Need to find photographers in several US citys...

[klynam]

Greetings from Dallas. I have an account which requires we photograph on-site installations of their products in several major US cities. Does anyone know of a photography website where I can set this up for bid by city? Thank you.

Kevin in Dallas

[Jon, The Elder]

People are awful shy about this kinda stuff on a forum. There are more photo related scams (not that yours is) than you can imagine. Nothing personal - just cautious!

[PhotosGuy]

I remember seeing one about a year ago, but don't remember where. I agree with setiprime. I've been approached by other members to cover for them, but they've been around awhile! ;-)

[klynam]

Well that's news to me. Never heard of photography scams, but I'm not a dedicated pro like the rest of you - and apparently not on the boards enough to know about such things. I read this forum constantly, but as a new photographer, I dont have that much to offer in the way of advice.

I can assure you this is no scam. I have a budget of $500-$750 per city for shots in six cities. My client is a custom locker manufacturer who needs a couple of photos of each finished installation - and there is one per city.

I can always go to E-Lance or Guru but I thought I'd give the forum a shot first.

Thanks for enlightening me on the scammers. Now I'LL know to watch out.

klynam

[gasrocks]

So why don't you just list the cities?

[SWPhotoImaging]

As gasrocks suggests, why not post a list of the cities in which your client has these locker installations that you need photographed, and ask that photographers in those cities contact you. Posting some way to contact you about the job would also be a good idea.

[Snapman]

Does this involve any up front financial payment by the photographers?

[SWPhotoImaging]

Does this involve any up front financial payment by the photographers?

Gee, do you think THAT would be a blatent enough warning to stay away, stay far away?

[klynam]

Hello again to all. Sorry for not replying sooner, I've been crazy busy and just back on the board today...

Let me address all the questions, both public and private...

1. This is a pretty simple job - just take a few nice shots of the inside of a locker room.
2. You can probably shoot with ambient light, but are welcome to add lighting if you like.
3. The client is (still) finalizing the list of cities. No one is trying to keep anything secret here - I simply don't have a list yet.
4. There will be around 7 cities in all, and no I'm not looking for one photographer to make a national trip shooting them all.
5. No financial up front costs are required by the photographer.
6. Images are for a brohcure, website, and possilby a small trade ad sometime in the future.
7. This is an outright buy - no licensing, no restrictions - but you can use the images yourself without restrictions as well. Again, it's just a locker room.

This is how I envision the deal working - but your input is always welcome...

1. When I have the city list, I will post the cities and some lo-res samples of what we've shot so far.
2. Anyone in the target cities interested in the job can send me lo-res sample images from your portfolio and your price for the shoot. A few references would also be great.
3. If your work/price looks good and references check out, I will pay you 50% up front.
5. You go shoot the location and email lo-res images for me to look through with the client. We'll pick 2-4 shots as finals.
6. We pay the balance, you email me the selected images in hi-resolution format.

If you have any more questions, please drop me a line via the forum or my personal email: theimagedoc@comcast.net

Thanks again everyone.

[Merle]

You may wish to place and Advertisement in Rangefinder Magazine which is one of the top if not the top professional Portrait, Wedding and commercial photography magazines available. Their web site is: http://www.rangefindermag.com (http://www.rangefindermag.com)

;) :) :D
Good Shooting To Ya!!
Merle

[Longwatcher]

Among other possibilities, you may want to try www.onemodelplace.com
Not only do they have models, but they also have a lot of photographers on there and you can check out some of their work and then make an offer to photographers you like for the cities you are talking about.

It is the first site I would try, short of some expensive professional photographer's associations. depends on your budget, if high go for the professional resources, if lower go for OMP.

Just my opinion,

[klynam]

Okay fellow shooters, I finally have a list of locations for this project.

As promised, I'm starting here on this forum that I've found and received so much help from. If no one is interested/available, I'll move on to the other resources suggested, and no hard feelings.

Here's where I have client installations to shoot...

Bossier City, LA
Shreveport, LA
Texarkana, TX
Callisburg, TX
San Antonio, TX
Fort Myers, FL
Noblesville, IN (near Indianapolis?)
Lansdowne, VA
Stony Brook, NY (near Bayshore?)
Cleveland, OH
San Diego, CA (Rancho Santa Fe)

There may be a few more trickling in soon, but this is the bulk of the list.

Again, I'm looking for local photogs, not someone to traverse the country shooting them all. Budget is $250-$500 for TX and LA, and $500-$750 for other locations. Otherwise, my earliers posts have the details on how this is going to work. If you're interested, please email me: klynam1 at comcast dot net (spelled out to avoid email sniffers)

Thank you,

klynam

[klynam]

An answer to a good question: The fee range is there to account for skill/experience, equipment, location proximity, and most importantly the final shot quality.

Over the weekend, I will be posting some image I personally shot for this client. They are the acceptable minimum in terms of resolution and results - below which we cannot use, and above which we can pay more for.

Again, any more questions just email me.

Best regards,

Kevin in Dallas

[klynam]

You can now browse samples of my shots to date for this client here:

http://home.comcast.net/~klynam1/LockerImages/index.htm

You can also see a single, full size, hi-res image here:

http://home.comcast.net/~klynam1/LockerImages/Lifetime_fullsize.jpg

Here is my typical setup...

1. I shoot in either RAW or JPG maximum. No flash + ISO100-200 + maximum depth of field = long exposure times and REQUIRE a tripod
2. I shoot multiple (bracketed) exposures to ensure adequate shadow and highlight detail
3. I shoot a 'nifty-50' (japanese made Canon F1.8 50mm) lens most of the time - because that's the best lens I have (which isn't saying much I know)

Here is my general workflow...

1. Basic level and color/white-balance correction (Raw Shooter Essentials or Photoshop)
2. De noise (Noise Ninja, Picture Cooler, PS actions, etc.)
3. Combine bracketed images for extended dynamic range (Photoshop with hand selected masking or Photomatix)
4. Correct for perspective or barrel distortion (Photoshop)
5. Final color correction (Photoshop)
6. Sharpening (various methodologies depending on image)

Some important things I've learned...

1. Shooting about waist level typically gives the most natural angle of view and requires the least barrel/perspective correction
2. Available lighting is typically mixed - flourescent and incandescent - and usually from the ceiling, creating wierd color cast combinations and harsh highlights, shadows, and reflections
3. Bracketing shots is mandatory to get a final image with good exposures from floor to ceiling, and from light source to shadow area

Examples:
http://home.comcast.net/~klynam1/LockerImages/Lifetime_exposure1.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~klynam1/LockerImages/Lifetime_exposure2.jpg

4. I typically shoot 5-10 different angles, and 20-40 total exposures at each location, to get 2-5 final images that actually work
5. About half the time, there are relatively narrow areas to shoot from - so you have to be creative in camera placement to get the lockers in maximum field of view
6. I don't shoot people or include props (shoes, bags, balls, etc.) In the end it takes more time and distracts from the lockers
7. If you think my final images still aren't the best (and you're right) you should see some of original images...terrible
8. I'm sure yours will be 10x better even to start with!!!

Any more questions, please email me or post a reply.

Thanks again,

klynam

[Grampaw]

Why no flash ? Seems to me bounce flash would help the overall color balance.
Also, what time frame are you looking for ?

[IndyJeff]

Email me about the Noblesville In location. Give me some deadline info and any schedule dates that have already been set.
You can email me from my sports shooter page at http://www.sportsshooter.com/members.html?id=2533 and I will discuss my requirements and availability in private.

Jeff

edit: Email sent to you

[subtle_spectre]

I can do Noblesville, Indiana...PM me to discuss the matter further.

[Steve Parr]

I can do Rancho Santa Fe; it's right up the road from me.

Also, for the Stony Brook, NY shoot, it's nowhere near Bayshore. Stony Brook is on the north shore of Long Island, Bayshore is on the south shore.

Grew up there, so I thought I'd pass that along.

Please PM me about details on shooting Rancho Santa Fe...

Steve

[klynam]

Terrific everyone - and thanks for the follow ups. I just now got to my computer (5:17pm) and need to update the client on all this - I know he's working franctically to get date/times worked out with the various installation locations. Will be back with more info or PM's to you within 24 hours, but please don't hesistate to post, IM or email me.

All the best from Texas,

klynam

[klynam]

Here's an update on the national locations. Everything is going well, but since most of these are hi-end private golf & athletic clubs, we have to get confirmation from several people in the chain of command (i.e. managers, directors, owners, etc.)

Fort Myers, FL - confirmed, ready to shoot
Noblesville, IN - contacted, awaiting final confirmation
Lansdowne, VA - contacted, awaiting final confirmation
Stony Brook, NY- contacted, awaiting final confirmation
Cleveland, OH - contacted, awaiting final confirmation
San Diego, CA - contacted, awaiting final confirmation

I didn't get any responses on the Texas/Lousianna locations so unless/until someone wants to shoot them, I'll do those.

For those of you who have posted the locations you'd like to shoot, or emailed privately, please make sure you provide something for me to refernce: attach some shots, web portfolio, anything.

Also, I know we're all pros here (or at least grown-ups) and understand I have to choose someone. So please no hard feelings if we dont end up going with you.

More to come asap...

klynam

[klynam]

For all those who are wondering if I fell off the face of the earth - yes, almost. Two weeks ago, I expreienced a total, catastrophic drive failure and lost everything. As of today, I've have about 95% of my files and I'm fully functional again.

Unfortunately, even had I been online, there wouldn't be much to say. My client has already set aside money to cover the full cost of all the national shots, but is having a terrible time getting confirmation from the various locations. (He has to go through the Original Architect > GC > Club Director > Club Owner/Board to get approvals.)

We are going to speak again tonight or tomorrow and try to move forward with 1 or 2 locations next week. If you've already emailed me about either of those locations, I'll be sending you info. Otherwise, I'll post the info here on P.O.T.N.

Thanks for your patience.

Kevin in Dallas

[IndyJeff]

Klynam email me at IndySportPhotos@aol.com when you get a chance please.

[willg]

I would be interested in seeing everyones shots.

[klynam]

Heck - at this rate I'm intersted in seeing ANY shots! I've got a website and a new brochure sitting on idle because we cant get all these locations setup. (Very frustrating!)

Kevin in Dallas

[wingd]

What about listing it on craiglist?

[klynam]

I'll do that as soon as we get all the confirmations, and figure out who on the POTN forum is interested/available.

Thx,

[Steve Parr]

I'll do that as soon as we get all the confirmations, and figure out who on the POTN forum is interested/available.

Thx,

I would still be interested. I'm in San Diego...

Steve

[wingd]

Well I don't know if it would help but I live in Tulsa,Ok so if the client spreads north into Oklahoma let me know. Matthew@lifesphotography.com

[JDMspongebob]

Intrested you have PM sir:cool:

[subtle_spectre]

PM sent to orig poster...

[fstop212]

e-mails (3 sorry :o ) sent to origional poster too

[EricKonieczny]

still intrested, I i think I am one of the photogs you plan on using, but haven't heard anything.

[klynam]

To all - thank you all (again) for your patience and continued follow-up contact. Lord willing, we'll have more info to work with this week. I'm probabaly irritating the heck out of my client, but we MUST have these shots before I can develop all the projects these shot will be used in. I will post more info, as I have it, here in this forum and by PM/email to the appropriate parties when individual locations are confirmed.

All the best,

Kevin in Dallas

[JDMspongebob]

Good to know just let me know if i can help out in this

[Rob612]

Do your client has any installation in Italy ? If so, I can help :)

(there is the smiley, but of course it's no joke).

[klynam]

Believe it or not - I have confirmations and we're ready to schedule shoots for the following locations as noted.

Texarkana, AR = prefer Mondays
Shreveport, LA = prefer Mondays
Bossier City, LA = prefer Mondays, at least one day notice
San Antonio, TX = weekday mid-mornings are best
Callisburg, TX = weekday mid-mornings are best
Fort Meyers, FL = flexible
Noblesville, IN = prefer Mondays
Stony Brook, NY = Mondays or weeknights
Cleveland, OH and Lyndhurst, OH = prefer same photog for both

(Lansdowne, VA = still pending)
(San Diego, CA = still pending)

If you have previously replied to me, no need to reply again. I'll be sending you an email this evening with more details. IF you haven't and see a location you want to shoot - or know someone in - please contact me.

[Rob612]

It's interesting to see how a forum like POTN works smooth in such situations. I like this.

[klynam]

It looks like we're finally on for several locations of this shoot.

If you have not received an email from me in the last few hours today (Tuesday, Dec. 6), please contact me via IM today with your email address and links to any samples. I'd like to get all the facilities assigned by end of business Friday - if possible.

Thanks to all (again) for your patience on this one.