This week I got to photograph three brothers for a birthday gift for their grandmother. What mom wanted was to have me create a portrait of the three boys together. Oh, I almost forgot the most important part about this story, two of the boys were three year old twins, and their little brother was two months old. Posing these firecrackers were the least of my problems. The twins just could not sit still; they wanted to know what everything was and why it was in my studio. Much wiggling and squirming was going on. Then, I think it was Andrew who looked up at me and said, “Are we done now?” I had only taken 5 shots, so I comically answered, “We have to do this all day.”  You should have seen his little eyes. I then explained that grandma wanted a picture of them so she could remember them and as soon as we got the perfect shot we could all go home and have lunch. That seemed to do the trick because both boys began to focus and I fired off shot after shot. By the end of the session, the twins had had enough and, as you can see from the photo, Joshua was into a power nap. We were done and ready for lunch.

Yaquina Head Light House is my newest photo of the week. The day of the shoot it was a very cold 41 degrees. The real problem that day was the wind. Twice I was nearly blown over by gusts. Try shooting on a tripod in a gale, heck, try keeping your lens dry. I do think I succeeded however. It was low tide so I just jumped down to the beach and walked a short distance out to get the lines I wanted.

The lighthouse was built from 1871 to 1873 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and automated in 1966. It is currently an active aid to navigation. The lighthouse still uses its original 1868 French-made Fixed Fresnel lens. In 1993, the lighthouse was listed in the National Register of Historic Places

The lighthouse was used as the setting for the “Moesko Island Lighthouse” in the 2002 film The Ring. It had already appeared in an earlier film, Hysterical (1983), and The Nancy Drew Mysteries 1977 television series episode “The Mystery of Pirate’s Cove”.

Nestled in the scenic west hills of Portland, the Japanese Garden is a haven of tranquil beauty and has been proclaimed by his Excellency Nobuo Matsunaga, former Ambassador of Japan, to be “the most beautiful and authentic Japanese garden in the world outside of Japan.” The Garden is above Washington Park at 611 SW Kingston Drive in SW Portland, Oregon.

The garden encompasses five and one-half acres with five separate garden styles.  The Garden includes an authentic Japanese Tea House, meandering streams, intimate walkways, and an unsurpassed view of downtown Portland with Mount Hood in the distance. For more information visit their site:

www.japanesegarden.com

This week the spotlight is on Paz Ramos, the Principal at Alder Elementary School in Gresham Oregon. Alder has the unique designation of being one of the most impoverished elementary schools in the state of Oregon. When I met Paz my eye was immediately drawn to a pencil sketch he had on his wall. The likeness was uncanny and I asked if the illustration was of him. He said no, but that his daughter had drawn it of a famous basketball star, he didn’t say who. I still think it was his daughters ‘Freudian’ version of her dad, the competitor.

The feeling of healthy competition permeates the halls of this school. Everywhere I went I saw banners and pennants of the various colleges in the region. There was even a map of the U.S. that designated the different locations of each of the teachers at the school, the name of the college they attended and the city where it was located. His goal is that each of his students goes to college. He even has a note pinned on the wall between first and second grade that portrays in proud exclamation the date these students will graduate from their chosen university.

I came away with a new appreciation of long term goal setting. His purpose there seems to be to help each student have the desire to see where a college degree will take them. The only problem I saw with all of this was that there wasn’t a banner from my alma mater, Eastern Oregon University. My goal this week is to make sure that is rectified.

My hat goes off to Paz Ramos, the dedicated teachers and staff at Alder Elementary school for setting the tone of success for our future leaders.

So, I set up my portable lightning equipment and began shooting. Just as I had dialed in the correct light balance, we heard the sound of an oncoming train. He was situated with his back to the train and couldn’t tell how far away it was. I could see a little reticence come over his face, as if to say, “Am I going to be run over, or what?” I just smiled back and said, “Just one more.”  That is when I got this shot, with a perfect balance of light. And you can just make out the headlights of the oncoming train in the distance. Great shoot and what a great young man Brandon is, his mother should be proud.

The Bridge of the Gods

Indian legend tells us that the Great Spirit built a bridge of stone that was a gift of great magnitude. Science tells us that about 1,000 years ago a mountain on the Washington side of the Columbia River, near what is now the town of Cascade Locks, crumbled into the river creating blocking the flow of the river. This natural dam was high enough to cause a great inland sea covering the prairies as far away as Idaho. For many years, natural erosion slowly weakened the dam and finally washed it out. The waters of this inland sea rushed out, tearing away more of the earth and rock until a great tunnel was formed under the mountain range, leaving a natural bridge over the water. The bridge was called “The Great Cross Over” and is now named “The Bridge of the Gods

Today, the Bridge of the Gods was created in a much less glamorous fashion than the original. It is however, an incredible sight to behold. Constructed in 1926, the Bridge of the Gods is the third oldest bridge on the Columbia River.

Finding the Perfect Photographer

Advanced planning is paramount and it’s all about proper scheduling. October and May are the busiest months for weddings so if you are planning to have your wedding in either of these months you need to plan at least 9 months ahead. Choose your photographer early because while florists can do several weddings in one day, a good photographer only does one.

Can you Trust a Referral?

Most photographers grow their business through referrals from friends and family of current clients. While relying on internet research is a good start you will need to compile a complete and thorough list of appropriate referrals. It’s a great idea to get recommendations from clients who have worked with the photographer, seen the actual results and know how they will interact with guests and the bride and groom on the big day.

Style and personality

Most professional photographers have the talent, but it’s important for couples to find one with similar taste. Ask to see their work or go to their studio. Preview their samples and see how formal or informal their finished work is. Looking through albums can tell a couple how a photographer works, and it’s important to ask who will be shooting the event, some studios have multiple photographers. And make sure you have an agreement in writing about who will provide the artistic direction.

A great way to see if a potential wedding photographer will work well with you and provide you with the style of finished photos you want, is to book an engagement session with them. This way you will be able to gauge comfort levels and to see their work style first hand.

Essential Issues

When booking a photographer go over every detail on the pricing structure and various packages. Study each package closely so you will know what services are included and which will require additional costs. Services like retouching, artistic enhancements, online galleries, turn-around time and receiving a CD with all the images will vary with each photographer.

Album styles like traditional hardcover albums, story book albums or coffee table books can be priced differently, as well as gallery-wrapped canvas prints and framing services. But the most important issue is to make sure you have a written agreement and that each service you want is spelled out and clearly communicated.

Your day will last for years in the finished photographic works that are created during your special day. Make sure you choose the right wedding photographer.

The seven concepts I learned are Packaging, Presentation, Pricing, Training, Politics, Customer Service and how to Work Smarter. None of these concepts are exact formulas; rather they are guidelines to help in the thought processes. Jack Welch said, “An organization’s ability to learn, and translate that learning into action rapidly, is the ultimate competitive advantage.” Today the competition is tougher than ever before and I hope these ideas will help you fight the good fight.

1-Packaging – long after you are gone your customers will remember you by what they felt, which has everything to do with how you package yourself and your company. Every interaction you have with another person becomes more than a contact point it becomes a “packaging point” that will leave a lasting impression. Make sure your packaging strategy is well thought out. Do some research, ask 10 or 20 people you don’t know to do a “package point survey” and then offer them something of value in return for their efforts. Get real life feedback about how you are perceived in the marketplace. Just a note of caution, don’t bring your ego or wear your feelings on your sleeve for this exercise. When all the data has been gathered, find someone whose opinion you value, sit down with them and go over the information. Then write a plan of action or create a course correction task list and execute.

2-Presentation – In many ways presentation and packaging are inexorably tied together. If one of these components is not right the other will suffer as a consequence.  A good presentation can cover a multiplicity of problems. Pay attention to every detail, have someone proof read everything you put out and by all means, get help from someone you trust. Everything from your business card to the clothes you wear becomes your voice of presentation and is the basis of the feelings you generate in your customers and potential customers. Great packaging makes the phone ring; a great presentation makes the cash register ring. Your audience may forget your name but they will remember how they felt.

3-Pricing. One of the most difficult things for any service related business person to do is come up with prices for their services. If you charge too much you may lose clients, if you charge too little you may lose clients, from a “cheap perspective point” but more importantly you will lose margin, and this is a high score wins the game contest; but you understand this, don’t you?. Correct pricing is paramount to a long term success strategy. Meet with someone who understands how to create a pricing structure based upon your type of business service or product offering. Analyze every component of your business to make sure every offering is priced appropriately for the marketplace. Create a price list and stick to it. Once the basic pricing configuration is created you can use that to create a pricing structure for newly introduced products.

Oscar Wilde said, “These days we know the price of everything, but the value of nothing.” Don’t devalue your products or services by lowering the price out of fear. NEVER discount. If you want to create an enticement for your best customers, give something away for FREE. 20% off holds less of an incentive to buy than the statement “with every portrait session you will receive a FREE 8X10, a $65 value.” The words FREE are truly compelling to every buyer.

4-Training – read everything you can about your business; train, retrain and learn afresh. Aristotle said, “Excellence is an art won by training and habituation.” If you don’t make training part of your business plan the competition will leave you behind. I still meet business people who don’t know how to use a computer or do proper research on the internet. Rest assured, if you don’t have these basic skills you won’t be keeping up with your service niche. Go to seminars, talk with business coaches, READ everything you can, then retrain and learn afresh. When you follow this simple concept you will be endowed with an innovative and new understanding of the problems that plague you and fresh ideas will flow to you and your team. Train like an Olympian, because many times the difference between first place and first loser is only a millisecond.

5-Politics – there is always someone who will smile at your face and spread seeds of dissension behind your back. As small business owners we all need the help of others to accomplish our goals. Others like, bookkeepers, graphic artists, programmers, software engineers just to name a few. I have come to rely upon many people as my partnership base and they have become instrumental to my long term success. Pick your ancillary support staff carefully, choose those you can work with well, share leads with and more importantly, give them your trust. Jack Welch said, “The team with the best players wins.” This is true in sports, big business and it is critical in any small business. Syzygy and Synergy occur when you surround yourself with like minded professionals. Continued success will come when you understand how to use that energy as a power source in your business.

6-Customer Service is all you have. Make it the focal point of everything you do. Return calls on time, give additional services that are not asked for. You know how to do all this, why aren’t you? For me the best way to achieve excellent levels of customer service is with a system. I have never been able to multi-task very well and I have a terrible memory for names. But what does work for me is a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system that I have tailored to fit my needs. You don’t have to have a marketing budget the size of Dell Computers to use this kind of tool. I have used several different CRM tools during my tenure in Corporate America and each has their strengths and weaknesses. If you have more than 300 clients you will need something more than Outlook to help you keep track. ACT is a software package that has been around for decades and Zoho is an application that resides in the “cloud.” Whichever system you choose, the key is to keep it updated and keep the data fresh. After each meeting, make notes and communicate with your contacts. Use your CRM system to help you remember all the details and whatever you do, don’t make it too complicated. Walt Disney said, “Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends.”

7- Work Smart Not Hard. You can burn yourself out when you put in 60 and 70 hour work weeks, even if it is something you love to do. Your mind will reboot when you are away relaxing with family and friends. When you return to work you will see things from a new perspective, things you hadn’t realized before. The creativity that comes naturally to us over the course of the day is squelched when we are tired and not properly nourished. Too many of us think that if I work for 10 hours and generate $X income then if I work twice that I will generate twice the revenue. There is a law of economics called the law of diminished returns that takes over. Archimedes said, “Give me a lever large enough and I will be able to lift the world.”

Use every available tool wisely, set proper, attainable goals and keep them where you can see them every day, evaluate with another person who understands what you want to accomplish, set realistic time schedules and most importantly reward yourself when you reach important milestones. Jack Welch said, “Don’t manage – lead change before you have to.”

Want to learn more, go to these people and places for additional information:

Packaging and Presentation
David Sparks http://biznik.com/members/david-sparks
Ken Peters www.nocturnaldesign.com
Bill Doerr http://biznik.com/members/bill-doerr

Pricing
http://biznik.com/articles/the-price-is-right
http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/operating/marketing/pricing.html
“Pricing with Confidence: 10 Ways to Stop Leaving Money on the Table”
by Reed Holden, Mark Burton

Customer service
http://www.zoho.com/
http://act.com
http://www.avidian.com/
“Chocolates on the Pillow Aren’t Enough“
by Jonathan M. Tisch and Karl Weber

Work smart not hard
http://www.awakeningbusiness.com/
http://biznik.com/articles/how-to-position-yourself-for-future-growth-by-cutting-back-time-wasters
“Analytics at Work: Smarter Decisions, Better Results”
by Thomas H. Davenport, Jeanne G. Harris, and Robert Morison