ARCHIVED ARTICLES
“The Heart of Portraiture” E-Book: 20 Portraits Discussed.
I wanted to do something for this month (May) as it represents the month I started working on the whole Lighting Essentials thing about 4 years ago. The book I am working on I call "The Heart of Portraiture II" and it includes nearly 40 shots with lighting diagrams...
Sure You Gotta Logo, But What Is Your Personal Brand?
It's a RANT today. Recent discussions with photographers and models spurred this short rant today. I have been thinking about this for quite awhile, but events yesterday really set me off. Brand, personal brand, is who you are. And what you do is who you are. It is...
10 Things That are More Fun and Useful to Photographers Than Playing Farmville
Seriously. I read about how some photographers are having challenging times. How there isn't as much work coming their way as before. Whining and kvetching about the "state of the industry" and a bunch of other stuff that does no good at all. Then I see the Farmville...
Rave Wednesday: Avedon Show at Norton Gallery (West Palm Beach)
I was able to see the Avedon show at the Norton last Friday. Avedon Fashion: 1950 - 2000. It was an amazing day for me. I have seen several Avedon shows, but none focused totally on his fashion work. I must say up front that I believe him to be one of the greatest...
Today, You Are a Photographer. Whatcha Gonna Do Now?
OK... today's the day. You left your day job behind as planned, or are now "free to seek new positions" due to situations you had no control over. And now you are a photographer. What does that mean to you? What do you see in your minds eye as you doing what you love....
26 Totally Cool Photographs from the Lighting Essentials Flickr Pool
Photograph of JustFab by Ray Prax You guys are still the best damn forum pool around. And I have a set of 26 photos that really impressed me. Getting harder to narrow them down now. Lots of great shots in the pool these days. Thanks. IMPORTANT: IF YOU HAVE ATTENDED A...
Getting Over a Creative Block: Some Ideas For Breaking Out
Did you ever have one of those 'blocked' periods? The ones where things you are trying to do just don't resolve? Maybe it's the time of year, or at the end of a creative burst. The batteries start to drain a bit and it gets close to recharge time. When we get in these...
Use Google to Track the Popularity of Your Images
Finding your Creative Center with Google by Daron Shade A few months ago, I recommended that you sign up and implement Google Analytics. By now, I'm sure you are all getting pretty proficient with GA and have been watching your traffic and are beginning to understand...
How to Get, Give, and Take Photographic Criticism
Critics... there are a million of them. Seems like it anyway. And when you are starting out in the world of professional photography, getting good, really good critique on your work is very important. Getting poor, or mis-guided critique can be damaging to the...
“No Plastic Sleeves” a Review of the Book
This is one of the best books on the holistic creation of a creative's portfolio in quite a while. There are certainly quite a lot of portfolio books out there, and many of them are terrific. However, I like the total take on creativity and creating a unique...
“So You’re a Photographer, Quick… Tell Me What You Do”
How's that for a panic inducer? So could you tell them? Say someone walks up to you at a mixer for the Art Directors club meeting, introduces himself and you realize he is one of the guys you have been trying to see for a few months. Now he is standing there, and in...
Meet My Friend, Ken Easley, Photographer, in Phoenix, Arizona
Full disclosure... Ken and I have been friends for about 25 years or so. We have traveled the back roads of the Sierras together and solved the ills of the world over about a hundred lunches. It is fun to present this interview with him for you all. We met and chatted...
Do You Know Your Camera Well Enough to Master Your Craft?
A sorta Rant and sorta Rave: Knowing your instrument in music means knowing it so well that you can pick it up and play whatever note you want to play. There isn't a hesitation at all in the choice of keys, or fingering, or hand position. With a piece of music in...
Throwing Other Photographers Under the Bus May be Great Fun, But Is It a Good Thing?
This is a RANT, folks. I am totally and definitely pissed off. If you decide to read this, you will find I am not kind or reticent in my total loathing of this situation. You are warned. (UPDATE: There are many, many comments to this post. Seem to break into two...
STOP Censoring Your Vision
(A rant about self censoring your work) Have you ever stopped yourself from taking a photograph? And then thought later that “I should have taken that shot…†The excuses and reasons abound for not taking a photograph that presents itself to you. Not the right...
Nick Onken’s New Travel Photography Book, “Photo Trekking”
I discovered Nick's work a couple of years ago. Surfin' from link to link, I stumbled upon his opening page and the image there of a woman with some amazing flare engulfing her. I immediately liked that shot, so I took some time to look around his site. simply...
Content is King: Guest Post by Daron Shade
Content is King In preparation for the Social Media Marketing article, I came to the realization that most of us have trouble figuring out what to say about ourselves, so I decided that we first need to talk about content – both on the website and in the portfolio....
24 Portraits With a Sense of Drama from the LE Flickr Pool
Portraits... man I love portraits. People are so interesting and the combination of an interesting person and a creative photographer reveals more than simply a photo of someone... it reveals the nature of all of us. And that makes it timeless. From the earliest...
A Sense of Urgency. Are You Demanding More Of Yourself?
I ran across this quote today: "I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do." -- Leonardo da Vinci It gave me pause. The "urgency" of doing. Pretty much says it all. Doing is the thing...
Seattle Workshop Images: The Great Pacific Northwest
Hey... how are ya? I'm back from three workshops in very close proximity. In Seattle we did two in a row, and then back for a day and off to San Diego for a fun workshop. Lots of excitement, and I got to meet so many talented people. I have some images from the...
Thoughts on Photography, and Other Stuff, While Driving Across the Desert.
I love to drive. Cars and motorcycles and trucks... I love to get behind the wheel and just go. This weekend I drove to San Diego for the workshop there. And, BTW... it was a very fun and exciting workshop with a lot of talented photographers, some wonderful models,...
Before You Shoot for Peanuts, Consider the Risks
Ummm... this is a Rant, so be warned. I stated in the last post that I would tell you why I would prefer beginning photographers shoot for free rather than dirt cheap. And I mean that totally. I am not saying you should shoot for free, I am saying to cut out the...
Pricing Issues: One Big Monster of a Problem
A day or two ago a firestorm of sorts broke out on the interwebs on pricing. It got heady and angry and although I initially made a post on one of the players in this dramas posts here, I subsequently found that I had stumbled on to something that was just getting...
Go Ahead and Play!
Today's Rant is really a Rave... sorta. it is about the fun and joy of photography... beyond the craft and business of photography. I don't know what happens to us as photographers when we get to the point where the cameras stay in the vault until someone pays us to...
Just a Camera and a Subject. Simplicity Can Be Fun.
Recently there was a discussion on whether natural light shooters would be able to compete with the strobe-heavy photographers and those deep into the Photoshop illustrative techniques. And before we begin it must be stressed that I love all kinds of photography. This...
30 Cool and Fabulous Images from the LE Flickr Pool
Well, we present 30 images from the pool today. Images that are soft and wild and quiet and loud... but all of them compelling in their own way. As always, the images link to the photographer's Flickr pages so please click and visit. Leaving them a comment always...
Selina Maitreya: 4 To Do’s for Photographers (Interview in Three Parts)
We present a three part look at the current business of commercial and editorial photography through the 'lens' of Selina Maitreya, photographers coach and consultant. Selina's 30+ years experience working with photographers all over the globe has given her a unique...
Selina Maitreya: Trends… or Not. (Interview in Three Parts)
We present the second of a three part look at the current business of commercial and editorial photography through the 'lens' of Selina Maitreya, photographers coach and consultant. First things first: Selina's website is 1PortAuthority.com, and it is there you can...
Selina Maitreya: What’s Working Now (Interview in Three Parts)
We present a three part look at the current business of commercial and editorial photography through the 'lens' of Selina Maitreya, photographers coach and consultant. Selina's 30+ years experience working with photographers all over the globe has given her a unique...
Recharging the Soul with Personal Projects
This is kind of a personal post for me. There are challenges that I face as an artist and writer. And photographer. And sometimes those challenges can take its toll on me, and us. Creativity, for me, takes nurturing and constant practice. I have always felt that...