tips Archives

September 2, 2014

Free Effects & Goodies, tips, video, workshop

This Simple Principle will Make Your Photography Better..

Our camera is just an instrument. It’s what happens in our mind that makes a great photograph. When we understand the tools, we focus on the artistry. Sometimes we fall for the scam that we can just fix it later and so we fail to expose well and never get that truly magical light. Today’s tip takes on a simple truth about exposure in the camera. I call it, Doubles and Halves!

Photographic exposure and simple math are one on the same. Don’t run away, it’s more elegant than it seems. F5.6 to F8 doubles or halves your light. ISO 200 to 400 doubles or halves. So does 1/50th to 1/100th and so on. Ditto for Zones and Exposure Value and Ratios. They are all connected. All tools to manage and understand the Stops (flow) of light. Just doubles and halves.

Understanding these terms helps you nail the light and focus on the vision. This video from the first chapters of my EXposed series explains in simple terms. EXposed also covers deeper aspects, so if you love understanding light, check it out here.

— Gav

May 18, 2014

templates, tips

Seim’s How to Sign and Logo Your Photos – Revised Edition

by Gavin Seim: Today we’ll dig deep into using signatures and branding on images. Both on the web and in print. We’re going to address nearly every aspect representing years of trial and error for me. Everything from using your digital logo and signature to what pens to use on your prints for hand signing. lets start with a question?

How often do you go into a gallery and see a masterpiece not signed?
How often does that same piece have a HUGE watermark across the front?

If your name is not on your images, you lose. The truth is, selling images is not simply having passion, it’s about business. Is your work a piece of paper, or is it a piece if art? Many people who don’t brand their images do so because they lack branding experience, or don’t consider their images of enough value to hang equally next to other art. Some on the other hand some take things too far, ruining their presentation by going overkill. Petapixel did a fun satirical article on this awhile back.

Remember, classy branding on an image generally adds value. How often do you buy a book without the authors name on the front? Even our cars have branding on them. If you bought a Ferrari would you want it without the emblem? I think not. Why then should the art we sell be unmarked! Are there exceptions? Sure, but not many. For example a commercial client may require unbranded images, but they should also expect to pay a premium for that. Artists have been branding their work for centuries and so should you. Lets examine different approaches that I have discovered over years by trial and error.

art-prints — My image of the Seattle skyline shows an example of how I mark images for gallery and print exhibitions. I hand sign my best pieces, as we’ll talk about below. Take the time to work on a great signature. While this one is subdued, people do look at signatures and names. For print preservation a clean signature works well.

What To Do?

This whole topic is fraught with debate. No doubt some will disagree with me. That’s fine. Though I’ve probably slaved more than most in the industry on this. I’ve come to a place where I have an understanding of my brand and my presentation. This is not my random inexperienced opinion. I have gone to galleries, looked at the works of master painters and studied the techniques of others. I sell all my portraits and my fine art using the approaches I’m about to share. I’m always refining however and will update this study accordingly in the future.

January 30, 2014

Aperture Freebies, Aperture Presets, presets, tips, video

How to Install, Better Manage & Save Aperture Presets – VIDEO

We’ve been making Apple Aperture presets here at Seim Effects since the beginning, but I realized we did not have a great video about using them. While installation is easy, it’s still faster to see it done for real. In this quick video we do just that, but we also go deeper and look at some tips and tricks for using and managing Aperture Presets. When you’re done head over and check out the LightrFlow and ColorFlow preset collections we’re using here.

Enjoy, Gav

May 17, 2013

inspire, Secret, tips, video, workshop

Video: Selling Wall Art – Photos as Art Decor

Gavin Seim and Ken Whitmire — Gavin with Ken Whitmire, the Ansel Adams of wall portraits at WPC 2013.

– This video was initially posted for our newsletter subscribers. It is now public. You can get future goodies by subscribing to the newsletter below –

Are You Selling Better?

Here’s our special Seim Effects video for May 2013. I just returned from a week at Wall Portrait Conference. It’s my 5th year and the principles I learned here changed my entire career. I wanted to record a quick overview of ideas while it”s fresh in my mind. To share a bit of what I have learned and what I plan to apply further this year as I sell more wall prints.

These ideas come from hundreds of years of combined experience. I am not the master of marketing, but I have seen these principles work when applied correctly. I barley scratch the surface here, but here’s hoping this video will get you inspired to raise the bar and go further. I hope to see you at a future Wall Portrait Conference.

Gavin Seim

Want to learn more about using light and making images for walls? Check out my complete films including EXposed, a workshop about all things light and exposure. Also take a look at PHOTOGRAPHICS. My new film on Art, History and Photographic Craft. You can pre-order it now and save.

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March 9, 2013

inspire, news, ProPhotoShow, tips

The Return of REAL Service – We Take the Pledge

I’m Gavin Seim – I’d like to introduce something to you today called REAL Service. It’s not new. In fact used to be pretty common. But rare now and I’ve decided to back it with further action. We’ve always cared about service here, but it’s time to make it official and to take a stand against lousy service. To take a REAL Service pledge.

I’ve had it with the lack of service from today’s businesses large and small. Rude, non resolving service, people hanging up on you, ignoring your problems, making excuses, rolling their eyes, saying it’s not their job. I get it all the time.

I started working the family store when I was about ten and by age thirteen was the manager of cellular phone sales at Grant’s. Those were the early days of cell phones. Analog hand programming. Customer resolution. I gained an honest understanding of service and I am shocked by the terrible lack of it today.

I’m on a mission to not only improve service at Seim Studios, but to talk openly about Real Service – Bad service is generally done to save a buck. But it’s not worth it. It costs more in the long run and it’s wrong. Real Service always pays off.

What do I mean by Real Service? I mean satisfied customers. Things like our phone number in the upper left so you can contact us directly. Actually caring and resolving customer issues, even if it means we have to put in overtime. I mean not nickel-and-diming people for support, a glass of water or an extra packet of mustard sauce – Give Them the Pickle.

Real Service is the opposite of what companies like Adobe, US Bank, AT&T and countless others are giving me lately. Much like freedom, it seems some are forgetting about it. Not here – I won’t make the excuse that I don’t have the resources to help you or that I only have time for email support. I operate in both retail photography, software tools and education. I’m here to tell everyone that a company has no excuse, none, for not giving full service.

There is NO excuse for not responding to emails.
There is NO excuse for not having a contact phone number easily available.
There is NO excuse for blaming for others and leaving the customer unhappy.
There is NO excuse for circular phone menus that waste the customers time.
There is NO excuse for charging the customer in any fashion because your company messed up.

I am Gavin Seim and here at Seim Studios we offer Real Service. Whether you bought a portrait, a workshop, software and anything else. No matter how busy we get. We take this pledge.

REAL Service is not something computers do for you – It’s not something from a book, or a line in a policy manual – It’s not an excuse – Service means YOU raise a finger, a hand and sometimes even an arm or a leg. You do the footwork, you look into the problem and you do your dang level best to resolve it – You make the customer happy. That’s service. That’s what we pledge to strive for – If we miss that mark, we ask that you remind us.

I’ve put in in words. This is the ideal we operate on here. So if you you have a question, a problem or feedback, just visit this page and get in touch. Or just phone be direct. 509-951-4860.

Everyone is welcome to use the Real Service pledge for their own business. I hope other businesses will join us in making a commitment to our customers. And when you find a business that is giving great service, don’t forget to let them know you appreciate it, leave them a great review and keep the momentum going.

Lets put an end to cruddy service and start demanding more.

Sincerely, Gavin Seim, Owner – Seim Effects, Seim Studios, Atomic Feather Engineering.

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