So you have a digital camera and you are thinking of turning your photography hobby into a successful business. But where do you start? From a logo, to a website, blogsite, domain name, email account, business card, camera equipment, lighting equipment, accounting software — you are feeling a little overwhelmed. The question is, what should you do first?Identify the one action that will make the biggest impactWhen starting any new business, you will have many things to do. The hardest part is knowing what to do first. Although, several things may be important, think to yourself, “what is the one thing that will make the biggest impact in launching my business?” For example, hiring a great accountant is important, but without any clients or income, this step will have very little impact in launching your business.Biggest impact for photography businessesGet a website! Getting a website will have the single greatest impact on starting a photography business. Certainly, word-of-mouth and referrals will bring you business as well. But, for example, if someone refers a business to you, what is the first thing you do? You go online and check out their website! Times have changed, getting a professional looking website is not difficult or expensive. There are many beautiful template photography website companies out there. You simply upload your own photos and content. You can even change the look of the website without any graphic design skills. Best of all, many of these companies help you set up your domain name and email accounts. These companies charge anywhere from $6 – $50/month on average. (Once your business is more established you may wish to hire a professional to design your website/blogsite – see branding below).What content should be on the website?Make sure to include your business name and location. So often I see photographers have forgotten to give their location! Don’t have a studio or a physical address? That’s okay. It is just important that you include the city and state/province that you work in. This is important for Google. You want your website to show up when someone searches for photography services in your city! For example, a potential client may type “Windsor Wedding Photographer” into a Google search. You want to make sure that you have mentioned on your website that you are a Wedding Photographer in Windsor!Also, be sure to give your contact information – email and telephone number. It is ideal to have this on your “contact” page, and at the bottom of every page on your website. You want to make it as easy as possible for people to contact you!Finally, write a little bit about yourself and what type of photography you do. People can’t hire you if they don’t know what you do!What images should I put on my website?Many new photographers worry that they don’t have enough photos for a portfolio page. Don’t worry! Less is often more. If you are starting a wedding photography business, put up some wedding related photos. Don’t have very many wedding photos? Try this: go to your local florist and buy a beautiful bouquet. Then take some beautiful detail photos of it. Ask a friend if you can take some detail photos of her engagement ring and wedding band. Slowly, as you get more clients your portfolio will grow and you can add more photos. If you are starting a kids portrait photography business and you don’t have a lot of photos of children – ask a friend if you can photograph her toddler for the website.I am by no means suggesting that you lie to clients about your level of experience. These are just some ideas on how to get supporting images for your website. Also, getting out there and taking more photographs is a great exercise in photography!Unsure of your company’s identity? What about branding?You always hear about people who haven’t started their photography businesses yet because everything behind the scenes, (branding, logo, studio, etc), isn’t perfect yet. They are afraid to start until everything is perfect. Chances are they will never be perfect – and they will never start. Your style and your company’s identity will become clearer to you the more you photograph. For example, you may decide that would like to photograph newborns only to discover, from experience, that you don’t have the patience. And you later realize that you really excel in the fast pace world of wedding photography.Things to think aboutThere are many simple/plain website templates out there that you can choose from, if you are still discovering your style and brand. You can refine the your website’s style later. Look at established companies – they are always updating their website’s style! Don’t wait until everything is perfect behind the scenes to start your photography company. You might just be waiting forever! Get your website up, because it is the one action you can take that will have the biggest impact on propelling your photography business forward. Good luck!
Electronic Gadgets Sales For Morons: Ten+ Devices You Can Wear
Electronics and clothes could well be the perfect combination.Man has always been enamoured with gadgets and more so if it is packed with a lot of electronic features and other amazing stuff courtesy of the advancements in technology in our day. Electronic items are indisputably hot items in the market today and entrepreneurs or online resellers like you will have a better chance of making it big in this business by retailing electronic gadgets.An additional fact that business people have leveraged on for centuries is man’s unique tendencies to accessorize. Literally millions of trinkets, jewelries and other accessories have flooded the marketplace for so long and still people continue to buy these things to give highlights or enhance their clothing. With technology churning out a wide variety of electronic gadgets, it was only a matter of time before these devices transcended from their main functions and entered the realm of fashion.Fashion And Technology Together At LastWhat was normally not attributed as fashion items, wearable gadgets are little by little making their presence felt in the fashion industry as more and more people are jumping on this trend. This provides wonderful opportunities for electronic gadget for sellers like you wanting to broaden their consumer base and including people wanting to have wearable gadgets as part of their wardrobe. If you’re a businessman purely engaged in garments or fashion accessories you should also investigate adding electronics items that would complement or enhance the clothing items you are selling.You must think about however, that you will be marketing wearable gadgets to consumers of a different kind. They may possibly be different from previous enthusiasts of electronic gadgets or people who are solely fashion buffs. However, people’s lifestyles have changed over the years and many are continually on the move and would want to bring or have access to communications and information anywhere they go.This piece of information would be one of the central marketing elements that you should have in mind when advertising these gadgets as part of listings for wearable gadgets, fashion accessories or consumer electronics.10 Plus Gadget Clothing ItemsThe following are some of the hottest selling wearable electronic gadgets that you can add to your online store, whether you’re selling electronics items or fashion accessories. Depending on your store forte, you can offer product descriptions that would cater to the needs of your prospective buyers.* Wrist Band BatteryWho says that an emergency power supply can’t be stylish? A Wrist band portable battery can be that and much more. Not only will you have a readily available power source for your handheld electronic gadgets, you’ll also have fashionable band that will fit infallibly on your wrist. List this device together with its specifications and functions including the type of batteries it has, the connector types, the voltage outputs and the components and accessories included in the package.* LED WristwatchThe times are seriously a shifting and everything is going high tech – so why not your timepieces as well! LED watches are like amazing gadgets coming right out of some comic book or sci-fi show with their amazing single or multi-colored LED display that not only tells the time but is quite seductive and fashionable as well – whether your buyer is a scientist, a nerd, techie, sportsperson or fashion icon. List the item down together with its functions and specifications as well as its cosmetic features that would cater to both gadget junkies and fashion buffs.* Spy WristwatchSpy gadgets and surveillance tools are in a fast-selling niche of their own, but adding a little bit of fashion elements to their main features will double their allure even more. List the item describing the video and recording capabilities of its DVR, video formats and memory together with others including describing how the gadget can work well with various kinds of clothing – whether they be sporty, rakish or modish.* Watch Cellular PhonePeople have been fiddling with watch phone for years, trying to come up with a good model that can approximate those amazing devices only seen on sci-fi or spy movies. The advancements in cutting-edge technologies not only made these wearable gadgets a actuality but made them exceedingly trendy too. Even fashion icons find them stylish enough to wear nowadays. It is important to provide accurate specifics about the gadget’s GSM compatibilities, memory specifications, and multimedia support.* Bluetooth BraceletOn no account fail to notice a call when your cell phone is in silent mode or when the environment is noisy enough you missed hearing your phone ring. The wristlet uses Bluetooth technologies to synchronize with your phone, alerting you with vibrate and caller ID functions whenever an incoming call is received. Sell these items by listing their specifications like Bluetooth versions, frequencies, and supplementary features including describing how the items can also be a stylish but functional addition to your user’s wardrobe.* LED ShirtGrab attention at parties, concerts, raves and other gatherings with sound activated electroluminescence shirts that respond and move to your music’s cadence. People would surely want to talk to you after getting their smiles and attention with this amazing display that combines first-rate fashion with high technology. Just don’t forget to caution your buyers that these are hand-washed only!* MP3 HeadphonesScores of people would want to listen to their favorite music anywhere they go and folding headphones with a built-in MP3 player would be one of the coolest and most trendy gadgets they can bring anywhere. This electronic gadgets portability is excellent that anyone can fold it and put it any small bag or jacket. When worn not only will the user listen to a variety of supported music formats but the cosmetic design is good enough to wear with any stylish or casual clothing.* Earphone BeanieThe cold days are soon coming and your customers would surely want to wear a stylish beanie while listening to their favorite music – so why not offer them both with a classy headset beanie. Not only can it be very comfortable to wear in any outdoor sports activities, the device can be linked to any audio or multimedia players and other comparable tech gadgets.* Video SpecsThe future is here now with the advent of very stylish portable video glasses that allow the users to look at a show or play their favorite video game on a 40-inch virtual display even when on the move like riding on a bus, train or in the park. These glasses are lightweight and comfortable to wear and can be connected to any portable media players. These devices are magnificent items to sell on your online store so be sure to list down compatible gadgets, memory capacities and other features that your prospective buyers would surely want to experience.* Spy GlassesIf video glasses permit you to watch film’s or play a video game, spy glasses have built in spy cameras that you can use to capture images and footages without anyone suspecting. The glasses look classy and can even be sexy and would blend well with any clothing – great for any covert or surveillance work. When creating a listing for this product, be sure to list the brand of camera sensor it uses, the memory capacity, battery life, video resolution and other similar features and specifications.* MP3 / Bluetooth GlassesNowadays, mobility is a feature people are always looking for and combining an MP3 player, a Bluetooth headset and stylish sunglasses would surely be one of the top wearable electronic gadgets these people would want in their wardrobe. The device can be paired with any cellphone or device allowing the user to listen or speak comfortably anywhere they go. The product is stylish enough to be worn with any clothing but provides the same level of functionality they can get from other devices bought separately.Functionality, mobility and style are the trends of electronic devices in the future and the availability of these devices now puts anyone ahead of the race. Capitalizing on this growing need can be very lucrative indeed as can cater to equally the requirements of electronic gadget buffs and fashion icons – and anyone in between.
Religion and Politics in Iran
I’m not an expert in these matters but I think I know enough to say that religion and politics don’t mix well in Iran. Cooperation between the two is an illusion, an illusion the people of that country realize is getting them no where fast. Iran was on its way to becoming a democracy (sort of) during the Shah’s US backed reign. Of course the Shah-Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi-had his problems with the religious right because of his White Revolution (visit White Revolution in Wikipedia-very interesting) that, among other things, extended suffrage to women, modernized the nation and recognized the sovereignty of Israel, a no-no for any Muslim nation.Modernization in Iran was seen by Shi’a clergy as secularization and they began withdrawing support for the Shah. In 1979 a revolution occurred that brought to power the Ayatollah Khomeini and his rule by the Supreme Jurist. Many Iranian citizens were opposed to the return of theocracy but knew better than to complain. Religious zealots remember, have ways of bringing the wrath of God to bear when needed to bring about unquestioned compliance, or so those zealots say. I became acquainted with an Iranian family that was able to escape the Ayatollah’s Supreme Jurist rule in 1982. A well-to-do family, the result of education and hard work, eventually made their way to the US where we met. The patriarch and his wife were in their seventies, both were ill, and they were broke. The Supreme Jurist wouldn’t allow them to leave Iran to seek medical assistance with any thing but the cloths on their backs. The familie’s home, jobs, and retirement fund were lost, never to be retrieved. The good news is that Americans-many were Iranian themselves-helped this family get what they needed and the bad news, of course, is they could never return to their beloved Iran.A product of the 70′s revolution in Iran was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, now into his second term as Iran’s blowhard president. Strange indeed how Ahmadinejad began his ascent because of a cleric’s government take over in 1979, a puppet groomed by theocracy to lead a country back into the dark ages and now theocracy and Ahmadinejad are both suffering a significant loss of respect and power.Jon Meacham, in a Newsweek editorial, wrote; “In an imperfect world there will never be a complete end to theocracy any more than there will be a complete end to tyranny. Power will ebb and flow, regimes come and go. But in the main, history’s path leads to more liberty, not less.”Riots are raging throughout the Middle-East and as many know already Ahmadinejad is on his way out eventually. Rule by the Supreme Jurist is sure to be marginalized as well and the result, we hope, will be more liberty, not less. However, the not-less part is contingent upon reining in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps the most powerful and secretive organization in the region, their goal; eradication of all non-fundamental Islamic believers. There is much to be done to bring about liberty in those Muslim states and I am afraid it will get worse before it gets better. And in the meantime the Iranian Islamic radicals near their quest for nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them.