Communication is key in any successful business but I felt it was particularly needed in an industry where anyone with a camera is a “photographer”. People regularly trust one of the biggest days (their wedding) of their life to cheap or free “professionals” with a snazzy camera. When I started photographing bands at local venues and posting images online many people asked me to photograph something for them. Whether that was their car, child, themselves, etc. I always told them flat out if I thought it was beyond my level of expertise. I was asked by a good friend of ours to photograph her wedding and I told her I had never done that and would have to do some research before committing to it.
After browsing the internet and discovering the term “Bridezilla” I then researched what creates this beast and found that it ALWAYS ALWAYS came down to communication, or a lack thereof! (What does this have to do with technology you ask? We’ll get to that in a minute I promise) It always came down to a breakdown from a vendor to the bride, or bride to vendor, or vendor to vendor. Communicating is easy. Clear and concise and worthwhile communication is another thing! We make sure our clients know what to expect when they have their photo session or wedding. I recently met a bride that NEVER MET her photographer until the day of the wedding… and when the photographer arrived it wasn’t who she had contracted for, it was a couple of assistants!! Whoa! Stop the presses! We meet a minimum of twice before the wedding, sometimes more, sometimes with other vendors to ensure that your wedding day is perfect!
Now to the technology part…
We have found a few products that have been EXTREMELY helpful in this aspect…
We are not and will never be Apple fanboys here, so we have gone with mobile device running the Android OS. We stay connected with a pair of LG Nexus 4 phones and Asus Nexus 7 tablets. The Nexus line is the pure Android experience, no bloatware, no apps you don’t want, just Android the way Google intended it. We stay connected via text messaging, email, Facebook, Skype, Twitter, Reddit, Google +, you name it!
We’ll focus on tablet productivity in this post though. Our Nexus 7s are little traveling portfolios, almost always with us to show off images, video slideshows, etc. Being able to whip out a 7″ tablet to show a potential client our work has landed us more than a few jobs in the past seven years. Slideshows look great on here whether it’s a demo slideshow or a client’s first look at their engagement shoot (for weddings we like to review via projection the first time). It’s a perfect size for a couple to look at and become absorbed in when we meet for the first time.
I’m currently writing this blog post using a Logitech wireless keyboard with it
Bluetooth connected, standard batteries (don’t have to worry about charging), simple operation. It just works! I typically like to use the Swype app for text entry on mobile devices but a blog post like this would be an exercise in frustration on the on screen keyboard. It runs on a couple of AAAs and honestly I haven’t replaced the batteries in the six months I’ve had it! With a package a little larger than a paperback book I can do 90% of the stuff I rely on a computer for. Coffee shop, airport terminal, business center you name it if I get inspired I can take advantage of it.
Nexus tablets are fast, simple, they’ll get the latest updates the fastest, and they are generally more affordable than the offerings from Samsung, Apple, and HTC.
As always, questions, discussion, it’s all welcome here!
