Quick Hit Monday: Porsches; Great Baby Photography; Alternative Portraits; Social Media Marketing; HDR, Photoshop and More

Good Morning Everybody,

We had a GREAT time at the Send Off Party for LaDawn's son, Joshua and his fiancé, Kristen.  I have to tell you, the treat of the party was the venue.  It was held at the Taj Ma Garaj, a Porsche museum with models ranging from  the Porsche Turbo to a $450,000 Porsche Carrera GT. It was an unbelievable BEAUTIFUL car to see!

Sunday we headed to Indianapolis to check out the Professional Photographers of Indiana Convention.  We were only there a few hours but we got a chance to catch up with a few of our vendor buddies and visit with some old friends.

During our visit, I was introduced to Bridget Harmon Smith, the vice president of PPI. She had presented a program on how to photograph newborns and I hear she made a great impression on the attendees.  We were hanging out at the H&H booth who was featuring many of Bridget's images.  I got a chance to peak at one of her albums and the photography took my breath away – Congrats Bridget.  Check out more of Bridget’s work right here.

We arrived back home early yesterday evening and head to Lexington, KY for a planning meeting for the KY State Photographer's Association, KPPA, [link].  We're putting finishing touches on our Spring Webcast and our Summer meeting. 

I want to emphasize that these events are open to ALL photographers everywhere in the world and I will certainly give you the details as soon as we have all the details finalized.  I hope you will consider attending these exceptional educational events. 

OK gang, time to get on with our Quick Hit Monday.  You know, I've always wanted Quick Hit Monday to be a set of very interesting links that inspire you, make you think differently, or are just plain interesting to check out.  Today I think I've got a wide ranging collection of eclectic links that I hope you find interesting and enjoy.  Here we go....

Social Media Marketing: Converting Followers to Fans

I don't care what you say, but social media marketing has become an integral part of how we MUST do business these days.  Sure, lots of us have TONS of Facebook friends, whether personal or professional, but how many really are our fans. 

The secret to Facebook business success is converting those friends into Facebook fans.  Here is a link provided by Photography and Business Zenologue to a good article on doing just that.  I think the article content is pertinent to all businesses.  Once again, you can catch the article right here.

A Visit To Crash's Place

My good buddy and fellow blogger always has something new cooking across the great Atlantic.  I've mentioned Crash Taylor here several times at DPT.  Not only is he an award winning wedding photographer, he also has been developing some pretty insuring content with his "Interviews With Crash" series [link]. If you've missed any of them, you can find the entire enlightening series right here.

Well, recently I received an email from Crash asking me to take a peek at some new ideas he was  experimenting with.  I found them emotionally provoking and very interesting - not your typical wedding images.  They were a bit more on the "dark side" but I mean that in a creative sort of way.  Here is the link to his Studio 3b site which features many alternate stylized wedding and portrait images.

The point I want to make this morning is this.  Crash is stretching himself in new and different directions.  It's something each of us should constantly strive to do.  By doing so we enhance our own creative thinking processes and keep ourselves relevant in our field.  Heck, looking at Crash's work, his new direction may even open up brand new doors of opportunity for him.

The point as I said, is to stretch, change, experiment - keep those "brain juices" crankin'.

DAZNOTE: Don’t forget to check out “The Still Image With Crash Taylor” too – amazing imagery right here.

HDR Fans - Unite!

Ok, if you are a regular reader of DPT, you know I'm a fan of HDR photography.  But, here is the interesting fact - I have hardly ever made an HDR photo.  Anyway, I stumbled upon a link right here to some amazing HDR images featuring Airports of Asia.

Be sure to explore the main site Hongkiat.com for tons more of cool links right here.

More Photoshop Tips And Tricks To Entertain You For Days

I love when I find one of these sites – with tons of Photoshop links and examples.  I only wish I had more time to explore them. 

 Looks like I need to set aside some more weekend surf time to check them out.  Anyway, the site I mentioned above is chock full of Photoshop goodies.  Check them out right here – looks like lots of fun tips and techniques to explore – Enjoy!

Wait, there’s more.  Head over to Photoshop Roadmap and check out their post “100 Wonderful Photo Effects Photoshop Tutorials” right here. It’s going to take me more than a weekend to get through all of these ;~)

Get The Most From Your Speed lights

Don’t miss Syl Arena’s new post at Speedliting.com.  He’s got a 4 part series that Canon Europe picked up for their site and Syl has reposted it here.  Want to get the most out of your shoe mount strobes – get all the info right here!

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Hey gang, I’m running out of time. I need to jump into the rental and get heading to Lexington, KY for my meeting.  (Yes, I’m still looking for a replacement vehicle. Unfortunately, LaDawn wouldn’t go for that Porsche!)  Enjoy today’s links and have a great day.  I’ll plan to see you tomorrow for another episode of Technique Tuesday.

See ya’ then,  David