Free Learning Opportunities Abound

One thing that's been happening
is the heat. These geese know

where to go.

I love learning. I had a goal to do a Marketing class online, and I did it. Marketing was relatively easy for me because of my psychology background. However, today, without the help of any free resource whatsoever, I learned a very quick and practical lesson: I learned that PST is three hours later than I thought it was - well, if I'd have noticed that the online "Selling Your Work" webinar said PST and not EST, I would have known it was going to be at 2:00, my time, and not 11:00. So really, I learned to read more-carefully. But now I have a few extra minutes to write about what's been happening around here.

To put it simply, I've been very busy just soaking in information. There are so many free resources out there for learning about business and about photography. The Metrix classes have been great so far. I have been taking notes and being serious about every word, so I am learning a lot. I have completed three business-related classes and am now working on my first photography class.

Another good resource for learning about a photography business is Zenfolio. I'm waiting (sheepishly) for my 2:00 EST (11:00 PST) webinar on selling my work on Zen. I hope they also incorporate bringing in Facebook and other tools to strengthen exposure to my "business". I'm very tempted to shell out $120 to upgrade my Zen account so I can make a profit from selling prints there, but maybe I should wait until I actually sell a print - or better yet, make back the $40 I spent on the more-basic account that I already have there. Maybe I can sell a few things before the August renewal date comes up.

The last free-learning mention of the day goes to Cambridge in Color. This is an amazing website that has tutorials on just about every photography subject imaginable. The guys who put it together are professionals and are visible in the forums, setting up contests and just generally being helpful. This is my go-to site for learning about my camera and photography in general.

Speaking of Cambridge, I am off to see if the private message waiting for me is from them. I asked about them offering a calendar showing their various contests. I want to start entering them, not just on Cambridge, and my global learning style begs me to have a more-centralized listing so I can find what I need easily.

More on contests later. Meanwhile, check out my Zenfolio page here.