elkinsphotos fine art photography Interview Name of your website?elkinsphotos fine art photography Your name? LarryElkins Your Location (city, etc) Bisbee 85603 Please give us a short summary of your website? My site consists of several specialized gallery pages, my biography, ongoing photography tips & an ongoing photo journal. The galleries fall into several categories including nature & wildlife photography, travel photography including images from a recent shoot in Ecuador, tasteful fine art nude images, landscapes and a photo essay on a vintage base ball game played at the historic Warren Ballpark in Bisbee Arizona, the oldest full sized ballpark in the Ubited States,~~ What inspired you to launch your own website? I had a desire to share my photographs with a wider audience. I also hope in time to build the site as a marketing tool for selling my work. I am retired from a career in public service. Photography has been a great hobby. Now that I am retired, I would like to Build it into more than that. My hope is that over time I can effectively build the elkinsphotos website and multiple blog sites into effective marketing tools. When did you launch your first website, and what was it? Elkinsphotos was my first site. I launched it in March of this year. How did you decide on a name for your website? I wanted a name that would be short and simple, would include at least my surname and would encapsulate what the site was about. What makes your website different from other, similar offerings? I would hope that there are some unique aspects to the site. I have tried to keep it simple and easily navigable. It is free of flashy bells and whistles and in addition to the galleries contains other useful info. I plan to soon add two additional pages relating to Bisbee Arizona, a guide to photographing Bisbee and a Bisbee shopping guide. What is your eventual goal? (To sell it, keep it for income, secure a book or other mainstream media deal?) As I noted earlier, I hope to develop the site into an effective marketing tool. I also simply enjoy sharing my images and insights with as many folks as possible. How does your investment of time and money balance against your success? That's rather subjective. I lose money. That' alright though. I have my work in a gallery in Bisbee, and I have the website. So I sell my work. However, for me it's the fun And opportunity for adventure. In early 2010, I'm scheduled to shoot in Southeast Asia. I'm also planning to shoot later this year at a game preserve in Arizona. The reward from my investment is not primarily monetary. If you had an unlimited development budget for development, how would you change your site? I'd probably change everything. I would be trekking the world. I'd have a huge website in order to share my work and I wouldn't have to worry about cash flow. If your site got really big, really quickly, would you be able to keep up with the demand? Well, I'm getting an online shop soon, After that there shouldn't be a huge problem, though I would probably have to hustle a bit. What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with? The website has been more expensive than I envisaged and it's been more costly to draw attention to the site than I anticipated. Surprise, surprise. What has been your biggest challenge? Getting attention. What method has been most successful for promoting your website? Getting on quality website directories. Really. There is a lot of useless junk out there though. There are a lot of sharks in the water. How has running your website differed from your expectations? It's been pretty much what I expected. I have a person who manages the site for me. However, I find myself becoming increasingly involved just because it's so interesting. How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity? Hopefully for a long time. I love sharing my love of photography with other people. You mentioned Bisbee Arizona. How does your location relate to your website? Bisbee is an historical old mining town that has mutated into a funky arts community. It is also a paradise for travel photographers. The town's unique architecture and fascinating history make it a magnet for photographers as well as other artist types. It's a great place for a photographer to be based out of. Besides, I was born and raised here. What is your website address? elkinsphotos fine art photography | 
