Quick Photo Tips Podcast from Grainhappy: Photo |

Time Lens

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I’m great at procrastination. So I have to push MYSELF up against a wall so that I’m forced to move, forced to get it done. Take this advice to heart if you’re stuck!

Spending time with your client the BEST way – GH037 The Grainhappy Show

The BEST way to upgrade GH036 The Grainhappy Show

Listen and ask any questions at all!! GH035 The Grainhappy Show

Rondalei says, “Do you have a best way to edit phone pictures so they are a big enough size or quality to blow up prints?”

Finding your confidence as a photographer is tricky because if you don’t have it, you don’t know how to get it! So here’s number #1 — start at a place where you are getting the YESSES you want. Do work where you hear people saying yes to you. THEN, step number #2, start aiming for some no’s. To get all the yesses you want, you’re most likely undervaluing yourself or giving away your work for free So that’s why with step #2, you start aiming towards valuing yourself more by asking for more from your clients. FIRST you start getting comfortable getting yesses, then start getting comfortable getting no’s. If you aim for getting no’s first, it’ll be hard for you to keep going because you won’t feel like you’re winning! We actually value NO more than YES right now — because if someone has a CLEAR YES, that’s the perfect client to work with. So as someone says no, we’re thankful that we’re still open for really confident yesses. DON’T GIVE DEALS. If you want to do a job at a certain price, do it at that price. For instance if you typically “charge” $500 and then say, “oh I’ll give you a discount, it’ll just be $300” change the way you do that and just say, it’s $300 and don’t give a discount at all. No difference in price for them, but a complete difference in that YOU hear yourself saying that your services are worth a certain amount of money and you stand firmly on that instead of being wishy-washy or so quick to cut the price down. When you offer deals/discounts you get in a pattern of hearing “Oh, you’re not worth that amount of money, I’ll pay you LESS though” which makes you feel like you’re NEVER worth the amount you’re asking. That way you build a POSITIVE cycle of saying what you’re charging and hearing people say okay, which is super important Being needy is NOT the way to go. Position yourself in your mind so that if people say no to your job + price that it’s very obviously THEIR LOSS. The more you shoot, the better you get, the more confidence you find. When you FIRST pick up a camera, it’s still shiny and new, but you need to use it to the point where the camera feels less like a present and more like a tool. As you get over that honeymoon period and you shoot so much, your confidence will grow. Like a hiking trail through the forest, the more you walk the path the more clear it becomes — if you want to feel confident as a photographer, you need to spend time BEING a photographer as much as possible. I don’t mean by talking about photography, I don’t mean by thinking about what gear to buy, I don’t mean by wondering how good or bad you are. What I mean is just spend as much time as possible actually taking photos… and you will wear that path down and feel very confident in your ability. The post Finding Your Confidence – QPT 036 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

Planning. Is. Awesome. Even if you aren’t a BORN planner. Planning for engagement shoots for us at the beginning meant that we would write out the EXACT shot Both of us were nervous that we would go BLANK creatively in the middle of shooting That planning list got shorter and shorter, the more shoots we did (As a side note, having a partner gives you more time to think creatively during a shoot. Tell your clients too to expect you to have time to think) Rolling up to weddings NOW, we have a great plan of what’s going on. The space, the time schedule, family shot combinations, etc. We send a question sheet to the couple ahead of time, which includes way more than this: contact names and phone numbers of the important people of the day, vendor info, couple’s new address (to send stuff to after the wedding), questions about ceremony photo restrictions, etc You want to be your BEST creative self walking into a wedding. If you’re prepared and if you PLAN, you can BE your best creative self. Leave as much brain power as you can for your creative side, and the way to do that is to PLAN AHEAD about all the other stuff. “Without leaps of imagination or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning” – Gloria Steinem The post Planning: The STRESS killer – QPT 035 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

If you’re new to understanding/noticing light, definitely check this one out. What really matters is that your vision REALLY clues in on light If you already feel confident that these are obvious to you, this is NOT the podcast for you: ANGLE of light, COLOR of light, and SIZE of light SIZE: Look at the LINE between the shadow and light as it hits your subject. Is the shadow line from bright to dark, is THAT smooth or crisp We’re talking about the size of the light, so if it’s a BIGGER light source the shadow line will be smooth, and if it’s a SMALLER light source, the shadow line will be crisp. BUT! It’s not just actual measurable size. The sun is HUGE but it’s so far away so it only counts as a SMALL light source. Shadows are just absence of light, so the light is coming from the OTHER side because the light can’t get to that area. As you study this, try to pick images where there are really specific shadows, and that’ll give you an easier time to figure out and reverse engineer what the photographer did. Look in the eyes of the subject — sometimes the catch-light in their eyes will be the biggest giveaway as to where the light was and how big it was for that shot. COLOR: I’m not talking about the DJ lights at a club — it’s more subtle than that. Look for more orange lights or more blue lights. (link is to “flash gels” on Amazon — this is once you understand this concept, to change the color of your flash to MATCH the other light in the room!) Older lightbulbs are warmer/more orange. Fluorescent bulbs are usually colder/more blue. If you try to do a shoot with three different colors of light, you’re going to have a VERY hard time fixing that in your editing. IT’S OKAY if your shot is CONSISTENTLY orange. Because then you can pull the image more blue and it’ll look great. The problem is if you have ORANGE light AND BLUE light in your shot, then you can’t pull it to one side or another because you’ve got both tones, which spoils the shot. Want to have some VISUALS for the stuff I talked about in this podcast? Pick up my free flash secrets ebook right here. The post 3 Qualities Of Light – QPT 034 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

Don’t trust your camera to think for you. It’s not that hard to figure out how your camera’s brain works! I’ll explain it to you. Your camera is ALWAYS looking and aiming for a middle gray tone. Not a black, not a white, but a medium gray. When it thinks in auto, it’s trying to figure out whether it needs to be turned up or down, and it aims for that average gray to make that decision. Here’s the problem: if you shoot something that is mostly black, the camera is going to say “OH! It’s too dark. Turn it up” to aim for that middle gray but that’s not always the best decision because if the scene is mostly dark, you want it to show up as dark in the photo, you don’t want it turned up bright! If you shoot something that’s white or mostly white, your camera will want to turn it DOWN/DARKER, because again it’s aiming for that middle gray tone and thinks it’s too bright. EXPOSURE COMPENSATION is adding a bit of your own thought to the way the camera works. You’re telling the camera, do what you do automatically BUT I need you to aim a little brighter or darker. Don’t aim for that middle gray: aim higher, or aim lower. Here’s an example: bride on an altar in a dark church. She’s wearing bright white in the middle of a dark scene. The camera will see MOSTLY DARK, and think it needs to make the photo BRIGHTER, but that’s WRONG because then the bride will be too bright and you’ll lose detail and information and might not be able to distinguish her features any more. Here’s another example: shooting outside on a snowy day — bright bright bright, and reflecty-white everywhere. The camera sees that the shot is super bright and wants to turn it down (aiming for that gray, of course) and then you end up with a photo that is darker than it really should be. Hope this helped you! If so, I’ve got a FREE COURSE for you. The course is about beginner manual mode, and it’s a SHORT course as well. Don’t be scared off by the word “manual” ! It’s easier than you think. Don’t miss this course, it won’t be free forever: grainhappy.com/manual The post How Does Exposure Work? – QPT 033 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

Perfectionism is a tough rut to break out of. How important is it that all your editing is perfectly technically correct? I used to want ART to be MATH. But it’s not. If I like the image, I’m done. If you need to find YOUR line of editing, listen to the last podcast If you don’t pay attention to the way you FEEL, sometimes you’ll keep trying to make it perfect and you miss the bigger picture I’m trying my best to NOT worry and NOT nitpick As a photographer, you’ll see things that other people DON’T. Most people don’t zoom in until they can see the pixels to view the image. They look at the entire image. We want lenses to be sharp, but don’t make too big a deal about it. Think of photos from 50 years ago!! The shots weren’t the sharpest, but they’re still fully emotional. Gear will always get better and better Don’t focus SO FAR IN on the details that you MISS the bigger picture. If you move on more quickly, you’ll get BETTER FASTER. If you’re working on MORE images instead of frustrating yourself with JUST ONE, you’ll become a better editor quickly. Don’t get lazy, that’s not the point here. If this podcast helped you, pay me back with ONE minute of your time! Please review the podcast right here. The post Perfectionism – QPT 032 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

When are you done with editing, where do you stop? This podcast talks all about finding those boundaries: You’ve GOT to pay attention to how you FEEL. If you only use your EYES and not your HEART, you’re missing half of the show. This is something you work on if you don’t automatically feel emotion when you see a photo Try this for fresh eyes: mess your photo up on purpose, by pulling one slider all the way down or up, then pull it back to where you think it should go Ask yourself this: how does your photo compare to the photo of someone you respect? Copy their editing. As you go back and forth between YOUR work and THEIRS, you’ll start noticing a bunch of differences. THIS IS GOLD, because it helps you see what you’re missing. Look into these: dodge and burn techniques, sharpening, faded shadows, super heavy contrast, higher contrast w/lower saturation You’ve gotta experiment. If you’re in Lightroom, try different presets! Alien Skin, Mastin Labs, VSCO (we use these), Coles Classroom Presets Cole’s Classroom has a FREE preset pack you’ve gotta check out here. Another tip here: reach out to other photographers for their feedback. This is only good BEFORE you’re set on a style. Once you find a style, STOP LISTENING to other people because you have to have your own opinion eventually. If you got value from this podcast, PLEASE review this podcast! It inspires and motivates me to create even more and better content. The post Find The Line: Editing – QPT 031 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

Now why in the heck would John be suggesting this to you? Listen to find out! John shares that he’s a Nikon shooter because the person he learned from was a Nikon shooter I’m a Canon shooter because when I bought my camera I also wanted to do video, and the 5dmkii was full HD and amazing. Make sure that you know how to use the gear that you have. Can you change the correct settings blindfolded? “If you’re going to choose ONE focal length, choose 50mm.” Approach your shoots with LESS GEAR. One, you get to know your gear REALLY well because you use the same stuff You CAN take amazing photos with older or not-as-pro gear. I love my zoom lens (Canon 24-70mm f2.8L) but John is all about his prime lenses. Prime lenses usually have wider apertures, which is reaaaaally helpful when you’re shooting in low light. John knows EXACTLY where he should stand for a specific lens before he even puts the camera up to his face because he knows his gear so well. Because John sets limits for himself, he actually feels more free. Take different gear than the norm when you go out shooting in order to be more creative “You CAN take amazing photos with older or not-as-pro gear.” Humans DON’T DO WELL with too many choices. We freeze because we get overwhelmed and then we do nothing. If you’re going to choose ONE focal length, choose 50mm. Here’s the mid-range Canon version, and here’s a good nikon version JOHN’S GEAR: He uses a D800 with a D600 backup. 85mm and 28mm prime along with a 14mm Rokinon. Sigma ART series lenses are pretty amazing, and cheaper than Nikon or Canon. I’m personally eyeing the Sigma ART 50mm lens instead of the Canon 50mm f1.2L Rent a lens! Lensrentals.com or BorrowLenses.com You could also BUY USED from eBay and then RESELL a lens. Think of it as a rental and keep it for as long as you’d like! The post Use Less Gear! (w/John Yates) – QPT 030 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

The first mistake: trying to please everyone. We welcome back John Yates of Celladora Photography and we talk: Find satisfaction with your own work, and definitely be in touch with what your best clients like. Do you struggle with wanting/getting likes? Us too. You’re not alone with that. But start looking inwards for affirmation because finding it anywhere else is a losing battle. Spend time doing something you enjoy, and you’ll get hired for that! People love to see work you’ve ALREADY done BEFORE they hire you for themselves. Don’t ever share work that you don’t want to replicate:) The best way to fight against comparison is to go CREATE instead of sitting at home and looking at other people’s work. Put social media down. Do it. Do it now. (To help me, I asked my wife to change my password to facebook, and I had her log in for me when I wanted to go on. I still went on but since it wasn’t as accessible I went on WAY LESS.) “The struggle with comparison doesn’t happen near as much when you’re creating and living out of that creative spirit.” When you create something for yourself, the WORST CASE SCENARIO is personal satisfaction. Best case scenario: others will see it and hire you. BAM. What would you create if you knew that no one else was going to see it? THIS IS HUGE. Because instead of thinking about what others will like, you have to look inward and really create the art for yourself. The struggle with comparison doesn’t happen near as much when you’re creating and living out of that creative spirit. Shut your phone off, and go take some pictures! The post The Struggle Of Comparison (w/John Yates) – QPT 029 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

John shares an awesome/horrible story about a hater. Someone sent him multiple anonymous emails just tearing him apart, his website, his work, everything. Then he found out that this person sent similar emails to 5-6 other photographers. But the funny part is that John looks up to these other 5-6 photographers, so it was almost nice that he was included in the same list haha. You kind of have to feel bad for this person! They wasted their whole day hating on people instead of going out and making a productive day happen With any level of success comes with haters. Think Justin Bieber — so so loved by some people and so so hated by others. If your work is forgettable and lukewarm, you probably won’t have many haters because people won’t really notice you. But if you’re polarizing, you’ll be remembered, even if people don’t like it. “If your work is forgettable and lukewarm, you probably won’t have many haters because people won’t really notice you. But if you’re polarizing, you’ll be remembered, even if people don’t like it.” You have to be okay with taking some criticism! Have a small circle of trust for people to give you feedback, and listen to THEM. Don’t listen to anonymous angry people that are probably discouraged artists themselves. Don’t be in the business of pleasing everyone. If you create something that people LOVE, that very same exact thing will probably also be hated by someone, somewhere, somehow. Even if you’re someone who LOVES everyone, there will still be someone who hates people who love everyone In the words of Tay Swift, HATERS GONNA HATE. So just SHAKE IT OFF The post Let’s Talk About HATERS (w/John Yates) – QPT 028 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

It’s January 1st and we’re talking goals. But if you just say that you want to “make it” in your industry, what does that even mean? We dive in with John Yates of Celladora Photography: Here’s the system John uses — S.M.A.R.T. goals. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely) If you say you want to “make it”, it’s not clear and not specific, because that could be different for each person. For example, if you were a musician, instead make a goal like “We want to be signed to a major record label” or  “We want to play 150 shows a year.” Way more specific, and a lot more helpful. Being “better” creatively is insanely hard if not impossible to measure. For a beginner photographer, good measurable goals are: the amount of inquiries you get, the percentage of inquiries that turn into paid clients, how many referrals you get, etc. Once you start to measure goals, you can change your behavior to help your progress! WRITE YOUR GOALS DOWN. Don’t just keep your goals in your head. Make sure you have a time value connected to your goals. This means…make a deadline. Deadlines are huge for humans. Humans NEED deadlines. Jobs will expand to fill the time you give them. GET A SYSTEM. Doesn’t have to be this one, but GET and USE a system. My personal system is different than John’s — I have a list of things that I need to do every day that I check off, and I write down my BIG WINS down. Getting those big wins done FIRST is essential because otherwise the URGENT yet NON-ESSENTIAL tasks will get done instead (like replying to emails that won’t help me grow the business). If you want to read more about how to succeed in this new year, take a look at this book. The post Why Set Goals? (w/John Yates) – QPT 027 appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

I. Have. No. Time. Can't even tell you how many times I've heard this, as a main struggle from photographers who haven't used their cameras lately. First: Check your time wasting. Do you watch TV? Hang out with friends? Go on Facebook? Usually "not having time" for something means that it's not high enough on the priority list. It will help you if you say "It's not important enough to me" instead of "I have no time" because at least you're honest with yourself (and that will help you CHANGE your priorities because you're being honest about it). TIP #1: Put it on the calendar like a hot date! Block out time in the future where you'll be busy shooting photography. See it as an IMPORTANT MEETING. TIP #2: Find a photography friend (facebook group, meetup group, craigslist) to shoot with. You can model for each other and talk shop! TIP #3: Join a photo challenge in an online community. This helps because you've said you're going to do something (and you have the added bump of seeing others following through too!) You naturally will want to do WHAT YOU SAY YOU WANT TO DO, so make a promise to someone as far as a photography goal, or at LEAST put your decision in writing to make it really happen. My challenge: Choose one of these tips and make it happen!! Then let me know on twitter @grainhappy ! You can get back to this page (or share it with a friend) easily, just share grainhappy.com/time and it'll bring you right to this page! The post QPT 026 – When You Have No Time! appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

Don't let your fear of failure stop you from living free and creating your art. First of all, you're not alone. Not trying to be cheesy, just sharing that good news -- don't believe you're all by yourself in fear & anxiety. The best news out of this episode is that I have a secret weapon I want to share with you to fight that fear in real-time: A friend of mine shared a book with me that changed my entire world Types of fear: fear of failure, success, being laughed at, not being recognized Fear of success: what is everything goes really well and then I have the weight of having to keep that up? I was setting up the store on my website the other day, and was pretty much paralyzed with fear. It was SUBTLE -- I just kept checking my mail over and over again, checking Facebook, checking Instagram. I realized that my procrastination was rooted in my fear of failure. MORNING PAGES are the golden key within the book, The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. You're telling your brain that you WILL create, even if you don't want to create This makes pathways in your brain that make that negative voice in your head get quieter and quieter I look up to a friend of mine who just naturally doesn't worry about what other people think of him. THAT doesn't come naturally to me, so I have to work at it to fight it off. ESPECIALLY BEING AN ARTIST -- you need to be vulnerable. If you hold yourself back you won't create to your full potential. Here's the challenge -- as you hear that negative voice, do morning pages right away Morning pages: write 3 pages of brain dump first thing in the morning. You're literally writing your brain down as it's going. Don't re-read anything and don't think about what to write. JUST. WRITE. By the second or third day after doing these morning pages, that negative voice in my head was SO MUCH QUIETER, I could barely hear it anymore. You're not meant to live a life with that condemning voice putting you down! Don't settle for that negative voice shouting in your head. Get back to this post (or share it with a friend) EASILY by remembering this short link: grainhappy.com/fear The post QPT 025 – How To Have No Fear appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.

John Yates (from Celladora Photography) joins us and shares with us everything you NEED to know about your client before you even meet them in person! Think more specific instead of abstract John explains what he knows about his fictional client: what she does for fun, where she goes to school, what websites she visits You'll still get diversity in your clients, but it helps you hone in when you try to find those clients It's MORE important the clients you say NO to, than the clients you say YES to What is your bride searching for? If you "know" her, it'll be a lot easier for you to put yourself in the right place so she can find you You don't have to BE this type of personality, you just have to understand this type of personality Adapt your idea based on the REALLY successful clients you have John's first wedding was BALLER. On a beach, at a resort, in Mexico. Talk about an awesome start haha. As a photographer, you're basically tethered to the bride's side for the entire wedding day. THE PERSONALITY HAS TO MATCH. If you shoot a wedding that is NOT a great fit, that could actually hurt your brand because the referrals you'll get from that wedding probably won't fit either Be a strong personality so that your website does some of that filtering -- make sure you really put your personality on your website in the way you word things, the way you talk about yourself, and the way you talk about your photography. PUT YOURSELF INTO YOUR BRAND. Don't be afraid of repelling people. The post Guest Views (w/John Yates): You Need To Know Your Client Before You Meet Them appeared first on Grainhappy Photo Tutorials.