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Essentials Medium
Medium Format – The Professional Choice
As you dig through a box of old wedding photos, you may come across the negatives from the event. When you open them, you will realize that they look quite different than the negatives you had from your older film camera. These negatives are much larger than the 35 mm negatives you are used to handling. This is because the wedding photographs were captured by a professional photographer on medium format film.
What Is Medium Format Film?
Photographic film comes in several sizes, but the three main ones are large format, medium format, and 35 mm. Medium format film is 56 mm in height, and the width varies depending on the type of camera used. Any film that is taller than 56 mm is considered large format. In contrast, the smaller 35 mm film is 35 mm in height. Interestingly, medium format film cartridges were first introduced for the amateur film market, but soon became the standard used by professionals, and even in the digital world of modern photography, medium format images are still quite popular among professional photographers.
Benefits of Medium Format Film
Why do professionals choose medium format film? Because the film itself is larger than a typical 35 mm negative, as much as six times larger depending on the camera used, much clearer enlargements can be produced. When 35 mm film is enlarged, it often has grain and blur due to great difference in size between the negative and the resulting image. Since the medium format negative is larger, there is less difference in size between the two, and the resulting image has a smoother gradation and does not show as much grain as a similar enlargement of a smaller negative. Since most professional photographers take images with the intention of enlarging them, medium format is the better film choice.
Getting Film Digitized
Even though medium format film carries a distinct advantage over 35 mm film, it does have a disadvantage in today's market. The disadvantage is that medium format film is not a digital medium. The old negatives you have in a shoebox in your closet are difficult to share with friends because they are not digital. Professional photographers who use medium format film need a way to digitize the images in order to display them in a digital portfolio or on a website.
Medium format film can be scanned using specialized scanners designed to carefully handle these negatives and create a positive scanned image. The process begins with a careful cleaning of the negative to remove any stray dust or lint. Unmounted negatives are then placed into a glass film adapter that holds the image steady during scanning. Negatives that are mounted are loaded into a mounted film carrier. These negatives are scanned using high-resolution scanning equipment designed specifically for negatives. A typical flatbed scanner cannot accomplish this task and create a quality digital image as a result. Dust and scratch removal technology is essential to creating a clean digital image from a medium format negative.
Because medium format film is larger than 35 mm film, the scanned digital image will be more clear and crisp than the image that would be created by scanning a 35 mm negative. When larger film is combined with a high-resolution scanning equipped to handle medium format negatives, the resulting images are professional and perfect for creating a digital portfolio or simply preserving memories for a lifetime.
About the Author
BritePix offers a professional and comprehensive scanning service of photos, 35mm slides and negatives, as well as other film formats such as APS, Medium-Format, 126, and 110 film.
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How do I put together a media kit?
I would like to get my products featured in fashion and celebrity magazines. What is the best way to put together a media kit? The essentials? What makes a great media kit? Any pointers?
1. Cover the conventional basics. The balancing trick, of course, is to create an easy-access, handsome presentation that still encapsulates enough detail to satisfy serious interest. Essential elements in any kit are:
Company overview or history
Product or services sheets
Press releases — "not too many, three at most, and one should be have a new, fresh-minted date"
Key executive bios
Fact sheets or FAQs — typically industry or company background information or data.
Optional extras might include testimonials or product reviews, tips sheets that offer industry context or surveys, a recent article or trade write-up, a calendar of appearances or conferences if it's relevant and, perhaps, a list of media appearances or industry speeches.
2. Choose brand-appropriate, consistent packaging. You always want to match marketing materials to the personality of the company. If you produce chocolate chip cookies, don't settle on a sober Wall Street image. Find something light-hearted and delicious. The entire package should look and feel first-rate — not slick, mind you, but impressively put together, standout and solid.
There are several production choices. You can create materials for kits and other marketing with desktop publishing programs like Publisher. You can outsource the kit and other marketing needs to a graphics designer who works with your in-house marketer or copywriter. Or you can hire an outside writer and designer for the entire package.
4. Start a blog, feed it often and include a link to the kit on the blog home page. (For more on how blogs build business, see this story.
Kit is the key word. A kit allows someone to piece together parts in order to build something. In this case, you will be supplying all of the pieces an editor or media professional needs to put together an article, radio segment or TV spot about your business or product.
First, you’ll need a folder to hold the contents of your kit. Invest in a heavy-duty one, maybe even a glossy one in a bold color. The folder is the editor’s first impression of you, so make it count. If possible, put your name or logo on the front cover. This can be as simple as putting a high-quality sticker with your company logo on it.
You will also need a cover letter. Once again, use letterhead with your logo on it and paper clip a Business Card to the top corner. Your cover letter should introduce you and your business. It should also be addressed to a real person, not a generic title. That let’s us know you have done your homework.
The letter should then state why you are a good fit with the publication and say what department or section would be a good fit for an article about your product or company. For instance, if you want a photo of your new pet treats featured on the product page, say so, and say — in a sentence or two — why you should be there.
The cover letter is also a chance to tell the editor what makes you, your business and your product newsworthy. Newsworthy means why you are worth covering — if you make something no one else makes, if you are launching a new product line next month, if you are partnering with a local nonprofit— these things are all news. If you can link yourself to a national trend, then you are newsworthy.
You can use this opportunity to pitch the editor a story idea related to you or your industry. Busy editors are always looking for new fresh ideas.
Most of all, be sure your letter is no more than one page long and has no spelling or grammatical errors. Editors have no tolerance for bad spellers.
Inside the kit
If you have done a good job thus far, the editor will be compelled to open your kit and take a look at what is inside. They should find a CD-ROM and a well-organized package of information.
The CD should contain high-quality art, if it’s appropriate. Media is very photo intensive, and many worthwhile stories never see print because there isn’t a good photo to go with it. If you are an author, include an image of your book cover and a promotional photo of yourself. If you opened a store, include a photo of you amidst your offerings, a product shot and a good photo of the exterior of your shop.
But beware: have a professional or a skilled friend take the photos. Nothing will send you to the trash and make you look like an amateur faster than a crappy photo. For more detailed photo tips, check out the photo guidelines at the bottom of this page.
The information part needs to tell us who you are and what you do. I recommend sticking to one and two page vignettes on each topic. If it’s two pages, staple them together. You want to give an editor as many quick, easy to read, well-organized information access points as possible.
Include a page or two outlining your business, what you do, who your customers are and what sets you apart from others in your industry. Include a bio and play up experiences directly related to your business. For instance, if you are a single mom who started a store where other single moms can sell crafts to make extra money because you know how hard it is to make it, by all means says so. Stories like that get coverage.
And toot your own horn. If your book has been reviewed in the local paper, make a copy of the review and put it in your media kit. Include a one-page list of customer testimonials or of other media appearances. If you were on HGTV or a celebrity uses your product, we want to hear about it. But don’t lie. Editors are pretty good at finding out the truth and your reputation will be ruined.
Don’t forget to include plenty of contact information. You’d be surprised how many folks forget their phone number or email address. And always include your Web address. Busy editors often like to get more information about you online before they commit to a phone call or a feature.
Getting your media kit into the right hands
Before your drop your kit in the mail, remember the Cardinal Sin. If it is obvious that you have never read my magazine and have no sense of who our readers are or the kinds of articles we print, then you have wasted a media kit. Avoid this mistake. It’s the fastest way to end up in the trash. Take the time to do your homework; be confident your kit only goes to editors who are interested in people like you. By all means, do take risks and send it to the big guys, but do your homework so you can keep their attention.
And don’t underestimate the value of starting small. Start with the newspapers and magazines in your hometown. They are always looking for a local angle, and you may just be it. Even neighborhood newsletters: local papers mine those for leads. And in turn, good local coverage leads to bigger things. National publications search through local publications to find leads, too. Once you get those few stories or reviews written, media coverage tends to snowball. That’s exactly what you want to happen. It’ll build buzz for your business.
That’s it! Creating a good media kit is just that simple. Just never forget your mantra: make it easy for the editor to feature you. If you have convinced the editor you are newsworthy AND she has a disc full of art in her hand, you are more likely to get a spot in the magazine. And voila! You’ve made it easy for her to cover you.
Photo Guidelines
A good product shot means a clean, clear close-up photo or two of your products on a white background.
Include several versions of all photos on a CD-ROM packaged with your media kit. You will need one high-resolution photo —one that’s at least 300 dpi (dots per inch)— and one that is low-resolution, or about 72 to 100 dpi. Include a JPG and a TIFF format for each photo. (This will ensure your files are compatible with whatever programs the publication’s graphic designer uses)
Resolution is important. I can’t tell you how many people think we can simply pull photos off their Web site and use it in our magazine. Internet photos are low resolution. Print publications require high-resolution art and photos; low resolutions do not print clearly.
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