“Do you think it would be tacky if I registered ONLY with you?”

We had been sitting down over coffee at a local Panera. Going over the logistics of my getting to her destination wedding on a fairly remote island in South Florida. Her wedding was on a Friday and I had another wedding on Sunday back in Tennessee. Before we were even going to discuss photographing her wedding, we had to figure out if it was even possible.

I had rushed out the door with my wedding book samples but without my computer. So figuring travel costs and logistics were left up to my trusty iPhone. Once we got everything squared away, she sat back in her chair and looked at me over her raised cup of flavored coffee. “Tell me about this new business you started. You know… Ciderr?”

As she took a sip of coffee, I was a bit stunned to have heard this question. This bride had definitely done her homework before our meeting, since I don’t advertise my ownership in Ciderr from my photography website or blog.

“How did it start? Where did the idea come from?” Her eyes definitely told me that she was genuinely interested. I normally just tell brides the benefits of Ciderr as it relates to their wedding. This was the first time a bride was asking deeper questions, and without any prompting from me.

So I took a deep breath and started talking.

“I was originally trying to figure out how to do gift cards for my business. I was having too many potential brides meet with me who wanted to hire me but they couldn’t afford me. There had to be an answer for this problem. Gift cards was a logical solution but as I was looking into it, it became a logistical nightmare. Way too complicated, and unappealing to everyone involved.”

“That’s when the idea of a registry came to me. I looked and looked but no one had built anything like it. Weird. So I approached one of my friends who knew way more about business than I did. Once I finished telling him my idea … creating a system for vendors in which brides could register for their products and services (and then their friends and family would help pay for everything), he was really excited about this new project!”

“In the days ahead, my new business partner did an incredible amount of research. Analyzing it from every angle. What he found out put a fire under our butts.”

I looked over at her to make sure I still had her attention or if I needed to go ahead and wrap up my story. She was now leaning forward and I never lost eye contact. I was about to share the statistical data we had found and I was already wondering if I had actually shared too much. Showing all of my cards, giving her too much information, could backfire on me. Her attention seemed to be all in, so I continued.

“The current registry industry was created for an era that only exists in part anymore. It was created for kids just moving out of their parents homes and getting married with literally nothing. That’s just not the case any more. Couples are getting married when they’re older and already established their careers, homes and everything that goes in them. The average age for a bride now is 29 and the groom is 31.”

At this point, she smiled and stopped me. “I’m 28 years old now but when we get married, I’ll be 29. And Jack is 31! Not only do we have everything but we have TWO of everything. I have pots and pans and he has pots and pans.” There was actually energy in her eyes as she continued, “To tell you the truth, we don’t know what to do with everything we do have. We have been having problems figuring out if we should even register anywhere. I think Ciderr is brilliant and I wish I had thought of it!”

Then she dropped the bomb, “Do you think it would be tacky if we ONLY registered with you?”

I looked down at my wedding samples. They were still sitting by my side … unopened. It was suddenly occurring to me that I was about to book a destination wedding using my new registry system alone. She obviously had seen my work online. She’d also seen a lot of other photographers amazing work online as well. The thing that stood out to her the most wasn’t my work (as much as I’d want it to). It was the fact that she could register with me and have her friends and family help pay for my services.

The thing that got me really excited was the statistical data that I didn’t tell her about. $19 billion dollars are spent on wedding registries every year. The AVERAGE wedding, 200 people buy gifts from the bride and groom’s registry. The average gift is between $70 to $100. It didn't take much time to figure out how much the wedding could be worth for me since she was ONLY registering with me. I was not competing with Williams Sonoma, Target, or Bed, Bath and Beyond.

Beyond that, she was now becoming my marketing agent for my business. For free. Free advertising. She had a vested interest in telling all of her friends and family about her registry that is fully branded for my photography business. And we set up Ciderr so that once her friends contributed, they’re asked to spread the word about her registry on behalf of the bride and groom! So not only had I turned my bride into a marketing agent for my business but also her friends and family as well!

We built Ciderr for this bride I was sitting down with at Panera. And she’s not alone. Statistically, she’s not even an exception. She’s the new average. She’s the girl who’s more mature than her 20 year old counterpart. A girl who would rather have a beautiful wedding album that will last her a lifetime than a toaster that will last her 5 years. We exist to make sure our Ciderr members are ready for this new generation of brides!

Learn more through this explainer video about Ciderr:

Are you ready?

This is Russ Klettke's interview with Brian Dilg, who is Chair of Photography at the Photography School at the New York Film Academy. In addition to 20 years of professional teaching experience around the world, Dilg's work has been published in The New York Times, Time Out, Village Voice and covers of books published by Simon and Schuster, Random House and Hyperion. He has also worked in post-production for major fashion houses, consumer products manufacturers and media organizations. He also has won awards as a filmmaker and worked as a director, cinematographer and editor of narrative, documentary, music video and commercial films.

Q: What do you tell photography students about careers in the industry?

As an instructor at a New York-based school of photography (The Photography School at the New York Film Academy), I regularly provide advice to student commercial photographers and photojournalists about the kinds of careers they may achieve. It is hugely beneficial for them to envision the heights to which they can aspire – we are is New York, after all, where you can become the best of the best in almost every endeavor – but it is also essential to consider the entry point at which one can enter the profession.

I have a quick way of summarizing what a career in photography likely will entail. In your first job, you probably will be someone’s assistant, and a lot of your time will not involve taking pictures. Across the later arc of your career, you are likely to be self-employed and therefore must have business skills – in addition to your acumen and artistry as a photographer.

Q: So, they are to start from the ground up – but does that mean actually taking photos?

Let’s discuss first things first. The role of the photographer’s assistant, or someone who works in the administrative and support side of photography, is not just about paying dues. You will learn vital parts of what makes a photographer valuable to his or her clients and their craft. Between what you shoot and what is ultimately used in print editorial, multimedia advertising or online publications there is a lot of editing, organizing, legal documentation, processing and selling. Long-term, every photographer has to know how this works and how to manage it.

Q: We suppose this varies, depending on the type of photographer the student hopes to be one day, yes?

The specific path you wish to take – smaller-scale commercial (including weddings), larger-scale commercial (fashion and advertising photography), and photojournalism – would likely involve these entry level positions:

Smaller-scale commercial – Most established photographers need assistants to help with lighting, equipment, on-location support and administrative tasks. Work with a pro and learn to be a pro. Often, the assistant will price out a job (some use contract templates found on Blinkbid.com) and handle client contact to some extent.

Larger-scale commercial – The digitech assistant on advertising, high-end fashion and other large-budget commercial shoots may appear to be the most popular person in the production. As they work on the computer tethered to the camera, clients and talent might be clustered around them as they identify whether or not the shoot is getting them what is intended – in real time. The work doesn’t end there, as a lot of organizing and file backup is required post-production, along the path that selected images take to become a final product.

Photojournalism – While the budgets for photojournalists are shrinking for print media, rare is the project where the assistant can travel with the photographer to newsworthy locales – unfortunately. But there is plenty for the photojournalist’s assistant to do in the office: editing, cropping, backing up files, processing prints and communicating and invoicing are all in their role. This person gets a first-hand look at what clients (media) want and need, and the value they place on good images.

Of course, assistants in each category need to be working on developing their own skills and portfolio, even when that is not their full-time responsibility. For example, the photojournalist should seek out local media assignments, enough to develop credits and tear sheets. Commercial photographers-in-training should jump at any opportunity to work with smaller clients.

Q: Is it essential for the photographer to also be a businessperson?

Concurrent with developing a portfolio, the photographer needs to become comfortable with the business imperatives of a photography career. Indeed, the first job for photographers is to get to know the business. In addition to the skills development mentioned above, the future independent photographer needs to understand the importance of selling in their career. By selling, we mean relationship development. You’re only as good as you hope to be and working as much as you want when clients know you and trust you. That boils down to a personal style, your professionalism, how fun you are to work with and your ability to establish reasonable expectations on the part of your clients – on top of providing top-quality photography.

Do you agree that the first job for photographers who are either professionals or want to go pro should be to get to know the business? Sound off below in the comments section. Your voice counts!

This is a guest post by Jimmy Moncrief, a wedding photographer in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and co-founder of Ciderr.

Every decade there is a new technology that usually disrupts an industry. Ten years ago, there was a max exodus from film to digital due to the rapidly falling prices of digital cameras and the rapidly declining costs of post-production in digital format. Yes, I understand digital photography was around earlier than this, but digital really gained traction about ten years ago.

A couple of days ago, I was very fortunate to speak with Mike Hanline, the President of WHCC. I was fascinated by the fact that his lab went completely digital in 2000. This prescient move, was well ahead of the industry. Now, WHCC is an industry leading lab provider because they embraced new technology ahead of their time. Below are three companies that are disrupting the photography business with new technology.

“The status quo sucks.” – George Carlin

Ciderr – big brands have always used wedding registries to increase brand awareness and to increase sales. Ciderr, now gives that power to photographers and other wedding vendors. Ciderr, lets businesses upload their products and services in a registry. All high-quality wedding vendors get some variation of this email: “I love your products, but can’t afford them.” Now they can! The wedding vendor, can offer the bride and groom a personalized registry. The bride and groom pick the products and services they want, and then create their personalized registry. Then the bride and groom share the link via email, facebook, and twitter and get their friends and family to help pay for that portion of the wedding!

Pinterest – yes, it’s significantly smaller than Facebook and Twitter. The media reports traffic to be in a range of 10-15 million, while Facebook has over 850 million and Twitter has over 100 million. However, it has better referral traffic for your website. Shareholic.com reported in July that referral traffic from Pinterest was greater than Twitter, SumbleUpon, Bin and Google! Essentially, this means Pinterest might bring a smaller amount of traffic to your site, but it will be higher quality.

I love how Melisa Jill organizes and displays her photography on Pinterest.

Sticky Albums – Sticky Albums lets you create digital photo album – which your clients can save to their iPhones and iPads as a separate app. This is how the vast majority of clients want their app anyway, so it is a great convenience for the client. The best part however, is how this service helps your marketing. All the photographs include your logo! So when the client shares these pictures, your brand is being marketed.

In summary, photographers are in a great position to embrace new technology for marketing and establishing a competitive advantage. I would love to hear in the comments how photographers are using the above mentioned resources for their photography business. Also, please let me know of any other innovative businesses out there helping photographers grow their business.

A year ago, I announced the 1st Annual Tiffinbox Award. That award went to David DuChemin, a Canadian photographer whose passion for the industry is imbued with his craft and vision.

The 2012 awardee is no stranger to the business of photography. He runs a successful photography studio in New York City. If you look at his work, I am sure you will be struck by how his wedding photography transcends the obvious. Beyond simply documenting an event, the images are heartfelt and genuine.

His understated but confident presence among his peers, inspires those around him or who have come in contact with him. He teaches other photographers through his blog, Ground Glass, and his workshops, which he unapologetically calls, “I Will Make You Suffer.”

The 2nd Annual Tiffinbox Award goes to Spencer Lum.

Spencer exemplifies this award for being more than an expert photographer. He has a deep and authentic concern for the industry and is willing to chart a course that runs counter to popular trends. While that may make him appear like a maverick, the industry is in great need for revolutionaries like Spencer. Photographers – new or experienced – easily mesmerized by poseurs and “rock stars,” will find that Spencer talks the talk and walks the walk. Read his blog posts or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

Here are some of his recent blog posts:

Do your clients trust you or are you just clicking a button?

You Are Not A Misery Sponge

The Secret of Success

If Everyone Is A Photographer, What Makes Us So Different?

Power To The People – Put Your Clients First

A Case For True Authenticity in Photography

Here are a few images to give you a taste of his work:

Please join me in congratulating by friend and colleague Spencer Lum. Feel free to post your comments below.

We've all been there. At the beginning. Where we didn't know anything, or we knew a few things about photography but were awfully rough at the edges.

Sure, we were proud of those first images but didn't know an f/stop from a door stop, didn't know our way around Lightroom or Photoshop, our wedding photography business was complicated and our album designs looked more like a quilt, a hodgepodge of images thrown onto a page.

Look, even I'll admit I have been there.

We all had to start somewhere. With practice and the right tools things just came together for me. One more thing helped – having the right mentors walk with me on this journey. I am sure you've felt this way as well – you wanted, no needed, somebody to hold your hand.

For me, Rob and Lauren of Photography Concentrate have done just that through their photography tutorials.

To celebrate the relaunch of their site they're having a mega sale! For a very limited time you can get any of their four tutorials for 30% off!! The sale is starting right now, so you can grab them today! They have:

• Simple Wedding Photography [affiliate link] (Reg. US$39.95, On Sale for only US$27.97)? An e-book that teaches you everything you need to know about photographing weddings, and the business behind it.
• Extremely Essential Camera Skills [affiliate link] (Reg. US$49.95, On Sale for only US$34.97)? A multi-media tutorial designed to help you get control over your camera, and get creative and confident with your photography. 
• Super Photo Editing Skills [affiliate link] (Reg. US$79.95, On Sale for only US$55.97)? A video tutorial that teaches you how to bring the best out of your images using Adobe Lightroom 4.
• Awesome Album Design Skills [affiliate link] (Reg. US$79.95, On Sale for only US$55.97)? A video tutorial that shows you how to quickly design beautiful albums using Adobe InDesign.

All of their tutorials are digital products available for immediate download, so you can start learning right away. The sale prices are automatically applied, so it's nice and easy to save big!

Thankfully, the photography industry has changed over the last 10 years where sharing information has become more of the norm. It's rather rare for Photography Concentrate to hold a sale like this, so, if you have been eyeing their tutorials, this is the time to get it.

Oooh, before I forget, you could win a $200 gift card to Amazon.com if you comment here.

If you buy any of the Photography Concentrate tutorials now through August 9th (when the sale ends), please come back here and let me know in the comments section below what you thought of them.

As always, I will never recommend anything to you unless I have given the products or services a try myself. Please do note that you should safely assume that all links in this post are affiliate links.