I am back after a week in LA and the Bay area (San Francisco and surrounds). I had many adventures and met lots of interesting people – m…
I am back after a week in LA and the Bay area (San Francisco and surrounds). I had many adventures and met lots of interesting people – many of whom may be able to help RedBubble. Left Xavier at the Web 2.0 conference talking about stuff … And on the flight home read an interesting article about Einstein and his attitude to God. In essence (and I hope I don’t insult with my summary), Einstein came to believe that the very order and rationality of the universe pointed to something transcendent. This is a view I deeply share. Einstein also felt that when we lose our sense of wonder and awe at the creation we are no longer truly seeing it. Again I share this. As that strange, dark plane flew across the Pacific and as I read about one of the greatest thinkers of all time, it also dawned upon me that the fact the universe is rational, and we can also be, is a situation of great emotional moment. And indeed its significance can only be grasped in quiet contemplation when reason and thought have faded into the background. Some may say I take a step too far in suggesting this, but I also know the same people look at the same night sky mesmerized by its immensity and cowed by the purpose of its creation.
this my creto—on art and my art long ago as a young man, i was brought up on a beautiful island on the east coast of the u.s.a. called…
this my creto-on art and my art long ago as a young man, i was brought up on a beautiful island on the east coast of the u.s.a. called cape ANN, it had two art area,s on the island ,so i was exposed to art early in my life a wonderful man who was one of the great scluptors of the country, was a friend, and he introduced me to the arts for years the art idea laid dormant in me, i went to sea for 4 years, came home and moved to california, and got married- all the while in calif, over the years, i would go to musems, and see art i loved, lament i could not afford ,it, one visit to a museum., my wife told me-why don,t you go home, and paint what you love- as simple as it sounds – i went to a library, got books ,on, red-yellow-and blue ,and i was on my way, i worked during the day to take care of my wife, and three daughters , but, during the night, i,d go to my art area ,and paint, paint, paint—at frist i copied all the masters ,becasue all—i wanted was art—so after several hundred copies of every one you can think of, i became==me= but, influnced by all my teachers through art history-mean while i went to work for a small art museum in downey, calif, for 4 years ,and met tons of live! artistes who, i asked how? they did it-all my art ways , are off the board not in the text books of art education- but i did not mind, becasue all i was doing was!! making ,the museum, i wanted one day thirty years later ,1000, or more painting, and 3000 or more drawing – i am still at it-doing all wrong by the right standards, and loving every minute of it- i have met the world via my art-like all artists ,i am loved and poo pooed- but we are used of that- we live , in our little art world of outsider artists ,and play till- god tells us brush time is over—i only hope othesr who love art, are as blessed as i have been .—-i also do ceramic plates, which my wife ,asked me to do and some scluptures, t-shirts-cards- rocks-envelops, you name it-art and love what better match? this side of heaven?-this is just a small part of my art adventure there is more-like mailart too and no i am not a writer—except for poems
This is my homework for the course I am currently doing at Brunswick Street Gallery. We have to take a self portrait which does not sh…
This is my homework for the course I am currently doing at Brunswick Street Gallery. We have to take a self portrait which does not show our face but which does show something of ourselves. This may not be the one I submit, but it has been an interesting exercize and I thought I would share. I often post work here without much of an explanation into the choices I make. I thought it might be nice to make it available so you can see that I do actually put a bit of thought into my work, even if it is not obvious at first glance. The Easels: / Faded and old. They represent myself as an artist. How of late I am taking fewer and fewer photos and am out of practice. They are scattered at random, which is a lot like my very hectic and chaotic life. Yet they all match, which shows my underlying need to have organisation, even if it is organised chaos. You may notice the empty frame. For me this represents not only my occupation, but it’s emptiness means it acts as a window. A way to see into me. It is a comment on the whole image as well as an element within it. The Doll: / This is a childhood doll and has my old name written on it (from before I became Jo O’Brien). So it connects to my past and reminds me of a time passed. She is naked, which reflects how I feel as an artist, always confessing through my art. She is torn at both arms from being pulled in a tug-of-war game. Much like how I feel when I have more things requiring my time than I have time for. On a more human level. She represents my desire to one day have children, my “femaleness”, my nurturing side. The Costume: / It was scavenged from an op shop. Something I absolutely adore doing. And it fits like a second skin, showing my comfort in front of the camera. It’s close colour match to my skin implies nudity which highlights a more general level of comfort with my body, and ability to play a role within my own skin. It’s second hand nature reminds me that a ‘creative artist life’ was never my first choice. In fact, I studied Biology, Physics, Chemistry and Maths Methods in VCE and always had an aptitude for the sciences. Art was an accident. The Location: / At home in the back yard. Here I feel most relaxed and comfortable. It has been the location of numerous photo shoots and self portraits, so much so that I would feel like I was abondoning this space to take self portraits elsewhere. It also represents for me, my ability to live off my creativity, as my best selling shot was taken here. More generally I enjoy the idea of fences, of what they hold in and out. And of how to break them down. This is a theme I like to play with in a lot of my work- the emotional and psychological barriers we put up around ourselves, often needlessly. Setting up the shot: / I wanted to appear within the forest of easels and yet comfortable which dictated my pose, leaning gently against the fence. This shows my acceptance of the situation and environment and willingness to participate within it. However I am still holding my doll and not interacting with any other part of the environment. This suggests I still cling to something from my childhood, and have insecurites about the art world and my credibility as an artist. Your thoughts?
Obituary of the late Mr. “Common Sense” Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, “Common Sense”, who has been with …
Obituary of the late Mr. “Common Sense” Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, “Common Sense”, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn’t always fair; and Maybe it was my fault. “Common Sense” lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6 -year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition. “Common Sense” lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Panadol, sun lotion or a band-aid to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. “Common Sense” lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. “Common Sense” took a beating when you couldn’t defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault. “Common Sense” finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement. “Common Sense” was preceded in death by his parents, “Truth” and “Trust”; his wife, “Discretion”; his daughter, “Responsibility”; and his son, “Reason”. He is survived by his 3 stepbrothers; “I Know My Rights”, “Someone Else Is To Blame”, and “I’m A Victim”. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing. Written by Lori Borgman – http://www.loriborgman.com/
Because if we can yell in anger or malice, we must still have the voice apologize. If we have no one to learn new lessons from, we ca…
Because if we can yell in anger or malice, we must still have the voice apologize. If we have no one to learn new lessons from, we can always hear ourselves reteach the old ones. When care is at a premium, we can tap the source and give it abound for charity. Even if we have no arms, no legs, and no way to get around, we can still be moved by art, literature, or music. If we burn our fingers and feel pain, we get the pleasure of watching ourselves heal and of feeling better again. If we never do anything great in this world, there are fifty people who would completely disagree.
I have just been looking through my photos..and thought ‘what are they for?’ / Most of them I could happily delete, and probably will…th…
I have just been looking through my photos..and thought ‘what are they for?’ / Most of them I could happily delete, and probably will…though I’ll sleep on it. I have recently had the pleasure of learning a lot from a fellow RBubbler (you know who you are :) ) ...but it seems the more I learn, the more I want …with the result that so much of what I’ve done is redundant now. Also asking myself… who am I doing this for? For others pleasure, for my pleasure? / Well, if it is for others, then I should be looking down the commercial route… photographing things that will sell. / If it is for my own pleasure..well…ok, but I’d much rather share that pleasure than walk the streets and beaches taking picures alone for the reason that they are ‘nice’ / Does anyone know the answer …and maybe share with me? ‘Cause I’ll be damned if I know!
Hi my dear red bubblers…. I am sorry to have been absent but I have a good excuse!! I have been collaborating with some of my fellow RB’s…
Hi my dear red bubblers…. I am sorry to have been absent but I have a good excuse!! I have been collaborating with some of my fellow RB’s (JOVAN DE MELO) on my First book that now has its website up and running- www.ihatecinderella.com We will have a launch at Dymocks in the city in June/July ( as well one in QLD and VIC) I will keep you all posted as it woul be great to meet some of you at the launch and RED BUBBLE is mentioned on the page as the palace where Jovan and I met! All moving along well on this front and also did a shoot with Nicole Pearce over the weekend through the rocks which raised many an eyebrow!! I hope all is well, the amazing art that is coming out at the moment is UNREAL!!!! Cheers / Amanda
Read my forum article outlining four good reasons to have Groups on Redbubble...
Read my forum article outlining four good reasons to have Groups on Redbubble Unless you host a RB Group, you won’t be able to see the link above. Therefore, here is the response I wrote: I’m sure it’s been said already, but I can see four good reasons to have groups : (1). They allow people from the same town, city, or state to interact and to meet both inside and outside Redbubble. How many other groups have lead to meetups like Adelaide/SA has? (Probably heaps, I’m just unaware of them!) (2). It’s the surest method to see more art from another genre, country, or medium. When was the last time you saw Latin-Caribbean Art ? (3). They are the simplest form of categorising. Instead of the staff at RB having to categorise every piece of work according to genre, country, medium, etc … we, the forum members, do this for them. As humans, it’s in our nature to put ourselves into the category that matches our skills, wants and desires. / I’m sure this fact puts a big smile on the faces of a few techies at the RB office! (4). The most important reason for groups: Those of us with a passion to learn use the Groups to see the work of better artists, quicker and easier. When a hundred Wedding or Portrait Photographers display their work in one group, we all get to see the results in one neat package. Heck, I can’t think of ANY better reason for groups than those four.
1. You were more concerned about the colour of your car than the fuel / > consumption. / > 2. The highlights in your hair are from your p…
1. You were more concerned about the colour of your car than the fuel / > consumption. / > 2. The highlights in your hair are from your palette and not / > Clairol. / > 3. You are having lunch with the girls and the fragrance you wear / > is eau d’linseed oil. / > 4. The only piece of new furniture you have in your home is a $2000 / > easel. / > 5. You butter your toast with your fingers, just to feel it’s / > texture. / > 6. You think about taking a picture to a show. / > 7. You talk about going to a show where the pictures don’t move. / > 8. You are over 50 and still have no health insurance. / > 9. Your family takes out a life insurance plan on you for less than / > $5000. / > 10. You know what shade of green the lichen on the trees is. / > 11. You can’t find a nice outfit for your date because everything / > has paint smears on. / > 12. Your date ends up with paint smears on her/him. / > 13. You’re late for the date because you suddenly knew exactly what / > that detail of your latest painting needed and just had to fix it / > while it / > was fresh in your mind. / > 14. You chose to buy that new Russian Sable Number Six Round / > instead of a Big Mac, a Large Fry, a Milkshake, Desert, and five / > gallons of gas. / > 15. Your favourite home repair store refuses to work with you to / > repaint your den, because you rename all of their paint swatches and / > you get / > upset that they don’t carry the exact nuance of raw umber you had in / > mind. / > 16. You purchase a ton of books, and most are blank inside. / > 17. When viewing a sunset, you think in terms of cadmium yellow / > (light hue), salmon and gold, a tinted teal mixed with gold for the / > water….” / > 18. Strangers save your ‘regular’ spot at the park, perfect for ob / > serving children and pigeons. / > 19. There are Prussian blue fingerprints on your phone. / > 20. You stay awake late at night wondering how to render on canvas / > the dimly lit shapes and the shadows in your room. / > 21. When you go out, you are always stopping and gazing at the world / > around you. / > 22. You travel far to sketch a place of scenic beauty. / > 23. You clean your brushes in your coffee. / > 24. You carry pencils instead of pens. / > 25. You have watercolour swatches on cardboard in your pocket. / > 26. You explain your deplorably bad housekeeping by saying, “it’s a / > work-in-progress. ..” / > 27. You do judge a book by its cover. / > 28. You watch the latest kids’ digital animation movies and drool
Why people are giving me impression that I am unimportant? I honestly trying to be helpful, always if I can help I DO.. With me it …
Why people are giving me impression that I am unimportant? I honestly trying to be helpful, always if I can help I DO.. With me it is EXACTLY opposite – if I need little help once in a while, I CAN NOT find anybody. / Always they have excuses NOT to.. What is wrong with me? / Because the reason is in me… Lost and tired…
.... is …. my dear friends, you can find it by clicking / here Love, hugs & reg…
.... is …. my dear friends, you can find it by clicking / here Love, hugs & regards, / - Anaa
The raison d’etre of The Digital Interface group is to share technique in order to encourage…
The raison d’etre of The Digital Interface group is to share technique in order to encourage experimentation and learning as an art community. It is not so much a showcase as a show-how-case – the emphasis being on describing how you achieve a result rather than just presenting that result. Now many people don’t want to share their techniques – and that is quite understandable. Art is deeply personal and often it’s not just the fact that they don’t want to give away their creation magic but also because the creation process is almost part of them. But the point of this group is to do just that – to share creation magic. I’d encourage people to select perhaps even just a single image, so that others can understand how it came to be, and thus be inspired to experiment and tinker themselves. It doesn’t have to be your best work or the one that involves your most enlightened processes – just something that you are proud of which required some extra processing to achieve. Then include a good description of that processing – what filters you used, what layering techniques, how you manipulated the image, whether you applies specific brush types, various techniques in rendering software etc. Let the novice get to grips with the work of the expert. If you don’t want to share that then that’s ok, but submitting work to The Digital Interface is not for you. I think many people go away hurt – despite our attempts to explain the group and it’s aims – which is a shame because it’s actually about working together as an art community rather than any elitist thing. It’s never about your art, it’s about how you created it. It’s also not about proving ownership or genius. It’s just about sharing our experiences, techniques and knowledge in order to grow together. When you see a piece of art in this group, you can look at the description and get a basic understanding of how it was achieved. You can go away and play with your own images. From this shall arise not copies but new techniques, new advances, new art.
Today is the 4th anniversary of the start of my black time – the 556 days when I did not see my children [when my ex refused my children …
Today is the 4th anniversary of the start of my black time – the 556 days when I did not see my children [when my ex refused my children to see me and threatened me with the destruction of my life and with pure physical violence, to stay clear of them] During this huge horrible black time, I wanted to die, but then I heard something and I wanted to live again with a force that renewed me. / I wanted to feel something I wanted to survive to see my kids again. / I knew I had to change I had to get better, get stronger, gather resources to fight the battle of my maternity and my children’s lives! ~ this song came on the radio: “The Reason” – Hoobastank [2005] I’m not a perfect person / There’s many things I wish I didn’t do / But I continue learning / I never wished I’d done those things to you / And so before I go / I just want you to know I found a reason for me / To change who I used to be / A reason to start over new / And the reason is you I’m sorry that I hurt you / It’s something I must live with every day / And all the pain I put you through / I wish that I could take it away / And be the one who catches all your tears / That’s why I need you to hear I found a reason for me / To change who I used to be / A reason to start over new / And the reason is you / And the reason is you / And the reason is you / And the reason is you I’m not a perfect person / I never meant to do those things to you / And so I have to say before I go / That I just want you to know I found a reason for me / To change who I used to be / A reason to start over new / And the reason is you I found a reason to show / A side of me you didn’t know / A reason for all that I do / And the reason is you After I dried my eyes, I found photos of my kids I stuck them all together and pasted that on top of my PC screen and began the fight! I survived and although my children still have not left their father’s home to live with me I see them and they are the only ones I have to account myself to for my role in that trauma they have had to live through …... and they forgive me! Now I am still reminded by this song playing on the radio [Vega 91.5 – for Melbournians] that I am not perfect and I still must accomplish my dreams to show my children my value of their love & support! Perhaps if we stop trying to impress our parents and start trying to impress our children we will treat them as valued people we love and not fringe benefits to a relationship, or assets! We may also then adopt the healthier attitude of looking after the planet for our children to see instead of using it up! Thank you for reading my words. / Keep Happy! ♥
Sometimes when I want to write something, I take a look at what’s going on in the world in search of inspiration, and then, the things I …
Sometimes when I want to write something, I take a look at what’s going on in the world in search of inspiration, and then, the things I see happening, and the magnitude of my feelings about it all, become so huge that no words can describe it, other times, just as I poise my pen over paper, almost ready to write down that first word, I stumble across another poet who has already said it all much better than I ever could, so the pen retracts and the paper remains empty… How do you describe what is happening in the world today? How do you explain that life has become so valueless,innocent children are being killed? When did humanity cease to behave humanely? How do you possibly describe all of that? The thing is… I don’t write about it… I kind of retract into my myself like a tortoise pulling its head into his protective shell of armour, and for a few days… If not longer, I feel really depressed about it all, the problems of the world become too vast and painful to write about, and so… I write nothing at all. I’ve come to the conclusion that the danger in life isn’t in living, but is in accepting that we are all ‘doing fine’, assimilating into a society where ego, power and greed are perceived as being fair and normal and where children can be murdered in cold blood as we simply turn away. Crazy Horse How Does Tomorrow Dream?
See ‘Reasons for joining Redbubble: 2. Inspiration...
See ‘Reasons for joining Redbubble: 2. Inspiration / Reason for joining Rebubble: 3. Learning I’ve been on this site for a goodly while now, I’ve played in the groups, commented on work and been commented to, favourited, watched, sold some tees and even the occasional print, so I was thinking it might be a good time to revisit my reasons for joining, and see how effective the site is at meeting those reasons. Where it is lacking (and there are certainly areas where it is lacking) I hope some of you might have some suggestions for me based on your own experiences. I’m going to start with the community. When first I joined I had this idea that it would be a great way to meet new people – to build up a group of fellow artists who I could go to for inspiration or advice, who I could chat to and collaborate with. I know redbubble isn’t a social network group, but it does have a high emphasis on community. To that end I headed over to the forums for a look. The General Discussion forums have changed since I first visited, they have actually gone through several cycles. Originally they were quite inclusive, well used by a large variety of people and you could go there for interesting discussions. Sadly, they began to get more and more aggressive, to the point where people got upset, accounts were banned, and Hosts were given moderation powers to lock or “pre-moderate” threads. This succeeded in one thing only – pushing the hosts (that’s me) out to the edges of the community. People became distrusting, I found even though I never locked a thread I was constantly being accused of doing so, and several hosts quit in order to be able to rejoin the community. The hosts are back to being just hosts, but that hasn’t solved the forums problems.. It’s become so cliquey, there are hardly any members using it and it’s all about the politics now.. essentially it’s become like High School.. The forums, as a way of meeting new people and having interesting discussions, have failed. They are still useful from a “I have a question or idea for redbubble” point of view, but that’s all. Ok, that aside, I then have to look at what other methods there are to interact with people. Unfortunately, bubblemail is a little too unwieldy – it’s hard to maintain a conversation with someone when you can’t see what you’ve actually written, and your messages get lost in a swatch of emails from group hosts restating the rules. Comments are by their very nature shallow – you could write a book in the comments on someone’s work, but i’m not sure they would appreciate it. That leaves groups, but while I’ve scanned the groups I’m in for any kind of daily interactions, for the most part they’re just image dumps – people upload a new image, submit it to all the groups and that’s about all they have to do with them. I have this idea that somewhere out there is the Golden Age Group, where discussions are had every day, people only upload their best work and everybody wants to improve.. but I’m yet to find this Shangri-La of groups. Unfortunately, that means I’ve come to the end of this post without any kind of solution. Lucky for me, I’m sure people who are reading this will have an idea, so my question is this – how do you get past the shallow nature of interactions at redbubble and actually meet new people. How do you take it beyond favouriting some work and adding “awesome job” in the comments? Or is the idea of a community, where you can be inspired, where you can learn and improve your craft, where you can actually make real friends, is that idea completely false?
See ‘Reasons for joining Redbubble: 1. Community...
See ‘Reasons for joining Redbubble: 1. Community / Reason for joining Rebubble: 3. Learning Ok, this one is dead easy. As a mainly self-taught artist, I recognise there is so much I can learn from my fellow creatives. This applies across all fields, from photography, to illustration, to painting, to writing. Regardless of the media, there is always the potential for that spark, the little burst of joy in your head when you see the work that inspires. Redbubble, on this topic, has many and varied means to find and browse new work. You have your own watchlists and favourites, but you can also see other people’s watchlists and favourites. You can regress back through people’s favourites almost indefinitely, seeing what inspires the people who inspire you. You can also use the “featured”, “popular”, and if you’re really brave “recent” tabs. You can explore groups and check out their work. You can even just keep refreshing the “activity” tab in “community”. However there are over 100,000 people here now, so every day I still find something new and awesome that I have never seen before. Coupled with that, I’ve been trying to think of a way to deserve this little red dot I have next to my name. For a while I tried to look after the critique forum, but that didn’t really work out (more on that later).. and I also tried to play in the forums, but that didn’t work out either So I’ve decided to provide yet another stream to new work and start a blog. The site is at http://www.damienmason.com/inspire/ I will post work that speaks to me as I find it in general browsing around the bubble. That’s the plan, anyway. Actually, what happens is I find awesome work, write to the artist to ask if I could link it.. and then have to wait around for a response. I have about 10 posts waiting to go up :) Still, I’m hoping to post a couple of images a day, so if you’re interested, please subscribe to the rss feed or bookmark it and keep an eye on it. And yeah, if there’s work on there you like why not check out the artist and leave some comments. After all, as well as being inspired by other people’s work, we are all inspired by other people liking what we do. So let’s share the love.
Reasons for joining Redbubble: 1. Community...
Reasons for joining Redbubble: 1. Community / Reasons for joining Redbubble: 2. Inspiration Ok, I’m finally getting around to finishing my triptych of justification. The third reason I joined Redbubble, which I suspect says a lot about me, is learning. I look at my work and I can see a lot wrong with it. Often the colours are unconsidered, there is no depth, the poses are static and uninteresting. Certainly, I’m my own biggest critic, and I can’t be happy until my work is better. Joining an art site, I had hoped I could find other artists who could provide me with a little direction. I can see what is wrong, but as far as techniques to improve, I’m at a loss. We have a wide variety of still levels on this site, so I wanted to tap some of that. I jumped into the critique forum with energy and enthusiasm, thinking if I could promote a culture of solid, considered feedback I too could make the most of that. Unfortunately there were two major issues with the forum – first, many people would just post a “i like it” response. I understand that all opinions are valid, but an unqualified “i don’t know art but i know what i like” type of response doesn’t help me further my skills. I need specifics – what works, what doesn’t, how to fix what doesn’t, where to go next. / The second problem was a large number of people using the forum as another self-promotion tool.. so you would spend up to an hour giving a really considered response to someone only to have them never return to read it. Do that a few times and it becomes quite tiresome. I’m not sure how to fix up the critique forum, and so now I’m looking elsewhere for help. The problem is how do I target those professionals with the skill and insight necessary to be able to provide me with real feedback.. and more importantly, if I find those people how do I justify asking them for help? Really, what I would like is a kind of mentoring program.. which, when I put it into words, does sound very selfish to my ears. I’m asking someone to take the time to give advice and direction. That’s a big ask. The other thing I would like is a seperate area on myBubble.. so have Art, T-Shirts and then this third work-in-progress type option.. somewhere I can post work that I specifically want feedback on, stuff that is unfinished and that i can develop over time. Does anyone else have any suggestions for how to learn and improve in your chosen field? Critique is most welcome ;)
I’m dropping the markup on a few of my favourite shirts, for no reason other than I think other people will like them too. It just happen…
I’m dropping the markup on a few of my favourite shirts, for no reason other than I think other people will like them too. It just happens to be coinciding with some holiday or whatever. Anyway, without further ado, the following shirts will be about $10 cheaper than usual for a short time: I’ve also added these two new shirts to the sale:
What do you think? WHY ARE PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHERS SO EXPENSIVE?Share Edited to add * This note was writen by Shawn R…
What do you think? WHY ARE PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHERS SO EXPENSIVE?Share Edited to add ** This note was writen by Shawn Richter at http://www.caughtonfilmphoto.com/costofphotography.html / and posted this note in order to help people understand our job …... Why are Professional Photographers so expensive? In this digital age where everyone has digital cameras, scanners and home “photo printers”, when people upload their photos to a local drug store website and pick them up a few hours later, we hear this all the time – How in the world do Professional Photographers charge $55 for an 8×10 when they cost just $1.50 at the drug store? Here’s why.* Simply put, you’re not just paying for the actual photograph, you’re paying for time and expertise. First, let’s look at the actual time involved. If you don’t read this entire page, at least read this first part. For a two hour portrait session: / - one hour of travel to and from the session / - two hours of shooting / - 30 minutes of setup, preparation, talking to the client etc. / - 30 minutes to load the photos onto a computer (2 – 4 Gb of data) / - 30 minutes to back up the files on an external drive / - 3 – 4 hours of Photoshop time including cropping, contrast, color, sharpening, saving a copy for print and a copy for the internet and backing up the edited photographs / - 2 – 3 hours to talk to the client, answer questions, receive their order and payment, order their prints, receive and verify prints, package prints, schedule shipment and drop package off at Fed Ex. / - For local customers, we also print a set of all of their photos, and meet them at our studio to review the photos and place their order. Meeting and travel time averages 2 hours. You can see how one two hour session easily turns into more than ten hours of work from start to finish. So when you see a Photographer charging a $200 session fee for a two hour photo shoot, you are not paying them $100 / hour. For an eight hour wedding: / - I won’t bore you with the details, but an eight hour wedding typically amounts to at least two to three full 40 hour work weeks worth of time. Again, if they are charging you $4,000 for an eight hour wedding, you are not paying them $500 / hour. Now for the expertise. / Shooting professional photography is a skill, acquired through years of experience. Even though a quality camera now costs under $2,000 taking professional portraits involves much more than a nice camera. Most Professional Photographers take years to go from buying their first decent camera to making money with their photography. In addition to learning how to use the camera itself, there is a mountain of other equipment involved, as well as numerous software programs used to edit and print photographs, run a website etc. And let’s not forget that you actually have to have people skills, be able to communicate, make people comfortable in front of the camera – and posing people to make them look their best in a photograph is a skill all by itself. Think of it this way – the next time you pay $X to get your hair done, a pair of scissors only costs $1.50. But you gladly pay a lot more to hire a Professional. What about the cheap studios at the mall? Please don’t compare us to the chain store studios. But if you must, consider all of the time and work that we put into our photographs, compared to what they do. Good luck getting a two hour photo shoot at a chain store. Not to mention they won’t come to the beach! And of course, look at our work compared to theirs. You get what you pay for. The truth is, most of the mall and chain store studios lose money. In fact, in 2007 Wal-Mart closed 500 of their portrait studios because of the financial drain they were putting on the company. What the chain stores bet on is that you’ll come in for some quick and cheap photos, and while you’re there, you’ll also spend $200 on other things. They don’t have to make money, they are just there to get you in the door. Conclusion We hope that those who have taken the time to read this page will have a better understanding of why professional photographs cost so much more than the ones that you get from your local drug store.
1 You can get chocolate. / 2 Chocolate satisfies even when It’s gone soft. / 3 You can safely have chocolate while driving. / 4 You can m…
1 You can get chocolate. / 2 Chocolate satisfies even when It’s gone soft. / 3 You can safely have chocolate while driving. / 4 You can make chocolate last as long as you want. / 5 You can have chocolate in front of your mother. / 6 If you bite the nuts too hard the chocolate won’t mind. / 7 Two people of the same sex can have chocolate,with-out being called nasty names. / 8 The word commitment won’t scare off chocolate. / 9 You can have chocolate at your desk,with-out offending workmates. / 10 You can ask a stranger for chocolate with-out getting your face slapped. / 11 You don’t get hairs in your mouth with chocolate. / 12 “If you love me you’ll swallow” has real meaning with chocolate. / 13 With chocolate there’s no need to fake it. / 14 Chocolate does’nt get you pregnant. / 15 You can have chocolate any time of the month. / 16 Good chocolate is easy to find. / 17 You can have as many kinds of chocolate as you can handle. / 18 You are never too young or old to have chocolate. / 19 When you have chocolate you do’nt wake the neighbours. / 20 With chocolate, size does’nt matter. / 21 You don’t have to beg to have chocolate. / 22 You can have chocolate any-where,with any-one and not go to jail. / 23 Chocolate does’nt keep you awake,yapping after you’ve had it. / 24 You can have chocolate all weekend and still walk OK on Monday. / 25 It’s easy to find 9 inches of chocolate.
Shout This promotion is a great opportunity …
Shout This promotion is a great opportunity to market your art. It’s also a good opportunity to do a bit of ordering for the holidays – which will be here before we know it. Make It Better 15% off framed and canvas prints is a pretty good savings, but you have the power to make it an even better discount for shoppers. Here’s an example of the discount you can boast when you lower your margins temporarily for this promotion. For example, by lowering a mark-up from 30% to 15%, you can market your prints for 25% off. Come and Get It Here are a few ways to get the word out about this promotion: 1. Announce the sale in a journal article and suggest a few best-selling (or new) designs to shoppers. 2. Use your blog, social networking hangout, or other webpage to promote your sale. You can use the graphics that we provide below, or create your own. If you create a graphic (or template) and want to share it with other RedBubble members, simply link to it in the comments area below. 3. Create a unique sales event about: New Work – “See my newest artwork and get 25% off. Framed and canvas prints start at under $x!” Seasonal Sale – “Eliminate the last minute gifting worries at holiday time. Get unique framed and canvas prints on sale now.” If you have any holiday-themed artwork, you might want to link to a few from your profile page. Series Sale – Use your Profile page to suggest artworks that can be paired, e.g., “Buy this pair of Paris prints for under $x.” Limited Editions – Offer an artwork for the week of this sale only. Then put it in storage for 6 months. Limited Editions and sales promotions work well together. Newsletter Special – Send news of the sale to a hand-picked group of contacts. If you have a large contact list or are concerned about spam filters, services such as Campaign Monitor allow you to send emails for 1 cent per email. Plus, services like this one offer free email templates that do not require a knowledge of programming languages such as HTML. If you send an email, remember to: only use a list of people that agreed to receive your emails; note the promotion deadline; check your links. More email tips are here. Raffle – This idea is a bit more work, but you can post a contest/raffle on your Profile page. E.g., “Buy now and be entered to win an original artwork. Send me a quick note at the end of checkout (there’s a field for this on the final page of checkout) and I’ll enter you in quick and fun drawing to win my artwork named “x.” FYI, in the U.S., you need to allow a “no purchase necessary” option, e.g., allow people to email their entry without purchase. You can put this in small type using the ^ character on either side of your text. Dig It The price you and shoppers see has already been discounted by 15% on RedBubble pages and in the cart. Happy selling! The RedBubble Team p.s. If you have an interest in learning more sales techniques, check out the Sales Group and our free Selling tips and tricks. All Things Must Pass Offer ends: / Thursday, August 27th, 10:00 a.m. EST (Melbourne, Australia) / Thursday, August 27th, 1:00 a.m. BST (UK England – London) / Wednesday, August 26th, 5:00 p.m. US Pacific (California, USA) / Time converter tool From Me to You Promotional Images for RedBubble, blogs, MySpace, etc. Below are a couple of graphics that you can use on your RedBubble Profile page, blog, MySpace page, etc. If you’re a Photoshop wizard, you can place your work in the frames and on the canvas images in these graphics. If these images are not your cup of tea, feel free to make your own obviously. On a Mac, hold down the Control key and click the mouse. Download the linked file. On a PC, right-click on the image and download the file. Instructions for placing this image on your RedBubble profile page are here. Instructions for placing this image on your blog, MySpace page, etc. are here. Promotional Images for Facebook Below are two images that can be used in Facebook ads or on your profile page. For more information about using Facebook to promote your work, click here. On a Mac, hold down the Control key and click the mouse. Download the linked file. On a PC, right-click on the image and download the file.
Many thanks indeed to the groups who have found my art worthy of featuring! The thrill and honour of having an image chosen is so encoura…
Many thanks indeed to the groups who have found my art worthy of featuring! The thrill and honour of having an image chosen is so encouraging and inspiring! I’m grateful to all hosts and those responsible :D Out of the Blue / Your Magic Place / and PostCard Style / for all featuring / Morning Blues / Top Shelf Wildlife & Nature for featuring / Pelican Mugshot / Models with a Difference This image has been featured on RedBubble homepage, had over 1,600 views and over 300 comments with 8 features, so inspiring! / ! Inspired Art! and Core [C.O.R.E], and ! Inspired Art! featured / Guinevere / Colour Me A Rainbow featured / The Crow / Art By Bubble Hosts and #1 Artists of Redbubble featured / When I Grow Up / Canon DSLR Group and Art By Bubble Hosts featured / Old Soldier /
It’s been a busy year. Last summer I moved in with my boyfriend whom I met on RedBubble. In May we got engaged, ten weeks later we go…
It’s been a busy year. Last summer I moved in with my boyfriend whom I met on RedBubble. In May we got engaged, ten weeks later we got married, spent a month traveling around Italy and now James and I are thrilled to be expecting our first child in June. So if you were wondering why I haven’t been posting any photos lately, it’s because we’ve been a little preoccupied. / Image by Hien Nguyen / Image by a doctor with a big pokey stick thing
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