Family Photography Studio

The Davis Family included Grodbergs and Franks and the Weins from the 1880s onward with Sarah and Max. Eva, Eddie, Eleanor, Jack, Danny and Pearl were the children. Ben and Debbie, Sarah and Ellen,etc. were their children.
Eve sang on Mack Amateur Hour radio show and in vaudville with her brothers. On the other side of the family, great-great grandma's cousin married the daughter of the writer of Tom Sawyer, etc. and her father was a famous pianist. Some later relatives were lawyers and some were in the liquor industry, as well as many being professors.
It was Major Bows Amateur Hour.

Good luck tracing back your ancestry. Looks like your doing well so far. 1880's is a good long time back. I bet you've managed to discover some distant cousins that are pretty amazing people. I did the same thing once, and ended up discovering my relation to all walks of life, from prince to poorper, from all continents and dozens of countries. It's one big primordial soup, and it's as fascinating as answering questions on Yahoo Answers and watching people's responses!

2006-06-26 14:26:12 by Debbie Jane (after Jack and Dann

www.paulfloydphotography.com Paul Floyd Photography specializes in senior pictures and family portraits. Paul Floyd serves your professional ...

I am thinking of going to school for photography. I really want to start a photography studio where I can take senior pictures, weddings, family portraits and etc. It has been my dream since I was little. I am thinking of going to a two year school for photography. I have $230,000 to invest in a studio. Is this a good thing to look into in this economy or am I going to fail! I am 25. Should I find a partner? Anyone have advice!!!???

It's super risky and you are looking at a low end market if you're considering schools - that is a very competitive area, requiring high volume sales at low prices and margins, with well established competition from major companies.

First I'd suggest you don't get a partner - even people you like and respect can change a lot when it comes to business, so this above all is worth considering extremely carefully! If you do you must get a 100% watertight contract and focus on what happens if the business fails or you separate the partnership.

Secondly I'd invest as much as you can in education - it's what you know not what you own that's important. Personally I'd find the best photographers I possibly can and see if you can help some out for a month or two, or on specific jobs.

230k is a lot of money - and you could burn it quickly. Studio work implies high street presence, that means someone to man the shop, someone else (probably) to sell and market, taxes, rates, insurance etc.

The difference between working from home and getting into a studio is immense - a HUGE increase in overheads, which all needs to be justified by putting through a lot more business just to stand still. So if you can buy a town house or a high street property it would probably be a better idea... pick an area where the kind of people you want to reach pass by. Make sure as many passers-by as possible can see your work regularly.

Whether you learn from a photographer or from a photo school choose them VERY carefully - my not so humble opinion is that most are a total waste of time and teach you bad habits... such training will only be as good as your tutor or your curriculum. If you think about it most photographers and most schools are only average - that is the implication of the law of averages! (I'm assuming you want to be good ;)

Whatever you buy I would spend the absolute minimum right now and I'd also consider second hand as often as possible - conserve your capital and invest it wisely at present, the economic problems are far from over!! That kind of sum is what most photographers get after many years of incredibly hard work, long hours, stress and risk - treat it as if it is incredibly valuable... it is!

So, I would stash most of your cash away and make the business prove itself to you - and vice versa. I've no doubt you can do it if you are highly motivated enough. The problem of having a lot of cash to start with is that you will face very keen, very hungry competition... and you may get lazy. I've seen that before as I sold a business I built up for a decade to a rich but lazy young guy who thought it would be easy, he destroyed it in under a year and ended up working for estate agents!

2009-09-07 13:02:32 by bede3315

Price: $29.95

So I want to set up a photography studio. Just a little one in either the garage or another room in the house to take portraits of friends and family. Problem is, I know nothing about studio lighting and what you need.

Can anyone just give me a basic equipment list or something of the sort? Maybe explain to me what I need and why I need it? I know a little about lights and reflectors and umbrellas, but would love just some solid information.

Thanks for any help. :)

You need lights. Lights are important. You can provide light any way you desire and can afford. That means thousands of dollars for a Profoto pack and heads, or $50 at the local Home Depot. Or many, many options in between.

Th most inexpensive lights are going to be drop lights, work lights, or trouble lights. Preferably the kind with the aluminum reflector, about 10-12" in diameter. For a small room, put large CFL (fluorescent) bulbs in them, as they won't generate any heat that way. At least 2, maybe 3 of these will be good to start with. The lamps have a spring clip on the back to hang them on whatever is handy, which also makes it easy to move them around as needed. Remember that you can bounce continuous lights too, they don't have to point right at the subject.

A stool or chair for posing. Maybe a table. Backgrounds are good, but not absolutely necessary. A tripod. A cable release for your camera, preferably long enough so that you aren't stuck behind the camera. This allows you to interact with the subjects, but still capture the expressions you are trying to get.

If you want your setup to *look* a little more "professional", you can get a hot light kit at B&H for $65 that include what is basically the work light mentioned above (with a handle and stand mount) a light stand, and umbrella. It comes with a 500 watt tungsten bulb, which will be very bright but will also put out a ton of heat. Replace that with a 35-43 watt fluorescent, and it will stay cool. Get a couple of these kits, and away you go. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/41 4532-REG/Impact_FL_500_KII_One_Light_Umb rella_Kit.html#features

There are also tons of them on ebay...

2009-07-26 05:22:20 by Leah

Price: $34.95

I'm getting into a little bit of wedding photography and hoping to get into some portrait photography (Fine Art, family, studio etc) and im just wondering about some good, no great lenses. I use nikon gear so the lenses will be on either a Nikon D80 or D700 and im looking at:

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR

and either a

AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF
or
AF.S Nikkor 50mm f1.4G

So if anyone has any experience with these lenses or has any suggestions, that would be great

hehee, I like you already, your shooting and that D700 is looking quite tempting.

I'm going to tell you flat out the 70-200 VR is the finest chunk of glass ever made for full frame 35 mill photography. Other lenses are judged against this one.

It is clear, fast and it's usefulness has no comparision

Draw back include, heavyness, a long lens and a giant price tag.

If your into portaiture, a fixed 100mm lens is god, but that lens is limited. Not to say you shouldn't have it, I would get both, the 70-200VR and the 100mm.

Of course the D700 will smoke all the half serious people in here, so I strongly suggest that one too.

Your probably looking at 2600-3000 for the D700 another 1500 to 1900 for the 70-200VR, but if your not serious, then why buy crap? Get these lenses and forget all the jokers that don't know a lens from a hole in the ground.


p.s. usually the 70-200 is hard to find, most if not all pro's own this lens, they can wait months for it to come around. Nikon only makes it for a short period every year. If you wait you may miss out on probably the finest glass ever made for 35mm photography.

2009-09-29 03:31:14 by JH

Photography has always been a passion and hobby of mine ive always saved almost all of my pictures. i love to capture candid moments and see things and take pictures that no one else would have thought to look twice at. I want to learn every aspect I can when it comes to the photography business. Family portrait studios mildly interest me, but I would like to work with a photographer that is more broad, however i know beggars cant be choosers. I have thought about emailing studios around the area and asking them if they have any positions available but I wonder if that would be too tacky? would that turn them off to giving me a job opportunity? what is the best way to go about this?
i have started to put my portfolios together and printed almost half of my pictures, but my pictures have not been done with a professional camera due to low funds, but you would never be able to tell.
I am in the Indianapolis area.
Any advice on photography or how to get a photography job at only 22 will help! thank you!
Thank you soooo much to everyone who answered! all of the answers were so insightful and educating that i couldnt just pick ONE best answer! thanks alot guys!!

I looked up every studio photographer in the town I lived in, and visited each one, with my portfolio in hand. I asked if they had work. One hired me. For the most part, I was only answering phones and taking appointments, but eventually he did start to show me how to set up lights for portraits.

2009-09-07 16:03:39 by Stevi H