iPhonography!

As a commercial studio, it goes without saying that the tools we use are generally very expensive and certainly can be cumbersome and heavy. This is just the reality of being a professional. To produce images that are better than "the average guy with a camera", and worthy of being paid for by a client, traditionally, a professional photographer's equipment needed to be "professional".

This paradigm has continuously been challenged through the advancement of technology. DSLR cameras have gotten better and are more affordable to the masses. Now, literally anyone who is in the right place at the right time, can potentially capture an awesome shot. Our first high-end, digital camera, purchased in 1995 was a 6.2 MP camera made by Kodak. It used a Canon body and without any lenses, cost us over $30,000! We paid $1200 extra for a 1GB memory card, then had to buy Canon lenses. Needless to say, after investing well over $35,000 we had the most advanced and practical digital system available. We used this system for several years until the next generation of technology was out and it made sense to invest again. We sold that $30K system for $700 on eBay and felt lucky to get that much for it.

The systems we use now are still expensive - in the $50,000 range, but produce results that are exponentially better and bigger than those early systems. These huge files however, require expensive computing power and software to make them usable for clients. All together, what we can produce now is so far superior to what we did before, it's almost embarrassing to look back at the old stuff. But again, the new professional technology is big and expensive.

Enter the iPhone. Once again, our friends at Apple have raised the bar by now giving everyone access to a phone that is really a pocket computer, high quality camera, video camera and post production/editing device. The iPhone is capable of producing amazing images and is available to anyone willing to shell out a couple hundred bucks.

Scott Knutson, veteran photographer at InsideOut has recently discovered the iPhone and has been using it extensively for personal work and to challenge himself creatively to produce creative imagery without relying on thousands of dollars in equipment and software. He recently has been asked to teach a course on iPhonography at the Mpls Photo Center to inspire other enthusiasts to realize the potential of the iPhone. Recently, he spent some time at the Mall of America shooting with his iPhone 4 in the indoor amusement park, Nickelodeon Universe. The results are amazing! So save your money, buy a phone and go have fun!

Black Dog

Target Field by Rick

We're all excited to be able to once again, go to a Twins game and see the beautiful summer sky above us. It's been along time coming, but the new Target Field is complete and outdoor professional baseball is a reality. Last week, Rick Peters had the opportunity to do some shooting in and around the facility for our client, Chief Manufacturing who was responsible for the many plasma screen mounts around the stadium.

Scott's new Portfollio

This is a short slideshow version of Scott's new Food Portfolio. The printed version is amazing, printed in Japan on a 6 color press in 12.5 x 11.5 pages with a printed hard cover. The books are great. Food photography is one of those things where the results are usually the culmination of the talents of many people. The images in this book are a good example of this where Scott worked closely with some of the best food and prop stylists and art directors to create these beautiful images. Thanks to all of you!

Flashes of Hope

Every once in a while in the generally fast paced world of advertising photography, you get to take a breather and help out with a project that brings you back to earth.  In our business, it usually is our job to make something or someone look good with the goal of selling something to someone.  Fine Art photographers would refer to this as "selling out".  We, of course refer to this as being a "profitable" business, and being able to eat - Something most Fine Art photographers know little about.  However, as I said, finding an opportunity to use our abilities purely with the objective of bringing joy to someone going through a tough time, is both refreshing and rewarding.  

Flashes of Hope is just that opportunity.  This is an organization started by the mom of a child cancer patient who had the idea of taking beautiful images for families facing the difficulty of serious childhood illness.  Pat Barry and I have been able to participate in the Minneapolis chapter events taking place at Minneapolis Children's Hospital and have found it to be extremely rewarding.  These kids were great to photograph.  All were very excited and cooperative.  Renee' McDaniels provided hair and make-up styling and each of the kids loved the extra attention.  We wish all of them well and keep them in our prayers.

Posted by Scott Knutson

OK, We're Back!

All right, I admit it, when you're a busy studio with lots of simultaneous projects going on day-to-day, the blog idea gets "back-burnered". However, it's still a worthwhile outlet that's worthy of pursuit even if it's only for our eyes. I won't promise regularity, but we will try to stay at it with enough frequency to at least not forget the log in info again! What a hassle.

As mentioned, InsideOut has been consistently busy for a long time now. We feel extremely humbled, grateful and blessed to have had this level of success for such a sustained period; especially when this hasn't been the case for many of our contemporaries. We hope that this has been due to a lot of hard work by all of us - Pat, Rick and I, creating images for our clients that are both creative and effective, and Peggy getting out there doing "show and tell" and landing new accounts. But we know that as hard as we all work, there is an element of divine intervention - some call it luck - involved in succeeding in this business. We have some great clients that have become very close friends and we are extremely grateful to all of them for their patronage.

OK, enough mush! As mentioned, we'll try to keep up with this as best as we can. Again, no great, unrealistic promises, but we'll try to post a few images and give you a few clues as to what's going on at InsideOut Studios.

What's Happening!

Wow, it's been a busy 1st quarter! Hopefully, the quality of our work, diligent sales and marketing efforts, and a reviving economy are at the core of this trend. Our revised web site is finally up and running (a few minor glitches yet to address). Yea! Thanks to Crowley Creative, and his web guru, Pat. Check it out - insideoutstudios.com - and let us know what you think.
As mentioned, things have been hopping at the studio. Rick is just coming back from a week in SD with trusted assistant Don Hicks and super stylist, Sue Schultz, shooting interiors and cabinets. Pat has been shooting everything from room sets to fishing lures, and Scott has been shooting cereal, kids and CEOs (sounds like a new cereal for ambitious kids).

Peggy just got back from Vegas where she was doing show and tell at Global Shop, a huge trade show for the retail display industry. Thanks to Graphic Systems for allowing us to "peggyback" in their booth. Hopefully, this proved once again, to be a mutually beneficial partnership. Coming up for the rest of the month, Pat will be on a well deserved vacation in Florida, Rick will be on assignment in St. Paul for a week, and Scott will be in New York shooting for a few days. So the fun continues!