Has anyone ever used a digital picture frame in an outdoor show? I have successfully used one with indoor shows but have not been able to use one in outdoor shows because of the lighting--(too bright to the pictures). I was wondering if anyone knew of a box or screen or anything else I could use to fix this problem.
Thank you very much, Susan Parry
Comments
I still haven't figured it out for an out door show either. It's frustrating.
I also thought the digital picture frame would be great for customers to see fabrication, new pieces, features of Argentium SS, etc. Bought an anti-glare screen for it, but it was just too difficult to see. Tried adding shade...nothing works. I would still like to have a presentation in the booth, but have given up for the moment on digital.
I've been on TV a few times and I have that on my DPF as a way of lending credibility. It works great for me at indoor shows.
I make jewelry using acrylic paints. I catalogue & number every piece I make, and display photos of each piece in a photo album. There's a column beside the photos where I write colours used, and who (if) the piece was sold to. (That's a great tool). I like the idea of the digital frame, but from the comments, I guess I'll stick with the album. It's interactive and people can pause and look at detail when they come across something they like. I've used it MANY times when a buyer saw something they liked but wanted a couple of different features.
I purchased a digital picture frame also, thinking to show what I've created in past years. Prior to that, I had my portfolio album of designs. People do get caught up in the album, but walk away after viewing. I've not gotten the digital picture frame up and running yet. It seems the more feasible thing is to engage one's customers by eye contact, showing what one has created, a difficutly here or a great idea there. The jury is still out on the digital picture frame though. I wonder though about the lighting for it and where it should be placed in my booth.
I bought a digital picture frame for just the same reason. I used it last season, then never again. People were lured to it like moths to a flame, then walked out of my booth without looking at anything else. I also tried to only pull it out when people asked questions about my process, but for some reason the digital frame didn't keep them engaged. I had a much better response to simply explaining without the pictures. My advice is to skip the digital frame and stick with the book - it won't hypnotize people like a TV.
I use a picture book too, but the reason I want to use a digital picture frame is that I want to show some of my work in progress. I like for people to see that I really make what I sell and that I'm not a buy sell. People often ask me "how do you do this?" and I'd like to be able to point to the picture screen. The few times I did that in an indoor show, it lead to sales. I've never seen a screen cover/monitor like the one Larry mentioned and I think I will look to buy one. If it works, I'll let you know. Thanks for writing me.
It is very difficult. I tried the picture frame, to small and most people didn't even notice it. Then I tried a laptop with a 21" monitor attached to it. Only one person made mention of it all day long. The problem is that I have skylights on my canopy...way too much light. Also, if is a sunny day, most people these days are wearing UV sunglasses and they probably will not take them off when they walk into your canopy. This will make it harder for them to see the screen.
I ended up just creating a cheap picture book with all my photos and used it as a catalog. I had a few people go through the catalog instead of waiting to get home to look at the website. Did it increase sales? Not really. I am going to use the catalog for my last 3 shows this year. But not sure if I'll do it again for next year.
Larry, Thank you very, very much!!!
It probably won't be usable in an outdoor booth situation because of the overall brightness of your canopy roof. Difficult to control, but you can try to angle it down to the not so bright area of your booth. Or consider using something like a lens hood or monitor hood. Here's an example of what they use for laptops on location:
Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100