VIsual Storytelling Seminar Can Help You Boost The Impact of Your Videos

While the technology used to produce films and videos is changing rapidly (putting more power in the hands of more people), the core principles of visual storytelling have not changed.

For an intense, educational overview of the artistic elements and core principles of cinematography, check out The Visual Storytelling Tour. This series of full-day seminars (9 am to 9 pm) will be presented in 31 cities from June 3 to August 4.

 

Oscar nominee and Director of Photography of the Saturday Night Live Film Unit Alex Buono will show you how to dramatically increase the impact of your films.

“I’ll show you how I deal with working in a fast turnaround environment like Saturday Night Live while still delivering my best work,” says Buono. He says you can do the same whether you shoot commercials, movies, documentaries, weddings, corporate videos, or live events.

Designed for both DSLR and Cine-style camera users, the workshop will teach you advanced techniques for lighting, lens selection, blocking, camera movement, audio, workflow, camera settings, visual structure, and more.

The seminar lasts from 9 am to 9 pm and covers topics such as

  • Scripts
  • Location Scouting
  • Shotlisting and Storyboarding
  • Equipment and Crew Lists
  • Camera Settings and Camera Movement
  • Microphone Types and Placement
  • The Media Management and Workflow
  • Getting a Cinematic Look with a DSLR Camera
  • Shooting with a Cine-Style Camera
  • Visual Design in Filmmaking
  • Visual Storytelling

 The Visual Storytelling Tour will be presented in the following cities:

  • Minneapolis, MN: June 3
  • St. Louis, MOi: June 5
  • Columbus, OH: June 7
  • Chicago, IL: June 9
  • Detroit, MI: June 13
  • Boston, MA: June 15
  • New York City: June 16
  • Newark, NJ: June 20
  • Philadelphia, PA: June 22
  • Washington, DC: June 23
  • Charlotte, NC: June 25
  • Ft. Lauderale, FL: June 27
  • Tampa, FL: June 28
  • Atlanta, GA: June 30
  • Baton Rouge, LA: July 7
  • Houston, TX: July 9
  • Austin, TX: July 11
  • Dallas, TX: July 12
  • Phoenix, AZ: July 14
  • San Diego, CA: July 16
  • Irvine, CA: July 20
  • Los Angeles, CA: July 21
  • Las Vegas, NV: July 23
  • Denver, CO: July 25
  • San Jose, CA: July 27
  • San Francisco, CA: July 28
  • Salt Lake City, UT: July 30
  • Portland, OR: August 1
  • Vancouver, BC: August 2
  • Seattle, WA: August 4

If you can’t enjoy the experience in person, you can order a set of DVDs that includes the entire content of the tour’s Cinematography Workshop and Visual Structure Seminar. The DVD set also includes the book “The Visual Story” by Bruce Block.

LINK

Visual Storytelling Tour with Alex Buono

 

DigiFest South Seeks Artists, Exhibitors, and Entrepreneurs

digifestlogoDigiFest South, a digital arts festival first held in Shreveport-Bossier, Louisiana in 2012, is seeking artists, exhibitors, and entrepreneurs to participate in its second annual digital technology exposé and arts festival September 20-21, 2013. DigiFest South celebrates how digital technology combines with artistic creativity to shape modern society.

DigiFest South seeks the most innovative and progressive artists, companies, organizations, and educational institutions to showcase their contribution to the digital age and inspire young minds to seek careers in the digital media industry. Registration forms can be found online at www.bossierarts.org.

DigiFest South 2013 will feature:

  • Technology Exposé Floor Show
  • Digital Industry Workshops and Panels
  • Video Game Design Competition
  • Phenom Film Festival
  • Digital Media Presentations
  • Digital Art Exhibition
  • Digital Music Concert

All entries for digital art, display booths, and entrepreneurial pitches must be submitted by June 29.

New for this year’s event, DigiFest South will host a variety of programs in downtown Shreveport. CoHabitat Shreveport, a collaborative workspace located in downtown Shreveport’s riverfront entertainment district, will host a digital economy symposium and other DigiFest South-affiliated events throughout the weekend.

Digifest2012Pic

Events at CoHabitat Shreveport will include several workshops, panels, and talks centered on digital media, including panels on how to continue building a digital media infrastructure in Louisiana, business planning, and an angel investor pitch event. Also new for the 2013 festival, DigiFest South will present a digital music concert underneath the Texas Street Bridge in downtown Shreveport.

LINKS

DigiFest South

Facebook: DigiFest South

 

Adorama Offers iPhone Photography Accessories for Summer Adventures

AdoramaLogoAdorama, one of the world’s largest photography, imaging, video and electronics retailers, has become a leading destination for iPhone photography accessories. Their iPhone Toolshed offers unique and useful accessories for iPhoneography including tripods, cases, lenses and filter kits. In the Adorama Learning Center, you can learn techniques for shooting photos and videos on your smartphone.

Just in time for summer, Adorama is promoting iPhoneography accessories such as waterproof cases, bike mounts and solar chargers. With these accessories, no moment needs to go undocumented, whether you are backpacking on rugged trails, splashing around in the ocean, lounging by the pool, riding a jet ski, or sleeping under the stars.

Adventure-Ready Gear in Adorama’s iPhone Toolshed Includes:

OtterBox Armor Series Waterproof Case for iPhone 5: A reinvention of the wildly popular OtterBox classic, the OtterBox iPhone 5 Armor Series protects against water, dust and crushing force. A strong combination of metal latches, an O-ring seal, port covers and mesh coverings keep water out, making the case completely waterproof while still allowing for full functionality.

GOBlogAdoramaWaterproofSleeveThe Joy Factory BubbleShield Reusable Waterproof Sleeves for Large Smartphones, 5 Pack: These reusable sleeves can keep your phone safe from water, sand, and splatters. The super-strong, magically thin covering enables full touchscreen capabilities, is sound permeable and keeps phones photo-ready. A carabiner loop can help keep your phone safe while on the move.

The Joy Factory aXtion Go Rugged Water-Resistant Case for iPhone 5: This thin, lightweight, shock-resistant case is dust-, oil- and mud-proof and resists spills, bumps and scratches.

Aryca Wave 3 Waterproof Case for iPhone 5: Wave 3 protects against water, sand, dirt and other elements that can damage a phone when on the go. Its hard outer shell also provides shock absorption for extra protection. The transparent silicone membrane gives you full access your favorite features including the iPhone camera.

GOBlogBikeMountKitAryca Bike Mount Kit: This kit provides a way to secure your smartphone onto a bicycle, motorcycle, or jet ski. Bundled with the Wave 3 Waterproof Case and the Aricase Adapter, the iPhone can be snugly mounted and used for anything from capturing action shots to keeping tabs on location using the phone’s GPS.

Aryca Floating Lanyard Wrist Strap: The Aryca Floating Lanyard Wrist Strap is designed for use with the Aryca Wave 3 Waterproof case. It keeps the iPhone from sinking, and is a must-have whether you’re spending a tranquil day floating down the river or going white-water rafting.

LifeProof Fre Case for iPhone 5: This case protects phones against water, dirt and shock. It can be submerged in water up to 2 meters deep for 30 minutes or withstand being dropped from heights up to 2 meters.  With speaker ports designed to provide optimal sound and the perfectly clear optical glass covering over the camera, iPhones perform at prime conditions while remaining safe and sound in even the most rugged situations.

Wagan Tech 2558-5 Solar e Charger™ with Built-in Li-ion Battery: When your adventures take you away from electrical outlets, this device lets you use the sun’s powerful rays to recharge your mobile devices. The built-in Li-ion battery fully recharges in five to eight hours via the sun, and in two to three hours via an AC adapter.

Eton BoostTurbine 2000Eton BoostTurbine 2000: The Eton BoostTurbine 2000 is a durable back-up battery pack with a 2000mAh lithium ion battery and a hand turbine power generator that provides power when it’s needed most. In just one minute the hand turbine power generator can produce enough power for an urgent 30-second call or a few critical texts. BoostTurbine 2000 is made of tough but lightweight aluminum and is compact enough to fit in a pocket.

“With the warm weather rapidly approaching, people are ready to get out of the office and enjoy the sun, and they want to have their phones with them when they do. Luckily, there’s something for everyone in the iPhone Toolshed, so iPhoneographers will never have to miss a photo op this summer,” says Brian Green, vice president of marketing, Adorama. “These products have been carefully selected by Adorama’s expert team of photography and mobile specialists, and are the perfect accessories for all types of summer activities. Users can stay connected, capture awesome action shots and summer memories, and use their phones’ GPS and other apps to enhance the outdoor experience – all while keeping their iPhones safe and sound from the elements.”

LINKS

Adorama

iPhone Toolshed

Adorama Learning Center: iPhoneography

 

Davey’s Book Explains How to Build a Bulletproof Art Career

BarneyDaveyArtMarketingBookARTISTS. You don’t have to leave it to chance that you will meet the right people who can either buy your art or influence others to buy your art. By effectively using synergistic (and inexpensive) marketing tools and techniques, you can gain control over your career.

That’s the heme of Barney Davey’s new book “Guerilla Marketing for Artists: Build a Bulletproof Art Career to Thrive in Any Economy.”

His ideas take into account that the old ways of getting art seen and sold aren’t as effective as they used to be. But as Davey explains, “What is refreshingly different is you now have the tools to call the shots, to control your destiny, and to reap the rewards.”

In the book, he explains how to deploy easy-to-use networking and marketing techniques that systematically will create a solid base of of collectors who will buy from you directly.

Davey believes that over the course of a career, a full-time artist can build meaningful relationships with at least 100 collectors and create 1,000 original pieces (33 originals x 30 years). An artist who cultivates a base of 100 collectors may sell one-third of more of their original works to those patrons. And, as Davey points out, “Many of those dedicated collectors will be the source of invaluable and profitable referrals for the artist.”

Artists who form close personal bonds with art buyers become immune to the effects of a lousy economy or faltering distribution methods. Artists who build direct sales connections with collectors will lead the pack during good times, and thrive in tough times.

Starting the process requires you to:

  • Set realistic, achievable career goals
  • Target the best prospects to buy your work directly
  • Understand thoroughly your existing art business and art resources
  • Determine which traditional and digital marketing tools are best for your situation
  • Focus your marketing on selected projects

In the book, you will learn how to break down your goals into easy-to-complete incremental steps so you can stay motivated. You will also learn how to make each element of your marketing strategy synergistically amplify other elements.

Selling-Art3If you order your copy from Davey’s website, you can get a free bonus e-book: The Zen of Selling Art: Essays on Art Business Success. In this e-book, Davey has collected some of the best advice he has given artists on selling art since 1988. Many of the tips come from his Art Print Issues blog and art-business articles he has written for Art World News and Art Business news magazines. The Zen of Selling Art makes the point that if you are successful selling art on a routine basis, you will enjoy a more balanced life and be able to use some of your income to do good things that wouldn’t be possible if you continue to work for subsistence.

LINKS

Art Marketing Book: Guerrilla Marketing for Artists by Barney Davey

About Barney Davey

The Zen of Selling Art: Essays on Art Business Success

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Book on Selling Art Discusses Link Between Money and Happiness

 

Word Templates Help Indie Authors Avoid Book Composition Errors

WRITERS. A new website, BookDesignTemplates.com, offers a selection of Microsoft Word templates for creating beautifully designed, industry-standard book designs. The templates can help you avoid rookie mistakes in formatting books for self-publishing.

The templates were created by book designer Joel Friedlander and independent author Tracy R. Atkins to help authors avoid common mistakes such as misplaced page numbers and running heads, no hyphenation, and inconsistent formatting.

“D-I-Y authors might think that their readers don’t care about such things, but think about all of the book professionals who might have something to say about your book,” says Friedlander. “I’m thinking of book buyers, reviewers, distributors, journalists, media bookers, and all the other people you may need for your promotion plans. They’ll see these kinds of errors right away.”

BookDesignTemplates

Some of the templates on the new website are well suited for fiction and memoirs. Other templates are meant for more complex non-fiction books that might include footnotes, tables, bullet points, and diagrams.. The site offers templates for books that will be printed in hard-copy form by print-on-demand services as well as specialized templates for e-book publishing.

With the template, you simply strip out the sample text that comes with the file, and replace it with your own manuscript.

Each template design is a fully formatted Word file with “master” pages for your text, chapter openers, title page, copyright page, and other front matter pages. In addition, you get a “Book Construction Blueprint” that tells you how the parts of a book go together, and the “Template Formatting Guide” to show you how to use the template. Also included are the fonts needed for the template, ready to install on your system, and access to a tutorial library that shows how to put your book together.

Three types of licensing are available, depending on whether you want to use the template for a single book, for multiple books, or to help multiple authors get their books ready to print.

For more information on book design and self-publishing, check out Joel’s blog, The Book Designer or online course The Self-Publishing Roadmap..

LINKS

BookDesignTemplates.com

The Book Designer

The Self-Publishing Roadmap

Survey Says Creative Pros Can Seek Higher Starting Salaries

A new survey by The Creative Group suggests that talented creative professionals who accept an initial job offer may be leaving money on the table. More than six in 10 (63 percent) advertising and marketing executives interviewed said they are at least somewhat willing to negotiate compensation when extending a job offer to a top candidate.  Only 28 percent of respondents said they are not.

TCG_GRAPH_Negotiation_US

The national survey was developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service for interactive, design, marketing, advertising and public relations professionals. The survey was conducted by an independent research firm and is based on more than 500 telephone interviews — approximately 375 with marketing executives from companies with 100 or more employees and 125 with advertising executives from agencies with 20 or more employees.

Advertising and marketing executives were asked, “When extending a job offer to a top candidate, how willing are you to negotiate compensation?” Their responses:

  • Very willing:  23%
  • Somewhat willing: 40%
  •  Not very willing:  14%
  •  Not at all willing: 14%
  •  Don’t know/no answer: 9%

“Job seekers often have more leverage than they realize when negotiating a starting salary,” said Donna Farrugia , executive director of The Creative Group. “Businesses that have gone through the process of selecting a top candidate are motivated to hire that person, even if they have to sweeten the deal.”

Farrugia warned, however, that salary negotiation conversations are delicate and can easily go off track. She said, “Applicants who thoroughly prepare are more likely to have positive outcomes.”

Common Mistakes in Salary Negotiations

The Creative Group offers five common salary negotiation mistakes and how to avoid them:

Showing up unprepared. Enter negotiations with a solid understanding of current salary trends for your position and location. Review compensation sources, such as The Creative Group 2013 Salary Guide, to ensure you have realistic expectations.

Playing games. Tactics such as misleading a prospective employer about your current salary or other job offers in an effort to obtain higher pay almost always backfire. It’s better to be honest about your situation.

Making it all about you. Don’t base your request for a larger starting salary on the fact that you want a new car or bigger down payment for a home. You’ll make a much more compelling argument by talking about the value you can bring to the organization.

Viewing money as the only object. Salary is just one part of the equation; a generous benefits package or opportunities to learn and grow with the company may compensate for a lower starting salary. Look at the full picture when evaluating a job offer.

Drawing a line in the sand. Giving ultimatums too early in the process may cause negotiations to fall apart. Instead, look for common ground and avoid taking an adversarial stance. How you conduct yourself during the negotiation process sets the tone for employment with the firm, and you want to start on the right foot.

LINKS

The Creative Group

The Creative Group 2013 Salary Guide

 

Guide Shows How to Use iPad for Both Photography and Photography Business

iPadforPhotographers-DerrickStoreyIn his new guide, “iPad for Digital Photographers,” photographer Derrick Story explains many different ways an iPad can support your photography and your photography business. For example, you can use the iPad as a portable portfolio, editing tool, and payment-tracking system.

“The iPad is a terrific tool for photographers because it allows us to travel much lighter than carrying a laptop around,” said Story, “Not only is the iPad good for quickly uploading photos and editing them, but also for helping us keep up with our day-to-day business needs through email access, invoicing, and scheduling client appointments.”

In the guide, you will learn how to:

  • Use your iPad to schedule client appointments, accept payments, sign model releases, and track business expenses.
  • Make on-the-fly edits when using the iPad on location.
  • Use Apple’s iCloud or other cloud services such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
  • Show your portfolio on an HDTV.
  • Make time-lapse movies.
  • Use weather, mapping, notes, checklists, and reminder apps.

The information is organized in ten chapters:

  • Chapter 1: Adding Pictures to Your iPad
  • Chapter 2: Organizing Your Photos
  • Chapter 3: Editing Your Photos
  • Chapter 4: Transferring from the iPad to a Computer
  • Chapter 5: Transferring from the iPad to the Cloud
  • Chapter 6: Presenting Your Mobile Portfolio
  • Chapter 7: Shooting, Editing and Sharing Movies
  • Chatper 8: Take Care of Business
  • Chapter 9: Transporting an iPad and Camera
  • Chapter 10: Tips for the Road Warrior

Published by Wiley, iPad for Digital Photographers is now available for purchase online and at retailers nationwide in both print and all e-book formats.

LINKS

Wiley: iPad for Digital Photographers by Derrick Story

iPad for Digital Photographers