AR-Graphics

"Published Photographer" It’s quite common these days for photographers to use the term “published”, so what exactly does that mean? Looking into it we find people can use the term to represent different things There was a time just a few decades ago when being published meant just the one thing, having your image printed as a physical object such as a magazine, poster, advert etc. However things have changed and the term “being published” is now being applied to a variety of different scenarios. Leaving aside the discussion about the correct application of the description, I want to look at the different ways I see it being used, which I personally see being broadly divided up into four categories. The following is based on the definition of published being the transfer of an image into another medium to facilitate its distribution to a wider audie nce. Self Publication Sometimes referred to as “vanity publishing”, modern technology allows anyone to publish their own materia...

Staying Safe Lots is written and posted regarding model safety, and rightly so. Although the percentage of "dangerous" photographers is small, models need to be aware. There is however another aspect of model safety the rarely seems to get mentioned, and that is the question of a models physical safety whilst being photographed. An accident can happen almost anywhere and at any time, a slip in the bath, tripping over something, hitting your elbow, it happens to all of us. However a model can sometimes find themselves in a situation where there is an increased chance of a mishap and/or the consequences are more dire. A resulting injury can run the extremes of a minor cut or bruise to being fatal. It's hard to track down any sort of statistics on this, however my research did turn up the fact that in 2015 in the US at least 50 people where killed whilst engaged in photography or video, on or near a railway track! For the vast majority of shoots a model will b...

Are you shooting yourself in the foot? I have, in the past, been asked what the most important thing is for a photographer. Whilst it no doubt depends on the type of photography you undertake, for me, dealing primarily with people, I'd have to say that reputation is probably close to, if not, top of my list. A good reputation can be built upon many pillars such as honesty, reliability, discretion, high standards, moral and ethical stances, etc. All of this can help install trust and respect amongst clients and those you work with. Conversely it can also be used to send a message to those that wish to take advantage. It all seems very common sense, however I regularly see examples where people just don't seem to care about how they are perceived!   First Impressions Count. It's an oft quoted saying that is backed up by lots of scientific research. More often than not, in today's world, a first impression has moved from being a physical meeting, to a virtual ...

Looking for a Model?   Some time ago I was involved in a discussion in a group. It revolved primarily around the apparent lack of models and problems getting to work with them, especially on a TFP basis. I personally felt that many of the difficulties were down to the way the approaches to models are made. In particular where and how.   With a number of new personal projects I plan to undertake, I recently decided to seek out some extra new people to work with. Although there were a number I wanted to contact directly, I also decided to put out a general casting in order to get an idea of the interest there may be. I also thought it would be interesting to see where might be the most productive places to do such a casting. Therefore I posted the same casting on 6 Facebook groups (all location specific) and 8 model directory web sites.   Although the original post is now about a month old, I am still receiving new contacts, and so far have well over a dozen ...

Is everything as it seems? I have been asked by a number of people to give some tips on what to look out for with regards to photographers etc that may not be quite what they appear. Today's cameras allow even the most inexperienced user to produce a technically good image, which has lead to a huge increase of people taking on the mantle of "photographer". Whilst the majority of these are legitimate, and content with developing their craft or offering a good service, there are unfortunately a few who possibly have more dubious intentions. It's a sad fact that I regularly seem to find social media posts and web sites where things just don't add up and not everything is what it seems! After 40 odd years of doing, and studying photography it can often seem very obvious to me when something is not right. However it is mostly a case of common sense and here are some things that you may want to look for... Are the images consistent and "right"? It...