Category Archives: Uncategorized

Basic Principles For Making Money in Photography

Posted on by

Making money in Photography means treating it like a business. Consider these tips and watch your business grow.When you move from amateur to making money in photography, you need a professional image and outlook. Balance creative effort with commercial basics for a successful business.For many photographers a business in photography is more difficult than the shooting of photos. There is contact with people, business decisions, taxes, appointments, contracts, releases and a host of other business issues to deal with. Sometimes it is tempting to just close it out, get the cameras and go somewhere on a shoot that reminds you why you are a photographer. Sometimes you can do that, but when making money in photography is the goal it can not be all the time.This means the top two tips are related. Set your fee for profit. To do this you must know your expenses. Many give up on photography as a business because of the business end, which must be tended to. If you need to line up an accountant and promotion person do it, but these are two things that must be done in order to get your name out there. This needs to be done in order to get bookings to generate income.This seems like basic information but it is a tripping point for many who seek the creative side of photography and forget the business side the making money side which is needed in order to keep doing the creative side!It is also important to understand this need not be time consuming. Spend a half hour in the morning tending to promotional publicity things. The last thing before you turn in at night record your expenses and cash in for the day.Promotional items can be very affordable. A promotional magnet on your car, business cards (plenty of them!), perhaps a few ball caps with business name on them, calendar magnets to give to those who book shoots. This is under $80 and can be done right where you are at places like VistaPrint. Look professional!Have a sound portfolio available and an up to date website. Figure in these expenses as well as other ones that are smaller that are sometimes not considered. These may include:

the costs of maintaining your vehicle to get to shoots
expenses from batteries to equipment at the shoot
lights and electricity costs can add up
office equipment
Paper, toner for the copier, on down to paper clips and staples
In addition figure in a portion that is set aside for equipment. This is for new equipment or that which gets damaged and needs to be replaced and might be $10 on a $150 shoot. Only when you know what your normal expenses are can you come close to setting your fee.Those expenses are important because if you do not charge enough to make a profit you will not be in business long. You can not lose money forever! Talk to other photographers, find a specialty or niche.While you might be able to photograph anything, there is also credibility as an expert when you find your niche market. Some examples of specialty markets:

Wedding photography
Special events
Sports
Pets and animal
Scenic
Many that sound like a good idea – for example real estate – are not enough to turn a profit. With technology today’s cameras enable agents to do their own real estate photos at no cost which removes the profit for you. Consider your interests.Be honest with yourself about your likes and dislikes. If you really don’t care to be around children, specializing in photographing children, will be a chore and probably not your best use of time. As many have said: If you do what you love, you’ll never have to work a day in your life. What do you love to photograph? How can you market that?When you are pursuing a career that must bring in the money you may have to think outside the box. How much will you give away? Remember, in setting prices it isn’t just the shooting photos but also editing those photos which can be time consuming. How much time do you allow and do you charge extra for rush service?Some of these may not be an issue in the beginning, but setting a policy also keeps in check those who would take advantage of the situation. There are some general business books that can help in transforming your business but there are also some situations unique to photographers. It helps to have a mentor to discuss details with, whether this is a forum online or another photographerMaking money with photography can be a tough thing but with paying attention to details and planning for not just now but down the road can pay off both literally and figuratively speaking.

The Real Truth About Life Insurance

Posted on by

Myth: Cash value life insurance is a great investment for the masses.Truth: Cash value life insurance has a very poor rate of return historically and an investor would most likely be better served in mutual funds or other investments.Don’t let a life insurance agent try to tell you otherwise. Cash Value Life Insurance policies for the most part have terrible returns. Again, for the average investor, cash value life insurance is a waste of money.If an investor is not high income earner and/or subject to the estate tax, all they need is term life insurance and they should buy term and invest the difference.Another thing that anyone considering Cash Value Life Insurance needs to know is that the beneficiary only gets the death benefit and none of the cash value back. If the insured dies young and there is $100,000 cash value in a policy with a $125,000 death benefit the beneficiary gets $ 125,000.So to summarize… There are three types of people who need three specific types of Life Insurance, and never buy any Life Insurance that is not right for your specific situation.1. If you are a regular Joe – buy term and invest the difference. The mantra of financial advisors like Suze Orman and David Bach who preach to the regular Joe is “Buy Term and invest the difference”. Term is the right tool for this job. The suggested death benefit for most is 10-15 times income depending on age for working individuals, and 5 -10 times income for a non working spouse.2. However if you are a high net worth individual subject to the Estate Tax either now or in the future the most efficient wealth transfer tool available today is Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance held within an Irrevocable Life Insurance trust. Simplistically put, when a Trust is drafted and the Beneficiary is the trust, the death benefit is then considered outside of the estate by the IRS, meaning the death benefit is not subject to the Estate Tax. If the Grantor is in good health Guaranteed Universal Life contracts from A %2B rated insurers are paying 10%2B% at statistical mortality. When the estate tax of 45% is factored in as well these contracts can be paying a very substantial rate of return that may reach potentially into the teens. These returns can be spectacular especially given the guaranteed nature of the contract.The only drawbacks to this strategy are:1. Grantor must pay premiums2. The Grantor must pass away for the trust to collect.3. Grantor must pay to have the trust drafted. Also do note for Estate Tax Mitigation purposes the Guaranteed Universal Life contracts we use have relatively little or no cash value especially at statistical mortality thus we avoid the cash value trap described above.4. Alternately, High income earners that own a closely held company may greatly benefit from a 412i Fixed Defined benefit plan. This is the sweet spot for the cash value life insurance. By the way this is the only sweet spot that this Financial Advisor can find for Cash Value Life Insurance; however it is a super one for investors that can take advantage of it. For investors in high tax brackets a 412i Fixed Defined Benefit plan allows the MAXIMUM tax deduction possible of any qualified plan, allowing investors to put up to $300,000 in per year as opposed to the paltry $6000 in an IRA.$ 300,000 per year in qualified money?What is not to like?Well, what rates of return are these Fixed Defined benefits going to pay?That depends on the insurer, and the insured’s health, however expect 3.5% to 4.5%.Not too exciting you say?Hold on a moment, keep in mind that much like the Estate Tax issues that high net worth individuals can mitigate by taking out Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance policies inside trusts the Tax man makes investing in 412 i Fixed Defined benefits a very profitable endeavor by avoiding paying taxes until withdraw. You will have to pay taxes eventually barring you use your qualified assets to pass to charity through planned giving. Do keep in mind that this is a guaranteed investment which is subject to the viability of the insurance company, however, the main benefit is the fact that the IRS allows such HUGE qualified contributions.How most 412i Fixed Defined benefit plans work is a combination of a Cash Value Life Insurance policy with a Fixed Annuity. One other nice thing about these is the fact that they are much easier to administer than a standard Defined Benefit program as the returns are fixed and there is no chance of over or under funding. The exit strategy is clear, rollover the funds into a traditional IRA within 4-6 years, thus avoiding cash value trap described above.The result? The investor sheltered up to $ 1.8MM in a qualified tax environment at positive (albeit conservative) rates of return to rollover into a traditional IRA after six years…Yes, Cash Value Life Insurance is a terrible investment for most. However for investors with either a substantial estate subject to the Estate Tax or who are in a high tax bracket with a closely held corporation may want to seriously consider the appropriate type of Permanent Life Insurance. Due to IRS regulations it is hard to go wrong!This is neither tax nor legal advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor.

Adult Learning Principles and Latent Music Training

Posted on by

Adults approach learning differently than children. While a child may accept an authority figure in the classroom imparting knowledge, the adult is not.Often published articles about music instruction and playing refer to children and their psychological and educational development compared to students that do not study music. How an adult learns is an important issue to consider while formulating music instruction.Some areas to contemplate if you are studying music or teach music to adults are:Self-DirectionAdults generally assume independence and expect to take part in the process of developing instruction as well as an active position in the evaluation of their performance. They prefer to work at their own pace in the areas they choose and feel that their “grade” or result should match their expectations of what they should receive.The best avenue of instruction for an adult then is not a large classroom with an authoritative instructor but either through independent study, where they in a sense act as the student and the instructor themselves, or one-on-one with a respectful tutor that facilitates the attainment of knowledge.Level of Physical ComfortKindergarten students may sit around in a circle on the floor or a high school student may concede to sit in a small desk with a hard wooden seat, but adults prefer and demand comfort. Some adults are set in their ways so to speak, they “like it how they like it,”period.To address the desired comfort level of adults either the classroom accommodates, or they choose to hire a tutor to instruct in their home or they learn through an independent course at home. They might also want to consider the instrument they choose in relation to how it is played. For example, a smoker that gets winded quickly might have more success learning the guitar or piano as opposed to a wind instrument like a saxophone or trombone.Insecurity or EmbarassmentSome adults are uncomfortable learning new things or not knowing how to do things. In their employment or at home, they may feel confident about their abilities and problem solving skills but in a new situation, they may feel inadequate or awkward. To counteract these feelings of insecurity, embarrassment or inadequacy adults usually overcompensate by trying to do everything perfectly, they ask the instructor many probing questions to try to focus information and requirements, and take their time to accomplish tasks in order to avoid mistakes.In music instruction, the adult wants all the information they can get a hold of, they are less inclined to try things without some kind of knowledge base. Whereas a child may blow into a trumpet and not worry about how badly it sounds, whether they know how to read the music or where to put their fingers, they do it just for fun, adults want to master it and not “make a fool of themselves.”The instructor or teaching method needs to be able to respond to the adults’ intense need for detail and affirmation. While an adult may do well in a formal education setting for a music theory or history class, when in comes to playing an instrument private instruction is a better choice to put the student at ease and allows for plenty of inquiries.Prior Experience and ApplicationYoung students have few experiences to afford them the ability to imagine a ‘real life’ application of knowledge. Adults may have decades of knowledge and experiences brought into the classroom with them and they can see how information may apply to other aspects of their life or to other areas of study.When an adult is learning to play music, they want to be able to apply their knowledge and experiences. So many adults do not desire to learn music just for the sake of it, but to be able to play at their church or in a band or to compose their own music. They come to learn music with a goal and prior expectations.Adults that desire to learn music are goal oriented, exercise autonomy, and require respect and comfort. So if you are planning to learn a new skill, such as playing the piano, or you are a teacher planning your curriculum consider the unique requirements of the adult student.References:Kearsley, Greg. Explorations in Learning & Instruction: The Theory into Practice Database Andragogy (M. Knowles). http://tip.psychology.org/knowles.html>Lieb, Stephen. Principle of Adult Learning. http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committtees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/adults-2.htm>Smith, M. K. planning your curriculum ‘Malcolm Knowles, informal adult education, self-direction and anadragogy’, the encyclopedia of informal education. http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-knowl.htm.>