Geotagging of photos is one of those technological advances that vaguely impressed me, but it is also one I was sure I would never use. It all seemed so “gear-head-esque” to me. I am here today to eat my words, having just finished a project where Geo tagging was a savior (and a bit of a headache.) Read More
I am about half way through a six month adventure in South Asia. I am going to be leading more photography workshops to India in the future, including ones in February and December of 2013. Both of these realities prompted me to pay attention to the day to day routines I encounter (and practice) in India, in order to share them with readers of this blog and future workshop attendees coming to India. Read More
In last week’s blog entry I parsed an e-mail from a “soon-to-be graduate” The two questions that he raised were: “…what are your favorite aspects of your work” and “…how someone could break into a field like this.” I suggested the real question to ask and answer was “…what are your least favorite aspects of your work.” I answered that question last week so now I can turn to the “…how someone could break into a field like this.” Read More
With a subject line like the title above, how could I not reply to the e-mail that recently came in from a “soon-to-be graduate” and how could I not turn my reply it into a blog? I have been sitting on this for awhile trying to figure out how to answer without turning into some cranky old man talking about the ”good old days.” Read More
I am going to out on a limb here and I may risk offending a few readers but the recent killing of in Connecticut of twenty seven people, mostly school children, should be offensive to all Americans. Yes, I am a liberal and I live in the North Eastern liberal-belt between Boston and Washington. On the other hand, I am a former gun owner who knows and respects plenty of gun owners. Read More
I am winding up nine interesting days in Nepal, primarily in the Kathmandu valley, where I have had the pleasure of watching the light as it changes throughout each day. As I have blogged before, I like to think of myself as something of a connoisseur of light. Like a wine connoisseur, I am going to try to review the light that I encountered in Kathmandu. As much as I might like to steal some lines from the classic reviews of wines, I will avoid phrases like “fresh yet dense, exhibiting notes of, with a finish of, showing hints of” and “with lingering notes.” Read More
Canada recently changed its copyright law to align more closely with the rules of the World Intellectual Property Organization (or WIPO.) It is no surprise that most of the recent changes in copyright law have been driven by the explosion in digital technology and the internet. I came away a bit surprised, however, after I learned about the changes to the Canadian law. Read More
Why is it that so many photographers aspire to be painters (or at least want their work to look like paintings?) I never understood that since I never wanted to emulate painters. I always wanted my photographs to have the presumed veracity that we attribute to photographs. The fact that they are derived from reality is what makes them photographs. Over the decades that I have worked as a photographer (and the decades I have been hearing photographers long to be like painters) I have tried to come up with another creative persona for photographers to emulate, rather than painters. Read More
Next year will be ten years since I “went digital.” That fact prompted me to think about the next ten years. Yes, I have been using Photoshop for editing and printing my images for more than ten years. But when it comes to digital capture, I am nine years (and counting) into that technology. I recently came across information (including a nine year old quote that predicted where digital imaging was going to lead.) The great thing about that nine year old clairvoyant quote was how far away it was from talking only about technology yet how spot on it was in terms of predicting the impact of that same technology. Read More
A friend recently attended a portfolio review event for photographers. In reporting back on her experience, two things were very apparent. First, her work was very well received, which was a “pleasant surprise” to her. While the reviewers varied in terms of exactly which images they were drawn to, there was near unanimous agreement about one problem with her presentation, which is what I am going to build this week’s blog entry around, a lesson every photographer should heed. Read More