Jack B. Siegel is a Chicago-based photographer who focuses his cameras on musicians, cityscapes, newsworthy events, Parisian cemeteries, and anything else that catches his gaze in Chicago or during his travels. Jack began life as a tax lawyer, went ...
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Jack B. Siegel is a Chicago-based photographer who focuses his cameras on musicians, cityscapes, newsworthy events, Parisian cemeteries, and anything else that catches his gaze in Chicago or during his travels. Jack began life as a tax lawyer, went on to develop software, and then provided consulting services to nonprofit associations. Over the years, Jack has lectured extensively, written two books, and maintained a widely read blog focused on nonprofit governance and scandals.
Part How-To; Part Philosophy; Part Screed You’re the one I’ve been looking for, You’re the one that’s got the key. But I can’t figure out whether I’m too good for you Or you’re too good for me. You’ve got a tight connection...
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About four months ago, my wife Evelyn yelled across our shared office space, “Take a look at this.” Each year the Chicago Pastel Painters (CPP) stages an exhibit featuring its members’ work, but due to Covid-19, there would be no 2020 exhibit...
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Terry:
I don’t think we are in disagreement. I have absolutely no problem with people selling their work. If you picked up negative vibes it is because I have friends and family who push me to sell my work. “You really should be doing that.” “What’s the point if you don’t sell it?” They don’t believe there is value in doing the work if you don’t sell it. At that point I rebel. If an opportunity came along, I would sell my work. In fact, my wife, who is a little more aggressive with her pastel paintings, wanted to do a joint show at an art gallery–husband and wife. I agreed to do it. It was a nice experience, but at the end of the day, neither of us sold a single work.
For me, the pleasure is in going out with a camera. It sharpens and intensifies any experience. I see things I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. I then come back, look at the images, and on occasion I go, “Wow, I created that. Pretty cool.” That is more than sufficient. But by all means, anybody who wants to sell their images should do so. I have no issue with selling or licensing images.
As for Peter Lik, I sense the Web doesn’t like him. The guy has been incredibly successful. He produces work that does not interest me, but there is no doubt that he is a very talented photographer. He photographs with a particular buyer/market in mind, and it works.
Jack B. Siegel
Photographer, Attorney, and Writer
I took a brief look–I am dealing with Covid vaccine 2 side effects today, so I am moving slowly. In many respects the two look similar. I found the artsteps.com site a little less responsive and a little more cluttered. That well could be due to the features that the person who designed the gallery selected or the number of images on display.
My Kunstmatrix discovery was accidental. I wasn’t looking for a 3D virtual gallery. Because the app looked cool, I just jumped right in and built a gallery. I did it to amuse me–not sell work. I have come to the conclusion that selling work is a 24/7 (full-time) task, and I’d rather be out photographing. The big problem with all ways of displaying work on the web for sales is driving people to the site–that’s the 24/7 part. You need a total marketing plan, with a virtual gallery being just one of many parts of the effort.
So, if you find a better provider, let me and everyone else know. As with cameras and lenses, I am glad to hear that there is more than one suppler out there–that sparks innovation. Thanks for thinking about the article and the process.
Jack B. Siegel
Jack B. Siegel
Photographer, Attorney, and Writer
Thanks much for the kind words. I am glad you enjoyed the article.
As for the 5MB limit: I have an intuitive understanding why it exists. More importantly, I don’t think it is an issue in this context. I don’t use SmugMug for my portfolio site; I use Photoshelter, which I believe has a 20mb limit. If SmugMug is like Photoshelter, you are seeing the images in a “two-dimensional space.” The images are static.
In the case of Kunstmatrix, you are seeing the images in a “virtual” space–moving through the space; choosing your pathway; seeing multiple images at once; etc. This is where my intuition comes into play: I suspect that requires far more processing power to implement because the screen is being continuously redrawn. If my suspicion is right, increasing the image limit to 50mb would most likely result in a “sluggish” pathway through the exhibit, so a balance is being struck. I have seen this when building my galleries. After I am close to filling the gallery with images, when I enter edit-mode, it might take three or four seconds to populate the positions with the images–fortunately this has been a problem when viewing the galleries in “viewer” mode.
I think of greater importance is considering the experience from the viewer’s perspective rather than the photographer’s. I have yet to have anyone be less than amazed with the “experience” and “look” of the exhibits. It has a “Wow” factor. While we as photographers always want higher resolution, my experience is that the person looking at an image on the web is not as concerned. Perhaps of greater importance: If you are using the site as a sales tool, the Wow factor might be what gets someone to consider purchasing a physical print. I suspect the buyer will be even more impressed when he or she receives/sees a matted, large print reproduced on high quality paper.
In any event, the call is clearly yours. Thanks again and best regards.
Jack B. Siegel
Jack B. Siegel
Photographer, Attorney, and Writer
Thanks very much for the kind words. I hope you enjoy the platform.
Best regards,
Jack B. Siegel
Jack B. Siegel
Photographer, Attorney, and Writer
Since I submitted the article to Kevin Raber, I created six more exhibits–it was cold and miserable in January. Here are a couple of observations. First, I tried the red and blue wall colorings again. I liked the results, particularly for black and white images. I also tried the white frame option, which grew on me.
Second, I found the process helpful in thinking about my work. I began my photographic efforts focused on jazz and blues musicians. I have several thousand images in my portfolio. Being forced to identify the 35 or so most impactful images was a useful exercise. Obviously there are other ways to evaluate your work and progress, but I enjoyed using the virtual galleries to think about my work. Overall, periodic reflection is a good thing.
Third, I used several room options without windows. I found the room flow more straightforward, which meant I was not fighting the fixed numbering as much.
Fourth, I have now heard from Kunstmatrix–I had contacted them about permission to use screen captures, and they had asked me to send them the completed article when published. They informed me that they are working on better spacing/alignment tools and giving users more control over the order that images appear in guided tour mode. Both improvements would be great.
Jack B. Siegel
Jack B. Siegel
Photographer, Attorney, and Writer
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“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow know what you truly want to become.” – Steve Jobs
This quote from Steve Jobs, as well as the support of family, friends, and loyal followers from many years are what inspired me to create this new website that is dedicated to photography. There are a lot of websites featuring photography. Many are good; in fact, many have been created and run by friends of mine. That is probably what I like most about photography. You make a lot of friends with whom, more than anything else, you share a passion and love for photography in many ways.
photoPXL was created around a dinner table with friends. This site will be about the community of photography, a place where young and old alike can share their stories, learn about the art and craft of photography, and gain an understanding of what it takes to Enhance Your Vision.
photoPXL will publish articles about photography and look at the many types of cameras we use to take photos, ranging from smartphones to medium format systems. We’ll explore the many options for processing your images and focus on the art of printing. I’ve always felt the process of making a photograph wasn’t complete until I could hold it in my hands. Color profiles, papers and types of printers will be reviewed, plus so much more.
One of the most exciting features of the new site will be building a community using photographer profile pages. This will be a place where you can share your images with other readers and see what others are doing with theirs. There will also be a forum where you can ask questions and share your knowledge, further developing the sense of community.
We will not only feature articles, reviews and opinions, but will also have a YouTube channel with numerous training and technique videos.
On the main site, look for more visits with some very well-known photographers where we’ll share their vision in our series “Shooting with the Masters.” There will be exclusive, behind the scenes segments where we’ll bring you things you haven’t seen before.
Photography for me has always been personal. I can be really serious sometimes, working to catch a certain image, but no matter what I never forget to have fun. I want this site to mean the same thing for you and be a place where you can come and experience many photography-related topics and have fun while doing so.
All in all, you’ll be Enhancing Your Vision.
Please sign up today. We will not only notify you when we launch photoPXL.com but will also keep you posted on the progress we are making on creating this site.
Joining me in this adventure is long-time friend and videographer Chris Sanderson. Chris’s insight, creativity, skill and passion have been invaluable in propelling me forward on this journey. Debra, my wife, will be sharing her unique vision and artistic view as well as handling workshops and so much more. Michael Durr is one of the more creative and fun videographers I have ever met. We are fortunate to have him as part of the team. Plus, we will have many articles from a wide range of well-known and maybe not so well-known photographers. There is so much talent out there.
We are working hard to not only create content but also to build a robust site that can be expanded upon over time. Something dynamic, and evolving.
I truly hope you will join us in creating this new community. We look forward to your collaboration, contributions and guidance along the way.
Kevin Raber
[email protected]
Owner, CEO, Publisher
