my blogging workflow | leah cook

Love the interacting with clients?  The shooting and editing?  The blogging?  Hmmm…not so much as we hear many of you say.  What to blog?  When to blog? How often to blog? What images to choose?  Repeat for the next client.  Never fear!  CMmentor, Leah Cook, is helping to simplify the process for us a little for sharing her blogging workflow.  Make sure to stay tuned to CM this week for more info on Leah’s upcoming breakout session – it’s going to be awesome!  Thanks, Leah!

my blogging workflow

by Leah Cook

Having a blog to showcase recent work is one of my favorite parts of being a photographer.  I love to blog both personal images and client sessions.  It’s a huge reward after hours of shooting and post processing to hit ‘publish’ on a post…I get butterflies almost every time.  Of course it always feels great to get blog ‘love’ and even better to know that my clients are appreciative. Thanks to Courtney Keim for my amazing blogsite, she truly made my web-dreams come true!

Layout

There are multiple ways to layout a blog post.  Some photographers prefer single spaced-out images, some like to share entire galleries using a slideshow or grid, while others combine pictures together in different types of collages.  Personally, I love to create groupings and sometimes galleries.  I feel like a little kid cutting and pasting…fitting work together like a puzzle.  I absolutely LOVE seeing color, light, different angles and perspectives all together…it makes me positively giddy!  There is no right or wrong way to blog…it’s all about what appeals to you.

Choosing Images

Aside from personal work, there are two schools of thought on what photographs should appear on your blog:

1. Only blog images that clients have purchased…this decreases the chance of pictures being used without your permission + carries incentive to boost sales.
2. Blog what you love, whether you’ve ‘sold’ it or not.

Again, this is a choice you get to make as a photographer.  I’ve decided to blog what I love, showing only my favorite shots.  Watermarking is a great way to protect your work.

Tip: avoid choosing images that are almost identical, mix it up a little to add interest.

Blogging Workflow

Once you’ve decided on the layout and type of images you’d like to display, you’re ready to create your post.  Below are the steps in my blogging workflow:

1. Select images from a client gallery, then copy + paste into a subfolder
2. Choose a ‘header image’ that will be the width of my blog and makes a statement about the post
3. Group the remainder of the images in the order I want them to appear, taking into account how they will fit and look next to each other (i.e. close up, wide angle, eye contact, b/w, etc.)
4. There are lots of different ways to create blog boards – using layers in Photoshop, templates, actions, or scripts.  I use a combination of each so I have complete control
5. Once the layout is exactly like I’ve envisioned (make sure to save a layered psd doc just in case) I’ll flatten and resize the documents to the width of my blog
6. Next I’ll apply my logo with a watermark brush, sharpen, and save as jpegs
7. I upload the images to my blog and type in my title, text, and tags
8. Then I’ll share the link on facebook and send a private message to my client that they’re on the blog!

Tip: posts that are broken up into several jpeg files can be easily pinned to Pinterest!

Blogging is extremely important as a photographer.  Not only does it showcase your recent work and style, but it can also be a record of life events.  It’s painful to look through really old images and posts, but I’m so thankful to have documented my photography journey!

Leah Cook
CM Mentor
Website | Blog | Facebook | Pinterest
Leah has always had an interest in photography and art but that interest increased when her dad, who has a great eye for photography, gave her her first digital camera.  That interest skyrocketed after she quit teaching when her first son was born.  When asked about her style Leah says, “my style definitely has a mix of lifestyle + classic elements…I hope to keep things modern but still timeless and I love adding a sense of humor!  It took me a while to figure out what I loved and I think that’s part of my style…being all over the place and loving lots of different ‘types’ of photography.”  Her style has continued to evolve, especially after the birth of her second son and photographing and posing him daily gave her a great amount of experience and knowledge.  Leah currently uses a Canon 5d mark ii and a variety of lenses.  She shares a home in Dallas with her husband, two sons, and two dogs.  Spending time playing in the yard, taking a long walk, watching a good game, or eating a yummy meal with her family is the recipe for a good day in Leah’s world.  She also loves her iMac, iPhone, the DVR, goldfish crackers, wine, dark chocolate, and ranch dressing.