News

Day One /  by Zack Wussow

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Happy New Years!

I'm a big fan of New Years resolutions, in part because I'm actually pretty good at sticking to them.

(The secret - make them achievable, measurable, and ideally something that you can break up into a series of smaller steps. So no "Get in shape" - instead, something like "Be able to run a 5K without stopping.")

Despite that, I hesitated to write a blog post about my resolutions this year. Plenty of them have to do with Zack Wussow Media, but to be frank those aren't that interesting. Either the goals are somewhat out of my control (I can't make more people hire me, for example, only look for ways to encourage it) or else I've set up systems which should take care of the goal with no real work on my part.

Instead, the goals I am most excited about are only tangentially related to ZWM. But I am excited about them, so I thought I would share three big ones.

4 Portfolio-Worthy Projects

This one goes on top of continuing my photo-a-day project (which is nearly a year old!) and continuing to expand my Bar/Bat Mitzvah and Maternity portfolios, two areas of my business I'd like to see expand in 2016 and beyond.

This year I want to do four large, involved photo projects that push me as a photographer.

Self-assigned projects are a great way to develop any skill. In my case, the projects are partially just for the fun of it, and partially to see if there are new avenues of photography I should be exploring, or new skills I can bring back to my regular work.

I'm sure I will post about them here, and depending on the details they may make it to some permanent home on this site.

4 New Skills

I also want to learn (to some reasonable level of fluency) four new skills. I'm not terribly picky about what they are (though I have some ideas already), just that they are useful things I don't currently know how to do.

Are they likely to change the way I photograph a wedding? Nope. Though I never rule out the possibilities of cross-pollination. 

I think it's important to never stop learning, though, and I always find it amazing how once you learn to do something, you start to see opportunities to use it everywhere.

I've already dipped my toes into the first thing, and I expect I'll be sharing some news about that here around the end of January.

Get in Shape

I know, I know, I know. I said earlier this is a terrible resolution because it's entirely un-measurable. I'm working on the details.

The fact is, my body is pretty important to my job, and my job is not really good for my body. Hefting a heavy camera and an even heavier camera bag of accessories for eight-hour days is bad for you in almost every way possible. So I need to take better care of myself than someone my age normally would, just to break even.

Two years ago I ran a Tough Mudder. Right now, I wouldn't stand a chance. A year from now, I'd like to be able to again.

I'll work on the details...

Everything Else

There's a few other big-ish things I have planned for this year, most of which you will probably read about here when they happen... But for now that is all I will say.

What about you? Any exciting resolutions for the year ahead? Whatever the new year brings for you, I hope you have a wonderful, exciting, successful 2016!

2015 In Review /  by Zack Wussow

2015 has been a busy year, and has shaped up to be Zack Wussow Media's best year yet. But it didn't star that way. (Scroll down if you'd like to skip my thoughts and see some numbers.)

Slow Start

The first three months of my year tend to be light on work, and heavy in signing contracts. That was not the case in 2015, though. When March ended, I had booked something like a third as much work as in 2014.

I'm generally an optimist, but I definitely was not in April. Feel free to ask my girlfriend if you'd like confirmation.

Busy Summer... And Fall.

Then, because business is like the weather - the only constant is it always changes - summer came along and kicked my butt all over the place! I wasn't aware of exactly when the winds changed, but I suddenly found myself with plenty of work.

It's been a great season, with lots of really fun weddings. I've had a chance to try some new things, pick up some new gear, and I worked a couple weddings as a second shooter (my first time doing that since I started in 2011). 

And, of course, just when things are their busiest, yearbook season rolls around.

New Experiences

This year brought some new things into my photographic life.

Some were bad... Like the folks who tried to con me with a business proposition, or my first run in with broken gear. (Update on the broken lens: Canon did fix it - I suspect they actually just sent me a new one. Pretty quickly and cheaply as well. Five stars.)

Most were great. I got to photograph my friends' engagement, another, messier engagement, my first Sweet 16, my first Bat Mitzvah celebration, and my first costumed wedding. (Especially excited about that last one - when I started this business, one of the first couples I met with were having a full Star Wars themed wedding. They went with someone else, and I've always regretted missing out.) I also started this blog, which has gotten lots of great feedback and has been a lot of fun to write.

And now...

The Numbers

Weddings: 19 (Same as 2014)

This one surprised me... If anything it felt like I did more this year. Turns out, that's because almost half my weddings this year were in the last two months.

It worked out, though, as it brings my career total to a nice, even 70 weddings. 100 next year?

Portraits: 9 (Down 2 from 2014)

This includes engagements, family photos, headshots, and maternity photos. Engagements are up, maternity the same, and the others down. Not really a surprise - I don't market myself much as a family photographer, and there's not much call for headshots in central CT. 

I would love to do more maternity work, but it's slow getting started. As with most everything in photography, you need a portfolio of work to get jobs, but you need jobs to build your portfolio. I suspect being young and male doesn't help, either. So it goes.

Corporate Gigs: 8 (Up 5 from 2014)

This includes product photography and a handful of events I photograph for the UConn School of Business. Ironic that this is my big growth area, considering I don't market myself here at all. Friends keep bringing me work, and I do it well, so they come back to me.

Really fun work, and the UConn events sometimes include interesting guests, so I'm not complaining.

Sweet 16 and Bar/Bat Mitzvah: 2 (Up 2 from 2014)

My first ever in both categories. Definitely expect this to grow next year - at least on the Bar/Bat Mitzvah side. (I don't think Sweet 16s are very common in central CT? Mine was down near NYC.)

I'd love to see this become a bigger part of my business. Not only are they really fun events, it would be great to have something that is more spread out through the year. 

Total: 38 (Up 5 from 2014)

Like I said at the very top - a busy year, and my biggest and best yet. Until next year, of course.

A big thank you to all of my amazing customers, friends, and family. I couldn't do it without you.

Happy holidays, everyone, and a happy New Year!

Time to Breathe /  by Zack Wussow

Whew.

For the first time since about mid-August, my schedule has room in it. A lot of room, actually. Par for the photography course - summer and fall are extremely busy, spring and especially winter not so much.

Which is not to say I'm done for the year. This week is still busy (three yearbook shoots and a wedding), and there's still editing to catch up on, contracts to sign for next year, taxes to file, updates to the website to be done. 

But I can take a breath again. It's a time of year I really enjoy. I get to reflect on how the past year went (more on that to come) and plan for the pending year, and I get to pursue some personal projects that I wouldn't have time for otherwise.

It's a pretty awesome time of year.

(My girlfriend would like to remind me that a month from now I'll be suffering from severe cabin fever and hating this downtime... Well, maybe. But right now it feels great.)

Three Thanksgiving Announcements /  by Zack Wussow

There's a lot of new things going on here at Zack Wussow Media! Here's three.

Newsletters

A quick reminder that Zack Wussow Media now has an email mailing list with special monthly offers and discounts that won't be available anywhere else. What sort of goodies can you expect? Well, here's a freebie for the holidays:
 

A Thanksgiving Thank You

I am incredibly lucky to have the amazing customers I do. Seriously, you guys make this job the most fun one I've ever had, and your referrals are the cornerstone of my business. I can only do this because all of you are awesome.

As a small token of appreciation, any past customer from any year can get 10% off print orders through your Smugmug gallery by using this coupon code:

Thanksgiving10

Thank you.
 

Gift Certificates

Also, for the first time ever I'm offering gift certificates! They're available in any dollar amount and can go toward any service I offer: wedding, portraits, events, etc. The recipient can even trade them for a print credit on their online gallery. Just drop me a line.

Happy Thankgiving, everyone!

A Very Expensive Paperweight /  by Zack Wussow

A few days ago, I had a major equipment drop, the first of my career.

It wasn't a great day.

I was photographing machines for a client (the same folks from All Hail Our Machine Overlords), with my camera on a tripod and lots of lighting gear and backdrops set up. It is, in theory, an exceptionally safe working environment. No moving people, the machines are infinitely patient, the camera is on a tripod. Despite all of that, while I was moving my tripod and adjusting the camera, the camera fell, tumbling forward off the tripod, falling about five feet, and smashed on the floor.

All told, my camera rig is worth about $4,000.

My initial assessment was really bad. The battery grip was in pieces. The body wouldn't turn on. The lens focus and telephoto were stuck. Worst of all (from a certain perspective), I hadn't brought a backup body or lens, so I had to tell my customer, "Sorry, but that's it for the day." (Disclaimer: I only left the backups at home because I thought, surely, nothing can go wrong at such a straightforward shoot. I always have backups for one-shot-only events like weddings.)

When I got home, I was able to revive my camera body. Whew. The lens and battery grip are dead, though, one an expensive paperweight and the other a pile of parts.

Some advice, for anyone who's prone to finding themselves in a similar situation, starting with the most general:

Have a backup plan. 

Thankfully, past me did a good job preparing for exactly such a situation. I have insurance on my equipment, and savings set aside for exactly this kind of emergency. If all of that fails, I have credit and family to fall back on. If I needed to replace the equipment immediately, I have a list of local places at which I could buy, rent, or borrow equipment.

So, business wise, I'm okay. Knowing that was a huge comfort while literally picking up pieces of my camera.

Even if you don't own a business, it's a good idea to take some time and think about where you are most vulnerable to an accident, and figure out how you can mitigate that risk. 

Don't ignore that bad feeling in your gut.

My tripod hadn't felt right all morning. I don't use my tripod often, though, and it seemed to be working, so I carried on. I've since worked out that a key spring in the tripod head had come lose. It's an easy fix, but a critical failure.

First of all, if your tripod feels weird, you should have a hand on your camera constantly until you figure out the problem, and should not use the tripod until it is working correctly.

But more broadly, when something feels wrong, you should always stop and try to assess that feeling. 

The image we did get.

The image we did get.

Going forward, I'm in good shape. I was able to return and finish the photos a few days later, and I have a new lens on the way. I've been looking to add an additional backup body and lens to the ones I already have for a while - and while the cost of replacing this equipment makes that a little more challenging, I still think I may speed up that process. I'm going to see, as well, if Canon can fix my broken lens or not.

In short: It was bad, but it could've been worse.