It’s been a fun 13 months of publishing Social Photo Talk. A year ago, a lot of photographers were still figuring out social media, trying to decide if Twitter was just a waste of time and whether or not Facebook was for anyone other than college kids.

Since then, I think that most of the photographers who are online have embraced social media in some form. In short… you guys get it. The attitudes around social media for photographers have changed quite a bit in the past year. Sure there are still some luddites, but if they aren’t on board at this point, they aren’t on board.

Partially due to the changing photo landscape and partially due to some other factors, I will no longer be publishing new content on Social Photo Talk. The site will remain online indefinitely, but you won’t see new articles about social media use or related industry news.

I’ve got something entirely new in store that will be of interest to photographers, and I’ll make one last post here when that launches in the next week or two.

Thanks to everyone who has read, commented, retweeted, or otherwise contributed to the discussions over the past 13 months. I’ve made some great connections and some new friends, and that’s going to last far beyond this website.

A Change in the Social Photo Atmosphere is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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Social Photo Talk is pleased to be a sponsor for this weekend’s 30 Hour Day, an encore to last December’s first-of-its-kind charity webcast. Hosts Cami Kaos and Rick Turoczy tie together 30 continuous hours of programming being broadcast live from Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square (during the day and evenings) and a secret undisclosed overnight studio. Looking at the schedule for the event I see they’ve got a bunch of great music, comedy, and variety acts lined up… it should be a nice set of entertainment.

Funds raised during the event are being donated to three charities: p:ear (a mentoring program that assists homeless youth), the Red Cross, and the Oregon Food Bank (yes, it’s true… people aren’t just hungry during Christmastime). Tune in from 4pm (Pacific time) Friday through 10pm on Saturday, check out the entertainment, and perhaps donate a few dollars towards some organizations that do good work.

If you’re curious to follow the event via photos, photographers Aaron Hockley, Igal Koshevoy, and Kate Borst will be posting pictures to the 30 Hour Day Flickr group as it happens.

New Media for Good – It’s the 30 Hour Day is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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One year ago, I launched Social Photo Talk. Since then, thousands of readers have viewed hundreds of articles. I’d like to say thank you for your participation and for sharing Social Photo Talk with your friends and colleagues. It’s been great to interact with you online as well as those of you’ve I met in person at various events.

Last week, I asked for feedback on your Twitter expectations. I’m pleased to announce that Mike and Kathleen McDade have been randomly chosen from the commenters on that post to win prizes. I’ll be in contact with them privately to work out delivery arrangements.

As I look towards the second year of this site, I foresee much of the same as well as broadening into some new topics. In addition to the topics of social media and new media marketing, I plan to occasionally talk about other photography subjects that don’t fall into the “taking of the picture” category. We may spend a bit more time looking at post-processing and the business of photography.

Again, thanks.

One Year Down, Contest Winners, and Moving Forward is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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When you first heard about Twitter, you probably wondered why the heck anyone would care about the answer to “What are you doing right now?” If you’ve used Twitter and developed some relationships, you probably realized that the connections go way beyond folks sharing what they’re having for lunch.

I want to hear your Twitter story in a couple sentences, of what you thought it would be like when you joined and then what you’ve found Twitter to actually be once you’ve used it for a while. I’ll select a couple commenters at random; one will win a Luma Loop camera strap (size medium – $60 value) and the other will get one year of Flickr Pro ($25 value). Winners will be announced next Monday (June 7th), so leave a comment soon!

Please share… what’s been your Twitter experience when compared with your expectations?

Photo by kl-Ga, used under Creative Commons licensing

Twitter: Your Expectations vs. Reality (Comment to win!) is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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I’m excited to announce the Photo Blog Boost program is now ready. Designed for photographers who want to give their blog a kick, the program focuses on the why, what, and how of an effective blog for a photographer.

As a photographer, your blog should help you show your work. Your blog should help potential clients find you. Your blog should reinforce relationships with existing clients. All of these things lead to the fact that your blog should help you make more money. That’s what Photo Blog Boost is about: making your blog support your business.

The Photo Blog Boost program includes text articles, videos, and a private one-on-one consulting session. Find out more about how to give your blog a boost.

Blog Better as a Photographer with Photo Blog Boost is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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One consistent theme amongst a lot of conversations I have with photographers is that they’re pretty sure they should have a blog, but they’re not so sure what to do with it. It seems that a lot of photographers set up a blog, write four or five great posts, and then abandon it. I’d like to help photographers solve that problem.

Outsourcing your blog for $500/month (a la GhostRighters) isn’t the solution.

Next Wednesday (May 5th), I’ll be opening entrance to Photo Blog Boost, a learning program for photographers that want to give their blog a kick. The program will be a hybrid of technical how-to along with (and in my mind, more importantly), topics such as finding one’s focus, vision, topics to blog about, and how to write blog posts that will help a photographer’s business.

Information will be presented in various forms:

• online articles/tutorials in text form
• online video
• twice-weekly email updates
• each participant gets one 20 minute private coaching/consultation with me, to be scheduled at the participant’s discretion
• each participant gets unlimited access to send me email messages for Q&A

Photo Blog Boost will be presented as a 12-week program (although participants can work through the material at their own pace if they desire). Each week will focus on a topic, with tutorials, resources, and a “homework” suggestion related to that topic.

Exact membership details will be announced along with the program details next week, but I want to extend a special offer to current Social Photo Talk readers: subscribe to the Social Photo Newsletter and receive a 30% discount on the Photo Blog Boost program. Just before the program launches, I’ll send a personalized discount code to members of the newsletter mailing list (existing newsletter subscribers are already set to get a discount).

I want to help you take your blog to the next level. Drop by next Wednesday for all of the details and to register for Photo Blog Boost.

Photo by woodleywonderworks, used under Creative Commons licensing

Announcing Photo Blog Boost: Kick Your Blog Up a Notch is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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One of the big announcements from Facebook last week was a universal “Like” button across the web, allowing Facebook users to easily note content they find interesting and share that content with their friends.

Since I hope you find at least some of the content here interesting, I’ve added a Facebook Like button that will appear below articles when you’re viewing a single-article page. If you find something interesting, it would be great to have you “Like” the post.

Thanks!

Image by benstein, used under Creative Commons licensing

Do You “Like” the Articles on Social Photo Talk? is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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Apple iPads will be in consumers’ hands on Saturday and I plan to have at least a couple posts with my first thoughts and some information.

Expect an unboxing video, instructions on moving photos to the iPad, and whatever else comes up as I spend some time with the device.

Photo by re-ality, used under Creative Commons licensing

Coming Soon: iPad Weekend is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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When it came time to record this week’s podcast, Lyza and I agreed that we really didn’t have very much interesting material. Rather than give you a show of fluff where we stretch to fill ten minutes, we decided to take the week off. We should have a new podcast next Friday.

In the meantime, stay tuned for an article in the next half hour that’s probably more interesting and controversial than our content-less podcast would’ve been

Photo by smlp.co.uk, used under Creative Commons licensing

No Podcast Today… Stay Tuned for Alternative Programming is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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Have something on your mind about social media as a photographer?

Want to talk about some great service or tool? Have you found an effective way to reach folks with your photography?

I’d love to have you write a guest post for Social Photo Talk. Your article will be seen by our audience and it’ll provide a gateway for some new people to check out your online presence as well.

Find out more about guest posting here.

What Do You Have to Say? is a post from Social Photo Talk. Subscribe to the free Social Photo Talk e-newsletter

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