Through the Lens with Carolyn O’Neill March 27, 2010
Posted by admin in : Bangkok, Business, Networking, photography , trackbackWhat brought you to Bangko
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When I lived in Hong Kong as a trailing spouse, I traveled here many times, had many friends here and always fancied the idea of living in Bangkok. Three years later I found myself back in the States and at the end of my marriage, I decided this was the perfect opportunity to try something completely different. I knew it was a place where I could live comfortably without spending a fortune and I sensed there were many opportunities here for building my family portrait business and continuing my documentary projects. Plus, I’d be back in SE Asia, which I had missed very much!
As a newly single woman moving to a foreign country by myself, well I can tell you that it felt like I was about to climb Mt. Everest with flip flops on! I really was scared, but at the same time very excited about the potential that lay ahead. It was impossible to deny the excitement of building a new life for myself around this new-found passion of mine and the opportunity to do it in SE Asia – a place I loved. I’m still amazed and extremely grateful to be living here and doing work that I love everyday.
How did you get started as a photographer?
As a youngster growing up in California, there was always a camera of sorts in hand. Those little instamatics with the flash cube on top! In school we would make pinhole cameras out of shoe boxes and make contact prints. I even recall early on explaining to my mother the benefits of candid photos vs. posed ones – which I think she may have taken too literally now that I look back on those photographs!!
Somehow though, life took me down other roads and I found myself working behind a desk, married and about to start a family. When I stopped working so I could focus more on building my new family, I picked up my camera again and started playing around taking portraits of children and pets and doing my own darkroom printing. My own children never came, but during that time my love for photography, and portraiture in particular, was reignited and evolved quite naturally from there.
As a freelance photographer, what is key to developing your business?
Well-targeted advertising and good, consistent branding are obvious keys and worthy investments of time and money. A successful photography business also relies heavily on referrals. I’ve found clients won’t hesitate to refer me to their family and friends if they received excellent service and a high quality, creative product. There is nothing cookie cutter about my work or the way I approach my client relationships. Each one is special and I go out of my way to make sure my clients know I appreciate their business.
Equally important is to network and continually expand and build new relationships within the community as a whole. This spurs a natural synergy within the community that in turn leads to more opportunities and even some wonderful and unexpected surprises like the teaching and excursions side of my business. I never set out to do that, but by listening to what clients and friends were asking for, I realized there was a need for such a service – it’s been a very successful and rewarding part of my business!
For those of us who like to do photography, which camera would you recommend and why?
I always tell people to consider first and foremost how they will use it and how they will carry it. If you are looking for ease of portability, then you should stick to the pocket-size models which now produce amazing results considering their size and portability. If you are at all thinking you might like to pursue photography as a serious hobby then you should consider a digital SLR model that allows for interchangeable lenses, RAW file capabilities and more manual control.
I’m personally very much into Canon products, however, in the pocket camera category there is also the Lumix, Panasonic brand that looks very good for that genre. If I were to buy a pocket camera today, I would go for the Canon Powershot S90. If I were to buy a “pro-sumer” level digital SLR, I would look seriously at the Canon 7D with incredible HD video capabilities as well.
The other best advice I can offer is to read all the online reviews you can find! www.dpreview.com is a great place to compare brands on every type of camera.
Any tips for settling in and getting connected in the city?
The network of friends I made when I first arrived in Bangkok became an integral and important resource while I was trying to settle in and get my business going. I think everyone remembers when they were new in town and so it’s delightful to find people so helpful and full of good advice! I also found the opportunities to meet new friends here far exceed any other place I’ve ever lived. It constantly amazes me and it feels so effortless to meet people from all walks of life here. There’s an incredible amount of quality networking, socializing and volunteer opportunities out there. You can locate these associations online or in the ever-helpful “Bangkok Guide” book (the bible for people who have just moved here) quite easily.
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