP success stories:

 

Sarah Bryan, Nebraska

With all the horrible wet weather much of the U.S. had recently, it was great to hear some good news came out of all those storms. NYIP Student Sarah Bryan won second place in a contest/exhibit called "Flood Waters 2011." The exhibit features images of the Missouri river flooding. Sarah normally photographs seniors, weddings, newborns and other portraits through her studio, Life Captured Photography based in Fort Calhoun, Nebraska. 

 

 

Bonnie Gustin, New York

 

Congratulations go to Bonnie who was profiled in the Fall issue of Life in the Finger Lakes Magazine. You can see several of Bonnie's fall photographs in the article, Autumn Splendor, on page 66 of the magazine. View more of Bonnie's work on her website, Bonniegustinphotography.com.

 

 

Tom Freudenstein, New York

A photograph taken by NYIP Graduate Tom Freudenstein was used by Klezmer musicians Franziska Seehausen and Ilya Shneyveys on their poster advertisment for a Klezmer concert in Alfter, Germany.

 

Gareth Kidder, Maine

We were thrilled to hear from NYIP Graduate Gareth Kidder who wrote: "Since completing the NYIP course in 2005, I have had some success!  I have placed or won in several contests. My photos were also printed in a local newspaper in their readers submitted photo section. My most prestigious success to date was having a photo published in the June 2011 issue of Outdoor Photographer Magazine! I learned so much from NYIP, it really made a difference!" Congratulations, Gareth!

 

Karla McKinney, Ohio

Terrific news from Karla McKinney who recently submitted several photographs into a photo contest at her local county fair. She's was thrilled to tell us that she won four 1st place blue ribbons including "Best of Show", as well as six 2nd place red ribbons! Karla says "I am so pleased with everything that I am learning through my photography course through NYIP! The information is invaluable to me and makes me so excited about shooting photography! I just want to learn more and more!"

 

 

Swati Chakraborty, California

NYIP student Swati Chakraborty also has contest news to share. Swati won first place in DPReview's photo challenge "Flirting." You can see Swati's winning image here.

 

Do you have an NYIP Success Story to tell? Email us at editors@nyip.com and let us know! 

Join the conversation on Twitter.  Follow along with Facebook.

Tune in on YouTube.  Visit the Official Site at NYIP.com.

 

x

Electrify a Blog with Your Great Photography

Josh Leo is one of my blogging heroes. He's taken his video camera around the world, and produced some of the most well-paced body of videos I've ever seen in a travel blog. Josh captures a sense of story with his shots, and you get to experience his personal reactions to what he encounters, whether it's explaining the rationale for visiting a specific location or confessing his weakness for local pastries.
 
I selected one of his videos on the beautiful mountain-lakeside town of Halstatt, Austria to illustrate his strong sense of story and his superb visual rhythm, synchronizing his cuts and pacing with well-chosen pieces of music. If you like to take photographs and/or videos, jump into the blogging waters and splash around. Blogs are wonderful venues for showing off your work, allowing you to explain what went on in the real world outside of the photograph, and giving you an opportunity to fully express yourself through your passion.

Join the conversation on Twitter.  Follow along with Facebook.

Tune in on YouTube.  Visit the Official Site at NYIP.com.