Dan O'Day

It was great to have Dan come and talk to us about Fine Art & Wedding Photography. He is so passionate about what he does and is so open to sharing everything he has experienced in the Industry, both good & bad.

He talked alot about the advantage of competitions & exhibitions and the opportunites that can come of these. It is best to keep a detailed list of these for your website/folio.

There are both advantages & disadvantages of being represented by a gallery and you need to decide the best option for yourself & your work.

Some Advantages - your work is exposed to clientele you would not reach if you were not represented by a gallery.

Your work is purchased by prominent collectors which can increase the value of your future work.

Some Disadvantages - The Gallery has an opinion on the work you may exhibit, can be restrictive creatively.

The Gallery is entitled to 5% of any prizemoney from any competitions you win with work they have exhibited.

It is important to read the contract and negotiate any points of concern.

Some galleries Dan recommends -

Stills Gallery (sydney)

Monster Children (sydney) Gallery & Magazine

United Galleries

Catherine Asquith (melbourne)

Online Magazines -

Blanket Magazine

www.watim.com

Melbourne Pixel

Light Journeys

www.visualarts.net.au

Some competitions to enter -

Avant Card

ACMP Projections

Moran Prize

Head On

National Photographic Portrait Prize

Weddings -

Dan gets alot of inspiration for his weddings outside of weddings. Movies & Music film clips are a big inspiration - Baraka (movie) & Sigur Ros (music)

Look at magazines as well as blogs for ideas, do not limit yourself to just looking at other wedding photography, find a point of difference.

Todd Hunter McGaw -

Todd spoke about the recent re-branding of his business and the success of it.

www.toddhuntermcgaw.com.au

The website and the branding being built around the robot characters is much more personal than his previous one and would appeal to clients as it is a bit quirky & cute and looks completely different to anything else out there, it also seems to reflect Tim himself so gives the client an impression of the person behind the lens which is important for wedding clients.

Both Dan & Tim spoke about the importance of being aware of whats going on around you, other than just the bride & groom, the guest are a big part of the day so don't forget about them.

Lastly Dan spoke about Personal Projects. Its important to pursue your ideas despite how busy you may be. Set aside time to get out there and do something just for you and the passion & inspiration that comes from it will flow on to your other work.