Want to stop spam emails? The problem is demand side… as long as there is someone clicking on the viagra spam email link, or the porn offers, there will be spammers. Once there is no money in it, the spammers will go away. So, who is it out there who is still clicking on the spam emails? Who really trusts a mortgage company that misspells their product to get through the spam filter? And what kind of person trusts a spammer to order their medications online?
If there was ever an argument against Al Gore’s push to connect every home and classroom in America to the internet, SPAM proliferation is it. It may be that we’d all be better off if computers and access to the web were far more expensive!
I have an iPhone. Have had one for many years. I was an early adopter and have suffered at the hand of the contraption for the entire time. It is a great little device, but it is a terrible phone. If you call and catch me on my iPhone and I am out on the road or even in my office, you will most likely get dropped. I am told by AT&T that it is due to the fact that too many people are on the 3G network so it gets overloaded and apparently randomly chooses who get’s thrown off the network. But anymore, I am certain that it is not random. It drops me first, then my brother Rex, and then everyone else gets in line for the privilege of being the next dropped call.
But I must admit, the iPhone (which should be called the iGadget) is amazing at everything else it does. And one of those things is a cool little phone with all sorts of cool photo applications. My hats off to all the programers of the applications. I bring this up because I went to lunch with some photographer friends (Melissa Jill, Rebecca Bouck, Isaac Bailey and Kimberly Jarman) a while ago and was introduced to an photo app called ShakeitPhoto, which takes a photo in the form of a Polaroid. It is a fun little app and even makes you wait for the photo to develop. How fun is that?
Anyway, here is a photo taken with that app on the iGadget.
It really is quite true that the best camera is the one in your hands.
I just posted a new Adobe Lightroom Tutorial Online about Syncing Lightroom Catalogs. If you are using Lightroom professionally or as an amateur, it is worth watching. If you don’t know what Lightroom is and you just like look at my photos, your eyes might gloss over, so just skip this one. If you like falling asleep to the sound of my voice, go ahead and turn it on, it’s 20 minutes, to you should be asleep before it is finished.
You may have two or more computers, or be working with a post production company like ShootDotEdit for your post production on your images, but whatever the reason, you will need to know how to synchronize your catalogs from one computer to the next. Adobe Lightroom’s catalog portability will allow you to share your work load between computers, locations and people. In this 20 minute lesson, you will learn how to synchronize your images and catalogs from one computer to the next and even between Lightroom and Camera Raw in Photoshop.
For more Lightroom and Photography lessons and to learn more about my workshops, go to www.jaredplattworkshops.com.
If you are a photographer or think you are a photographer, take a chance and enter the Emerge Photo Contest for Emerging Photographers. It is being hosted by my favorite web developers, liveBooks, who are the very best in the business. Not only do they make great web sites, but they support the photographic industry with cool opportunities like Emerge and their great Resolve Photo Blog.
So screw your courage to the sticking place and enter an image. There are 15 winners and $30,000 worth of prizes. ENTER HERE.
I just read a blog post by Melissa Jill about her rule on discounts. So many people would like a discount on the services we provide as photographers. It is interesting to me that the dentist, or the lawyer, or the mechanic is not interested in giving me a discount on their services, but when they come to me for services, they would like a discount. It is a classic issue of pride: overvaluing ones own worth and undervaluing everyone else’s worth. My father always wants to buy his new car at a discount and yet, he wants to sell his old car at a premium. Of course, if one can get away with it, it is good business for them, but if I want to stay in business, I can’t work for free or even half price… It is hard for people to get this concept, so I am re-posting this video Melissa found that puts the issue in perspective…
My Discount Rule:
So, what is my discount rule? It is even more simple than Melissa’s. I work for full price. If you are special enough to me to get a discount, my services will be FREE, otherwise, it is full price. My price structure puts my photography within reach, so I don’t offer discounts to anyone. I enjoy doing things free of charge as a service to the ones I love, or for those in extreme need, but I also have a family to feed, so when I work, I work for full price. It’s that simple.
I do have one exception to my discount rule. I give a discount to active military personnel. They are willing to give their life for me, so offering a discount to them is the least I can do. I have many friends and family in the military, and I hope that everyone out there is taking care of them. We all owe them a debt we can never repay.
