If you take a moment to think about it, Mario Masitti is right. Lighting, posing, editing, sales, and marketing are all topics that are critical for portrait photographers.

Over the last five years, Mario has taught photographers the in's and out's of portrait photography – both the craft and the business.

Five Courses In One

After making multiple individual courses available, Mario recently bundled them all up for you, the portrait photographer.

The Modern Portraits Master Course by Mario Masitti is a bit of a monopoly. You get Mario's take on Lighting, Posing, Marketing, Editing and Sales.

Go ahead and click the links above to explore each of the options. You'll notice that they are each marked at $94.99. But you can score the entire course – all five “modules” – for only $394.99 (and if you are quick, you can get 25% off that price when you use the code: NEWYEAR25.

Variety & Depth

I haven't seen anyone offer so much under one banner course. And, if there are such an options out in the interwebs, I suspect it costs twice or thrice as much.

Poking into some of the course material, I can tell you that the master course has a ton of visual examples; photographs from actual photo shoots with clients and links to videos, where Mario talks you through situations that you will encounter. Each module has its PDF ebook to go with it, so you never feel left out in the cold.

The Modern Lighting course, for example, includes a 56-pae PDF ebook, a 25-minute supplmental lighting video and two special bonuses.

Mario's Crazy Guarantee

This straight from Mario's website: “Every Sessions With Mario product is backed by a 100% Money Back Guarantee. If you don’t absolutely love the course, it’s on me!”

Feel more comfortable now buying Mario's The Modern Portraits Master Course

Mario's promise:

This Master Course was designed for portrait photographers looking to take their portraits AND their business to the next level – to shoot better images, edit faster, market smarter, and sell bigger. With no-frill videos, beautiful PDFs, and awesome challenges, the Master Course equips you with what you need to grow into a 6-figure portrait photography business and rock your next seasons in 2017!

Interviewing Mario

It was a pleasure to connect with Mario, especially to discuss this new venture called The Modern Portraits Master Course. Check out our chat below:

Transform: it's a single word, with deep implications.

Read on if you want to make a difference, and subsequently have that change you for the better and potentially, richer.

“Do you transform people's lives through your photography business?” When I first heard Steve Saporito pose the question, I didn't know what he was talking about. I admit, it felt a little woo-woo. After a week-long workshop with him, the light bulbs started going on.

I realized that most photographers wait to discover their clients at the photo session or at the wedding. In fact, I confess doing just that.

I would excitedly send out a questionnaire the second someone came knocking on my website for a family portrait session or wedding. As soon as I had hit “send”, I figured my job was done and all I needed to do was to just wait for their responses.

All I got back in return were … crickets. Frankly, the replies came but often only minutes before a session or not fully completed. It left me feeling helpless and slightly frustrated because I did not know my clients at all. We were completely out of sync from the get-go. Can you imagine the quality of their photographs? They were emotionally flat, almost absent. And that was my doing, not theirs.

I foolishly figured my branding, website and messaging had to change. Or, was it my portfolio? Or, did I have to up my social media game?

No, in all honestly, none of that mattered more than the experience I was providing my clients. And it was poor. Something had to give and that's when I approached Steve Saporito at his New Haven, Connecticut workshop. My photography business was in a critical condition. I had to make changes and fast.

Thanks to Steve, I experienced a mind-shift. What would happen, I wondered, if I took the time to get to know my clients in a meaningful way that helped them be seen, heard and loved by the people in their lives right now? Ahead of their session, our clients would have an opportunity to reconnect with their family in a way that makes the entire process of being photographed together a joyous event. That's where and when the transformation takes place. And the transformation isn't limited to just your clients. Indeed, you as their photographer experience it as well.

Ultimately, clients reward you for giving them this beautiful experience before their session and for the artwork that become a permanent anchor to their heightened emotions. The

Really, there is a lot more to this than a blog post can cover. If you get a chance to listen to Steve speak (podcasts or at conferences), don't miss out. A couple of weeks after attending his workshops again (yes, again) in New Jersey, I invited Steve to a Skype call that I figured wouldn't last more than 10 or 15 minutes. But here we are chatting about all of this for about 45 minutes. It's a good long listen, but I assure totally worth your time:

As a business coach out of Melbourne, Australia, Steve Saporito teaches photographers through his Empower & Effortless Premières workshops and education platform called Intuition To Succeed.

I want to thank my friends Jasen Arias and Mike Allebach for persuading me to attend Steve's workshop in New Jersey. Like a lot of you, I hummed and hawed about going. I conjured up all kinds of excuses. In the end though, my goal to know how to be fully present for my portrait clients, trumped all attempts to bow out.

Without hyperbole, let me tell you that Steve's workshops ARE the best business workshops I've ever attended. And, I will go back for more in the future.

If you are spinning your wheels and have no clue how to resuscitate your photography business, ping me and I'll let you know more about my experience at the Empower & Effortless Premières workshops. The next one in North America is going to be in Toronto, Canada, from October 5th through October 11th.

To quote Jasen and Mike, “Just put it on the credit card and go dude. You'll pay it off in no time.” So true!

In The Beginning

Some six years ago, when I began playing with the idea of recognizing a photographer every year who was also a naturally gifted teacher, I had my doubts about how long I could keep it going.

While on the one hand it gives me an opportunity to highlight my birthday (yes I was born on August 23rd), it was infinitely more important to pay homage to those who consistently and generously give their time and skill as mentors to budding photographers.

Why? Well because things change. The industry definitely changes. Sometimes for the better and sometimes things can go south.

But people who at their core are committed to both photography and teaching do not. At least, that's been my experience. They truly love what they do and do both extremely well.

Tiffinbox Award Winner

This year's awardee is Megan DiPiero. She is based in Fort Myers, Florida. The first inklings of choosing her to receive The Annual Tiffinbox Award came to me several months ago as I was poring through her Facebook forum called Rise To The Top!

You see, her heart and mind are into photography, teaching, writing and workshops. At one point, I had to ask her if she was planning to write a book because her Facebook posts were so long and packed with useful, actionable information.

What I love the most about her posts is that her advice is the result of things she has tried for her own business first. There aren't any “maybe this will work” scenarios. Her confidence drills through, and her writing style is evocative. It's easy to sit up and take notice of her work as a mentor to so many photographers.

When it comes to marketing, sales or pricing, I tip my hat to Megan DiPiero. Her research is solid and so is her delivery in a workshop setting. I can say that because I was one of her students. If you ever get an opportunity to learn from her, don't miss it!

A Couple Of Questions For Megan

1) What are the major topics that have resonated with your audience?

Megan: I’m obsessed with teaching photographers how to succeed as world-class micro-enterprise business owners. Luxury pricing and sales, high-touch marketing, networking, and rave-worthy customer service are just a few of the hot topics we cover in our workshops and Facebook group posts. I love how we are connecting professional photographers across the globe– building community and support as we dream big and achieve big together.

2) Can you tell us in a few sentences about WHY it is so important for you to teach?

Megan: I can’t help but teach. I just adore it! On my days off, I’ll often wake up before the sun and flesh out a detailed mentor post to share what I’ve learned and what’s been successful for my business. The more I give, the more that comes back to me. Being a role model for others, pushes me to bring my best self to all I do. I love seeing other people put my practices into action and see their business grow as a result.

Megan DiPiero's Portfolio

Take a moment to look at her portrait work. Stunning right? Megan is finely tuned to her craft and is highly regarded in her field for the quality work she produces for her clients.

Megan's Mission

This quote from Megan sums up nicely what she truly stands for:

I want photographers to know their worth. I want to show photographers how to charge big so that they can live their dream of being successful, profitable artists. I want to share what I know that has made me successful. I want to encourage people to try new things and decide what works for them. I want clients to understand that they are beautiful, fabulous, and loved! I want professional photographers of all genres (particularly portrait and wedding pros) to see that they too can offer luxury and incredible service AND be rewarded for sharing these gifts!

Megan, congratulations … but more than that, thank you for what you do.

Learning From Megan

Help me applaud Megan DiPiero's work in our photography industry. Step up and comment below. Or, better yet, sign up to be a part of her Facebook group, Rise To The Top! with Megan DiPiero, if you are a professional photographer or emerging pro.

“Boutique Sales Success,” is a workshop that Megan will be launching in the very near future. Interested students can request info by emailing her here – info@megandipiero.com. Be sure to join the Facebook group for ongoing free education and workshop specials.

Past Tiffinbox Award Winners

Here are the links to the past winners of The Annual Tiffinbox Award:

David DuChemin

Spencer Lum

Jamie Swanson

Jenika McDavitt

Neil van Neikerk

Who will it be next year?

Marie's Soft-Touch Marketing Idea

The last time I interviewed Marie Masse, it was to introduce you to her awesome website Fearless & Framed.

If you are photographing families in your community, documenting their reality may be your thing as well, but how do you go about persuading people to work with you? What would convince them more than anything else that this genre of photography is a good fit for them?

“You teach them,” said Marie.

Jaw dropped, I said, “Say what? Can you tell me more about this?”

Marie suggests conducting timely but profitable photography workshops for moms (and I suspect dads are welcome too).

Teaching Sells

If you are a photographer, I am pretty sure you have had someone in the past roll up to you and asked you about a feature or two on their DSLR that they simply do not get. The fact is, most people who own DSLR's are using it in “P” mode or “A” mode and never in “M” mode.

As a professional photographer, you've been rocking your sessions on manual mode forever and feel very comfortable talking about the exposure triangle, the rule of thirds or anticipating peak moments.

You are a pro, after all.

But for most moms and dads there is a mismatch between what they envisioned their photographs of their children would be like and what their skill set is with their fancy cameras.

A photography workshop that you can offer them, bridges this gap, giving them the rudimentary skills to get going and most importantly to value what you do as a professional.

In some ways you are disabusing them of the notion that to create a photograph, of a quality worthy to be displayed on their walls, all they need to do is to push a button.

By teaching them the basic in's and out's of photography, you are in some ways letting them know that what you do isn't as easy as that; it takes years of training and experience and most of all patience.

When they come to value what you do and see the artwork that you create for other clients, there is an excellent chance they will recruit you to be their family photographer.

Bingo!

Structuring The Workshop

At this point you must be thinking, “do I have to teach them for free?” The answer is a resounding: NO!

Educate your potential clients from the very beginning that your time is valuable. So, conducting these photography workshops for moms and dads in your community could be a boost to your bottom line if you do it right.

You are going to want to publicize it and of course, launch your first photography workshop. I have done three so far at the local library, but you may want to choose a different spot in town. Regardless, there is a structure that you can and perhaps should follow to set it up correctly.

Marie Masse just launched a course called Profitable Photography Workshops For Moms and based on the webinars she has conducted over the last few weeks, it might be just the thing for you.

The Interview

We got together for another chat, specifically about this new resource for professional photographers like you:

Profitable Photography Workshops For Moms

From Marie's website, here is what you can expect to receive when you invest in Profitable Photography Workshops for Moms:

The Complete Guide to Running Photography Workshops for Moms ebook – this 50-page guide will walk you through everything you need to know, step-by-step. From planning the workshop, filling workshop seats, how to create an incentive plan to book workshops from workshops, running this workshop in-person as well as getting started with taking this workshop online, and how to make lasting connections AFTER the workshop that can turn into more business through running a Facebook Group (which will be a gold mine for information direct from your ideal clients). No topic was left behind in this guide!

Connective Email Templates – inside of the guide, you’ll get email templates to help you fill up your first workshop, welcome new students to the workshop and questions to get to know your new students before the workshop, keep your workshop hostess pumped up and on fire to fill her workshops up, a reminder email to students, and after-workshop communication emails to encourage a continued relationship through a photo challenge, a Facebook group, and recommended resources and equipment list. The how and the why behind all of this communication is laid out inside of the guide.

Marie’s Beginner Photography Workshop 4 part Video Series – listen to this real demo again and again until the content flows off your tongue with ease. Feel confident knowing Marie has sold out her workshops using this specific class. You’ll see Marie’s slideshow packaged and put together inside this demonstration video series.

Marie’s Workshop Video Transcript (aka Word-for-Word Demo Swipe Files!) – all four videos come with a transcript for you to read and use as your outline to practice your class demo until you feel confident

Clean & Simple PowerPoint Slideshow Template – Marie’s demo includes all of the words with a license for you to use, so all you have to do is drop in your photos to make this workshop your own. The template has a variety of slides from title and engagement slides to single image slides and collage slides. We kept the professional design of this slideshow minimalist and clean, so your images shine and the slideshow has a timeless look and feel.

Cheat Sheets for Students Galore – Camera Settings Scavenger Hunt (pdf), Light Guide Template (InDesign file so you can add your images to the light categories), Exposure Cheat Sheet (pdf), and My Photo Wishlist (pdf).

Workshop Planner to create your blueprint to launch your workshop in 30 days (pdf). The planner a fillable pdf for you to map out all of the details, your workshop plan and policies and even a slide planner to help you cull your photos. Get organized in no time flat!

Two Organization Tools: a Sign-In sheet & an Open Date sheet to use at your workshops to keep track of who showed up, collect email addresses and to inspire your students to book their workshop, advanced class or session.

Bonus: Real is the New Perfect Photo Challenge – the exact quiz, beautifully designed to challenge your students during the workshop to help inspire their documentary shooting ideas and potentially needs for their own session (pdf)

Bonus: Access to the Private Facebook Group just for Workshop Instructors to unite. The Facebook Group is a place for instructors to support one another and grow together through your ideas + success stories you bring to the table. The online group is a place to connect, problem solve and gets questions answered from other instructors. The Fearless and Framed team will be inside and active in the group answering some questions, but this is not a place to receive 1:1 support from Marie/Fearless and Framed.

Wowza! Marie pretty much sets you right up for success!

A Testimonial

This is what one reviewer said about Profitable Photography Workshops For Moms:

I’m naturally good at teaching and inspiring others, but the concept of creating a workshop was intimidating and therefore I’ve never gotten it off the ground. I didn’t know where to start, how in-depth to go on certain topics and only setting it all up from scratch was just not something I had the time for. So you could imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered that Marie had created the Profitable Photography Workshop for Moms bundle. Finally, I would be able to take the leap and do something that I’ve been afraid of doing for so long – and best yet it's practically all set up for me all I have to do is insert my images and branding, market it and bam, I’m done.

A Challenge & An Offer

So, here's my challenge for all of you – in the next 60 days will you launch your profitable photography workshop? What's stopping you from trying to reach an even greater number of people in your community who could very reliably become your clients for life! Comment below.

Here's my offer to you all. If you use this affiliate link to buy Profitable Photography Workshops for Moms, and you send me your receipt (seshu at tiffinbox dot org), I'll schedule a 30 minute Skype call with you to discuss your workshop plans. This offer is only for those of you who jump in and buy between now and July 31st, 2016, though.

Sound good? I look forward to speaking with you about your profitable photography workshop.

Pete Wright, a photographer, teacher, speaker and author, is obsessed with everything George Hurrell.

Glamor Portrait Photography

If you think of glamor and Hollywood these days, you might think of Annie Leibovitz and you wouldn't be wrong. But for Pete Wright, almost all of us portrait photographers need to tip our hat to Mr. Hurrell who was a pioneer in cinematic portraits.

Yet, Pete Wright has his own spin on the genre of cinematic portraits. He essentially wrote the book on the topic.

From Goodreads:

Pete Wright teaches you how to re-create mysterious, dark, and glamorous cinematic portraits reminiscent of those taken of 1920s’ and 1930s’ stars and starlets. The book contains 60 discrete sections which contain 60 of Wright’s most impressive, nostalgic black & white portraits, along with some alternate poses and lighting diagrams. In each section, the author details the steps taken to create the final portrait.

The Interview About Cinematic Portraits

When I found out that he was going to be presenting a workshop for CTPPA members on June 22nd, we hastily made arrangements to speak about cinematic portraits, his connection to Canon and how he is now on the road for most of the year bringing photographers full circle – teaching them about capture, processing and printing their artwork.

It's quite a mission and I applaud him and Canon for it. If you are in or near Connecticut on June 22nd and June 23rd, register for the workshop and do NOT miss this opportunity to learn from a master craftsman.

Pete Wright's Portfolio

Please visit Pete Wright's website for even more examples of his cinematic portraits. Here is a small sample for your viewing pleasure!

Register For the CTPPA Workshop

On June 22nd and June 23rd, you can learn the skills to create your own version of cinematic portraits. But you must register today!

In addition to Canon's sponsorship of Pete's presentation over the two days, we have to thank Elinchrom for making their studio strobe equipment available to participants.

If you have any questions for Pete Wright about cinematic portraits, please comment below.