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First off, it’s pretty incredible how far back the Timeline goes. In fact, the first thing I realized was that I probably wanted to polish up a few things before all of my past photos, tags, and posts were on public display for everyone.

My first impression however is that I really like the large banner photo at the top of your profile. In fact, this made me think that Facebook is now directly going after the blogger market by having a similar appearance as current blog headers. You could even go so far as to create a custom image header and use that as your timeline banner. I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing some of this in the very near future as more people adopt the new layout.

My next favorite is the larger photos on display. This is a great opportunity to display some of your current work with large colorful images.

However, as always with Facebook, privacy is a big proponent of online controversy. So, I’m taking a moment to remind you some simple steps to control who sees what on your new Facebook Timeline.

First, go to the down arrow on the very top right of your profile. Clicking on the Privacy Settings option will bring you to this page:

Here you will be able to select individual settings for how you want to control your privacy. Facebook has recommended certain settings, however I prefer a little more privacy as I’m sure you do as well.

Click on “How to Connect” and you now have full control over your privacy for each way you connect with people on Facebook. Here is how I have my settings configured:

This allows me to still let people know I’m on Facebook, but without letting them see absolutely everything about me before I have a chance to connect with them.

Continue through the different options to personalize your privacy settings. You’ll find very specific options, such as allowing people to tag you when checking in to Facebook Places, or allowing you to review any photos you’re tagged in before your friends on Facebook can see them.

Facebook is a wonderful tool to network with colleagues, as well as stay connected with family and friends. Rather than jumping on the naysayers bandwagon about losing privacy on Facebook, take the time to figure out your privacy preferences. Take control and make Facebook work for you.

This post is brought to you by Collages.net.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE NEW FACEBOOK TIMELINE? POST YOUR COMMENTS AND RESPONSES BELOW…

I’m always open to flexibility with my wedding prices. When this bride had expressed that the wedding was to be very small, only about 40 people or so, she asked if there was any opportunity for some sort of discount. Usually, I only get about one in five brides asking for some amount of pricing flexibility, so I wasn’t really set back by her request. Also, because I was feeling really good about this bride, I included bridal portraits at no additional cost.

As time came closer to doing the bridal portraits, it became apparent that our schedules wouldn’t line up. After going back and forth a few times, it looked like her dress wouldn’t be ready until a few days before the ceremony. Therefore, I offered to exchange the bridal portraits for engagement portraits instead. Suddenly, the bride was perturbed that we wouldn’t be able to do her bridal portraits. She explained that she already had plenty of photos of her and her groom, but really wanted to do the bridal session. I explained to her that I understood her disappointment, however it wasn’t possible to do her session just a couple of days before the ceremony and have enough time to pick out a portrait to have printed in time for her wedding day. She requested that I take the price of the bridal portraits out of the wedding package that I had created for her. Also, although the bridal portraits weren’t included in the package she paid for since I had given them to her as a gift, the best I could do would be to do an engagement portrait session. I explained that she didn’t pay for bridal portraits, therefore I couldn’t refund them to her.

She agreed to the engagement portrait session and things went better after that. We had a great time shooting great photos of the happy couple and enjoyed great conversation while doing so. Soon after, the wedding day came and I shot the wedding event just like I always do, except this time I was shooting solo because of the smaller intimate gathering than the typical size of most weddings we cover.

As far as I could tell, everyone was having a wonderful time, I was getting great images for the bride, groom, their family, and their guests. However, after the proofs were online for them to view, I received a very heated email from the bride expressing her disappointment in the number of images captured, as well as her feeling like there were many “missing” images. I explained that due to the fact there was only myself shooting that day, the number of overall images would be less that if we shot with two shooters like we normally do. Also, I explained that if there were any images missing, it were the images that were either duplicates, out-of-focus, or not exposed properly. This didn’t satisfy the bride as she persistantly requested that I send them all of the images I captured that day.

Soon afterwards, she asked to schedule a meeting to go over the images for the album. However, this meeting turned into nothing more than a barrage of complaints about pre-conceived shots that the couple had in mind that I had missed (which by the way were never brought up or requested by the bride and groom prior to the event). Also, there were complaints about why I wasn’t capturing a certain moment over there while I was busy capturing moments over here… and so on and so forth.

Here’s the point of my long story. Rather than letting my adrenaline get the best of me and passionately defending myself against their claims of my inadequate skills as a professional wedding photographer, I chose to listen. That’s right, I just looked them in the eyes while they complained, ranted, and listed out all of my faults as their wedding photographer, and sat quietly. At times, I even said things like, “I’m sorry you feel that way” and “I can understand your disappointment”. Even with my statements, I wasn’t lying about what I said. I truly felt sorry that they felt this way.

As post-wedding negotiations still ensue, I continue to maintain a professional and sympathetic approach to this rather tenuous situation. Why? Because this is how business gets done. Yes, we are creative and unique individuals. But there are times where you must realize that part of your success is also about maintaining professionalism and customer service. In fact, the situation has progressed to the point where we’ve dissolved the contract, I’m refunding their wedding package minus the deposit, and I’m moving on. Why? Because, no matter what I do for them, they won’t be satisfied.

Cut your losses. It’s not the most enjoyable thing to have to do in business. However, there are times when you have to step back and realize that you can’t let your pride, ego, or your emotions run your business. The backbone of business is built on numbers, and you can’t manage your numbers if you let the emotional side of your business take over. Yes, there are plenty of times when your feelings enhance the client experience, making your business the personal touch that clients love. As time goes on, it’s apparent that there are many other problems this client is dealing with, and I was just one of them. Rather than dragging out the situation and trying to make it work, sometimes its better to realize that it just isn’t working. Don’t let your clients walk all over you just for the sake of making them happy. There are just some people in the world that you will never make happy. And it’s your job as a professional to know how to deal with the wrong clients.

This MpactPhoto.com post is sponsored by Animoto Pro.

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After much going back and forth, I received an email this morning that read:

Hey Dustin,

Thank you so much for your help with all this. We are still looking for someone that would be spending close to $4-5000. So, I don’t think we will be coming to the shoot this Saturday. But thanks again for your and McKenna’s family’s help. If any other clients come up in the near future….please let me know!

Best,

Inside Edition

Of course, I was a little perturbed. Not only was my senior portrait client excited about the prospect of being on national television. I was also disappointed that Inside Edition was clearly out to just run a story on the price of my portraits, not the value of them. So here was my reply:

Hi Inside Edition,

Thank you for informing me. However, it’s important that I mention something. Here’s my original quote from the Austin American Statesmen:

“Our average sale for a senior is $1,200 to $1,500, but some parents have spent up to $5,000,” Meyer said.

As I also mentioned over the phone, I can’t predict what our clients will spend after the initial purchase of a portrait package. Frankly, it’s also rude to contact my clients and ask them how much they plan on spending for one of our portrait sessions. Inside Edition has been so hung up on this price of $5,000 that you’re missing the bigger picture.

I know that senior portraits are still rather new on the west coast, however it’s been a long-running tradition in our area. Rather than sensationalizing how much people are willing to spend on for portraits of their graduate, your story should be about our services that help seniors realize the true beauty of their individuality in a society that pushes false beauty during a crucial changing point in their lives. We provide a service that boosts their confidence, gives them a personalized experience, and produces exceptional imagery. You can’t put a price on that.

When I teach other photographers at national conventions and photography workshops, I tell them the same thing every time: “There are those people who will only see the price and then there are those who will see the value in your services.”

That being said, there’s a missed opportunity here on your part to do a story on something bigger than just pricing. Celebrating the individual teenager in a time when there’s so much pressure to conform to an unattainable standard of beauty and popularity. We do something much bigger here than just getting our clients to spend their money. However, I understand that in broadcast media, it’s easier to tell a story about the numbers rather than the bigger picture.

We would love to work with you, but I understand where you’re coming from. The door is always open if you change your mind.

All the best,

Dustin Meyer

Needless to say, I was disappointed. However, I felt it was important to educate someone, especially a national news and entertainment show, the difference between price and value. So when it comes to pricing, how are you presenting your products and services. Do your customers only see the price, or have you shown them the value of you?

This post is sponsored by Kubota Image Tools.

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So, to make a quick overview of the main features of Google+, here are some “pluses” that are worth noting:

1. Circles- Much like your network on Linked In or your Friends on Facebook, Circles on Google+ are a way to collect connections from people and organize them into groups. The main concept is that you can have one person occupy more than one circle, allowing them to overlap and create a complex yet manageable  network. Also, the visual drag and drop user interface makes adding people to your circle that much easier. Also, when you share posts or photos on your Google+ profile, simply choose which circle you wish to share it with. This makes it very easy to determine who sees your crazy late night shenanigans, and who doesn’t.

2. Hangouts- Rather than having schedule FaceTime meetings or appointed time-slots for Skype, Google+ Hangouts enables you to do just that. Hang out. While logged into your Google+ profile, users can start a Hangout session, letting other users know they are available for video chat. This allows for more spontaneous visual/audio conversations, allowing for more casual and relaxed communication with people in your circle.

3. Sparks- Much like searching for something on your favorite search engine, Sparks allows you to search for topics that interest you. The added bonus is you can bookmark the topics, and check back regularly for newly updated dynamic content in your searches. Think of it like the tabbed topics navigation bar on CNN.com, only comprised of topics that are of interest to you. When you click the “Share” link on the article, it posts the snippet to your Google+ profile, allowing other users to chime in on your Spark with their own opinions.

4. Photos- What would a social media sharing site be without photos? Google+ makes it easy to import images from your computer, from your Google profile, or even your Picasa account. And much like other sites, you can tag friends in your photos, comment on them, and organize them into albums. So whether you’re using Google+ for more personal endeavors or to blatantly self-promote your business, you have the capability to categorize your images to do both.

5. Huddle- If you’re familiar with instant messaging, Huddle is like having a group for your instant messages with the people in your Circle. So, much like having a personal chat room, Huddle allows you to collaborate with project team members, or just decide on what movie you want to see with your group of friends.

Although it’s still in it’s infancy, Google+ shows a lot of potential to become a powerhouse for social media interaction for users on a global scale. Where I see the potential for Google+ to really take off is by utilizing Google Translate into it’s interface, allowing international users to communicate across language barriers. And yes, I also see lots of potential for privacy issues, but then again if you sign up for a social media sharing site, that’s exactly what you’re getting… sharing. So whether you see it as Big Brother or as a new channel of social communication, Google+ has entered the scene in a big way.

ARE YOU ON GOOGLE+ ? DISCUSS SOME OF THE WAYS YOU ENJOY USING IT, OR SOME OF YOUR ISSUES…

However, one of the previous drawbacks was that you didn’t receive any notifications when a guest posted a comment in the plugin. For those of us that understand the importance of monitoring what goes on your site, this is a necessity. But this morning, as I began my daily social media rounds, I received a notification in my Facebook profile that informed me another user had also commented on the “link” that I had commented on (aka my Facebook Comments plugin).

When I clicked on the notification, it didn’t bring me to another section of Facebook where I could see what the person commented. Instead, it took be directly to my blog where I had inserted the comments plugin.

My first instinct is that this is not a new feature of the comments plugin. Instead, it’s a result of my having “Liked” every person’s comments that were put into the plugin by each user who had commented on the blog post. So, as a result, I received a notification when that user had made an additional comment after my own.

The moral of the story? Although Facebook Comments still has a ways to go, there is indeed a workaround to receiving notifications when people post additional comments on your blog post. It may not be the complete solution, but it’s a start.

HAVE YOU TRIED FACEBOOK COMMENTS? POST YOUR THOUGHTS AND QUESTIONS BELOW…

Today’s lighting tip is something that I think many of photographers tend to overlook during the rush of wedding day shooting… available light.

Sure, sun flare and the shady side of buildings are great. But what about other places you are forgetting? How about the great indoors?

When I walk into a bridal room and say hello to the bride and her family, the first thing I do is turn off all the lights. Of course, I make sure there are plenty of windows open. Why do I do this? First off, it removes the unnecessary task of trying to balance multiple light temperatures. Secondly, windows are wonderful light sources, acting as large soft-boxes. Sure, you may get some strange looks. But if you show them a sample shot after the lamps are off, they’ll be amazed.

The photo to the left is a simple bridal portrait. The windows are to my right and slightly behind me. Notice, the chandeliers in the background are not lit. Again, it eliminates that unnatural tungsten glow while allowing the softer more natural light to become the main light source for the image. There were no light modifiers used in taking this shot. Just a simple analysis of where the light was coming from and shooting from the best possible angle.

Too many times we are in such a hurry to get the perfect shot, and too many times we feel as if we must control every aspect of every image. However, I challenge you to let go and find your photo-mojo. Go with the turn of the universe rather than against it. You’ll find that beauty hides around every corner and shines through every window pane.

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So, as a 5-time veteran and 2-time speaker, I’m here to be your WPPI 2011 Charlton Heston with a few tricks to make sure you make it back home without looking like you just finished shooting Pat Benatar’s “Love is a Battlefield”.

1. Drink plenty of water. Sure it sounds obvious, but you don’t realize just how much moving around you’ll be doing. It’s a huge convention with two full-sized tradeshow floors with workshops and classrooms on multiple levels. We’re talking a proverbial Mecca of photography-dom! Besides, if you’re not familiar with the Nevada desert climate, you’ll learn soon enough that the dry desert air will suck any moisture out of your body pretty quickly.
2. Pack light. I see it every year. Some people want to wear their prize Canon 1D MK III around their neck the entire convention as if they were a prize turkey. What they don’t realize is that carrying around 20 extra pounds around your neck all day isn’t like shooting your regular wedding. Try it for 12 hours straight for 5 days!
3. Beware of dead zones! For real though, lots of photographers love their iPhones. And up until recently, iPhones were only available on AT&T 3G. Therefore, if there’s innumerable photogs with their beloved iPhones at WPPI, you can bet your signal will fizzle. So, if you’re not starving for 3G speeds, change your settings on your phone to not use the 3G data network. Your voice and text capabilities will work perfectly, and your phone battery will last much longer.
4. Day vs. night… shoes. Seriously, this should go without saying. Aside from the enormous long hallway between the tradeshow and the MGM casino and hotel, there’s plenty of pavement to pummel with your shoes. That being said, bring some very comfortable sneakers for daytime. Afterwards, hop into your favorite heels for your night time adventures.
5. Cash is king. I’m not talking about gambling, I do enough of that every time I fly Southwest. Just kidding. Anyway, the WPPI tradeshow is among the largest displays and sales facilities for the newest and hottest photographic gear. And the vendors know it. So, their providing plenty of deals and discounts that you can’t find anywhere else. So, if you’ve been waiting to buy a certain lens (Canon 50mm f1.2 L), now is the time to do it ;)
6. Did I mention water…? Of course, this applies again, because as we all know, Las Vegas has plenty of drinking and socializing. I’m not saying you shouldn’t enjoy yourself. Just remember to rehydrate for the next day’s adventures.
7. Be social. Some of the best friends you’ll make will be made at WPPI. I keep in touch with all my buddies from every year I’ve attended. And the best part is that we all share business secrets and techniques without the restriction of fueling our local competition! So get gabbing!
8. Twitter is your friend. I don’t even know who text messages anymore. It’s all about direct messages, mentions, and push notifications. With everyone on Twitter, there’s no reason not to be. With geo-location, photo uploading, hashtags and more, you’ll be “in the know” before it happens. Meet-ups, memories, and mayhem are all being recorded on Twitter. Just do a search for #WPPI and join in.
9. Empty your mind. Some of the best minds in the photographic business are at WPPI sharing what they know on how to make your studio thrive. So, take advantage from the sages and achieve your inner photo-ninja.
10. Have Fun! Yes, it’s a learning experience. That goes without saying. However, when else do you have the chance to hang out with great people and have some fun?

With that being said, I hope you all have a wonderful time and learn something new. See you there! -Dustin Meyer

POST YOUR COMMENTS OR LINKS TO PHOTO-SHARING SITES  WITH YOUR FAVORITE WPPI PHOTOS!

-Dustin Meyer

SnapKnot is a website dedicated to helping engaged couples find the perfect wedding photographer. SnapKnot is photocentric, showcasing the work of photographers such that a bride can compare and contrast style and quality side-by-side. Couples can select their location and budget range and browse through photographers who match their criteria.

SnapKnot was founded by Mike Rheaume and Reid Warner. We were freshman year roommates at Dartmouth College and have remained good friends since. Reid was married in 2007, and he and his wife had a very frustrating experience trying to find a wedding photographer. They spent a lot of time and effort in their search, only to be disappointed time and again by photographers they liked who they later discovered had prices that were out of their budget.

Because of that largely frustrating experience, Reid felt that there was a better way for couples to start their search for a wedding photographer. This is how the SnapKnot idea started. Mike used to work for a small marketing firm in Boston, and was looking to use his knowledge and experience in a new venture. We jumped in with both feet from there!

We launched the site in February of this year and have experienced tremendous growth so far. We currently have 1900 photographers on the site worldwide. This makes the site a great resource for just about any couple planning a wedding in either the US or abroad.

We place particular emphasis on connecting photographers with couples via social media marketing with our presence on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, and Flickr.

SnapKnot makes it easy, fast, and fun for couples to find and contact photographers who match their criteria.

We offer Free and Premium memberships. Read about the different features for each.

For those interested in trying out the Premium service, we are offering a special discount code for MpactPhoto readers: DUSTIN50 (offer ends Feb. 28th, 2011)

Sign up and enter this code to receive 1/2 off your first month of Premium service: Try us out today! (offer good for new Premium accounts and upgrades only)

Please leave a comment below with any questions or general feedback, and also do not hesitate to email us: contact@snapknot.com