by Skip Cohen

​Sunday Morning Reflections are always off the topic of marketing. For me, it's therapeutic to share something going on that's not directly related to imaging and business. It helps me recharge my battery for the new week ahead. 

Sheila and I read something motivational to each other every morning over breakfast. She picks her book for the year, and I pick mine. While not every day has a thought that hits home, there's always something motivational. My book for this year has been by Cyndie Spiegel. Just click on the thumbnail if you'd like more information.

Today's reading hit me hard, in part because of its simplicity. It got me thinking about my life and friends over the years who made both right and wrong choices. The key word here is "choice."  Living a good life doesn't mean it's without challenges, but how you handle those challenges sets the stage for everything else.

​Speaking of challenges, Mother Nature is about to drop another one on our doorstep. Hurricane Milton is gathering strength, and it's bizarre to prepare for another one while we're still cleaning up after Helene. 

While we have control over many aspects of our destiny, it doesn't include the weather. We're doing our best to be "big kids" about this - we'll prepare like we always do, and we've got good friends inland who have a room ready for us. We'll evacuate if necessary, but that doesn't change the stress of the unknown, especially the storm surge, since we're at 9 1/2 feet elevation, and only two houses from the inland waterway!

Wishing everybody a day ahead to live the best life you can. Focus on the positive and "stand tall...shift...grow and create." Go for those eleven-second therapeutic hugs I always write about with the people you love the most - they're a big part of what makes a good life!

Happy Sunday...or Monday if you're on the other side of the world.

Saying no leaves room for the right yes to come along!
Cyndie Spiegel

by Skip Cohen

Learning to say "No" could well be one the most important lessons/skills of being a professional photographer, especially when you first get started. Nobody wants to turn down business, but there are times when you need to recognize that not every potential client is your customer.

Over the years, I've seen this most often with wedding photographers who undercut the value of their own work. For example, a potential client is at your door wanting you to photograph their wedding for a fraction of the price you normally charge. When business is slow or the economy is down, it's tough to turn down business. At the same time, this is your career—not a side hustle.

Pricing and the Competition: Okay, it's true, lowball pricing might bring you some instant business in the short run, but eventually, it will destroy what you're trying to build, not to mention undermine the strength of the market. If you want to build a strong reputation, build it on the quality of your products, services, and the experience people have working with you. Look for added value to the pricing equation, NOT discounting. Talk with your lab, album company, and framer about new products. 

What did it really cost for you to get this far? When you start looking at pricing, don't forget everything you invested to get where you are today:

•Your Gear •Computer •Printers •Supplies •Furniture •Software •Packaging •Charges from your vendors •Education •Insurance •Rent •Phone Service •Time •Utilities •Website •Internet •Car •Gas and Maintenance •Legal Counsel •Accountant •Dues/membership •Advertising •Marketing •Additional labor •Travel/Entertainment

It's a hard lesson to learn. It doesn't take practice as much as it takes confidence. You should work hard to build your brand on a foundation of quality, integrity, and exceeding expectations. It's not about saying "Yes" to every opportunity. 

Learn to comfortably turn down business when it doesn't fit your goals. I'm not suggesting you shouldn't compromise at times, but learn to step away from business that's too far outside your goals.

Not every customer or assignment is right for you, and you need to leave room the right yes to come along.

by Skip Cohen
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I wasn't sure what I would share for Throwback Thursday until I opened my email. There was a message from Sara Frances with the artwork on the right.

What a kick to be a part of a book project, now with nine different awards. I'm so proud to have been asked by Sara to write Cruisin' With Ansel for her book, Unplugged Voices. It's a stunning book with 125 Tales of Art and Life from Northern New Mexico, the Four Corners, and the West.

Click on the banner for more information and order your copy. You won't be disappointed.

The story I wrote, which is below, is about one of my most cherished memories, driving Ansel Adams' Cadillac through Yosemite with my good buddy, Terry Deglau. Terry passed away five years ago last month. I don't live in the past, but I miss him a lot, just like so many of you who knew him. The fun of Throwback Thursday comes with those memorable looks in the rearview mirror. It's the way lost friends, with the right memories come back, almost as if they were here right now.

While I've shared the story a couple of times over the last fifteen years of blogging, with the book now being one of the most recognized in photography, it deserves another moment in the spotlight.

There we were, in Yosemite National Park, driving Ansel Adam’s Cadillac. King of Photography in the West, Ansel Adams.

I used to joke about my brush with the celebrity world as boiling down to getting into a cab in NYC as Vincent Price was getting out. Over my fifty-two-year history in the photography industry, I consider myself having one of the most amazing careers in the business! "Amazing" is a lofty, even arrogant word, but I don't use it lightly. My definition of success has repeatedly changed over the years and morphed into being defined by the smile on my face each morning. So, when I say “amazing," I mean that it's been about the people I've worked with, the projects, and the passion I'm fortunate to have for this industry that I love dearly. It’s the relationships and the friendships; so many of these people have become like family.

I’m turning back the clock to the nineties. I was president of Hasselblad USA from 1987 through 1999. In 1991, I was invited to join the Board of the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson. Ansel was one of its founders. At my very  first Board meeting, Richard Avedon turned over his archives. Attending a very upscale reception that first night, and capping the celebration in a little Mexican bar with Avedon, I felt like a rookie ballplayer drafted in the ninth inning to the team that won the World Series. I had done nothing to contribute to the event, but there I was, sharing in the accolades…. But that's another story!

At a meeting a few months later, it was announced that Virginia Adams, Ansel's widow, had donated his 1977 Cadillac to the Center to raise money for its visiting scholar fund. The president of the Board, decided to buy it, but the following day came in asking somebody to take it off his hands—his wife wasn't a big fan of his intended purchase. Well, there I was—president of Hasselblad. Victor Hasselblad and Ansel had been good friends, and I had an idea. So, I bought the car with Hasselblad's money, and decided we'd show it at two upcoming major shows: Photo West at Mosconi in San Francisco and then at Photo East in NYC.

But I didn't want just to sell it—I wanted to make some noise. I remember being frustrated with so many foreign companies in the industry. At the time, I felt there wasn't enough focus on giving back to the American market. Of course, Hasselblad was Swedish, but it was time for the company to be more active and give back to programs in the U.S.

We put the car up for sale, and it became a publicist's dream. We didn't just sell the car, but created a package that included a Hasselblad camera and lens, a case of Kodak film, and a Bogen tripod. The proceeds would go back to Photographers + Friends United Against AIDS. And that’s another story. This incredible group raised over a million dollars with a photography auction pulling in collectors worldwide. Best of all, Kalmar Ad Marketing, then Hasselblad's advertising agency, put together a great ad featuring the Cadillac, the gear, and the short backstory. It ran in virtually every photo magazine at no charge! Remember, this is back when

​everything was in print, no internet. There was even a cost difference for a color ad versus black and white. Well, we had “cover” advertising positions all over the place.

But here's the best part of the story…

The best thing about photography has nothing to do with imaging directly but with the friendships that come out of everyone's love for the craft. One of my very dearest friends, Terry Deglau, who was then with Kodak, joined me after Photo West. We'd had the car on display with our booth, and Rod Dresser, Ansel’s last assistant before he passed away, joined us with some of his personal collection of Ansel’s prints. My friendship with Rod, led to selling Ansel’s camera gear to shock-jock, Don Imus, for $100,000, for charity a few years later—but you guessed it…. That’s yet another story.

The minute Photo West was over, we hit the road to go to Yosemite, in the Cadillac, of course.

There's something mystical about driving Ansel's car in Yosemite, down roads he knew like the back of his hand. The car seemed to sense it was “home.” And all along the way, breaking through the serenity of Yosemite, we'd be playing Ansel's car horn. If I remember right, Ansel had programmed in 85 different songs. I'm told that each was a tribute to somebody he knew or someplace he'd been. Just a few bars, but enough to recognize songs like “Dixie” and “On Wisconsin.” Every time we hit the horn we’d break out laughing, determined to discover ALL of them. It was so magical! I'm convinced that after driving the car for three days in the park, I wrapped up the trip completely understanding Ansel's detailed, esoteric Zone V photo exposure system and development—just because my tush was where his had been for so many years.

The car was sold at Photo East to Helmut Horn, then president of Coastal Hotels. The Carmel Highlands Inn was one of its managed properties, and he wanted to bring the Caddie back to its roots, just down the street where Virginia had handed me the keys a year earlier. On the wall in my office is a framed print of Ansel's car with Virginia and me the day I picked it up. There’s even a story with that one—notice the vignette? Jeff Nixon was visiting Virginia and grabbed the shot for us, but I had the wrong lens shade on the camera!

I’ve lost track of the car. Last I heard it was back in Yosemite. However, in my desk drawer are Ansel’s original car keys, and the license plate is in a plaque on my wall. And while the industry lost Terry Deglau several years ago, there isn't a day that I don't look at that photograph and cherish my friendship and the adventures Terry and I shared.

My Ansel story is just one in a fifty-two-year run. Each story has a common denominator, namely that everybody involved has an unquenchable passion for imaging. Their hearts are all in the game, and it's contagious. People who have touched my heart, watched my back, and supported so many different ideas. I've learned from them, been blessed to be able to help with their projects, and they've helped me in mine. In a recent blog I wrote, ”You can't create images that tug at people's heartstrings if your own heart isn't in it!"

Somewhere deep down inside, whether we each recognize it or not, we're all hoping to change the world—no, not the entire globe—just our little piece of it. We all want to leave this world having made a difference in somebody's life, which makes life special for me. There are so many people who have made a difference in mine.

This story is mine, but think about your own life and your significance to your friends, associates, and family. Never slow down in your search for excellence. But don't look for perfection.

Today's post is out of the SCU archives. I'm sharing it, not because I didn't want to write something new today, but because the topic seems even more relevant. As the industry changes, it's taking more and more creativity to make your work stand out. Yet the basics for success NEVER change.
​

by Skip Cohen
​
A few times over the years, I've referred to myself as one of the luckiest guys in the industry. One example is having the privilege of working with all four of the icons above. Don Blair and I wrote our first book together. I have dozens of Monte stories from so many different workshops and programs. Avedon made me lunch once in the flat above his studio, and Scavullo's dog tried to take a piece out of my leg on a couple of different visits.

I chose these four because I had the privilege of spending time with them, and there are so many of you who never got to see them in action. There are so many other artists for each of us to remember, along with contemporary icons active in the industry right now.  The common denominators between all of them are the traits below.

Kicking off the last quarter of the year, it's the perfect time for all of us to remember the ingredients that made those four above iconic, along with the traits of so many younger contemporary artists we admire today.

Image Quality:  They NEVER compromise on the quality of an image. Exposure, composition, expression and impact are as consistent as the sun coming up every morning. 

Lifestyle Quality:  They maintain a lifestyle of giving back and a strong sense of family and friendships. They have integrity, they have poise and they follow through on their promises.  They also surround themselves with people with similar commitments.

Loyalty:  Whether it's to the vendors they work with or their friends, their loyalty is rarely questioned.  Everyone watches each others backs and the mutual respect and admiration, at least from my perspective, is pretty much unmatched in comparison to most other industries.

Humor:  They don't take themselves too seriously. Think about any program you've attended that you loved and learned something - I'm willing to bet you laughed...a lot.  Today's photography icons are comfortable with admitting when they do something stupid, have fun with a client or completely screw up a job and live to tell about it.

Humility: Not everyone has it, but even those few we might consider a little arrogant - if they knew how they were being perceived they'd be upset and ready to work on a different persona.  So, I'm not sure if the quality I'm trying to describe is humility or a willingness to listen, but they've got it.

Confidence:  They believe in their abilities, their willingness to learn new skills and they understand their camera gear and photography cold - there's no second guessing and no "chimping."  Even when they talk about a new idea or technology, you'll pick up a unique tone in their voice, almost as if they've been shooting that way for years.

Diverse Skills: It goes with confidence, but there's nothing they can't shoot.  We might know them as a portrait photographer and then we'll see work that's fine art, landscape or architectural - they refuse to be type-cast into any one skill set. They may have a signature specialty, but none of them are one-trick ponies. They're always experimenting with new technologies and growing their skillset. 

Passion: It's the last word on the list, but it drives everything they do!  It's not just about photography, but about life in general - they simply never stop loving the craft, their lives, their friends, families - you name it and passion is what drives them to succeed.

Here's the bottom line - how do you stack up against the ingredients? Or more importantly, how do your customers feel you stack up?

Happy Hump Day!

by Skip Cohen

It's Marketing Monday, and I thought it would be helpful to create a checklist of things you should be doing or, at the very least, planning.

1. Your Holiday Card: No professional photographer should ever send a store-bought card. Use your holiday card to show your work and remind your audience what you do for a living. 
2. Blog and Social Media Messages: Now is the time for SNL's "Subliminal Man" to crank up the volume. Use your social media and blog to create content with reminders about photography as a holiday gift. It's a simple, direct approach: "So, what are you getting for grandma this holiday season?" Use photography with examples of great gift ideas.
3. Client Holiday Cards: Whether a printed direct mail card or holiday video, both need to be in your offerings for the holiday season. And keep an eye on Marathon Press because they always have a BOGO program on holiday cards! 
4. Client/Vendor Thanks: Throughout the year, a few people have helped you beyond normal referrals. Whether it's with a gift basket, flowers, or taking a vendor to lunch, make it a point to reach out and let them know you appreciate their support.
5. Partnerships: With any project, having partners reduces your cost. Whether a direct mail holiday promotion or sharing the cost for a holiday party in the community with a partner or two, each of you becomes an ambassador for the concept, and you increase your reach.
6. Your Client Archives: Most of you are sitting on a gold mine and don't know it. Those archived images from the last year or two have value to each client. But you have to plant the seed of what to do with them. How about a personal letter with a printing special on canvas or whatever new technology you think your audience will find exciting? 
7. Holiday Portrait Sitting: Dean Collins used to contact the senior executives at companies he had worked with earlier in the year. He did a free holiday family sitting as his way of saying thank you. And David Ziser would contact past bridal clients for a free holiday/anniversary sitting. Imagine the excitement of a bride a year after her wedding when she gets a call from her photographer for a free holiday sitting! 
8. Who's Photographing this Year's Kiwanis Holiday Party? Every community has multiple associations, such as Kiwanis, Rotary, Exchange Club, etc. Now is the time to check in with each organization to see how you can be more involved.
9. Teach a Class: How about launching a campaign to clean up your community by upgrading the quality of the photographs everyone is trying to capture this holiday season? From posing tips to composition and lighting, there are so many things you have the skills to pass on to your audience. Doing a live program at a church or community center focused on better holiday images is a perfect way to create top-of-mind awareness of your skills and the services you can provide.
10. Community Calendar: Use your blog, website, and social media outlets to share events in your community. Each event you promote makes you an ambassador for that organization, again creating more brand awareness.​

No blog post could include everything you should be doing, but it's a start. Stop procrastinating and start doing!

"If you wait for all the lights to turn green, you'll never get started on your journey!"
Zig Ziglar

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our life whole.
Roger Caras

by Skip Cohen

It's Sunday morning, and I rarely write about business. Last night, Sheila and I were talking about "our girls," Lucy and Belle. Before Sheila talked me into the idea, I'd never had two dogs at the same time. So, five years ago, Lucy and Belle joined the family.

We've become full-time dog people, and it's wonderful. The day starts with their morning routine. After they "get busy" outside, it's inside for brushing and a handful of morning kibble, followed by lots of hugs and lovin'. Throughout the day, the pups take turns hanging out with us. They've got a vocabulary of hundred or so words, to the point that we have to spell words like "r-i-d-e" if we're considering taking them with us.

The day ends with Sheila's routine for both pups as they're tucked in for the night. While it might seem like total overindulgence, we go to sleep every night with full hearts, often talking about how less full our lives might be without these two little knuckleheads.

I know so many of you understand - it's that unconditional love our pets bring into our lives and fill our hearts.

I don't really have a point this morning—I'm just having fun expressing my love for what's become our lifestyle and saluting all of you pup parents out there.

​On Facebook the other day, somebody posted the four ways to know your dog thinks you're a mom: They follow you around the house, make eye contact all the time, seek out your affection with snuggling, licking, and even a hug, and finally, share their toys with you.

by Skip Cohen
​
It's definitely a TGIF day - not because it's the end of the week, but the storm is over, at least here in the Sarasota area. We were lucky - Hurricane Helene turned more north. But for so many of you, we're sending our thoughts and prayers. We may not have gotten hit with the full force, but what we did get left us with complete respect for the power of Mother Nature - high winds, rain, and tornado warnings repeatedly.

As I watched the hurricane roll in and worried about our safety and home, I got a little philosophical. I started thinking about this one set of Crepe Myrtle flowers fighting to hang on. The tree started the season covered in hundreds of blooms, yet this one group was all that was left.

At the risk of sounding outrageously trite, like an old Jack Handy routine from Saturday Night Live, I started thinking about business. What gives some people a survival instinct so strong that they're determined to pivot, grow, and stay in tune with the demand for their services? Yet, others slowly slip away and eventually cease to exist. They give up.

Okay, it's a reach to connect, but think about your passion for photography. If you've been a working pro for at least five years, you've survived a pandemic, changes in technology, consumer trends, and countless challenges in competition. You've grown because you didn't slow down. You kept searching for the right recipe to continue doing something you love no matter what the "weather".

In most cases, you never slowed down, continuing to fine-tune your skills and build relationships. I've written repeatedly over the years you can't create images that tug at people's heartstrings if your own heart isn't in it. Well, your heart's still in it!

I loved the quote below when I went searching for statements about survival. And when I think about friends who maintain a positive attitude, no matter what life throws at them, they all include these three simple rules along with their indomitable spirit.

Three Simple Rules in Life
1. If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it.
2. if you don't ask, the answer is always no.
3. If you don't step forward, you're always in the same place.
Unknown Author

Wishing everybody a great weekend ahead; prayers and positive thoughts if you're currently in Helene's path and time to give yourself a pat on the back. Whatever your goals in life, every day is an opportunity to bring them more into focus because you just won't give up on your dreams.

TGIF

"The Last Survivor" - Captured with a LUMIX G9 and 14-140mm lens

Steven Gotz: ​This was one of my favorites—he took family portraits as well as some of his zoo images, pulled the color, and turned them into line art for coloring books for his clients. Remember, back then, everyone was hunkered down at home, and if you had young children, they needed something more to do. I loved the idea then and even more today—think about the fun of sending a client a coloring book of their family shoot, headshots, etc. 

Here's my point today—no matter how tough the challenges, even heading into the complete unknown of Hurricane Helene, we can only do the best we can. We're prepared, evacuating if it becomes mandatory, and doing everything we can to reduce the element of surprise...and fear. Best of all, we've got some great neighbors, and we know we'll all help each other with whatever Mother Nature has in store.

Meanwhile, we're doing what everybody does in South Florida - wait it out and say our prayers...and for everyone north of us where the latest tracking information says Helene is headed - our thoughts and prayers are with you as well.

Be safe and if there's a mandatory evacuation, remember, if you stay, you're the lowest priority if you need help during the storm.


*LUMIX FZ300: ISO 100 f2.8 @ 1/125 (It's an older camera in Panasonic's line with a fixed zoom lens.) 

by Skip Cohen

​This is probably the shortest post I've ever shared.  I simply loved the quote. There's nothing more that needed to be added.

*From A Year of Positive Thinking, by Cyndie Spiegel

Intro by Skip Cohen

​In 2010, we moved to Sarasota to give my Dad a hand taking care of my Mom, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's a few years earlier. I could go anywhere as long as I could get online, and Sheila had enough seniority to retire early from her role in HR at Akron Children's Hospital. I look back on the move as one of the best decisions we could have made. I was able to spend more time with my Dad, and Sheila loved getting to know both of them. Even through the challenges of Alzheimer's, she and Mom were able to build an amazing bond.

Just after we moved here, I talked Dad into writing a couple of blog posts. He wrote the piece below for me that November. That was almost fourteen years ago! I love the relevance - there is no expiration date on running a good business, building trust with your clients, and creating a brand based on integrity.  

Every couple of years, I like to share a little of Dad's wisdom. When he started in business just after WWII, he didn't have social media—but he did have a telephone. He didn't go to any conventions to network, but he did have time to meet people and talk to potential clients. He didn't have workshops to attend, but he did have books to read and ideas to share with his associates over lunch.

He started out in the lumber business, moved into the candy and tobacco vending world, and, in his early forties, entered his dream of commercial/industrial real estate. He loved bringing people together to build lasting things, and everything he did was always based on integrity and good business sense.

Right up until he passed away at 93, he still did business on a handshake. He might have slowed down physically as he got older, but he never compromised those standards my grandfather taught him many years earlier.  
​
As you think about wrapping up 2024 and kicking off the new year, everything he wrote about below is right on point! Pay attention to your business, and keep an eye on your competition, but don't get so obsessed with what everyone else is doing that you lose focus on your own marketing plans.

The grass isn't greener on the other side...it's greener where you water it!
Anon

by Skip Cohen

​If you've followed me for even the shortest amount of time, you already know that on Sundays, I run amuck and rarely write about anything related to business and marketing. It's my day to just share whatever's on my mind.

I recently started working with a remarkable group of people, which I briefly mentioned in last Monday's post about giving back. The group is focused on supporting families and patients dealing with Alzheimer's. We have a private social media page exclusively for communication between the member companies. 

My thoughts this morning have little to do with my excitement about working with this dedicated group but the power of photography. For our social media page, I decided to share an image each week that somehow related to telling the Alzheimer's story. I typed "Alzheimer's" in Adobe's search box, and the image above was one of the first to appear. There were hundreds of photographs, often worth far more than a thousand words.

Most of you are working professional photographers or aspiring to be, and every click of a shutter tells a story. So, I went off in search of some of my own images that tell a part our family's story.

by Skip Cohen

I first shared this nine years ago, so it's a throwback of a throwback. I know it was 2004, and the location was WPPI, Las Vegas. At first, I thought it was print judging, but there are a few people in here who didn't normally judge. I think it's speakers from that year; I just don't remember everybody being together in one room. The image is thanks to Alan Karlin in a couple of books of WPPI images he sent me after the convention.

Nothing beats the fun of Throwback Thursdays, and sometimes it doesn't matter what the reason was for a group to be together...however, look closely; this one is global with some of the most recognized educators in our industry. It's almost like a "Where's Waldo" drawing.

So, how many can you name? I'm up to forty-six, including three mullets!

If you haven't gone off in the hunt for your own Throwback Thursday images, take the time. Throwbacks are the perfect gateway to great memories and a reminder that nothing matches the power of the photography time machine! It's also a great time to share older photographs with your readers, especially "Mom." Old family portraits are an excellent way to remind Mom that it's time for an updated family portrait!

Happy Throwback Thursday

​by Skip Cohen

Last week, the "Rock 'em - Sock 'em" robots at Facebook deleted one of my posts on the grounds that it violated community policy and was deceptive. It was nothing of the sort, but it took me on a flashback trip to 2016 when Facebook shut down my page, claiming my name wasn't really "Skip."

Numerous friends helped me protest, including Brent Watkins, who got creative with his "Free Skip" silhouette  thumbnail. I even wrote an open letter to Mark Zuckerberg—I have no idea if he ever saw it.

After seven years with Facebook, I've recently been shut out because I couldn't confirm my identity, even though I've sent you copies of my driver's license and gun license, copies of unopened mail with my name on it, screenshots of books I've written, speaking engagements, business cards, and even my Google page when you look up my name. 

My birth announcement above was included in the post. A few hours later, I was reinstated, but with A.I., the robots are back, and instead of getting smarter, they're on an overdose of stupid pills. I reposted it on my F.B. page with just the link and a request for help from my friends. There were lots of empathetic comments. My old buddy Jon Vansteenberg said it best:

This happens all the time. I've had it 3 or 4 times. They can't distinguish between simple reportage of quotations, some from profound thought leaders, and complete Waccos. It personifies the invalidity and waste of trying to 'control' peoples' free speech. George Carlins 7 words performance boundaries would be far better and cheaper than spending billions on alienating good faith users...

It's ironic, though - the robots were unhappy with my post, but if I had paid to boost it through their paid advertising program, I'm sure it would have passed!

We all have a love/hate relationship with Facebook, but if this nonsense continues, F.B. is going to follow the flush with my Tweet stream!

by Skip Cohen

A conversation with a photographer recently set the stage for this morning's post. He's struggling to get involved in a non-profit in his community. In overthinking which one to join, he's procrastinated his way into not doing anything.

While I've written a lot over the years about the importance of giving back to your community to build brand awareness, it all starts with what's in your heart and has nothing to do with your business. You have to find that cause that pulls at your own heartstrings first.

For example, we moved to Florida to help my Dad through my mother's fight with Alzheimer's. My mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother all died of this horrible disease. Being involved in the fight against Alzheimer's is my way of paying tribute to my family; keeping my Mom's spirit alive and has nothing to do with my business. 

I've always believed everything happens for a reason. Whether it's true or just how our mind rationalizes our choices in life, my favorite quote by Alfred Lord Tennyson, "I am a part of all that I have met," couldn't be more accurate. Everything that happens in our life, everybody we meet, and every challenge, victory, and defeat contribute to our journey. My mother's fight with Alzheimer's took me to the Senior Friendship Center in 2011. It started with my Dad and me joining the Caregiver Support Group, which led to me helping them build a blog, then a podcast series, and almost six years on their Board.  Last week, I joined the Memory Care Alliance, expanding my involvement in the fight against Alzheimer's.

The Memory Care Alliance is the vision of one of Sarasota's most respected neurologists. It's a community-based network of compassionate and experienced providers dedicated to providing the highest standard of care for patients and families dealing with Alzheimer's. The members are neuropsychologists, clinical psychologists, mental health counselors, psychiatrists, geriatric care managers, home health care agencies, adult day care, support groups, respite care, and legal counseling.

It's Marketing Monday, but in all honesty, however you choose to be more involved in your community starts with having nothing to do with marketing or building your brand. It's about expanding your heart, and the theme of today's post is, "Together we make a difference."

Take some time to think about the challenges you and your family have experienced. Just about every challenge any of us have ever faced has a cause-related non-profit organization associated with support for people experiencing the same difficulty. Listen to your heart first, get involved, and then you can build brand awareness around your giving back.

by Skip Cohen

​Although Sunday Morning Reflections are rarely about business and marketing, I suppose I'm crossing that line this morning by whining about Facebook. As their A.I.-driven robots deleted a post of mine on Friday, I feel like the character above— not knowing whether to just give up or listen to Pink Floyd's Tear Down the Wall. 

Sadly, there doesn't seem to be an easy alternative with Facebook. Over the last few years, their algorithms and policies have become increasingly unreasonable, as A.I. has become more and more misdirected. My post last Friday was a great example—nothing whatsoever deceptive—just a short post wishing everybody a terrific weekend. And while I protested their wrong call, I have no confidence that anything will change.

Just like the challenges with Twitter that I've given up on, along with so many of you, F.B. will eventually become another "I-remember-when" story. I picture a few of us sitting in rocking chairs on the front porch of a nursing home with stories of the past and things we miss in how we used to communicate.

I miss those days when...

• I could post something on social media and know it made it to the people I wanted to share it with
• A troll was a character in a children's story
• The Internet "Police" were real people who you could contact and actually talk to if necessary
• You knew most of the people who followed you
• A stolen identity meant you lost your wallet
• When our phone rang, it was somebody we knew, or, at the very least, a company I wanted to talk to - NOT an idiot outside the U.S. trying to sell me an extended warranty on my car, health care, or extension of the Geek Squad's coverage!

The list goes on and on, with the cold, hard reality of simply knowing I have to grow up. I still want to be Peter Pan at heart, but it gets tougher and tougher not to become a curmudgeon flying around in green tights, helping Chicken Little spread the word that the sky really is falling! LOL

And on that note, it's time to wrap up what's turned into a rant. My solution to the problem is focused on saving my own sanity. This is when your family and friends become so valuable - I can't change F.B., and the serenity prayer becomes so remarkably appropriate:

Wishing you a day ahead without the challenges of technology. Make it a day to spend time with the people you love the most. Go for those old-fashioned eleven-second therapeutic hugs I always write about and put all your frustrations in a box with a very tight lid not to be opened until tomorrow. Today's a perfect day to kick back and recharge your battery, which is what I originally wrote about in the post FB's robots pulled.

Weekends are not for catching up with work; they are meant for catching up with yourself!
N. Singhal

Happy Sunday or Monday on the other side of the world.

Weekends are a reminder that sloths had it right all along!
Unknown Author

Please Note: This post, when shared on Facebook, was pulled by their robots. Facebook said it violated their policies and that it was deceptive...all of this is crap and takes me back to Facebook throwing me out in 2016, claiming that my name wasn't really "Skip." At that time I wrote to Mark Zuckerberg and included my birth announcement, which is the link above. Obviously they haven't progressed very far!


​by Skip Cohen

It's Friday; except for wedding photographers, whose weekend time off usually starts on Monday; most of you look at the weekend as a time to kick back a little and chill. I look at September as the calm before the storm, anticipating the ramping up of seasonality. That means the time to recharge your battery is NOW.

Weekends are not for catching up with work; they are meant for catching up with yourself!
N. Singhal

​This is a very short post today, and while it's not directly about marketing, it is a reminder of what it takes to run a successful business. You can't focus on the energy you need to accomplish your goals if you're running on empty. And you can't capture images that tug at people's heartstrings if your own heart isn't in it.

You know how to focus your camera; now it's time to focus your energy on YOU. The key to avoiding burnout is your attitude and your recognition of when it's time for a break. But that time will be wasted if you don't give your mind and body a rest.

​Wishing everybody a terrific weekend ahead.

Weekends: The perfect time to do nothing and everything at the same time!
Unknown Author

by Skip Cohen

It's my favorite day of the week, and today, it's all thanks to my good buddy Jim Morton. He recently sent me a batch of old images from his archives. They were all captured when we worked together back in our Hasselblad days.

That's me, Don Blair, and Hasselblad's leading author and "professor," Ernst Wildi. Ernst passed away in 2023 at 100, and "Big Daddy" Blair in 2004 at 79. Both of them were cut from the same cloth when it came to perfection in their images, passion for the craft, and love for helping photographers raise the bar on their skills. They were both in their mid-sixties when Jim snapped this shot in the Hasselblad booth at Photo East in New York.

Besides this image bringing back memories, which is what Throwback Thursday is all about, it occurred to me that Jim's unofficial role at Hasselblad was just as important as his primary responsibility. Jim was our Customer Service and Technical Manager, handled our exhibit at various trade shows, and training, just to name a few of the hats he wore.  However, his unofficial role was documenting Hasselblad's activity in the industry. Thanks to Jim's stash of images from all his years with the company, we have so many great memories.

Who's your family or company historian? There was no social media back in 1991, and certainly no Throwback Thursday. It's so important to be able to follow a company or your family's history in photos and videos. Thanks to technology, everybody has the ability to document their business and family growth and build archives of images that will become invaluable as time goes by.

THANKS, Jim, for every click of the shutter during all those years, not to mention being a great friend to so many of us in the industry.

Happy Throwback Thursday!

Marketing is about brand building. It requires a huge commitment and establishing and never-ending stream of awareness with your target audience. Professional photography isn't just about capturing great images, but creating an experience with each client. It's about exceeding their expectations and, as I've written so many times, making yourself habit-forming.

Too many artists focus on pricing and promotional packages, putting less emphasis on everything else in their business. Building a strong brand needs to obviously include a technical skill set for capturing stunning images and telling a client's story, but that's only the tip of the iceberg. Trust, integrity, communication, and accessibility are all key components—all of which go beyond your logo, website design, etc.

​I chose the quotes in today's post because each one hits on a different aspect of building brand awareness. Take a few minutes to think about your brand.

How can you make yourself stand out from your competitors? What can you be doing to make sure people recognize your business as their very best choice? What are people saying about you when you're not around? What are they thinking when they see your name or hear about you from another consumer?