Business Card idea. 2 images

I tried making cards on my B&W laser printer. They were okay — but not colourful, and the "ink" was rubbing off too.

I thought of making my own cards, with photo backgrounds — then realized the 4:3 ratio does not lend itself to a card-sized image.

Next step (and better I think): put the photo to one side and the text on the other.

Here's what I did:

• In Photoshop Elements 2, I open a 3-and-1/2 x2 inch box and bring my image over, resizing it and giving it a 3-d effect on the layer.

• I pick up some colour from the photo and spill it on the background layer, then create my text.

• Save all as a PSD file so I can play with it later. (For a variety of "looks" just slip a different pic in, change the colour and save as a new name.)
• then flatten the layers and saved as a Jpg.

• Open a new 4x6 box and position 3 of the Jpg. files on it. Stay away from the edges as much as possible.
• Save as a psd. , then flatten and save as a Jpg.
• Print at home — or send it to a lab.
• The lab might cut them up for free, or you can use a paper cutter on your own.

My lab charges 29¢ per 4x6 — so it's a bit more than 10¢ per card, including taxes. Not bad for a card with real impact, including a sample of your work. It's also better than getting 500 cards printed and then having the info go obsolete if you change locations or phone numbers. With this method, you just go back to your psd.s and make your changes, then bang off some more cards.

***

Feedback or ideas welcome.

Barry

Equipment in profile.

http://www.dpgink.com

These folks do really great cheap business cards, full color and coated
on both sides. We've used them for years. As long as you are not
too picky about exact color, because it's hard to do a color proof
long-distance. I haven't gone as far as to do PMS colors because
it's not that critical for the cards I've had done.

But at $65 for 2500 cards, it's a good deal. Usually it's about $25 for shipping depending on how close you are to FL. Even with shipping factored in, you are getting full color cards for about 4 cents apiece.

I don't have any relationship with these guys other than being a satisfied customer.

--

'Yeah, I'm using the almost limitless potential of the information superhighway to post pictures of my dog.'

You can see my photos on Flickr at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluheron/

Barry

I have to be honest, but I’m not quite taken by the button style of the image and the naming. I would go for a conventional photo (let the colour of the photo blend into the card) and call yourself ‘Barry Stewart Photography’ for a much more professional image.

The other thing is that no photo paper is as thick as business card stock and you may not be able to write on the back of the card. These may appear to be minor points, but can make a huge impact on your clients.

You have only one chance to make a first impression, so don’t overlook the small things.

Cheers

Ray

--
http://www.australianimage.com.au

Is 2500 the minimum order?

I like the idea of having a printing house do them — but don't need a ton of cards.
--
Barry

OzRay said:

Barry

I have to be honest, but I’m not quite taken by the button style of
the image and the naming. I would go for a conventional photo (let
the colour of the photo blend into the card) and call yourself
‘Barry Stewart Photography’ for a much more professional image.

Click to expand...

I know what you mean about the button style. I have another version with yellow leaves and rich blue sky and I have no button styling... just blue sky colour flowing into the text. It has a simpler look — and you're one voting for simple.

On the naming: I'll do a mock-up and see how it looks. I can appreciate that the longer name has a better feeling of quality to it.

OzRay said:

The other thing is that no photo paper is as thick as business card
stock and you may not be able to write on the back of the card.

Click to expand...

Okay: but to be able to have a bunch of different looks — and the ability to change any info easily — is there a laminating product that I could stick the photos to?

OzRay said:

These may appear to be minor points, but can make a huge impact on
your clients.

You have only one chance to make a first impression, so don’t
overlook the small things.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the gentle nagging!

--
Barry

Why the choice of image? It doesn't represent any of the styles you list on the card. I agree the button effect has to go. I get my cards from overnightprints.com were you can have them printed on both sides, coated and rounded corners.

http://www.aknudsen.com/i.cfm?i=6452_88707.jpg&mid=6452

--
Andre Knudsen
http://www.aknudsen.com

Sorry if I’m a bit blunt, but I really want to make sure that you don’t create the wrong impression ie cheap and nasty. A business card reflects what you do, so it’s really important to get it right.

With the naming, I’d also get rid of the drop shadow and keep the font the same as the rest. You can still use italics, but the current text style is not ideal.

You can’t laminate; again it doesn’t look good and no one can write on a laminate.

A lot of printers will be prepared to do 500-1000 cards at a fairly low cost; it just takes a bit of hunting around. You also may need to ask what format they will accept, in order to get a proper print. I use MS Publisher, as most printers have this on their systems.

Cheers

Ray

--
http://www.australianimage.com.au

Barry,

Yes, that is the minimum order. That's the rub, it's a cheap price because they print such large orders.

Thanks for the Overnight suggestion. I see they'll do a run of 100 cards for a good price.

Image choice: it's an image I like of a local (small town) icon that usually doesn't look so spectacular. It doesn't fit my description, yes — but it shows my work. Next step: change the description!

So another vote for no button?!
--
Barry

By laminate, I didn't mean plastic coating. I meant a card backing that would stick to the photo — giving a thicker feel and the ability to write on it. I'll check at a local scrapbooking store to see if there is an option that way.

My wife has various scrapbooking tools, including a corner rounder (a style suggested by Andre).

Fonts: Man, you're a tough one to please! I'm looking at an example of a business card from a local company and the title is highly stylized, followed by simple fonts for the other info.

I'll play around and get back to you on this thread. 'May need a day or two...
--
Barry

Equipment in profile.

Barry Stewart said:

http://photos.imageevent.com/barstewart/forums/cards/huge/CardEagle.jpg
http://photos.imageevent.com/barstewart/forums/cards/huge/Eagle3Crd.jpg

I tried making cards on my B&W laser printer. They were okay — but
not colourful, and the "ink" was rubbing off too.

I thought of making my own cards, with photo backgrounds — then
realized the 4:3 ratio does not lend itself to a card-sized image.

Next step (and better I think): put the photo to one side and the
text on the other.

Here's what I did:
• In Photoshop Elements 2, I open a 3-and-1/2 x2 inch box and bring
my image over, resizing it and giving it a 3-d effect on the layer.
• I pick up some colour from the photo and spill it on the
background layer, then create my text.
• Save all as a PSD file so I can play with it later. (For a
variety of "looks" just slip a different pic in, change the colour
and save as a new name.)
• then flatten the layers and saved as a Jpg.
• Open a new 4x6 box and position 3 of the Jpg. files on it. Stay
away from the edges as much as possible.
• Save as a psd. , then flatten and save as a Jpg.
• Print at home — or send it to a lab.
• The lab might cut them up for free, or you can use a paper cutter
on your own.

My lab charges 29¢ per 4x6 — so it's a bit more than 10¢ per card,
including taxes. Not bad for a card with real impact, including a
sample of your work. It's also better than getting 500 cards
printed and then having the info go obsolete if you change
locations or phone numbers. With this method, you just go back to
your psd.s and make your changes, then bang off some more cards.

Click to expand...

I'm afraid the impact of such cards would be negative.

How often do you change locations or phone numbers? If you are trying to present yourself as a stable business these should be constant.

First of all, these cards would need to be cut by hand, and that screams ametuer wannabe (also, it can be a drag to cut the cards, after all your time is worth something too).

Second, one of the uses of business cards is to write additional information on it, either on the front or the back, and using photo paper kind of defeats the purpose. You can buy card blanks at Staples if you want to print them yourself, but you need to make sure you use inks that won't fade or run in the rain.

Third you mention a lot of people type shots, but you use a bird as your logo -- unless you are offering your nature photographry as your main talent you should put a picture of a bride on your card, or put your own head-shot, since that way people will recall who you are 6 months later when they are looking at your card.

On the card, you mention website, you really should use the standard http: prefix. Also, abbreviating phone as 'ph' when you have plenty of space is annoying. You probably should include a cell phone number (or have a second set of cards to give to clients with it on it, so they can contact you on the day of the shoot).

Your website just looks like a random collection of gigs, and it doesn't really sell your services. Consider spending some time to present a better view to your potential customers. I would suggest getting your own domain, and link to imageevent for the actually ordering of shots, rather than linking to it directly. The comment in the wedding section about "checking daily" just reenforces the ametuer label.

Your prices look really low, presumably you are not making money off of these prints. As a potential buyer, that would say to me weekend warrior/ametuer, which may not be what you want to present.

I'm sorry if this seems negative, but it just comes off badly IMHO. Note, the idea of putting a picture in the business card has merit, I just think you need to step back at look at the view you present to the world. Remember you are in competition with other photographers, and if your initial impression to a client is not the best, the client is likely to go on to the next photographer.

Thanks for the feedback.

Geez! I'm getting beaten up here! LOL!

I thank all of you for your honesty and will work at pulling up my socks. I've been in a small market for many years, where casual is just fine — but have moved into a bigger market (while retaining the smaller one) and will need to work on my image.

I will likely be moving from imageevent for my paid gigs, as they take all the proceeds from printing and I want some of it. I was waiting for a Canadian site to open but haven't learned of one yet.
--
Barry

Barry Stewart said:

Thanks for the feedback.

Geez! I'm getting beaten up here! LOL!

I thank all of you for your honesty and will work at pulling up my
socks. I've been in a small market for many years, where casual is
just fine — but have moved into a bigger market (while retaining
the smaller one) and will need to work on my image.

I will likely be moving from imageevent for my paid gigs, as they
take all the proceeds from printing and I want some of it. I was
waiting for a Canadian site to open but haven't learned of one yet.

Click to expand...

Nothing says that you have to have the same business cards or website for all clients. For instance, if you take pictures of scantily clad young ladies or men, you might want to have a different website/card for that than for your traditional wedding clients.

When I started in the computer business many years ago, the president of the company I was working for was reputed to have two offices. If he was meeting with an insurance company, bank, or other end user, he would meet in the office with the chrome and leather, since that is what they were expecting. On the other hand, if he was meeting with an OEM who would be using the computer as part of their gear (such as CAT scanners), he would meet in a dingy office that didn't scream 'wasting' the clients money.

Hey! I realized I had a spelling error in my last cards too! Lucky I didn't order 5000 copies!

Here's a re-do of one of my card layouts, with suggested changes. Opinions?



--
Barry

I resized to to approx actual size and the writing seems to hold up OK.

The only things I'd leave out is the 'Freelance photographer since 1982' and the Internet photo hosting bit.

The first can be mis-interpreted and it's not usually associated with weddings. The second is not directly related to photography, so it may make people wonder whether you're a geek with a camera hobby, or a photographer with a geek hobby (my apology to all IT people here, but I was using a common vernacular).

Cheers

Ray

--
http://www.australianimage.com.au

Barry Stewart said:

Hey! I realized I had a spelling error in my last cards too! Lucky
I didn't order 5000 copies!

Here's a re-do of one of my card layouts, with suggested changes.
Opinions?

http://photos.imageevent.com/barstewart/forums/cards/websize/CardFlowers2.jpg

Click to expand...

I would redo the picture to one where the bride's face is visible. Thinking as a parent of an 18 year old daughter, I would wonder why the picture you are using to sell your services you focused on the bride's breasts. Obviously from a legal point of view, make sure you have the appropriate model release form signed by the people on your card.

Sorry if these seem nitpicky, but you want your card to sell your services.

Michael Meissner said:

Barry Stewart wrote:
I would redo the picture to one where the bride's face is visible.
Thinking as a parent of an 18 year old daughter, I would wonder why
the picture you are using to sell your services you focused on the
bride's breasts.

Click to expand...

Michael! I was focused on the flowers. What were YOU looking at? LOL! I've got tons of images to draw from, but that one is eye-catching. (My son was thinking along your lines too, BTW. Back to the drawing board....)
Obviously from a legal point of view, make sure

Michael Meissner said:

you have the appropriate model release form signed by the people on
your card.

Click to expand...

Good point, if there's a recognizable face.

Michael Meissner said:

Sorry if these seem nitpicky, but you want your card to sell your
services.

Click to expand...

--
Barry

Equipment in profile.

If you're going to have a business website, please get yourself a domian (and email). It only costs $8 a year, and your business becomes whole lot more presentable. You can also direct your domain to some of the image hosting services if you don't have the budget or the know how to host a website.

--
http://www.codycha.com

Barry Stewart said:

Michael Meissner said:

Barry Stewart wrote:
I would redo the picture to one where the bride's face is visible.
Thinking as a parent of an 18 year old daughter, I would wonder why
the picture you are using to sell your services you focused on the
bride's breasts.

Click to expand...

Michael! I was focused on the flowers. What were YOU looking at?
LOL! I've got tons of images to draw from, but that one is
eye-catching. (My son was thinking along your lines too, BTW. Back
to the drawing board....)

Click to expand...

What can I say, I'm a male.

A lot of good suggestions here. On the one with the bird on it, You should have the photo flopped so the bird is facing into the card, drawing the eye to the type information
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http://www.pbase.com/galleries/sasc