Dan Pink‘s invitation for all creative professionals to have a bias toward design has been ubiquitously answered.

From typeface to homes to furniture to websites to hospital rooms to bathtubs, both form and function are being considered at every turn. It seems like we’re in the golden age of design. Interface designers like the folks at Readability is one of my current favorites – for a quick primer, check out this video (and the post script at the very bottom)…

The ability to remove distraction to yield maximum focus is brilliant. It’s the same reason why I often use Omm when I’m writing. Since anything that’s scarce has more value, and since the ability to focus is so rare (mainly because of distraction), these kinds of well designed solutions are pure gifts.

All this got me thinking about design’s implications on mediums like photography.

When I think about the function of photography for example, I’ve always believed that the purpose of great images (especially of people) is to expedite the process of telling great stories. It’s why the cliché “a picture’s worth a thousand words” has such resonance. But what else? What if the image itself was more of a starting point – like a prop or a cue – to help get to an even bigger and better story… like great wine with a meal or a score to a movie… how might photography be designed to take a moment and make it even more functional and thus more powerful?

Annie Leibovitz‘s famous and iconic 1980 Rolling Stone cover of John Lennon with Yoko Ono, photographed five hours before his tragic murder is an example of what I’m describing. Of course, the image is impressive in and of itself. What makes it a launch pad for so much more though is the story that gets told from it. It’s as though the image itself was designed with form and function in mind… and as the drama unfolded, the value of the creation increased dramatically.

In a way, my example could be dismissed as unfair because a story told in retrospect is always easier to attribute meaning to it. But, I’m no less intrigued by the possibility of taking photographs with a designer’s bias… to imagine and compose and capture a work that expands what’s possible with a photograph (function) in a form that causes the audience to pause (aesthetic).

To me, it’s a compelling argument that validates Pink’s suggestion that a core ingredient to raising the bar for all industries (including photography) is to reframe our work not just as image makers but also as designers.

- Dane

PS… If you want to see Readability in action, click the red chair on a couple of these articles – it really makes reading a treat…

When I discovered I was included in The Domino Project’s most recent publication, I felt honored. The fleeting feeling passed quickly however when I began to consider the bigger issue at hand: Namely that there’s an urgency for all Professional Creatives to keep Poking the Box. The need is undeniable and entirely not optional!

This is an idea that simply must spread. Want to make your mark in the sand? Turns out there’s nothing stopping you. Make your own ruckus and see what shows up.

The publication itself (link below) is a collection of bite size snapshots from some remarkable people (this author notwithstanding), organized into a free eBook called SXSW Pokes.

From advertising entrepreneur Cindy Gallop to tech founder Loic Le Meur, from best-selling author Gretchen Rubin to professional storyteller C.C. Chapman, from eFlirt expert Laurie Davis to professional wingman Thomas Edwards. The eBook also includes Jenny Blake, Laura Fitton, Nick Reese, Sean Ogle, Becky Johns, Andy Drish, Steve Garfield, Rob Wu, Clay Hebert, Melissa Pierce, Amber Naslund, AJ Leon, David Spinks, Carla Blumenthal, Ari Greenberg, Jay Goldman, Nick Seguin, and others.

When you’re done, you’ll hopefully be left with 50 inspiring stories about taking initiative that are meant to provoke. It’s not enough to read ‘em though. It’ll then be on you to add your own. We need you.

*CLICK HERE* to download it for free!

C’mon… go ahead and poke.

- Dane

PS… Thanks especially to Amber Rae, the chief evangelist over at The Domino Project for including me. Amber’s a catalyst of rare proportion. I’d encourage you to follow her on Twitter. I have a hunch you’ll be glad you did.

New Year’s URL

Stuck already just a few days after your WPPI resolutions (and only two months since New Year’s)? Me too. Which is both silly and inevitable; I earn part of my living helping people get unstuck. This suggests that I should be unstuck myself. Not so.

Some people feel stuck in bad jobs or without jobs. Some feel stuck in unhealthy relationships or bodies. Some feel stuck in a general, all-encompassing rut. That’s my kind. A friend recently pointed out that knowing me is like knowing someone who’s constantly facing off with January 1, making resolutions all year long.  As proof, she pointed to my promiscuous habit of buying urls.  It’s true that whenever I’m feeling stuck, I brainstorm until I have an idea/grand vision that I think will change everything, then I buy a url to match it. I call these Zuckerberg moments.

In the last two years, I’ve had about 40 Zuckerbergs. At around $10 a pop (the average price for a url these days) this little habit could cost me upwards of five hundred bucks soon. And what has it bought me so far? A mixed bag of total duds, unrealized potential, and a handful of remarkable surprises.

To wit, recently, I found myself seated in the back row of my church in Costa Mesa, California, chastising myself for business myopia, when I started to think about how to make money off of our Airstream trailer, parked (and under-utilized) in a storage lot ten miles away. Despite caring a good bit about charity and hope – the stuff of our family’s church – the unrepentant serial entrepreneur in me won out. Hotelairstream.com was born right there, a site where my silver bullet trailer can be rented to locals looking for a retro good-time. Without any promotion whatsoever it’s been featured on AOL Travel and The Today Show. God loves resolve…Most important, I am no longer stuck feeling like an entrepreneur with one sail.

Of course, the duds are more plentiful.  Last year I bought PhotoMadeSimple.com, a website to help soccer moms use and understand their fancy-pants cameras and “smart” gadgets; then Illumizoom.com, a web application that cross-references aggregate social media feeds and shows commonalities between seemingly unrelated people (think six-degrees-of-Kevin-Bacon, only without the need for a celebrity); and then MakeYourDayYou.com, an Internet TV show targeting brides who want to make their wedding days unique.

Don’t bother checking those urls out. I’ll sit and wait for a second spark. But I love them no less for sitting. That’s the beauty of this exercise, which I offer to you with relish. Unlike most resolutions, this one requires no guilt if it goes nowhere. Buy the URL, then walk away when a better idea comes along. The Internet won’t hold it against you!

After co-producing eight episodes of the aforementioned MakeYourDayYou, I jumped ship for something I called AskDane.com. Ask Dane began as a series of comedy shorts in which I made fun of myself while educating photographers about some aspect of the photo business. After 24 episodes back in early 2009, I transitioned the site into a free weekly talk show at Fast Track Coaching with me and photo industry leaders (and beyond). It’s now sponsored and I’ve published over 100 episodes. [In fact, Seth Godin is my guest this week. Don't miss it!]

But again, the duds usually do win out. TenacityTV.com, a reality Internet TV show pitting 10 contestants in every major city (ten-a-city… get it?) to see which role in the fabric of society has the most stick-with-it-ness (are fire fighters really more tenacious than plumbers, secretaries and CEO’s…?). WorldIQChamp.com, a site that invites individuals and groups of individuals (think Fantasy Football) to take legitimate IQ tests to see how intelligence correlates to success (global rankings would yield an annual and all-time “smartest person in the world” champion). Photopedia.tv, a wikipedia for visual learners.

Failing has never been so fun!

By laying claim, like a virtual land grab, each Zuckerberg has a chance to take root and grow. This is, if it isn’t obvious, my antidote to the collective empty gesture toward change (a.k.a. new years’ resolutions). Instead of a shopping list of wishes (…lose weight…kiss wife more…get job), what is really needed on January 1 (and on every day following it) is an investment to go with our grandiose and humble visions. Intentions are cheap if they don’t cost us something.

By next week, I will feel stuck about something else; you likely will, too. That is our human, or perhaps, American lot. But, now, for just a few bucks, there is relief from the unbearable need to change.

*Viva Las Vegas Special*

Beyond your genius brainstorms, I thought it might be helpful to share a few more resources your way. My best efforts to help people make a jump with their business are the products below. I thought it might help to extend the WPPI Show Specials for an extra day too. The following deals are good for the next 24 hours…. dot com.

*CLICK HERE* to get to the store… add the codes below on checkout to get the deals listed on the menu.

Use these codes (in brackets) to get the deals…

• Fast Track Photographer (wppi11_ftp)

• Fast Track Photographer Biz Plan (wppi11_bizplan)

• Audiobook (wppi11_audio)

• Book Bundle (wppi11_bundle)

• pDNA (wppi11_pdna)

• bST (wppi11_bst)

• Vision Casting (wppi11_vision)

• Forums & get B School for free… click *HERE* and use (FTPBSCHOOL2)

• Roadshow 2.0 (wppi11_roadshow)

• The Works (email us & we’ll set you up!)

**To qualify for all the awesome prizes from the amazing folks at Triple Scoop Music, Pickpic and WHCC simply tweet this post with #askdane in the body of your message! The drawing will happen next week.

Music & Imagery were made to go hand in hand. When put together well, I can’t tell whether its the high fidelity or the photographs that move me more. In truth, it’s both together that make the sum greater than their parts.

But as a photographer, finding great music without being tempted to lift it from the Internet is a challenge. Same thing for musicians finding stills or moving photographs I’m guessing. When Triple Scoop Music came along though, that all changed. They shifted the game fundamentally so music and photographs could play without anyone being cheated. Plus, the price/song is so inexpensive relative to any other commercial option, especially when you consider the unlimited use rights that’s included.

So, when my friend Roy Ashen (my guest this week on Fast Track Coaching) asked me if I would be willing to hand pick some music for a new collection from TSM, I was totally stoked. Thankfully, Jennifer Herbig (TSM Audio Queen) held my hand through the process and opened my eyes to a whole new world of creativity. The  selections I landed on really inspire me. I’m hoping that when you combine them with your work, they will open up a whole new level of connection for you and your clients.

I’m thrilled to be giving away a free copy of the entire new collection at my WPPI U talk this Friday night.

Also, if you’re at WPPI, swing by TRIPLE SCOOP MUSIC BOOTH #920. They’ll have the entire collection at every one of their listening stations at the trade show.

Here’s a list of my song selections with some descriptions for use:

I hope you love them!

- Dane