Many photography experts will give the advice of not to copy or imitate the work of the masters or other photographers you admire. They will tell you to find your own style and forge your own way. This is true but what they don’t tell you is that this advice is for advanced photographers and […]
If you want to become a photographer the best way to improve skills is to take a class. From community colleges to online instruction, there are some great classes you can take. But not everyone wants to be a full-blown photographer. Maybe you just want to take better pictures, whether you use a fancy DSLR […]
The question “what if?” is often used to refer to things or events that are hypothetical. It could be as simple as: “what if I turned right instead of left?” Or it could be more philosophical: “what if you could go back in time and keep your parents from ever meeting (then how could you […]
I had a photo instructor who had a theory that stated, given 2 students of equal talent and experience, and one would get unlimited resources of film and equipment while the other would only receive a single camera and lens and just one roll of film, the one with the most limitations would most likely […]
We as human beings have evolved to see things horizontally. Our field of view spans about 200 degrees side to side, though much of that is peripheral vision, while our vertical sight range is around 150 degrees. Yet we insist on taking photos with our cellphones vertically. It’s not a problem with DSLR cameras because, […]
“If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough.” Robert Capa In this time of the coronavirus the best thing to avoid exposure is to stay inside and away from other people, but my job doesn’t afford me that luxury. I can’t take a picture over the phone or through a closed car door. […]
Last year my son Christopher took a photography class taught by Randy Allen at Sacramento City College. Allen’s not only a great teacher and photographer but also a good friend that goes way back to the days when we both were SCC photo students ourselves. Christopher told me something that Allen said during class that […]
One of my favorite things to shoot or just to look at is a well done silhouette. A Nicely done one can be a strong compositional element and can make your subject really stand out. Some may think that shooting a silhouette is a tricky thing but it’s actually a relatively easy thing to do. […]
In photography there’s very few things that fall under “always do this” or “never do that.” One of the things that seems to have become an absolute over time is “never put your subject at the center of the picture.” The goal of every composition should be to lead the viewer’s eye its subject in […]
The ones that got away
I remember one the first times I covered a prep football game as a young photographer. The quarterback faded back and threw the ball in a beautiful arc. It sailed gracefully in the air and the receiver made a perfect fingertip catch. I remember it so vividly because when the play was over I realized […]