Top Eight: Photography Websites You Should Fave

Everybody's got their list of favorite sites they like to visit on a regular basis. Photographers, in specific have their own special sites that they visit for information, inspiration, or entertainment. I probably have a million different sites that I visit for various reasons, a few hundred of which I visit on a weekly basis. So I've broken down a few of them and will periodically highlight some that I think are most relevant to me at the moment. I wouldn't even say the list is in order and is not an actual TOP website listing, but Top Eight sounded better than Featured Eight. So lets begin.

Nude Art Model, © 2009 Terrell Neasley

1. F-Stoppers - Originally founded by Patrick Hall and Lee Morris, FStoppers has a plethora of writers and a boat load of information on just about everything, which can be proven if you check the archives. This is one of the sites I visit primarily for Photography News updates, Gear Reviews, and general well-written and interesting articles on photography. They are in no way limited to photography as you can also get the low-down on practically anything video.

2. PhotoFocus - This is likely the site I currently visit the most. Scott Bourne is one of my favorite photogs doing his thing today. He lives here in Las Vegas (never met him personally, though) and along with Jerry Ghionis and Richard Harrington, Scott consistently puts out some of the best material that will benefit you as a photographer concerning gear, photo techniques, and business best practices. This site has been up since 1998, so the man's been doing this on a regular basis for quite a while. And because of that, he'll be turning over the reins to his bud Richard next November to focus on some other areas of interest in his life, namely racing! I like the man's insight and the way he puts it honestly on the line. He can be very introspective, especially as of recently, and that's to our benefit. Scott Bourne will keep you from later on having one of those, "If I knew back then what I know now" kind of moments if you listen to him today.

3. Photo Attorney - I first found out about Carolyn E. Wright about 5 years ago. She's an attorney. She's a photographer. And right now, her law practice specifically serves the needs of photographers. I mean, 'nuff said. She should definitely be on your list of faves and you should be reading her periodically or at the very least researching her site to review posts relative to your current specific needs. In fact, stop reading my post and go check her out. Come back when you are done.

4. Digital Photo Pro - This site is actually the online version of the magazine I used to subscribe to. It was one of my original sources I used in my initial development as a photographer. When I chose to get serious with this gig in 2005, one of the first things I did was to subscribe to this magazine. The issues helped me with inspiration and creativity. From this source, I found out how good everyone was and how I needed to be better. Regular articles on the new and up and coming young photographers, along with tips and techniques on lighting helped me expand my portfolio and get noticed.

Nude Art Model, © 2012 Terrell Neasley

5. Crisis Lab - I'm still trying to figure this guy out, but I like the hell out of him. Kevin Good runs this joint and much of it is focused on cinematography. I just came across him recently researching some information about the new Tamron 24-70mm lens with image stabilization compared to the Nikon version as well as Canon's new higher priced version for a grand more. Tamron has the only version with image stabilization and since I spend a few days a week working at B & C Camera, I want to be better educated when customers ask me about these systems. Now, I'm hooked. Kevin and his crew are funny, but incredibly informed and they present information to you that makes sense and demands your attention. If you are a Nikon shooter, you may have to get past his Canon bias. It can be harsh. You've been warned.

6. Chase Jarvis - Now this is my point about mentioning that this list is not in order. No way would I be saying CJ is ranked 6th out of 8 in anything. Let me put it to you this way. I'm a grown ass man. I'm 44 years old, but if there was anybody I'd say I want to be like when I grow up, its Chase Jarvis. I'm mean, granted...I'm only speaking photographically here. I don't know him personally, but as far as a business model, I couldn't complain one bit if my business suddenly mirrored his. I say that with only one caveat. If he's not doing nudes, then all bets are off. I'll just be me.

I came across his work a few years back while researching options for back-ups that photographers use. We're not like the typical consumer who can back up everything they've done over the years in a Gig or two.  Every time I take a picture, that's an almost 50mb file. I can fill up hard drives fairly quickly. In my research, I came across Chase Jarvis' video on his data management and workflow techniques and was amazed at his redundancy, efficiency, and the overall system he has in place when he goes on assignment. I won't even get into the people on his team. But I think it's amazing. He continues to inspire as he was recently sailing with a bud off the coast of South Africa and South America.

7. NikonRumors / CanonRumors - Here is where I go to put my ear to the rumor mill. Whether you're a Nikon shooter or Canon, both these sites have the low down on what's coming up in new announcements, news and info. They both seem to have to goods on speculated topics and gear. In fact, I'm going to take a break and go check'em out now. Maybe get a bite to eat. In fact, I'll be back in a couple hours.

Nude Art Model, © 2010 Terrell Neasley

....A few hours later

8. How Is Should Have Ended  - Yeah, photography...no. But you recall what I said earlier about cinema, right...moving photos...well, this qualifies. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. HISHE is an animation parody about the movies we go to the theaters to watch. I'm always going to see movies. My fave HISHE animation clips are the "Inception", "Lord of the Rings", and "Star Trek" parodies on how these movies SHOULD have ended. Its funny, highly entertaining, and should definitely be on your list of favorites.

Anyhoo... Here is Kevin Good giving his analysis on the 24-70mm lens for Tamron, Nikon, and Canon.

A Lil' Bit on Copyrights

"Only one thing is impossible for God: to find any sense in any copyright law on the planet . . . Whenever a copyright law is to be made or altered, then the idiots assemble."

- Mark Twain

Some things about copyrights are tricky, and then there are those that are clear cut. I admit that I don't understand everything myself. I'm not an attorney and I don't speak Legalese. I've listened to and read several blog posts, forum articles, and much commentary about how to copyright, what gets a copyright, and what's necessary to do it. I recently read an extensive article on copyrights and not one time did it mention the U. S. Copyright Office or the Library of Congress. Now it should be taken into consideration that I've already addressed the issue that I am not an attorney. Anything you read here about copyrights should be researched by yourself and concerns need to be taken up with someone who has passed a state bar exam for your area in the field of law. So in other words, Consult An Attorney.

To begin with, I'm only speaking to the copyright of photographic works. So I'm not covering all media of intellectual property. Photographically speaking, it's true that you own the copyrights to an image as soon as you release the shutter. So as soon as you capture the image, its your's. You can put the copyright stamp (the c in the circle...©, which you can produce by holding down the Alt-key on a PC and typing 0169). This is normally done in three parts, the copyright symbol, the year of the copyright, and the owner. So mine looks like this: © 2010 Terrell Neasley. Once you've got that done, you can place that notice anywhere on your photo you like. Some people put it across the center, so its not so easily removed. I usually put mine in a corner of the image and fade it a little. You can do what you feel comfortable with. 

Once you've taken the shot and included the copyright notice, all that is left is proving it's yours. This is where most people get into trouble. I've heard several theories as to how this is done, but there's no need to go into all that. The only thing that will stand up in court as proof that you own said image is your registration with the U.S. Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. Here is the difference between a registered image and one that is not. As it relates to theft, if another agency or someone else uses your image without permission, you can take them to court if you deem the offense serious enough. Mind you...court a'int cheap. Without a copyright, you have to establish somehow that the picture belongs to you. If you can't tough luck. But lets say the image still has the metatag data embedded in it and it identifies you and your camera as the owner. Great, now ownership has been established. All that happens now...I should say probably happen is that the judge will slap the offender on the wrist and say, "Hey...Cut it out! Quit using this guy's images. Court adjourned." And then you have to give your lawyer some money and pay the court fees. You might get fortunate enough to get the judge to order the defendant to pay some of that. ON THE CONTRARY... if you ARE registered, it would go like this. You produce the registration, the court slaps the offending party with Actual Damages by using the industry standard for licensing fees had the defendant legally acquired your permission (depending on how the image was used); You'd get Statutory Damages upwards of $150,000 just for him being a butt-head, AND the guy would have to cover your legal bills. See the benefit here?

So how do you register your copyright? Well first, you have to answer one question. Has the image been published? If it has, you need to make two copies of it. If not, one will suffice. You can't send in published images as a group via electronic means though. Its got to be hard copies.  The C.O. defines Publication as: 

Publication Under copyright law, publication is the distribution of copies of a work—in this case, a photograph—to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership or by rental, lease, or lending. Offering to distribute copies to a group of people for purposes of further distribution or public display also constitutes publication. However, a public display of a photograph does not in itself constitute publication. The definition of publication in the U.S. copyright law does not specifically address online transmission. The Copyright Office therefore asks applicants, who know the facts surrounding distribution of their works, to determine whether works are published.

Go to the website, fill out the forms, include it with the disk, send it in, and wait. It can take MONTHS for electronic submissions to get the certificate back (or even 2 years for hard copies), but that's okay. It's backdated to the day the copyright office gets it in the mail. By the way, send it registered mail and get delivery confirmation on it and file that away too. Within 90 days of creation, your image is covered. Outside of that, your protection is limited if the image is not registered at the time of an offense. So on day 50, if you see your shot in a magazine, you can still go register the shot (with the next 40 days) and take the magazine to court. If its day 93 by the time you see your unregistered image in that magazine, you can still go register the shot, and then sue, but damages will be limited or could be nil. So a newly born image is automatically protected for 90 days, registered or unregistered, at the time of offense. After that, it has to be registered before the offense. So if its a whole year (365 days) after creation by the time you register, and then at day 366 someone offends, you can still take them to court and make'em pay.

As a rule, many photogs send in all their new works created every 3 months. So every 90 days, they send in everything they did as a collective unit or single body of work at a cost of $50 (Its $65 for a group if published. Check current fees). You can save $15 if you use the electronic submission. You can visit the website to figure out what forms you'll use for hard copies. These have changed recently so you may need to check again, if you think you already know. 

There is a plethora of creditable information governing copyrights. My second most valuable source is Photo Attorney.com, run by Carol E. Wright. She is an attorney specializing in the law for photographers. In fact, right now her latest blog post covers protecting your images. You can more than likely search or peruse her blog to get a bunch of professional advice that cover the basics and bring you up to date on current issues. I've detailed only the basic info that you can easily find. Things like Fair Use, Licensing/Creative Commons, and Reg 2257 are topics that the pros and legal advisors specialize in. I can only generalize. In fact, here are some of Carol Wright's important articles as posted on her blog, of course if she says anything different from me, go with her's:

1. Help I've Been Infringed! - Now What Do I Do?

2. Registering Your Copyrights Using the eCO System

3. Using the DMCA Takedown Notice to Battle Infringement

4. The Fuss About Fair Use

I also recommend heavily Stephen Haynes. He has taken a hiatus from his blog as of a week ago, but you can still search through it for plenty of details and issues. He's an attorney also and wrote the definitive book covering this Reg 2257 stuff, "A Photographer's Guide to Section 2257" . You can get the soft cover version or buy it in PDF. I got it, its worth it. I recommend it. He's helping with a lawsuit against the government because of some of the rights photographers have that are infringed upon by 2257. 

I think this is one of the longest posts I've done. You're probably tired of me by now. So I'll forgo Creative Commons Licencing Agreements, and International Copyrights. I'm sure you can look that stuff up anyways. Take a look at TinEye, the reverse image search engine. I advise researching how to use metadata in your shots and being careful of where you place your images for display online. Its a simple thing to capture an image from online. It makes me wonder why we use unprotected sites like DeviantArt, Flikr, Model Mayhem, and even Blogger, to display our work. Why do we do that? What do we truly gain from the assumed risk? Anyone...

More on Protecting Your Work

There are several people on deviantART.com that I follow and one of those artists is Dave Ellis of the UK, who also goes by Dingodave. I began followind Dave because of his nude work. I liked the simplicity of his art, using natural lighting or his expert use of whatever light he could find available to do his bidding. However, when you look at the man's landscape work, OMF Goodness... you'll be mesmerized by his use of HDR. Even when he doesn't use HDR, the way he captures the local scenery around where he lives in Herefordshire, make me so envious, I want to move across the waters.

Oh...I'm sorry. I'm getting off the point as to why I am posting about him in the first place. (See how just talking about his work gets you distracted?) Umm, oh yeah. In his recent dA journal entry, Dave is disgusted by the recent theft of some of his artwork. According to his post, well, let me just put it in his words:

"That is until I 'googled' DingoDave as a image search today - in just 5 minutes I found 7 of my images on 5 different sites (including flickr and photobucket, suprise suprise ) - One A'hole even had my image for sale as a print!!!!"

Now that's just downright wrong. So not only are knuckle-heads pulling other people's images off the web and passing it off as their own, you've got low down scoundrels who will actually try to profit from your hard work! This has been an ongoing topic of discussion and area of concern for photographers every since the first image capture. Many opinions exist on the matter that go from one end of the spectrum to the opposite extreme. In a recent seminar/workshop, we got to listen to a pro give us a talk on copyrighting your work. But then another pro in the group began shooting him down on the spot, believing that none of any of the copyright laws work and that you should simply not have anything on the web...period. ~Good heavens~

I've seen some photogs welcome any and everyone to their body of work. Right-click at your heart's content, as far as they are concerned. I can't recall who, otherwise I'd definitely give you the link, but they surmized that the more their images showed up, the better exposure. Well, I guess that's fine as long as the right-clicker is giving you credit and singing your praises. I am not sure I am as comfortable as this artist in having my work in the hands of anyone who wants a copy. Yes, you expect those who will pull your images from the web where the final destination is their C: drive. But what can you do for the freaks who will do you harm or profit from your efforts?

I am not an expert on the matter, let me assure you. For that I invite you to Carolyn E. Wright and her bloggings and legal opines of lawful protections and rights of the photographers. I've posted on her blog, Photo Attorney before (just recently, in fact). Let me emphysize that I strongly suggest you become quite familiar with this woman. It'll do you good. I promise! However let me add in a disclaimer: That promise is not in a legal since, of course...just as a figure of speech.

For starters, register your images with the Library of Congress Copyright Office. As a rule of thumb, I do it every 3 months. That's because that any NEW work you produce is fully protected when registered within 3 months of its creation. Otherwise the protection starts on the date of registration. Infractions that occur before registration are not protected. Second, you need to let people know your work belongs to you. Throw a simple copyright text on your image. An ALT-0169 will get you the "©" (using a PC). I normally use © 2008 Terrell Neasley on my images. I also don't put images on the web at high resolutions. Typically a web image doesn't need to be bigger than 72dpi and I make the file size small like around 70kb or under. These are reasonable protections. Can someone lift your copyright info...sure. They can crop it out or just edit it out. The fact remains that you need to still show that you've made an effort to identify the owner to the image and protect it.

Also, you can build the metadata into your photos. Chances are, your camera already includes some of that info. I need to be better at this myself. In fact, there are a lot of things in which I need to be better. The metadata is embedded into the file of the image itself. You can also have digital watermarks in your images. I won't go into great detail on all this. You can easily google the points and get a plethora of info on anything you need to know. Creative Commons is another legal protection device that will actually let you stipulate terms as to your images use. deviantART allows this option. There are many software companies that provide a for-pay service that will track a certain amount of images for you. This way anywhere that image goes on the web, its traced and you'll be aware of its use. I have no idea as to what happens if the image is altered by someone. You'll have to check that one out on your own as well. One company that is barking on another unique trend is a search engine that searches by image not words. You can type in NUDE on google and do a word search or an image search based on the word NUDE. Tineye, of Idee, INC., will actually do a search for an image, based on an image and show you where that image pops up, whether its altered or not.

I'm sure there is something I missed here. This is not an all exhaustive listing on a guaranteed, sure-fire method of protecting your photographic expressions. It is a start, however. Some will disagree. I already know that. Where I am in factual error, let me know. All this is info is based on my own research and indepth study over the last few years.

These are a few more images of Clarissa. Isn't she just beautiful? This girl has been through a lot and she still keeps going forward and upward. Gotta give her credit. She's a trooper.

Sporadic Thoughts

"Gaze"

"The question is not what you look at but what you see!"
-Henry David Thoureau

Seems like its been a while since I've been able to work on one of my own projects. Everything has been concentrated on my art model group, and so I have not had the time to even think about shooting for my independent work. I guess that's fine since the group work has been steady. The figure drawing part of it has taken a slight nose dive due to venue issues. If I don't get to do the World Market Center scene again, well...it was fun while it lasted.

But honestly, I have absolutely nothing to write about today. I am sooooo tired right now. I didn't even realize its been a week since my last posting. Does that happen to any other bloggers out there. WHERE did the time go. Blogging isn't exactly easy, but it is fun. Sometimes you can hit a dry spell, get writer's block, or just have a hard time putting words together. My thoughts right now are more sporadic rather than smooth flowing. I wish I could defrag my head!

Here's what's on my mind:

I want to know what's happening with my friend Chris St. James, keeper of the faith over at Univers d'Artistes.

I'm finally offering images for sale on my website, TLNeasley.com. I've got a shopping cart set up and offering image sizes from 8x10s to 11x14s. At the very least, I'd like to make this expensive passion of mine pay for itself, so I am going to be testing a few sale concepts, vendors, and general policies. For now, all my prints will come already mounted, with the option of framing or other specialties. So go to my site and click on an image to see the pricing options.

I also want to tell people that Candy Poses isn't Tuesday anymore (from my April 6th post). I get several hits a day from people searching for her. Well, she's done posing nude, at least for guys, and she talks about it >HERE<. She has taken down her Candyposes.com website AND her Feminism Without Clothes blog. She can still be seen on Model Mayhem and you might catch her somewhere under the name "Candy Pauses" or "The Good Bush".

I want to put out the word on a new search engine that searches pics instead of words called TinEye. I think its neat and a good way to keep up with where your pics go, who has them, and what the hell they are doing with them. They can even be tracked if modified. I'm still checking them out, so if anybody knows about them... holla.

I strongly advice you to check out photoattorney.com too. Lots of good stuff there. The latest post is of particular interest. So go there and at least review the last 3 entries.

I'm thinking this new replacement for the 5D better be good. What the hell is Canon waiting on??

I am wondering also what the fidoodles is up with Blurb.com. I've ordered 3 books from them (wedding photobooks) and each of them had pages stuck together. One has to be returned. I can't present a book to newlyweds like that! I use them because their additional pages are much cheaper than My Publisher.com or Lulu.com. I used 120 pages. with anyone else, every page over 40 is about $2.99 a page! The images come out a tab bit darker, but overall they are not bad. But the pages sticking is unacceptable.

Here is an article I've been meaning to post. Is a BusinessWeek Online article entitled, "Business Advice for Artists from Artists", by Stacy Perman on 11 April 2008. I think its a good read. Many great artists out there will never be discovered due to ignorance on the business side of things. Its a short article that should at least get you to thinking and hopefully do more research.

And finally, I wish I could get back to the Kentucky/Tennessee area for a while. Its been a year since I've shot Trisha and I could use better shots of her. At the time, we did more than I expected to do. I was also shooting her with film. I was already done with grad school and was days from moving here to Vegas when we hooked up after not having seen each other for a while. She's an art student herself and we had taken one photo class together, but she didn't stick with photo like I did. She's a painter. Well, I had only a few rolls of good slide film, but I had also just gotten my hands on some outdated rolls as well. I figured I'd use them to experiment. As it turns out, Trisha and I really connected. What started as a 2 to 3 hour shoot, turned into a multi-location 2 day shoot. We were simply having too much fun to quite. I ended up using all the film I had left, including the outdated stuff and even some consumer grade. She kept wanting to do more and more and I was happy to oblige. So now, I could use some updated material of her using a better medium. So enjoy this series of images done at Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky as she gets surprised by a cold wave. Check her out on my website and leave some comments. Models love comments.

I guess I had something to write about after all.

Update: July 2010 Images of the model featured have been removed.

And Then There's Lydia

One thing I was really happy to see this week was the return of Chris St. James from, my fave place, Univers d'Artistes hailing from France. Chris has been ill for a while now and I heard from him only every now and then. Then he posted on his blog that he could no longer maintain his blog due to his illness. That was about 3 weeks ago. I sent him an email just to wish him well and let him know I thought of him often. I still check his blog most everyday. I was surprised to see an answer that he was trying some new treatments. The next day, he posted on his blog as if he had never left. I was so elated. I pray for his quick recovery.

Over the last few months I have come across several informative links that I think I'll share on my blog. No they are not posted along the sides yet, but they will be. Some are photog resources, some are model resources, and a few fall in between. The first of which I felt was a great link is the Photo Attorney, run by Carolyn E Wright, Esq. who is an attorney specializing in photography. She's got valuable info on photog rights, copyright registration info, etc. I know I've spoken with several art photogs on the issue of copyright. Do you get them or no? I've elected to register my copyrights on everything I do. I send in my newest materials quarterly just to add that extra bit of protection for my work. It really too easy and I think its worth it. Some other links of interest for photogs are the International Center for Photography and the Society for Photographic Education.

My Las Vegas Art Models Group is becoming more active. As we speak, I have three events with locked in dates planned over the next month or so. Two are more drawing sessions, one of which will be another like the one in my recent post. The other will be the same just without the added pomp and circumstance type fanfare, although both will take place at the World Market Center. The third event is, of course my art nude photo workshop, for which my friend Dave Rudin is getting to come visit and lend his expertise. The group is growing and is becoming more publicized by word of mouth. I've made a few contacts with some special people who have helped promote me and my group. It's my endeavor to show that their efforts are paying off for thier friendship and support.

I got a chance to collaborate with Lydia some weeks ago. It wasn't a planned collaboration at all. It was actually a spontaneous shoot as an extension of our second interview. I hadn't planned to get as many images as I did. While I am certain we can do better, I was quite pleased with her and our work. Lydia has a great attitude to match her outgoing personality. She's a firery redhead with wit to match her splendid persona. In fact, I was inclined to cease my search for a model for the upcoming photo workshop and booked her as soon as we concluded our session for the 13th of April. I never get any good photos for myself at the workshops as I am busy facilitating. So I'll have to do Lydia again on my own somewhere in an outdoor locale that still suits her delicate skin. The day I shot her, she was leaving work and already had a sunburn. I'm all about protecting that body, so I'll do what I gotta do.

Look for more links next time pertaining to model resources.