Talking PhotoShelter with Mom, Photographer, and Yogi: Dina Bustin

Before being the professional behind the camera, Dina Bustin was working as a retoucher in New York City for some of the most high-end fashion and beauty clients in the industry (such as Tiffany and Prada). Not only was she familiarizing herself with retouching still life photography, she also had the opportunity to work with some of the most prestigious photographers’ work of our time, including Annie Lebowitz, Patrick DeMarchelier, and Steven Klein.

“I was fortunate enough to work with some of the most influential photographers in the world, and worked on covers of magazines such as Vogue, W, Allure. During that time I learned so much about photography just from being exposed to such excellence in the field. The retouching experience I gained is invaluable to me, and today I treat every image in post production as if it’s going to be on the cover of Vogue,” explains Dina. For her, it’s more than just the image that needs to be professionally polished, the delivery and buying process for her clients needs to be seamless too, which is why she’s chosen PhotoShelter for all her client transactions.

Dina Bustin

Now based in Livingston, New Jersey, Dina began photographing families, weddings, and yoga instructors in 2003. “After I had my first child I became one of those moms who was obsessed with taking photographs of her baby.  Each time I posted images online, people would ask: Who took those photos? Did you hire someone? Can you put me in touch with him or her?” From there, Dina knew she was onto something. She dipped her toe in the water with a few neighborhood moms, photographing their children and her own to build her portfolio.

Dina Bustin’s PhotoShelter homepage

Dina made her first print sale within two weeks of setting up her PhotoShelter website and has been on a roll ever since. Prior to PhotoShelter, Dina would go through the “song and dance, back and forth” of getting prints to her clients. “We had to discuss which images they wanted, what size, what kind of paper, and more, and then I would go through my files, print them and have them shipped to the client.”

Today, however, all of Dina’s prints on photographic paper are done through Photoshelter with our integrated print partner BWC. “I can’t even begin to tell you how much better the print process is for me now, and all of my clients have been extremely happy with the quality of prints.” For Dina, PhotoShelter is her “complete e-commerce solution.”

Print options for Dina’s clients

Full time mom, certified yoga teacher, and photographer, Dina’s got a full plate – so she likes to keep her photography workflow as simple as possible. Uploading her images straight to the Listed on Website section of her Image Browser, Dina prefers to use the PhotoShelter LightRoom plug in, which is where most of her editing occurs. “If I’m heavily PhotoShop-ing an image, I’ll upload that individual image using the PhotoShelter Web Uploader after my batch upload via the LightRoom plug-in.”

Dina makes most all of her client galleries password protected so that her images stay private and are for only the client to view. “I’ll make public galleries of my favorite images for my website’s homepage, but otherwise, all my content is protected.” From there she’ll use the PhotoShelter email notification tool within her Image Browser to notify her clients that their images are up and ready to order. Dina also watermarks her images with her own personal and tasteful uploaded watermark to make sure no one’s swiping images off her site.

Password warning for clients on Dina’s site

For Dina, PhotoShelter was the only way to go. “I love that it has made my photography business run with much more ease. It has taken a ton of pressure off of me regarding ordering prints. By providing templates, it was also so easy to layout my website in an attractive and professional way.  I love the look of it.  And finally, I’ve seen so many great photographers that have inspired me who also use PhotoShelter.  I would have never have come into contact with any of their work had I not been a member of the site.”