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Sunday, December 28, 2014 - Tampa Bay Photography and Design Blog Post by Chris Passinault

Mosaic Class schedule. Ramping up business operations. Curtain Works and Phantom Shootouts to be rebranded. Drone update.

I have a few opinions in today’s “news”, so I elected to make it a blog post, instead. A new blog post is overdue, anyway. Enjoy.

Mosaic Class web site deployment schedule.

Starting out, the mass production and the deployment of the fleet of Mosaic Class marketing and support web sites should, and I repeat, should begin sometime in January 2015 (I know, I should not even say or announce anything at this point because of all of the delays. I, too, am sick of the endless announcements that I am making, but it is time to do something about it). There were obviously delays. The delays, however, were due to outside projects, such as Tampa Bay Film and Frontier Pop.
Once deployment begins, too, it will be at 50% of what was originally planned, to free resources for the construction and the maintenance of other projects such as web sites. This means that, instead of a deployment schedule of 6 months, ending in the Summer of 2015, that deployment of the fleet of Mosaic Class web sites will now take just under a year, to end in late 2015, although the main web sites in the fleet will be fully operational in the Summer of 2015, and they will be everywhere; remember that we will be building and deploying one every two weeks, or two per month. There will be more than enough web sites by Summer 2015 to give everyone out there who is trying to compete with Aurora PhotoArts some major grief. 2016, on the other hand, will be far worse for them; it will be a nightmare.
I have been working with some professional models lately, too, and I am toying with the idea of building and deploying Mosaic Class web sites for two of them, which would be Stephanie and Paulina. I have not yet decided if I will do this, however, for a number of reasons and conflicts; the main reasons would be that I do not want to use front line Mosaic Class sites to show the work of other photographers, and front line web sites are usually restricted to exclusive first party use and banned from being used for second and third parties. In other words, I would not usually sell a Mosaic Class site to a client (Although the Mosaic Class site was designed back in 2011, and has been in development for the past three years, now going on four, it is still considered to be a new web site design, despite the development of its 4th Generation successor, the Aurora Class, now underway. The Mosaic Class will be fully operational in 2015, and the Aurora Class will probably be deployed sometime in 2017, as the Aurora Class is still in the conceptual stage, though the Mosaic Class is literally a web site designed for a 10 year operational service life which could end up being a 14 year web site taking into account the development time; The Mosaic Class will be in front line service for at least five years, which means that the Aurora Class won’t actually replace the fleet of Mosaic Class sites until at least 2020, and it is possible that the Mosaic Class web sites will be in front line service until 2025. The Venus Class, the predecessor of the Mosaic Class, and the main one which is still operational at the primary marketing and branding domain names of TampaLooks.Com and AuroraPhotoArts.Com, was designed in 2005, which means that the Venus Class was a 10 year web site; the Venus Class was a very effective web site, too, along with its stripped down Huey Class web site. By the way, both of those domain names will be switched over to this main Mosaic Class web site in January 2015, and the existing Venus Class site being used at the current operating domain name is scheduled to be replaced by a new Mosaic Class web site in 2015, as is the one under Passinault.Com; there are currently two Venus Class web sites online, to be retired from front line service in 2015, and if I can get the issue with the centering code sorted out with the Venus 3 variant, I will be selling those sites to clients for their use, as the Venus Class has a great track record. One reason that we took our time in developing the Mosaic Class was because, unlike the Venus Class, the Mosaic Class was designed to be mass produced, which meant that all of the details had to be as perfect as possible so that mistakes would not be replicated along the entire line and make fixing the sites a major, expensive project down the line. The Mosaic Class site is a front line, highly advanced late 3rd Generation marketing and support web site which was designed using proven concepts and technologies, designed to be cost-effectively mass produced and maintained, and which is actually expendable, which would be like making a couple of thousand F-22 Raptors and not caring if a few were shot down along the way. There will be so many Mosaic Class web sites, in fact, that it really won’t matter if we lose a few along the way, as no one will ever be able to find them all and get them all penalized. Not that we will be doing anything wrong to deserve getting penalized, however. That said, to the average user, they will think that the fleet is all one web site, as the sites, although each one actually being different, will look the same; they will be frustrated that that “one” site keeps coming up at the top of most search inquiries for photography and other relevant searches).
Regardless, the deployment schedule would be slow at first, too, because I have to build a Spectacle Class stealth web site for an ongoing Aurora PhotoArts business program, as well as a web site for the modeling jobs program. The modeling jobs program web site was almost completed back in July, but someone bought the planned domain name just before I was ready to. As a result, the almost completed web site was launched anyway under an alternate domain name with the same keywords (just to burn whomever bought the domain name that I was set on using), because the content was keyed to the planned domain name, and then left adrift on the Internet; it is up now, but I am not going to link to it. Ironically, due to advanced developments, the information on that first web site is already outdated, just like the information on Tampa Shootouts, a web site which I will talk more about later on in this blog post.
The modeling jobs program is important for the long term business goals of Aurora PhotoArts and the network of modeling resource sites which I have. Aurora PhotoArts will be a leading supplier of modeling jobs, legitimate modeling jobs which would pay professional models, in the Tampa Bay area and in Florida. Obviously, too, I would not require any professional model to buy anything to be considered for these jobs, nor would I market with these jobs in order to lure the models in to sell them something. This is how scams work, and I am not a scam. I will not use deceptive marketing to get business, and I will not sell things to models as a requirement for them to be “considered” for the jobs (Go ahead. Test me on this. I’m ready, and I will not be caught doing anything wrong. You see, unlike those scams out there, I know what I am doing. I can make money without running a scam, and even if it were tough to make money doing something, I would never resort to running a scam. If anyone claims that I am a con artist or that I am running a scam, it’s really unfair, because I am not doing anything wrong, and I demand that they prove it. I will ask “why?”, and I encourage others to ask questions, too, so that they can qualify their slander; don’t be surprised when they can’t prove their allegations, and that their lies and misguided, petty opinions are exposed for what they actually are. Just because I am smarter than my opponents does not make me a con artist, and just because they can’t compete with me does not make what I do a scam).
So, how will I be able to sell modeling portfolio photography services, talent headshots, and other support services to models and talent, which is my primary market and the speciality of my company, AND also offer modeling jobs, without it being a conflict? Well, I have figured it out, and I can legitimately and ethically do both; being in the position to offer paying work to models and talent, too, will cripple local modeling and talent job scams by offering a professional, ethical, legitimate alternative to what is out there, especially since what is out there are not really jobs. I won’t go into how online, however, because I have no interest in teaching others, including aspiring competitors, my solutions; I am not in business to teach those who aspire to compete with me, nor future competitors, the business.
Notice, too, that I am not acknowledging that I have any current competitors. I don’t, in my opinion and according to my research (I won’t when I start making independent films, either. I will explain why in my next blog post over at Tampa Bay Film, once I get the new blog going and updated regularly). No one does what I do, nor can they (and this goes way beyond photography, too, as photography is only one facet of something much more complex and intricate. I am all about the full package, and about offering the best value in relevant services. Sure, there are better photographers out there, but I am one of the top photographers in this market, and I am THE best choice for modeling portfolios and talent headshots, which is something which I specialize in and which I have proven time and time again over the past 12+ years leading the Tampa Bay market in these services. I offer much more than just photography, though, which means that I do not have competition, especially since most “photographers” out there have to settle for less, which is what they actually are able to do, by shooting weddings, consumer portraits, events, and lurking in the shadows of events such as faux fashion modeling events. Just wait until I show up at the events, too, and then they can be intimidated by a real professional photographer for a change). No one else does what I do. It is my opinion, too, that some “photographers” who aspire to compete with me are idiots, and that they will be their own undoing (although going up against me would be far worse, which is why most of them don’t even try. They may not know much, but at least they have the sense when they are outmatched and know better than to go up against me). What they do and try to do simply bores me, even worse, what they do is bad for models and talent, and none of it comes close to competing with me on any level. Jonathan, Darryl, Kevin, Michael, Anne (the trouble-making “photographer”, not my model friend), Kyle, Koopa, Dewayne, Alex, Michelle, Larry, XZanthia, Pedro, Robert, Mark, Amy, Ron, Neil, Sophia, Jennifer (I was at an event recently, and someone said that she, too, was a photographer. I rolled my eyes and said “If she says so”) several others, and even Jose, I am looking at you........ I have no respect for any of you, and you are all, in my opinion, idiots; it is also my opinion that you are all unprofessional and cannot be trusted, and that some of you are unethical (I am at the point where I tend to avoid photographers who name their “companies” after themselves. You don’t see me calling my business “Chris Passinault Photography”, do you? Why is that? Why is it called “Aurora PhotoArts”? Why is my second photography company a different name? Because I know what I am doing, and know all about branding. Those guys don’t, obviously). Many of you also try so hard to work with models and talent, which annoys me, and you ruin them with your “work” (I don’t want to work with many of them after you are done tainting them. I will not work with models such as Jillian, Krissa, Angee, and several others over the B.S. that I have seen the past few years, and some models whom I have met in the past three months are also models whom I will not work with, as I consider them tainted, especially after the unprofessional way in which they have behaved. Remember, models: I call the shots, and I decide whom I will work with. If I have issues with you or with the people whom you associate with, I will NOT work with you, and that will be a bad thing in the future because I will have the jobs which you will want to book. I could care less if these models decide that they don’t want to work with me, as well, because it is their loss, and in the future, when market reality forces them to change their mind, it won’t be up to them. I decide! So, am I afraid of these models getting mad and about them hurting my business? No. Consider my target market; that is all that I am going to say, as they are not my target market for what I am selling). I am very much looking forward to watching all of you give up and go away..... All of this has happened before, and it will all happen again. After all, what happened to Rick, Doug, and their gang of photographers, as well as “photographers” such as Jayson, from a decade ago, “photographers” who could not compete with me? Where are they now? They all gave up and moved on. In contrast, I am still here, with the experience of defeating them enhancing me in the present.
Of, course, with the modeling and talent jobs which I will be offering, many of these characters will no longer be able to operate, because I will have worthwhile jobs which actually pay. This is another reason why the modeling jobs program is so important.
Which reminds me. I have to get the new modeling jobs site up in less than two weeks. In the past few days, over Christmas, there have been a lot of developments on that front, as the modeling jobs program has expanded to be a talent jobs program, although most of the jobs will be for models.

Ramping up business operations

Although I have been booking photography work in modeling portfolios and in talent headshots consistently since 2001 or so (it happened gradually, and I could not tell you when my first booked shoot was, as this all evolved over the years with the paperwork hanging in there; things just happened), the real master plan for Aurora PhotoArts, which began development in 2007 leading up to the crash of the economy, went into a hold with further development in 2008, and then entered development hell in 2010 while I continued to book shoots as I have in the past, is about to be unleashed.
2015 will be a very interesting year, and Aurora PhotoArts, a market leader for over a decade, will become an undisputed photography and business superpower and an industry leader, no longer limited to leading the Tampa Bay market.
Aurora PhotoArts is being rebooted, and some elements of that reboot began showing up in 2011. New marketing and support tools will come online in the coming weeks, and the master plan will undergo a full rollout in January 2015, with everything expected to be up to speed by the end of January (Update 02/02/15: Delays with Tampa Bay Film and with Frontier Pop have delayed this. I have a lot going on. I expect this to be rolled out and up to speed by Spring 2015, however. I can afford to wait, and do things right. I am not rushing this).
Our successes in 2015, with many of our claims proven to be true, will attract the attention of a lot of others.
With the anticipation that others, such as photographers aspiring to compete with us, will try to figure out how we do things, our new security measures, built into every aspect and facet of our new business, will be in place to protect us from being plundered. This, too, is a lesson that we have learned over the years, as a over decade ago we began catching “photographers” stealing from us, which made us wonder if they were legitimate or not (well, obviously, stealing is wrong, so they did prove that they were unethical and that their clients could not trust them).
Likewise, situational awareness is something that is built into our business model, which is needed when we will be actually running the entire market itself. We will keep an eye on all of the players, as well as the wannabes, what they do, whom they work with and associate with, and will deal with issues as we identify them. We have been conducting ongoing operations in the market since 2008, and in 2014, these operations have increased in frequency as well as effectiveness. We have even begun running emergent pattern studies which have been accurately predicting what the players in the market will do long before they do it, and these patterns have been so successful that, in November, we cancelled a shoot with a model because we knew that she would work with a certain “photographer” who was on our watch list; we can now effectively predict the future. Several weeks later, our prediction came true, and she worked with that photographer; something which was not a result of us cancelling working with her, as she would have done so regardless of if she worked with us or not. Another prediction that we will make is that opportunities for that model and “photographer” will diminish in 2015 as several hundred factors which we influence come into play. This is but one of many examples.
Our ongoing situational awareness strategy also readily identifies, logs, and cross references the weaknesses of others in the market, as well as their strengths, putting us in the position of leveraging our assets so that we play to our strengths and position others to play the game on our terms. We know exactly what buttons to push, and we do push those buttons.
Just remember, people, we were here, first, and we figured out all of the details, the conflicts, and the interactions over a decade ago. Respect the master before you attempt to do whatever it is that you are trying to do, primitives. With so many of you acting as if you discovered fire and with you trying so hard to reinvent the wheel, there really is no reason for your presence in the market. You can’t compete with us, you know it, and you just need to give up and quit. Do you really think that you have more to offer models and talent than we do? Keep dreaming!
Remember: Why do not merely just run a business. We run the market. We also believe that business is war, and our business is engineered with that mindset.
Oh, and what’s this...... Could it be that we have a second photography company, with new, powerful branding, emerging in the market in 2015? This company is designed to prey upon the competition, too, so things will get really interesting.

Curtain Works and Phantom Shootouts to be rebranded.

This is something which went into high gear about a month ago.
Basically, it is the same game with a different name, but is much more advanced, with many processes dramatically improved, such like we did with the successor to Tampa Shootouts.
Tampa Shootouts came into being back in 2011, after years of research and development. Well, the past three years have been really interesting, and what is now up on Tampa Shootouts is outdated compared to what we are working with, now. In fact, if someone were to take what is up on Tampa Shootouts and try to compete with us with that, they would not be able to. What we are working with now is vastly superior.
It was decided to retire the Tampa Shootouts branding, salvage and further develop the many great ideas which came about from the program, and bring things up to the level where they need to be. Tampa Shootouts, it was decided, however, will be left online as a relic of that development, at least for the foreseeable future.
We needed new branding with the updated concepts, too. We decided to eliminate the term “shootouts” from the branding, too, as it has a negative meaning which often has nothing to do with photography, photography events, or with what we will be doing. The Athena Shootouts and one of the other programs were also expanded into stand-alone properties and branding.
So, Tampa Shootouts is currently closed, as it is outdated, a relic of the last generation of event properties and concepts, and successful as a development program instead of an actual event series, which was not intended in the beginning, but which worked out fine.
The new event properties will be revealed in 2015, as resources from Aurora PhotoArts and our other talent resource assets support a rather interesting symbiotic business. The old Tampa Shootouts consisted of a total of four web sites, two of which have now gone offline permanently (a waste of two perfectly good Pioneer Class sites) . The new ones will consist of three web sites and a total of five domain names. Those monthly photography events? Well, those will be scheduled as-needed, and should average about once per month, with the option of going monthly if we decide to.
One of those new web sites will be for the replacement of Curtain Works and the Phantom Shootouts, as those brands will be redone. The research and development program formerly called Curtain Works will be called a different name, as a secret ongoing internal Aurora PhotoArts research and development program along the lines of which has already been described on this blog, but more advanced. The program will be executed in secret photography events which were formerly called the “Phantom Shootouts”, and which will now be called something else; this all directly ties into and is related to the successor of Tampa Shootouts.
As it was said before, no other photography company in the world with have the research and development program, or the investment into such a program, as we will.
Quite literally, this will make Aurora PhotoArts one of the top photography and design companies in the world in the next few years, with capabilities and resources that no one else can even approach, which will be a nightmare for many in the Tampa Bay area attempting to compete with us, and will put many of them out of business.
Speaking of research and development.........

Drone update

Development of our drone programs has evolved dramatically since the last update on this blog in September of 2013. As of now, December 2014, we still have the programs previously described, such as the stealthy, long-endurance RK-2 Ghost, as well as other type of drones, which include rotor drones and drones which don’t fly, including drones which do it all.
With rotor drones, developments have been particularly exciting, as we bought our first rotor drone, a small quad rotor, and have been experimenting with it, as well as learning to fly it, since the Spring of 2014 . We have designed a high endurance, heavy lifting rotor drone with an array of lighting and retractable landing gear. We also designed a high speed tactical rotor drone, a fighter drone, as well as a much larger tactical drone expanding upon the design, a drone which will become our flagship rotor drone aircraft. This drone will be about ten feet in length, has four main 18 inch rotors, weighs about 50 LBS, can fly for up to an hour, and can fly itself using GPS waypoints, as it is a programable “true” robotic drone. This drone is highly maneuverable, and flies at high speed, as well, and can be flown as well as fly itself (This drone will cost about $5,000.00 per aircraft, and I plan on building a fleet of between four to five. Watching these drones fly at high speed in formation will be impressive, as well as intimidating to the “small fish” “drone” operators out there attempting to share the same airspace with their turn-key, “toy” DJI Phantoms; these drones will make a Phantom Vision 2 look like a cheap toy, as well as its successor, the DJI Inspire; it will be vastly superior to the heavy lifting professional drones out there in the same price range, too, and will make them look like cobbled-together tinker toys).
We also designed a high speed tactical stealth drone called the Peregrine, which has tricycle retractable landing gear for take-offs and landings, direct and ambient lighting, and can maneuver at high speeds. The Peregrine is so stealthy, in fact, that it can hover silently a few feet overhead without being detected, because it flies silently (our large tactical drone can’t do that, and neither can the smaller fighter version). Like most of our drone projects, the Peregrine is designed low/ high observable, with a low observable design platform which can instantly be configured, in-flight, for high observable characteristics, which is important for operations such as showing the flag, or in flight modes where we do not want others to be able to analyze the true capabilities of the aircraft. The Peregrine is extremely classified, and one reason that it is so secret is that we will have to file a patent on it; You are lucky that I am even revealing the name and some of what it can do.
We have hybrid drones, too, blending what we have been working with with what we have learned. We have drones which can fly undetected for hours, much like the RK-2 Ghost, in an active standby mode, and then can quickly fly off to other areas to intercept and engage other drones as needed, either unseen or seen, depending upon what is needed and what we decide to use it as. Unlike the Ghost, which is a tactical reconnaissance stealth aircraft, this particular drone would be a highly maneuverable, fast fighter designed to overwatch a large area and then intercept other drones if needed (obviously, I am going to be as territorial about airspace as I am about the market. These wannabe’s with their cheap drones need to go away and leave the airborne work to the professionals. As far as anyone else trying to challenge my drones, well, I am not at all concerned about that, especially since my drones can outperform them and I will have integrated assets working in concert to protect my assets).
There are more, too, but we can’t go into that now, as some of our drones are secret, and many will never been seen or observed by the public. For the drones, we are currently working on an organization, and perhaps a business, which will develop, build, test, and mass produce these different types of drones (I already have one web site up to support some of this). Eventually, we will command the largest private air force in Florida, although, as we have said before, the drones are not limited to ones which fly. We are working on drones for security applications, drones which operate on the ground, and drones which operate on and below the surface of water, as well as drones which are not limited to these types.
With that, I bring this blog entry to a close, and leave you all to imagine, and wonder...........
Indeed, if I were to allow those who aspire to compete with me to see just what they are up against, they would give up and quit.

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