Buyers’ guide
thinktankphoto.com
£210
Think Tank Airport Advantage XT
The Airport Advantage XT is a large roller case that’s perfect for a day’s portrait or wedding shoot. Being wheeled, the kit can really be packed in and dipped into when required. It swallows all the contents you need, with internal dimensions of 33.8x45.7x19.1cm, fitting two gripped DSLRs with lenses attached, plus five to eight
additional lenses and further accessories. Modular and shaped dividers make it easy to order your equipment, and the compartment has thick protection all around. Other storage includes two zipped mesh pockets on the main compartment’s door, and a large pouch on the front – plus a small zip pocket on the top, a stretchy
side pocket and a strap for adding a tripod or light stands. The bag uses large YKK RC Fuse zips, which run very smoothly without snagging, and as you’d expect from a bag like this, the main compartment is lockable. The great build quality extends to the wheels, which
give a smooth run as you trundle it from job to job.
swpp.co.uk
gophotobook.com GoPhotoBook
From £5 a month
From £20.50
GoPhotoBook focuses on delivering one amazing product – an ultra high-quality hard cover book, in A4 landscape format with silk-finished paper, perfect for high-resolution photos. Design is easy and fast from a PC or Mac right in the browser, so there’s no need to download any software, and there’s plenty of instructions on how to do it. Just drag images on to pages and re-order them with clear and simple tools, and you can add text for captions. Upload photos and work with them immediately, while full-resolution files upload in the background. Priced £20.50 for 20 double-sided pages, and 45p per page after that (up to a maximum of 48 sheets), these books come with free tracked delivery and can be sent as gifts. Delivery is, on average, within five to seven working days – very fast, considering the book is produced specifically for each person with their own photos.
The Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers
pixpa.com
From £5 a month
The Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers (SWPP) is one of the world’s largest organisations for aspiring professionals and experts shooting social portraiture. Join up and receive a range of benefits to help in your career and grow your business. These include a comprehensive selection of educational seminars by inspirational speakers, who’ve mastered the industry you want to be a part of; meaningful qualifications and distinctions;
site, where prospective clients come to seek the photographer for them. Membership starts from £5 a month for a digital subscription, rising through enthusiast at £8 monthly, to professional at £10, which covers the full range of benefits. Additionally, there are retired, student, corporate and magazine-only rates. Plus, of course, there’s the SWPP annual convention, where members and the photographic trade gather. It is a popular event, with seminars, workshops and a trade show, the latest gear on view, and live demonstrations from those in the know. The next one runs from 16-19 March 2022.
Pixpa websites
If you’re serious about selling your skills, you’re going to need a great website. Pixpa is a website-building service, offering three levels of package to meet different needs. There’s the basic Personal site from £5 a month, which has plenty of useful features; Expert from £7 a month; and Business at £11 a month. The higher levels offer progressively more powerful marketing and e-commerce tools – and greater amounts of online storage, with up to 50GB in the Business model. Making a site is easy, with tons of excellent customisable templates to choose from, and results give a very professional sheen to your portfolio. Features include client galleries and an online store, where customers can choose from thousands of products – including photo books and large prints, with payment direct to your PayPal account.
a mentoring programme; competitions; roadshows; a bi-monthly magazine; trade
promotions and discounts; and having your business listed on the
storybooksbytalkingprint.com
From £42, excluding shipping
Storybooks by Talking Print
If you’re looking to offer clients something out of the ordinary, take a look at Storybooks by Talking Print. These products mix traditional book design with digital photos, videos, music and audio messages to form a unique, memorable package – and because they’re physical and beautifully designed, your clients can carry them around to show friends and family. Its the perfect fit for weddings, as well as family, pet and newborn shoots.
The Storybooks are completely bespoke – either fill in a form and let Talking Print do the rest, or upload stills and movies, choosing design and text via the online platform. You can even order blank books and do it all at home. The Storybooks have a seven-inch LCD screen and store up to 2GB of stills and video, so there’s plenty of scope for sharing your work. There’s a rechargeable battery with a two-hour life, and a USB lead for recharging and transferring content.
20 Photography News | Issue 90
photographynews.co.uk
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