Tim's Custom Exhaust in Coon Rapids

I was looking for a custom exhaust on my old motorcycle, and did a quick google search to try and find someone or at least get a few quotes. The first place I came while looking for exhaust around Minneapolis was Tim's. I called on a Saturday and the call was answered with a "he loves bike exhaust", went up there to drop off what I had, and got a great quote the next week. The work was done within a few weeks, which being fall/winter, was just fine, and it sounds great. I would totally recommend the shop for any bike related exhaust needs.

Fast forward a few months and the muffler/tailpipe of my Jeep fell off. First off I thought it was going to be more expensive than what it turned out to be, so I tried to fix it myself - with mixed results. I did fix it, and it lasted a month or so before my fix failed and it fell off again. This time I did what I should have done and brought it up to Tim's shop. I brought it in on a Monday morning around 10, and by 11 I was out with a new muffler and my problems were solved. It really didn't cost all that much, and the Jeep sounds better than it ever did. Again I would not hesitate to recommend this shop for anyone needing exhaust on a vehicle.

If you are in need of exhaust please check them out and give them a call.

Eldo-Glide runs!

Finally got my bike running, sounds good, now just have to wait until winter is over to figure out the battery issue a little and polish things up a bit.





More pics and videos to come!

Business cards!

So I was on a forum this evening and ran across a discussion about business cards. And this can be a touchy subject, not because of any feelings involved but because of how important they can be. Sure, most of the time they aren't the persons first impression of you, but they are something you leave with them for later contact - so they carry on that impression. They also need to fit in with your website, marketing, logo, and any other public image of yourself. Along with fitting in and the above, they can't distract from your image, yourself, or your marketing, in other words they can't try and do too much.

A good example of this would be the scene in American Psycho where they talk about their new cards. We laugh and make fun of it for many reasons - how serious they are taking this, how little the cards actually differ, and how they get into every small detail. However, there is a point that can be taken, and it's that their cards are exactly what they need to be. Simple, to the point, no frills (other than the font/paper), and provide contact info.

Those elements are what a card needs to be, professional, an extension of your business and yourself, and something that's not distracting.

I posted a image of my card for this reason, although it's not a great example, it's to the point, has my info, I did include a image on one side but the image is a good example of what I do, and it's not trying to do too much. Some others I've come across try to be everything to everyone, almost a mini flyer, which in some cases work but a lot of the times they are just too much and may put people off.

So my advice to photographers and businesses is the following. Keep the card simple, make it an extension of your current marketing, and make it specific or tailored to your audience.

This is why I ride a older pedal bike...

So this morning I was all ready to get to the day job, even on time for once in a while (or at least my usual time in). This was surprising, at least the on time part since I was up really late working on the motorbike, but that's another story. So I walk outside and notice my pedal bike was tipped over, ok, no big deal, it happens. Then I noticed that my tires were off, and the tubes were missing! Both rims were off the bike, I'm pretty sure all the nuts and stuff are there to put it on, but really... Who just takes tubes and not the whole thing? This is why I drive a cheap bike and keep my good ones locked up inside.

Eldo-Glide Moto Guzzi

So I picked up the legendary Eldo-Glide from a friend today, and now it's my job to carry the torch. No real plans so far, other than clean up the look a little, do some general maintenance, and maybe polish it up a bit.

Just a background on the bike, from http://mnmotorcycle.com/feature-archives/

"This is the Eldo-glide. A late ’70 Moto Guzzi Eldorado with bits of Harley and Indian here and there. It’s owned by Tom the Tailor (612.721.4557) who has been sticking the odd bits and pieces on it for well over 20 years to get a bike that has a splash of American iron with the fat bob tank perched on the Italian bike. Having roommates at the time with basketcase Indians, Tom was constantly seeing which of their parts would fit on the Guzzi and then going out and finding them at swap meets. The exhaust is custom bent to blend the truck mufflers in nicely with the floorboards. The massive leather bags were made to order by Tom for a customer who decided she’d asked for bags that were way too big. The front fender sports a running light off of an old truck and some stainless steel flames tack welded onto the leading edge. After replacing hundreds of Moto Guzzi throttle cables he threw a Triumph throttle on there which would only break a few dozen times. Tom’s bike is by far the nastiest bike in this group. Everywhere you look there are mismatched nuts & bolts, bits of duct tape, and there isn’t a piece on the thing that still shines except for the crazy whitewall tires, both of which are both fronts. A few years ago Tom rode the Eldo-glide to Sturgis and back with little trouble and the bike was in constant use up until this spring when it was replaced with a brand new Moto Guzzi Jackal. Lord knows what that thing will look like in 24 years."

It's going to take a while to get going, and a great winter project, but should be worth it at the end.

Photographers, and new equipment.

So every time something new comes out in the camera world we have all these photographers and hobbyists drooling over the latest and greatest. They then go into how many mega pixels whatever has vs something else, or how sharp the lens is, or how high of ISO the camera can get.

All this is great and all, but they are forgetting some crucial pieces to critique. Those being, will that new equipment bring more clients or business in the door and will that equipment turn into more money or work for them? I don't think new equipment now days is turning into money as it once was.

Keep in mind I don't shoot weddings where this equipment would be critical, but then I wouldn't think someone shooting weddings would tune into a fashion photographers blog anyway.

So in a more traditional sense, a lot of portraits, senior pictures, family photos, headshots, etc, aren't going to be printed that large. even for a wedding I would think around a 20x30ish print is getting pretty big. So mega pixel count doesn't really mean all that much anymore unless someone is doing a ton of cropping.

More traditional images are shot where light really isn't a factor anymore. I'm sure some use iso 1600 or 3200, but (personally) a lot of my work is done under iso 400, and even nice consumer cameras have been able to do a pretty good 3200 for a while. So I don't see how having 25k+ iso would be a selling point, unless you do weddings.

Lenses these days are pretty sharp, even consumer zooms. Granted some are more than others, but most of my clients don't take a lupe out and view prints or photos. So although it's nice to have a really sharp lens, I'm not sure that's a selling point anymore with the mega pixel cameras we have and the sized prints we're making. I doubt that additional sharpness will come though on a 8x10, and I doubt a strong image that size would be less strong if it was a tad soft.

What I think is happening, and I've said this before, is that we're getting to a point where a photographer can buy a camera and expect to use it for 5+ years with little motivation to upgrade. The file size is large enough to day to cover just about any print size, image quality has improved many times over even 5 years ago to a point where it's amazing for any normal portrait work, and I think lenses have come to a point where they aren't a factor as much as they were - and even for consumer zooms. Granted I can be wrong, and my opinion isn't as sexy as "I love this new camera that came out" but I can't see how clients could tell the difference, and I can't see how someone could justify thousands and thousands in something that won't have a major impact on their work.

Now if any non-photographers have got this far, my advice, just look at the images. If they are strong then it doesn't matter what they were shot with, if they aren't great then it doesn't matter what they were shot with. Anything today can produce prints, web images, and enlarge at least up to 16x20 without working too hard. Focus more on the work than what it's made with.

How to use online modeling sites

I'm not your agent, or your parent, and I don't think these sites are a total waste of time. So please read my other post and/or contact your agent before making a profile. Mostly speaking about Model Mayhem here...

So I just posted something about how these sites can waste time, and they can, but, they can be a great resource if used in the right ways, which is networking!

Where else can you find other people in other cities/areas/countries? The site is a huge melting pot of everyone from around the world. This can provide a great way to network with others, make new friends/contacts, and find places to crash when traveling. Granted there needs to be some common sense used when talking with internet strangers, but I've made some great contacts over the years and it's a great way to get to know people you otherwise may not have.

So, and again it'd shy away from shooting with just anyone, but a simple profile with a few simple shots and snapshots (front & side in a swimsuit and headshot) may help network with others in different cities you may want to move, photographers in other areas, or just a good waste of time in the forums "discussing" stuff.

Again, I'm not your agent, parent, or a doctor, but there are good points to these sites and this is a big one!