Take advantage of your trip to Vegas for WPPI and extend it a little! Going Pro promises to be a great educational experience, with 3 of the most experienced people in our Industry: Skip Cohen, Scott Bourne, and Michelle Celantano! Sign up now and make it an educational powerhouse of a week in Las Vegas!

Going Pro is all about the business of photography - the only thing more important than actually being a really great photographer. If you can't sell your work and manage your business - you have no business, no matter how talented you are. 

The format for Going Pro is quite different than most seminars as well. It is smaller and informal, so you can actually spend time with and ask questions of the presenters. They want to make sure everyone leaves with a solid plan for the next steps to success.

Add a couple days to the beginning of your Vegas adventure and I assure you it will be well worth the extra time.

Our friend over at Fundy software, who makes great time saving software products for photographers, has grabbed a copy of our Lighting Notebook and shared some thoughts. Fundy is great in his sharing of information and tips with photographers and his blog covers a wide variety of subjects and products. He did a video review, which is always much more fun to watch than simply reading a blog post...like this ;-)

Check it out!

I just finished my program at Imaging USA, PPA's mega annual convention. While it was an EARLY 7AM program, we had some great energy in the room - which seemed to be set up for a basketball game instead of a photo seminar :-)

I wanted to share with photographers some of the top things I've learned about growing a business, time-management, and staying inspired. A few of the ideas included:

• Are you a memorable brand? If you were to hand your business card to someone, could they recall what your logo looked like a few minutes later? What are the top 3-5 adjectives someone would list for your business based on the first impressions? More importantly, is this what you want and expected?
• I created a silly acronym, WIN, for Write It Now. This is one of my most effective time-management and brain clearing techniques. Whenever I need to remember ANYTHING, I write it immediately in my iPhone. I don't leave anything to my shady memory. This helps to release my subconscious from trying to hold on to the myriad little things I encounter everyday and leaves more room for creativity and contemplation. I rest MUCH easier at night now.
• When working towards making any new idea or technique a habit, DON'T try to commit to doing it all all once. Most people, like me, find the thought of making such a big change intimidating - as much as we really want, or need, to do it. Instead, commit to a little bity portion of the big picture. For example, if you want to start working out 3x a week for an hour, don't start there. Start with just a 5 minute workout - maybe even 1x per week. Once you can do that regularly, increase to 3x per week. Then start moving to 10 minutes, 30 minutes, and eventually to an hour. The idea is that once something is a habit, even a small thing, it's much easier to increase the intensity or involvement, but it needs to become a habit first. Just start somewhere!

There was a lot more covered, and if you were there and want the handout, you can download it here. Don't forget to use the password I gave you at the program! Have a super duper day :-)

Download here.

Check out all the latest, greatest electronics and photo gadgets while at CES and DIMA and come on over to my two lighting workshops. I'll share some great lighting tips & tricks as well as how to get the most from your speedlights. Register now!

PMA & CES website

After a much needed break and holiday, I'm back in the saddle at work and I walked in this morning to a nice surprise on my desk - my autographed copy of Scott Bourne and Skip Cohen's latest book, GoingPro. 

Many of you are already familiar with the GoingPro workshop that they have created - the next one coming very soon to Las Vegas - on Feb. 18th, just before the WPPI convention. This is undoubtedly one of the best deals in photographer education and the focus is entirely on making a solid business of your photography passion. Scott and Skip bring decades of solid business experience to anyone smart enough to lend an ear. 

The GoingPro book is a culmination of their experiences, and the shared experiences of many other renowned photographers - all concisely documented in easily digestable chapters. It covers everything from branding to marketing to social media to growing the business. These people know their stuff and it's all neatly packaged in a beautifully designed, easy to follow book.

In this age of virtual information everywhere, it's refreshing to sit down with a good book and flip through the information and images knowing that years and years of practical experience is right within your fingertips. Add this one to your library.

Click on the image below to visit the book on Amazon:

Dane has been doing this great program for years and I was actually one of his very first guests! Dane caught me by surprise (I wasn't expecting to be on video), so you'll see the unsuspecting me, talking about business, lighting, what's next, and more. It's free! So join us, will you? Reserve your spot now: http://klnb.co/t1WMGD

http://klnb.co/s78TNg Follow that link for our Cyber Monday super deals! Happy couple days after Thanksgiving ;-) I hope everyone had a restful weekend - although if you were out shopping and being part of the record breaking retail weekend, then you probably had a pretty busy one!

I will be contributing a free 1-hour video tutorial on Photoshop Essentials for new photographers as part of the JoyOfMarketing's Newbie event on Nov. 8-11. There will be several qualified instructors doing presentations on all aspects of successfully starting and running your photography business. If you are relatively new, or just need a little boost with some great ideas, definitely check this out! 

Follow this link for more info and to save your spot for the free online event.