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Jim Jordan Photography
New information management vistas open for world-class photography firm with the introduction of FileMaker Pro 7
Business challenges
Jim Jordan spends most of his time behind the
camera, and a typical day might find him jetting off to some remote
and exotic location for a shoot with Leonardo DiCaprio, Alicia
Silverstone or Robert Redford. His business is founded on his
distinctive approach to fashion and celebrity photography, but his
company is diversifying into other aspects of the business as well.
"We're constantly growing and expanding," says Jim. "We have a
staff of employees and agents in New York and Los Angeles, as well
as a team of technicians who maintain my digital archives, and my
film and commercial libraries. We also represent several other
photographers, as well as hair and makeup stylists, wardrobe
stylists, and prop stylists, under the name of White Cross
Productions."
All those enterprises serve an impressive list of clients, and
generate a vast amount of data - contact information, work notes,
production orders, and invoicing, as well as the actual photography
itself. And a comprehensive tool for keeping track of that data is
essential to the smooth functioning of the organization. "I was
introduced to FileMaker Pro as a contact database," Jim recalls,
"and then, several years ago, I met James Manley, who was on the
consulting team for the Smithsonian Institute, and who told me how
the Smithsonian was using FileMaker Pro for archiving and image
retrieval."
This conversation opened Jim's eyes to what he calls the "infinite
possibilities" for the use of FileMaker Pro in his own business,
and before long James Manley was working for Jim Jordan Photography
as his post-production supervisor - delving fully into the
construction of a full-scale FileMaker Pro database system.
Successful solution
The result was six comprehensive databases,
covering every phase of the business, from contact management to
work tracking to image storage and retrieval, to agency followup to
legal releases and documentation.
The Digital Rights Management database is especially valuable,
allowing rapid access to image files for clients of the company's
stock photo service.
"A client might call us from Europe," Jim explains, "and they
might say "we're an ad agency working on an account for an
international cosmetics company, and we would like to see some
images of female actresses. Particularly Charlize Theron." They can
go into my database using a web access code, and they might say 'we
like images number 14, 22, 67, and 28.' We can call up those images
in our database and check if there are any restrictions on them or
if they've been sold to other client. And if they're available, all
the pricing is keyed right into the database."
That Digital Rights Management database is also significant in
that it's the first database at Jim Jordan Photography to be
developed native to FileMaker Pro 7 - marking the start of a new
era in sophisticated information management at the company.
I think what FileMaker did was very smart, to allow options for importing a database. You have three options - you can bring in the data with no changes, you can make the new database '7-like', or you can go the whole hog. It's really up to you.
James Manley, Post Production Supervisor, Jim Jordan Photography
Customer benefits
Migration of the existing databases into FileMaker Pro 7 proceeded
smoothly as well. These earlier files had been constructed in a
combination of FileMaker Pro versions, including 5, 5.5, and 6, and
James was concerned about the potential complexity of the migration
process. But he says he's pleased with the range of migration
options offered in FileMaker Pro 7, options which allow the user to
tailor the process to the specific situation. "I think what
FileMaker did was very smart," he declares, " to allow options for
importing a database. You have three options - you can bring in the
data with no changes, you can make the new database '7-like', or
you can go the whole hog. It's really up to you. It's something
that requires a lot of thought and preparation, and careful
planning - but overall it's been very successful."
Catalog layouts, magazine shoots, evocative commercial
presentations - whatever the job at hand, the FileMaker Pro
database system handles the challenge. "It's really user-friendly,"
notes Jim Jordan. "Just about anybody can use it, it holds so much
information - and it's growing so fast because of the possibilities
of how we've structured it. It's just changed my business."
Contact information
Contact Info for Customer:Jim Jordan
Photographer/CEO
Jim Jordan Photography
818-880-9149
jim@jimjordanphotography
http://www.jimjordanphotography.com
Filemaker Contact:
Kevin Mallon
Public Relations Manager
FileMaker Inc.
408-987-7227
kevin_mallon@filemaker.com
http://www.filemaker.com
- Prominent celebrity fashion photography studio offering a full range of design and production services
- Approximately 12 employees
- Based in New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA
- Creative Markets
- Small Business
- FileMaker Pro databases organize contact management, agency data, model releases, legal documents, image archives, and digital rights management
- FileMaker Pro's ease of use ensures efficient workflow.
- Image storage and retrieval capability enhances digital rights management procedures.
- Database import options allow customization while migrating legacy data to FileMaker Pro 7.