WestPort along the Washington Coast

February 20, 2012


Last summer I went on vacation at Westport.  It was great to build fires at sunset in the fire pit and sit around and talk and enjoy the peace and quiet at the cottage we rented.  When you are a photographer are you really on a vacation time-out from creating imagery.  I don't think that is possible.  So holding to my nature as a photographer I created images as we visited different locations around Westport.  I think my family knows, that even though we are on vacation, I will be shooting imagery and yes they will have to sometimes participate in a concept image that presents itself to me.

Social Media Eating Away at Your Creativity

February 4, 2012

I feel like I am being consumed by social media and losing valuable time running my Photography Business.  Time is short, and getting caught up on all the ways to promote yourself, keep in touch with every friend and acquaintance you had in High school, College, past business partners, past co-workers etc.. How can you live your life now in the present and create great imagery and focus on what is truly important to you and your photography if you spend all this time with Social Media Consumerism? The more friends you link to, the better you feel.   More and more I see people using their cell phones to check in on their lives rather than looking up and seeing the physical world there in front of them and interacting with that rather than a window into cyber space. How many apps you have on your cell phone is becoming the "how big is your lens in your bag?" debate, meaningless.  All these things distract you from your purpose, your goal of making great imagery.  What this new technology does is allow you to play at photography and not really do it.  Photography is something you do after you play with the newest, greatest app on your hi-tech phone.

Time is too short and it gets shorter as you get older, so I will use Social Media to promote my photography but will not allow Social Media to become the purpose of why I take photos.  I will find what works for me and gives me the best time to do what I love to do, take photos.   I will focus on my strengths and concentrate on a routine using Social Media as a means to and end and not an end in itself.  Technology, if not used properly will destroy your energy to create.

Monument Valley

January 21, 2012


I was scanning some older images today and came across some images of Monument Valley I took years ago.  A photographer friend, who had been through the area, gave me a guided tour of the many amazing landscapes and must see locations in Arizona.

Can Personal Images Sell?

January 14, 2012


Can your images appeal to a small audience and still sell as Stock Imagery?  How personal do your images have to be before they lose an audience and potential sales?  I think any image can sell in this crazy stock photography world where Eye Catching images can be a powerful force in creating a name and brand for a product or company.  I believe an image can appeal to a buying audience if it hits a chord of truth with the viewer, resonates with some emotion the viewer has and you have anchored your audience to your subject. If a viewer can relate a similar or shared experience with your photo whether it is an abstract image or documentary image then you have a good chance to sell that image.

If you really think about it there really isn't any image you shoot that isn't personal.  You choose your subject, (something must of struck a chord with you to be attracted to that subject in the first place) you choose a composition (your personal perspective) and you focus your lens on a particular detail of the scene that drew your attention to it.  All of these things come from the inside out, your history, experience and worldly knowledge. Whether you are a documentary, commercial, editorial photographer you are still shooting personal imagery.

Personal work then becomes a matter of degree.  If you are shooting recognizable subjects and putting your own character into the final composition, lighting, lenses, exposure etc..  then that is personal work with a broader appeal than lets say a more personal shoot with an abstract/symbolic subject that is less defined and less likely to be read easily by a buyer and therefore would have a limited audience appeal.  The latter would fit more into a fine art crowd audience that is looking for a more aesthetic interpretation of the subject. How much of yourself have you revealed in the image. If a buyer can feel your intense connection to your subject and through that truth he/she also experiences something similar to your experience then you have bridged your personal work with audience appeal.   

Shooting personal work can take the pressure off you to shoot only what the market place is demanding.  Producing imagery vs experiencing a photo journey, as you explore new subjects and interpret new paths that can lead you to something more rich and powerful in your knowledge as a human being and as a photographer. If you shoot what you love, have a deep interest in your subject then it shouldn't matter if it sells or not. If your images happen to sell to a broader clientele then OK, if not, so what you are shooting what you enjoy, so enjoy it.

Shooting Waterfalls

January 2, 2012


Waterfalls are such a reflection of the beauty in nature that when we see them we automatically want to take pictures of them.  We can shoot with fast shutter speeds, hand held and quickly and that works for a straight documentation of their beauty.  But a better way to go is to take alittle more time to set up and frame the waterfall through good composition using a tripod.  Using a tripod will slow your brain down and force you to look at the subject and decide where to shoot from that will give your image that extra quality that could make it a great photograph.

When shooting waterfalls in a forest setting,  it is best to have a bright overcast day. This way the forest shadows are not too dark and the waterfalls reflective character too bright.  Too much contrast can destroy your picture.

One tip I will always remember is when a photographer friend of mine said that I should try using a polarizing filter over my lens when shooting waterfalls or just forest settings in general.  He said I would be impressed with how the greens would pop out and look rich and lush. So now, anytime I am shooting in a forest setting I always carry a polarizing filter and use it proficiently.  A polarizing filter does not eliminate all reflected light, but only the light that is polarized, light waves which are oriented at one angle instead of several.  You have to rotate a polarizing filter on the front of your lens to find the position which will eliminate the amount of polarized light you want removed.  The polarizer blocks out some light so it will affect you exposure.  So having those stray light reflections coming off the leaves eliminated (just as a polarizer eliminates the reflections from glass) and focusing the eye on the leaves rich texture is a good thing.

Because of the loss of light, depending on how much you rotate your polarizing filter, you will be using slower shutter speeds.  This is what you want, because you will be using a tripod to hold your camera, a shutter release cable to trip the shutter bottom, and a time exposure to capture the water pouring over the rocks.  If you don't have a cable release you can use the self timer control to take the picture so your finger won't move your camera during the long exposures.

If you have to much light and you find that you cannot use a slow enough shutter speed and you don't have a polarizer you can use a neutral density filter that will cut down on the light and you should be able to use slower shutter speed to get  that beautiful fluid motion of a waterfall.

Of course shooting waterfalls with fast shutter speeds works too.

Happy Holidays & A Happy New Year

December 24, 2011



Wishing everyone the very best in 2012 and beyond!!

Slow Shutter Speeds

December 10, 2011


I have a tendency to get in a rut and shoot a certain way just out of laziness.  If it worked before and I got some good images then why change a thing. When I shoot action images I tend to want to get the subject sharp and that means using a fast shutter speed to stop the motion.

But why not think outside the box and try using different shutter speeds to see if you can create a more interesting image.

When shooting with slow shutter speeds try panning your camera as your subject moves by.  When panning vary your shutter speed to fit the speed of your subject.  This takes just a little practice to get the feel of how slow you should go in order to anchor your subject visually.  Just keep your arms tucked close to your torso and relax and follow your subject.

Of course you will want to push the bounds of visual perception even more whereby everything in your frame is abstract.

Editorial Photography

November 27, 2011


Years ago I did a lot of editorial/street photography.  I still enjoy shooting on the street, getting that fleeting image that just happens.  The key to fast action photography is just doing it.  Getting your timing down.  Knowing your camera and having it as an extension of your eye.  I used to preset my camera at the fastest shutter speed I could use.  You can't use a tripod when shooting fast paced action during protests or dramas being played out in a split second and with people moving in and out of your frame constantly. My shutter speed was set at 1/250 or higher depending on lighting conditions.  Yes, sometimes I would be pushing my film up to 1600ASA to get that faster shutter speed.  I would set my Aperture at f/5.6.  With this as a base, I could adjust my exposures up or down and still be able to stop motion and get the subject in focus.  Serendipity plays such a big role in street photography.  You have to be aware of your surroundings and see a possible image developing before it appears.  Your eye/finger coordination only improves with practice.  And when you get a photo that no one else will ever get because you were quick to see the potential, that is a good feeling.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

November 24, 2011

Rush Hour Traffic

November 20, 2011


I have lately been in some pretty amazing rush hour traffic jams.  So I thought why not write about my top dislikes about getting stuck in a 5 mile or longer backup on I-5 going south into the Great City of Seattle.  Here they are in no particular order.

1)  Drivers who suddenly change lanes into a moving traffic lane only to be passed by me as that lane stalls.

2) As I merge onto the freeway and ( after finally, someone grudgingly lets me in by centimeters) put my blinker on to move over to the left lanes and as I see an opening and begin to move over, a driver behind me who has just got into the traffic mess tries to cut me off by putting his blinker on quickly and jumps over to the lane that I have been waiting to get into for minutes and then lays on their horn as if I was the one who cut him off.

3) Drivers who think other drivers have cat like response as they cut in front of you at the last moment as their lane shows upcoming brake lights. Note to drivers, Brake Lights are a warning to slow down not speed up and cut others off.

4) Traffic flows much better if you happen to be caught in the right lane and you see in front of you merging traffic, just back off a bit and leave a couple car lengths in front of you for the merging cars, this keeps the traffic flow going instead of riding the car in front of you so no one can get in and then the car merging has to stop and then more cars pile up behind him.

5) My biggest concern in rush hour driving is a jack rabbit driver behind you.  As you go faster and get some distance from the car behind you, you see brake lights up ahead, you slow down, but the car behind you comes racing up and appears to touch your bumper as you wait for the sound of metal crunching.  And this is played out over and over again as you gradually speed up and the driver comes racing up to your bumper.  Does he/she not see that we are in a traffic mess and we can't go seventy through other cars.

6)  Having to keep reminding myself to focus because I just went a mile and can't remember doing it.

What Is This?

November 13, 2011


Shooting subjects that can't be easily identifiable makes the image more interesting.  Curiosity is just as great in humans as it is in animals.  I recently took some photos of two interesting subjects.  Can you guess what they are?   One is definitely more abstract and the other image, the gestalt hits you in a few seconds.  Good Luck.

First Image is of Metal Shower Rings 

Second Image is of an environmentally friendly Mail Drop Box