Archive for August, 2011
Teen Rebel Today, Groovy Grandma Tomorrow
Guest Posts 
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Wed 08.31.2011
A good portion of my clients are women – and as a photographer, I have found it helpful to figure out what makes each woman tick in order to reach out to your clients and take better photos with an authentic connection. Michele Miller, founder and editor of Wonderbranding, a wonderful resource for marketing to women, has an interesting story to share about how understanding female generations could help your photography business.
Follow Michele on Twitter.
Post By Michele Miller
More than anything, I just wanted to get home.
Three hours earlier, I had wrapped up another two-day Wonderbranding workshop and was concentrating on the reward of a good night’s sleep in my own bed for a change.
Judging by the number of people waiting to board, I could tell it was a full flight. I took my window seat and was soon joined by an older woman, probably in her early 70s, on the aisle. Silver hair, huge gold hoop earrings, wearing jeans and a T-shirt that said “I Love Las Vegas.”
Shortly after that, a girl of about 15 squeezed into the middle seat. She was definitely an East Coast native — long dark hair, bold makeup… dressed in a black leather bomber jacket over a skirt that resembled a ballerina’s tutu, psychedelic tights, and combat boots. She sat down, stuck the earbuds from her iPod into her ears, and with a sullen look, stared straight ahead.
About halfway through the trip, the captain made one of his usual announcements about the weather. When he had finished, the girl removed the earbuds and turned to the older woman to ask what the captain had said. At first, I didn’t pay any attention, but I soon realized that the two were engaged in a highly animated conversation. I eavesdropped with fascination for the rest of the trip (I’m good at pretending to read business magazines), as they discussed everything from where they were headed, books they were reading, fashion, makeup, and politics to where the best skateboarding parks are located in San Diego.
I thought it was interesting that the young girl had turned to the older woman to talk to rather than me. After all, I am closer to the age of her mother, I mused. Then it hit me – that’s exactly why she turned to the grandmotherly figure. These two generations have many more things in common than most people realize. A woman from the Baby Boomer generation who could very well have marched for women’s lib and peace in Vietnam, and a girl of the Millennium, the generation increasingly concerned with how to make a difference and preserve the future of the world.
Experts like David Wolfe and Ken Dychtwald have been raising the flag of marketing to boomers for some time now and rightly so, as boomers hold the purchasing power of today and tomorrow. But how about thinking ahead?
What are some ways that you can appeal to the lifestyle and core values of Boomer women and, at the same time, resonate with those same core values within the younger generation? What a way to cultivate your customer of the future!
Don’t discount the teenage and college-aged women of today, and don’t be fooled by the language they use, the color of their hair, or the style of their dress. After all, it seems like only yesterday that society was up in arms over those damned hippies.
They didn’t wear tie-dyed peasant blouses forever… now they wear T-shirts that read, “I Love Las Vegas.”
They also carry big, fat wallets.
Stop thinking about marketing to women as a “universal” theory and screw those stereotypical categories like “Soccer Moms.” It ain’t that easy. But… if you start viewing female customers as individuals and members of a generation with shared values, you’re halfway there.
Glimpses of Hell and Torture
Photo of the Week 1
Tue 08.30.2011
As an artist, one of the greatest marvels I have ever seen is the Angkor Wat bas-relief gallery. Erected and completed in the 1100s, it’s miraculous that you can still see the details and the exquisite and extensive craftwork that depicts stories of heaven and hell, and of the many battles between good and evil. Most people who see this photograph compliment me on how peaceful the shot is – as matter of fact, I’ve sold it to many yoga studios and spas as a stock image. The irony is, the wall panel – one of the bas-relief galleries of Angkor Wat – you see on the left actually depicts hell and torture. If you look closer, there are gruesome imagery of people having their bones broken, heads pierced with nails and skin branded with hot irons. Yeah, scary stuff.
Join me, Ibarionex Perello, Scott Eccleston and Andrey Tochilin as we grill Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski about their new iPad digital magazine. Light It made it into the Top 25 of Apple’s “Top Charts” for free iPad Apps on Day 1. Congrats, Kelby team!
For more on the premiere issue of Light It, read my review last week.
Can’t get enough? Watch the promotional video for the revolutionary magazine here:
TWiT Photo Ep. 21 With Tyler Stableford
TWiT Photo 1
Fri 08.26.2011
Don’t miss a chance to watch or listen to your favorite photographers – download the TWiT Photo podcast on iTunes for free :)
Truly inspiring photographers go above and beyond their art to capture the human condition – as well as use their art to influence change. Tyler Stableford, named one of the World’s Greatest Adventure Photographers” by Men’s Journal, is one of the most inspiring and giving artists I know. The multi-award-winning Aspen adventure photographer and cinematographer manages a hectic year-round schedule shooting commercial and editorial work for clients such as Adidas, Adobe, National Geographic and the New York Times – and somehow finds the time to devote at least one week a year to shoot probono for nonprofits. Here are a few of Tyler’s top tips:
“Shoot into the Sun!”
“Get the flash off the camera.”
“Go wide, go long.”
Find out more by watching the video here or on iTunes. Upcoming guest: Vincent Laforet.
Have questions, suggestions or praises? Please email photo@twit.tv.
Another Coup by Scott Kelby
From The Studio 7
Wed 08.24.2011
When Nancy Masse of Kelby Media Group shot me an email to personally invite me to a press conference, she basically got me at “Hello Catherine.” Getting an invitation from Scott Kelby is akin to a musician getting an invitation from Mick Jagger – Scott is that cool.
The subject of the press conference? A new digital, iPad-only lighting magazine called Light It. I downloaded it last night, expecting to see a high-quality magazine full of star photogs’ contributions – and honestly, a slew of glorified digital PDFs (sorry, Scott!). But when I started playing with it, Light It literally blew my mind.
Flip, zoom, swipe, zoom, double tap, tap, hold – I couldn’t put it down. Holy sh*t, I thought, this thing is going to change the way photographers learn – and read.
Light It looks and feels like a print magazine – but with crisper and sharper photos. I’m totally geeking out right now; get this, you can double tap on individual photos to see them in full-screen mode and watch embedded videos within the article. It’s a treat for visual learners.
The Medium is the Message
Scott is one of the most inspiring and innovative educators in our industry and this venture proves that he is way ahead of the game – again. The magazine is revolutionary because the iPad’s mad graphics and interactive capabilities allow for learning via varied content that’s delivered in different ways. If the content were available via the web as a digital magazine on Zinio, it would be a glorified string of PDF pages restricting viewer engagement.
Why the iPad and not other devices, you say? Some have conjured up an Apple conspiracy to explain Scott’s choice of publishing on the iPad. As he mentioned in the press conference, it’s a purely business decision and any smart business person developing an app for a tablet would release it for the most popular platform. It is also not realistic to release an app on multiple platforms out of the gate – even if you are Scott Kelby. Anyone who has ever developed an app knows exactly what I am talking about.
Here’s Why I Love Light It:
1) Seamless navigation
Light It has an intuitive pagination screen that allows you to see all the pages of the magazine.
If you hate ploughing through piles of magazines and tearsheets, you will love the archive. Looking for that Joe McNally article in issue 12? Easy – just pull up this space and access all current and past issues.
I always fumble to get to an article from a magazine’s contents page (assuming I can find it). In this digital wonder of a magazine, tapping on a title on the Contents page takes you immediately to your desired read.
This might be silly, but you’ll find yourself besotted with this pagination scroll bar at the bottom of the screen. It allows you to navigate seamlessly between pages – and even shows a pop-up thumbnail image of each spread. How cool is that?
2) Enhanced Visual Learning Experience
Often wish you could enlarge an image in a magazine? Now, you can – just tap on the screen to zoom into the article or image.
Double tap on an image in the article to see it in full-screen mode. Since you can zoom and enlarge the image, it creates an enhanced learning experience. Here, for instance, you see the nuances of rim light in photographer Jason Groupp’s images. Nice work, Jason! ☺
Sharper and crisper graphics allow you to see more accurate comparisons of before and after images.
Embedded videos allow readers to engage with the photographer on a whole new level. You can now watch “articles” as photographers talk about their work – or even a live demonstration/video tutorial of technique.
Ever flag a link in a magazine – only to forget about it after? As a final touch to an already awesome interactive magazine, embedded hyperlinks take you directly to external webpages.
Without Risk, There is No Reward
Normally, when I get to the end of a magazine, I feel a sense of relief – with Light It, I found myself on the last page, scrolling through the pagination bar, wishing there were more articles to “experience.” What makes this magazine so revolutionary is that it is flawlessly designed for the iPad, allowing varied content to be presented in the best, most engaging way possible. To those of you naysayers, Scott Kelby could have released a magazine in print and digital versions and it would have been a mere success, not a revolution. It is far riskier for him to decide on a digital-only publication on just one platform. Having the foresight to capitalize on the expanded capabilities of the iPad technology shows that Scott is a passionate educator who pushes the confines of current mediums.
I’m super excited for the next issue, Scott. I’ve already played… I mean, read, this issue ad nauseum.
Read Ibarionex Perello’s review of Light It here. [Click on Photo Blog]
