But this isn’t true. Quality framing can make a huge difference to the preservation of a piece of art, and an improperly framed piece could be subject to damage that results in a considerable loss of value.

Store bought frames tend to be made with very low quality glass. While high quality framing, such as museum standard framing, will be made with UV protective glass, the majority of store bought frames will not.

The backing will often be made from cardboard, which is neither supportive nor protective enough to preserve expensive works of art, and the frame itself tends to be made from cheap materials such as plastic.

What’s more, standard frames are only available in ‘standard’ sizes, yet not all art will fit within the restrictions of these boundaries. Some people have actually been known to trim a painting down to size, in order to fit it into whatever frame is available. This is a huge mistake, particularly when concerning valuable works of art, as the pieces worth will be drastically reduced.

Another common mistake is to place a piece of art into a standard, store bought frame, with the intent of moving it into a high quality frame at a later date. Damage can occur very quickly, particularly if the painting is hung in a place where it is subject to harmful elements such as sunlight. Once the damage has been done there is little, if anything, that can be accomplished to restore the piece to its original condition and value.

While there are a number of very good levels of framing available, if your artwork is particularly valuable or sentimental, you should ideally invest in museum standard framing. Museum standard framing is the absolute best level of framing that is available and it will ensure that all works of art keep their value for future generations by protecting them from UV light, airborne pollutions, humidity, physical damage and acids.

Although museum level framing should last for at least thirty years in normal conditions, most paintings are hung in conditions where they are vulnerable to damage, or are moved locations frequently. Because of this, it is recommended that approximately every five years, a professional framer check the condition of the frames.

Other high quality framing levels include commended level framing and conservation level framing. Commended level framing is ideal for artwork stored in less vulnerable locations, such as a room in a house with limited natural light. This level of framing should protect art for around five years. Conservation level framing offers only slightly less protection than museum standard framing and will protect work for around twenty years.

This post was written By James Harper on behalf of Ironbridge Fine Arts And Framing, experts in museum standard framing.

Everyone who uses photo-editing software (as millions do) will know that a few mouse clicks can result in a much better photo. However, over recent years just as many photographs have been ruined by photo-editing.  Here are a few of the classic mistakes have crept into the process.

The following are four of the most common photo editing mistakes:

1. Zombie Eyes. If there is one tool used most often in photo editing it has to be the tool to remove “red eye”. It is undoubtedly a highly useful tool as it helps put an end to millions of photographs with red-eyed relatives. However, there is a problem that is often seen in other quick fix tools: overuse. It can be far too easy to overuse these tools and in the case of fixing red eye it can result in the common mistake of creating eyes that look blank and lifeless. If the subject has blue eyes, over use of the red eye tool can result in black eyes that would look more in place in a zombie movie. Less is definitely more. The same goes for the Eye Doctor action that helps put sparkle into a subject’s eyes. Remember a slight twinkle is good, but anything else will look unnatural and possibly scary. Software is there to help, but the user should always remain in control.
2. Sharp Enough to Cut? The sharpness tool on most photo editing software is really useful and can be a quick and easy way to turn a photo into a professional looking picture. However, a common mistake is to sharpen too much. The aim of sharpening should be to give a photo a crisp look. If it is overdone then the image will go past crisp and become muddy and false looking. The best idea is to zoom to 100% before sharpening, as much over-sharpening damage can not be spotted until a picture is printed.
3. Too Much Contrast. Many photographers go a little crazy when it comes to contrast. It may be that it’s one of the easiest tools to see a significant difference in when using, but this means it is all too easy to over do the contrast in a picture that will invariably lead to a negative effect on shadows. Remember that in real life shadows have shape and are not fully black. Adding too much contrast will render shadows fully black and this will kill the realism of the picture, not to mention quickly emptying a black ink cartridge every time you print.
4. It’s not Black and White. Most users of photo editing software will at some point need to convert an image to greyscale. After all, what could be easier? A photo was color and now it’s black and white. The problem here is that greyscale is not the same as taking a photo in black and white in the first place. It’s a common mistake to think this and the result is often washed out blacks and grey looking whites. The best method to avoid this (apart from shooting in black and white in the first place) is to use “curves”. A word of warning, they take a little getting used to, but they’re worth the effort. However, if you haven’t the time or you’re in a rush, a decent compromise is to use the black and white adjustment layer.

Avoiding common photo editing mistakes is easy once you recognise what the mistakes are and then once you’ve done that, you will be well on the way to having your photographs stand out from the crowd.

Kevin Harris is a freelance writer for Adobe. Adobe software, such as video software, and services revolutionize how the world
engages with ideas and information; anytime, anywhere, and through any
medium. They also offer many other products like a photo editor.

See the Wedding Photo Course here

Don’t think it’s possible?

The wedding industry is HUGE and it would be crazy as a lover of photographer not to at least shoot a few weddings per year.  The average wedding I have shot paid me around $5,000 and I was just scratching the surface.
If you want to shoot like the pros you will need this DVD set as it will teach you what I had the learn the hard way over the course of 5 years.  I wish this was around when I was shooting weddings.
See the Wedding Photo Course here

What does this 4 DVD set teach you?

• Camera settings through the day
• Shooting with flash and natural light
• Photoshop tutorials
• Detail shots
• Shooting the ceremony
• Getting the low light shots
• How to mix ambient light with flash
• How to pose portraits
• How to price your work
• 70 minutes of interviews with top wedding photographers
• How to market your photography

There is more information here than most college courses offer for photography and this is stuff you WILL actually use when you are photographing your next wedding.  In fact, it may just be the boost you need to really kick start your photo business.
See the Wedding Photo Course here

How much would you pay for this?
Well I have paid over $2,000 for a single photography course from a community college.  And after seeing these high quality videos I see that I got more instruction and BETTER instruction from the 4 DVD set.
I would have paid at least $500 or more for this, but because of the slump in the economy this set is being offered for only $214.  It used to be sold for $295 so it is on sale big time!
I was told this offer would not last long so I am trying to  get word out to everyone who is interested.  You may feel that you don’t need a wedding photography blueprint like this but once you get started you will see just how valuable it is.
There is a 30 day money back guarantee with it as well so you don’t have to worry about being ripped off.  But I think  you will like it so much you won’t have to worry about that. In fact, if you really try to implement what you learn in this photography course, you will be able to do this full time in a
few short months and be making thousands of dollars every weekend.
Like I said, if you are not shooting weddings right now, you are wasting your resources.  Weddings pay, and they pay big!  You just have to learn how to shoot them the right way and that’s what this opportunity is all about.

See the Wedding Photo Course here

The guy who made this video is an expert photographer who is making a lot of money with his photography business.  He takes you through the process of everything you need to know in order to have a profitable photo business even if you are just doing this from home part time.  That’s the beauty of this.  You will not need a big fancy studio with expensive props.

Learn how to start your photo business from home here

In this program you will see how to make $900 per day and that is just for starters.  There is plenty of money to be made in this market so this is a great time to jump on board.   One guy that followed the program made over $6000 in his very first month.  Now that’s an exciting income that anyone can start making if you just follow the step by step process.

There are over 4.5 hours of video in this course and here is what is taught in the series.

• Video 1: Things To Know Before We Start
  Video Length: 8 Minutes

  Video 2: Basic Camera And Studio Lighting
  Video Length: 18 Minutes
  
  Video 3: Computer & Hardware Talk “Tools of the Trade”
  Video Length: 8 Minutes

  Video 4: Importing – Organization – Basic Editing Software “Digital Work Flow”
  Video Length: 28 Minutes

  Video 5: Using An External HD – “Digital Database”
  Video Length: 10 Minutes

  Video 6: Developing Posing And Picture Taking Skills
  Video Length: 15 Minutes

  Video 7: Posing Secrets – Using Angles And Heights
  Video Length: 7 Minutes

  Video 8: Use Photography Props And Backdrops To Help Your Business Grow
  Video Length: 26 Minutes

  Video 9: Photoshop Tutorial-”Using A Digital Prop”- Easy As 1-2-3
  Video Length: 26 Minutes

  Video 10: Getting Ready For Real Paying Clients
  Video Length: 16 Minutes

  Video 11: Creating Your Online Gallery – For FREE
  Video Length: 14 Minutes

  Video 12: Registering And Forwarding Your Domain Name
  Video Length: 7 Minutes

  Video 13: Video 4: Building Your First Website – FREE HOSTING
  Video Length: 26 Minutes

  Video 14: Changing Your Header Graphic For Your Website
  Video Length: 11 Minutes

  Video 15: How to Make A Business Card Work
  Video Length: 14 Minutes

  Video 16: Designing Your Business Card With Some “WOW” Factor
  Video Length: 24 Minutes

  Video 17: Getting Your Pictures Developed – Find The Right Lab
  Video Length: 18 Minutes

  Video 18: Build Proof Books – Portfolio
  Video Length: 6 Minutes

Check out these 4.5 hours of videos on making money with photography here!

There was a recent study done with some of the top sellers on Istock and it was found that some of photogs on there were making in excess of $10,000 per month.  That’s not a bad living, especially considering that many of them had other sources of income as well.

And that’s one of the great things about micro stock.  You can make money while shooting weddings, events, or whatever and still be making money while you sleep with your images sitting on Dreamstime and Istockphoto.

There are many designers who just got sick and tired of trying to find the perfect image and decided to take them themselves.  Some have even quit their full time jobs to shoot micro stock photography and are seeing huge success.  But with more people entering the market you need to be better than ever to stand out from among all of the talent that is already there.

There are still others making thousands of dollars just by selling their photos one download at a time.  It is exciting work as you can travel anywhere to find just the right image that you know will sell and it can take a fair amount of patience as well.  Once you figure out which pictures will be accepted you need to know what pictures will also sell like crazy.  If you can find that hot picture that all of the designers want than you can do very well.  Get ten of these top sellers and you will be well on your way to quitting your own day job to work with micro stock photography.

People just seem to think that an expensive camera will create great pictures, but only people create great pictures.  More goes into a great image rather than just sharpness and beautiful color saturation.

The kinds of events that will pay you the most are weddings, baptisms, graduations, birthday parties, corporate events, grand openings, and a bunch more that you will be faced with.

Many people wonder how to price their photography, but with event photography you will want to make money by the hour.  it is not uncommon to charge at least $50 per hour, and that is at the VERY least.  You can often charge $100 and up per hour for your time, and then charge extra for any prints that are ordered.

I use a program called Printroom to make it easy for clients to select, order, and pay for the pictures they want from their event.  You can even set up each event with a password so only your clients can view the pictures.

There is a lot of money in event photography so I hope many of you will look in that direction.  Shoot the first few events for free so you can gain some more experience and get some more exposure as well.  The more you shoot the more people will recognize you and refer you to other clients that will be for paying jobs.

Building up your portfolio is a crucial part of the process of making money with your camera, so focus on this above all else for your event photography endeavors.  It will amaze you at how much money there is to be made with your camera, so stay confident in your pricing and don’t sell yourself short.