Links, Ads, and You

When it comes to Photography, there are so many places to spend your advertising budget on, it is hard to know where to start. Even if you narrow your search down to Wedding Photography. It can be very difficult to know where and how to advertise. No matter how you look at it, and no matter how much you think you don't like it, the truth is you gotta do it.

Starting out, I have been looking for some free listings to get my domain out there. Having a redirect as my main domain for advertising makes it pretty tough for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). This mean I have to work a little extra harder for the technical side of the internet to see my www.rolsenphoto.com domain. The free listings are fine if you are a Google spider. However, no one really looks at the free listings unless there are just a few in your area. Even in the town of Hannibal (and often considering Quincy, IL) there are many artists who have also taken advantage of free (and paid) listings online. So, if you want to be seen by people, you'll want (almost need) a paid listing.

There is nothing wrong with having a paid listing. As long as you have an advertising budget. "Pass the buck." "Bill the client." I hate stuff like that. In order to keep costs down, you have to keep your expenses down. We shall see how that goes. In the meantime, I will do what I can to advertize and keep expenses low, to keep my prices low.

Site Changes

So I changed my website. The site is SeanRolsen.com I didn't really do much with it before, and I certainly didn't log in that often. Nonetheless, I am paying for it, I might as well put something useful up there. It was just time, I guess. It needs work, but I don't need to tell you that. Hopefully, like this blog, it will remain an updated online presence. We shall see.

In the future, I would like to move my blog there, too. I don't know for sure what plans for the site lie ahead, but I do know that there a almost limitless possibilities. There is so much fun you can have with your own site! If you have any suggestions, hit me up in the comments.

Paso Robles

Although it has been a while, I was recently at a photo workshop in the beautiful city of El Paso De Robles, California. The photography workshop was hosted by photographer Syl Arena. The instructor for the week-long class was David Hobby, AKA "Strobist", from strobist.com. David taught his first more-than-one-day class with us at the end of April. One of the great benefits of the workshop was the small class size; only 15 students total.



Here you see model Sophia from the Workshop. During this shoot we were in a small Victorian house in Downtown Paso Robles. The models were very patient with us as we were learning and practicing.

We learned about lighting, and then we shot. And then we learned some more, and then shot some more. It was definitively not an easy week. Fun, but not easy. I really strive in the crash course genre of learning due to my short attention span. Previously to the Paso Robles Workshop, I received all of my educational photo input from blogs (like Strobist.com), books (of which I will read 5 at a time!), DVD's, and online forums. The idea for this workshop was go go go. Overlearning and immersion in the subject matter. I have to say it works very well.

I made some friends, leaned a ton, and came home with new enthusiasm. I can't wait to use my new skills. Images from the shoot made it to the current model portfolio on my Wedding Photography site's "Model Portfolio". Check it out.