Barcamp Vancouver 2009, from a first-timer’s perspective.

Those who know me know that while I do possess in me some knowledge regarding the tech scene, I am not exactly an avid partaker. In short, events such as Barcamp Vancouver are simply not my cup of tea. After having attended this one, however, I might just participate in similar events that allow both tech-industry enthusiasts and creatives to get together and mingle. I had my doubts about this one, particularly during the mixer the night before the main event; everyone seemed to know each other, I had absolutely no idea how to represent the company I work for, I was lacking networking accoutrements such as the all-important business card, and it was way too dark and too loud to really hold conversations with anyone. I could not stay for too long because of this, so I left promptly after a good two hours of roaming around the venue trying to figure out what manner I should approach people. That night was a disaster – for me anyway (nevermind the fact that bars are not exactly my scene either).

The main event was as nerve-wracking as the night before, initially, that is. Fused Network has sponsored the event by paying for lunch, and having had my share of troubles getting to the venue in the first place (via public transportation and cab service), I was extremely lucky to have made it in time to represent Fused Network during the roll call for sponsors. Then came the sessions. Those who wanted to lead sessions were asked to line up, give a 30-second introduction about the talks they want to lead, and were subsequently assigned a time-slot and a room to hold their sessions in. I happily snapped some candids by the time this was taking place:

As I surveyed the board I was quite taken by a few topics of discussion that piqued and highlighted my interests. The sessions I attended in that roster were all related to photography, in one form or another. I took part in the morning photowalk around Discovery Parks’ vicinity, where I happily basked in my element. Quite a few photographers showed up for this session, all twenty of us (give or take), armed with everything from compact cameras to phone cameras to some of the best digital SLRs on the market. It was definitely a great start to my Barcamp experience.

(Tangent: I would have happily crawled through one gaping hole on that chain-link fence leading to the parked trains, but I was honestly not dressed to do some trespassing. Imagine heading back inside with a disheveled business-casual suit and mud sticking to my heels! Now that I think about it, I probably should have done it anyway – it would have made for a more dynamic set of photos. Oh well!)

The post-processing session that followed the photowalk took place right after lunch. I enjoyed that immensely. In this session, two popular post-processing applications were highlighted – Aperture (for Macs) and Adobe Lightroom (for both Macs and PCs). While Photoshop will always be my go-to program for post-processing, it was nice to be able to look at the demos on Aperture and Lightroom. We had very open discussions on post-processing techniques, as well as a little presentation on black and white film developing, led by Michael (@thedarkerside). His talk definitely rekindled my love for film, and it was also during his talk that I found myself piping in with questions and comments in regards to my experience with the medium (given my all-nighters playing around with printing in the darkroom at the University of Toronto!).

Perhaps the most relevant and informative session I attended at BCV09 is ‘Freelance is NOT free work’. An open forum led by academic, Dr. Raul Pacheco Vega, the group discussed well-known qualms that come with doing jobs for non-profit organizations, friends, families, and close associates, for pay that is almost always less than the amount of work you end up doing for them. As a freelance graphic designer put it [in regards to working for non-profit organizations you heartily support], “I do not want to have to burn bridges with the community just because I feel I should get paid fairly for the amount of work I do.”

With the exponential growth of new media and various social networking realms, it is easy to get caught up in doing jobs for free, most especially if it promises “exposure” for the freelancer in question. The fact of the matter is, the freelancer treats these clients very much like he or she would treat an actual paying client; this also means dealing with set deadlines. Where does one draw the line between doing things for exposure and doing things for pay, especially for someone who wants to develop a steady clientele over time?

The perception of opportunity is the Venus flytrap of the freelancer’s world. I myself, have been victim to this several times over the course of my year since having graduated from university. Below are three major points I picked up from the session:

• Outline times. You must provide your prospective client with information on the amount of time it would normally take to complete the allotted task. Decide on reasonable and fair payment based on the hours spent for the job. Outline terms of the job at hand on paper, if needed; this makes things official.
• Your skill is a business. In no way should you, as a freelancer, devalue your work by doing something for “cheap” when you yourself believe in your talents. When dealing with non-profit organizations or friends who cannot pay you much for your services, make certain both parties benefit from your work. Ask them to write testimonials you can put on to your site as a means for you to advertise your talent and reliability to future clients who will come your way. Also, if the opportunity for paid gigs ever comes across your friends or these non-profit organizations, make sure to have them direct these gigs over to you. These deals work purely in a symbiotic manner, so if you do not take that initiative to promote yourself in that way, it will become extremely difficult to establish your clientele over time.
• Change impressions! If companies see that you have done most of your work for free, this devalues your skill. This, of course, is common sense to all freelancers. If this is in fact, your case, showcase these jobs in such a way as to highlight the skills used behind the end product. These “free jobs” then give off the impression of paid work. Utilize those client testimonials in conjunction with your portfolio.

You can view more of my photographs from the event here and here.

To sum it all up, I learned lots and met amazing creatives in the process. And of course, it always feels fantastic to be able to participate in my element, photography.

Thanks for the opportunity Fused Network!