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These are the safety tips that every model and photographer should know

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This is an opinion piece and considering I am not a lawyer or work in law enforcement, this is all just advice from experience. Always check the legal and health legislation in the area you are in. Seek professional advice if you feel you have been the victim of a crime.

I’ve been swimming in this industry since the spring of 1997, ultimately on both sides of the lens. I have witnessed titans rise and fall with the decimation of film in favor of digital pixels. I’ve taken part in the tidal wave of new and incredible talent from around the world thanks to affordable cameras and computers. I watched with mixed emotions at the absolute thrashing that Photoshop and the rise of digital art gave to an industry that overnight transformed successful businesses with 30 years of experience into dinosaurs on the brink of extinction.

In short, I’ve not been around forever, but I’ve been around long enough to earn a couple of my stripes, and seen some difficult things.

I have been lucky enough to witness the start of a movement that has begun to change everything.

The rise of #MeToo has really shifted the dialogue around safety. It’s generations overdue, but at least it’s starting. I wish it had been a thing when I was 13 and a baby in this field, but alas, life isn’t always fair. So, I’m going to keep it going. Each line on my face, each grey hair, and every sleepless night comes from some lesson or experience lived through. Such is the inevitability of aging.

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This is where my photography was 10 years ago, and this is where it is now

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Whelp! The internet reminded me a few days back that I’ve officially been shooting photography for over 10 years now. I’ll be honest, I thought my progress would have been further. I assume the end of my life will be something like what I am currently experiencing which is “Wow, that went fast.” It seems I’m just barely starting to grasp the wise words of my elders when they told me “Time goes quicker than you think.”

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I gave my friend a $47 DIY barbarian makeover for a photo shoot

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The dollar store is a place with the most unfortunate collection of landfill, a last-ditch effort to make sales in a consumer world driven to the cheapest possible option.
I’m always surprised the kinds of weirdly failed inventions that while sometimes useful, are just slightly off the mark. Admittedly, there’s a lot of things to find in such places that make a creative’s DIY life much easier and opens the doors to possibility.

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How I uncovered Renee Robyns real personality in Photoshop

Sometimes it’s good to have your creative friends visit as it can really get the creative juices flowing. So whilst my friend Renee Robyn was in the UK, I thought I may as well take her photo. I know you all think the final photo is true, but I’m sorry to say its a fake, I photoshopped it…..but it wasn’t far off. Anyway here is how I used photoshop to show Renee’s “inner self”.[Read More…]

Does Photography Matter?

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Photography has always held a weird space in my head. In my mind, I make things that look neat. I have always held great envy to those who create such complex, emotional narratives to their images. I sit and observe with awe and wonder at the tales that come from them, their reasons for color, pose, and other infinitesimal details. Pixels for me are a means to an end, but it’s still something I can’t help but create. It’s how I tell *a* story, but it’s not how I tell my own.

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Renee Robyn’s Top Tips for Creating Epic Digital Art

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Photographer and Digital Artist Renee Robyn survived a devastating motorcycle crash that nearly left her paralyzed. Unable to leave her bed while recovering from the accident, she discovered a new way to express her boundless creativity without having to travel: digital composites. She’s now a critically acclaimed artist. Learn more about Renee’s inspirational story through her SmugMug Film, the latest in a series of stunning video shorts that we hope will inspire passion, ignite possibility, and encourage you to throw your own shutter wide open to the wonders of the world.

Below, Renee shares some of the tips she’s learned through years of “trying to make things suck less.”

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4 Kicka$$ Compositing Videos That Reveal The Art Within The Art

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When you look at a photo showing a fantasy world, there is often that moment of armament on how the final photograph looks so real and yet unreal at the same time. That is because good compositors use real elements from real photos and have the ability to blend them in well. Of course, there is more to this art than just selecting photo parts and throwing them together. In fact, watching how a composite comes to life is almost as looking at a piece of art that is disconnected from the final photograph.

Photographer and retoucher Renne Robyn records her process of compositing a photo and they are a delight.

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Using Clipping Masks and Drop Shadow to create surreal images

On my last post I talked about my backup workflow, but I am probably more known for my editing style. So this time I decided to break down a photo. A question I get asked a lot when I showing my portfolio is how I make images like the one above (This one is featuring the wonderful Renee Robyn, click here for a bigger version). With all the organic shapes and details in there, it seems like a non trivial edit. With this tutorial I’m going to show the basics of the effect, which should give you an insight into the creation of such images.

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Interview With Canadian Model, Photographer And Retoucher Renee Robyn [mildly NSFW]

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It is not uncommon to find a photographer who is also a retoucher, it is way more rare, to find an excellent photographer who is also a great model and a talented retoucher. This is why I was so happy to have the chance to interview Renee Robyn, a Model, Photographer and Retoucher based in Alberta Canada (yes, all with capital letters).

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