The Five-Minute Fix: 200 Tips for Improving Your Photography and Growing Your Business

The Five-Minute Fix: 200 Tips for Improving Your Photography and Growing Your Business

by Dale Benfield
Released November 2015
Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
ISBN: 9780134289748

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Book description

Photographer Dale Benfield started The Five-Minute Fix as a way to share his photography and business knowledge with a growing base of subscribers to his business, Benfield Photography. It has evolved into an unparalleled collection of tips, tricks, and advice for beginning through early-professional photographers, covering topics ranging from shooting to pricing to marketing. For the first time, you can find it all in one beautiful full-color book: everything from attaining shallow depth of field to responding to people who steal your images… driving more Facebook traffic to dressing for your next wedding-day assignment. Benfield's friendly, bite-size, easy-to-use tips can help any working photographer create better images and happier clients -- and earn a lot more money, too!

Table of contents

  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright Page
  3. Dedication Page
  4. Contents
  5. A Little Thanks...
  6. Introduction
    1. Downloading Bonus Materials
  7. Section I: Photography Tips
    1. One. Camera Settings
      1. 1 Blurry Backgrounds and Shallow Depth of Field
      2. 2 Two More Ways to Attain Shallow Depth of Field
      3. 3 Focusing Modes: Still Subjects
      4. 4 Focusing Modes: Moving Subjects
      5. 5 Ghosting (Dragging the Shutter)
      6. 6 How to Get Straight Vertical Lines
      7. 7 Adjust Image Size In-Camera
      8. 8 Spinning Motion
      9. 9 Minimum Focusing Distance
      10. 10 Preset Your Camera to Capture Moments
      11. 11 Macro Photography Without a Macro Lens
      12. 12 Color Temperature and Custom White Balance
      13. 13 Shooting in RAW
      14. 14 Shooting Group Shots at Receptions
      15. 15 Tilt-Shift Lenses: Fad or Fancy?
      16. 16 Underexpose the Flash to Protect Skin Tones
      17. 17 Exposure Compensation: When to Go Over and Under
      18. 18 Understand Infinity Focus
      19. 19 Use Shade White Balance in the Sun
      20. 20 What a Difference a Lens Makes
    2. Two. Lighting
      1. 21 Bounce It Off the Wall
      2. 22 Catching Streaky Light
      3. 23 Devil Eyes: Three Ways to Fix Red Eyes
      4. 24 Diffuse Flash
      5. 25 Grab a Video Light
      6. 26 Eliminate Bright Areas
      7. 27 Get Your Subject in the Perfect Light
      8. 28 How to Look at Light: Backlight
      9. 29 How to Look at Light: Sidelight
      10. 30 How to Look at Light: Overhead Light
      11. 31 How to Look at Light: Front Light
      12. 32 How to Look at Light: Lighting Ratios
      13. 33 Use North Light
      14. 34 Reflect Color
      15. 35 Use Natural Reflectors
      16. 36 Using “Blue Light” and White Balance
      17. 37 Using Creative Lighting Sources
      18. 38 Off-Camera Flash Tips
    3. Three. Composition
      1. 39 Change Your Angle
      2. 40 Use the Foreground/Background Technique
      3. 41 Use the Rule of Thirds
      4. 42 Use Objects to Frame Your Subject
      5. 43 Look to Layer Objects
      6. 44 Make Subjects Pop
      7. 45 Match Pretty with Ugly
      8. 46 Shoot Patterns to Add Spice
      9. 47 Shoot Vertical
      10. 48 Kid Level for Kid Pics
      11. 49 Simple Is Beautiful
      12. 50 Avoid Overuse of the Tilted Camera
      13. 51 Use a Size Contrast for Drama
      14. 52 Use Leading Lines to Draw the Eye
      15. 53 Addition Not Distraction
    4. Four. Posing
      1. 54 Chin Up, Buttercup!
      2. 55 Chin Down, Charlie Brown!
      3. 56 Listen to Your Clients
      4. 57 Play Games with Your Couples
      5. 58 Pop That Shoulder
      6. 59 Posing Newborns
      7. 60 “What Do I Do With My Hands?”
      8. 61 Look Away
      9. 62 The Almost Kiss
      10. 63 Posing by the Book
      11. 64 The Universally Great Pose
    5. Five. Shooting
      1. 65 Accentuate the Positive
      2. 66 Action and Reaction
      3. 67 Anticipate the Action
      4. 68 Be Picky About Focus
      5. 69 Create a Consistent Wedding Feel
      6. 70 Dare to Be Different
      7. 71 Day After: Take Risks
      8. 72 Don’t Let the Wind Stop You
      9. 73 Don’t Be Afraid to Ask
      10. 74 Educate Your Clients
      11. 75 Eliminate Objects with Your Feet
      12. 76 Find the Ending Shot
      13. 77 Get Close for the Best Shots
      14. 78 The Perfect Veil Shot
      15. 79 Have Your Picture Taken!
      16. 80 It’s Okay to Forget the Groom
      17. 81 Keep Shooting and Be Sneaky
      18. 82 Let Kids Be Kids
      19. 83 Location Isn’t Everything
      20. 84 Look Behind You
      21. 85 Wind Up the Wind
      22. 86 Make Clients Feel Relaxed
      23. 87 Moment Conquers All
      24. 88 New Twists on Old Classics
      25. 89 Overshoot: Especially with Children
      26. 90 Safety Shots: Photographer as Record Keeper
      27. 91 Tips for the Second Shooter
      28. 92 Second Shooting for Fun
      29. 93 See in Black and White
      30. 94 Be Prepared for Better Dress Shots
      31. 95 Shooting Cop/Funny Cop
      32. 96 Start Early, Shoot Often
      33. 97 Start the Photograph Without the Camera
      34. 98 Think Outside the Studio
      35. 99 Three Shots to Get at Every Shoot
      36. 100 Develop Your Own Style
    6. Six. Post-Production
      1. 101 Image Finder Software
      2. 102 The Risks of Deleting Photos in the Camera
      3. 103 Don’t Be Destructive in Photoshop
      4. 104 Use Photoshop for Diffuse Glow
      5. 105 Warm Up Your Images
      6. 106 Saving for Web Viewing
      7. 107 Sharpen Your Images
      8. 108 Adobe Bridge Time Savers
      9. 109 Edit Phone Pics with Snapseed
      10. 110 Use Custom Actions to Prep Images for Blogging
      11. 111 Use Eyes to Help Design
      12. 112 Use Layer Masks to Perfect Your Image
      13. 113 Use InDesign for Album Design
      14. 114 Dominant Elements Are a Must
  8. Section II: Business Tips
    1. Seven. Infrastructure and General Practices
      1. 115 Have a Backup Plan
      2. 116 Use a Quality Lab
      3. 117 Second-Shooter Agreements
      4. 118 Be Yourself
      5. 119 Be Insured
      6. 120 Be Prepared with Backups
      7. 121 Delegate Responsibilities
      8. 122 Write Down Your Goals
      9. 123 Getting Jobs Second Shooting
      10. 124 Save Time for Yourself
      11. 125 Specialize and Customize
      12. 126 Balance Family and Work
      13. 127 Keep Them Coming Back
      14. 128 Stack Travel
      15. 129 Set a Wedding Agenda in Advance
      16. 130 Three Reasons to Attend Conferences
      17. 131 Don’t Be Lazy
      18. 132 Try Before You Buy
      19. 133 Two Things to Consider in Decision-Making
      20. 134 What to Wear for Weddings
      21. 135 Help! Somebody Copied My Work
      22. 136 A Little Paranoid Is Good
      23. 137 Own Your Own ZIP Code
    2. Eight. Workflow
      1. 138 Recycle Responses
      2. 139 Get Rid of Unwanted Emails
      3. 140 Manage Minutes
      4. 141 Use Photo Mechanic for Image Selection
      5. 142 Save Time By Doubling Up on Work
      6. 143 Set Up a Server for File Sharing
    3. Nine. Marketing
      1. 144 Be Searchable
      2. 145 Use Adobe Muse to Design Websites
      3. 146 It’s Okay to Be Sold Out
      4. 147 Be Transparent
      5. 148 Get Featured in Magazines and Blogs
      6. 149 Extend Your Market
      7. 150 Put Your Logo on Images
      8. 151 Giving Back Helps Your Business
      9. 152 I Get by with a Little Help from My Friends
      10. 153 Offer Custom Engagement Websites
      11. 154 Post Travel Notices
      12. 155 Should I Go to Bridal Fairs?
      13. 156 Be in a Bridal Fair Without Going
      14. 157 Running Polls
      15. 158 Keep Helping Each Other Out
      16. 159 Share the Love
      17. 160 Shoot Your Vendors
      18. 161 Have Vision
      19. 162 Increase Client Referrals
      20. 163 Wrap It Up Pretty
      21. 164 How Do I Find Clients in Other Markets?
    4. Ten. Sales
      1. 165 Believe in Your Concept
      2. 166 Create a Loyalty Program
      3. 167 How to Keep Clients Coming Back
      4. 168 Figure Your Needs to Figure Your Prices
      5. 169 Beware: The Paradox of Choice
      6. 170 Charge a Price that Makes You Happy
      7. 171 Family Money Matters
      8. 172 How to Deal with Minimum Orders
      9. 173 More Products Means More Money
      10. 174 Brainstorm Multiple Income Streams
      11. 175 Tap Advertising Income
      12. 176 Hire Associate Photographers
      13. 177 Be Persuasive, Not Pushy
      14. 178 Perceived Value: Maximize Your Money
      15. 179 Am I Too Cheap?
      16. 180 Raising Prices: Face Your Fears
      17. 181 I Raised My Prices, Now What?
      18. 182 Sell Holiday Cards
      19. 183 Sell Files for Christmas Cards
      20. 184 What to Do When a Client Asks for a Deal
      21. 185 You Sell What You Show
    5. Eleven. Social Media
      1. 186 Avoid Overload
      2. 187 Get Pinned
      3. 188 Alerts and Beeps
      4. 189 Increase Your Facebook Likes
      5. 190 Know Your Unfollowers
      6. 191 Find Time to Blog Every Day
      7. 192 Shoot for the Facebook Crop
      8. 193 Show One Image for Impact
      9. 194 The Facebook Flytrap: Driving Traffic to Your Site
      10. 195 Use Instagram to Get New Clients
    6. Twelve. Read for Inspiration
      1. 196 Service Inspirations: Delivering Happiness
      2. 197 Leadership Essentials: Good to Great
      3. 198 What I Read: Inc. Magazine
      4. 199 Advertising Savvy: It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be
      5. 200 Recharge: Raving Fans
  9. Index

Product information

  • Title: The Five-Minute Fix: 200 Tips for Improving Your Photography and Growing Your Business
  • Author(s): Dale Benfield
  • Release date: November 2015
  • Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
  • ISBN: 9780134289748