Category: Journey

Introducing a whole new look and feel…

 The Administrator   Journey

In case you hadn’t noticed, theLightMatters.com has had a big and very long overdue makeover.

The old version was ok but looked very dated and didn’t work too well on mobile devices. (Well, the site was created way back in 2009 and technology has moved on a lot since then)

What’s new…

  • Cleaner, contemporary design
  • More responsive design to give the reader a better experience on handheld devices
  • Less clutter — the sidebar has been pruned to remove all the junk
  • New search feature to make it easier to find stuff
  • Higher contrast interface to make it easier to read
  • Clutter-free print layout

…plus a whole bunch of other stuff under the hood too.

There’s more to come too as  we work on rationalising the business and making the 2017 strategy come alive.

We can’t do it without you though…

That’s right — we need your input. Let us know the type of content you’d like to see by leaving a comment below. We can’t promise to deliver it but we’ll definitely give it a go.

Speak soon,
Gavin

Happy Birthday – 6 Years as a Photography Business

 Gavin   Journey, Musings
Photography Business 6 Years Old -- Happy Birthday

Six years ago my photography business was born…

…I was sitting in an ‘All Hands’ company meeting with my employer, Nokia, in London. I’m sure you know the kind of event I mean. It’s the one where the company brings all their employees together so they all hear a piece of news at the same time. It’s usually bad news too: a big redundancy announcement, closure of the business or something else that the employees need to hear first hand rather than learn through the press.

This meeting was to be a large redundancy announcement. I’d been forewarned by one of my sources a few weeks earlier so thankfully I’d had time to think and prepare if he turned out to be correct.

He was.

How it all began…

As I sat there my mind started racing. Today was a decision point. Continue reading Happy Birthday – 6 Years as a Photography Business »

Know your value, know your costs – Professional Photography

 Gavin   Business, Musings

Perhaps the biggest challenge you’ll come across as you move into professional photography is working out how much to charge for your services. This is crucial to your success. Much more so than your photography I would argue for the simple reason that if you’re not profitable you’re not going to succeed as a professional.

Before you even begin to think about how much to charge you need to understand two things: Continue reading Know your value, know your costs – Professional Photography »

How to become a professional photographer – Invest in yourself

 Gavin   Business, Journey

In the 4th part of my series on how to become a professional photographer we’re going to discuss investing in yourself. If you’re embarking on running your own business, especially if you’ve not done anything like this before, you’re going to benefit from educating yourself in the art, the craft and the business. Continue reading How to become a professional photographer – Invest in yourself »

Guildford photographer awarded Entrepreneur of the Month

 Gavin   Journey

For immediate release

Last Tuesday Gavin was awarded the title of Entrepreneur of the Month for May 2013. This was the second time he’s won this prestigious award by the local Entrepreneur’s Circle group, the first being November 2011. On this occasion it was for the innovative use of off-line and dynamic on-line marketing tools to capture client details thereby growing his customer database.

At the meeting on Tuesday, Gavin commented that he was “surprised and privileged to have won the award for a second time. The Entrepreneur’s Circle is a fantastic organisation. It’s taught me so much about positioning my photography business over the last 18 months.”

Gavin runs Gavin Thorn Photography, based in Guildford, Surrey. He specialises in photographing people whether it be a high fashion editorial, CD cover, family portrait or Executive Headshot. His work has been published internationally and last year he was featured in British Vogue. He was trained by some of the biggest names in contemporary portrait and studio photography in the industry today, has worked with some of the finalists from BINTM and was previously the house photographer for a London model agency.

Gavin lives in Guildford, Surrey with his wife, Karen, and two children. He is available for commercial and private commissions and can be contacted via his website, http://gavinthorn.com