exposure: how do you get noticed?

Not sure how to get noticed...been tossing the idea around for awhile of making a portfolio book to try and get some of my shots hung in local businesses...just haven't mustered up the nerve to do so yet.

What I hate is when people see my camera and stuff or even some of my shots and want me to do a photoshoot for them. I have done a few in the past but don't enjoy it. I can take some pretty good portraits and DO take some pretty nice portraits of my kids (no sense in paying a pro when I can do as well as the pros in my area). Because of that, people think I AM a pro and I'm not. I don't want to shoot your engagement or wedding, I don't want to photograph your kids and family, I don't want to do your senior pictures. If you find a cool bug, give me a call, other than that, leave me alone...I'm not for hire.

/rant

Sorry bout all that...seems like I get exposure often times of the wrong kind. I want people to want to buy my macros, not have me shoot portaits which is what most people want.
 
Not sure how to get noticed...been tossing the idea around for awhile of making a portfolio book to try and get some of my shots hung in local businesses...just haven't mustered up the nerve to do so yet.

What I hate is when people see my camera and stuff or even some of my shots and want me to do a photoshoot for them. I have done a few in the past but don't enjoy it. I can take some pretty good portraits and DO take some pretty nice portraits of my kids (no sense in paying a pro when I can do as well as the pros in my area). Because of that, people think I AM a pro and I'm not. I don't want to shoot your engagement or wedding, I don't want to photograph your kids and family, I don't want to do your senior pictures. If you find a cool bug, give me a call, other than that, leave me alone...I'm not for hire.

/rant

Sorry bout all that...seems like I get exposure often times of the wrong kind. I want people to want to buy my macros, not have me shoot portaits which is what most people want.

LOL...your like me. I only do nature photography. People still ask me if I do portraits and I always tell them "I hate people". :lol:

BTW, love your macro stuff!
 
Quote: Originally Posted by IlSan
Quote:
when everyone who owns a camera thinks they are a photographer.


I shall not rant, I shall not rant - but YESSSSS, that is exactly what is happening.
Every kid on the block with a camera that goes click is all of the sudden a pro...all of the sudden knows what ppl take years to gather up...so what, if I were to get a Hasselblad would that make me Ansel Adams?



I hope not.:lol:
Let's see...how do I change my name... :lol:

There is a local girl who happens to be on my Facebook friends list who, I might add is very open about her inexperience with a camera. One day she was bragging about being offered a wedding to photograph, and to my shock her Facebook status said something like "I need to read my manual and learn how this camera works before the wedding"... OMG I almost hit the floor.

Then, after the wedding she posted the joke of the day: "So since I have a camera and photographed a wedding does this make me a professional?" (gag)

I have resisted the urge to go all Facebook crazy with my photography, preferring to advertise in the traditional way. But with all these Facebook photography groups and people listing point-and-shoot cameras as their only equipment for their "photography", or people owning SLRs and have no idea what SLR means let alone how to use one - makes me wonder if I should start waving my arms around the Facebook scene.
Fully with you on that.
Had a photo shoot a few weeks ago, the client asked me if it were possible that I work with another assistant (have one, but her cousin would like the chance). I asked her, if her cousin had any experience, and her reply was, yes, he is a great photographer.
My hopes were crushed when we met before the shoot, he walked in to the studio with a brand new DSLR, but had no clue how to use it. That was the first thing he asked me to teach him...
But Facebook is becoming more and more important - have been thinking about doing it myself as of lately, but agree with you on the traditional way - much prefered!!
 
As someone has already said, know your audience. I'm still working my way into the automotive photography world (mostly drifting) by meeting new people at the events, emailing drivers some shots, linking back to my Blog, and even creating a Facebook page.

For all you Facebook haters...It's actually an extremely valuable tool to get your work out in the open. As I meet new drivers, I friend them on Facebook, then upload my shots to my photography page, tag them, and BAM. Easy.

It really comes down to dedication and work ethic. :thumbup:
 
I don't know why there are so many facebook haters out there eaither. I'm just doing photography as a hobby and saw some people complaining about people posting pictures on facebook and people going crazy over them so I tried it out. I put a little signature in the bottom right of some of my best landscape pictures and posted them on my facebook and alot of my friends posted wow those are amazing. other posted how do you do it they are so beautiful and so on and so forth.
 
Some experienced photographers can judge exposure accurately simply by looking at the scene. In fact, in the days before light meters, this was the only way to do it. Handheld light meters were the next step, allowing accurate measurements of the light levels for an entire scene or for individual subjects. The metered light level, measured in EV, could then be matched against an exposure table to find aperture and shutter speeds appropriate for the shot.
Modern cameras have light meters built in to the camera. They can automatically select both aperture and shutter speed for you, or you can pick one and let the camera pick the other. Most also offer some kind of fully manual mode, where the exposure meter can still be used to provide guidance on how the camera estimates the scene should be exposed.
 
Some experienced photographers can judge exposure accurately simply by looking at the scene. In fact, in the days before light meters, this was the only way to do it. Handheld light meters were the next step, allowing accurate measurements of the light levels for an entire scene or for individual subjects. The metered light level, measured in EV, could then be matched against an exposure table to find aperture and shutter speeds appropriate for the shot.
Modern cameras have light meters built in to the camera. They can automatically select both aperture and shutter speed for you, or you can pick one and let the camera pick the other. Most also offer some kind of fully manual mode, where the exposure meter can still be used to provide guidance on how the camera estimates the scene should be exposed.

What?? How's it going there, robot?
 
Some experienced photographers can judge exposure accurately simply by looking at the scene. In fact, in the days before light meters, this was the only way to do it. Handheld light meters were the next step, allowing accurate measurements of the light levels for an entire scene or for individual subjects. The metered light level, measured in EV, could then be matched against an exposure table to find aperture and shutter speeds appropriate for the shot.
Modern cameras have light meters built in to the camera. They can automatically select both aperture and shutter speed for you, or you can pick one and let the camera pick the other. Most also offer some kind of fully manual mode, where the exposure meter can still be used to provide guidance on how the camera estimates the scene should be exposed.

The OP wasn't talking about that type of exposure. They want to know how can they get noticed....paid stuff. :D
 
What I hate is when people see my camera and stuff or even some of my shots and want me to do a photoshoot for them. I have done a few in the past but don't enjoy it. I can take some pretty good portraits and DO take some pretty nice portraits of my kids (no sense in paying a pro when I can do as well as the pros in my area). Because of that, people think I AM a pro and I'm not. I don't want to shoot your engagement or wedding, I don't want to photograph your kids and family, I don't want to do your senior pictures. If you find a cool bug, give me a call, other than that, leave me alone...I'm not for hire.

/rant

Sorry bout all that...seems like I get exposure often times of the wrong kind. I want people to want to buy my macros, not have me shoot portaits which is what most people want.
Unfortunately for you, the vast majority (85%) of the photos that sell (retail, stock, commercial or editorial).......have people in them, not bugs.

So that remaining 15% of the market is shared by landscape, macro, car, flower, nature, architecture, and pet shooters.
 
slowly walk down the main drag of your town, exposed, and you'll get noticed. H

tried that, works great
Being good and being noticed or "exposed" for being good are two seperate things. But if you like your work who cares about the people who dont notice, and pay attention to the ones who do.
Wes
 
Look guys, I have no ulterior motive, I just to know other peoples views on this topic. I'm doing my thing and I'm happy doing it. What has been posted on this thread has gone above and beyond what I expected and I do appreciate it all!
 

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