This is a guest post by Andrew “Fundy” Funderburg, the creator of the Fundy Album Builder and Fundy Album Proofer. Please check out the free trials available at http://www.fundysos.com. If you were looking to design albums yourselves, I highly recommend Fundy's products.

I firmly believe that fine art albums are the finest representation of good photography available wedding and portrait market. They allow the photographer to to create a family heirloom that can be handed down through generations. In the age of digital where hard-drive crashes and the fact that DVDs and CDs erode over time, a fine art album is one of the few ways to truly preserve the story of the day. A finely crafted leather album printed on true photographic paper will last, literally, hundreds of years.

I want all of my clients to preserve their photos in fine art albums. Yet, with the cost of the album, plus the cost of design, these can be significant investments for clients. So, the question is, how can we help more of our clients choose these albums, which we firmly believe are the best way to preserve their story, their day and their family's memories.

Tip 1 – Show more albums

This may seem like a no brainer, but people only buy what they can see, touch and feel. I've hear of photographers complaining that they never sell anything beyond a 10″x10″ album. But, later I find out that they only show 10″x10″ albums and give the option to upgrade the size. But the client can't know what a 12″x12″ or 14″x14″ feels and looks like without holding that album. In the studio, photographers need to have samples of each and every size they want to sell.

Tip 2 – Show big and fancy

Samples should be big and fancy. Have at least one sample of the largest album your album company offers. If they offer a 12×18″ album, get a sample of it. To keep costs down, only put in the minimum amount of pages (usually 20 pages). If your album company offers cool metal covers, get one. If you like those cool, expensive plexiglass covers, get a sample. By offering larger albums with fancier covers, it validates the cost of the regular leather albums. And it shows to the client, the fine art capabilities your studio has to offer.

Tip 3 – Tell clients what “most” people are buying

Clients usually only get married once (well maybe twice) in their lifetime. For the most part, they don't know how to get married. They don't know what they should do with their photography, they don't know how to preserve it, how to show off their day. For portrait clients it's basically the same. Senior photos are taken once in a lifetime. Families usually only have nice professional portraits done once or twice before kids are grown up and out of the house. It is part of our job description to let them know what we can do and what other clients are doing. Tell them that “most people are getting an album like this.” or “An 8×8″ cloth covered album is our most popular portrait album.” or “A lot of people are getting our new leather options.” Let them know this information during the consultation or on the day of the shoot. People need to digest this information and see pricing before viewing the images. If you design beautiful albums, they will want one, but they need time to justify the cost.

Tip 4 – Shoot for the Album

If we, as photographers, need to shoot differently if we want to sell more albums, versus, individual prints. Albums are all about telling stories. If we have one fantastic shot, we need to take supporting shots. This philosophy is ingrained in most wedding photographers, but the same philosophy needs to be adopted by portrait photographers. When you have “the shot” set up, also take accent shots from different angles and with different lenses. A shot with a long lens, cropped into the subject may have a great accent shot with a wide angle showing the landscape around the subject. So, shoot once, move around and take 3 more shots.

Tip 5 – Use albums as hooks in your packages

If you want to sell more albums, make them the centerpieces of your packages. In all of your wedding packages offer album credit. In wedding packages, album credit usually works better than actual albums (e.g. a 30 page 10″x10″ album). With so many sizes and options to clients for wedding albums, credit allows clients to create their own ‘dream' album without confusing upgrade options. For portrait albums, using different sizes in different packages works well. For example, a 5×5, an 8×8 and a 10×10 option in three different packages. Additionally, you can offer upgraded covers (e.g. leather) in larger packages.

Tip 6 – Break down your workflow

Albums are big projects, especially when you get over 40 pages. They involve not only the design, but also the proofing of the album to the client. When designing albums, I have pre-made folders with page numbers on them (e.g. 0203) and I drag the images for those pages into their own folders. This helps me organize each spread separately and speeds up the design process. For proofing the album, I realized that proofing needed an organized, visual solution and that is why I created the Fundy Album Proofer. I did the same with my Album Builder. I needed an organized way to make gorgeous, high-end albums. When you choose your software tools for albums, make sure that they fit your workflow and will not only help you produce and proof gorgeous albums.

Tip 7 – Know your profits

While this is not necessarily related directly to selling more albums, it will affect your ability to provide albums in the future. If you are not charging enough for your albums, you'll quickly get bogged down in the work of offering albums and they will quickly become a drain on your business instead of a boon to your business. Add all of your costs together, the cost of the album, the cost of the extra pages, the cost of designing the album (the cost of your time to design the album) and the cost of meeting the clients and proofing (again, the cost of your time). What most photographers forget is to do is charge for their time. But we don't want to work for free, do we? Take all of these and add them together. Now, the PPA recommends a maximum of 35% cost of goods. This means that for every $1 you make, it should cost you no more than 35¢ to produce. The easy way to calculate this is take all of your costs, add them together and divide by 0.35. For example, if it costs you $350 to produce an album, you should charge around $1000 for it. If you are on the higher end of your market, you can go smaller, for example 25% or divide by 0.25.

I hope that these tips help you sell more albums and helps your clients discover the joys of having a fine art album for generations to come.

Yes, Fundy does have a Black Friday sale. So, click the image below to get 30% off of all his cool album making products. {affiliate partner}

This is a guest post by Ingrid Spangler. Ingrid has been involved with photo sharing and social media (before it was called social media), with an account on Flickr going back to 2004, and before that was active on Fotolog and Fotola for two years. She has been with AdoramaPix for over 3 years, and is responsible for all the social media, as well as copywriting, promotions and marketing. She has been an avid photographer from the time she was a child, and studied film at Temple University in Philadelphia, where she learned to shoot on a Bolex 16mm movie camera as well as studying film theory and visual aesthetics. Some of her favorite all-time photographers are Lee Friedlander, Robert Frank, and Harry Callahan. Currently, Ingrid says, “I'm just crazy over Matt Eich and Noah Kalina. I'm lucky that in my job I get to see lots of photographs and I'm constantly inspired by the work I see rolling out of our printers everyday.”

Choosing an online lab for your print fulfillment can be overwhelming. There are a lot of labs out there, how do you wade through all the choices and find the right lab for your clients' images?

Start by asking what is most important to YOU. Is it price? Is it quality? Is it a wide selection of products? Is it having access to knowledgeable customer service?

Of course I'm sure you've answered that ALL these things are important. You want the highest quality materials and print quality at the best price. You want to be sure that you have access to someone who has the power to make things right if there is ever an issue with an order. Is it possible to get everything you want in one lab?

Store and More

Let's start with the order process and the website's ease of use. I'd look for a lab with plenty of storage for your images and the ability to share links directly back to your images. This is important because you want to be able to maintain your images for as long as your clients are going to want to order copies. This could be indefinitely! Lots of clients may come back a year or more after a wedding or portrait session to reorder prints for themselves or as gifts; you won't make a sale if their images have expired and/or are no longer available.

Try Before You Buy

Does the lab offer test prints? This is important for a couple reasons. First, it allows you to experience the order process, if it's difficult or not user-friendly, now is the time to find out, not when you have sweaty palms and a deadline looming. Test prints will also allow you to gauge turnaround time and how well your potential lab keeps you informed of your order's progress. Do they let you know when your order has shipped? Do they provide tracking numbers, if applicable? Do they let you know in a timely manner if there is a problem with your order?

Your test order should also give you the chance to try out the various papers and processing options that the lab offers; compare what a glossy print versus a matte print looks like. Do they offer color corrections and how do those affect your images?

Will or can the lab print your studio name or copyright information on the back of the prints? How does this show up?

Control

It's not just a Janet Jackson song. What kind of control does the lab give you over your images?

Cropping

As you know, digital images are often in different proportion than many traditional print sizes. If the aspect ratio of the image file does not match that of the print size chosen, how does the lab deal with this discrepancy? Ideally, you should be able to control the cropping, if necessary, or at the very least see how the lab will print the images.

ICC Profiles

Does the lab offer ICC profiles? With a properly calibrated monitor, profiles allow you to soft-proof your photos and see your images the way the lab will print them. Profiles (along with a calibrated monitor) are the key component in maintaining the most control over color and what your final printed images will look like.

Auxillary Products

Can you do one stop shopping for prints, photobooks, canvases, etc?

Quality

This is probably the most important thing to look for when shopping for a lab. What good are all these other options without quality materials and quality personnel producing your prints?

Are you familiar with the reputation of whatever brand of materials are used? If not, do you like the way the prints look and feel? Is there a good choice of different kinds of papers for different types of images? Do they print in-house or outsource? Is there some kind of quality control in place?

How is your potential lab's customer service structured? Can you get to a living, breathing person on the phone (or instant messenger, live chat, etc.) if you need to? If you have a question or if there is an issue with your order, how is it handled? Are the customer service agents knowledgeable? Ideally, they should work in the lab (not be outsourced), understand the workflow and know the products offered inside and out.

The bottom line is that your reputation is only as good as your photography and people will judge your photography mostly by the prints they see.

Your clients will see your images for a short time online or in print when they see proofs, but they'll live with them for a much longer time. Make sure they have good thoughts about you whenever they look at their prints by choosing a lab that does justice to your photography!

Get $10 in print credits when you sign up with AdoramaPix – http://www.adoramapix.com

Syl Arena is known around the world as much for his colorful persona as he is for his colorful hair. He freely admits that he has long been obsessed with light.

For the past year, Syl has been writing and shooting the Speedliter's Handbook which will be published later this fall. His first book, LIDLIPS: Lessons I Didn't Learn In Photo School is a collection of micro-essays on the philosophy of photography.

Each spring and fall, Syl travels the country teaching Speedliting seminars and workshops. He is also the founder and director of the Paso Robles Workshops. You should follow him on Twitter especially because he is giving away one lucky Tiffinbox subscriber a seat at one of his lighting workshops. Scroll down to read details about that awesome opportunity.

In case we've not met before, you should know that I'm a flasher… a long-time flasher. And I'm not shy about it. I am not one of those only-flash-when-it's-dark flashers. I like to flash in broad daylight. In fact, I often flash when the sun is high overhead and everyone can see me. The fact that it's really bright outside has never stopped me from flashing.

If you're not a flasher, ask yourself “why?” Is it because you think that flashing is wrong, or because you're shy, or because no one has ever showed you how to flash, or because you tried flashing once and didn't like the experience?

“I don't flash because…”
I’m always amused (and often concerned) when a photographer says, blogs, or Tweets, “I don’t use flash because…

“I'm a purist and only use available light.”
First, there is no such thing as pure photography. Every photograph is an abstraction. No photograph is a perfect record of the entire moment that passed in front of the photographer. The mere act of pointing the camera at one part of the scene and not another is artificial. The activation of the shutter at one instant over another is artificial. The conversion of light into long series of numbers or into layers of dye on a transparent substrate is artificial. The manipulation of digital files in a computer is artificial. The re-creation of the light on a computer screen or piece of paper is artificial. So, I see no reason to limit one's actions because of a philosophy that is as artificial as the actions it rails against.

“I don’t need flash because I can always turn the ISO up.”
Let's be honest about this one. Crappy light at ISO 12,600 is still crappy light. For a painter, having more colors does not automatically make one a better artist. It's knowing how to work the paint with a myriad of strokes that adds depth to the painter's ability to express herself. Photography is no different. A better digital sensor is no substitute for learning how to see and use light.

“I always shoot in bright light, so I don't need flash.”
If you think the main use of flash is to provide light when there is none, then you're missing out on half the world of flash. No camera today can record the full range of brights and darks that the human eye can see. Photographers often avoid shooting under full sun because details are often lost in the shadows. Even in full-auto mode, today's digital cameras and flashes are brilliant at adding just the right amount of fill light to reduce the contrast of the shadows. The brighter the ambient light, the greater the need is to add fill light to the shadows somehow.

“Flash limits the shutter speeds that I can use. A sync speed of 1/250″ is too slow.”
High-speed sync (aka: Auto-FP sync if you're a Nikonian) is a Speedlite-only mode that enables you to shoot at virtually any shutter speed. So, lighting your subject with a Speedlite means that you can use a fast shutter speed to freeze high-speed motion or to saturate the sky by underexposing the ambient. Contrary to the popular myths, you can't do HSS with studio flash. Nor is a neutral density filter a good substitute. For more details on HSS, check out these articles: Simple Truths About HSS, Dimming The Sun – Part 1, and Part 2.

“Flash is unreliable. It changes from frame to frame”
Even among shooters who like to flash, there is the concern that the automatic flash modes (E-TTL for Canonistas and I-TTL for Nikonians) are unreliable because the flash power changes. Well that's exactly what E-TTL / I-TTL is supposed to do: change the power. When your flash is close to your subject, then you need less light from it than you do when your flash is farther from your subject. While these auto-flash technologies are not perfect, they can be amazingly useful in situations, like weddings, where the subject-to-flash distance is always changing. The real root the problem is a lack of understanding by the photographer about how the camera meters for flash — which is especially tough at a wedding where in one frame the bride in her white gown is the dominant element and in the next frame the groom with his blackhole of a tux is the dominant element. Learn how your gear works and the consistency from frame to frame will improve dramatically.

“Flash always looks bad.”
This should be re-phrased as “On-camera flash often looks bad.” It's not the flash, it's the location of the flash that kills the shot. Anytime the dominant source of light goes right down the axis of the lens, then your subject will be lit equally on both sides. Without any shadows, there is no depth to the image — no shape to your subject. You don't need flash to flatten a shot; stand with the sun straight behind you and the same flat light will happen. When it comes to crafting great light with flash, the position of the flash and how you modify the flash is key. So, a bare Speedlite locked in your camera's hotshoe is a tough way to craft good light.

“Flash looks artificial.”
Once you move beyond the issues with on-camera flash, another huge complaint against the look of flash is that it does not blend with ambient light. The color temperature of flash is about the same as daylight at noon. If you light your subject with flash indoors under tungsten light, the ambient-lit background will appear very orange or your subject will appear very cool. Likewise, if you are using flash to fill shadows at sunset, the fill light will be very cool and unnatural. In both of the situations, the use of a CTO gel on the flash will change the color temperature of the flash so that it blends into the ambient more naturally.

So, while I'm proud to be a flasher, I believe that flash is just another tool in my toolbox. My photos go out into the world without me. What matters to the viewer is the light that was captured within the frame — not how it got there.

Other Articles I've Written About Flashing (Particularly Small Flash)

15 Insights For A New Speedliter

It's Where You Put The One Speedlite You Have That Matters

Deciding How To Start With Off-Camera Speedliting

Consider ZOOM To Be A Speedlite Modifier

Deciding Between E-TTL and Manual

Shadowing and Other Revolutionary Ideas

Twitter Contest: Learn To Flash ByTweeting To Win A Seat

PRIZE

Win a seat at any of my upcoming two-day Speedliter’s Intensives (value $200)

• Seattle, Oct. 2/3
• Boston, Oct. 30/31
• Austin, Nov. 6/7
• San Francisco, Dec 4/5

RULES

1. Follow @Syl_Arena on Twitter.

2. Tweet this exactly:  Hey @Syl_Arena I want to learn to flash at the Speedliter’s Intensive http://bit.ly/coPPUC. Contest on Tiffinbox.org > http://bit.ly/dsGLsP

3. Contest ends at 1:00pm PDT, Thursday, September 30, 2010.

4. One winner will be selected at random by Tweetaways.com and announced via my Twitter account Thursday afternoon.

5. Multiple Tweets will disqualify you from the contest.

6. The prize is the ticket to the Speedliter's Intensive. Transportation, lodging, meals, that lens you've always wanted, etc. are on your own nickel.

7. You can give the registration code to a friend if you want to attend the Speedliter's Intensive yourself.

After the success of the “Name The Tune” contest, where I gave away two incredible photography-related books, I am doing it all over again. This time, though, I am giving something away that is much bigger.

Some months back, I randomly won a Twitter-based contest that Arizona-based photographer and teacher Mark Wallace and PocketWizard hosted.

I won the MiniTT1 (Transmitter) for Canon and the FlexTT5 (Transceiver) for Canon. They are both part of the PocketWizard ControlTL system. Here are some videos by Mark Wallace showing you how the system works.

If you are looking for an off-camera TTL flash solution, the ControlTL is one option.

Here is a video of Mark Wallace and friends pulling my name out of the hat:

Ok, so, I won. But my excitement lasted only so long until I found out that this system is currently only available for the Canon Speedlite system. PocketWizard swears that the Nikon version is coming and is in the midst of beta testing. Fingers crossed that they do deliver soon. As a Nikon shooter, I am salivating, but I also do want them to work out all the bugs before those units ship out.

Mark and I talked about this conundrum and the solution was simple – I would give it away. I finally received the NEW units and now want to spread the love. You in?

This is what I need you to do. It's not as simple as naming a tune this time.

STEP 1

I want you to sing the first three sections of the song, “Don't Stop Believing” by Journey into a video camera and share it with me/us. Are you still with me? I did say I was going to make this fun, right?

Here are the words to the first three sections of that epic tune:

Just a small town girl
Livin' in a lonely world
She took the midnight train
Goin' anywhere
Just a city boy
Born and raised in South Detroit
He took the midnight train
Goin' anywhere

A singer in a smokey room
A smell of wine and cheap perfume
For a smile they can share the night
It goes on and on and on and on

Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching
In the night
Streetlights, people
Livin' just to find emotion
Hidin', somewhere in the night

(song continues)

STEP 2

After you record your video – it can be on your camera phone or a Flip video camera, or even something more elaborate – share it with me/us through Twiddeo. You will require a Twitter account to get started there.

STEP 3

Twiddeo will create a link after you upload your short video. Remember all I need to see and hear is the first three sections of the song – what you see above.

Use the link you are provided in a Tweet and follow this format:

I just sang “Don't Stop Believing” for @PicSeshu's Tiffinbox.org contest – “YOUR UNIQUE LINK” – #PocketWizard #Tiffinbox Please RT!

STEP 4

Drop a comment below saying you are in or you think this is the craziest thing you are going to do to win these PocketWizard units. Your thoughts count!

STEP 5

There is no Step 5. You are done. Go drink a beer or wash your hair out if you used way too much hair spray in the video [grin]

I'll look at every single entry and judge them for creativity, humor, quality (no, you can't totally suck and think you can win this) and enthusiasm. Cool?

Not that I am counting, but the total value of this giveaway is $425.00. Winner announced on June 3 – happens to be my parent's 43rd wedding anniversary! – so, bonus points if you create the video that wins AND sends them your wishes in the comments section below

Here are some other important things to keep in mind:

1) Only one winner will be announced (be a Canon shooter or else these units will not work for you)

2) These units are brand, spanking new and are as such the responsibility of PocketWizard if they fail to operate

3) Shipping and handling will be covered by me, so rest easy this isn't some scam to fork over $39.99. No, Ginsu knives will not be part of your package.

4) You are free to blog, Tweet or otherwise announce to the world any number of times about this contest but see #1

5) This contest is good only for those living in the US & Canada. Sorry, the frequencies may make it impossible for them to work anywhere else (I really don't know for sure) and I don't want you to be disappointed. Yes, I do care about ya!

6) The winner is obligated to share images shot with this unit for a future guest blog post (hey, you will get a link back so, it's a good thing) where she/he can also review it freely (giving it a yay or nay vote – totally up to you)

So, what do you think? Are you still in? Let's get rolling folks. I want to see what you come up with and so do a lot of other people.

If you sense there are holes in the way I have presented this contest, some kind soul please tap me and let me know so that I can correct it right away. And if I am breaking any unknown laws by conducting this contest, I ask for forgiveness now and plead complete and total innocence.

Who knows there might be more goodies to give away in the future. So bookmark the site, subscribe to the newsletter, Tweet about Tiffinbox and spread some good vibes in whatever way you would like. This site is for photographers around the world.

Thank you for playing. Don't stop believing in Tiffinbox!

That's right, I am an Apple lifer. Over the last 20 years, I have bought a number of Apple computers. I am a huge fan of their operating system, their user interface, their attention to design and packaging … well, essentially, everything that Apple has produced. Nearly everything. For the record, I did not buy those multi-colored iMacs when they came out. They looked like igloos on drugs. When the iPhone came out three years ago, I stood there salivating and watching my watch as the seconds ticked down on my Sprint contract. When I finally got an iPhone, I wasn't disappointed, save for the battery consumption issue which still leaves me smarting.

In about 10 hours, Apple is set to launch a tablet-like device. Will it do for book authors and newspaper publishers what the iPod did for the music world? How will the new Apple tablet (iSlate, iPad or iTablet as it may be called) revolutionize your life? Comment below to let me know.

I am visiting India at the moment, but the new Apple device will be one of the first things I will check out when I get back to the US. I look forward to reading your thoughts on this potential game-changer.

If you are really intrigued by this launch, point your browser to Mashable and watch for their commentary.