Me bored on a Saturday

[Munchie]

Originally Posted by Samir

Haven't you run into the situation where the free shots are 'good enough' for a lot of potential clients? I can really understand the studio costs adding up! And I think that's where a lot of people are starting out, and realizing that if they can charge 'a little', they can recoup their costs. This is probably what has put most studios out-of-business (or on their way out). The studios didn't have much of a choice but to charge what they did due to business overhead--insurance, location, licenses, etc.
I definitely does seem that way. But you're right about them hitting that road block. I've had to learn before all the fancy settings, so I still do things manually and can do it on almost any equipment, even cameras never designed to do what I want, lol.

I think the web 2.0 post process is critical to great shots these days, adding that glassy, glossy look. If I can figure out an efficient way to implement post like that, I'd love to do it. I know I can do better, but not with the volume that I do.
I've had something published in Grassroots Motorsports. I wasn't aware of it, and I got a check in the mail for $25. If that's what they're paying, then that's a lot less than keeping a full time pro on staff. I know Sean must be paid well for him to step up to the 5D, but he's the only local pro that I've seen get hired by a magazine. Automotive magazines can't be paying much because I've seen pixelated covers and other things that just scream 'free image'.
I've seen 8x10s out of mine that come out looking great, and I know I've had people order some larger ones like 24x36 with no complaints. But if I had a good Canon setup, these same shots would be easily 10-15% better. And I definitely know what you mean about using a p&s for weddings. That's the most demanding, stress-filled environment that anyone will ever shoot in. I get requests to do weddings, but I won't do them with my current equipment. I'll usually rent a Canon setup that I know is up to the task. Portraits require really, really sharp glass, and a prime is almost the only way to go. And the only p&s that I know of to come with a prime was is the Sigma dp1.

In all honesty the people who think the "Good Enough" philosiphy aren't really into getting quality stuff anyway, so those people don't hire us, hince not being a big deal!

We are in two different feilds of photography with yours being primarily automotive with the occational side work...ours is primarily portrait/wedding with the occational side work (automotive)! Our automotive shoots aren't quit there yet enough to charge people, as we have only done a few. So the free aspect on those situations is mainly for experience.

I don't know about all magazines, but the only auto ones I look at are Minitruckin, truckin, street trucks and Rod and Customs. Those photographers for those publications are amazing. John Jackson, who is by far my idol in the automotive photography word, and John Oneil are two of the people shooting for those mags. They are both fantastic photographers. I have noticed that for mag features on cars, that you don't have to be a photographer to shoot those. You just have to take pictures of the exterior, interior, motor, front end and back end.lol There really isn't any kind of skill to their shots. The skill comes from the mag editor who collage the pictures and feature together.

Weddings and portrait photography are what have driven us to purchasing bigger and better equipment. Primes are amazing, but they are also limited to the amount of space you have to zoom with your feet!lol We use a prime for a lot of our misc wedding and reception pics, but for ceremonies we use the 24-70 f2.8 and sometimes rent the 70-200 f2.8 or borrow a friends. My D90 is great with both, but my D700 is amazing with any lens!lol

[Samir]

Originally Posted by Munchie

In all honesty the people who think the "Good Enough" philosiphy aren't really into getting quality stuff anyway, so those people don't hire us, hince not being a big deal!

What happens when you have quality work being given away for free as well? I see that a lot at Import Alliance.

Originally Posted by Munchie

We are in two different feilds of photography with yours being primarily automotive with the occational side work...ours is primarily portrait/wedding with the occational side work (automotive)! Our automotive shoots aren't quit there yet enough to charge people, as we have only done a few. So the free aspect on those situations is mainly for experience.

Actually, I'm not pursuing photography at all. My field is actually editorial, so not much creativity is required. I'd like to build on it as an artform, but it's not possible to be both editorial and art without additional resources.

From my experience, automotive shoots for any real money are extremely rare. I've seen people with $10k setups and more than an hour in post charge $150 for the whole thing. At that rate, it will take hundreds of shoots just to make the equipment break even. And there's a lot of these guys out there. Again, they're getting funding from another resource, so they don't have to worry about operating like a 'true' business.

Originally Posted by Munchie

I don't know about all magazines, but the only auto ones I look at are Minitruckin, truckin, street trucks and Rod and Customs. Those photographers for those publications are amazing. John Jackson, who is by far my idol in the automotive photography word, and John Oneil are two of the people shooting for those mags. They are both fantastic photographers. I have noticed that for mag features on cars, that you don't have to be a photographer to shoot those. You just have to take pictures of the exterior, interior, motor, front end and back end.lol There really isn't any kind of skill to their shots. The skill comes from the mag editor who collage the pictures and feature together.

Weddings and portrait photography are what have driven us to purchasing bigger and better equipment. Primes are amazing, but they are also limited to the amount of space you have to zoom with your feet!lol We use a prime for a lot of our misc wedding and reception pics, but for ceremonies we use the 24-70 f2.8 and sometimes rent the 70-200 f2.8 or borrow a friends. My D90 is great with both, but my D700 is amazing with any lens!lol

I like the sharpness of primes, even though it sacrifices the zooming capability. But you're absolutely right on the zooms at weddings. The 24-70 2.8 is a workhorse lens that is not cheap and never out of style. It's sharpness approaches a prime, and that's why it's so expensive. I rented a Canon 50D with the 24-70 2.8 and loved it.

[1FLYG]

Originally Posted by Munchie

The 60d is a great camera. Its the D7000s direct competitor as far as I know. For movies I would think the 60d would have an upper hand, because of fps at the higher aspects. As far as lenses go you have a good range there. Is your 50mm the f1.8? Those are great enexpensive lenses for the quality you get from them! I have its equivelent in the Nikon 50mm f1.8! My next lens purchase will definatly be a stretch as it cost about 2300 dollars.lol I am trying to save for it now, but it will be so worth it. Its the 70-200 F2.8!

Yea it is the 50MM 1.8. it shoots very well to be so inexpensive.
but it seems like you really enjoy photography, do you have any of your work on the web? i love to see it sometime.
Im not a professional or anything and i pretty much just teach myself along the way. im always looking on the net for new tips and tricks about lighting and angles and stuff like that. But i honestly do love photography as a hobby, and it is a good way to earn a couple bucks on the side.

Oh and sorry about highjacking your thread!:-/

No prob man, i cant complain when its a thread about two of my hobbies

[1FLYG]

Quick question, since it seems like this thread has been turned into a photography thread lol.
The one key thing I am missing from my photography is photoshop CS5 or any one for that matter. I really been looking to purchase the software but I simply dont want to spend $500 on it. So i opted to buy Aperature for my Mac. I works decent but still doesn't compare to photoshop. Does anyone on here or knows someone that may have that software? I would be willing to pay just to get it installed on my macbook.

[Munchie]

Originally Posted by 1FLYG

Quick question, since it seems like this thread has been turned into a photography thread lol.
The one key thing I am missing from my photography is photoshop CS5 or any one for that matter. I really been looking to purchase the software but I simply dont want to spend $500 on it. So i opted to buy Aperature for my Mac. I works decent but still doesn't compare to photoshop. Does anyone on here or knows someone that may have that software? I would be willing to pay just to get it installed on my macbook.

We don't use CS5...we have CS3 with a few plug ins. We use LR3 a lot for different things. We shoot everything in raw, so we use LR3 to convert Raw to Jpeg. As far as paying for the software we did, but that's cause our computer and software are all insured also!lol There are sites that you can download the software for free, but you run the risk of getting a virused or or bad copy! Piratebay and filehippo or something like those should have them though! Just be careful cause its also illegal! Now for videography I am not sure what to use. I have heard good things about vegas and stuff, but never experimented with it.

[Samir]

Originally Posted by Munchie

We use LR3 a lot for different things. We shoot everything in raw, so we use LR3 to convert Raw to Jpeg.

Lightroom is what a lot of pros use. Photoshop is great when you want to do advanced changes to a single image, but Lightroom and Aperture is what working pros use everyday for mass production.

I'd look into student discounts on buying the software. Stealing the software to create images you don't want stolen is a bit ironic to say the least.