10 Keys To Unique Portraits

No matter what type of photography you like, at one point or another, you’ll find yourself shooting a portrait.

Text & Photography By Tom Bol

No matter what type of photography you like, at one point or another, you’ll find yourself shooting a portrait. I know landscape photographers who swore they would never shoot a portrait in their career, and one week later they were shooting a portrait. Weddings, graduations, holidays or a day at the zoo all present great opportunities to photograph... Read more

Strange World

Recycled materials and digital capture combine to create elaborate miniature narratives

By Kim Castleberry, Photography By Jeff & Sabrina Williams

The American Dream looks different through the eyes of Jeff and Sabrina Williams. When they go off on a trip and come across a scene that grabs their attention, they start drawing pictures rather than photographing them as they have intentionally replaced their cameras with a pencil and sketch pad. Odd, given that the Williamses are photographers, but... Read more

White Balance Blues

If you had asked me a few years ago if I could tell the difference between a photo shot with Auto white balance and one with a specific setting.

Text & Photography By Rob Sheppard

If you had asked me a few years ago if I could tell the difference between a photo shot with Auto white balance and one with a specific setting, I would have laughed and said, “No way.” Auto white balance may have its problems, but I didn’t think it was that distinctive to immediately show up in a photograph. I would have been wrong. While I... Read more

Lighting Gear Makes A Difference

Lighting is the most crucial element in photography, and, in fact, it’s at the very core of image-making, be that photographs, paintings or drawings.

By Jeff Greene

Lighting is the most crucial element in photography, and, in fact, it’s at the very core of image-making, be that photographs, paintings or drawings. An artist needs great light to produce great images. In photography, the most basic source of illumination is “available light,” a general term that describes the existing light on hand. Sometimes... Read more

Extra/ordinary

There couldn’t be truer words than those found in the Latin proverb, “By learning you will teach, by teaching you will learn.”

By Mark Edward Harris, Photography By Tiffini Myers

There couldn’t be truer words than those found in the Latin proverb, “By learning you will teach, by teaching you will learn.” My cameras have taken me to more than 80 countries around the globe, but Tiffini Myers, a student of mine at The Art Institute of California in Hollywood, reminded me that there’s a whole world of photo opportunities... Read more

The Details Of Portraiture

Learn to notice the subtleties for more expressive photos

By Tracey Clark And The Shutter Sisters

Photographers, in essence, are storytellers. Instead of words, we use images to tell our stories. In traditional portraiture, we most often focus on the face of our subject to narrate the shot. We look to capture just the right curve of the mouth, the twinkle in the eye or the tilt of the head and rely on facial expressions to reveal the heart and soul... Read more

Go Macro

So you want to dive head-first into the great big world of photographing little bitty things?

By William Sawalich

So you want to dive head-first into the great big world of photographing little bitty things? That’s great, because macro photography is interesting, fun and rewarding, and it doesn’t take too much expertise to make awesome images right off the bat. What it does take is a bit of planning and the right equipment. Here’s what you need to know, followed... Read more

Photo Flexibility

Several months ago, I attended a wedding in northern Michigan.

Text & Photography By Bruce Dale

Several months ago, I attended a wedding in northern Michigan. Originally, I planned on spending only a few days, but found the area so interesting, I stayed nearly two weeks. My only other visit to Traverse City was several years earlier on a cold winter evening in the middle of a snowstorm. I was there to photograph a baseball-bat inventor... Read more

Winter Photo Tips

I always look forward to the holiday season. Everyone has time off from work, the mood is festive and snow is falling through the air.

Text & Photography By Tom Bol

I always look forward to the holiday season. Everyone has time off from work, the mood is festive and snow is falling through the air. The holidays are also a great time for photography. Beautiful winter scenes are plentiful, parties provide portrait opportunities and holiday lights produce colorful twilight images. This winter season, make sure to... Read more

Shooting For Action

There’s nothing more thrilling in sports photography than nailing the climactic moment in a still image.

By Dave Willis

For sports with movement that’s less predictable, by using zone focusing, you can set up your aperture and focus to cover an area where your subject will most likely end up. There’s nothing more thrilling in sports photography than nailing the climactic moment in a still image. For an athlete, those moments might only last a second, but when a great... Read more

Creative Wedding Photos

Photographing a wedding is one of the most challenging assignments a photographer can take.

By William Sawalich, Photography By Laura Pineda

Photographing a wedding is one of the most challenging assignments a photographer can take. For photographers who excel at it, like Laura Pineda, owner of Alternate Angles Photography, it’s a passion. You can hear the excitement in Pineda’s voice when she talks about weddings, and with 15 years of experience, she’s a master of capturing special... Read more

Photo Storytelling

How do you capture and convey the essence of a place with still photographs?

Text & Photography By Mark Edward Harris

How do you capture and convey the essence of a place with still photographs? A well-crafted photo essay is the answer. Travel magazine photo editors will tell you “a location isn’t a story.” In other words, you can’t suggest an idea to a publication by saying, “I want to do a story on Italy.” You need to choose a topic and focus on it. Applying... Read more

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