We're stoked to bring you savings on something you need.  If your website shows up as a little blue square (you know the one!) on iPhones, iPads, or any future iProducts...we've got the solution.  Read all about the iFolios goodness, then use code RAD to save 20 buckaroos when you purchase.

--



iFolios has developed an iPhone-friendly website template for photographers that can easily be added on to your existing website. Once everything is setup your smartphone traffic will automatically be detected and redirected to your mobile site where visitors can check out your work, learn more about you, and drop you a note.

Updates are easy and stress free because iFolios has integrated its site template with WordPress' ultra user-friendly content management system. Features include editable site logo, home page image, page names, background color/texture as well as various WordPress plugins allowing neat things like the ability to embed videos that you've uploaded to YouTube! The site also includes the ability to create unlimited galleries and there is no limit to the number of images that you can add to each gallery.

Ready to talk turkey? The Self-Install package only costs $89, but you're responsible to do the setup on your own (step-by-step instructions are included in the product kit). Or, you can upgrade to the Assisted Install package for $159 and the iFolios team will install WordPress on your server and setup the mobile browser detection so all you have to do is upload your images and add your page content. Lastly, if you're digging it but you just don't have the time you'll want to go with iFolios' Full Service Installation where they'll install WordPress, setup the mobile browser detection, and build out your entire mobile site using content and images (about 20-25) from your current website.

BE SURE TO GET YOUR TOTALLY RAD DISCOUNT OF $20 OFF by using the coupon code RAD at iFolios' checkout.

To see live examples of some really great photographers using iFolios, or to learn more about the product you can visit their website: http://ifolios.mobi.

Our favorite camera-wielding writer/Tweeter/media-maven Leigh Caraccioli shares a super-fab article about keeping your photography fresh and...well, Kung Fu-ed on the blog today.
 
Super-awesome photo recipe [shown above]:

Minor tweaks in ACR
Lux @ 22%
Select-O-Sharp @ 70%
Get faded (autumn) @ 21%
+ Contrast @ 38%
Boutwell's Magic Glasses 100%

Remember your first snipe hunt. The earnest but futile hunt. The dupe.

As hunters and gatherers our biological makeup has us seeking, yearning for personal evolution. As photographers, we see the world differently and want to depict it breathtakingly.  So the hunt, the quest for improvement is always on.

Sometimes I think I didn't choose photography; it chose me. Perhaps you share that deep yearning to share your vision of the world, the view in your mind's eye and the rare beauty you see through the lens. If so, you know being a photographer is a creative calling and consuming passion which keeps odd office hours.

Forgive me for sounding certifiably nuts, but whenever I go for deep thoughts, I hear Jack Black as Kung Fu Panda. Yeah.  It's bi product of my watching the movie a million times with my kids and there was a time when I alluded to canons of English Lit instead of DreamWorks but JB makes me belly laugh. So I am using him to help illustrate this point.

Po: [breathing heavily] I know you're trying to be all mystical and Kung Fu-ey, but could you tell me where we're going?

We're going on the search for the jar of secret ingredient, of course.  As an industry we're searching for that photography special sauce, that perfect camera or piece of glass, the workshop that will make you a Kung-Fu photography master, the perfect storm of a shot, the perfect action or preset, searching for THE THING that will make you the super shooter you dreamed of being?

Well, stop.  Hear me out. {Cue in the Panda & his noodle soup making father.}

Mr. Ping: The secret ingredient is... nothing!
Po: Huh?
Mr. Ping: You heard me. Nothing! There is no secret ingredient.
Po: Wait, wait... it's just plain old noodle soup? You don't add some kind of special sauce or something?
Mr. Ping: Don't have to. To make something special you just have to believe it's special.
[Po looks at it again, and sees his reflection in it]
Po: There is no secret ingredient...

Sure, we have photography tools that function as savory ingredients to our images.  Some tools are essential for me like all the Totally Rad Actions which I use on nearly every photo. I may go out on a limb and assert that they ARE special sauce with their unlimited TRA recipe possibilities, uniquely tailorable so that you can use them AND maintain your individual style.  The challenge lies in not letting them take over the soup.

Many photographers don't know yet that they already HAVE the secret ingredient.
 

The secret ingredient is...you. Specifically, your belief in you.

Nearly four years ago, while getting to know my way around my first digital camera I reached out to fellow writer/photographer, Joyce Smith, for sage advice. Believe me, I needed it. I was all over the place, trying on varied styles like a fashionista at risk of being a cheap carbon copy of those I admired.  She kindly told me, "trust your gut." Her cryptic advice gave birth to my photography in a way that a simple tool or training couldn't.  That was the reveal for me. I put trust in my instinct, believed in my own personal style, and my business immediately took off.

It's sometimes that simple, like Secret Ingredient Soup. While it's easy to want to produce photographic art like the masters in our industry for a moment.  Let that moment pass.  My advice to you is to believe in your individual style, trust your gut like a divining rod. It will lead you well. And in the words of the panda,

Po: They're five MASTERS, and I'm just ONE me!
Shifu: But you will have the one thing no one else has!

I believe in you. Go fulfill your destiny.

-Leigh

--

Mostly I'm a storyteller, armed with a camera and a blog. I enjoy people. Shooting weddings, personalities and their personal brands for fleur de leigh photography makes me a lucky girl.

 

Cathy Empey is many things, lots of them wonderful, but mother of six and boudoir photographer are such a fun mix that we'll focus on those.  Enjoy her article about time management (which I suspect she knows a thing or two about...)

--

In my life, there are two things that I can state with absolute certainty and strength of conviction.  One: when you have six children, the laundry will never really be finished.

Yes, you can do load after load of it every single day in two wash machines that sit side by side, groaning with the effort of the constant spin cycle. Yes, you can fold it up and put it all away, but within a day 6 kids will have blown through a combined total of a minimum of 12 outfits, and that means you start all over again the next day, right back where you started.

The second thing I am absolutely sure about? Time is fleeting. To me, time is more precious than money.

The passage of time is why I am a photographer, if only to capture, even for a second, the very essence of a moment.

Time management is often something that corporations talk about in staff meetings, drilling away at their employees to put their noses to the grind stone, stop surfing the internet, and get down to some real productivity. I think, as does any other working mother, that time management is something uniquely related to raising children. My ability to handle my own family, laundry and all, and my growing photography client list have given me a unique perspective on juggling all of the stuff related to growing a business and growing a family.

First?

Focus on your priorities.

It's all about priorities, good or bad. Finding out what can wait, even for an hour, can make or break an entire day. Can you put something off for a day or even until 10 pm when all of the kids are in bed? Prioritize your day, even to the smallest task, so nothing is left to sweep under the rug. I tend to keep lists, many, many lists, and I leave nothing to chance. It eliminates the middle of the night panic attacks when I realize that I have forgotten something, and helps me make choices that can benefit my children as well as my photography business.

Finding an area of specialization for your photography and honing in on that is key to organizing your business.

If you try to photograph all things, you'll never attract the right clients and you won't ever grow as a photographer. When searching for an area of specialization, find something you can be passionate about. Connect with other photographers in your area and work together to find referrals for each of your specialties. Not unlike finding the right friends to complement your lifestyle, finding the right photographers to represent your growing brand is key to growing your business and moving it forward. If they don't help you grow a referral list you can be proud of and you can't imagine shooting a session with them, don't choose them as part of your inner group.

Social networking has become a photographer's best friend, and it is intrinsic to growing and organizing my photography business. I'm a huge user of Twitter, and I tend to retweet and comment on ideas that I find interesting or that my followers will enjoy. I use Hootsuite to tweet from both of my Twitter accounts, which eliminates the need to flip back and forth between screens. I send love out to my followers and those I follow in blog land, because this has become the new format for a chat and coffee with a friend. I compliment other photographers often, because the kind words I send out are often reciprocated with kind words back, and in the middle of a difficult day, even a virtual hug or pat on the back means the world.

Learning is everything. Always keep learning. Photography is not static; it is a process that constantly evolves. I have taken workshops and I swear for every workshop I have attended I have learned something new and exciting that has propelled my photography to new heights. Learning something new opens up the floodgates of creativity. Apply that to your business and watch it grow. Yes, taking workshops and putting yourself out there can be scary, but change is good and so is occasionally being scared.

Any photographer knows that to take fantastic photos, you have to do more than just click the shutter on the camera. Good photos come from within the photographer. In that light, I try to smile a lot. Smile through the rough patches, you never know who may be watching you. Keep your sense of humor intact, despite trial and tribulation. Take breaks and laugh as much as you can.

Exercise as much as you can, even in 10-minute blocks.

The endorphins you release can also release creativity. You will feel better about yourself, your mind can clear away the cobwebs, and your heart will thank you. So will your family.

Time is fleeting, and it's hard to juggle everything that I need to juggle in one day while still maintaining a great photography business and spending quality time with my family. This is why it is so essential that photography, for me, is about sending out good feelings and having them come back to you.

If you exude good feelings about your family and your business, those good feelings will come back in one form or another.

--

Although most would know her as the smiling face behind the camera, Cathy is proudest of her role of a Mom to her six growing children. Based in Chilliwack, BC, she is an excellent juggler of both home and her growing boudoir photography business, as well as a defiant decorator with a love of white despite 12 hands that constantly need cleaning.

I was pondering what to blog today when this recipe popped into my inbox...timing is everything!  Enjoy this super-simple, super-stunning Photoshop recipe by The Connellys of Charleston, SC.


This recipe shows off a little-known feature of the Totally Rad Actions: if once isn't enough, run the Photoshop action again! 

Lights Out @ 100% (x2 -- run this action twice!)
Wish You Were Here @ 90%
Punch-out @ 100%
Punch-out (again!) @ 50%

Lights Out can be found in the Original Totally Rad Action Mix, while Wish You Were Here and Punch-Out are a part of TRA2: The Revenge. 

Want more recipes?  Hit up our Photoshop recipes site. 

While many of us can relate to working from home and leading a decidedly unbalanced life, what about the next step?  What about hiring employees?  That's another adventure entirely, and one Laura Novak shares tips for navigating today.

--

Entrepreneurship is a roller-coaster ride of an adventure.  With the smallest of companies, or the largest or organizations I have come to believe the success (or failure) of a business has almost everything to do with the people who work there.  This is especially true of service companies such as photography where almost every customer interacts with the employees.  Over the years I have spent time reading, studying and researching all sorts of companies, fascinated with what works and what does not.  

When I think about the degree to which I feel I have matured as a business owner, I think that managing employees has been the biggest area of growth for me.  When I first started out, I was doing everything myself - like many photographers, and when I eventually felt as though I had enough money and work to justify having help I hired a few people to assist.  At the time I was living in a two bedroom apartment, running the business out of one bedroom and living in the other.  People would ask if I worked from home, and I joked that instead I lived where I worked since most of the apartment was dedicated to the business.  I rarely went out with friends; I just worked, spent time talking shop to a few other photographers, and interacted with employees.  

Because of the lack of balance in my life, as I grew I desperately wanted my employees to like me and be my friend. I think this is very natural for any new manager.  But particularly because I was missing a balanced social life outside of work, I tried to create it within my business - all without even really realizing it.

Now, almost six years later; two studio locations (both outside my home), 10 employees and a rich, balanced social life outside of work including a wonderful marriage, I have come to realize that the worst thing a manager can do is try to become friends with their employees.  Yet, so many of us insist on it because of what we are missing within ourselves.  Employees need a leader, they need someone to set boundaries and goals.  Someone to provide rewards for meeting goals and consequences for not meeting expectations.  They need someone to respect, and if friendship or a friendly relationship comes out of that - great!  But the primary relationship has to be a motivating one to the employee for them to enjoy their work, and while friendships are fun and cool, they are rarely motivating within an employee/employer relationship.

Through six years of managing people I have whittled down to just five tips to managing employees:

    * Communicate your values and what you expect of your employees as often as possible.  When people suffer from unclear expectations they either become bored or unhappy at work - or both!  
    * Stop caring if they like you.  Just like with being a parent, a child's unhappiness often comes from parents who are more interested in being their child's friend than being a parent.  Instead, be a good leader and they will like you by default, but if your first priority is to have them be your friend; chaos ensues, leadership takes a back seat, and employees often become unhappy.  
    * Create a vision for your staff that is exciting and take a personal interest in their goals and aspirations.  Help them get to where they want to be someday, even if it's outside of what your company can offer.
    * Hire people with shared values (such as integrity) so you are on the same page.  Ask your employees' opinion whenever possible and incorporate their feedback into what you do.  
    * Take the time to hire happy, positive people and quickly eliminate negativity with warnings or termination.  I believe, with great conviction, that negativity amongst employee(s) almost guarantees a company's failure and that a positive, enthusiastic work environment tied to a clear vision is exponentially powerful.


So just to be clear, I am not saying to create a bureaucratic, militant, environment where authority rules and there are no personal relationships.  But I am saying that your first priority as a manager is to be a leader, create a vision, communicate expectations, establish processes, set up rewards, listen carefully, eliminate obstacles, and fiercely protect your culture and values.  Your second priority is a personal relationship, and with strong leadership a friendship often naturally evolves as a result of the mutual respect between yourself and your employee.  And if it doesn't that's ok too.


~~

Laura Novak is a photographer, artist and entrepreneur with studios in Wilmington, Delaware and Glen Mills, PA.  Her businesses Laura Novak Photography and Little Nest Portraits have received lots of press and awards that you can read about on their sites if you would like to do so.  

Laura teaches a fantastic portrait workshop with Kimberly Wylie and Brianna Graham called Living the Dream and has a website dedicated to helping photographers' businesses called Strategy Avenue.