Get The Picture?

   Not important for you? Remember that Typhoon Green kitchen you installed six months ago with the triple pencil edge and the three-level island with the giant radius? Try to describe that without pictures.
   Or, you’re meeting with a prospective client and trying to explain what you think is an amazing detail that can add profit to a job. Now, you’re kicking yourself for not taking some photos; been there, done that.
   Photos are a record of your efforts and craftsmanship. Forget that a photo is worth a thousand words. Try hundreds, or thousands, of dollars instead.
   I won’t pretend to explain the technicalities of photography; I don’t know an f-stop from a stop sign. I cannot explain what a histogram does or how one works. And, exposure to me is what happens if I stay out in the cold too long. Get my drift?
   Fortunately, the digital camera works in my – and your – favor. These little wonders do more than save you big developing bills; the computers inside the cameras figure out a lot of details that required a lot of dial-twisting and meter reading in film cameras. You can still do a lot of adjustments with a digital camera, but you can also let it do the thinking and produce a good shot.
   I use a Canon Power Shot G-3; this is a medium-quality 5-megapixel digital camera I purchased for around $500 three years ago. Of course, you can now buy a similar camera for less or get more for that $500, but that’s how the high-tech world operates.
   When choosing a camera, I would look for the following features:
   • 5-megapixel resolution or more;
   • A lens that has some good wide-angle ability;
   • Remote control; and
   • An articulated LCD display (one that you can swivel or twist into different positions) is critical .
   Furthermore, you’ll need a Mac or Windows PC with some photo-management software. I use iPhoto® on my Mac. (If you don’t have a computer, consider a Mac; they’re easy-to-use and come with great photo-management software.) On my Windows machine at work, I like to use Photoshop® Elements; it has many great features for $99 or less.
   Also, get a tripod, a camera case, an extra memory card that’s compatible with your camera and a backup battery (or, if your camera uses AA, at least two sets of rechargeable batteries and a charger). There is nothing more annoying and embarrassing than having a customer clean the house, invite you in, and not be able to take pictures because the battery is dead or your memory card is full.
   When you’re setting up to take pictures, make sure there are no odd things like dish rags or bottles in the shot. This seems obvious, but having returned home and found a broom leaning against the wall in the background of the nicest photos I have taken is annoying … to say the least.
   Never use a flash unless you really know what you’re doing. Pros that know how to use a flash and have the equipment and training can get great results. Every picture I have taken with a flash comes out looking horrible. And, remember that most of the work you’ll shoot has nice, glossy finishes that act like a mirror to reflect the flash and ruin the shot.
   It’s also important to look at the LCD – the screen that shows what the camera sees – when you’re taking pictures. For one thing, a camera’s viewfinder may not be completely accurate, and the picture that you get may not be the one you though you were taking.
   The LCD also shows a true image. Your eyes and your brain work harder than any computer yet built to correct light levels and colors (Editor’s note: The fancy and technical term for this is chromatic adaptation), so you may think everything looks fine. The LCD will show the bad light reflections and strange color contrasts that you may be able to fix by turning lights on or off, or closing a window shade.
   The biggest challenge you’ll have is taking good photos in bad – basically, low-level – light. I use a tripod or brace myself and/or the camera on a solid, steady object for every shot. Sometimes the shutter speed will be so slow that any movement will result in a blurry mess.
   Since you’re not buying film or paying to develop it, the cost of photographing is low. I use a shotgun (or what pro photographers call the safety) approach; I’ll take an average of 100 photos in a kitchen.
   I often hold the camera against a doorjamb over my head to get a high-angle shot (this is where the articulated LCD screen comes in handy) and take four or five photos from the exact same position. Without fail, one of them will be in better focus then the rest.
   I’ve used the top of the fridge, walls, countertops and toolboxes to brace the camera. It is so important to hold the camera as still as possible in poor lighting situations (which is usually nine out of 10 projects). To that end, I use a tripod with the remote; this results in great photos if you can get the camera where you want it with the tripod.
   I like to shoot details and close-ups. I always hope that I can get six or seven photos (out of a hundred) that are really good looking and show more than just the kitchen. Clients love the little detail shots.
   If you can, try to go to the house when the sun is shining. This is the one time a flash can yield interesting results; experiment with the flash when the sun is shining through a window. Because the flash is just providing some fill-in illumination, you can get lucky with some really cool-looking shots.
   Clients enjoy seeing the fabrication and installation process. I’ve taken pictures of templating, the cutting of slabs and the finished pieces being fit into place. If you use a computer in your showroom process, photos make really cool slide shows.  When we do tour homes or home shows we set up a computer with a running start-to-finish slide show of a job. Folks stand and look at it for a long time.
   When we do design work with clients, we use the photo library on the computer to show them different ways to do things. The client, having seen several hundred photos in your library, quickly becomes comfortable in the knowledge that you know what you’re doing.
   We set up our company website on a .mac account. It makes uploading photos to the Web a snap; you can check out my company website at www.stoneworks.cc.
   If you’re a professional photographer and happen to be reading this, stop making fun of me and go make some money taking pictures. If you cut up rocks for a living, though, get a camera and start taking some photos. It’s one of the most valuable things you can do for your business.
   If you would like to ask some questions visit the forum at www.stoneadvice.com and our panel of moderators will try to answer your query.
   Till next time … Mark Lauzon, stonecutter .
   Mark Lauzon is a fabricator in Oregon and the administrator of www.stoneadvice.com, a Website dedicated to slab fabrication.

This article first appeared in the August 2005 print edition of Stone Business. ©2005 Western Business Media Inc.