Category: Uncategorized

Always look for a new way to look at old things. Look up, look down, crawl around it…you may very well find a new view. The rather dumb shot on the left side was drastically transformed into a statement seen on the right. I shot the bells from directly underneath with a bit of flash […]

They say “pictures are made, not taken.”  There’s wisdom in that old saw.  Sure, anyone can point a camera and record data (aka a snapshot), but the timing of when you snap the shutter is critical. Snap it at the right time and you’ve made, not taken, a photograph. Henry Cartier-Bresson was good at making […]

If you are using one of those brightly coloured “brand advertising” straps, you’ll get noticed pretty quickly, not only by possible subjects but by potential camera thieves as well. If you’re looking to steal the moment, you must be as unobtrusive as possible. So trash that “glow- in-the-dark” strap for a thin black one (these […]

The best way to open dialogue with a male or female is to offer a compliment. Everybody loves a compliment. For this example, I simply asked the obvious and said, “ Excuse me, but where did you get that T-shirt? I want one too!”  Hint: females love to be complimented on their hair or shoes. […]

Happy New Year Planet Earth While we’re all wishing each other a Happy New Year, I thought I’d wish my most important and ailing friends, Planet Earth and Mother Nature, a get well prayer plus a Happy New Year wish. Now, some may chastise me for calling Mother Nature the female gender, but isn’t she […]

Paying for a custom-cut matte when framing your image is costly. However, you can eliminate that cost by applying your own electronically generated matte. I have outlined how simple this can be using Photoshop CS 5.1, however this method will work on all prior iterations and most probably on future versions as well. BONUS, we’ll […]

 If you want to shoot a profile, this is the way to do it.  Here’s how it’s done: The window is forward and to her right at about a 45 degree angle (look at the direction).  The light is fully illuminating the side facing away from the camera. Notice how it spills over to her […]

I spied with my curious eye a micro paragraph in a Havana/Cuba travel book mentioning Callejón de Hammel, an alleyway of Afro-Cuban art. As I was going to Havana, I thought I’d satisfy my curious eye with a visit. It was a short hop from Old Havana, but well worth the small effort. As I […]

Technology Exists to Serve Mankind, Yet Some Still Believe Otherwise.  Yes, some still grovel at the altar of technology . . . they don’t get it. I fear they will see the light too late, or never.  The “creative express” is now available for boarding, but they’ll miss it. But those who board this train, […]

Lately I’ve been getting the question, “How do you get good people pictures?” Fact: People like looking at pictures of people, hence the popularity of People and Hello, etc., magazines. My answer: Look for people being people, doing human or symbolizing things that others can relate to. The more you look the more you will […]