#6
Look for patterns. One of my fellow snappers shot all sorts of patterns
- watches for sale at Eastern Market, the grates around the trees in Chinatown,
Maryland blue crabs steamed and ready for sale. These all made great fine
art shots.
#7 Look for
patterns interrupted - at the Fish Wharf here in D.C. one of the attendees
shot a display of gray scaled fish with one red fish thrown into the bunch.
#8 When shooting
reflections, be sure not to get your own reflection in the picture!
#9 100% of
professional digital photographers use Photoshop. If you don't know how
to use it, you should learn. It's worth the investment.
#10 Be simple
with what you do in Photoshop. It is easy to turn a pretty good shot into
a disaster if you over manipulate the photograph.
#11 Don't rely
on photo-editing software to fix all your photo problems. Try to get the
best picture possible with your camera first. Cropping and adjusting can
cost you picture quality and time.
#12 Your best
way into the photography market is your local newspaper, even if you have
to offer your photos there for free. It helps you establish your track
record for getting more of your photographs published.
#13 The best
way to package great photographs is in a Photo Essay (also known as a round-up
article). There isn't a whole lot of writing involved, and this is a sure-fire
way to get your foot in the door as editors love round-ups.
#14 Look for
the Editorial Calendars of a variety of publications. These will give you
plenty of advance warning about what pictures editors want and when.
#15 Most importantly,
CREATE THE NEED! It does you no good to have a beautiful photo that no
one needs. Research photography guidelines, dialogue with editors, offer
ideas, listen and ask questions. If you know what pictures people want
to pay for, you're more
than halfway
to turning your pictures into cash!
If you’d like
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& independence to travel where you want… when you want… and get paid
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