Call Me Ed

Last night I realized its been a while since I've gone out and taken pictures. I don't have any weddings to shoot until May and we've been busy working on new BF projects.

For me, creating pictures is like eating sushi: if you don't do it every week, you start feeling weird. You get withdrawals. There's no substitute.

So, look for some pictures here this weekend.

Back in school, I was required to read The Mythical Man-Month in one of my software engineering courses. The most popular theme in the book–now known as Brooks' Law–states that:

"Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later."

Basically, adding people to a project increases communication overhead and requires training–both things that consume time. Brooks' Law can apply to many other disciplines and businesses.

That's why I sigh when I hear of other companies in our industry hiring staff, concierges, butlers, sales people, or whatever you want to call them. It doesn't work (here's proof).

Do you want to provide great service, scale your business, and handle demand? Don't add people. Don't outsource everything. You find bottlenecks. And then you crush them. You get a few great people and you continually look for bottlenecks and open them up. That's what we do and that's why we're pretty awesome at what we do.

If you're a sole proprietor, you look for new technologies and new processes that can make every aspect of your business run smoother.

This week, pick 1 step or process in your business (no matter how small) and ask yourself: how can I make this more efficient? And then go do it.

I am really good–check that, I'm great–at finding deals on travel. The skill serves me will because I have 4-star taste but I'm a cheapskate.

This week, I decided to send the wife and kids away while I crank out some work on our new projects. Using Priceline.com, I was able to find a sweet deal on airline tickets ($189 per ticket on 1 day advance notice) and a rental car.

Here's the funny part: I purchased her a mid-size rental car for $16 a day. After making the reservation, I called Avis to reserve two car seats. The price: $11 per day, per seat.

It's really strange when you put it in perspective:

This is not an in-depth book review. Before you ask, yes, I read the book. Actually, I listened to the audio book.

In the book, author Tim Ferriss outlines his plan for escaping 9 to 5 drudgery and joining what he calls the new rich. While there are a few worthwhile observations and productivity techniques scattered about, I'd recommend you read other books on these topics (see below).

Briefly, here are two issues I have with the book–and its relevance to photographers.

Photographers aren't Dilbert

Ferriss's book seems aimed at educated knowledge workers trapped in meaningless 9 to 5 jobs and taking orders from middle managers. Think Dilbert or the movie Office Space.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say, you became a photographer because you're an artist, a creative, and because you love photography. If that sounds right, this book isn't going to do anything for you–except cause you to doubt your calling and begin an obsession with material possessions and free time.

If you became a photographer for the money ... well, I'm sorry but you've got issues that this book isn't going to solve. If its wealth you're after, you should quit photography immediately, become a stock broker, go back to school, read this book, or find something else to do.

If You Outsource Everything, You're No Longer a Creative

One of Ferriss's recommendations for joining the new rich is to outsource as many aspects of your life and business as possible. Thanks to a few "baby Ferrisses" in our industry, this is now a very popular avenue for photographers. You can now outsource just about every aspect of wedding photography.

I have more than a few issues with the outsourcing paradigm–but I'll simply say this: if you outsource most aspects of the photographic and creative process, you're no longer a photographer. You're just a business person.

Now, before you ask: yes, I make websites for photographers. If you want to call that outsourcing, go ahead–but making a website isn't part of the photographic process. Neither is building tools or providing infrastructure that makes photographers more efficient. Second, I'm not saying a photographer must handle every aspect of their business in-house. Using a lab for your prints makes perfect sense. I'm saying there's a line when it comes to outsourcing. In my mind, you can't hand every creative aspect off to someone else (post-processing, editing, retouching, album design, etc.) and still call yourself an artist.

Read These Instead

Instead of reading The 4-Hour Workweek, I'd recommend reading these books instead:

Getting Things Done by David Allen

Naked Economics by Charles Wheelan

Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Ecclesiastes by King Solomon

Have a great weekend.

Friday night kicked off Bend's Winterfest. I'm not exactly sure what it all entails, but there was a fun Rail Jam with some solid riders.

Here's a few images I grabbed during the evening. If you're one of the riders pictured (or know one of them), get in touch with me and I'll get you some prints.

You should really read this article about new features coming in Safari 3.1. If you're too lazy, here's the important part:

CSS Transforms and CSS Animations will join web downloadable fonts in allowing Safari 3.1 and iPhone users to render web pages and web apps with enhanced design messages and real-time visual effects.

Do you feel me now? Okay, If you're lazy and slow, read my lips: really cool websites without Flash.