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poll

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:38 pm
by Dan Vogel-Essex
suppose a photographer offered to join you and your climbing partner for a day and leave you with a few rolls of film of yourselves. How much would pay for such a service?

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:39 pm
by dhoyne
Might want to include a poll with that poll. :twisted:

Oh yeah, $0. I have friends that can take pictures. And I already have 1000 climbing photos.

//Way to advertise yourself for free, BTW.

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:45 pm
by Artsay
Well, if a photographer "offers" to take pictures of you then you really don't have to pay for their service, correct?

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:53 pm
by Wes
I guess you are talking about charging a sitting fee type thing, then maybe some extra on the prints? I thought about it a couple times, but just don't think there is much, if any, money in it. I would rather just shoot when I want, and then, if people want prints they can buy them, with a little markup to cover the smugmug site.

But, I am also sure that there are people who would love to have good climbing shots of themselves, that don't already know someone who can get them. So, might work, might not, but if you try, good luck!

Oh, and if you have a website with some climbing photography, then I would love to check it out.

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:56 pm
by tomdarch
OOOOH! A poll! I love polls! No matter what they are - don't be specific or anything!

Actually, how much would the photographer pay me to licence my globally valuable image?

But seriously, take a look at this:

http://www.redriverclimbing.com/viewtopic.php?t=4743

Sure, it isn't all professional quality, but there's no shortage of people who will take your picture around the Red. Plus most of them would probably give you a CD of the RAW files, so you don't have to waste time scanning prints/slides/negs.

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 8:12 pm
by Wes
Oh, and just some general advice if you haven't done a lot of climbing photowork yet:

It is hella work - I spent almost an hour Sunday setting up fixed lines (bushwacking along the cliffline in hella snake counrty on wet logs. Fun!).

You should be able to lead routes well above what you hope to shoot, esp. in the red, as dropping a line from the top isn't always easy / possable.

You need to be totally comfortable with rope work and rigging and jugging.

I end up soloing/really running out easy routes so that gear isn't in the way when I shoot.

Fast glass is key, as the lighting is tough most of the time.

I was lucky, in that I had a bunch of people that were willing to trade time for photos, so I could learn and get better. You may want to think about that as well.

And, I would guess you would make way more money working fast food on the weekends then you would with something like this. I soooo wish I could make a living doing nothing but climbing photography, but the money just isn't there.

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 9:45 pm
by ynot
What is fast glass? Lighting is the problem with the majority of pictures I take. But I use a disposable. No big loss if something gets broke. You take such great pics ,Wes I thought maybe the pricey camera was the secret.

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 9:55 pm
by Wes
ynot wrote:What is fast glass? Lighting is the problem with the majority of pictures I take. But I use a disposable. No big loss if something gets broke. You take such great pics ,Wes I thought maybe the pricey camera was the secret.
The keys to good climbing photos, pretty much in order:

1) Good positioning. This is the big one. If you want cool looking shots, then you have to do some work to get above the climber or at least even with them. This is something anyone *can* do with some work. Doesn't matter how much $$$ worth of gear you have, if you just take butt shots.

2) Good framing. Getting the climber doing something intresting with a good background. Also, seeing the cool little things that are going on.

3) Good gear, and knowing how to use it. Having fast glass (lens that take in a lot of light, so you can have faster shutter speeds) lets you stop action and avoid blurry photos in the shade. Have a fast shutter means not having to guess when to press the button. Having a good frame rate, lets you get several pics in a row of a move. Knowing about apature and DOF lets you blur the background to focus on the climber, or leave the background in focus.

Having a good system (my photo gear is around $3k, not much to a pro) helps a lot. But if you don't do the prep work and don't understand how to use it, it doesn't matter.

So, in a way it is the camera, and in a way it isn't. :wink:

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:16 pm
by ynot
I knew about getting above or even with the climber. It has to be arduos. Sometimes I get a good shot while belaying someone up and just wait for those moments. Pictures taken at the belay on multipitch are cool sometimes and you are above the trees so the light is better.

Re: poll

Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 2:51 am
by Jeff
Dan Vogel-Essex wrote:suppose a photographer offered to join you and your climbing partner for a day and leave you with a few rolls of film of yourselves. How much would pay for such a service?
Sounds like you are considering having someone take pictures of you and your friend for a day.
How much is it worth to you and how much do you think is fair to pay the photographer for their time and talent?
I have an idea who you might be talking about, and if my idea is right, he is a great photographer and a really good guy.