Last week was fantastic! Our free design and colour correction announcement generated more comments and support suite enquiries than anything else we've ever done. And it started a lot of conversations with people about how it would work in practice, and how they could use it to increase their sales. What's driving this free service is the change in our industry, with more photographers adopting the line that albums aren't worth the time and aggravation. That attitude isn't new, and we think it's always been nonsense, but the best way to challenge it is to eliminate the "time and aggravation", To View More >>

Our recent 50% discount offer on sample albums was hugely successful. But if you bought a new sample why wait until next year to get a return on your investment? Here's how to bring in some cash and set yourself up for a good 2014. Send a simple message to last year's customers, the ones who haven't bought an album yet... Hi, I've just received a gorgeous new album from Queensberry, and I'd love you to see it. I think your photographs would look wonderful in an album like this, and I can offer you a special introductory price if you order now. In fact you could have your album for Christmas. Call To View More >>

I'm a bit frustrated! We have two new initiatives to launch but we can't get either out until next week, so I thought I'd try and clear up a few misconceptions about SEO... SEO comes to mind for two reasons. First, in Ian's 14 Tips post a while back he said (rather carelessly!), "10. Link to the venues, florists, dressmakers and other vendors who were connected to the event - another Workspace feature. They'll love you for it, and linking is great for SEO." Someone commented, "Yes, linking is great for SEO, but for the [site] you are linking to, not for you… I'm always wary about linking to…vendors' To View More >>

Last post I explained how easy it is to "auto-share" your images on your own pages with Workspace, but the most powerful place to share them is on your clients' pages. The good news is it's ridiculously easy. The bad news is you need good manners and permission to pull it off - so probably easier for you than me?! The best place to share … with permission [caption id="attachment_17506" align="alignleft" width="500"] Click to view full size.[/caption] Let's assume you've uploaded a collection of images, clicked the blue SHARE button and auto-shared to your own Facebook and Twitter pages, as in To View More >>

I wrote this post two years ago and for some reason never published it, but I think it makes some good points about simplicity and not confusing price and payoff. See what you think... We had an interesting email from a client who also deals with a certain other album company (shame on him – LOL). This company makes a big deal about simplicity … and quite right too. Anyway, he asked them if they'd consider introducing some - gulp - options, and to his frustration they said No. Now to be fair, over the years we've got better at saying No to things that compromise either the integrity of our To View More >>

Are you about to be married, or just married? Congratulations! My own wedding day went by so fast, it was only when I saw the photos that I realised how much I'd missed. For some of us I think photography seems like just another item to check off our planning list, but what a difference a day makes! I was so glad I had a good photographer, and beautiful images I could be proud of. Queensberry Bride is dedicated to you, your wedding and especially your wedding photography. We have great advice about choosing a photographer, and links to our photographer directory if you're still undecided. We want To View More >>

Competition isn't the problem, obscurity is. For years now I've watched frustrated at how little most photographic associations do to promote the idea and importance of wedding photography. More often than not these organisations - run by hardworking volunteers who do great things to educate their members and promote standards - can do little to convince couples that they need a professional photographer. But I'm not going to be frustrated by this any more :) We're doing more to promote our customers I said two months ago that I believe in professional photography, and although we obviously aren't To View More >>

[caption id="attachment_16947" align="alignright" width="300"] Musée - object of desire, or waste of money?[/caption] It's hard to shake off a reputation for being expensive. It's hard to shake off a reputation for being cheap too. The question is, which reputation do you prefer? Our people get frustrated when they hear, "Oh you guys are so expensive…" In fact this week they ran an email saying, "That's not right!" Their point is we have six different product ranges, six very different price points, and most people are genuinely surprised by what we can offer. My point is that cheap doesn't To View More >>

The other day I proposed a way to encourage enquirers to look past your prices and make personal contact. It was partly a way to start identifying people who should be your clients, and withdrawing (politely) from those who probably shouldn't. You need to demonstrate to the first group why you’re the right photographer to spend their wedding day with! The 3% rule The 3% rule is our way of saying that you can't succeed by trying to appeal to everyone, and you definitely shouldn't try. It stems from the time, years ago, when we tried to estimate the number of professional photographers in the To View More >>

Pete and Ian have been blogging about colour management systems and how they help to ensure your image editing work delivers predictable colour and high-quality printing. But there's a lot to think about! Even the light you're working in can affect the results … or the clothes you're wearing, or the colour of your walls. So what could be easier? Getting us to do the work! Here's an incredibly simple new service, and a special offer: Batch Colour Correction by Queensberry in Lightroom. You can use our plugins, no matter where you are in the world, to send us DNG files from raw images you select To View More >>