Green photography! Huh?

I am sure that by now everyone heard the “GO GREEN” phrase many many times!

Many years ago the world was made aware of the global warming phenomena. It took a long time before real and practical solutions began emerging. Now there is a flourishing “going green” trend in response to the issues arising from global warming.

Nowadays, companies are proposing specific solutions to people who want help protect the environment. Supermarkets encourage re-usable bags instead of the plastic bags. Car makers are developing hybrid cars. The eco-minded restaurant businesses buy local and seasonal food. Then there’s the organic food movement, natural birth movement, and many other trends, which are either truly eco-minded, or just claim to be so with clever marketing strategies.

Now, what does all this have to do with ShutterPoint and the stock photography industry you ask? Easy! Images assist marketers in conveying the message through advertisement and you, my friend, is the photographer who provides the visualization for a specific message.

You have a tough job ahead of you because the “go green” trend images are mostly conceptual. Yeah there’s the new green growth coming out of soil image, which is excellent visualization, but think beyond the obvious. How do you illustrate the benefit of using re-usable shopping bags? How do you show that less driving yields less air pollution? Illustrate recycling?

The people are finally realizing how important our planet is and want to make an effort to take care of it. We need to come up with commercial type imagery to help designers convey specific ideas of what can be done to “GO GREEN!”

I am sure that a solid “green concept” image, when used commercially, is a step toward a greener environment on its own.

Got any ideas? I hereby give you a title of an official treehuggerographer!

The 4th of July Theme Contest

July 4th – The American Independence Day. This is a very patriotic holiday in the United States. Flags are everywhere, parades, barbecue parties, and of course fireworks. One woman told me recently that she loves this holiday so much that her anticipation and preparation efforts are comparable to what many people do for the Christmas holidays. Many people enjoy all the festivities and of course the imagery that can be associated with this holiday.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to this contest! The five winners will be awarded with 500MB of additional storage space and a one year storage extension (extension will be added to the current expiration date) on ShutterPoint.com.

The winners of the ShutterPoint July 4th Contest are:

Mike & Connie Mosteller for “Historic Signing”

Gianna Stadelmyer for “A United Nation”

Bruce Becker for “American Flag and Eagle”

Paul Cavill for “November 5”

Jennifer Ralston for “For the Fallen”

Congratulations to winners!

PS: Gianna, another win for you and people might think you work for ShutterPoint! Dear members, Gianna does not work for us – she is just an awesome photographer!