Betty LaRue Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 I have always helped to the best of my ability when asked how-to questions. When I first started out, I joined The Nikonians forum, and over the next couple of years, I asked a lot of questions and got a lot of helpful answers. I have paid it forward to the best of my ability. I know this is easier to spend your valuable time helping if you've come to know someone through familiarity through a forum, like this one. But if you are messaged by someone you've never heard of, what do you do? I have had strangers contact me through FineArtAmerica about Alamy and stock photography, and through the Alamy forum messager about FFA and both places about how to use textures, among other things. I've helped to the tune of a lot of instructional time. One person who had religiously tried getting the info online before asking me, effusively thanked me and said I should teach an online course. Yes, I've taught people how to compete with me. Am I a sucker? Too soft-hearted? I'm very interested to hear how you handle requests. I know most of you surely have had them. I believe we only pass through this life once, and the human connection is a valuable one that also enhances the spiritual one. I have never regretted helping, and the side-effect is it gives me a warm fuzzy. ???? Betty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Woods Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 I always help, give out technical info, etc. I fairly frequently get requests from college students asking for advice and technical details on my pictures to help with their courses. I always spend good time replying. Even if I am helping a competitor it doesn't matter because we all see the world in a different way, so even if you give me all of your information and tricks and tips our pictures will always be different. I was always amazed when I used to climb with another photographer - we would spend may hours roped together and hence our photos were taken in exactly the same conditions and from, within 20-30ft or so, the same place. They were never the same. So carry on Betty. Even if you are a sucker, much better that than some of the miserable sh*ts I have met in my time who will give nothing to anyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 Just last week there came a knock on the door and the bloke who I used to sit next to at football matches stood there with a camera. I'd not seen him in years, but his wife had bought him a new camera and he came seeking advice on how to use it. I told him to sod off.... Actually no, I welcomed him in and tried to explain what was what. It transpired that he just wanted to use the DSLR camera in auto mode and also use the video feature. I got there in the end, but had, reluctantly, to use that refuge of last resort - the instruction manual. He went away happy. I don't think that he will be competing for sales any time soon, but hopefully he'll get some nice shots of his grandkids etc. I don't think that I have ever refused to give advice if asked, but there is a dangerous tendency for people (me included) to recommend gear/procedure that is suitable for their own purposes, while others might have quite different requirements. Where would I draw the line? Maybe with regard to hard won market information, my best selling or most remunerative shots etc. I'm not sure whether or not I should be grateful to the well meaning person who advised me that I should enrol with Alamy way back in 2006. He was/is clearly a competitor, but we exhanged notes standing with tripods adjacent to Durham cathedral, and he invited me to join the club. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Brooks Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 I always set aside some carefully rationed time to help. There are always between times, like today, when I have no inclination to shoot images. When I worked at the publishing house, Friday afternoons were devoted to reviewing portfolios. Any portfolio. The publisher impressed on us that that was one of the valuable ways you discovered talent, the lifeblood of the company. Richard Feynman, who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1965, when asked “why did he bother to teach students when he could sit in his office and think great thoughts” answered as follows. “Most days I do not feel like thinking great thoughts, and in addition, I enjoy the student’s company”. Here is something from Wikipedia “Despite yet another offer from the Institute for Advanced Study, Feynman rejected the Institute on the grounds that there were no teaching duties: Feynman felt that students were a source of inspiration and teaching was a diversion during uncreative spells.” More on mentoring here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman I have found that when you are good to people, including your competition, and try to mentor them, then sometime in the future they will make a genuine effort to pay you back. When you mentor someone, at the same time they also mentor you, even if they do not realize it. So helping people usually works both ways. Of course there are a few evil people in this world that only take and never give. However to paint everyone with that brush, would only make you as evil as them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colblimp Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 I'll tell anyone who asks everything I know. I teach (for money, obviously), but I've no problem giving free advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Yarvin Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 I freely offer what I've experienced and learned, but I don't believe that many people enjoyed hearing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted January 17, 2016 Author Share Posted January 17, 2016 Ah Nikonians :-) Was the moderator (Photophil) of the wildlife forum for many years. Shared loads of tips & tricks in those times. Cheers, Philippe OMG!, Oh, yes, I well remember Photophil. Do you remember echorider? You definitely had to have mentored me, because the Wildlife forum is where I hung out. I bought my Nikon film camera before my hair grew back from chemo, and my D70 a few months later. I was trying hard to grasp the basics of photography in general, but most especially, shooting birds. I must take the opportunity to thank you. Although I gave out thanks with each piece of advice back then. I'm rather embarrassed now at the junk I displayed then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiskerke Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 All what Bill said. And it's a village: I help you; you help mr B; who helps mrs C; who helps my mother. It's not that me and you get equal, but that the village as a whole gets equal. Ah Mr Feynman. Do you have a map of the cat. Re-phrasing often means re-thinking: that happens a lot while teaching. To me anyway. wim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 I think it's very gratifying to help somebody out even more so when they come back and say thanks or whatever. I prefer a question that has a definite answer like " how do I do this in Lightroom?" rather than something subjective like "what do you think of my pictures?". I have stepped into hot water more than a few times by being a bit too direct for the latter type of question but I don't feel that anybody benefits from telling somebody their pictures are lovely. And one of the additional benefits of answering questions (besides the feelgood thing of simply interacting positively and sharing knowledge with people) is that I need to get it very straight in my own mind first so I often find myself learning, re-learning or consolidating my own knowledge. Actually Wim said this above in a slightly different way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Woods Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Just last week there came a knock on the door and the bloke who I used to sit next to at football matches stood there with a camera. I'd not seen him in years, but his wife had bought him a new camera and he came seeking advice on how to use it. I told him to sod off.... Actually no, I welcomed him in and tried to explain what was what. It transpired that he just wanted to use the DSLR camera in auto mode and also use the video feature. I got there in the end, but had, reluctantly, to use that refuge of last resort - the instruction manual. He went away happy. I don't think that he will be competing for sales any time soon, but hopefully he'll get some nice shots of his grandkids etc. I don't think that I have ever refused to give advice if asked, but there is a dangerous tendency for people (me included) to recommend gear/procedure that is suitable for their own purposes, while others might have quite different requirements. Where would I draw the line? Maybe with regard to hard won market information, my best selling or most remunerative shots etc. I'm not sure whether or not I should be grateful to the well meaning person who advised me that I should enrol with Alamy way back in 2006. He was/is clearly a competitor, but we exhanged notes standing with tripods adjacent to Durham cathedral, and he invited me to join the club. Agreed, market information, what and where sells, etc I keep to myself. I don't want anyone else muscling on those $2.12 sales to impoverished Italy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Woods Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 All what Bill said. And it's a village: I help you; you help mr B; who helps mrs C; who helps my mother. It's not that me and you get equal, but that the village as a whole gets equal. Ah Mr Feynman. Do you have a map of the cat. Re-phrasing often means re-thinking: that happens a lot while teaching. To me anyway. wim I like teaching for exactly these reasons. To explain you have to really have the idea sorted out in your head and of course the odd questions that people ask sometimes really can make you think. I used to do a lot of training when I was working as an analytical chemist (I'm not just a plain face you know) and it helped me no end. I would start to explain something confidently only to run out of steam when I realised that I didn't fully understand, and it was back to the books for some reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Competition is much overrated IMO. It's cooperation and sharing that really hold things together and moves us all forward. Consequently, I'm happy to try to answer photography questions, but more often that not I'm the one in need help. Interesting article here related to this topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted January 18, 2016 Author Share Posted January 18, 2016 Interesting read, John. I agree about corporations. My husband went to work for a corporation when he was young. In the division where he worked, the head hanchos were engineers. I remember one man that had been with the company 30 years or so. His job was common labor, and periodically, he'd go on a drinking binge and show up late or miss a day. He wasn't that far from retirement. Other than the occasional toot, he was a great employee and a hard worker. Eyes were closed, he kept his job. He retired, got his pension. The bosses cared. As time went on, the company was slowly taken over by MBA grads. The family atmosphere was lost. Years of work and loyalty to the company went unrecognized. The bottom line is all that mattered. It became an unfriendly place to work, employee loyalty replaced by resentment. What a shame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Towers Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Everything in life is a learning curve. In a lot of cases when someone has learned something they forget what it was like before then. ie: I used to drive 40 tonne articulated trucks and it always amused me when a learner driver was in front of me. Making mistakes as they went along. But I remember when I learned to drive, (many years ago), and did all those mistakes myself at some point. As in photography, if it wasn't for more experienced people willing to help with advice, I would be still at the drawing board! (I'm not that far from it still!!!) So when a friend from my local pub brought his Christmas present in, a Canon 1200D, and asked if I could show him how to work it, I was more than willing to help. He continues to ask questions and frequently brings his images in the pub to ask my thoughts. I will continue to give help/advice whenever I am able. If we, as experienced folk, don't give advice where will the photographers of the future come from? Regards to all, experienced or otherwise, Davey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Carlsson Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 My genuine love for photography makes it very hard to refuse helping anyone that asks - if I play a small part in better someone's output or workflow I feel like a serve the "art" (sounds so grand). I'm a "helping type of guy", I love to help (to a point), but with the fear of sounding pompous, people in general, in my non online life always turn to me to help or figure all kind of things out - my wife sometimes thinks it goes too far, but I try to explain to her that actually they are doing me a favour as it makes me feel good to help, gives me energy more than taking energy and I like the "challenge" (as when it is something I might not know, but have to figure out). However within photography and the realms of the "online community" one wish that many more had the "drive" in them to at least try search/find the help/info by themselves first from what's already "out there", especially or the very least when it comes to the "basics". The majority of the answers are actually just a forum search or Google search away. I wouldn't ask anyone for help or info without having tried quite hard myself to figure it out or finding it for reasons below, but we're all different. The flipside to me being a "helper" is that I have huge issues actually asking for help, stubborn as hell to be able to find out myself how to do it helped when I was 9-10 years old and there was nobody around asking for help when it came to computers or programming - trial and error, reading, reading reading, scrambling for any info that became available, there was nobody really to ask (no other kids did programming, nothing at school yet, parents clueless and online didn't exist/wasn't available). Later in life when it came to photography, again, trial and error, reading, reading, reading - without any formal photography education I studied way more and a lot harder than during my 4 year's at University - and that journey continues every single day, not by asking a gazillion questions, but to go and find, figure out something I wondered about, try new way, to improve myself in terms of concept, quality and ease (workflow). To sum it all up, helping others is fine, but it feels better when you know that they at least have tried themselves before - otherwise it can come across as pure laziness, being served on a platter attitude and that my time is not of much value. My kids kids naturally come to me for help with various things, I love to help them, but also want to equip them with the tools i.e. drive and resourcefulness to try and do it on their own - it will help them throughout life, gives them strength and the ability to count on themselves when needs be, most importantly it lays the groundwork for their independence. So I usually try to show them the logic or how one would go about finding the answer/figuring it out themselves, just steering them in the right direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 My genuine love for photography makes it very hard to refuse helping anyone that asks - if I play a small part in better someone's output or workflow I feel like a serve the "art" (sounds so grand). ... To sum it all up, helping others is fine, but it feels better when you know that they at least have tried themselves before - otherwise it can come across as pure laziness, being served on a platter attitude and that my time is not of much value. My kids kids naturally come to me for help with various things, I love to help them, but also want to equip them with the tools i.e. drive and resourcefulness to try and do it on their own - it will help them throughout life, gives them strength and the ability to count on themselves when needs be, most importantly it lays the groundwork for their independence. So I usually try to show them the logic or how one would go about finding the answer/figuring it out themselves, just steering them in the right direction. I agree, I love mentoring people, in many fields, but I soon lose patience when they want me to just feed them the answers and they are not prepared to work at it themselves. My approach very much aims to give them the tools to find out for themselves, to learn how to analyse and solve the problem That way they are equipped next time they face a new challenge. Even now our children (29 and 31) comment, and are grateful, that when they were growing up I never simply gave them the answers butI asked questions that led them to find the answers themselves. It now means they have the tools to work life out for themselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 I'm happy to help people with photography... though help can come in many guises. The first 'proper' photographer I showed my photos to was Martin Parr, who told me they were "snapshots". He was right! So I decided to knuckle down and try to find my own way of looking. His comments helped me far more than the compliments from family & friends... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruffydd Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Discussion of this topic always takes me back to London in 2010. The Conservative/Lib Dem coalition were presenting their first budget to Parliament and I just happened to be in Westminster that day. Through the crowds on College Green I saw a top press photographer whom I followed on Twitter (now running a news picture agency) and took a picture of him. Not realising what I was doing, he apologised for getting in my shot (what pro does that to a mere wannabe?), and after I introduced myself he encouraged me to follow him round the back of the tv crews' encampments, where we could shoot some leading politicians giving interviews. He gave me several tips and much encouragement before he moved on, and I have always thought that if he could take the trouble, on that hot, mad, busy day in London, to do that for me, then I can surely help anyone who comes seeking my advice. A true professional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inchiquin Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 And it's a village: I help you; you help mr B; who helps mrs C; who helps my mother. It's not that me and you get equal, but that the village as a whole gets equal. Ah, those were the days... I don't think life's like that any more, is it? Nowadays it's more like "I never go out at night so why should my taxes pay for street lamps?" Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 I am a helper person, I will tell someone pretty much everything I know up to telling someone how to take my clients from me. I do believe in good karma (or is it kamra - camera ), I feel if I am happy to share my knowledge, I won't feel so bad about asking others for their wisdom. I belong to an American association of travel writers and photographers and I have learned so much, over the years, from my peer members. For the most part, we and live/work in this fairly solitude life/job and to it is nice to have this and other communities to share knowledge, ideas, stories etc..... Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 BTW The mentoring aspect is one of the reasons I created the M-dash web site as much as a magazine as to promote my own work (still need to restore the gallery, the site is being rebuilt after it was hacked). Originally posted in wrong thread - Doh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 I am always happy to help anyone if their enquiries fall within my knowledge and experience on any subject. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy deWitt Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Hi folks: Nice topic. I had a query from a young photographer yesterday about how much she should charge for an image she has taken of a singer on a vinyl album cover and half a dozen press release shots. It is being used on an artist's first album by a UK Indie record label. I tried the Alamy calculator but couldn't be as specific as I wanted. Anyone with an idea or two would be welcome. I'd like to help her out. With thanks, Kathy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vpics Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 Hi folks: Nice topic. I had a query from a young photographer yesterday about how much she should charge for an image she has taken of a singer on a vinyl album cover and half a dozen press release shots. It is being used on an artist's first album by a UK Indie record label. I tried the Alamy calculator but couldn't be as specific as I wanted. Anyone with an idea or two would be welcome. I'd like to help her out. With thanks, Kathy Don't know how much, but she could stagger the price - eg. for first 20,000 albums sold, then go higher etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dyn Llun Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 I get an enquiry of some sort about my work almost every day from many sources worldwide. Many requests from students of photography with questionnaires or specific queries about my work for their practical projects or dissertations. Plus many requests to 'work with me', 'carry my camera stuff for a day', or interview me. I reply as promptly as I can to all the letters and e mails, but due to many other pressures can't accommodate everyone who wants to be my assistant for the day. I do always offer to spend time here with someone though if they want to chat, show work etc. for an hour or so. Had one just last week. I remember being helped when I was young so I do it in the spirit of 'passing it on'. What is interesting is although I reply to all mails and respond to all questionnaires honestly and thoroughly, only about 10% even bother to reply and say thanks. Sign of the times I guess. I also get many requests to give talks and lectures. I say yes to most, but not camera clubs any more. (See my last two blog posts). http://peteslandscape.blogspot.co.uk/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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