Using Instagram Stories as a Marketing Tool for Photographers

Are you using Instagram Stories in your marketing? Are you wondering how photographers are using Stories? With new features like tagging and Boomerang being added this week as well as the possibility of links being added in the near future, Instagram Stories is quickly becoming a great tool for marketing that every photographer should take advantage of. Here is a list of ways you can start using Stories for your business today.

What's New

Boomerang, which was introduced last year, is now also an option next to the record button when you create a new Story. If you haven't used Boomerang before, it takes a quick series of stills and turns them into a GIF-like loop that you can use to experiment with motion in your stills. Users can now also tag or mention people in their Stories similarly to how you currently can in comments and captions. Most interestingly, Instagram mentioned it was unrolling a trial for Verified accounts to add "See More" links at the bottom. The possibility that adding links in stories has for marketing and sharing your content is huge. For all the advantages there are for marketing within Instagram, directing traffic back to your blog or portfolio has always been the biggest thing that's missing.

Why Instagram Stories

Stories is similar in functionality to Snapchat, but with a considerably larger audience built in. There are lots of reasons you might use one over the other, but for me, Stories have the opportunity to appear more professional and less raw. Unlike your regular Instagram feed, Stories only last 24 hours. This feature is what makes it so powerful for marketing. You don't have to worry about outdated posts being found in your feed or going back later and deleting them.

Since they are only temporary, it's important to post them at optimal times for your audience. Just like in your feed, you want to try to produce Stories that represent your brand. For a lot of photographers, you yourself are your brand, and Stories are a great area to showcase a different side that doesn't fit in your feed. It also seems that the more you post within that 24-hour period the higher you'll place on your followers feed. Stories always seem to go in order from most to least at the top of my feed. Creating a series of Stories that work together to tell a bigger story not only opens you up to more creative options, but will get you more views.

Location or venue scouting: A great way to always have new content and seem like you're out shooting whether you have clients or not is to share images or video from test shoots or location scouting. If you're checking out a wedding venue or hiking in the mountains for an upcoming assignment, you can give your audience a peek.

A look into who you are: Depending on what type of work you shoot, this can cover a lot of ideas. If you're a family or portrait photographer, maybe you'll want to share personal parts of your life, like playing with your kids or pets. A travel or editorial photographer might tease heading out on a trip. If you want to keep it about your business, you could take video of how you pack your gear for a shoot.

Tease an event or Facebook live post: Chances are if you do workshops or public speaking, other photographers or potential clients follow your accounts. Have someone shoot a little video while you're speaking or create a graphic to let people know you'll be going lLive soon. Combining these two great tools gets people that might prefer following you on one or the other service to interact with the other.

Share blog content: You've built a great following on Instagram, but it's not sending traffic to your website. Create a series of graphics that tease and sum up your new blog post. Start it out with a call to action and end it with a great image. Until links get added for everyone, don't forget to change the link in your profile to your website or blog.

Announce a takeover: It may not seem useful to everyone, but even if you just lend your account to a local photographer friend, it can be a great opportunity to gain and share new followers. Maybe you work regularly with a makeup artist or are shooting all day with a client/model/business. Letting them take over your account or vice versa shares a different perspective during the shoot your audience might enjoy.

Share lighting diagrams. Showing a diagram alongside an image or even a BTS clip is a great way to show off your newest work. 

A sneak peak of a photoshoot: Before I get home and start editing, I always like to get one shot online as soon as possible. I've incorporated a whole mobile workflow using my smartphone to get something out instantly. This increases my content output on social media without having to always be posting to my feed.

Product launch or news: We don't all have products that we are selling, but stories are a great place to launch a new book, workshop, prints, or even contest.

Behind the scenes: I'm a huge fan of BTS content. I can't get enough. However, sharing BTS shots on your feed might not fit in with the brand you're trying to create. Adding video and stills together is a much better solution and the thing I'm most excited about using.

Your creative process: We all draw inspiration in different ways and use different tools to create our end results. Whether you're editing on your PC or flipping through magazines while having your morning coffee, there are lots of opportunities to give your followers insights into who you are as a photographer.

Promotional offers: This works best for more retail-oriented businesses who sell directly to their followers. If you have holiday sales on services or discounts for following you on social media, Stories is a temporary solution for getting that info out. Since it not a permanent post, you can create a sense of urgency in the promotion.

Share milestones: Just like on Facebook when we share personal life milestones, we can use Stories to share business milestones. These can be just about anything you deem important and worth informing your followers of. This one is very dependent on the type of work you do and your brand.

Turn a single image into a story: Sharing more info about a single image is a very important part of getting more engagement in the images on your feed, and it's just important when you're making Stories. Think of it like short blog posts about a single image mixing in text and video to give a more in-depth look.

Conclusion

The power to post temporary insight and behind the scenes views into your photography simply and on the fly is a great tool we can all use. However, taking some time to plan and create content in advance really opens up the marketing potential of what Stories can do for your business. Using Instagram Stories as a marketing tool will also make your Instagram feed more professional-looking as well as show your followers you're keeping up with social media trends. These are just a few examples of how photographers are using Stories and each individual photographer has unique opportunities that others might not even think of. If you're unsure what you should be posting or what your followers might want to see, just ask. Use your existing engagement to guide your strategy going forward.

Bonus Tip

Play music on your phone before starting your Stories to add music and atmosphere to them.

Do you have any tips or techniques you've been using to get more out of Instagram Stories or some examples of photographers that are using stories in a great way? Share them in the comments.

Source: Using Instagram Stories as a Marketing Tool for Photographers

The perils of going braless: Sallie Axl suffers sideboob pop-out in broad daylight

ICELEBTV

SPILLAGE: Sallie's assets couldn't be contained

The yummy mummy was snapped on her way to the Hair Choice extensions launch party at Liverpool's Malmaison Hotel.

And while her green velvet one-piece was bang on trend, her style credentials were eclipsed by an eye-popping wardrobe malfunction.

As the former Big Brother star ascended the steps to the entrance, she turned around to smile for the cameras.

ICELEBTV

SIDEBOOB QUEEN: Sallie's determined to show off her post-baby bod Tattooed babe Sallie Axl Sunday, 8th May 2016

Take a look through tattooed babe and former Big Brother star Sallie Axl's sexiest pics.

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ICELEBTV

GYM BUNNY: Sallie has been training six times a week

Without a bra to hold her assets in, she found herself flashing a whole lotta sideboob alongside her pearly whites as she grinned away.

But things went from bad to worse when she turned around to blow a the photographers a kiss.

Her neckline veered to the side, leaving half her nipple hanging out – but she was too busy pouting to notice.

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Sallie Axl uploads video of her baby kicking

Sallie Axl uploads video of her baby kicking

Big Brother 14: Gina Rio vs Sallie Axl

Big Brother 14: Gina Rio vs Sallie Axl

18 of the sexiest celebrity tattoos Friday, 3rd April 2015

Tattoos, like marmite, you'll either love them or loathe them, but we're certain after seeing this sexy tattoo gallery you'll either love them, or love them even more. From bodybuilder Jodie Marsh and sexy Sallie Axl, to Suicide Girls' Lauren Brock, here are the HOTTEST tats around.

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Jodie Marsh, Lauren Brock, Lauren Capulet and Sallie Axl have sexy tattoos

ICELEBTV

MWAH: She was too busy pouting to spot her wardrobe malfunction

Still, we bet she made the day of plenty of Scousers.

Sallie teamed the daring ensemble with strappy black heels, a chunky watch and lace choker.

Slashed detailing up the front of the outfit showed off her endless pins, while the cut-out back made the most of her gym-carved shoulders and arms.

She topped off the look with a small heart-shaped pendant and diamond earrings, which added a touch of glamour to her edgy look.

Sallie Axl: A Day In The Life Wednesday, 20th August 2014

Fire-breathing DJ

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ICELEBTV

#FITSPO: Sallie has been documenting her training on social media

In the makeup stakes she opted for sculpted brows, smokey eyeshadow, a nude pout and enough contouring to rival a Kardashian.

We haven't seen this much of Sallie since her jaw-dropping bikini snaps, which came just three months after the birth of her daughter Savannah-Blu.

Guess that's what working out six times a week does to you….

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Kim Kardashian brings back the boobs as sexed-up Princess Jasmine

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Chloe Khan teams colossal cleavage with curlers in sizzling 'getting ready' selfie

Source: The perils of going braless: Sallie Axl suffers sideboob pop-out in broad daylight

This Is Buick’s Newest Sports Wagon That Will Be Making It To The US

by Gabe Beita Kiser1,134 reads

Will Buick really be the one to answer our prayers for a high horsepower wagon that's available in the US?

If there ever were a car built exclusively for the European market that was bound to have a large impact in other countries, it would be the Opel Insignia. The large passenger sedan is sold in the EU and shares everything but badges with the Buick Regal sold in North America and China. Alone, it may not be a vehicle that gets the heart racing, except in this case our spy photographers have caught something interesting, an Opel Insignia Grand Sport Tourer.

You may be thinking that a refreshed version of a wagon that's never been seen in the US doesn't matter, but it does because as it so happens, the Opel Insignia will make it to the US. Of course it will lose its Opel badging in the process and in its place find some Buick badges, but this means that Americans will finally see a Buick wagon go on sale in America for the first time in decades. The Opel Insignia that our spies caught is out testing because Buick has upped the ante on the line in hopes of both appealing to Audi A4 and BMW 3 Series buyers. To do so, this Opel will grow to fill in larger proportions but still lose 385 pounds over its predecessor. This considerable loss should help it handle better, accelerate faster, as well as receive a thumbs up and a smile from the EPA and European regulators. The Sport trim means that this Opel Insignia Tourer is faster than its more pedestrian brothers so we can expect a 3.6-liter V6 from GM to power this go-fast edition. Despite the camouflage bringing out a hearse look out of the Opel's body work, we think the final product will be stunning, enough so that it will successfully lure in some customers that would otherwise buy a crossover. Come 2018, US buyers will see these in dealership lots bearing Buick badges while Australians should be able to pick one up under the familiar Holden Commodore moniker.
Source: This Is Buick's Newest Sports Wagon That Will Be Making It To The US

Too tired to make it out of the garage

Emily is a wife and mom to four rambunctious children. She loves to capture her children's childhood as it unfolds which means a lot of shooting in full sun! A graduate of Texas State University and LSU, she spent 10 years in the fitness industry. With her background in health and wellness, Emily loves to shooting fitness and sporting events, including martial arts tournaments. She has also embraced self portraiture as a therapeutic outlet. Currently living in Austin, Texas, Emily can be found training at her taekwondo do jang, reading a good book, or sipping on a nice cup of coffee. Visit Emily Ingalls online.
Source: Too tired to make it out of the garage

Public Notice: Life Goes On

Oy, what a week to be doing our "Best of Austin" issue. That section went to press Tuesday evening, before any election results had started to come in. The News staff and photographers headed off to cover the local races – because local is what we do, right? – and I suspect the scene was similar at all the candidate events: early catharsis because early voting results decided most all the local races by 7:20pm, followed by a long, slow buildup of fascination (and horror for most), as we realized what Donald Trump was managing to pull off elsewhere in the country. Truly, the world is different after this election, a lot of assumptions are different today than they were yesterday, and the enthusiasm level around the office today was, well, subdued.

Locally, though, Austin voters reaffirmed their values in this cycle: voted staunchly for progressive candidates, delivered a general thumbs-up to generally progressive City Council members, a clear thumbs-down to the contentious Don Zimmerman, and a "not so fast" to the kinder, gentler Republican on the dais, the developer-friendly Sheri Gallo, who faces a Dec. 13 run-off against an opponent who will draw sharp differences in policy and style. And most notably, whatever reservations various factions may have had, we the people gave a surprisingly strong thumbs-up to the largest bond package in Austin history, an ambitious eight-year transportation and urban makeover plan that, whether it "fixes" traffic or not, is going to substantially transform the way we see and use our major thoroughfares. Nor was it just a matter of pulling out the checkbook and writing a big check. As city leaders reiterated, and I think the public largely understands, this was a commitment to embark on a l ong-term, not-fully-defined project that will involve a long series of policy decisions, made over the course of multiple city administrations. Combined with the build-out of the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan, realized through a completely rewritten land development code (changing everything from building codes to zoning classes), this is going to be a wild ride, and with this bond vote, we've pushed off and there's no turning back. And while there will be plenty of contentious decisions to be made along the way, there are signs of reasonable buy-in from all parties as we try to balance building this brave new Austin with preserving the essential spirit of the old Austin. There better be, because we just put a lot of parts in action, and if we don't make it work right, who will?

Donald J. Trump may be our president, and Dan Patrick may run the Capitol, and we can't do anything about that. But they can't change Austin. Only we can do that.

So anyway, enjoy the election results. And also the "Best of Austin" awards section. This remains a pretty cool city to live in, and herein are a lot of the reasons that remains true.

Heart of the City: An Exhibition is the opening exhibit introducing this ongoing art project celebrating the local music industry, and benefiting the SIMS Foundation, which does such good work delivering health care to Austin musicians who can't otherwise afford it. Monday, Nov. 14, 6:30-9:30pm, upstairs at Antone's, 305 E. Fifth, featuring portraits of 12 Austin music industry professionals by photographer Carlos J. Matos. Find details at www.fb.com/events/213652189069621 and www.simsfoundation.org/hotcportrait.

A Community Approach to Tackling Homeless­ness is an interactive community forum at the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition's fall meeting. Provide input along with Mayor Adler, elected officials, and community leaders. Attendance is free, but space is limited; RSVP to www.eventbrite.com/e/a-community-approach-to-tackling-homelessness-tickets-29029864105 to attend. Tuesday, Nov. 15, 7:30-10am, St. David's Episcopal Church, 301 E. Eighth.

There are a couple of Parks & Recreation Dept. public planning meetings this week that are of particular interest, due to the importance of the properties being considered:

• Duncan Park: PARD and the Shoal Creek Conserv­an­cy have been collecting public input in trying to "identify site opportunities, and define a landscape vision" for this important Downtown park, sitting along Shoal Creek just east of Lamar, between Eighth and 10th streets. They'll present the results at a Visioning Workshop, Wed., Nov. 16, 5:30-7pm, at Austin Rec Center, 1301 Shoal Creek Blvd. See www.austintexas.gov/duncanpark.

• Bull Creek District Park: PARD has likewise been gathering input to develop a Bull Creek District Park Master Plan, including "defining what recreational uses are appropriate and desired while balancing the existing constraints of the park." The final public meeting in that process is Thu., Nov. 17, 6:30-8pm, at St. Matthew's Church, 8134 Mesa. www.austintexas.gov/bullcreekplan.

Source: Public Notice: Life Goes On

Photoshop CC 2017 Essential Training: Photography – Now Live on Lynda.com

by Julieanne Kost

Adjustment Layers (51)

Blur Gallery (7)

Export (28)

Fill Layers (1)

Filters (34)

Painting (2)

Retouching (1)

Smart Objects (9)

Text (4)

Type (22)

Watermarks (5)

 Comments (0) Created November 9, 2016

I'm excited to announce that my new Photoshop 2017 Essential Training: Photography course is now live on Lynda.com!

Whether you're an experienced photographer or someone who has just recently purchased a camera, learning how to use Photoshop is the best investment you can make to get the most out of your pixels. In Photoshop CC 2017 Essential Training: Photography, Julieanne Kost reviews the Photoshop features and techniques that are most useful to photographers, from tonal adjustments to retouching.

Photoshop CC and its companion app, Camera Raw, are loaded with tools and features for photo editing, retouching, color correction, and creative effects, so you can always produce the highest quality images. This course gets you up to speed with Photoshop and shows the most efficient ways to perform common editing tasks, including noise reduction, shadow and highlight detail recovery, compositing, and even painting. Along the way, you will learn the secrets of nondestructive editing and mastering features such as layers, adjustment layers, blending modes, filters, layer masks, and other features that make Photoshop the most popular and powerful image editing software on the market.

Topics include:

• Making creative changes with adjustment layers

• Adding color and gradients with fill layers

• Retouching portraits

• Combining (aka compositing) multiple images

•Working with Smart Objects

• Applying filters like blurs and glow

• Painting with Photoshop

• Adding text and watermarks to photos

• Using artboards and libraries

• Exporting and sharing images from Photoshop

If you're looking for more information, you can check out all of my Lynda.com courses here including:

Bridge CC Essential Training

Adobe Camera Raw Essential Training

Photoshop 2017 Essential Training: The Basics

Photoshop 2017 Essential Training: Design

Introduction to Photo Compositing

The Art of Photoshop Compositing

Photoshop CS6 Essential Training

And did you know that you can watch these videos off-line by using the Lynda.com desktop or mobile app?

Enjoy!

Source: Photoshop CC 2017 Essential Training: Photography – Now Live on Lynda.com

Photo exhibition focuses lens on children suffering in Donbass conflict

AMMAN — With the intention of drawing the world's attention to children living in war, five Ukrainian photographers on Monday exhibited their work from the Donbass war, depicting the physical and psychological state of children on the frontlines.

The "Children in War" photo exhibition, held by the Ukrainian embassy in cooperation with the Cote d'Ivoire embassy at Broadway Gallery, displayed 25 photographs of children who have experienced war firsthand, to show the dangers of war beyond the physical world, organisers said.

Ukrainian photographer and vice president of the Volunteer Help International Foundation, Olena Prokopenko, said the most interesting part of working on the project was capturing the images of children who were "not posing".

"The most difficult part was the conditi ons we worked [in], filming and [taking] pictures was... 1km or 2km from the frontline under the shelling," she told The Jordan Times.

"Photographers were living under the constant threat of being shelled… We were also unofficial photographers, so we were [not] protected with any signs… We were risking a lot," Prokopenko added.

The artist said the photographers involved in the project "rethought their lives after the experience".

"We understood that our daily problems are incomparable with the problems those kids are experiencing in their everyday lives," she added.

Yevgen Rokicki, president of the International Charity Fund and the Baltic-Black Sea Security Confederation, said the tragedy of children who experience war is depicted in the exhibition.

"The idea of the ex hibition... appeared a-year-and-a-half ago, once our foundation started supporting children who were on the frontline area of war. Over the last two years, we have refurbished three schools that were demolished during the war," Rokicki added.

"The tragedy of children depicted in the photo exhibition is because they are residing in the suburbs of big cities Luhansk and Donetsk, they are either from families with either father or mother, or both parents missing," he said.

The confederation president noted that the children captured in some photos might even have psychological problems as post-war traumas.

"Those two big cities were captured by the Russians and… have no access to medical institutions, no possibility to go to hospitals; they can only go 300km from their home village to other regional centres, that is why we wanted to attract attention to the tragedies of children who suffer from the war," Rokicki explained.< /p>

He added that medical and psychological support is also offered to children who require it, while "those talented people who… sing, paint, or dance" are brought to the capital so that they can demonstrate their talents and be exposed to TV channels and other institutions.

Source: Photo exhibition focuses lens on children suffering in Donbass conflict