March Postcard

This month's postcard sent to a select group of clients and friends.
Shot on location in Sussex, England

If you wish to receive the postcard just let me know.  I'm happy to add you to the list.

Letting Your Voice Be Heard - Finally

I just read this on the Burns Auto Parts blog.  Thank you Leslie for posting this.

The Copyright Alliance is asking for our help.
This is EXTREMELY important and I think everyone should respond to this.
The President (that is President Obama) wants to get our input on how copyright effects us as creatives. This is a Great opportunity for your voice to be heard about the importance of copyright (or the lack of).

Here is a link to the pdf from the Copyright Alliance explaining how this came about and telling you where to write:   http://bit.ly/cjDZJt

This is our chance to be heard - don't let it go to waste!!!

NYC @ Twilight

I've always found that one of the more magical times to take photos is at twilight.  Especially in New York City.  It's different here than any where I have ever lived.  With all the alleys, cobblestone streets, tall buildings and street lights, what is in front of you comes alive with deep, rich colors, smooth gradients and pools of light that one just doesn't notice in the bright light of day.

These images were taken in the West Village of Manhattan at dusk on March 8th

To see more twilight images visit my web site @ keithbarraclough.com under "Newest".

And to see more New York City and other images visit my stock archive @ keithbarracloughstock.com

Muslim Fishing Village

On a trip to Phang Nga  Bay in Thailand we had at the opportunity to stop at a small fishing village named Ko Panyi.  I'm not really sure if it is Ko Panyi or Koh Panyee (had two books showing different spellings).  In any event, this is a village who's houses are built almost entirely on stilts with a concrete walkway running through the middle.  With 270 houses and roughly 1500 inhabitants, this had the be one of the most fascinating place we visited.  The village's main income comes from fishing in the Phang Nga Bay, but also from the tourists who visit.  The villagers sell anything from dried fish, to sea shells on chains, t-shirts, small woven rugs to bottled water.  Their homes we very simple - mats for beds, stools for chairs and clothes lines or an open window for drying.  Their only mode of transportation are longtail boats.  It not only helped me appreciate what I have in life, but in the end coming away with a new sense of awe and respect for the human spirit.  I would love to have the chance to spend a month with them. living how they live and learning what they know.

To see more images visit my web site under "New Work"

 

  

 

Dignity, Emotion and Humor

A quote I recently found from Max Gerber really hit home for me. He was describing what he loves most about portrait photography. It pretty much sums up how I feel about it as well.

"The thing I love most about portrait photography
is its capacity - at times, when you're lucky - for
unparalleled empathy. The trick is finding more
dignity in your subject than they knew they had
themselves."

Along with dignity, I would add emotion, character and grace. All of these can make a great portrait. Adding none of these and the image falls flat.

Of course I like adding a touch of humor as well. Especially when pairing images. Here are some examples put together by Rhoni Epstein and Susan Baraz of Phototherapists for my new portfolio.

 

  

 

Bangkok

Here are some more images from my trip to Thailand. This time Bangkok.
It is quite an amazing city. The center of which is the Chao Phraya River. Many river boats, water taxis, longtail boats and barges are constantly sailing up and down the river. The first set of images below shows all the "traffic" on the water. They were taken from the hotel room, which had quite a view! Taking the water taxi was a ride within itself - whistles blowing, banging up against the docks, lots of people and the lovely smell of exhaust.
The other photos were taken at the Grand Palace and on the canals in Thonburi. The contrast of the palace and the homes on the canal were striking. The condition in which some live and the dignity in which they do has always amazed me. This is not just in Thailand, but all over the world - even in our backyard.

There are more images from Bangkok on my web site under "New Work". I'll have more images next week from my favorite place we visited - a Muslim town on Phang Nga Bay

Staying Connected

Just sent this email promo out today.
Staying connected, I think, is one of the most important aspect of photography. If you not connected to the outside world you will fail. It reminds me of a quote from Stereo MC's "Connected".

"Make sure you're connected,
the writings on the wall.
But if you're mind's neglected,
stumble you might fall".

I don't think it could be said much better than that. In this tough economy it is essential that we don't let our mind wander, complaining about the lack of work, and therefore neglecting what we need to do - staying in touch with those who use photography. If they don't know who you are and what you have to offer then you will Never get work from them. Epromos are just one small aspect of what needs to be done.

Here is one recipe for success. All of these in tandem will get you heading in the right direction. I'm sure most already know this, but you would be amazed as to how many don't follow through.
--Visual emails and direct mail campaigns - send at least six per year
--Sales Marketing - personal meetings and networking
--Blog - show new work and tell others what you are doing/working on.
--Website - Outreach marketing. It seems that everyone goes here first.
--Facebook and LinkedIn - Visual and personal selling (Twitter, I think, is a waste of time).

At The Beach in Thailand

I've finally finished with the images from my trip to Thailand. 1600+ images. It certainly takes a long time to write the metadata, keywords and run them through post processing. Here are some samples from the first leg of the trip: On the shores of the Andaman Sea. I'll have more from Phuket and Bangkok in the next few days.
All of the images will be on my stock archive and available to license for editorial and advertising use.

Animal Planet Exhibit

I usually don't use my blog as a form of unashamed promotion, but... this was/is pretty cool.
The photo shoot I did for Animal Planet a few months ago has been a huge hit within The Discovery Channel offices. So much so that they produced a small fold-out calendar (which sold out). Now they would like to print a larger calendar for sale and have printed 16x20" prints of about a dozen images which are hanging in the lobby of their corporate office in Silver Spring. I had a chance to stop by this week to see it and say Thank You to the art buyers. They are great to work with - very professional and love to have a good time on the set. Can't beat the experience!

The images of the exhibit aren't great, but you get the idea.

New Stock Images

I'm getting more and more images onto my stock photography site (see it here). I've been working on it for a while and there is still some tweaking to do, but it's getting there. Images range from New York City, People/Lifestyle, Fine Art and Environment.
Here are some of the new images added this past week.
Traveling to Thailand on December 22nd so will have many more images in January 2010.
Stay tuned...