Branding is critical for a successful photography business regardless of the genre, and photographer Art Wolfe has built perhaps one of the strongest brands in his field. Wolfe has been shooting nature and wildlife images professionally for more than 30 years all over the world. This story on Photoshelter’s blog gives some insight on how he built his photography business. Learn more
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Known for his conservation projects such as Freedom to Roam, a photographic project designed to encourage the creation of wildlife corridors, photographer Florian Schulz offers some tips and advice for shooting landscapes and wildlife in this six minute video. Learn more
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Renowned advertising and commercial shooter Peter Hurley is the subject of a video in a series called #BehindtheGlass, where the New York and Los Angeles based photographer talks candidly about his non-traditional path into the industry. It’s one of those head-smacking, jaw-dropping stories that shows photography is part skill, some chance and a lot of hard work. Learn more
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Nick Fancher is a portrait photographer that has shot for clients like EPSN Magazine, Ohio State University and JackThreads – and is also the subject of an inspiring video by director and cinematographer Andy Newman. Fancher talks about opted out of becoming a wedding photographer and has instead focused on the process of picture-making, honing his lighting techniques and trying to find his identity as a photographer. See video
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
As long as art has existed, so too has the self-portrait. Van Gogh famously painted more than 30 self-portraits, using the available subject-of-self as both an outlet for his artistic talents, and as a method for perfecting his craft. Rembrandt, as perhaps the most prolific master of the self-portrait, painted, etched and drew more than 100 images of himself throughout his lifetime. One can even imagine the cavemen as having injected some degree of self into the prehistoric images painted on their cave walls.
But as rich in history as the self-portrait is, its categorization as a photographic ‘art’ is vulnerable due to the endless arms-length phone snaps, or ‘selfies’, now littering the internet. Lately, there has been a blurring of lines between the selfie and the self-portrait. As someone who has focused his own artistic energy toward self-portrait photography, I feel obligated to promote this art form, as self-portraiture provides value in terms of both the photos it produces, and the education if offers you as a new photographer.
For me, self-portraiture began as a way to develop my own portrait photography skills, without the need for a model. As you probably know, learning the principles of photography, and the strategies for creating and controlling light, is a time-consuming process. It involves a great deal of trial and error, and asking a model to pose patiently while you make mistake after mistake isn’t always ideal. But you, yourself, are an infinitely more willing subject. Hours pass, memory cards fill with lackluster images, yet you don’t complain. Alone, you’re able to relax and focus on the task at hand: learning to become a better photographer.
Experimenting with artificial light (orange-gelled strobe imitating fire)
When enough solitary time passes, you’ll find that you begin to produce decent results. Soon, what began as a learning device morphs into a creative outlet. Self-portraiture is no longer an exercise to be performed in preparation for real photography; self-portraiture has become the real photography. Unlike selfies, your self-portraits are well conceived. The location, framing, lighting, depth of field and posing associated with the images are carefully planned. You work both sides of the camera with increasing efficiency, and the quality of your photography reflects the education received.
Self-portraiture offered a unique photo opportunity during this extended flight delay in Shanghai
From that point forward, you don’t hesitate to jump into frame should the inclusion of a person improve your photograph. When you want to test a new piece of gear, fine-tune a new technique, or kill a boring Sunday afternoon by setting up your camera, you do so with absolute independence. When photographing other subjects, you borrow from the lessons learned through self-portraiture, and the result is stronger photography, all-around.
‘Producing’ self-portraits offers both artistic challenges and skill-building opportunities
For those considering an attempt at self-portrait photography, here are a few tips to get you started:
While taking self-portraits, one of the more difficult aspects to nail down is focus. You don’t have the luxury of pinpoint-focusing on the subject’s face, for example, when you, yourself are the subject. To get around this challenge, it is important to have a stand-in object on which you can focus the camera. I personally use my light stand, as it’s usually with me, and is tall enough to mirror my own height.
First, I determine where, in the frame, I will position myself and I place a ‘mark’ on that spot to ensure I’m continually in the right position. Small rocks, a line of chalk or a crack in the sidewalk have all worked well as my mark. Next I focus my camera on the light stand. Once my focus is perfect, I switch my DSLR to manual focus mode. From that point forward, unless I make manual focus adjustments, the focus will remain unchanged. As long as I stand on my mark, I’ll be in focus. This is particularly important when using shallow depth of field, where a single step forward or backward will cause you to be out of focus, ruining the shot.
Proper focus was critical to the success of this image, taken at a razor-thin f/1.4
My flexible tripod, offering a low perspective, and the remote in my pocket, allowed me to work quickly
This image was on my ‘shot list’ for more than 3 weeks while I waited for the perfect rainy night
If you are eager to learn the art of photography, getting in front of the camera can provide a boost in your educational journey, and just may evolve into an enjoyable creative outlet.
Have you done any self-portraits? Please share in the comments below.
For more tips on doing self-portraits pick up the dPS ebook The Art of Self-Portraiture or read the 5 Benefits of a self-portrait project.
The post How Self-Portraiture Makes You a Better Photographer by Ryan Pendleton appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Digital has done wonders for our industry – it allows us to learn faster, it gives us technological opportunities that we could have only wished for in the “film” days and it has made completely new styles of photography possible. There’s no doubt that the digital shift has been a positive one.
While we embrace all of this change that digital has brought and explore the new depths of technology, I think it’s important to keep one foot in the “analog” world, at least one area – the physical print. The print versus digital discussion is a very controversial topic among professional photographers, and certainly everyone will have their own opinion. Regardless of where you fall in this matter, I’d like to share some thoughts and explain why I feel prints matter for us as photographers and for our clients as consumers of photography.
There are three topics of discussion that I will explore:
Forget about the fact that you’re a photographer and take your attachment to professional quality imagery out of the equation. Printing as a medium is one of the most meaningful ways that you can enjoy photography. Here are a few reasons why the printed image is so important to you as a consumer of photography.
Digital media go out-of-date and out-of-style, and the files that you have stored in these digital formats will also go out-of-style and become unaccessible. Imagine having your vacation photos from 1995 on a 3.5″ Floppy Disk – how might you access those “digital files” today? Of course this is hard to imagine because digital photography wasn’t around in 1995. More recently then, consider the fact that for years you have used DVDs and CDs to store digital files and now that Apple has decided not to install optical drives into their computers anymore, that medium is slowly starting to disappear. You’ll soon have a generation of images that were stored on discs that may not even be (easily) accessible. On the other hand, if you made prints as well, then these changes in technology wouldn’t have a negative impact on you being able to continue to enjoy your images.
Being “in the moment” and away from technology is not a luxury that you get to enjoy all that often in today’s digital world. There is something nostalgic and romantic about being able to curl up on the couch with your children and look back at a wedding album, or old family photos, without having to flip open a laptop and press the “next” button dozens of times. When you look at a picture that is printed, you are free of distraction. There is no e-mail bouncing up in the bottom of your screen and no Facebook “dings” going off in another window. You can enjoy the picture and the story it tells in a quiet, distraction-free moment.
Physical prints give you heirlooms to pass down as you move on in your life. Often you are not recording (capturing a moment) and printing (preserving the moment) for today, but instead for tomorrow, for your children and your children’s children. Passing down a box of hard drives doesn’t exactly have the same appeal, does it?
As a professional photographer or aspiring professional, it’s important to consider offering printed products to your clients. Besides the nostalgia, the emotional and logical reasons for enjoying the printed image as described above, there are also many business benefits to being a full-service photographer. Here are a few:
We’ve explored why printing is important for you as a consumer of photography and how you must consider offering printed products to ensure long-term success as a professional photographer. But, now I’d like to take another side of the argument: how printing your work can actually be the best learning tool to help you grow as a photographer and artist.
A print will always be the most realistic representation of an image as it is the only medium that is truly tangible and actual. This will ultimately be the best way to judge your work as an image isn’t truly finished until it’s in printed form.
It’s easier to judge an image when it’s printed – you can examine it closer, look at it longer, and see it in different contexts. I have been taught that a great way to judge and find improvement in an image is to print it, display it somewhere that you pass by frequently, and look at it often. Try changing its orientation and displaying it upside-down for a while. You will often see things that you wouldn’t otherwise notice if you didn’t analyze it to that extent. This is a much more effective exercise than staring at a computer screen for hours on end.
Consider that the process itself of creating a print will help you grow as a photographer because it gives you a greater appreciation for the bigger picture. At the same time, the exercise of getting in close, fine-tuning and perfecting an image for print will show you a lot about your work that you may otherwise have missed if you were just putting together a quick online gallery or contact sheet.
Lastly, a print is easier to pass around and get objective feedback from others. There is no limitation or interpretation that makes digital photography subjective – variations in monitor size, calibration, room lighting and so on. You ultimately can’t argue with print quality – it is either a good print or not – so the discussion and feedback ends up being more about the image than about the presentation.
When you offer a printed product to your clients as a photographer, you make yourself about more than just pictures. You are now about the preservation of moments and in ensuring that your work, and your clients’ memories, will be guaranteed to last a lifetime.
My next article and discussion in this series will be geared towards the mechanics of exactly how to actually sell prints and make your photography business a full-service studio as opposed to being a shoot-and-burn photographer. Check back soon!
The post Why Prints Matter to You as a Photographer by Bryan Caporicci appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Bambi Cantrell may not be a name you recognize unless you are a wedding photographer. She’s been doing photography since about 1982 and was someone who I followed early on in my career in photography. She’s a frequent speaker at the popular WPPI conference every year and was a recent teacher on Creative Live. These videos are segments of that talk that discuss that area of value of yourself as a photographer and pricing so make a profit and a good living.
In this video below Bambi talks about many extremely important aspects to being a photographer including:
The second video below covers some of the same concepts again and more in depth on the topic of valuing yourself and your work, and charging enough to take enough money home at the end of the day.
So if you are an aspiring photographer hoping to make it as a pro, or maybe you’ve been doing it for a while and just can’t seem to turn a profit – give these a listen!
You might also want to learn about creating relationships to help you grow your business, how to make your next big decision be the right one, and the Ultimate Guide to Going Pro – all right here on dPS.
The post How to Charge What You are Worth as a Photographer and Why by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Most people on social media don’t appreciate the art of street photography. Cats and flowers do get more ‘likes’.
People usually don’t buy prints of street images unless the photographer is somewhat famous.
©Valérie Jardin
No one is going to pay you to walk for hours with your camera to take pictures of strangers. Period.
It can be scary to photograph strangers in the street or to ask a stranger to make a portrait. It’s not for the faint-of heart! You will get rejections and some people may even get angry and confrontational.
©Valérie Jardin
You can be out for hours and go home with an empty memory card. The hunt for the story, the right gesture or expression can take you many miles. You have to learn to be satisfied with just one good shot for the day, if any!
You only have one shot at getting the shot. That fraction of a second that will never happen again. As a result, many of your best shots will have motion blur and noise. When you have to compromise between the technically perfect shot and the story, the story always wins!
©Valérie Jardin
Only people who truly appreciate the art of street photography will like your work and it will be a lot more meaningful and gratifying than any ‘likes’ you’d get for a pretty picture. The street photography community is awesome. They are so passionate because they are doing it for the pure love of it, not to please anyone or get recognition on social media.
You are documenting life around you.
©Valérie Jardin
Street photography is not a hot seller in the fine art world. As a street photographer, you have to look at the bigger picture (no pun intended). You are creating images that reflect a moment in time that will provide some valuable insight for future generations. Just look at the work of street photographers from 50 years ago, and how much we learn from it. That said, you never know when someone is going to connect with one of your images and want to buy a print. Be open to the idea of an occasional sale but don’t bet the farm on it.
You won’t get paid to walk the streets with your camera but, on the bright side, you won’t have to compromise with a client either! Make money doing paid gigs on the side, and get out on the streets for YOU!
The technical aspect of the resulting image is not what street photography is all about.
©Valérie Jardin
Street photography never really stops being intimidating. But the rush you get is just as powerful as the rush the wildlife photographer gets when she gets that perfect shot of a wolf in the wild. Street photography is thrilling, exhilarating and addicting.
Street photography will make you appreciate the world around you so much more. You will never be bored again, anywhere! Get a good pair of shoes and get out there, practicing your street photography is one fun way to get your exercise!
©Valérie Jardin
Street photographers don’t care about noise, they embrace it! Documentary street photography doesn’t require any fancy post processing. A quick exposure adjustment, an occasional crop, a custom black and white conversion if that’s what you like… Et voilà! That’s about the extend of the time you’d ever spend on a picture. You are capturing a slice of life that will never happen again. It’s not going to be perfect, life on the streets is not perfect! No Photoshop action is going to turn a boring picture into a story. You need to know your camera and be ready to get the best possible shot. With practice you learn to anticipate and be ready without attracting too much attention to yourself. Those rare moments, when the story, the light and the composition all come together, are what keep us roaming those streets tirelessly with our camera.
Street photography is something you can do almost anywhere. As long as there are people. No matter where you are, the number one rule of street photography is respect. As a bonus you will make friends along the way, and that’s a beautiful thing! I will leave you with a quote that, in my opinion, best represents what street photography is all about:
Those rare moments, when the story, the light and the composition all come together, are what keep us roaming those streets tirelessly with our camera.
©Valérie Jardin
Need a few tips on practicing your street photography? Check out some of these articles:
The post To be or not to be a Street Photographer by Valerie Jardin appeared first on Digital Photography School.
The Museum of London is celebrating the acquisition of a collection of images from Christina Broom, the UK’s first female press photographer. Self-taught, Broom photographed London life and British military from 1903 to 1939. She started small, learning on a borrowed camera, and in 1904 she became the official photographer for the Household Division. See gallery
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
The Associated Press is reporting today that veteran AP photographer Anja Niedringhaus was killed, and an AP reporter was wounded, when their car was fired upon by an Afghan police officer. They were traveling in a convoy of election workers bringing ballots to regions outside the city of Khost. Niedringhaus, 48, was pronounced dead at the scene and AP reporter Kathy Gannon was shot twice. She is listed as being in stable condition after surgery to treat her wounds. Learn more
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
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