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JP Danko is a commercial photographer based in Toronto, Canada. JP
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water,
or use a camel as a light stand.

To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.

JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.

A Love Affair With Water: Photographer Spotlight Q&A With Sarah Lee

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Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series is Sarah Lee.

Sarah is a Hawaii/San Diego based commercial photographer, best known for working in and around the ocean and her instantly recognizable style. Sarah’s work has been featured by National Geographic, Instagram, CNN, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Pelican, H&M and many other international brands.

Full disclosure: I am a big fan of Sarah and her work. Her work is absolutely breathtaking and I love that she’s been able to build a successful career around such a niche subject that she clearly has a profound passion for. I find her approach to photography and the industry very inspiring – I hope you do too!

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Northern Lifestyle Social Media Influencer: Photographer Spotlight Q&A With Daniel Ernst

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Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series we have Daniel Ernst.

Daniel is a self taught freelance photographer from Frankfurt, Germany. His photography is inspired by nature, focusing on the outdoors, adventure and northern lifestyles.

With 602k Instagram followers, Daniel falls into the category of “social media incluencer”. Daniel’s work is absolutely amazing and it’s easy to see why he’s so popular on Instagram – but what is really interesting is his final advice for photographers who would like do something similar.

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Seeing In Black & White: Photographer Spotlight Q&A With James Harris of GRIT Images Co (mildly NSFW)

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Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series it’s James Harris of GRIT Images Co.

James calls himself a “hobbyist photographer”, but his work has a clean, sexy simplicity that would fit perfectly with many high-end commercial publications. James loves the contrast and texture of working in black and white and his photography shows an obvious attention to detail and connection with his models.

James pays the bills working as an engineer for an international firm – until recently, he was based out of Fort Worth, Texas but is now living in the middle east.

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Bokeh or Nokeh – What Is Your Preference (and Does It Really Matter)?

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So I’m down at the dock at the cottage and I decided that I wanted to snap a photo of my coffee to post a fairly typical, quick and easy Instagram banger.

Since the purpose of this photo was straight to social, I arranged the composition and then pulled out my phone to snap the picture (because why would a manufacturer build a camera with Android to be able to do this on an actual camera…).

After snapping the photo, I decided that it actually looked pretty decent – nice enough that I had to run back up to the cottage to grab my DSLR with an 85mm f/1.4…because, well, you know…bokeh.

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Most Marketers Can’t Quantify The Value of Social Media – So Why Are We Still Investing In Likes?

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I just read an intriguing article by MDG Advertising that breaks down a new report showing that approximately half of the marketing professionals studied have no idea how to actually quantify the business value of social media.

The question then becomes: if marketing professionals cannot calculate a return on investment for social media, why is everyone still investing in likes and followers?

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BluDomain Killed My Website and Email – What’s Next?

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A few weeks ago I noticed that I had not received any new emails for a day or two. Odd I thought, but it’s summer and maybe people are just on holidays.

This was a day before I was leaving for a trip, so I was in the process of checking in my family for our flight, and making a number of last-minute AirBnB reservations…using my email – which I quickly realized was offline.

What was a minor inconvenience became a major problem – I thought maybe my account had expired or something had gotten disconnected in my email settings. OK, that shouldn’t be much of a problem, so I opened a support ticket with my website hosting service BluDomain…which is when I learned that not only was my email offline, my entire business website had been permanently deleted, and was unrecoverable.

This is now an emergency.

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How To Become A Wedding Photographer In 10 Easy Steps – Photographers Hate This

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Starting a career as a wedding photographer is EASY – all you have to do is follow these 10 EASY STEPS TO BECOME A WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER!

If you have ever wanted to start a fun, glamorous and profitable ($$$$!!!) career as a wedding photographer, I will share the secret to success that professional wedding photographers don’t want you to know.

The best part is that you don’t even need to know how to use a camera – or even have a camera to get started!

And you can learn it all FOR FREE – just read the rest of this article (and then be sure to buy our eBook*)!!![Read More…]

Is losing your camera the worst end to a trip ever?

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My family and I recently returned from a week-long early spring backcountry camping trip.

This trip involved canoeing in snow squalls and an extended portage where the lake was still frozen solid. Physically, it was a challenge, but it was also an amazing family bonding experience with my wife and our 9 and 12-year-old kids (the golden years when they are useful humans but not yet teenagers).

At the end of the trip I sat my trusty old Fuji X100 (the original model) on a post in the parking lot to snap one final family portrait in self-timer mode.

Then we drove home…

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