"It’s simple. Visit our new website and search for a Google Trusted Photographer in your area. ... schedule a time and agree on a price that you will pay the photographer for a photoshoot of your business. ... During the hour it should take for the shoot, you can collaborate ... about how best to display and capture your business. ... the photographer will upload the images to Google, and .. you’ll see ... views of your business on [your local Google search site], Google Maps and on your Google Places listing. "So for a photographer, it looks like the process is:
- You get approved as a GTP (does being a long-standing photo blogger help with this?).
- Google advertise that you're available
- Businesses and organisations that want official photos in Google contact you, and negotiate times/prices.
- You visit, take the photos, and do any post-processing
- You load them to Google on behalf of your customer.
Google have provided a Service Agreement that you must use - as a commissioned job, the ownership of the copyright of the photos passes to the person or organisation who pays. So you'll need their permission if you want to put the photos onto your blog.
Final thought:
I wonder if there's any way to embed a Google Places listing, including the official photos, in a blog - the same way we can embed a custom map.
How to become a Google Trusted Photographer
I didn't a quick search, but couldn't find definitive answers. I did find some info about what sort of things they are expected to do:
Trusted Photographers are trained to take high quality photos of building interiors, accommodating for common challenges such as low lighting and tight spaces. The photographers are also certified to take pictures using fisheye lenses and rotating camera turrets (mounted on tripods)
And this link, where you can enquire about the program: http://maps.google.com/help/maps/businessphotos/interested-photographer.html
