The Real ROI of Your Photography Locations

Shoot Smarter, Not Farther Every photographer dreams of the big one: standing before the Eiffel Tower, tripod legs spread like battle flags, waiting for the golden hour that’s been captured ten million times before. It’s a beautiful dream, until you realize you’re elbow-to-elbow with a hundred other shooters all chasing the same light and angle. At that moment, the question […]

Finding Your Voice in a World of Photography Trends

Every year, photography trends roll in like seasonal fashion, bold colors one moment, muted tones the next. One month, everyone is chasing moody neon; the next, they’re knee-deep in minimalist beige. If photography had a thrift store, last year’s “must-have” editing style would be sitting in a bargain bin, right next to those dusty Instagram filters we swore we’d never […]

Remote Modeling Sessions, My Honest Take on Pros & Cons

Remember when “virtual happy hour” was the hottest thing in town? Well remote modeling sessions rode that same wave out of necessity back in early 2020, and they’re still bobbing along, for better and worse. My take might ruffle some feathers, but here it is: what started as a lifeline has morphed into a sometimes messy, often transactional circus. Grab […]

Do You Really Need to Go to School for Photography?

There’s no shortage of photography knowledge out there. From the countless tutorials on YouTube to detailed blog posts like the ones right here, you could spend a lifetime learning about aperture, shutter speed, and sensor sizes — all without ever stepping foot in a classroom. With so many free and low-cost resources available online, it’s fair to ask: does it […]

Why Photographers Need to Stop Giving Away Their Work for Free

Let’s talk about one of the trickiest little dance steps in the life of a photographer: saying no when a friend or family member asks you to shoot something—for free. If you’ve ever been guilted into bringing your camera to a cousin’s baby shower “just for a few shots,” or you’ve gotten the ol’ “hey, you’re already going to be […]

Do you really need expansive camera gear?

Photography, like almost every hobby, is expensive, and the camera lens and body you buy is only the beginning of the expenditure needed to enter and stay competitive in the photography game. If you are like me, and don’t have unlimited funds to spend on photography, it can be confusing to determine what will get you the biggest bang for […]

Embrace Ai as a tool to make things easier

Over the years, I’ve watched technology transform photography, graphic design, and other creative industries—and the latest wave of AI is simply breathtaking. When Change Rolls In Every business faces a turning point. Picture a scenic mountain pass near Denver: as you drive, the familiar landscape gives way to unexpected vistas. Similarly, when the market evolves—like AI stepping onto the stage—business […]

Choosing the right lens

One of the most common questions I get is: “how do I choose the right lens for what I am shooting?” It seems like there are a million choices they are all in millimeters and they have f numbers attached to them. What the heck is the difference between a prime and variable aperture zoom/telephoto lens? Do I need a […]

TFP what is it – the ultimate guide

TFP stands for Time for Prints (sometimes also referred to as Trade for Prints or Time for portfolio). In the world of photography, TFP represents a collaborative arrangement between a photographer and a model. Here’s what it entails: Definition TFP involves a mutual exchange where the photographer agrees to provide the model with a specified number of selected photographs from […]

Watermarking your photos

A question I often get is how to protect your work as a photographer. Just like with everything, there are a million opinions, and most are uninformed or just flat out wrong. Perhaps the most common misconception about protecting your work is that if you say something is copyrighted, then you are safe if someone steals your work. Likewise, many […]

Practice safe portraiture

Practice safe portraiture Hearing about the death of someone while taking photos is always heartbreaking for me. Recently, A Singaporean tourist, Nur Aisyah Binte MD Akbar (39), tragically died after falling off a cliff while taking a photo with her husband. The tragedy occurred at Minnewaska State Park near Rochester, New York, on December 22, 2023. The couple had been […]

Choosing the right SD or CF card for your camera

When it comes to choosing the right memory card for your camera, there is no shortage of choices. SD, CF, CF Express, MicroSD, SDXC the choices seem endless and there is a lot of conflicting information about the best type and brand to choose. Even worse, in online reviews, it often feels like the reviewers have spent little or no […]

Ten years with my ND filter, do you need one?

When we start in photography, just like any other art form, it’s fun to explore and experiment with different modifiers, lights, and gear to help us try and sort out our artistic style. I started shooting seriously in 2000 but waited until 2013 to buy my first ND filter. Now that we are ten years in, what brand of ND […]

Lightpainting, a fun and easy portrait technique

Are you looking for a simple, fun, and creative way to spice up your portraiture? I created this image in a single frame (no photoshop other than to adjust the shadows) with a single strobe and some stuff I found lying around the house. The technique is called light painting, and depending on the light source you use and it’s […]