Roseblade Photography Blog

AT LAST! Google have significantly revamped their image search engine. I honestly don’t think it’s changed since I first used it which must be at least 10 years ago. With the arrival of Bing I’ve switched my preferred image search Microsofts way. Bing offered more options for customising the display, the search fiend stayed visible and you don’t have to click on any silly little ‘o’s at the bottom, keep scrolling and Bing just keeps serving up images.

Google have followed suit. It’s not often that they’re lacking behind the competition. They’ve replied with a handy little ephasis on mouse over, much like iStock Photo. They’ve removed the old fashioned ‘frame style’ preview when you click but I still don’t think they’ve got it quite right.

As a partial designer I’ve always liked Google’s colour filter but for now I think Bing still has the edge for quick and easy results just how you want them.

Google Image Search Results for MOUNTAIN

Bing Image Search Results for MOUNTAIN

Businesses from all industries benefit from good reviews and recommendations. One of the most useful things for an uncertain consumer is a trusted referral and it’s invaluable for business, not least in the photography world where personal connection is so important. This BBC Click episode looks at what can happen when online reviews are faked or the system sabotaged. It looks at a specific case of review abuse in the photography industry.

In our increasingly digital-centric world it’s important to be aware of the flaws. The boss of Trip Advisor suggests ignoring the very best and the very worst reviews and focussing on the majority. The trouble is, it can only take one bad review to ruin a business.

I’m all for technological improvement but you just cannot underestimate the value of good old fashioned word of mouth and a relational customer base. I love what I do because I get to work with people, why let the internet rob me of that.

This is a slightly ironic post so hopefully it’ll amuse if nothing else.

It’s time to re-embrace Twitter.

I stopped sending blog posts there a while ago as I wasn’t tweeting anything else so it was just a stream of blog entries. The intention behind this blog is to create interesting and relevant posts at the right frequency. Social Media is here to stay and it’s useful for business let alone connecting with fiends. But, there’s always a but, I’ve not been sold on the frequency that such networks require your input. Morover, when you don’t have anything to say. The last thing I want to happen is sitting there with my phone thinking, I’ve got to tweet, what shall I say? And then come out with something dull and irrelevant.

Is this post interesting or relevant? Who knows. It’s just one in a sea of billions and trillions floating through the air. If you’re struggling too, think about who you want to connect with. At the end of the day, it’s all about people, even if you only see their feed and not their face.

To all potential 2011 wedding couples. Please note that following the budget announcement of an increase to 20% VAT we have now set our prices for all 2011 bookings. You’ll be pleased to know that we’re not charing any extra for TIME only for PRODUCTS. The prices of our albums and other products have to increase as our suppliers will be increasing their prices also. Click here to download a full wedding price guide for your information. We’ve actually even REDUCED some of our prices a little to make up for it. The disk of files for example, and adding extra pages to your album.

I was inspired by this TED talk by Ken Robinson about how education can kill creativity, not only because he reminds me of Michael Cain. While mainstream academic subjects are incredibly important (I know, two of my A levels were Maths and Physics) we should not sideline the arts.

He tells a story about a lady called Gillian Lynne. When she was young her mother took her to a specialist worried she had a learning disorder. Watch the 15 minute talk to find out how one little observation by the doctor changed her life and brought the success she has found as one of the most successful choreographers of modern times.

The line he said that hit me between the eyes, that I knew I could put into practice tomorrow was:

“If you are not prepared to be wrong you will probably not find creativity.”