Instructor's Tip: Fog

© Russ Burden

I hope you enjoy this week's "Instructor's Tip" by one of my favorite instructors, award winning nature photographer Russ Burden. To learn more about how Russ captured the above image, join him on one of his photo tours. Visit Russ Burden Photography to get more information.

FOG
Foggy conditions elicit moody and ethereal feelings. The light is diffused and even, but very flat. Knowing how to take advantage of this is what makes a fog image successful.

As the elements that constitute the composition recede from the camera position, so does the intensity of their shape, color and contrast. By placing a dominant subject in the foreground, it becomes the primary element. All other parts become secondary as they melt into the background in a wash of mist. The mood this evokes is one of peacefulness. When created properly, photographs made in the fog tend to be very soothing to view.

Shooting in the fog requires precautions to protect your camera from the surrounding mist. Fog does appear in differentiating densities. Therefore its encountered density dictates what is necessary to keep the camera safe. Along coastal areas, fog can be so thick it feels like a misty drizzle. At other times it can be a soft layer of moisture thinly obscuring the sun.

Fog is most commonly found in the early morning before the sun has a chance to evaporate the mist created by the cool night’s air. In that fog is actually a ground level cloud, as the sun warms it, it dissipates. Listen to the weather forecast. A cool night followed by a semi warm morning are the right ingredients to produce fog. So pack a small towel and go out shooting.

Take a class with Russ or a fellow Digital Photo Academy instructor in your area, check out the Digital Photo Academy. I took Russ' intermediate and advanced courses last year, and he continues to be a strong source of knowledge and encouragement as I progress in my photography.

Read this personal note from Russ:

I just returned from an absolutely fantastic nature photo tour to Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. The weather was amazing and we were treated to one of the most spectacular sunrises in Bryce I've ever had the opportunity to capture. I assure you that the travelers who were with me are nodding in agreement and smiling right now.
Every session proved to be very productive. We originated in Vegas and happened to be there on Halloween. As we were leaving to go to our sunrise session the next morning, the throngs of people were still out and about!
Join me on a tour so you can be one of the participants next time nodding in agreement and smiling. I'll put you in the right place at the right time! I intimately know every location in each park to which I lead a tour - you can't place a price tag on my enthusiasm and desire to get you great images.--Russ

This weekend: Pet Photography Workshop

Photo by Mike Haley
This weekend, I will finally get the chance to try something I've long been interested in -- pet photography!

Jaime Rowe of Jaime Rowe Photography pet shooter extraordinaire will be hosting a special workshop for Femme Photographie group members. Femme Photographie is a sub group of the larger umbrella Mile High Photographers group. Each month, one of the group's members tend to throw together a workshop where everyone has a chance to share their skills and learn together. I created one earlier this year for an engagement portrait workshop.

Jaime has gathered several furry models for us to photograph, and she promises to give us some of her pointers and tips for working with different types of dogs. So far, we have a border collie, a red heeler, a beagle/basset hound mix, and a maltese/poodle mix. I seriously thought about bringing trying to bring Raina and Isis, my husky and malamute, but my dogs are so crazed with energy that they would have thought it was social hour instead of being quiet and modeling for us.

I toyed with the idea of adding pet photography in my studio offerings, but then I decided that dealing with those pets' humans was work enough for me! :) I'm still looking forward to a chance to try shooting a new subject because it's pretty common for soon-to-be wedded couples or family portrait shoots to include their furry-loved ones in the shoot. So it would be good for me to learn how to catch and hold a pet's attention long enough to get a good shot.

So if you see several photographers chasing some dogs around Wash Park tomorrow afternoon, that would be us!

Saturday Morning Cartoons

Here is my favorite "What the Duck" comic from this week. Rock on Aaron! "What the Duck" is an online comic strip created by Aaron Johnson. I just love how Aaron's wry sense of humor reflects the current state of the photography industry. But what really freaks me out sometimes when I read his strip is how much they reflect whatever situation I'm currently experiencing too...whether it's working with clients or desperately trying to stay on top of technology like Facebook or Twitter or a host of other things that all add up to being a professional photographer.

The genius of his strip is the way viewers can interact with Aaron and his comic character. Folks are welcome to link, post, copy/paste, or save the strips to their own sites, blogs, forums, newsletters, etc. Aaron also allows viewers to suggest titles for his individual strips, and post photos of their own plushy and stuffed W.T. Duck working or hanging out.

Get Connected: Free night photowalk! Join us...

My schedule has finally eased up a bit so I can have some fun with my photography. On Saturday, one of my favorite instructors, Efrain Cruz of Illuminate Workshops, will be hosting his free monthly night photowalk in downtown Denver. The gathering is open to anyone who would like to join us. It's so much more fun to practice photography with other like minded, creative photogs.



Check out this link to find out more information and what you need to bring.



This blog post includes images I shot during a night photowalk even last year. Check out this link on Flickr to see what other photography students have shot during previous photo walks.

Get the Job Done: Google ad scores again!

One of my ads that appeared on a Google page search netted me another client! I'm still only now beginning to understand the power of SEO and improving my studio's visibility on the internet. But it looks like what little I've done has helped a tremendous amount.

Peggy, my client, called me earlier this week to book a boudoir session for next month. During our initial consultation, I asked her to explain to me how she found me. She said she did a Google search for "photographers in Denver." That pulled up a long, unwanted list of wedding photographers. She modified her search, typing in "glamour shots." That's when my Google Adwords ad appeared on the right hand side of the screen as one of the sponsored links. My company's name piqued her interest...and the rest was history!



For my current Adwords campaign, I spend no more than $1 a day for automatic placements of my ad on a Google search based on specific keywords typed in by potential clients. I've spent less than $10 on advertising since I opened my Adwords account on Oct. 22, and I've secured two clients who found me solely after completing a search online. It takes some time to be able to choose an appropriate budget amount and eligible keywords that will help increase the times your ad will appear online and the likelihood of someone clicking it. But Adwords gives you plenty of recommendations and a handy keyword generator list to give you a leg up! As my earnings increase, I'll start increasing my ad budget.

If you haven't started an ad campaign for your business on Google yet, what are you waiting for? It works!

Get Connected: Facebook targets advocates for your business

I have been doing a lot of research on how to utilize Facebook for growing my photography studio. Now, I have a first-hand experience about how amazing Facebook can be for creating advocates for your business. It's so simple, you just might smack yourself. When people on Facebook become Fans of your company, they also become its advocates. Think of gaining Facebook friends or business fans the same way you think of increasing your email subscriber base to help build your network.

I got a message from Jenn, a friend on Facebook, wondering how I knew her best friend Alexa? Turns out Alexa became a Fan of my studio Facebook page because her best friend Jenn did. Just by coincidence, Alexa actually won a free 8x10 digital download of one of my cityscape photos during a randomly generated drawing from among my Fans List.


Unbeknownst to Jenn, she became an advocate for my business. When she interacts with my Facebook Page, stories linking to my page go to her friends via the News Feed. As these fans interact on my Page, News Feed keeps driving word-of-mouth to a wider circle of friends. And I think this instance is a great example of the fact that new Fans are more likely to become a fan of a page if they see their friends have already signed up for it too. It's one of the reasons I have more than 200 fans since creating my page a few months ago. Your friends also become advocates because an ad will show up on their page saying for "Jenn is a Fan of Picture Your World Photography," for example, enticing their friends to join as well. Plus when someone becomes a fan of your page, your updates on the page show up on their wall giving additional exposure.

For more exposure, set up an advertising campaign for your page with Facebook Ads paying for clicks or impressions showcasing your page to targeted audiences on Facebook. So far I've successfully run several ad campaigns on Facebook, paying no more than a set amount per day for running my ad.

Breaking News: Denver SMUG Date Change!

Whoops!

Due to an unforeseen date/venue conflict, the first Denver SMUG meeting has MOVED to:

WEDS, November 18 at 7 p.m.

Speaker, Location & Coolness is the same, just the DATE is changed. Read my blog post to get a refresher on what we will be discussing.

Hope to see more of my SmugMug usergroup buddies at the event at:
Blake Street Tavern (map)
2401 Blake Street (@ 24th)
Denver, CO