Traveling with photography gear can be nerve racking. The last thing you want to have happen is have your camera gear get broken or stolen. So we all try to carry it on the plane….until we can’t take it on the plane! Here are a few things I can pass on that might change your Read More
It’s all about balance
I just returned from teaching a workshop in Sedona, one of my favorite desert locations, and we had a fantastic time. Red clouds at sunrise and sunset, vintage cars and colorful portraits in Jerome, and lots of reflection opportunities with the recent rain. One plant the entire group enjoying photographing was the agave. This plant Read More
Compression Landscapes
I just returned from a fantastic trip to the Eastern Sierras. It is hard to beat just roaming around with your camera in hand, no schedules, just exploring and looking for images. Watching the sunrise slowly scroll down Mt Whitney and jagged Sierras is sublime. With such spectacular scenery, diverse locations and fall color, Cree Read More
Think graphically.
One concept I like to talk about on workshops is visualizing a scene graphically, not literally. Claude Monet summed it up in one quote: “In order to see we must forget the name of everything. By labeling, we recognize everything, but no longer see anything.” Here is an example. A few days ago I was Read More
ISO; it’s not all about noise.
I just returned from a workshop in Portugal, and we did a lot of street shooting in Porto and Lisbon. We had a lot of fun trying to find the perfect spot for a early morning trolley shot in Lisbon. Yellow trolleys are iconic to Lisbon, so we really wanted to photograph them during our Read More
Nikon 500mm 5.6 PF field test
Less than 5 hours from being home from a workshop in Portugal, I was driving up the winding roads of Big Thompson canyon on my way to Rocky Mountain National Park. September brings yellow aspens, fresh snow and rutting elk in RMNP. I really wanted to spend a day in the field with the new Read More
Nikon 500mm 5.6 PF first impressions
Okay, I haven’t been so excited about a lens showing up on my doorstep for a long time. I was so excited about receiving my 500mm 5.6 PF yesterday I even tried to intercept the UPS man. It finally arrived, and after less than a day of shooting, all I can say is ‘Wow’. The Read More
Aurora HDR 2019
One program I find myself using a lot is Aurora HDR 2018. I’ve done earlier posts on this software; it is my favorite HDR software. In a nutshell, Aurora HDR offers tons of adjustment tools and presets when processing your images, and the final images are very clean. Aurora HDR just announced their 2019 version, Read More
Manual versus TTL Flash
A little while ago Digital Photo asked me to do a story on flash, and one topic that comes up all the time is manual versus TTL flash. There are two schools of thought, and very passionate opinions on which is best. Honestly, I’m less worried about what is best versus what works. If you Read More
Lightroom Keyboard Shortcuts
Photographers spend a lot of time processing their images. Post processing is a critical step in digital photography, and needs careful thought to take your image to what you envisioned. But honestly, I would much rather be out walking the streets or hiking trails with my camera in hand rather than sitting behind my computer. Read More