Friday Happy Hour: Photos Posts on Fridays Get 53+% More “Likes” On Facebook

A great roundup of Facebook stats highlighted photo posts as the most engaging, with 53% more likes than the average post. So next time you have a new blog or shoot to promote, remember to add the photo!

7 powerful Facebook stats help you create more engaging presence

Did you know that photo posts account for 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook? Or that they receive 53% more likes, 104% more comments, and 84% more click-throughs than text posts? An awesome roundup of Facebook stats by Buffer (an app to help you share content and get insights on social media) shows that photo posts are most effective – good news for photographers!

Also good to note: engagement peaks on Thursdays and Fridays, so save your most important content for those two days. Plus, shorter posts (under 250 characters) gets 60% more engagement. Get all the findings here.

 

4 steps to creating an effective photography website

You don’t need a completely custom website to have an effective online presence. In a specialty post for the Boston Photography Focus’s blog, PhotoShelter Co-Founder Grover Sanschagrin outlines 4 key steps to creating a successful photography website. Step #1? Define your audience – Grover says that many photographers build sites for “themselves”, i.e. photographers, rather than getting input from actual customers and clients. He also suggests optimizing your site for SEO (which means good on-page text), a simple but user-friendly e-commerce system, and responsiveness (built for various screen sizes and devices). Grover points to several examples of sites he thinks fit the above criteria (spoiler alert – they’re all on Beam!), so check out:

• Corey Hendrickson, Wedding Photographer
• Rowan Sims, Fine Art Landscape and Travel Photographer
• Gregory Cannon, Portrait Photographer
• Inger Lexkacz, Music and Wedding Photographer

Nikon Professional Services can diagnose and repair a Nikon D4 in 20 minutes

Nikon Professional Services (NPS) recently released a video to show how quickly they can diagnose and repair a Nikon D4. The service technician in this video is working with a camera that was used on location at the FINA World Swimming Championships in Barcelona – total repair time was 20 minutes and 42 seconds. (via Nikon Rumors)

Capturing the life of Serengeti lions

National Geographic wildlife photographer Michael “Nick” Nichols spent two years capturing the daily life of lions in the Serengeti. Since lions actually sleep most of the day to preserve energy for hunts after dark, Nick used infrared lighting that’s not disruptive to lions and produces black-and-white images. He also used a small robot to get up close and personal with the cats. “Lions are very efficient animals, so they won’t expend energy unless they see you as a threat,” says Nick in his field notes. “We got very close, but we never interacted.”

Nick was also documenting the experience via Instagram:

Conflict photography workshop aims to help photographers prepare for danger zones

There are photography workshops for portrait photographers, fashion photographers, and food photographers – but what about conflict photographers? They arguably need the most training and preparation for the hostile environments they plan to enter. So Pulitzer Winner Javier Manzano and five times World Press Awards Winner Eric Bouvet got together with Martin Middlebrook and Jason P. Howe to develop the Conflict Photography Workshop, which takes place in Spain this November.

“No professional soldier is sent to war without extensive training. Photographers who operate in exactly the same battle space without any training, experience or proper preparation put themselves in increased danger and potentially put others around them at risk also.”

Participants will receive practice training in Battle Field First Aid Drills and IED awareness, as well as editing, captioning, and ethical behavior in the field. Learn more here.

Photos of temporary shelters made by illegal immigrants

Netherlands-based photographer Henk Wildschut has traveled extensively to Calais, Dunkirk, Malta, Patras, and Rome capturing shelters built by illegal immigrants en route to Britain. Most are coming from Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, and Nigeria. All hope to find a better life in Britain. In the meantime, they create a temporary homes with subtle instances of domesticity. (via Feature Shoot)