Business Tips from Truett Cathy for Photographers

Truett Cathy promoting his book "How did you do it, Truett?"

Shortly after making this photo of Truett Cathy I was asked to be on retainer for Chick-fil-A. For the past six years I have had the privilege to work with such a wonderful organization.

I have learned a great deal from Truett Cathy and here are some of those tips for you.

Truett Cathy the founder of Chick-fil-A had a Bible verse he used as a compass for his life.

Proverbs 22:1 — "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches and loving favor than silver and gold." [King James Version (KJV)]

Here is a more modern translation from The Voice that I prefer, "A good reputation is preferable to riches, and the approval of others is better than precious silver or gold."

Every time I was around Truett I was inspired and entertained. He loved to have fun as hard as he worked.

Here are some quotes from Truett that I think every business person should adopt and would make them more successful.

"Fall in love with your work and you'll never have to work a day in your life."

Truett would follow up this comment with if you are not having fun then you are not doing something right. 

One of the keys to understanding this principle is learning the difference between GIVING and GETTING. 

Too many people are focused on themselves. Its not all about you. Once you understand this it is easier to experience the joy of life.

"My riches are my family and my foster children. I try to store any material wealth in my hand, not my heart, so that I always feel free to give it away when the opportunity rises." 

Being around Truett you see that he was very frugal and when he did spend money he was often getting a great deal. I heard more stories about a great deal Truett would get and I was always impressed.

"Nearly every moment of every day we have the opportunity to give something to someone else—our time, our love, our resources. I have always found more joy in giving when I did not expect anything in return."

No strings attached was the way Truett operated. He was the first to put a restaurant into a mall and to get people aware of his Chick-fil-A sandwich he gave away free samples.

If you met Truett you most likely were give a BOG—Be Our Guest card. All you had to do is go to a Chick-fil-A restaurant and give them the card and they gave you a sandwich. You don't have to buy anything to get it.

"My business grew on my understanding that customers are always looking for somebody who is dependable and polite and will take care of them."

Everyday Chick-fil-a is checking to see that their standards for food preparation are at the highest they can be. They hire consultants to come into their restaurants and measure the operational side of the business. They look for ways to improve the experience for the customer and cut waste.

Chick-fil-A has a training program that helps not just train but retrain everyone to keep the customer always first. 

"Many of the unexpected opportunities we encounter are small but significant."

Words are carefully analyzed so that the customer feels appreciated. Truett Cathy trained the entire workforce that when someone says thank you the proper response is "My Pleasure." I learned more about this little phrase through the years. 

You see many people respond with "No Problem" when they are thanked. I was taught that "No Problem" communicates that this is not my job but I did it anyway. However, the phrase "My Pleasure" communicates that it is my job and I love to help you.

"Looking back I can see that I had been preparing for twenty-one years to open the first Chick-fil-A restaurant."

Truett started the Dwarf House in Hapeville, GA back in 1946. He expanded to two restaurants, but one day the second one burned down. He started the restaurant with his brother Ben, but two years into their business Ben died in a plane crash.

Later the original Dwarf House had a fire and over the weekend Truett made all the repairs and kept on going.

"Sometimes success is disguised as hard work."

As you can see there were many opportunities for Truett to give up and do something else.

Many of my photographer colleagues are going through some tough times. Other than winning the lottery the only other way for success is hard work.

"One of the most meaningful truisms I have learned about leadership is that it’s all about action."

I have talked to many photographers who are struggling and the most common thing I hear from them is I know what I should do, I just don't get around to doing it.

Truett learned his work ethic from his mother. Truett was moved to tears during an interview. The person interviewing Truett asked if he was OK. Truett said he just realized that the only time he ever saw his mother's eyes closed was when she was in the coffin.

While Truett worked very hard he also will most likely be remembered for the blue signs for Chick-fil-A on the highways which also say, "Closed on Sunday."

"Businesses are not dishonest or greedy, people are. Thus, a business, successful or not, is merely a reflection of the character of its leadership."

Years ago one magazine wrote about the success of Chick-fil-A making about 1.5 Billion that year. They said that being closed on Sunday left half a billion dollars on the table. When someone asked Truett about it, he disagreed.

Truett believed by giving all his employees one day a week off that they worked harder those six days. The restaurants that never close drain their employees. They need a day of rest to be with their families and go to church if they choose.

"Why would I retire from something I enjoy doing? I can hardly wait to get here."

Truett was in his forties when he invented the Chicken Sandwich. He was 46 when the first Chick-fil-A restaurant open in Greenbriar Mall.

Truett was 52, the same age I am, when he started Team Member Scholarship Program and was 63 when he started the WinShape foundation.

At the age of 92 Truett was still working and open Truett's Luau in Fayetteville, GA. A new menu, a new concept and new restaurant was what he created.

Truett passed the baton to his son Dan when Truett was 92 years old. This past Monday Truett Cathy passed away at the age of 93.

Here are a few more quotes for you from Truett:

Like wealth, poverty also has the power to build us up and make us appreciate what we have, or it can break our spirits. 

By ‘staying small,’ we also remain sensitive to the needs of others around us. 

As long as you are being kind to your customers why not be kind to each other. 

I realized the importance of doing a job and doing it right. Pleasing your customers and enjoying what you’re doing. 

I worked hard for a C, but I had to work… I find that most successful people are C students. 

I say the world is ruled by C students cause I was in that category, I didn’t get to go to college, because I was drafted when I finished, soon after I finished high school. 

More tips from Truett

Eleven Dos and Don’ts of Proven Entrepreneurial Success by S. Truett Cathy

Importance of signature in emails

Most email programs let you create a signature that by default will put all the basic information people need to stay in touch with you at the bottom of the email.

Important content for a signature:

• Include your name, role and business name
• Include a few of your best contact details, but not all of them
• Small images and logos work best
• Promote your social media pages

Common Mistakes

• Make the entire signature a photo—Some email providers or devices have default settings that block images in emails. Use text for all the words.
• Too Big or Too Small—make clickable areas big enough for a thumb on a mobile device. Don't make things so big they are not easily visible on the mobile device.
• Too much information—Don't list all your phone numbers, email addresses and every way possible to reach you. Keep it simple.

What is great is you can create a bunch of different signatures that can be customized to the audience you are corresponding. I customize the photos at the bottom of my signature.

Here are some I use and have used through the years:

The photos at the bottom of your signature is a small portfolio that gets your work in front of more people. Remember many people will forward those emails around their office sometimes and having your work seen by more people is advantageous to you in the long run.

Here are the links for instructions for creating an email signature:

• Outlook 
• Gmail 
• Yahoo  

We are persuaded by reason, but we are moved by emotion

Fuji X-E2, 55-200mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/4.8, 1/420

I have a few friends that suffer from bipolar disorder. My heart breaks for people dealing with clinical depression. We even lost Robin Williams to this powerful mind altering condition.

All of us will experience times of depression in our lives, that is just part of living. I hope these thoughts of mine helps those of you like me who can feel depressed even when we should be celebrating.
.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM w/ Sigma 2x, ISO 40637, ƒ/5.6, 1/2000 

This was shot at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game between Alabama and West Virginia. [Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM w/ Sigma 2x, ISO 36204, ƒ/5.6, 1/2000]

Have you ever heard, “Are you letting emotions get the best of you?”

I don't know about you but throughout my life my emotions have gotten me in lots of trouble. More than getting me into trouble—I have become depressed.

You would think that the way we do better is to become more logical. Well the problem with that if we take it to an extreme is to become more like Spock from Star Trek or maybe Shelton from the Big Bang Theory. In either of these characters we see how often those who try and be logical all the time actually make a lot of matters worse as well.

Dale Carnegie wrote, “We are persuaded by reason, but we are moved by emotion. Several studies conclude that up to 90 percent of the decisions we make are based on emotion. We use logic to justify our actions to ourselves and others.”

We also tend to embrace ideas that support our beliefs and rebuff those that challenge them.

We make a lot of decisions based on our gut feelings. Malcolm Gladwell in his book “Blink” talks about how quickly we judge people in less than a few seconds when we first meet them. This is actually an animal instinct that helps us survive. For the most part this gut feeling is something we learn to trust and encouraged to do by others—“Trust your gut instinct,” we are told.

Putting a face on it changes things

If you are not careful you can be labeled as stubborn. You get too set in your ways and your opinions.

I recommend to anyone struggling with their emotions that one of the best things you can do is to have a cross-cultural experience. I recommend going to another country and hold your condemning comments while you travel. Just go and experience the other culture.

The best way I have experienced is to go with a nonprofit and help on a project. One cool thing to do is just do an exchange. Have a foreign student stay with you and then go to their country and stay there.

I remember guys in our church went downtown Atlanta to help at a homeless shelter. I remember one of the guys being blown away at how many of the homeless had full-time jobs. He helped by waking them up at 5:00 am to get ready to go to work.

These guys put a face on homelessness for this guy. Sure there are still some pretty lazy guys that might be homeless, but he found out that more than 50% of the Atlanta homeless worked.

Skipping Record

I grew up listening to vinyl records. Every once in a while the needle could get stuck and skip as we used to say. There was a small defect in the groove of the record causing the record to play in a loop. If no one did anything this would go on forever playing in a loop.

I remember even calling the local radio station to tell them their record was skipping.

Often I would go and pickup the needle and move it to play the rest of the record. That simple outside action on the record player is what cross-culture experience can do for you emotionally.

I have shared over time stories that I have covered around the world. Most recently I shared stories from Lisbon, Portugal. Next month I am going to Honduras to capture more stories.

Tip for Storyteller

Remember “We are persuaded by reason, but we are moved by emotion.” If you want to connect with your audience the best way to do that is through emotions. One of the best ways to capture emotions is through the still photograph.

[Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 4500, ƒ/10, 1/100]

In this photo of the priest I wanted to capture not just the priest talking but the emotional connection between him and the students. I think I got that moment.

Are you stuck emotionally? One of the best ways to battle this is to focus on others. Granted if you cannot do this there is a good reason to seek help. I know that professional counselors can make a huge difference. There are times that you might need help through drugs that can help get your body back in balance. Just like a diabetes patient takes medication to stay alive, people suffering from clinical depression can regain their life through medication and counseling.

Stay tuned for stories from Honduras.

Shooting 11 assignments in 4 1/2 hours

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 4000, ƒ/7.1, 1/100

It is very common when I call photo assistants that I have to tell them I am not sure all that we are doing today. We may be setting up and taking lights down all day long as we go around a college or school campus.

It is very common for me to shoot what would normally be about 10 to 12 assignments all packed into one day. On this assignment I packed in 11 locations in 1/2 day.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 400, ƒ/5.6, 1/640

Here was my shot list for Thursday 1/2 day of shooting at a Catholic High School:

• Science Lab
• Helicopter Aerial Photo Shoot of Campus
• Students by statue of Mary & Jesus
•  Female by herself
• Male by himself
• Male and Female
• Drums from around the World Class
• Spanish Class
• Computer Class teaching Adobe Illustrator
• Small group in the Library
• Priest Teaching class
• Priests with students and talking in lobby
• Calculus Class
• Robotics Class

Here are some of the photos


Click here to see the photos in slide show larger.

The skills I give to my clients is to walk into any situation and come away with photos that will engage their audience. Any situation can require special lighting skills to shooting available light and even knowing how to shoot aerial photos of a campus.

I am not give time to brain storm and come up with lots of ideas. I am given less than a couple minutes to come up with an approach and then execute it in about 30 to 40 minutes. This includes setting up studio strobes and taking them down to go to our next location. I work with two assistants to make this go quickly.

The hardest part is the client who has not worked with a professional who is going to make each location look the very best by creating light may not be aware of the time it takes for each location. They may be use to seeing the local newspaper reporter come in and take a few photos and then they write a story. Those photographers typically use no flash or on camera flash due to the speed they need to work and the fact that most of the time the photo is reproduced Black and White.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 250, ƒ/5.6, 1/500

 With 30+ years of shooting for colleges, national publications and major brands I have enough experience to see the big picture from a high altitude for my clients. If you need a big perspective to pick the best visual approach for your storytelling, give me a call. If you just want to learn how to do this yourself call me to schedule a class.

Underexpose a scene and flash just the subject

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 11400, ƒ/10, 1/100—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at 1/128 Power

You want your photos to pop, then light the subject but not everything else in your photo.

Where do you put the flash? Off camera and create a triangle between you the flash and the subject.

I continue to tell my assistants to just create a triangle and point the flash at the subjects face.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 1800, ƒ/14, 1/100—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at 1/8 Power

I just shoot the photo and then look at the LCD on the camera. Couple things I am looking for in the photo.

I want to be sure my flash isn't overpowering and washing out the skin tones. I do this by seeing the photo and checking the histogram. Here is the histogram for the photo above.

I am watching my shutter speed with the Neewer TT850 since it must sync at 1/250 or slower. I am also trying to be sure the background is not too dark or light.

I typically can just set the camera to -1/3 to up to -1 stop underexposed and then just watch the flash setting on the camera.

The radio remote will change the setting on the flash as long as they are on the same channel. Here the flash is set to 1/32 power. You can adjust the power from 1/128th to full power in 1/3 stop increments. Basically a lot of control.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 1600, ƒ/14, 1/100—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at 1/8 Power

I have found the when I shoot on the Nikon TTL system I cannot control the flash in manual mode. So the flash is very inconsistent and depends on the scene. I was dialing it up or down by 3 stops, but now with the manual setting on the Neewer system I actually have more control.

I am giving up the high speed sync, but that is only necessary some of the time. Most of the time I prefer manual mode where I am in control.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 110, ƒ/7.1, 1/100—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at 1/4 Power

I like using the light to direct the audience to what I think is most important in the scene. Available light tends to often light everything equally. I don't like those type of photos.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 100, ƒ/11, 1/160—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at 1/32 Power

See the photo above with the flash almost not even lighting the people. I then turn the power up to full and look at the difference.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 1800, ƒ/14, 1/100—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

I like the flash popping a subject out from the scene.

I also used the MagMod system to put a 1/2 CTO gel in front of the flash for all the photos.

Love the Nikon D4 & Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM for Football

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM w/ Sigma 2x, ISO 36204, ƒ/5.6, 1/2000

There are a few things that are extremely important technical aspects for a great sports photo:

• Well exposed
• In focus
• Sharp

The Nikon D4 and the Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM with the Sigma 2x converter helps me to get the moments and technically being just right.

The Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM Lens is a telephoto zoom lens featuring a fast, constant f/2.8 maximum aperture. This lens is the first lens designed under Sigma's new Sports line of lenses, making it well-suited for fast-moving subjects such as wildlife, nature, aviation, racing, and other similar situations.

The built-in OS (Optical Stabilizer) system enables a reduction in the appearance of camera shake up to the equivalent of four stops, resulting in a long lens that can easily be used handheld and low-light conditions. The OS system is divided into two modes; one for general shooting applications, and one that is better suited for panning shots of moving subjects. The OS system can be further adjusted to suit your needs through the use of the USB Dock.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM w/ Sigma 2x, ISO 36204, ƒ/5.6, 1/2000 [While this is a little noisy for my tastes, the dynamic range is pretty good and the important thing is it is in focus, sharp and well exposed]

The Nikon D4 camera features a 16.2Mp 36 x 23.9mm CMOS sensor with Nikon's FX-format and the EXPEED3 image processor. ISO sensitivity can now be extended as low as ISO 50 or as high as 204,800 with a standard range of 100-12,800 ISO. Additionally, 10 frames per second continuous shooting in FX-format for up to 200 shots ensures the decisive moment will not be missed.

D4's AF sensor utilizes 51 strategically placed AF points that are designed to capture subjects as you choose: by working together like a net to capture moving subjects or for pinpoint accuracy. Use a single AF point to home in on the exact place on your chosen subject. Each of the 51 AF points delivers fast and accurate AF detection to an impressive low light level of -2 EV (ISO 100, 20ºC) with every AF NIKKOR lens - expect to shoot more smoothly at night stadium assignments, poorly lit indoor arenas, cathedrals, theaters and any other low-lit venues.

D4 aligns its 15 cross-type sensors in the center to detect contrast for both vertical and horizontal lines with lenses f/5.6 or faster. The five central points and three points to the left and right of them in the middle line are compatible with f/8. Which is to say that with the Sigma 2x converter the lens is ƒ/5.6 and the D4 could still autofocus in a low light level of -2 EV at ISO 100. I had a lot more light than that in the Georgia Dome.

Here is a small slideshow of more images from the game with the specs in the lower left-hand corner for you.

Click here to see the photos in slide show larger.

ISO 51200 & 25600 with Sigma 120-300mm on Nikon D4

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM w/ Sigma 2x, ISO 51200, ƒ/5.6, 1/2000

Chick-fil-A Kickoff

Last night I had the privilege to shoot the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game between Ole Miss and Boise State. Ole Miss pulled away in the second half from Boise State for a 35—13 victory.

I was enjoying shooting with my Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM. I added also to my gear a Sigma 2x converter, which I used giving me a 600mm ƒ/5.6 lens. The photo above was made with that combination.

Yin-Yang

Photography has as much to do with Yin-Yang than anything I have ever encountered.

Yin-Yang are concepts used to describe how apparently opposite or contrary forces are actually complementary, interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another.

When you change any one of these three you must adjust one of the other to keep a proper exposure. This is the trade-off made all the time in photography.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM, ISO 16000, ƒ/4, 1/2000

Sports Settings

Here are my default sports settings for a game with these three:

• Aperture—While I love the bokeh at wide open, I tend to shoot around ƒ/4 or ƒ/5.6
• Shutter Speed—1/2000 If the highest ISO is reached, then any need of more light the shutter speed will drop below 1/2000 when using the Auto ISO settings.
• ISO—Auto ISO 100-12800, but for some of this game 100-51200

Warning about using Auto ISO—you cannot use manual and keep a constant setting. The meter will adjust the ISO up and down. If you want to truly shoot Manual Mode then you must turn off the Auto ISO.

Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM, ISO 7200, ƒ/2.8, 1/2000

I love the Bokeh on the Sigma 120-300mm and with the Ole Miss dancer opened up to ƒ/2.8. For action I find while I love the ƒ/2.8 I prefer a little more depth-of-field to keep them tact sharp.

Here are more examples with the settings showing in the lower left hand corner for you.

Click here to see the photos in slide show larger.

Freelance Professional Photographers: Your Spouse is THE KEY to success

My parents David and Bonita when they were dating

Growing up I watched how both of my parents supported one another. We hear a lot about children do better when raised in a two parent home.

Children raised in intact married families:

• are more likely to attend college
• are physically and emotionally healthier
• are less likely to be physically or sexually abused
• are less likely to use drugs or alcohol and to commit delinquent behaviors
• have a decreased risk of divorcing when they get married
• are less likely to become pregnant/impregnate someone as a teenager

Your business is like a child

So just like children who benefit from a loving two parent home so too will your business flourish when your spouse is supportive of your business.

If you came to me about becoming a freelancer, one of the first questions I would ask you “Is your spouse supportive what you're about to do?”

My biggest cheerleader and support is my wife Dorie. 

The difference between a supportive spouse and one that is questioning you all the time as you are trying to make business decisions can cost you your business.

Dorie's father was an entrepreneur and she is very comfortable with this role. Not everyone grows up in the family of an entrepreneur. There is a huge difference in how your household life will be day to day when you have an employer verses you running your own business.

All the books on parenting emphasize the importance of the two parents being on the same game plan when it comes to raising your children. You learn to support the other parents decision even if you disagree.

If you disagree you talk about it and then the next time something comes up again, the game plan may be different, but that is because you discussed it.

There is very little good that comes from disagreeing with another parent's decision in front of a child. It is not that this should never happen, but that you understand the consequences of this disagreement when the other spouse made a decision when you were not there.

It's a Two Way Street

There is a Bible verse that I think every couple and friendship needs to know. It is Romans 12:10 "love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor."

Whatever your spouse feels passionate about is something they need support doing. Dorie has a calling to help journalist. Here is an article on her ministry to journalists.

Click here to read the article

Dorie also has a passion for helping the parents of The Citadel. She knows from first hand experience that parents need more information on how they can support their child. She has created a blog to help those parents.

Click here to go to Dorie's blog

Earning Support

You cannot go to your spouse and say I need you to support me and immediately get that support. I can tell you a secret on how you get it—Give It!

Here are some ways that you can first be supportive of your spouse:

• Respect your spouse's personal/business decisions
• Demonstrate you have faith in them
• Give them your shoulder on those days when they have a sinking feeling
• Work with your spouse on balance
• Celebrate your spouses successes
• Don't try and Fix-it [As a male I struggle with not trying to jump in and fix things]
• Listen well
• Be Truthful, Genuine and Credible with your encouragement. Don't embellish your comments of support.

Dorie has done an incredible job of making me feel like I can be a successful photographer. This has been the most important key to the success of my business.

No Spouse

If you are not married and not even dating you still will need some support from a community. I would encourage you to have a good friend that can help with some of the support that married people get from one another. You just need some support or you will find it more stressful than it should be.

The Foundation

When we think of building we start with a foundation. There are two types of building foundations: shallow and deep foundations.

Both of them are there to create the support that creates a firm support for the rest of the building.

I would argue that the foundation that I have built my business on is made up of two components. First is my faith in God and the second is my spouse. Together the two of these have interlocked to give the business what it has needed to grow.

On top of the foundation you need to have solid business practices and a portfolio that will invite clients to want to work with you.

Supportive Discouragement

If your spouse has some weaknesses that you think will lead to disaster, encourage them to either go take classes to learn more about this or maybe they need to outsource that area of the business. Maybe you as the spouse may want to take on helping them because this might be something you are skilled in.

Don't tell them they are going to fail. Tell them how they will be successful as long as they address what you think might be holding them back.

Seek out wisdom

The best time to seek out the wisdom of others is before you start your business and not after. Start with your spouse talking about your dream. Find a good mentor/coach and remember to listen. If you are finding little or no support, this is a good sign that you need to assess your friends and spouses concerns.

Be a good parent as well

Our daughter Chelle

I am very proud of my daughter and love to talk about all she does to anyone who will listen. She loves the theater and while most parents are telling their children how difficult it is to be successful, we encourage our daughter. Sure we don't sugar coat it, but we took her to Hollywood to see behind the scenes and see all the careers that are creative.

Encourage people to pursue their dreams. Remember that often the chasing of the dream leads to a very successful career and not always exactly as they dreamed. However, it was the chasing that gets them to where they will be successful.

During the Emmy Awards Monday night Jim Parson's thank you reminded me of how important support is in our success. 

Jim Parsons won his fourth Emmy for his work on The Big Bang Theory. Parsons took the opportunity to thank his father in his speech. Mickey Parsons, he said, died before all of the craziness attached to Big Bang Theory began. He thanked his father for supporting him.

"He encouraged me to be an actor. He never discouraged me to be an actor, and in a career that hinges so much on confidence a lot of the time, that was a really great gift," Parsons said.

I highlighted the part, because it is just as applicable to any of us. Support builds confidence.

Seeing the light vs Creating the light

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/4, 1/500

Are you impressed with my photo of Jack Sparrow? The way you get this photo is no different than shooting any concert tour or theater production.

Set the white balance and get a good exposure and then wait for a great moment.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/200

Now just like everyone else at PhotoShop World like me most likely took the photo above and this one below.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/4, 1/450

Someone else found all the props, the model, the backgrounds and then even set up all the lights for me. All I had to do is set the white balance and the right exposure. The models would even stay in a pose for minutes at a time to help anyone with figuring out a "moment." So there are no "kudos" for this photo if you are showing it as your work.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/105

Everyone with a camera is going crazy shooting photos that if they showed to any art director and if they get hired to shoot the same photo themselves most likely wouldn't have a clue on how to make it happen.

Photography is writing with light and when you had nothing to do with the light you really did very little with the photograph, especially in these situations where without the lights there is no photograph.

Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/2.8, 1/250

What can you learn from these set up situations?

• Find interesting subjects
• Find interesting settings
• Use light creatively, by not lighting everything equally in the photograph

Fuji X-E2, 55-200mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/5, 1/140

While we all will continue to shoot stage productions and concerts, remember if you are a photographer showing your work around and you have nothing that shows you know how to create photos like this from scratch then they can hire any photographer to shoot the photos.

Learn how to create these photos rather than just getting them properly exposed.

Silhouette AND Reveal @ The College Football Hall of Fame Grand Opening

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 100, ƒ/8, 1/200

Today I covered the Grand Opening of the College Football Hall of Fame downtown in Atlanta Georgia. Here are a couple photos from today.

To me there is a HUGE difference between this photo above and the one below. Don't you agree?

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 100, ƒ/8, 1/200—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

I think your eyes go to the cheerleaders faces a lot more with the flash than in the top photo where I believe the background draws your eyes first.

I like keeping my flash off-camera all that I can and my assistant is holding the flash off to my left and the Cheerleaders right.

Here are more examples of using the same technique. The only thing I am watching is keeping my shutter speed sync below 1/250 since I am using the Neewer flash, but can shoot 600 full power shots on one fully charged battery. I carried a second battery and barely had to use it.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 100, ƒ/11, 1/200—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

Chick-fil-A is the major sponsor of the College Football Hall of Fame and were there giving out samples of their new grilled nuggets. It took me a while to find someone with a full tray, because they were going so fast at the event.

Here I wanted to capture them giving them out and the CFHOF behind them.

Nikon D4, 14-24mm, ISO 100, ƒ/11, 1/200—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

Both the Georgia Tech cheerleaders and the lady sampling the grilled nuggets were in the shade and I "Revealed" them with the flash or they would have been a "Silhouette."

Nikon D4, 28-300mm, ISO 125, ƒ/8, 1/200—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

The stage where speakers like Bill Curry and Mayor Kasim Reed spoke was split lighting their faces. One side in direct sunlight and the other shade. Using the same small hot shoe flash I had my assistant stand straight in front of them and basically giving them a classic fill light.

Nikon D4, 28-300mm, ISO 160, ƒ/8, 1/200—off-camera flash using the Neewer TT850 flash & Neewer 433MHz Wireless 16 Channel Flash Remote Trigger with flash at Full Power

For my departing shot of the day I saw the ESPN College Game Day bus, but to show the College Football Hall of Fame behind it was difficult the side of the bus was in shade, but the CFHOF was in direct sunlight. I just put the flash on the ground near the bus [I let my assistant go just before I saw this] and on full power I was able to light up the Sports Anchors of the show on the side of the bus. A week from today they will be transmitting inside the CFHOF during the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game between Alabama and West Virginia.

Why did I use flash so much today? I knew there were be a LOT of media there. My client will be able to see their coverage as well as mine. 

Like the game of football I needed to win the quality coverage contest and cannot afford to ever have others out do my coverage. I can afford for them to match it, but I can't afford other media to show a better coverage and I continue to be hired by clients.