Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
fstopper89
ParticipantLOL! “Fantasy Memoria” is apparently the owner of “$20 Mini Sessions/Memories” used to “work for” until their partnership went sour. That’s what I meant by Ms. $20 having been doing photography for 2 years, yet has not improved. (Both fauxtogs are local to me).
ParticipantThe funny thing is, (taking into consideration the several fauxtographers in my community charging $40 or less), is that they get so much business, don’t even try to take decent photos (Hello, midday bright harsh sun), don’t consult with clients on what to wear or how to prepare for their session (cartoon characters on the kids’ shirts, hot pink and black striped dress, etc.) and they don’t do any real editing (Just crap on picmonkey or something similar that look more like Instagram filters), that they really do end up making quite a bit of cash. Let’s say this woman in town who does $20 mini sessions has 5 clients a week. She gets $100 and is able to throw 20 poor-quality photos onto a disk, but it doesn’t really take that much time out of her day. I, on the other hand, could get one client every two weeks (I have a full-time job besides, so my photography business is a side venture but I care very much about my work), and make just about the same amount of money in one month as this woman makes, however I am working ten times as hard/long as she is when you include preparation, consultations, correspondence, location scouting, the actual session, culling, editing, delivering, etc. So, fauxtographer over here is making the big bucks with very little effort. I joke that I should just put my camera on JPG/auto, charge $20, throw 50 some unedited blah photos on a disk, all shot in the same locations, and call it done. I’d be rich!
ParticipantAnsel, that’s kind of a generalization. I use Facebook (besides a blog, Flickr, and a business website) to showcase my photography. It definitely gets the most traffic.
ParticipantOk, almost all of these fauxtogs seem to just be really unprofessional in general. Posting things like “lol just working on some pics to pass my time away” on their “business” page, posting constant junk/fillers on their page, acting like giddy high school girls in every post…. I see a pattern. My business page is pretty much strictly business or photography-related, and I make sure to use all my punctuation and correct grammar when making posts. And the phrase “photo shoots” doesn’t sound professional. “Photography sessions” or “portrait sessions” would sound much better. The fauxtogs are always updating us on the “photo shoot” they have this afternoon. I don’t really care if you have a photo shoot this afternoon. That’s like saying “I’m sitting at my desk, working on the computer,” when updating my friends about my exciting time at work. Sorry, end rant.
Here’s some food for the dogs. https://www.facebook.com/20dollarmemories/photos/a.284544708381535.1073741834.281673845335288/284544901714849/?type=3&theater
ParticipantFlawless Fotos is just… eh. Borderline fauxtographer, but not a complete train wreck. Their over-zealous posts on their page however fit in line with many of the fauxs. Maybe with some time and effort they will get better.
John Zita I would say is not a fauxtographer but not a spectacular photographer by any means. His images are kind of flat, some missed focus, some compositional errors (light post sticking behind a bride’s head) and some strange editing. Again, not a train wreck, but not anyone I’d ever hire. His website is also annoying to look at.
That’s my two cents.
ParticipantLong time no see!
This woman in town was in a “photography business partnership” 2 years ago. It was horrific then, and then their partnership went sour. Well, that wasn’t the last of her… she recently launched a FB page titled “(name)’s $20 Mini Sessions!” and is heavily advertising. You’d think she would have spent the past two years learning photography? Not so much I guess.
<a href=”http://tinypic.com?ref=mtoth0″ target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i61.tinypic.com/mtoth0.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”Image and video hosting by TinyPic”></a>
I found this gem as well, though I don’t know who the fauxtog is. It was just a profile I came across and she had a bunch of these “professional” type shots.
<a href=”http://tinypic.com?ref=11rpr1v” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i57.tinypic.com/11rpr1v.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”Image and video hosting by TinyPic”></a>
ParticipantBack at it again!
ParticipantAlso, looks like they don’t mind copyright infringement.
Original: http://www.mrwallpaper.com/view/road-winter-1280×1024/
Their version: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1445885012299614&set=a.1445884788966303.1073741839.1419227938298655&type=1&theater
ParticipantThere’s a reason why this one writes “We provide a low cost alternative to expensive portrait studios and we give you unlimited rights to your hi resolution pictures. We cost you less!”
I don’t own studio lighting equipment. That doesn’t make me a faux. I don’t do studio photography as of now and wouldn’t advertise that I could do it without the proper equipment.
ParticipantTo Michelle Lee- Step away from the Photoshop!
Why is it that so many of these fauxtogs spend so much time making ridiculous “graphic design” alterations to their photos when they could better spend that time researching/learning how their camera works (I mean, a shallow DOF is much easier to achieve in-camera than doing all that terrible gaussian blur later) or practicing?
January 29, 2014 at 11:06 pm in reply to: Am I the worst ever or do I just need to update my Facebook page? #16301ParticipantYou definitely have some interesting work. There are a lot of technical falloffs but I think if you worked at fine-tuning things like exposure and composition you could really become good. Your style isn’t at all my style but I do see merit in it. It catches my attention. There are a few bad eggs in the portfolio that made me question your skills more though, then I saw a few that looked quite a bit better. I don’t think you should be charging at this point due to a bit of inconsistency in the images but keep working and building your portfolio. Weed out the images that have technical errors.
ParticipantGag, all of those listed in the last few comments!
TS- still looking for a main photographer to hire on her team- “must have a good camera and transportation!!” What exactly does she consider a good camera? A Rebel? Her website looks like a graphic design nightmare too.
The makeup is obviously done in post, but why, I will never understand. I don’t see much of anything in sharp focus on her page.
Nikki Michaud I think is one that has potential. She has a few decent ones, and a few decent ones ruined by weird editing, and then a whole bunch of not so great photos. But honestly I could see someone like her improving over the next year or two.
Inspired Moments needs to spend much less time playing the like ladder game and more time learning the basics of photography.
Back to this woman. Mrs. Perfect Photographer again. She needs to lay off the fake sunflare thing and stay away from this bridge! I don’t understand why she’d even think fake sunflare for this setting. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=648958055167223&set=a.648957955167233.1073741874.470923176304046&type=3&theater
She posted a really nice wedding photo recently but then a bunch more fauxtography.
ParticipantFound this gem tonight. She was asking for critique of her green screen pics on a photography group. People including myself were overly nice in saying that she needs to skip the special effects and work on learning the basics. She retorted with “I went to school for the basics but it seems every time someone hires me to do their pics they want something different.” Then I asked if she was building a portfolio or taking paying clients and suggested she work on building a port for now and she said “I have my own studio.” and deleted the thread. She also said she doesn’t know how to post photos to her photography page so she made a separate personal FB profile with her new business name. She takes pictures of her crappy tube computer monitor running Windows XP with photos of her paying clients and uploads those to her page (profile). And wtf on the name Eyeing Moments… sounds creepy!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Eyeing-Moments-Photography/112119682164105
MOLTEN LAVA!!! https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=619621784752878&set=a.619614364753620.1073741834.100001151850678&type=3&theater
ParticipantI only have a problem with “critiques” when they are nasty, unsound, and have no advice to back them up. Such as “wow this sucks!” That’s not a critique. Constructive criticism doesn’t have to have a positive, but it should be worded with tact such as “There are a lot of harsh shadows on the skin and some blown-out highlights. In the future it is best to find a shaded area when shooting outdoors to avoid this.” Not mean, just gives solid advice on how to fix an issue.
I used to frequently post on this site more after finding a ridiculous amount of bona-fide fauxtogs, several of which were local. I mean blatantly fauxtogs. Blurry shots, crazy editing techniques, bad selective color, white vignettes, etc. and thought it was hilarious these people were being paid money and also sad for those whose weddings were ruined because of it. I was attacked by some of these fauxtogs and friends of the fauxtogs. I used to have my avatar linked right to my Flickr account but removed it after getting a few creepy stalkers (Ricky Cain is viewing my LinkedIn profile weekly and I can’t block him! – to those who remember that amazing HDR artist….) I have no problem showcasing my work otherwise. I have a FB page, portfolio website, Flickr, and Pinterest page. I have given countless constructive critiques to people here and in the multiple FB photography groups I’m in. I’m not touting that I know everything because I certainly do not, but I’ve immersed myself in learning and trying new techniques all the time and I am proud to say I know a lot of stuff about gear, art, professionalism, advertising, design, etc. that all help me with photography. I took photography, graphic arts, fine art, and business classes in college. I worked as an editor for a photog for a short time before doing it on my own. I’m not afraid to share my knowledge and also to learn from others, something I do every day.
Sorry this is redundant as I posted it somewhere in the forums already:
A few weeks ago in a photography group on FB group a woman posted a link to an engagement gallery and said she needed help. She said the client wasn’t happy with the photos but she wasn’t sure why. I looked at the album and immediately thought up a good way to be nice but tell her like it is. The photos were awful. The woman was overweight and wasn’t posed in any flattering ways. Her fiance was short and dark-skinned. Most if not all the images had bad exposure, like blown-out sky and dark faces, and lots of harsh shadows and bright spots on their skin and clothing. The sun was filtering through bare tree branches. Many were out of focus. Many the focal plane was way too deep and the couple just fell into the background. Some it looked like she used a popup flash with the odd shadows under their necks. I commented on her post something very tactful explaining these issues. She posted asking if she should just give them a refund on their deposit and let them find a different photographer for their wedding. I said that honestly a re-shoot would be better, that way everyone would be happy and she can go to a different location to avoid the exposure issues. I linked her my engagement photo gallery from my website and said she could check out ideas for poses from there. Well, I saw a notification then that said “Wow that is extremely horrible advice….” but when I clicked on it she had deleted the whole thread. I was so pissed. I took the time to give her an honest, tactful critique and ideas how to fix it. I had even checked out her page and just scrolled a little and saw a few images that looked of better quality. Well after this I looked deeper into her page and found a lot more shoddy work, and the good shots almost seemed to be lucky shots. She kept using this awful fake sunflare too. I posted in that group “Wow, I just gave a good honest critique for someone and they replied that it was horrible advice and deleted the thread. Please if you ask for a critique learn how to take it and not get mad.” A few people came to my defense and said they saw it, saw what I wrote and there was nothing wrong with it and they actually agreed with what I had said. That same woman ended up commenting “Wow I can’t believe you made a whole thread about me! I can’t believe you went searching for me too, that is really creepy!” (note I did not link her name anywhere, and I didn’t go searching, she had a link posted right to her facebook page.) She got all butthurt and left the group. I messaged her asking what her deal was and that I was only trying to help and that she is the one who asked for a critique. She came back with something super lame like “You are making stuff up, I never asked if I should refund them. And you shouldn’t even be giving advice because your photos are so amateur. Most are out of focus, you use cheap props (the X O blocks for the engagment photo), and you must have never gone to school for photography because have you ever heard of mergers? And you recently posted a photo of a woman grabbing her crotch and also a girl with her eyes closed. I hate when amateurs think they’re soooo good!” My jaw dropped. I had to look up what a merger was since we never used that term in my college classes (it was a distracting element in the background that seems to be part of the subject or interfere with it). Reviewing all the photos I have posted there were no such things that she said except for the X O props. I am always mindful of my backgrounds too. And my photos are in focus. There was definitely no one grabbing their crotch… I’m thinking she was grasping at straws over an image of my friend who had her palms on her thighs, kind of bending over. Upon looking at her work it’s like she was a merger-magnet with everything from trees growing out of heads, to logs floating in a river right behind a head, a giant concrete bridge in lots of her photos, bad exposure problems, lots of dutch angles, and super cheesy props like dollar-store chalkboards and pre-made lame quote signs. I use mostly antiques as props. I told her she was nuts, and that she needs to obviously go back to school and cited several of her mistakes.
Here are a few I saved for reference. Lol.
<a href=”http://tinypic.com?ref=ngra03″ target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i40.tinypic.com/ngra03.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”Image and video hosting by TinyPic”></a>
<a href=”http://tinypic.com?ref=21j0yad” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i40.tinypic.com/21j0yad.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”Image and video hosting by TinyPic”></a>
<a href=”http://tinypic.com?ref=2eefspw” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i43.tinypic.com/2eefspw.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”Image and video hosting by TinyPic”></a>
ParticipantFound a goldmine page.
Yes, let’s materialize our baby girls before they can even walk. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=315223435272066&set=a.308418619285881.1073741829.308391119288631&type=1&theater
-
AuthorPosts
