Being a photographer, you put a lot of time and energy into your work, so you probably want to protect it anyway you can. This may mean taking special care of your photographic equipment, developing your images in the proper environment, and maybe even applying a copyright to make sure that their integrity is not compromised. But there’s another kind of protection that you may not have considered yet, and it’s just as important.

As a photographer, public liability can help you take care of the financial side of your business by making sure that you don’t lose all of your money because of an accident that involves the public. If you were to accidentally damage someone else’s property or injure him or her whilst working, public liability coverage would help you pay for any expenses related to the incident, including legal and medical fees. This is a tremendous help to most small and medium-sized business owners since even having to pay a lawyer in such an incident would deplete them financially.

However, many photographers have yet to understand the case to be made for getting this important kind of insurance because they are often put off by the idea of having to pay a premium. With finances already stretched tight, they may see public liability as just another bill to pay. The key concept that these photographers are not keeping in mind is that the little financial resources they have now will quickly disappear if they are found liable for public damage and don’t have sufficient coverage.

Public liability can also give you peace of mind whilst you’re working so that you only have to focus on the quality of your photography. The job may require you to haul around heavy and expensive equipment, such as tripods, backdrops and large frames, which can also become liabilities when it comes to the safety of those around you. You’re a cautious photographer, but that doesn’t mean that you will be able to prevent all accidents. With public liability insurance, you can be assured that your business will be financially covered even if you suffer a mishap whilst you’re working.

Another job aspect to keep in mind when considering public liability coverage is whether your job as a photographer takes you to potentially riskier places than the average worker. Some photographers go to new heights – and depths – to get the perfect angle, and if you’re one of them, you’ll want to secure a little more coverage when you’re working out your public liability policy to reflect the increased risk that you take on whilst working.

To get started on a public liability policy, you should first do a little research via the Internet to figure out what the most important points of the policy will be for your particular work situation. With a little further investigation, you can also find helpful hints about what questions to ask and get business insurance quotes. However, once you’re ready to commit to a policy, remember to contact a professional insurance agent.

Social media for photographers

For a while now, I have watched emerging and established photographers tentatively dip their toes into the world of social media. Do I need a blog, a Facebook page or should I really have a twitter account? The list of connections and networks really can be quite daunting and of course, potentially unmanageable. Then there are the statistics, the number of likes, friends, tweets, comments…well you get the picture.

I have spent the last few months on a mission, reading and finding resources about the use of social media, very specifically keeping in mind its use for photographers. I have also been watching how existing photographers use the mediums and tools that are currently available to see what works and what doesn’t for me. As soon as I write this article, the popular opinion on this is likely to shift and a new social media site will likely launch, such is the speed that things are changing and evolving in this space at the moment, but like any business, I believe that as a photographer  it pays to know your market and in a tough but honest way, know where your competition is and what they are doing.

In this article I am going to discuss the ‘Big 3’ social media tools and the potential that I see for them making a difference to photographers.

Social media kit bag

Blogs

I personally discovered blogging over seven years ago now, when my brother first introduced me to the RSS feeds. I have been an avid fan ever since. I have used blogs in my personal and work life, used them to document an 18 month working holiday and currently to document and connect on my own photographic  journey. Blogs let the world have a sense of who we are as photographers, but also as a person which comes out often in our words and writing style. If not a writer, they can still provide an opportunity to feature images, discuss images and very importantly to link to and learn from our influences and inspirations, as discussed in my previous post.

The kicker with blogs is always infrequent posting. I recently read a blog with had been consistently updated up until August ’11. Why..what happened then?  The reader has to be able to stay engaged and want to come back for more, and therefore content has to be kept fresh and recent and relevant when blogging. The use of images to engaged readers and receive comments and feedback is a powerful tool in my opinion.

I blog, therefore I am…every photographer should have one in their social media kit bag.

Facebook

We all use or know about it, but can it actually help our photography business. I would suggest that if you have resisted Facebook on a personal level, don’t necessarily rule it out as a great business tool. The key to Facebook is what you post. As a photographer, and as a business you have access to a phenomenal network, that you just need to tap into the right part of. Consider creating a page to talk about your events, workshops, interests, specialities, and even locations. If I can’t find a photographer on Facebook nowadays, I tend to wonder why not.  The new Facebook subscriptions feature is an excellent way to follow public posts without having to form imaginary, long lost friends and it is therefore a great feature with lots of potential for photographers.

Posting photographs on Facebook does need some thought. Who owns them, do you risk them being ripped off and will they actually be de-valued in amongst all the photos of parties, holidays and profile pics. My suggestion is to always link to a website or a blog rather then direct photograph posting. This creates seamless links between your social media kit streams and keeps the photographs under your control. Once again, frequency is the key here, even more so than blogs. The beauty is that a quick link or interesting article or location update can suffice to keep the readers happy. So, given this one a try and put it in the kit bag.

Twitter

Of the ‘Big 3’, this tool took me the longest time to warm to, but it really is the simplest to set-up and manage. Use links, re-tweet and keep it short, sharp and shiny. Connect Twitter to your blog and Facebook page and half of your job is already done with regular updates. The beauty of Twitter is it has been designed for audience targeting so this is inbuilt to a degree. People will follow you based on who you follow and your interests and posts. It is often referred to as ‘micro blogging’ which is quick and simple.  Photographers cannot really be promoted by Twitter alone, but it makes a quick and simple internet presence and so it really does have to go into the kit bag, even if you just use the basics.

As someone who has recently worked in the corporate communications world, I believe that there is still much to learn about the effectiveness of social media channels and it will be exciting to see how they evolve. I believe the key to all social media is to keep it focussed and have a clear idea in mind of what message, brand/connection you want to create. Keep this in mind throughout all your chosen social media kit items and keep them consistent and frequent.

So, go ahead, blog, tweet, like and network away and as a photographer, let the internet work for you instead of it being a fearful unknown.

**As part of my blog Photo web connect, I am happy to research, review and critique social media sites for photographers If you have any comments or thoughts on this article, feel free to let me know.

Link

http://photowebconnect.wordpress.com/

I am following the blog of photographer Martin Middlebrook, currently based in Kabul. Martin has upped sticks from his regular life, including friends and family in the UK, to experience, document and raise awareness of life in Afghanistan. I can’t even imagine visiting this country much less photographing there, but reading Martin’s blog I am entranced and captivated and already have experienced a sense of the country and the people, and importantly, Martin’s journey, through his writing and photography.

As a developing photographer, my key priority at the moment is taking better pictures. However, to get there, technically, emotionally and physically, these needs all tussle with each other on a daily basis. My journey doesn’t involve guns and overhead Black Hawk helicopters, but it does get impacted by the weather, bureaucracy and money. It is fundamentally underpinned by that one source of driving inspiration and that end goal that keeps us all moving forward, whatever it may be for us.

The journeys of other photographers fascinate me. I attended three short lectures the other day at a camera event in London and while all in a similar photographic genre, the paths taken and the inspirations for each photographer couldn’t have been more different. I overheard some people discussing one of the lectures in the café afterwards…’But he didn’t tell us how he took the shot, what aperture and shutter speed he used’. I felt like looking up and saying ‘Lady you have missed the point…’ but I didn’t…

Each of these photographers was sharing a part of their lives, and their past experiences. Their journey had something for everyone to learn from that wasn’t necessarily what you thought it would be.

I have my own story of course. Aussie born and bred, threw it all in for an initial 18 months working holiday in the UK much later in life and rediscovered a love of travel and particularly photography. 3 ½ years later, currently hooked, moving to the locations of choice to learn and practice photography and living on the edge financially to try and develop a decent portfolio of work. But to me, my journey isn’t nearly as interesting as those of others that I have met and will meet along the way.

Social media, and blogs particularly are effective tools to find out about journeys of others and either become a part of them through the internet, or just actively read, learn and be inspired by them. It is true, there is always someone that we can learn from, someone who has a similar or even polar opposite set of experiences to help us be informed, inspired and motivated. Just today, I have discovered two more journeys that I will be following. Two more twitter accounts and a Facebook page!

So, as I sit here watching the rain pour down, and waiting for the Met office to decide whether it will be possible to take out the cameral today, I can’t help but think…what will be the next part of my journey.

What will be the next part of your journey and who will you meet and be inspired by along the way?