For those that are looking to advertise their blog or website to increase traffic and brand recognition, they just might soon realize that internet advertising almost always costs an arm and a leg.  Not everyone has a huge budget for facebook, google adwords, or other banner advertising services.  Thankfully, there is a brand new free ad banner exchange called Miloads.  I gave it a shot a few months back, and it has generated some really decent traffic.  All you have to do is sign up, and then embed the tiny bit of code in your blog’s sidebar widget.  That’s it!  If you look at our lower right hand column, you’ll see the layout we chose (there are a variety of shapes, sizes, and customization options).  Having used facebook and google advertising in the past, I can honestly say it’s very similar.  You can customize your banner designs and ad content text just like the others.

It takes no more than two minutes to get everything up and running.  When you log in to the Miloads website you can view each of your ad campaigns, track your traffic, and see which ads are getting clicked on the most.  Anyone else who runs miloads on their website will be advertising for other users on the Miloads network, so your ads will appear all over the internet, instantly.  With over 2 million unique ad impressions already, Miloads is definitely an ad banner exchange that will get your ads viewed, and clicked on.  Our website has already had close to 1150 clicks and over 176,00 impressions, in just 2 months.  I’m very impressed thus far.  The statistics will continue to increase and improve as time goes on, as more and more users sign up; and the ad banner network’s reach will expand even further.  There’s no cost, so you have nothing to lose. Try out Miloads today, and see what it can do for your website.

This is a powerful example of how rewording such a simple phrase gets an entirely different reaction. The blind homeless man has a cardboard sign with the words “I’m Blind – Please Help”. An onlooker stops and changes his sign to read “It’s a beautiful day and I can’t see it”, and then the spare changes starts coming in like money is falling from the sky.

Thinking outside the box (as cliche as that expression is) when it comes to slogans and advertising propaganda is definitely necessary. Sometimes being overly simple and direct with your message can cause your audience to overlook it. We all are being inundated with information on a daily basis; so much that we tend to zone most things out, sometimes without even realizing it. Think about this video on your next marketing project, whether you are designing a simple ad, or titling your next tweet or blog post; I know I will.

]]> http://arenacreative.com/blog/graphic-design/the-power-of-words-in-marketing/feed/ 1 http://arenacreative.com/blog/photography/featured-stock-photos/featured-stock-images-january-24-2012/ http://arenacreative.com/blog/photography/featured-stock-photos/featured-stock-images-january-24-2012/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:54:49 +0000 ArenaCreative.com http://arenacreative.com/blog/?p=3045

Here is a new amazing photography website that helps anyone learn how to light.  Ever look at a photo and wonder, “I wonder what type of lighting setup they used?”.  Well, now there’s a website (and an app) for that.  Strobox is an entire website dedicated to the behind the scenes setups of each and ever image submitted.Here is a stock photo I had shot, along with the lighting diagram I just posted.  It took me a total of about 2 minutes to make the diagram and post.  I’m definitely going to be bookmarking this website for those days when I just feel dull, and need some strobist lighting inspiration.

It’s always good to have a network of friends and colleagues to push work back and forth to/from. Remember – one hand washes the other. When you “pay work forward”, it all comes back around. Whoever is too swamped at the time, or doesn’t want to do a particular job, will push it over someone else that might want it. This type of arrangement is highly recommended with regards to any type of freelancing position.  Sometimes you might not want to deal with a certain type of a client.  Dealing with the public can be trying, and not all of us handle certain types of people as well as others.  This is another perfect scenario of why you might want to shoot the job over to your colleague; not to dump them with a jerk of a client, but maybe you know they really could use the work.  “Beggars can’t be choosers”.  Wow, two old school expressions in the same blog post *facepalm*.

Great platforms for building your social work network such are twitter, behance, google+, linkedin; anywhere you can interact and connect with like minded creatives.  It takes constant effort, though.  You’ll need to actually keep in touch with your “creative network” somehow, and make sure you communicate regularly.  You’ll want to remember members of your network, and hope they remember you as well.  Keep each other updated on how busy everyone is, and who is in need of the most work at that present moment.

Do you already have something like this?  Please share your story in the comments section below.

I totally forget what I was searching for, but I just busted out laughing when I read these suggestions. “how often do chickens lay eggs”, “how often do people die”, and “how often do condoms break” are obviously on the minds of millions of internet users wordwide.  Hey… these are important issues!  Nobody wants to accidentally kill their pet goldfish or have the wrong expectancy for their egg harvesting.  Work, you chickens!  Also, nobody in their right mind wants to die sooner than they have to or have children when they’re not yet ready for them.  Good times, searching Google.  Try starting a basic search the next time you’re bored, and be prepared for laughter.  It’s almost as funny as those hilarious pet videos on youtube that we all love to pass around virally.

Psst… wanna win some awesome design and photography related FREE STUFF worth over a $200 combined value?

Although we’ve been selling royalty-free stock imagery and graphics for almost 7 years now, this is the first year we launched our own private storefront offering all of our professional stock photos at affordable prices.  We look forward to serving the needs of image buyers for the years to come.  We’ll be adding hundreds of fresh stock photos in batches throughout the upcoming years, so be sure to bookmark us and tell your friends.  Thanks again for a great first year! It’s almost a new one, so before the date turns over to 1/1/2012 we wanted to do something special.  Here are the details of our first big giveaway:

Big Kahuna First Prize Package:

- Free 2012 Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post wall calendar courtesy of PromosOnline

- Free one month subscription to ArenaCreative (a $50 value) good for up to 25 high-res stock photos, which you can use for any of your marketing, publishing, or design needs.

- Free full copy of the Trick Photography and Special Effects 2.0 E-Book + Video Course (a $97 value) – it has tons of creative photography and post processing techniques that I love – read my review.

- Free $25 discount coupon good for Lightroom Presets, Aperture Presets or Photoshop Templates from XposurePro

Here’s how easy it is to enter the contest:

Score 1 entry
for following us on twitter @arenacreative and for every time you tweet this message on twitter (the hashtag #arenacreativecontest is important, so that it counts and we can track your entry). Triple click to select and copy this bold text:

I’m entered! RT to win tons of FREE #design related prizes at http://bit.ly/vTiEr9 @arenacreative #arenacreativecontest

For every tweet, you get an additional entry!

Score 5 entries
by signing up for our newsletter mailing list between now and the last seconds of 2011.  We only send out email blasts once every great while, usually quarterly – chock full of  blog post highlights, tutorials, coupon codes, and newly featured stock images.

Score 10 entries
for any stock imagery purchase you make at Arena Creative between now and the last seconds of 2011.  Every cart order = 10 entries.  If you need some affordable stock images for your website, blog, or the latest piece you’re planning on designing, that’s our specialty. (Hint: be sure to use coupon code FRIENDSFAMILY25 for an extra 25% off your shopping cart, valid through the end of 2011.)

Score 20 entries
for a quality blog post or website review written about your experience with Arena Creative Stock Imagery and what we offer, linking back.  If you haven’t ever purchased anything from us, you can simply write a brief review about what we’re all about in your own words.  Feel free to use any of our watermarked images or thumbnails to glam up the post.  We’ll just need either a trackback url sent, or an email via our contact form to verify these entries.  This would be a huge help to us spreading the word about our brand.  If you’ve already written a review about us, and we’re just not aware of it – let us know!

but wait, there’s another way to win!

Comment Contest Prize Package:

- Free $15 discount coupon good at ArenaCreative.com on any royalty-free stock photo order.

- Free $10 discount coupon good for Lightroom Presets, Aperture Presets or Photoshop Templates from XposurePro

Just post a simple comment at the end of this blog post – it doesn’t have to be long.  Tell us why you want to win, or whatever it on your mind.  Say hello!  This contest is separate, only for those that comment on this blog post.

A special thanks goes out to Promos Online, XposurePro, and Evan Sharboneau with the Trick Photography and Special Effects ebook for helping us sweeten the pot of our 2011 giveaway.

Promos Online has been serving businesses for years, in producing custom branded merchandise for all of their clients’ marketing and giveaway needs.  Some of the larger clients they have served include Facebook, Google, Volkswagon, Cedar Point, and the list goes on.  You can order custom printed promotional items with any logo or design on them, at great prices.  They are great for your business and branding needs (of course), schools, clubs, leagues, houses of worship, family events and more. 

The winner will be notified via email and announced here in this blog post in the first week of January 2012 and will then have to provide their mailing address info to receive their prize.  Please be sure to share this contest with all of your friends and colleagues via the social buttons above or below. Oh, and while you’re here – do you see our social icons at the upper right hand corner of this page?  Please hook up with us in the social media world.  We’d love to chat with you about anything, whether it’s dogs, kitty cats, how much you love/hate your job, or even what you think about global warming.

Here are some more images and info about the prizes:

Norman Rockwell Calendar

In this visually stunning color photos and pad calendar, Norman Rockwell, the master of Americana, goes back to a simpler time with this nostalgic collection of thirteen illustrations. Straight from the covers of the beloved Saturday Evening Post magazine, these scenes of Americana will keep you smiling all year long. Each monthly illustration includes its own charming description. Runs from December to December. Can be combined with other themes, minimum of 100 per theme, all with same binding type.

XposurePro Presets & Photoshop Templates

Creative presets and templates to make your photos jump out from the rest of the pack, without having to spend hours in Photoshop.

Trick Photography and Special Effects E-Book and Video Course

It boasts over 270 pages of instruction and over 300 creative photographs made by some of the most talented artists around the globe.  Even if you never even use what you will learn how to do in this educational package, you will no doubt benefit from the inspiration you receive from it.

ArenaCreative Stock Photos

A unique collection of stock imagery that focuses on personality, diversity, and most importantly creativity. Our portfolio is constantly growing. You’re probably sick and tired of browsing through the same old boring stuff all of the time. That’s why we try to produce stock photos with spunk; imagery that will get your projects noticed.  At the moment, there are well over 7000 royalty-free stock images to choose from.  Here is a sample of the collection.  For more, browse the entire collection by clicking on our logo at the top of the page.

If you are interested in giving away a product or service in order to promote your website or business, and you think we would be a good fit for your target audience (business, marketing, graphic design, photography), feel free to contact us with the details.

Update 1/1/12: Contest winners have been announced!  Scroll to the top of this post to view them.

What do you think?  Was this a complete ripoff of a concepts, or are people over-reacting?  For more news, reactions, and info about this project, check out fry lights or search online with the term “fry lights”.

Sponsor: Check out the Gluten free guide to fast food eating. Learn how to safely choose the right menu items at restaurant locations such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Chipotle, Subway, Starbucks, Panera, and more.

Narrative

Many of the most memorable travel photos tell a story, or at least suggest one to the viewer. Take this into consideration when deciding which elements to place at the centre – and indeed the edges – of your photo. The key here is to force the viewer to get involved in interpreting the picture. Make them ask questions. ‘Where are they going?’, for example, or ‘What is that used for?’

This may be achieved simply through showing activities or objects likely to be unfamiliar to the viewer, or by including elements of uncertainty, contradiction or incongruity. For example, draw attention to a detail that looks out of place, an ambiguous facial expression or gesture, or use a partially obscured perspective.

People

Some of the most evocative travel shots are actually portraits – capturing places through faces, so to speak. Obviously there are any number of ways to take a portrait shot, but if your aim is to capture the spirit of a place, consider how you’re going to achieve that. Perhaps the person is engaged in an activity or showing a gesture or facial expression that conveys something about the local lifestyle.

One advantage of portraits is the potential to immediately engage the viewer with the image, particularly by focusing on the eyes through use of positioning, camera angle and lighting. In turn, the direction of the subject’s gaze or gesture can be a useful tool in directing attention to a particular detail or more generally into the rest of the scene.

If photographing people, you obviously have the choice of deliberately arranging, or simply capturing things as they occur naturally. Either can be powerful. Capturing people deliberately gazing head-on at the camera, for example, can be a fantastic way to engage the viewer, bringing them literally face to face with the subject.

Another tip here is to look out for visual echoes – recurrences of color and shape that strengthen the connection between the person and their surroundings. For example, a gesture may echo the shape formed by part of the landscape, or a piece of clothing echo the natural coloring.

Light

You don’t need any people or even a story if you have amazing lighting. Generally speaking the best time to shoot is either early morning or late afternoon. Those are usually the times of day when the light is softer, still providing enough warmth to bring out the richness of colours without being overly aggressive, and also generating shadows which provide contrast and depth. In urban areas, dusk can also be a good time, due to the combination of natural and artificial lighting.

Space

The range of an image can have a big impact on the effect or mood it creates. Think about what kind of feeling you want to convey about the place, and experiment with different ranges and perspectives to see how this is best captured. Think about where to position your viewer in relation to the image – surveying from above and beyond, or right in the thick of things?

In the simplest expression of this, a calm and peaceful place may be best captured in a wide-range landscape, while a chaotic, bewildering place may be better conveyed through a narrower, more limited vision – suggesting the whole through the parts.

Final words

Most photographers will tell you the single most important thing you can do is experiment. Try out new effects, exposures and angles. When you find a subject that interests you, shoot it in as many ways as you can. Look at the shots, decide which ones work and which don’t, and try to put your finger on the reasons for this – was it the lighting, composition, or maybe something about the colors? The more you do this, the more you’ll develop an eye for those perfect shots.

– Abraham Lincoln

They also bolded the word “mistake”, that’s another good point – you know that’s why your eyes jumped straight to it right after you read the first line. This would be a great example for a typography class. Just in case you’re still trying to figure out the mistake, the word “the” is repeated twice.  It’s okay, we know you’ve probably had a long day and/or didn’t have your coffee just yet.

If you really got a kick out of this, check out these other great mind benders, optical illusions, and brain teasers.

Someone was either really clever, or really bored.  They turned a regular blue public city waste receptacle into our favorite blue cookie eating monster from Sesame Street!  Either way, a very creative use of converting something normal or everyday into something funny.

How true is this?  We need to choose our words very wisely when speaking to children; especially our own kids.  Sticks and stones break bones, but you can stifle a child with harsh words.

Got fish breath?  Then you need some Clorets!  This is such a great ad, with lots of copy space.

Get back into the plasma TV you naughty dinosaur!  This 3D Panasonic advertisement hits the nail right on the head.  The 3D is so real, it’s almost like the subjects you watch on it are invading your home.

Ever walk through an apartment building and smell everyone’s cooking mixed together?  It’s pretty nasty when too many aromas mix.  This fan company came up with a funny concept, to illustrate how well their exhaust fans work.

FedEx, Federal Express, a company that does logistics and shipping worldwide created a great ad illustrating how easy it is to ship packages to other countries.  It’s just as easy as handing a package to another person, through a window.  I love how they melded the scene together with the world map.  It’s clean, simple, and easy to understand at first glance.

Don’t drink and drive – if you do, it will feel like this.  Note the end of the road – disastrous consequences.  A greatly executed ad.

Recently we’ve read about and maybe heard the recent freeing of beagles in Spain that were being used for testing all their lives.  It’s really sad that they test cosmetics on these cute little guys.  I have two beagles myself, so I definitely feel for them.  They are the sweetest dogs.  If you find yourself in a position to rescue a beagle that needs a home, please do so.  Don’t even think about buying cosmetics from companies that practice animal testing – period!

A simple concept of clearing polution and smog with something as simple as the windshield wipers on your car.

A Faber Castell ad for true colours so well illustrates the fact that the color you’re using is so accurate, that it’s the same as the real thing.  Clever, and fun!

This is a really cool one, where a woman is actually hugging the page of a letter.  Talk about illustrating the point home about how much more thought and care goes into snail mail letters, than emails.  A great attempt by the post office to remind folks of this, in the digital age of smartphones and tablet pc’s we are living in.

Get so close and have so much control over your favorite sports, that your smartphone finger will actually have control over the games!  This is a funny one.

We all know evian water has used babies to advertise for years now – here is a funny continuation of that series.

We hope you have enjoyed these – please share this post, and be sure to bookmark us to come back regularly for more creative goodness.

The Good

Plasma TV’s have come down so much in price over the last few years, if you haven’t made the switch over to widescreen or HD yet, now is the time.  The Samsung 51″ PN51D450 Plasma TV is not a full 1080p set, but you might be fooled into thinking it was.  The actual resolution is 1360 x 768, so you’re really only losing 300 or so pixels in height as compared to the 1080 model (which costs about $150-200 more).  I decided that instead of a 42″ for around $450-500 this 51″ was way more television for the money, at the price I paid.  I couldn’t be happier with this plasma TV.  It seems just as crisp and sharp, with vivid colors as the 42″ model.  There doesn’t seem to be any loss of quality do to the increased size. Even DVD’s playing via the component cable hookup on my old 480p dvd player look amazing.  Once I pick up a blu-ray player or PS3 that will upconvert them to 1080, they should look even better.  The digital tuner in this TV, and in all Samsung televisions is incredibly strong.  I don’t even subscribe to cable or satellite tv, because in my area I can pick up all of the major networks with a simple set top antenna.  Hook an antenna into the back of a Samsung, and you’ll get 720 and 1080 broadcasts all day.  1080 broadcasts look better than 720, of course.  They are being downsized or downsampled to fit the 1360 x 768 resolution.  Just like when you take a large photo, and downsize it in Photoshop, it gets sharpened.  That’s why I can live without the 1080 resolution – you’ll have to see it to understand what I mean.  Don’t think that you need the 1080 model for the best quality with this one, trust me on that.  Save your money, unless you absolutely have to have 1080.  Sports look amazing on this set, with an over the air HD broadcast, whether it comes in through the network broadcast as 720 or 1080.

The Not So Good

The inputs/outputs are lacking a little bit.  You have two sets of component in with audio, and two hdmi ports.  There is also a usb side port, which is nice for showing photos or listening to music.  They have removed the VGA port which is a little bit disappointing.  The audio out is only available as optical, which is also kind of a pain.  I’ve simply run my audio out from my individual accessories, the dvd player and audio out from my computer, into my home stereo system.  If your stereo system or home theater system has optical inputs then you should be all set.  For the price I paid, I really can’t complain.  I ended up buying this set for the same regular price of most 42″ sets.

Conclusion

Despite the lack of inputs and outputs, this is a really solid set at a very affordable price.  I’m amazed by the increase in quality and in size having gone from a 32″ picture tube set, to this one.  Having a friend that owns a large TV repair business, he recommended for flat panel TV sets Panasonic and Samsung, LG in third place, and then don’t even consider anything else.  Obviously this is just an opinion, but coming from a guy who knows televisions inside an out, it’s one I know I can trust.    You can’t go wrong with the Samsung 51″ PN51D450 Plasma TV.

Additional Specs & Info

• Slimmer bezel and more picture with Plasma +1
• ENERGY STAR Compliant
• 600Hz Subfield HD Motion Performance
• View Photos and Listen to Music from a USB

Before you think you’re finding a great deal on the newest model, look at the next few older ones in the series. Whether you choose Nikon or Canon, the glass will outlive many many camera bodies. You have to hold and feel them in your hands. Personally, I never really liked the smaller plastic DSLR’s, so I always went with older model prosumer bodies made of magnesium allow (Canon XXD series).  The thumb wheel (not sure what the proper name for it is) makes it so much easier to quickly change the settings.  On the Canon Digital Rebel series camera bodies, there is no wheel.

You have to remember, any older model dslr you can still purchase right now was amazing and mind blowing when it first came out, just a few years ago. Keeping up with the latest and greatest tech doesn’t make you a better photographer. Sure, they are tools – and newer features/technological help tremendously.  What lenses should you get?  That’s a whole other story.  For basic, starter, and cheap lenses… get the 50mm f1.8 (about $80-130 depending on Nikon or Canon).  I only know Canon, because that’s what I use.  There is nothing wrong with Nikon, or Pentac, or Olympus either!  You should try both, and see which button layout you like the most, and feel more comfortable with.  It won’t take long to test them out in a local store, and decide for yourself.  I went with Canon because I had a lot of friends also with Canon, and knew we could easily swap, trade, buy, sell, and/or borrow gear from one another.  I always saw that it was easier to buy used gear that was more readily available if I went with one of the main dslr manufacturers, Nikon or Canon.  Canon glass is a little bit cheaper than Nikon, from what I’ve seen too.  Just a tiny bit.  Another lens that is pretty standard is the 18-55 IS or VR lens.  This will cover a decent wide angle to mid zoom range for landscapes and portraits.  Once you get into the higher end lenses, the costs begin to surpass even the prices of the camera bodies themselves, as it should.  Bodies come and go, but good glass is forever (or at least until you drop it, and it breaks).  Don’t think you can’t make amazing pictures with basic starter and kit lenses.  Just look online, and you’ll see millions of folks already doing so.  I have been using my 18-55 IS lens and 50mm f1.8 lenses for almost 7 years now, and still use them to this day, along with my higher end L lenses.

I hope this post has helped – a final bit of advice, is to read read read the reviews online of whatever you’re interested in buying.  You can save SO much money by buying camera bodies use, and that are at least 3-5 years old.  Usually they depreciate in value down to about 25-40% of their original price, in a short matter of years.  Buy what you can afford, and don’t bite off more than you can chew until you know you are serious about photography.

PS: I’ll be updating our gear list with everything we use here at Arena Creative for our stock imagery, if you are looking for additional recommendations.

Here Bob (“The Miz”) shows us how easy it is with just a few steps to remove color cast issues that might have happened in your images.  Make sure to subscribe to our youtube channel for more step-by-step, easy-to-follow Photoshop video tutorials!

The above stock images are all available for royalty-free and editorial licensing at http://arenacreative.com There are many more to choose from, to be sure to search for keywords “new york” the next time you browse the collection.

It’s day 6 for us without power.  I finally got a chance to update this blog post now that I found a spot with wireless internet access.  It’s been an interesting week, to say the least.  We lost our power from downed tree limbs and fallen utility poles back on Saturday, around 3pm.  Winter storm Alfred has pretty much devastated the region, creating power outages incomparable to anything we have ever experienced.  As far back as I can remember, we never had a loss of power for longer than a day or two.  The storm was just a freak occurrence for our area.  It’s highly unusual to get a “Noreaster” snowstorm with 6-24 inches of snow during the middle of fall (when the tree limbs are already wet, but not yet frozen through).  The meteorologists in the state predicted this one very accurately, yet enough planning or provisions were made to handle all of the downed lines and tree limbs that this storm caused.  Just two months ago the area was devastated in part by Hurricane Irene.

In the end, we’ll live! We of course gripe about going a week with no power, but I’m just happy all of our friends and family are safe and healthy. Tough times like this just prepare you better for times ahead.

By day 3 without power, you pretty much have had it.  No heat, hot water, no TV, and you’re starting to get tired of cooking all of your meals on a gas grill.  The power and lights being out is something I can personally deal with, but being trapped in my home and neighborhood was really trying.  We felt like we were stuck in the middle of a deserted war zone or something.  Downed tree limbs and intertwined power lines blocking both ends stopped us from even getting our cars out. Even still, one of the sides of our street is still blocked, and awaits repair.  We have a feeling we will have gone a good 10 days before everything is back up.  Who knows how long it will be before our internet access is working, if the phone lines are down as well.  It’s a mess, pretty unexpected and definitely one of those stories we’ll be sharing with our grandchildren someday!  Good old winter storm Alfred.  I can’t emphasize enough how much the simple things you take for granted are appreciated, when you go through a long power outage.  A hot shower.  Watching a movie or the local news.  Lights instead of candles.

Work is pretty much at a standstill for me until we get turned back on, but I’m not complaining I’m viewing this as a free week to deal with the mental, physical and emotional fatigue of Alfred.