bob@bcphotography.com 928-300-0535 coatesart.net
This video brought tears to my eyes… In a good way.
See how this artist takes what many of us would think of as a debilitating syndrome and turns it into a way of creative life that will blow you away.
It also made me think quite a bit… Let me know how it affects you.
Reminders.
New ideas.
Insight from another photographer who has excellent skills.
And, some pretty darn nice photography all wrapped up in a beautiful package.
I’m talking about Bruce Barnbaum’s book The Essence of Photography – Seeing and Creativity published by rockynook. Bruce starts with a narrative that in the beginning I felt was a little too ‘I’ centric. But, he was sharing information as he saw and experienced it trough his career and I actually enjoy seeing through his eyes this way.
Bruce’s book cover.
Bruce gives lots of information on creativity and getting out of your own way. Suggestions on how to be a great photographer are there for the picking. This is not light reading but get you gets you to examine your photography and creativity in-depth.
Here’s a quick sample paragraph from the book…
The Importance of Defining Your Expressive Goals
“Sometimes a photographer has an idea of what he wants to accomplish, but he doesn’t really know how to achieve that goal. Mapping out that pathway can be the most difficult part of the process. Prior to that, figuring out exactly what you want to say about about your subject matter – whether it’s the character of the person you want to bring out in a portrait, the forces in nature found in the sandstone walls of a slit canyon, or anything else -can also be challenging. This is where the combination of drawing upon your deepest interests and fully understanding the technical aspects of photography – digital or traditional – gives you the tools you need to accomplish your goals.”
From the rockynook site on what’s inside…
• Defining your own unique rhythm and approach as a photographer
• How to translate the scene in front of you to the final photograph
• The differences and similarities between how an amateur and a professional approach photography
• The differences between realism and abstraction, and the possibilities and limitations of each
• Learning to expand your own seeing and creativity through classes, workshops, and associating with other photographers
• Why the rules of composition should be ignored
• How to follow your passion
• When to listen to the critics and when to ignore them Here’s one particular passage I want to share with you…
Lots of inspiration for creativity. This will be a book I return to for a refresher on an ongoing basis.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – You can get Bruce’s The Essence of Photography on Amazon
Times are changing in image capture. In the latest cameras put out by Panasonic it’s easier than ever to capture action. 4K photo mode allows you to capture up to 30 frames per second video that allows you to pull 8 MP stills. There’s even one mode that allows you to capture 1 second of action, 30 frames, abefore you press the shutter. So you can see something start to happen and still get the moment! Lumix GX8 and Lumix G7. Check out this quick video for details…
Good morning.
I’m in Murfreesboro this AM watching a wonderful presentation with David Peters at the Tennessee Professional Photographers Association’s annual convention Photo Extreme 2015. What a splendid amount of information and wonderful thoughts and emotion are being shared. If you EVER get the opportunity to see David speak… DO IT!
This is one of the quotes from the program that resonated with me from the artistic standpoint.
“Light is the hero in a photograph.” David Peters
This is something I try to share with new, and old, photographers on a regular basis. I think these seven words explain it so well what makes for good, solid and artful photography. Best to you this Sunday.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
David Peters speaking at Photo Extreme
Started out to be a beautiful morning. Up at 5:20AM to catch a flight to Nashville for my speaking and judging gig for the Tennessee Professional Photographers Association. Flight is 7:35 lift off… Err not so much. Maintenance issues called for the plane to not be in service…
So when do we anticipate our new flight? 10AM. Bummer!
Well work on tweaks to the program, answer emails and check some forums on the web.
The flight actually took off a bit later than anticipated about 10:30AM but before we boarded the plane they announced that everyone would receive a $100 travel voucher good until a year from now.
It’s appreciated.
I personally don’t want a plane in the air that’s not ready to go so I say fix that bad boy!
This is the first time I’ve flown Southwest Airlines in many years and I was impressed. I’ll be back.
Southwest Airlines wing from the window…
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – Image made with Lumix FZ1000
Panorama Photos
I’ll put on my ‘Old Man’ hat here and say, “Back in the day (can you hear the creaky voice??) we had to make notes with a pencil and paper to record what lens was used, and the settings on the camera like Aperture and shutter speed. We knew the ISO ’cause that was on the film.”
OK. you probably already know I’m a fan of the in-camera panoramic format with the Lumix line of cameras. Well I gotta tell ya’ they’ve made it even better. Must be some new math working but you can make your panoramas longer and the stitching is even better than before in the G7 and the GX8.
I’m stoked!
My wife and I went out to dinner tonight and I slipped out for a couple minutes as the scene was unfolding with some nice light. I dialed the GX8 to the pano setting and opened up one stop of exposure compensation to keep the shadows from blocking up since there was so much sky in the image. In Adobe Photoshop I added a Soft Light Layer to gently burn the top ot the sky back in just a bit. Here’s the result.
Red rock view from Sound Bites Grill in Sedona, Arizona at sunset. Camera and lens information below.
One of the best pieces of information we have as photographers today is the metadata secured in the file for all of our images.
This information is accessed in Photoshop by going to File > File Info >Camera Data. This info makes it possible to understand settings and study how to make our images more consistent and to make situations repeatable as we understand more how our camera’s work.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
Thanks to Karl Mullings, a photographer in Flagstaff, Arizona, for this reminder of a quote from one of his and my mentors, Donald Jack.
It came up in a forum post about how a photographer wouldn’t participate in Imaging Competition run by Professional Photographers of America. This almost 30 year photographer claims that their reward comes from hugs and referrals to other clients and there is no need to receive any other acclaim.
I now take you to the quote from Donald…
“If you have nothing to compare something to, then what you have in front of you is the very best that it can be.” ~Donald Jack
I applaud every photographer in their efforts to become better in whatever way they can. I suggest that using the PPA system of Competition accelerates that growth. When a photographer competes against themselves and push themselves through PPA’s competition system with peers they see an incredible leap in the depth and dimension of their imagery…. I’ve seen it time and time again.
Why does that matter? “Clients are happy with the photographs I supply them.”
Better photography. It translates to more and larger sales and being able to raise prices along with opportunities to create press releases and social marketing pieces that give more credence to someone looking to choose a photographer, not to mention staying front of mind in your community.
What are you waiting for? Give it a shot and see how fast your image making skills grow.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
Spent a lot of time at my desk with my face buried in the computer again today.
But,
I don’t feel tired.
Used to be after a day spent with the LED’s staring back in my face I’d be exhausted. That seems to have been taken care of by my new exercise routine. And, you can do it too!
I started with the Johnson & Johnson 7 Minute Workout downloaded as an APP on my IPad. While it does have a routine that lasts for 7 minutes the reality is you work your way up to doing the set of simple exercises three times in a row with a bit of a warm up and and stretching to finish for a total of about a half hour. **I recommend that you do this each morning. (ease into it a bit at a time)
The 7 minute workout is like having a trainer with you… ** 7 minute workout by johnson & johnson
The other part of the equation is to get up at regular intervals and get the blood moving throughout the day. For this, you need a timer on your computer. Time flies when you work on your images and are in create mode. You can’t depend on your inner clock. Believe me when you start running a timer you will be surprised every time it goes off!
Computer timer software can be found by doing this search and you can find the one that best sui.
I set mine for every half hour. I get up and do something for one minute. Stretch, a few push-ups, jumping jacks, sit ups or a brisk walk to the kitchen for a glass of water. Anything to get the blood pumping and the body away from the computer for a bit.
Makes a huge difference! Ready to try?? Download the J&J link above to your personal device…
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
** I am not a doctor, never even played one on TV. Please check with your health professional before starting any exercise routine.
SD Cards
What speed should I be looking for??
Got word that the Lumix call center has been receiving a number of calls from people who are confused about which SD cards are recommended for which models. In the past “Class 10” were regarded as the fastest out there. The link below shows the speed of each type of card.
Most important numbers to look for when choosing an SD Card for cameras. The write speed.
Also, most people are not aware that SD cards have three speed ratings – Read, Write and Copy. The fastest speed, usually quoted, is the READ speed. The WRITE speed is the important one to consider when selecting a card.
https://www.sdcard.org/consumers/speed
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
Our local entertainment newspaper/magazine used one of my images on the cover. The cover story is Guitarist Sir Harrison playing at Sound Bites Grill in Sedona.
Sedona’s weekly entertainment newspaper Kudos
Just a quick share.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
For infrared conversion of my cameras I use LifePixel. Infrared allows you to put an older camera to use and opens up a new time time of day for productive image creation.
Learn Photoshop in a fun environment. Aaron Nace applies the right amount of fun with easy to understand and follow tutorials. Actions and brushes are included with lessons!
Best embroidery ever. Give Queensboro a try, get a $20 instant credit to get started by clicking on the logo! They specialize in great quality custom logo apparel and promotional products with the best customer service.
Platypod has become a great resource for being creative in getting your camera gear easily into unusual places. As an Platypod Pro I get to work/play with the gear even before it comes out. Head over to Platypod, subscribe to the newsletter and you will get special discounts reserved only for subscribers.