Make Money From Photography With The Digital World

If your hobby is taking photos and you really want to earn money with it, you can come into the world of digital photographs. Many people know that they can convert their hobbies into cash and make money from photography, and you can definitely do that if you want. You do not have to invest money and effort to get success, you just equip digital camera, personal computer with the Internet connection and specially have your creative mind. If you have enough these things, you are taking the good chance of turning your talent into solid cash.

There are many ways you can choose to get profits from them. You can submit your photos on specialized photography magazines or penetrate into print which many photographers are dreaming about. However, there are also many other ways which can help you sell your digital photos. Trying to make money from photography in the Internet is becoming fairly easy for you today and you do not worry about money and effort you have to invest because it takes you nothing. You should feel save because many people agree that this is the best way which can help you produce lots of money. You can take consideration into the following ways to know how you can get success in trying to make money from photography.

Firstly, in order to make money from photography, you should take well-composed, clean and clear photos. To have good photos, you do not need to be a professional photographer or try to become the best one, you only need to utilize some editing software to improve your photos because there is a fact that you can not get good benefit with a dim snapshot of your beloved pet or a family activity.

Secondly, if you really want to get success in this venture, the passion to photography is an important factor which you can not lack with any reason. If money is your last purpose when you have intention of involving this industry, you will have to deal with a big challenge. When you make money from photography, although you do not have to take your money you still have to devote lots of time to take pictures, this can take you long hours of working. Then, you still have take time to plan them for upload and upload them to good sites which you have chosen. In this case, if you do not have any passion to what you are doing, you can not do well all of these things. So, you should think carefully if it is really necessary for you before you decide to make money from photography.

Thirdly, you need to equip yourself some quantity of guidance, preparation, and other necessary things. It is important for you to learn some basic knowledge about photography. If you are really interested in taking photographs and want to gain professional expertise in this field, you had better improve your skills. You should remember that perfecting your talent as a photographer is the most important.

There is no doubt that your talent in photography will help you produce tons of dollars without taking time. Make a check when you want to remove your saved photos on your hard drive because you can not predict that some of them are worth some money. Translate your talent into a business which can help you make money from photography.

Digital Cameras - A Developing Technology

The digital camera seems to be a piece of technology that we are all more than happy to invest in, but how much have they developed since their appearance and do these so called improvements help the end user. Digital cameras now range from small compact cameras that are ideal to take on a night out or to take on vacation for a few snaps through to high quality cameras that can be used for professional shoots, giving them an even broader overall appeal.

Fuzzy pictures are an issue no matter what kind of camera you use but with the original digital cameras because of their sensitivity, they seem to make things even more blurred around the edges. This issue is being corrected with the introduction of image stabilization technology which produces a crisp picture even with slight movement, however, this technology cannot stop blurring when the image is moving or if there is considerable movement from the camera itself.

Many cameras come with face detection technology which picks out the people and brings them to the foreground of the image which is great if that is what you are taking the picture of but what if you wanted to focus on another area of the picture? The problem with this technology is that it takes this kind of choice away from you.

One of the great developments of digital technology is that you can remove the red eye that has spolit many pictures up until this point. But thanks to the photo booths that you print your images on and the programmes that you can use on your computer, you can enhance the overall quality of colours or even photo shop your appearance to improve the way you look!


Additional Benefits of Going Digital
Many people like digital cameras because they can produce short films as well as take a picture, which gives them an additional element of fun and a broader dimension. Normally digital cameras have a limited recording time so would not be the right choice if you wanted to record your holiday in great detail.

One of the advantages of the digital camera is that you can store your images in several different places to ensure that you do not loose them and you can either print them at home on a specialist printer or you can take them into your local film shop where you can have them put onto a CD that can be easily uploaded on the web or social networking sites. Since this is an increasingly popular means of communication between friends many people choose to have a digital camera to make this easier.

It can be seen that the technology has got better but there are significant improvements that are still around to be made.

Wildlife Photography - Learning Field Techniques

Wildlife photography, If only we could talk to the animals before we start photographing them, then we could ask them what time they were going hunting for food that day and have all of our photographic equipment set up ready to go. Unfortunately, life isn't like that, but, if you're tackling wildlife photography on a more serious basis - maybe even selling digital pictures online - then it would really pay you to take time out and do some research on the animals you intend to photograph. This can give you an enormous advantage that could lead to some spectacular shots during your wildlife photography session.

Being in the right place at the right time, knowing the best times of the year, along with the animals' habits, can all go towards fabulous photos and can be the difference between your pictures being sold or gathering dust. Experience plays a big part and is all part of the Wildlife Photography learning curve.

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL - Experience will help you when getting up close to your subject, particularly if you are photographing, say, a deer which stops grazing and suddenly looks up at you, but then starts grazing again after a few seconds. You know that you are in with a chance of taking some shots as opposed to the deer just standing still and staring at you. This would obviously tell you that the deer sees you as a threat.

BIRD TALK - Some of the easiest signals to read in the natural world are given off by birds. From the way they may ruffle their feathers ready to fly off because you have got too close to the noises some make. The more experience you gain, the more you will learn how far you can go with your particular subject

DANGER ZONE - Spending time in a particular area and environment is always a good idea with Wildlife Photography, allowing you to eventually be accepted. This can be done to great advantage with deer. All animals will have their own safety zone, that so-called invisible line which, once crossed, means that your chance of taking any pictures has gone. But staying at a distance from the deer and immersing yourself in that particular area will eventually result in some outstanding photographs.

If you are following your wildlife on foot, then try to wait until it is eating before moving. If it looks up at you, stop and allow your subject to relax and resume feeding. If you are stalking an animal that has a good sense of smell, moving downwind in a criss-cross motion will be better for you and help provide less of a threat to the animal.

PATIENCE - This can sometimes produce startling results with you're Wildlife Photography. Just sitting still on the ground or nice and quietly on a stool can often result in an animal coming closer to you. This can work with photographing birds as well.

FEEDING SITES - Use your patience to your advantage by sitting close to feeding sites and water holes. Many animals can't resist a few free nibbles and using these little tricks all help towards great pictures with your Wildlife Photography. In the UK, there is the Red Kite Feeding Station set up at Gigrin Farm in mid-Wales. One for wild swans is at Welney Wetland Centre in East Anglia. Worldwide, there are probably numerous animal feeding sites; it's more about discovering them, taking the pictures is the easy part.

Still Life Photography - How To Take Good Photos

Still life photography has many uses. Perhaps you want to take a photograph of a beautiful bowl of fruit or perhaps you have learned that an important key to eBay success is uploading quality photos of your products. Other reasons for learning still life photography may include selling still life photograph downloads at microstock sites or to food magazines. No matter what your reason, still life photography is a great skill to learn.

Unless you are photographing specific products or pictures for a magazine assignment, the subjects for your still life photography are endless. Fine art still lifes aren't limited to just apples and grapes. Even super simple items like a few artfully arranged spools of thread can be interesting and attract attention. There are a couple of microstock sites like Shutterstock and iStock that have a high demand for all sorts of still life pictures from simple to complex.

In one way, still life photography is a lot easier than other forms of photography like landscape, sports or pet photography. With stills, you often have full control over the composition and can arrange the inanimate objects exactly how you want them.

And sometimes, good quality still life pictures can be even more challenging to photograph. Because still lifes are taken up close, it's easy to see imperfections on your subject that you would normally never see.

Despite its challenge, using basic photography skills and the following tips, you can create quality still life pictures.

Still Life Photography Lighting
Professional photographers usually use a soft box or a light box to shoot their still lifes. However this isn't absolutely necessary as you will see in a moment, but it can be a big help. However, if you do want one, you can find a soft box online or you can easily make one using instructions you find online. The purpose of these tools is to provide good, even light.

You can also get a good quality of light by setting up your photo shoot outside. A high overcast or bright sky can create a natural soft box effect without having any of the harsh shadows.

Composition for Still Life Photography
Arrange your objects in a pleasing composition. Use a classical composition technique such as "Rule of Thirds" or "Leading Lines" or "Frame within a Frame" to create a good composition. Arrange the items artfully and use your imagination to get the exact placement that you want. For example, if it's a picture of a piece of cake, instead of including the entire table setting, place a gleaming, silver dessert fork upside down on the plate and remove a tiny bite from the cake.

Fill the Frame with Your Still Life Subject
Remember, the only thing that should be in your viewfinder or on your preview LCD screen is your composition. Remove any clutter and get up close with your camera. If you have a backdrop or background you don't like don't worry about it because it can be easily solved. The soft box or light box solves this issue, but if you are shooting outside, here's something you can do: place a piece of white foam board or piece of material behind your subject, and voila - no more distracting background. Be sure to use Macro mode so that you get a sharp image.

Look for a Good Angle and Start Shooting!
Instead of shooting from your height, hold the camera so that it is level with your subject. You should also try shooting from a variety of different angles.

Hopefully these tips have provided you some helpful information on taking still life photos that you can start putting to use immediately.

Essential Features For A Photography Website

So let's get down to business on how to create an effective photography website and draw both professionals and beginners into your world.

First of all, get yourself a website builder. There are many of them out there online and they offer a range of free options, with additional add ons. The website creator tool will allow you to create your own professional looking website within moments and you will be part of the World Wide Web, selling your wares to an audience as big as you want it to be. Update it anytime you need to and make sure you tell people where to find you. Be visible!

Use social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. It is essential for any website to make use of these arenas and allow visitors the chance to interact with you. Everyone is at it and it's the only way to keep up with the competition. You can reach millions of people at any one time and widen your audience participation in a short space of time. It might even open up new opportunities for you.

You'll want to include in your website a 'products and prices' page if you are offering your services or products. And make sure you've done your homework so that your prices are competitive. Keep this page as current as possible.

Including some positive video footage of your company/organisation is always a winner. It gives a two-dimensional feel to the website and helps to draw people in - particularly with photography buffs.

Your website may also want to include a forum and gallery area where people who are keen photographers can upload their own photographs and share ideas with one another. Photography is about visuals so capitalise on this in your website but make sure it's tasteful and relevant, and not just photos for the sake of them.

Possibly controversially, people want to see websites which are information rich and are practical rather than just aesthetically pleasing with no substance to them. Even in the case of a photography website, it's of no use to serious photographers if it looks good but offers no value. To be taken seriously, you will need to give off a professional and business-like image as well as promote the art of photography itself.

Every page that you add to your website should be of value and serve a purpose. You need to think carefully about the layout and design of your website in order to get maximum impact from it. It should be user friendly and easy to navigate, offering the customer a great experience. If your site is artificial and shallow, then people will leave it as soon as they've found it.

Every feature that you include in your web pages should add value or should not be there at all. A website is not a place for throwing lots of gimmicks at, in the hope that it might attract someone one day. It should be tailored specifically to your market and your niche.

You want to be attracting serious professionals but also trying to entice beginner photographers so you need to make sure that you spend some time thinking about the design of your site carefully if you want it to have any effect at all.

Portrait Photography Business - Starting A Home Studio

If you want to make a part time job or career out of photography, it's easier that you might think. Portrait photography is in high demand in almost every city in the nation and it doesn't take much to build a working studio in your home. The best thing about starting with portrait photography is that you don't have to buy a lot of equipment at first- you can instead add equipment as your business grows. Here's how to take the first steps:

Set Up the Studio
There are a few things that you should pick up before attempting professional portrait photography. Obviously you will need a camera (preferably digital as it's easier for inexpensive photo editing) but you will also need a tripod, a basic light setup and some sort of light reflector. Most of this equipment is available at entry-level quality for a low cost, or can be improvised if you're short on cash (for instance, white poster board can work as a light reflector). It would also be helpful if you can get a laptop with some photo editing software as the portability of a laptop will come in handy.

Additionally, you'll need some working space. An extra room, garage, or living room can usually fit everything you need. White walls will act as natural reflectors, windows can provide natural light, and backgrounds can be provided by different colors of bed sheets.

Setting Up the Business
If you are really serious about starting a portrait photography business, you'll need to treat it as a serious business. You should consider getting some basic small business accounting software like Quickbooks for invoicing and tracking payments before your first client. It is essential that you track your income so you can identify possible problems with your pricing and plan for paying taxes on your services.

It's also a great idea to build a website for your new business with an online portfolio. With so many people using the internet to locate professional services, an online presence is a powerful way to bring in new business. You can either build a simple site yourself or hire it out inexpensively at websites like Elance. Just make sure you have your contact information listed!

Finally, think of ways to set your portrait photography studio apart from the rest. If you want to get a competitive edge, try focusing on a specific photography niche. For example, some people are more willing to pay for pictures of their pets or children and often with specializing you have a little less competition.

Once you have the studio set up, the cash flow handled, and a strategy for the business, you should be ready to take the plunge into professional portrait photography. With a few advertisements in local papers and good word of mouth, there's no measuring the potential your small studio might have. And remember, if you give your clients excellent photographs, no one will remember that you used bed sheets as backdrops!

Nurturing Relationships And Your Photography Success

Regrets, Advertising Assignments, and Relationships
I don't have a lot of regrets at this point, but I do have a few. And one of those regrets is not keeping up friendships. Due to a variety of factors, divorces (eeks'plural), being a workaholic and so forth, I have lost touch with many of my friends both in business and in my personal life.

If I had it to do over again, I would have retained more friendships. One piece of advice I was given as a young photographer, just entering the world of advertising assignments, was not to look a job as a $3,000 dollar day (back then day rates were in'I chose $3,000.00 because that was what I was asking at that time), but rather as a $100,000.00 relationship.

Relationships and People You Genuinely Like
Obviously it is important to keep relationships healthy and alive for one's personal life, but it could be useful to take a look at the role relationships play in our photography business and careers. These relationships range from bankers and accountants to models and fellow photographers to art directors, designers and, yes, even your non-photographer friends. It is important to realize that in a good, healthy relationship you will not be taking advantage of people. I think it is important to cultivate relationships with people you genuinely like and respect'there are plenty of them out there!

Art Directors, Communication Friends and Fun
Of course, it is obvious why you would want to cultivate relationships with Art directors and other clients. It is more fun to work with friends, it fosters better communication and teamwork with a trusted friend can result in better work. But good things can come from unexpected places, and the chances of those good things coming increase with the number of close and positive relationships you have.

Exotic Video Cameras, Helicopters and Blend Images
A close relationship with my primary computer vendor has resulted in the opportunity to shoot with exotic video cameras, and to play with cutting-edge storage systems. A relationship with my knee surgeon resulted in one of my best paying stock shoots ever, using his facilities as a location basically for free. A relationship with a helicopter pilot led to countless opportunities for aerial shooting'and a heck of a lot of fun! And relationships with a couple of my peers resulted in my becoming one of the founders of the stock agency Blend Images (that was a big one'). I have many such stories, but have let many more get away by failing to nurture and maintain relationships that had the potential, but that I neglected to death.

Who You Know, and Things We Can't Imagine
It is sometimes said that it isn't what you know, but whom you know. I think what you know is vitally important, but it often is whom you know that allows you to put what you know into practice. The people you know can provide you with opportunities from locations, to models, to inspiration to guidance to things we can't even imagine.

Nurturing Relationships
How do you nurture those relationships? You give of yourself. You give your time, your enthusiasm and your heart. You do your best to see the world through their eyes. You give them honesty, an ear, and respect. If you do that with no expectation of getting something in return' you will be amazed at what does come back.

Handshakes Challenges And Success As A Stock Photographer

Blend Images, a Recession, and Opportunity
The negative news in the photography world is rampant, and it would be foolish not to pay attention'and not to be concerned. But I can't help but believe that with the tremendous demand for images there isn't also a lot of opportunity. I will come out and say it: There is a lot of opportunity!

Blend Images, of which I am a part of, has just licensed more images than ever...even in a recession year. And they weren't doing it by discounting. As a matter of fact, one of my associates had one sale in Blend's just introduced Rights Managed collection for over $9,000.00.

Don't forget, despite the doom and gloom there are hundreds of millions of dollars being spent on stock images.

Our Challenge as Stock Photographers
There are opportunities'but how do we take advantage of them? One way is to shoot the old tried-and-true concepts, but to shoot them in a new and different way. Let's take the example of a handshake. Kind of makes you cringe, right? I mean if anything has been done to death, overused, and driven into the ground it is the business handshake.

And yet, what better symbol is there for such important and necessary concepts as sealing the deal, agreement, success and teamwork? Handshakes are a quick read and we all get the point. Handshakes really are a necessary image in the business world.

As creative photographers, as artists if you will, and certainly as stock shooters, it is our challenge to take such mundane concepts and take them to a new level.

Photos That Stand Out From the Crowd, And Success
Our continued success certainly depends on our ability to do so. I don't really know if the crushing glut of images will spell doom for the careers of most stock shooters, but I do believe that there will always be success and good rewards for those who can create photos that stand out from the crowd. One problem, though, is getting paid adequately for creating such photos.

It could be that if you create exceptional pictures and put them into micro you might have a volume of sales that justifies the blood, sweat and money that goes into such images. Of course, one danger with that is that you might have every Tom, Dick and Jane copying your better selling images.


No Guarantees, Negotiation and Possibilities
I believe it is a better strategy to put such images into Rights Managed collections. There is no guarantee that whoever is negotiating the fee for the images will do them justice, but there is at least the possibility! Too, if the demand for great images does result in higher fees then Rights Managed can easily step up to that task. Once you release an image into micro, or even RF'well, what's done is done.

Diversification and Knowledge
That being said, I am putting images in both RM and RF. I am staying diversified in as many ways as I think prudent (micro not being one of them'yet*) in order to both minimize the impact of changes in the market, and to have the first hand information of what is selling and for how much.

As they say, knowledge is power'sort of. Whether I put images into RF or RM, I want them, ideally, to be fresh, and filling a definite need in the marketplace. I am positive that if you can create exciting and compelling photography that fills the needs for business, there are ample opportunities for success and for making a very good living.

Call me an optimist!
*A word about micro. I don't mean to bash micro. I don't begrudge the participants of micro. I just don't believe that it is the right business model for me. Micro opened up the stock photo door to everyone and, in a sense, leveled the playing field.

It has forever changed the landscape. It isn't good, or bad, it just is. Heck, some photographers are amazingly successful with that model, and maybe someday it will be more attractive to me, but right now I believe I can earn more through the traditional outlets.

Darkroom Photography Guide To Getting Started

These days, developing film and making prints in a darkroom seems a little outdated. Why would we want to spend hours in a dark, smelly room, sweating over our images and struggling for the perfect print when we can just upload them to our computers, fire up Photoshop, and have a hot chocolate? There's no arguing that digital is more convenient and is growing increasingly flexible as camera capabilities and software options improve, but sometimes it's fun to break it down to the basics and spend a little time in the dark. If you have never been in a photo darkroom before, this is your dark room guide to getting started.
We'll skip developing your film and getting supplies for now and just talk about the actual process.

Making Prints with an Enlarger
An enlarger is exactly what it sounds like '“ a machine that makes your tiny squares of film into large, printed photographs. It does this by projecting light through your film and onto the surface of your photo paper, exposing the light sensitive chemicals buried inside.

In order to print a photo, you'll need to line the frame up with your enlarger's light source, project it onto the blank mat, and ensure it is correctly focused (usually by adjusting a knob on the side). Most darkrooms have magnifying glasses lying around; make sure you can clearly see the grain of your image. You'll need to mess with the exposure timing to ensure the image comes out right, then you should be good to go.

The Chemicals
Once you've decided on the correct timing and exposed a full photograph, it's time to get your hands dirty. Darkroom chemicals have a smelly and distinct odor and will ruin any clothing they come in contact with so make sure to wear an apron or wear old ratty clothes. The chemical process can be broken down into four steps:

1. Developer '“ Soak your paper, which will still be completely white, in the developer. This chemical will activate the photo paper and over the course of a few minutes you'll start to see your image come through. If you don't like the contrast or exposure, just head back to the enlarger and get another piece of photo paper and adjust your timing. Once you have a print you like and it's done developing, move it to the stop bath for a soak.


2. Stop Bath '“ The stop bath will prevent your image from developing any further by neutralizing the chemicals found in the developer. If you have ever been in a dark room, the stop bath is the distinct smell you probably remember. If you want to make sure your print is done sitting in the stop bath, rub your fingers on the paper to see if it will squeak. If it squeaks, then you know the chemicals have been properly stopped. This should only take a few short minutes.

3. Fixer '“ While the stop bath will stop the effects of the developer chemicals, your paper will still be sensitive to light exposure. Fixer is the last chemical in the process so once your print has soaked in this, it can be exposed to light without ruining the image. You don't need to soak your images in fixer for too long, but 5-10 minutes depending on the chemicals and paper is usually a safe bet.

4. Rinse '“ Naturally you'll want to rinse your photos of all the harsh chemicals you've soaked in them. Most darkrooms have a sink of some sort that keeps a continually flowing tub of water for rinsing and you really can't rinse for too long, so leave your images in the rinse as long as you need. While waiting, this is a great time to print other pictures from your negatives!

Once you've enlarged, developed, stopped, fixed, and rinsed your images, set them out to dry in a safe place and come get them the next day. Remember to rinse them well '“ one of the main reasons photographs turn brown over time is chemical left on the print. Pick up your dry prints and put them in a heavy book or photo press to straighten them out. After that, your prints are ready to frame.

The darkroom can seem intimidating, but once you have a bearing on the process you will enjoy printing your own images. It's a wonderful creative outlet and gives you a lot more control over your final images then having someone else print them. Just remember to ask around before turning on the lights!

Fine Art Prints And Symbolism With Lighthouse Pictures & Images Pictures of a Lighthouse

Pictures of a lighthouse are ubiquitous. Pictures of lighthouses range from serene sunsets to images of lighthouses in raging storms. Lighthouse pictures can show short squat lighthouses or shots of lighthouses that are tall, slender and majestic.

Most lighthouse pics are shot by tourists and show the lighthouse in the middle of the day, under placed conditions and with little or none of the splendor or majesty that they deserve.

Lighthouse Symbolism
Lighthouse symbolism is powerful, cross-cultural and universal in nature. We are ingrained from our early youth to see the lighthouse as a powerful source for good, and as such the lighthouse has become highly symbolic in a myriad of ways.

A lighthouse is a symbol of guidance and salvation, of hope and promise, and yet also of danger and risk. It can be used to symbolize the way forward, the future, and even a spiritual path.

Lighthouses in a Storm
Lighthouses are built to protect sailors and ships in storms, fog and conditions that are less than ideal. Picturing a lighthouse in a storm, that is creating an image in which the lighthouse is functioning in the element for which it was designed, accentuates its beauty as well as its symbolism.

A lighthouse storm with crashing waves and lashing rain is a much more dynamic visual and serves to both capture our attention and to drive home those concepts such as guidance, security, safety and the way forward. That lighthouse is going to bring us home safely and on a deep level we find it comforting and reassuring.

Lighthouse History
Though the first lighthouses were probably bonfires lit on the edge of sea cliffs, the Egyptians were the first ones to build them into permanent structures that used light to guide ships. They built the tallest lighthouse ever at 450 feet tall. That lighthouse is said to have lasted for a 1,000 years. It was built on an island in the port of Alexandria on the banks of the Nile.

The Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans also constructed lighthouses. Early modern lighthouses used wick lamps as a light source and their beams could only be seen for a few miles. It was in 1822 that a Frenchman named Augustin Fresnel invented the lens that was destined to change bringing the lighthouse into the modern era.

He devised a way to use prisms to magnify the light. It was in 1841 that the first Fresnel lens was installed in a lighthouse.

Unusual Lighthouses
Boston Lighthouse is an unusual lighthouse because, as the oldest light station in the United States, Congress has declared that Boston Lighthouse always be staffed. Boston Lighthouse is the only lighthouse that is not automated. It is the responsibility of the keeper to light the beacon at night and turn it off at daybreak.

Boston Lighthouse is the first lighthouse built in America, on Brewser Island, in Boston Harbor. First lit in 1716, the lighthouse was destroyed during the Revolutionary War and the tower that stands today was built in 1783.
Lighthouse Images

Lighthouse images can serve both as fine art decoration and as commercially important illustrations for advertising and promotion. Framed lighthouse pictures make great wall dcor for any room, while lighthouse photos, used in advertising and promotion, strike a familiar chord with everyone resulting in compelling messages. Lighthouse galleries can serve both commercial and fine art communities providing a wealth of material for any visual need.

Pictures of Lighthouses
Pictures of lighthouses differ somewhat from images of lighthouses. Pictures refer to simple snapshots where as images can be created and enhanced to emphasize important elements or parts. For example, in the lighthouse stock photos seen below, the storms are created and/or enhanced, the beacons added, and the impact and symbolism dramatically accentuated.

Images of lighthouses are created that could never be captured in a simple picture do to problems of visibility, safety and the limitations of reality. This is particularly true of lighthouse pics that portray night scenes. Lighthouses at night are quite challenging to capture on in a snapshot and can seldom if ever match the image we hold in our minds.

Lighthouse Pictures for Fine Art Use
Any lighthouse picture can be used for wall art and dcor, but given that there are so many incredible pics to choose from, why settle for the mundane? Through Internet searching it is possible to find the perfect lighthouse photo for a framed matted print, whether it is a lighthouse on a cliff, a black and white lighthouse photo, a lighthouse poster or a lighthouse background. When searching for lighthouse pix try using as precise a search description as you can to locate the closed existing image for your particular needs.

Framed Lighthouse Pictures
When choosing a framed lighthouse picture, or a lighthouse pic for use in an advertisement or promotion, or even as a lighthouse calendar or greeting card, it is important to choose images for which the rights are clearly available. You will also need to be sure that the image you choose has the necessary resolution and quality for the intended use. Creating a lighthouse poster will require far more in file size than for a simple post card use.

Lighthouse Galleries
Whether your final desired image is of a lighthouse in a storm, a lighthouse in a sunset, a lighthouse sending its beacon out through heavy fog and mist, or just a lighthouse background, if you search thoroughly and choose carefully you can be sure that the right lighthouse galleries can be found for your intended purpose, with lighthouses of appropriate symbology, and of a size and quality that can deliver your message, or viewing experience, with a strong and satisfying emotional connection.

Personalising Gifts With A Unique Photo Collage

Creating A Photo Collage Yourself
Creating a photo collage is a surprisingly simple process, although the results will depend on your design abilities as well as the selection of photos that you incorporate into the collage. Use software like Publisher from Microsoft, which is even included in their popular Office suite, select the appropriate size of document, and then import your chosen pictures. Once imported, the pictures can be stretched and shrunk or they can be rotated and placed anywhere on the page in order to create highly unique photo collages that have exactly the appearance that you want them to have.

Using A Professional Designer To Create The Photo Collage For You
An alternative to creating your own photo collage is to have one designed for you by a professional designer. This gives the benefit of ensuring that you enjoy the best looking results when the photo collage is transferred to the design of a photo gift and printed. The image is usually printed directly onto high quality satin and HD Satin canvas to ensure the best photo reproduction so getting the collage itself just right is critical to the process

Adding A Photo Collage To Personalised Photo Gifts
Canvas prints are very popular photo gifts and they offer you the chance to print a single picture on the high quality HD satin canvas that is now used. Alternatively, you can use the opportunity to print your professional looking photo collage and enjoy excellent looking results as well as customisation options that other items simply do not offer. Many items can be personalised in this same manner; through the addition of a single photo or a photo canvas.

Montage Photo Gifts '“ Canvas Prints And Posters
The canvas print comes in bespoke sizes and dimensions so if there isn't a standard size to suit your needs you can still enjoy a great looking, personalised item. Posters, like canvases, make great additions to any wall and when combined with the professionally designed photo collage they can be used as superb gift ideas or to decorate one's own home.

Montage Photo Gifts '“ Cushions And Beanbags
Cushions, floor cushions, and beanbags can also be customised with photos and other pictures. The cushion offers the use of your design on the front and the choice of a single colour on the reverse but for a little extra you can add another or use the same design on the back too.

Montage Photo Gifts '“ Duvet Covers And Bedding
Bedding, which includes duvet covers, pillows, and blankets can look great when personalised and spread on the bed. Again, the standard design is to choose a single picture for the front and a colour for the reverse but you can include a second design to make it even more personal.
in Photography

Image Hosting - How To Choose A Host Depending On Purpose

Taking photos has been done either for personal use or for business purposes. People like to take photos when they go on vacations. Businesses use photos for their advertisements. Whichever purpose you have, storing your photos is necessary.

People usually store their photos on their computer. But your computer's hard disk could get full, and thus be unable to store any more photos. If this happens, you'll have look for other ways to store your photos.

One good way of storing your photos is to burn them on a disk. A CD can give you 700mb of disk space while a DVD can give you about 4.7GB of disk space. Disks are pretty cheap nowadays, so storing your photos in it is a good idea. But these disks are easily damaged, so if you don't take care of it, it might have scratches and might no longer be readable by your CD-rom.

So if you don't want to take such risks, then getting your images hosted on a website is your only option. An image hosting website allows you to upload the photos and make it available to the public. An image hosting services are either paid or for free. The difference between the two is the image size allowed and the bandwidth per user.

Choosing between the paid photo hosting service and free photo hosting service can be quite difficult. So if you are having a hard time choosing one, then you should consider the purpose of getting your photos hosted. You need to know the purpose of those pictures - is it for personal use or for business purposes? There is a difference between bandwidth, licensing and download requirements a host issues for a business customer and a teenager. One of the various websites available might suit your needs. Depending on your purpose, looking for websites that offer slideshows feature, flash enhancements and avatar features might be needed. Knowing the purpose is definitely important when choosing an image hosting service. How can you choose a good photo hosting service depending on the purpose? Let's find out.

If the photos are simply for personal use, then try using photo hosting websites such as Flickr, Slide and Photobucket. These websites can give you the opportunity to upload thousands of photos. They also have a variety of editing tools which you can use to make your photos look even better. An assortment of slideshows and flash enhancements are also available for you. They also allow you to share the pictures you uploaded on social networking sites. There are also privacy controls available which prevents peeping toms from viewing your photos.

If the photos you want to upload are for business purposes, then you have to know the type of business you have before uploading the pictures. For example, an auction business would need a large amount of storage for the pictures of items they sell. A pro-am photographer would need copyright protections for the pictures they upload. Knowing what type of business you run would help you know which image hosting service you need

Newsweek Elephant Stampede Cover Photo - Successful Stock Photography

I just found out that one of my Getty Images, a herd of stampeding elephants, is on the March 1st Cover of Newsweek. Fame for a week! What is really amazing to me, and what continues to amaze me, is how easily the market can accommodate multiple uses of an image. Had it not been for Charlie Holland, and a couple of others who pointed it out to me, I would never have known the image was a Newsweek cover.

Stampeding Long Horn Cattle and a Need to Get out More
I have images that have been used hundreds and hundreds of times and have never seen them in use! A couple of months ago Time used one of my elephant images in a spread'never did see a copy of that! Another 'œstampede' image, a herd of stampeding longhorn cattle, has been licensed more times than I can count; yet I have never actually seen it used.

Amazingly, it is very rare that I ever see any of my photos in use. It has only been about a half-dozen times over twenty plus years that I have actually just 'œhappened' on one of my stock photos being used. Maybe I need to get out more!

The Devil, the National Enquirer and Maxim
A photo of me as the devil was used in the National Inquirer'and no I didn't see it while standing in line at the grocery store'someone else did and alerted me to it. The same image was once also used by Maxim magazine. I set a pretty high standard with my self-portrait!

In another case in which someone else alerted me to the use of one of my images, a shot of a fisherman on Inle Lake, in Myanmar, was used on the paperback copy of Amy Tan's Saving Fish From Drowning. The publisher used an image shot by my friend and colleague Nevada Wier (great blog by the way), for the hardcover version. Oh well'

A New York Street Artist
I do remember one time when I personally saw one of my photos being used. I was perusing a sidewalk gallery in New York where street artists were selling their wares. One of them was selling photo prints, including one of my silly animal images. Close inspection revealed it to be a rather poor color copy of one of the greeting cards. I chose not to pursue the matter.

A Lighthouse in a Storm and Success
Another time I was photographing an executive for an annual report. He wasn't being exactly cooperative, until I pointed out that the poster on his wall, a shot of a lighthouse in a storm in a "Success" poster, was one of my photographs. He must have really liked that poster because his whole attitude changed and suddenly he couldn't have been any more cooperative!

Image over Use and Micro Stock
It is with the above in mind that I rarely, make that never, worry about an image being over-used. Of course, over-used is better than over-emulated (using a 'œnice' word there). One thing that would make me crazy if I were in micro stock would be the option people have of seeing which images are best sellers.

I don't think that is good for the company, for stock shooters, or for clients. It has to have some limiting factor on the diversity of a collection. But I digress. I think I will go back to enjoy my brief pleasure at seeing one of my photos on the cover of Newsweek!