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So, you’ve got the shoot planned to perfection, you’re all good to go and the subject walks in the door. But how do you make someone smile, and how do you dig out those genuine expressions? That is what we’re going to be talking about today. Well, what I’m going to be writing about anyway. From the pre-shoot planning and meeting, to how you act on set, and a few stern words on not being a damn creep. So let’s get on with Communicating with your subject Click to continue ›

A lot has been said about the need to connect with your subject when you are shooting. Some suggest having a chat for a few minutes before starting to shoot, other suggest to throw away the first 50 photographs and treat them as a warm up.

Sometimes it is OK to sacrifice a frame just to get the next one.

Here is an idea I use very often, especially with kids and family portraits. It does not suit all families, but I think it fills right for most, if not all, kids. Click to continue ›

I think it is a good question. On one hand, photographers, move, change lenses, operate strobes, look for different POV. On the other hand, editors really pump up some brain muscle which is known to burn more calories than sitting idle. I thought it was kinda like that research about bus drivers vs. conductors by Jeremy Morris. That research concluded that bus drivers are more prone to heart attacks thatn conductors since they move less during the working hours. (of course, if I wanted to stay true to that research this post would have been titled Who Is More Prone To Get A Heart Attack? - but... No drama today)

There were two ways to approach this question. The more methodical way of comparing 1000 different photographers vs. 1000 different editors. Or look at one photographer who spends a lot of time shooting, and then a lot of time editing. Click to continue ›

A few months back I was in Oregon doing a video shoot for an upcoming DIYP product. The sound man was the uber talented Matthew Monroe (you know, the Nasty Clamps guy).

As we were wrapping up the shoot, I saw Matt flying towards my direction screaming <slow-mo>noooooooo!!!!!!</slo-mo>. It turned out that I was wrapping the audio cables the wrong way. Being a former boy scout I handled the cables in the same manner that I treated ropes: rolled them over elbow and palm. Matt accused me of being a cable trainer as my method of wrapping the cables was wrong altogether. It "Trained" the cable to be in bad form, so it would be hard to make it right long after I was gone.

Matt then explained that you have to do the half twist thing so the cable can roll out nicely. It is kinda hard to explain it in words, but there is a nice video by showing how it is done after the jump. Click to continue ›

A few years ago, I had great fun creating some great big clouds to be used at the entrance to The Farm Chicks Show. But before we got them to the show, we had fun with them at home. The boys thought they made cool photo ops. Click to continue ›

If you are in a jewelry or wedding photography business for a while, this tip may seem trivial. But if you ever tried perfectly aligning two rings, you know it aint easy.

Wedding photographer Pye Jirsa explains how to use Persian Voodoo magic (or a dub or Elmer's tack) to align that standing ring. Click to continue ›

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you've almost certainly heard that the ancient Maya long-count calendar rolls over in December this year. Along with spurring the release of a frenzy of apocalyptic books, this event is also helping spawn renewed tourist interest in Maya ruins. Not to miss out on the opportunity (and free publicity), Mesoamerican communities are hosting a number of special events to celebrate the historic occasion. And governments in what was once the Maya realm have funded a new wave of restoration projects at ruin sites.

So regardless of whether your driving interest is culture or history, art or archaeology, you may well be considering (if not yet planning) a photography trip to the Maya realm. If this is the case for you, please allow me to pass along a few pointers based on my experiences in the area. Click to continue ›

One environment that I never tire of photographing is the deserts of the southwest United States. While the desert may look drab and gray during daylight hours during the golden and blue hour the desert transforms into a colorful and often surreal landscape. Mix in a little bad weather and you can capture some amazing landscape photos. Since the desert is an extreme environment I prepare for my shoots there with more scrutiny. Over the years my approach to desert photography preparations have bled into my general landscape photo shoot prep.

Here are 10 tips to prepare for your next adventure in the desert including 4 very important steps to ensure your safety: Click to continue ›

One of the first lessons in almost any photography course will probably have a section about perspective.

This is done for an obvious reason, perspective is one of the tool we, as photographers have to control on how our photographs look.

Though this is a well chewed subject and is familiar to all, some photographers tend to forget it in the passion of shooting. The solution to that problem is prime lenses.

2011 definitely has a foot in the door. How's it treating you? Nicely? I hope so.

[This is not going to be a how to shoot this or that post, but rather a challenging post for you that I hope will help you push yourself more this year as a photographer pro or amateur. (If you just want the how to stuff, feel free to skip this one, some great stuff coming on the next post).]

A while back I spoke about how important it is to have a plan in place if you want to  meet your goals. Of course, It helps to have a goal that you want to meet if you are in the plans making business. And often a goal is the first part of any plan. [picture courtesy Zeke Kamm] Click to continue ›