A year ago, I announced the 1st Annual Tiffinbox Award. That award went to David DuChemin, a Canadian photographer whose passion for the industry is imbued with his craft and vision.

The 2012 awardee is no stranger to the business of photography. He runs a successful photography studio in New York City. If you look at his work, I am sure you will be struck by how his wedding photography transcends the obvious. Beyond simply documenting an event, the images are heartfelt and genuine.

His understated but confident presence among his peers, inspires those around him or who have come in contact with him. He teaches other photographers through his blog, Ground Glass, and his workshops, which he unapologetically calls, “I Will Make You Suffer.”

The 2nd Annual Tiffinbox Award goes to Spencer Lum.

Spencer exemplifies this award for being more than an expert photographer. He has a deep and authentic concern for the industry and is willing to chart a course that runs counter to popular trends. While that may make him appear like a maverick, the industry is in great need for revolutionaries like Spencer. Photographers – new or experienced – easily mesmerized by poseurs and “rock stars,” will find that Spencer talks the talk and walks the walk. Read his blog posts or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

Here are some of his recent blog posts:

Do your clients trust you or are you just clicking a button?

You Are Not A Misery Sponge

The Secret of Success

If Everyone Is A Photographer, What Makes Us So Different?

Power To The People – Put Your Clients First

A Case For True Authenticity in Photography

Here are a few images to give you a taste of his work:

Please join me in congratulating by friend and colleague Spencer Lum. Feel free to post your comments below.

Angela Pointon loves photographers and artists. She studied photography, but had a love affair with business and marketing. She decided to combine all three together when she started Steel Toe Images. She coaches and inspires photographers and other artists to kick major butt through her one-on-one sessions, blog, emails, workshops and her first book (coming soon), called “ A Swift Kick In The Pants: Business Smarts For Us Creative Types”. Follow Angela on Twitter, Facebook or her blog.

I’m here to prove one thing and one thing only: that every photographer and artist can be a good businessperson, too.

You probably haven’t led dozens of successful businesses.

You probably don’t have an MBA.

Heck, you barely consider yourself a businessperson at all. An artist? Yes. A business person, sales person and marketer? Humph.

But guess what? I’ve got good news.

There is an undeniable truth that you might not know. There is a secret the world has been hiding from you until now. There is something so unbelievably amazing; you’re going to smile when I tell you. Many really awesome artists who earn loads of money aren’t trained or academically educated in the fundamentals of business, either.

So how do they do it?

There are four things that an artist must have in order to be a good—no make that great—businessperson. And the very first thing is the most critical element you must have: Gut Instinct.

I’ve got more good news for you. We all have gut instinct.

We all have something innate in us that tells us what decisions are good, and what decisions are bad. You can choose to listen, or you can choose to ignore it to the point where you don’t recognize or even hear it anymore.

So what makes some photographers successful and others not so much?

Understanding how to listen to your gut instinct, how to decipher between instinct and fear and how to make wiser decisions in your business using gut instinct is the most critical measure of whether your business will succeed or not.

Join me on Wednesday, September 19th from 8:30 – 9:30PM east coast time for a FREE live webinar to learn all about how to listen to, understand, and utilize your gut instinct. Can’t make it on that date? Register anyway and we’ll send you a recording of the event whether you attend or not. Space is limited. Reserve your space and register now.

Want to really kick some butt? Join me for the entire series of four webinars where you’ll learn about each of the four critical elements you must have in order to succeed. Learn more and find out how to register here.

Angela & Tiffinbox are combining forces on a four part webinar series starting in September 2012. Learn more here. All money raised goes to support Tiffinbox.

Today's featured photographer and guest blogger is Appleton, Wisconsin based Brett Stoddart. He shoots abandoned buildings. He shoots people. Sometimes he combines the two. He is a husband. A father. A traveler. An art and music lover. He says he has a wicked sense of humor, albeit an odd one. Check out his blog. Follow him on Twitter and or friend him on Facebook.

I have only been ticketed once.

I have only met a crackhead once.

I have only had an assault rifle pulled on me once.

Wish i could say the same about falling through rotten floors.

What would drive a person to put themselves into these situations? The answer is simple yet complex.

It is a love for capturing unique situations, locations, architectures, and going places most others would avoid at all costs.

My photographic passion involves exploring abandoned buildings. Modern parlance calls this urban exploration or urbex for short – though that is not a term I tend to throw around, mostly because urban encompasses only a small portion of what I capture.

These structures are the modern day equivalent of Greece's ancient ruins, or Europe's medieval ruins. While the rest of the world protects their treasures of days [eons even] gone by, we tend to reclaim, remediate or flat out knock down these treasures.

While most people would just see the decay and filth, I see beauty and uniqueness that only time and nature can create. These are my own little slices of ‘life after man'. I see first hand what happens when man no longer intervenes in nature's affairs and spaces are left to be reclaimed by their rightful owner.

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As a kid we thought nothing of going into old buildings that were no longer used. It was just another playground in the concrete jungle. We didn't know that there were risks and dangers. We were fearless. In college we would hang out in abandoned mines and think nothing of it. We were having fun and shrugged off the thought of danger.

Today I am a lot more cautious. The dangers are real; clear and present if sometimes unseen. Lead paint, asbestos and mold are among some of the ‘unseen' dangers. Some of the more apparent being rotten floors, unstable stairs and missing walls. All of these are equally dangerous in reality and one must protect themselves. Many of these buildings are 100 or more years old and have been subjected to the decaying forces of nature for 20 years or more.

I cannot pinpoint one singular event in my life that sparked my interest in exploring and photographing this subject matter. Rather, it was many small things that culminated and brought me to my present position. I was never without a camera and spent many hours on the road driving thru rural areas to and from work, never taking the same way twice, just to break up the boredom. Old farms and barns offered unique landscapes that I truly enjoyed.

I had always been attracted to textures, lines and colors and these old structures had them all. From there I was starting to notice more and more houses, farms, buildings, factories, etc., that were wide open and empty. Curiosity piqued, I ventured up and into them camera in hand. The interiors held more colors, more lines and more textures along with small little crusty details; peeling paint and wallpaper, forgotten furniture, electrical sockets and switches, clothing, etc.

I started out documenting these locations through a photojournalistic approach, taking it all in and showing everything. Eventually I transitioned into creating fine art from the ruins. Over the years my style has evolved and has been heavily influenced by a bevy of talented photographers before me, most notably my close and dear friend, Dave Jackson.

How exactly I find these locations is a question I am asked over and over again.

The answer: getting out and driving. Taking the ‘road less traveled'. Often new highways have cut off access to older areas, thus hastening the decline. It is important to take your time and look. If you are speeding down a country road at 80 miles per hour, you will miss most of what you pass. Winter is a good time for scouting, as everything is less concealed and it is more obvious when a place is no longer cared for.

Another big aspect is networking with other photographers and explorers – we trade locations like young kids trade baseball cards. And of course the Internet is a great resource tool if you know how and where to look!

Now I travel far and wide to see and shoot unique locations across the country. My first priority when planning any trip is finding abandonment to shoot. One could call it an obsession. I just call it a love of photography, and a slight case of eccentricity.

Shooting these types of locations has afforded me a greater appreciation of the technical and compositional aspects of photography. I have learned over the years to see the light as it plays across a scene. I never artificially light my scenes, rather I rely on the natural light. Everything is hand held as I prefer the grittiness that a higher iso gives me.

I was shooting abandonment for many years before I ever pointed my camera at a human subject. The last few years I have ventured into shooting portraits. I love combining the beauty of a fashion shoot with a dirty and decayed location. To me it is the perfect juxtaposition.

I will never stop shooting abandoned buildings, no matter where my photographic journey takes me. It has become that much a part of who I am as a photographer.

Do you photograph abandoned buildings? Does the urban landscape inspire you to create images? Share your thoughts below!

Ferina Santos is part of the team behind Open Colleges, Australia's provider of photography courses. A feisty nerd at heart with an obsession for media and vanity, she captures all her random musings with daily photographs in her blog, A Pink Banana.

“Sorry, but you just don’t have enough experience.”

As a photographer just starting out, you’ll probably hear that kind of thing a lot – I know I did! The problem is that art galleries and publishers are afraid of wasting their time with someone who’s not ready, and regular people who would hire a photographer are doing so for things like weddings and other special one-time events, so they really need to believe you can get it right the first time.

What you need is to start building a reputation and finding people who will recommend your work. But how can you even get to that point? How do you start to make a name for yourself if no one will give you a chance?

There’s no one way to make it in photography, because no two photographers are the same. Do you want to go the more artistic route and try to make it into galleries and publish books of your work? Or are you more interested in just providing quality professional shots and making a few bucks?

Either way, what I learned the hard way is that there are several common things that every budding photographer needs. And by the way, if you’re having a problem with people dismissing you because you’re too young, there’s a way around that, too.

Figure out who you are as a photographer. This is one of those things that sounds super simple and incredibly hard at the same time, but it’s important to decide (to a certain degree, at least) if you’re going to have a focus or just shoot whatever interests you. Having a focus (say, you shoot events like weddings) can help when you’re trying to get hired by people because you should have the specific kind of photos they are looking for and that will help them to see that you can do what they need. Speaking of which …

Build a portfolio. If there’s one way to “prove” to people that you can do it, it’s by actually doing it. Don’t be afraid to take chances, and never give up on a particular kind of shot or subject just because one shoot doesn’t go well. Unless you just know that you’re going to be a wedding photographer and that’s it, the best thing to do is take a wide variety of shots (of anything that interests you) so that you can show your range.

The nice thing about this, too, is that you can pick and choose what you show different people. Up for that wedding job? Here are your photos of people and events.

Be an apprentice. Want to learn a lot and make a great relationship that can potentially help you a lot? See if there are any working photographers who would be willing to show you the ropes in exchange for you essentially being their intern. If you find the right person and they like your work, this can be a fantastic way to start getting jobs and building your reputation if they throw a few jobs your way.

Work for free. No one wants to do work and not get paid for it, but when you’re starting out, unfortunately that’s often the reality. Instead of thinking about it like you’re not getting money you deserve, looking at it as training and getting your name out there. Doing a few free jobs is one of the best ways to get portfolio-ready photographs – and meet people who may actually want to hire you for pay in the future!

Take a class. Just like becoming someone’s apprentice, deciding to take a class can help you to improve your skills, learn new techniques, and forge helpful relationships. Not only will you be meeting other people who share your interests and might know about jobs or other opportunities, instructors can often be great resources. Much of the time, they are photographers themselves, and may be able to take you under their wing or introduce you to other professionals who can help.

Let your work speak for you. So now we come to that whole age thing. If you’re fresh out of college – or even younger! – you’ve probably been told that you’re too young or too inexperienced, but think back on those situations where this happened. Did you approach someone in person or lead with your personal history?

If someone has the option of hiring a baby photographer (meaning you’re young, not that you photograph babies) or getting someone with a decade of experience, chances are they will go with the person who’s been working longer. That’s why you can’t start by talking about yourself. If possible, mail in your portfolio or start a website and post it online so that people can see your work first.

This way, they’ll see you first as a photographer and judge you by your work before they even think about age and how long you’ve been working. Most people, if they see evidence from your portfolio that you can do the work, won’t even ask how old you are!

What would you add to Ferina's list of suggestions? Chime in below!

This is Angela Pointon‘s third guest post on Tiffinbox. Read her first post and second post too. Follow her on Twitter and don't forget to scroll all the way down to sign up for a special event with Angela.

Arguably, visual artists are able to see the work of their competitors easier than any other industry in the world. You waltz onto their website and boom. There’s their latest stroke of brilliance.

Do you poke around the competition’s websites from time to time?

If your competitors are making a big impact using their creativity and their own marketing skills, and it’s killing your morale and confidence, I’m here to help.

There are two critical things you’re learning by looking at your competition. You just don’t realize it.

1. Blending In More.

The only thing looking at competitor sites will do is cause you to be MORE LIKE THEM. The world doesn’t want more of them. They want to be able to find unique differences between businesses. The world actually wants you to be more like yourself. Because if you’re more like them, then why should a buyer choose you over them when you’re practically identical? You have untapped talents to offer the world, and we need to start exploring and strengthening those talents.

2. Morale Deprivation.

You are your own biggest critic. Rather than cultivating a defeatist attitude by seeing things they’re doing that you’re not, challenge yourself daily to do something new… something more creative than you did yesterday. It will cause you to be introspective and to grow your own creativity. Most importantly, it will boost your self-confidence because you did it!

Limiting yourself by judging your own success against the competition is stunting your creativity’s future potential. The more you can be yourself, the more you can look at yourself, the more you can challenge yourself… THAT is what will make your business shine.

Register for a rare webinar with Angela Pointon.

Tiffinbox is presenting a rare chance to register for a three-part webinar series. Angela of Steel Toe Images will present A Swift Kick: Three Things Every Photographer Should Know About Business. Space is limited and will sell out. Learn more and register.