There is a trail near my home that I know intimately. During the long winter of Alaska’s interior, I ride my fat bike along the trail’s 7 mile length about three times a week. I know it by the low…
Don’t Move: A Photographic Exercise
On our final morning on the Jago, as we waited for the weather to clear off the mountains, I took the opportunity to spend a bit of time making photos. It was a nice morning for photography, cloud shadows rolled…
Striving for Balance
Balance is a vital, and under appreciated aspect of photographic composition. I was reminded of this fact just the other day when we were treated to a short, and lovely display of the aurora borealis. It wasn’t a particularly booming…
Vague but Specific
I stole the title of this post from a Facebook friend who periodically posts humorous quotes she hears during her day. I smiled initially, but then, as I thought about it a bit, I realized in photography at least, you…
Shooting Outside of the Comfort Zone
I once had a client on a photography oriented trip who had one, and only one interest: photographing large mammals. He had no interest in birds, not flowers, not even the spectacular mountain landscape that surrounded our camp on…
Tobacco Barn in Black and White
Canon 5d Mark III, Canon 17-40 f4L, handheld, ISO 400 This Tobacco drying barn at the Finca Santa Anita, south of Salta, Argentina dates back to the mid-1800s. It is built from adobe bricks and rough-cut wood beams and stands…
On Photography Part II: The Tools of the Trade
Photography tools are not limited to the cameras, lenses, tripods, filters, flashes, lighting accessories, computers, and software, but let’s start there. First of all you don’t really NEED most of that shit. What you NEED to be a photographer is…
On Photography- Part I: An Introduction
Today I begin a series of rants on photography and creativity. I write these posts not as an expert, but as someone who is daily struggling with the artistic process of photography. If you manage to survive the reading of…
Intentional Blur
So much photography discussion revolves around how to increase the sharpness of your images. It’s an unspoken rule: good images need to be sharp. But like all rules, it is one that should sometimes be broken. Blur can be a…
A Prickly Subject- To Gear or Not to Gear
Right now, I’m building up the financial and mental fortitude to invest in a new camera body. Buying an expensive piece of gear is a slow process for me, I hem and haw, justify it one way, then justify the…