Lots of beginner questions- please help! :)

[courtney_brogdon]

<p>So i'm going to start taking pictures; mostly sessions with families, couples, seniors, kids, etc. I have a few questions that I don't want to ask other photographers in my area.... So any help is very appreciated:)</p>

<p>1. What type of computer is best for editing photos with Photoshop CS6? <br>

2. Do I need to keep all my sessions saved on my computer even after I give the client the CD?<br>

3. How do I do the print release and copyrights? Like where they can go print at wherever they want instead of through me? I would rather just give a CD with copyrights.<br>

Those are all the questions I can think of right now, but I know I will be back for more! <br>

Again, any advice is appreciated! :)</p>

[lumusphoto]

<p>Sounds like exciting times ahead for you! I personally keep clients images saved to a seperate hard drive in case they ever want more copies or if they lose or damage the CD/USB stick images are given on.<br>

Every year or so I will go through my files and trim out the oldest ones and start the cycle again but speaking with other photographers, they all seem to do things their own way to suit their professional needs and what works for them etc.<br>

Hope this helps you out and hope you enjoy your shoots coming up!<br>

 

All the best,</p>

<p>Leon</p>

[Karim Ghantous]

I can't answer #1, but I prefer Macs.

Leon answered #2. As for #3, it's safer

to make a written agreement to say

that your clients have full rights to

reproduce your images as they see fit.

If you want to put the photos on Flickr

or your own site, ask the client. It's

more good manners than anything

legal, but if the client says no, treat it

as more binding than anything legal.

(There are loopholes in the law but

none in integrity).

 

And if they say yes, that gives you the

right to publish the photos in a non-

commercial way. So you can't license

them to be used in ads or brochures

promoting something. Commercial use

is different from editorial use.

[mike_earussi1]

<p>To help answer #1:<br>

the faster and more powerful the processor the easier it will be for you to edit and adjust, so you're looking for a computer with the latest Intel i7 chip with a clock speed of 3ghz or more. Also lots of ram really helps--I have 16gb but some professionals have observed that they can see speed improvements using up to 64gb.</p>

<p>A large hard drive is also important. A 3tb would be best with all the potential files you'll have to store. Another 3tb external is also recommended to help keep your main drive from becoming to crowded and to provide backup if anything should happen to your main drive.</p>

<p>Also a solid state hard drive (SSD) would really speed things up a lot for the initial editing--again bigger is better.</p>

<p>Finally, don't neglect the importance of a decent monitor, IPS is best with at least a 23" 1920x1080 resolution and a fully adjustable screen. These can run from under $300 for a low end to over $2,000 for the best.<br>

http://www.amazon.com/Viewsonic-VP2365-LED-23-Inch-Monitor-Black/dp/B0053YKE72/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402235792&sr=8-1&keywords=viewsonic+vp23<br>

http://www.amazon.com/PA302W-BK-SV-LED-2560-1600-SpectraViewII/dp/B00EZP2720/ref=sr_1_20?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1402235832&sr=1-20&keywords=nec+monitor<br>

but the cheaper one will work for prints and web images.</p>

<p>It also must be color corrected for accuracy:<br>

http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNSML-ColorMunki-Smile/dp/B009APMNB0/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1402235943&sr=1-2&keywords=color+munki</p>

<p>You don't mention your budget, but with computers and monitors you usually get what you pay for, so buy the best you can afford.</p>

<p> </p>

[joe_willmore]

<p>1. I use a Mac (several actually). It's really critical to have a large screen/monitor. I'm lazy and do some edits on a 13" laptop. But usually I use a 14" x 20" monitor (that's just the size of the screen). Color settings matter a lot (b/c what you see on the screen may not reflect the resulting edit).<br>

2. Save all work you get paid for. No telling when you mail off a DVD and it never arrives. Or the DVD arrives and the client insists it's unreadable. Or your edits need work of some sort. Or the client threatens to sue claiming you didn't send 90% of the shots and you need to show a lawyer how much work you did or how many edits there were. And as a general rule, having a backup to what's on your computer is critical. As for me, I have an airport express (Mac) backup plus a couple of portable hard drives (depends upon category). Two are just for unedited RAW files that I save. Okay, I'm anal. But the point is: if it's a paying client then you want to save it.<br>

3. You're asking multiple questions on #3. If it's a model, you want to have them sign a release. It can be paper and you scan it in and email them a copy. Or it can be an electronic release. If they're restricted on what they can do with the photos then your best best is a watermark on the actual photos or a stamp on the back indicating that printing or copies are prohibited (though there are plenty of ways around that). If you're just going to give them a CD and then they print the images, any effort by you to restrict (their ability to make additional edits or make a gazillion copies) is extremely limited and you ought to admit defeat going in...just include a notice saying something like "please don't make a gazillion copies" and recognize that 50% of your clients will do so anyway.</p>

[Wouter Willemse]

<p>Photoshop is about internal (RAM) memory, and processor (CPU) speed most of all. Get the fastest possible CPU with the most memory within your budget. Without knowing any budget, it's hard to be more specific than this (i.e. Core i7 is Intel's fastest consumer CPU, for less money a Core i5 could be as sound a choice etc.). As others said, set aside a good amount of money for the screen. Dell has good IPS screens not costing too much, but again without knowing budget, it's hard to be more specific.<br>

Whether you prefer Mac or Windows is a completely personal choice. At this point, neither is a lot better in any significant way over the other. There are just a lot of opinions on which is superior, but they're opinions, not facts. Choose whatever you feel comfortable with.</p>

[William Michael]

<p><strong>So i'm going to start taking pictures; mostly sessions with families, couples, seniors, kids, etc.</strong><br>

I am assuming this is a business related question and my answers reflect that.</p>

<p><strong>1. What type of computer is best for editing photos with Photoshop CS6?</strong><br /> I'd go with the above general advice – especially Wouter’s comments about the technical stuff and also the mention of the MONITOR – that’s important. <br /> Supplementary advice – consider Lightroom - main reason - easier workflow.</p>

<p><strong>2. Do I need to keep all my sessions saved on my computer even after I give the client the CD?</strong><br /> That depends on your business model. My view is that it mainly it depends on whether or not your business model seeks to make subsequent sales of the product that the business is storing. If your business model sells a CD to the Client then realistically ask, "How many more sales from those files will I have?" That is the main question that I think you need to address.<br>

<br /> I don’t store Client Files on my main Computer. I use (two separate) HDD and I load both of those HDD directly after the shoot. I load the Post Production copies on the HDD after the editing process all together in one Client folder. I then only keep those files for prescribed period of time and the period of time is written into each contract so the Client is very aware of how long I keep those files from their shoot.<br>

<br /> I select and keep some files from various jobs for my own or my business purposes, but that choice and the reasons for that choice are different to the understanding that the Client will have: it is very clear that there will be no access to files after the contracted time period. If it happens that I have a file that someone wants several years later, then that is good luck and I would have no hesitation in addressing that request, but it is not my business's responsibility to keep a complimentary storage bin and I make that quite clear.</p>

<p><strong>3. How do I do the print release and copyrights? Like where they can go print at wherever they want instead of through me? I would rather just give a CD with copyrights.</strong><br /> A permission to print the images by the Client, for the Clients’ personal use, is different to copyright. You might rather give a CD with Copyright, but in my opinion that would not be best business practice.</p>

<p>Copyright usually resides with the Photographer (except in some circumstances and some regions when the portraiture is commissioned). For all intents and purposes it gains you nothing by giving that copyright away.</p>

<p>On the occasions that we supply a disc of files for Clients' Printing: I put a simple agreement (contract) as a PDF file on the disc. I also provide a paper signed copy of that agreement. That document also refers to the copyright and also has words to the effect of a disclaimer for myself and my business regarding the QUALITY of any prints the client makes: and we keep a copy of that (paper) agreement, which the Client must sign, before the disc of files are received by them.</p>

<p>WW</p>