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Adorama TV’s “Top Photographer” turns the cameras on photographers.

Nov 19, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 2 Comments
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In case you missed the announcement buzzing around photo sites a couple months ago, Adorama and photographer Nigel Barker put out a casting call looking for photographers to compete in a new reality series/competition called “Top Photographer with Nigel Barker”. In this  five part web series, each episode revolves around a specific photo genre that challenges the photographers to shoot for the winning image. The show is hosted by Nigel and also has internationally known, award-winning photographers as guest judges. Of the five finalists chosen, the winner of the grand prize gets a photography equipment package valued at $50k as well as a photo exhibition in New York City hosted by Nigel after the finale airs. That sounded like an amazing opportunity and some pretty sweet prizes to me!

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Passion, patience and process. How I shot my personal project “The Big Bow”

Sep 8, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad Leave a Comment
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I think one of the most important aspects of a successful photo is what happens before you ever click the shutter. Pre-visualization of what you want the photo to look like can happen quickly where you immediately envision the final photo, or it can develop over time where you build on your original concept, adding or subtracting elements, re-thinking your take on it before finally deciding on exactly what to shoot. Then after you’ve ironed out what that photo should look like, you actually then go backwards, by reverse engineering the elements of what you’ll need to pull it off.

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How I Shot These Etherial Portraits With A Lensbaby

Jul 13, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 9 Comments
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So this is happening more and more… I’m talking with a client who wants me to shoot a creative portrait of them, and they say, “I like your blurry photos, I want that look.” My blurry photos? Most of the time that’s not something a photographer wants to hear, but I know they’re referring to the shots I’ve done over the years with the Lensbaby creative effects lenses.

I’ve been shooting studio portraits with them for a long time now and there’s nothing quite like them. It takes practice, some trial and error to learn the idiosyncrasies. And with lots of lens kits, focal options, etc., their product line now has a very comprehensive set of tools and it continues to grow (yay, more toys! err…I mean tools).

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How to make a studio shoot look like a location shoot

May 31, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 3 Comments
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I just finished up a handful of promotional shots with actor Levi Fiehler and it went well. One of our shots was an odd editorial photo with a him sitting next to a head in a box.. because hey, why not?! I used a hand painted backdrop and a faux wood floor and I lit it dark and moody. I was happy with the way it turned out except for one factor. I wish it didn’t look like it was shot with a studio backdrop. If it looked like it was on location, the shot might work better. The only “giveaway” that it was done in a studio was the roll at the bottom of the backdrop. So I realized if I put a piece of wood molding along the bottom of the backdrop, it would look like a wall and a floor instead of a backdrop and a floor.

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How (and why) I’ve been photographing Disneyland in black and white

Mar 24, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 11 Comments
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I’ve always had a lot of fun challenging myself with creative and/or technical limitations. Like giving myself a photo assignment to spend the day or even an entire vacation with a certain camera/lens combination and a limited shooting style, like to shoot only macro or only black and white, etc. It usually makes me work harder to get the shots, but more importantly, I often come home with photos I probably wouldn’t have if I had taken my best equipment and approached shooting in my usual way. And who knows, what if through an exercise of self-imposed creative or technical limitations, I accidentally “stumble on a style”?! Which is exactly what happened to me and why I’m suggesting you try it yourself!

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MagMod is giving any Speedlite up to 3 stops of power!

Mar 1, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 7 Comments
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Our friends at MagMod are launching their 3rd Kickstarter campaign for a new lighting modifier and if you use speedlites, it’s something to get excited about! It’s called the MagBeam and it’s based on the refractive Fresnel lens used in Hollywood style constant lights, spotlights, and even lighthouses!

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11 Lessons Photographers Can Learn From Cindy Crawford’s Favorite Photographers

Feb 4, 2016 by Patrick Shipstad 4 Comments
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Cindy Crawford in without a doubt one of the most famous and photographed models of the past 30 years. In the 80’s, Cindy along with Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Claudia Schiffer, Christy Turlington and Kate Moss became known as the original “Supermodels”. I think it’s a safe bet to say that she’s worked with the best of the best photographers over that time.

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Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

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