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…
Flowing Photography
“You know you’ve got it, if it makes you feel good.” -Janis Joplin While I doubt that Janis had photography in mind when she wrote the lyrics to her classic “Piece of my Heart”, I think it’s actually a great…
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…
The Mystery of Photography
I feel like I’m repeating myself here, but I’m going to anyway (and I’m going to capitalize it for good measure) : Good Images are About Good Stories. But there is another ingredient that is often ignored and it’s this: ???…
From Literal to Abstract: The Evolution of an Image
Day before yesterday I spent an hour or so wandering around the Creamer’s Field Waterfowl Refuge not far from downtown Fairbanks. It is a place I know well. Most of the winter’s snow has now turned to water and the…
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…
Avoiding Imitation
I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about photography recently. Of course, that isn’t anything unusual, but I’m thinking of it now from a the perspective of a teacher. As I’ve mentioned a time or two before, I writing…
Photography and the Art of the Story
If you are at all involved in the the artistic world online or elsewhere, you’ve likely heard the refrain: “Tell stories, tell stories, tell stories.” And it’s good advice too. Successful images, successful writing, even successful marketing campaigns tell compelling…
Getting it Wrong, and (rarely) right.
I took this photo years and years ago. Before I’d ever sold an image, or even really considered taking on photography as profession. I often come back to this one because it was one of the first times, I…
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…