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Photography Tips, Tricks, Pics, & Journeys

Posts in Tips
What The Heck Are The Different Photography Filters Used For?

It eventually happens to every new photographer. You’re out in the field. You’re setting up to make a shot, and you see others around you setting up for a shot, only, some of these people have these strange contraptions attached to the front of their lens. It looks like a huge piece of square glass. You sit there. You stare. You wonder. And when you get back home, you Google ‘square things on lens.’ The first time this happened to me, I was set up to shoot some images of Bonsai Rock in Lake Tahoe, California several years back.

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5 Things To Remember When Assisting a Photographer

So one of the best ways to learn photography is to assist another photographer, which I've had the pleasure of recently doing for photographer Stephen Chiang. While getting a photographer assistant gig may seem like a tough nut to crack, you’d be surprised at how many people can or will refer you just by putting out a simple call on your Facebook or Twitter or Google Plus account. Photographers are everywhere and every single one of them can use some help, and what separates those that are helping them and those that are thinking about helping them? Well…those that are helping them asked if they can. While it may not turn into a regular gig, it’s a marvelous step in building a new network, gaining some trust amongst your peers, and best of all, learning your craft hands on. And to maximize that effort, here are a few things to remember when assisting a photographer.

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Why You Should Stop Paying Attention To The Focal Point Of Your Images

I recently found myself standing in front of a stunning vista in the Santa Monica Mountains. It was June 21, 2014. The Summer Solstice. And the sun was just about to set behind the mountains, leaving a beautiful show of colors and clouds and reflections and highlights and vivid shadows in it’s wake. There was another group of photographers at the other end of the overlook and they were doing what most photographers first instinct is to do…pay full attention to the focal point of their image, the subject they wish to draw attention to, and everything else came secondary.

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7 Tips For Shooting Real Estate Photography

If you read this blog regularly, you’ll know that one of my primary sources of income is photographing real estate and properties for various clients ranging from Airbnb to real estate companies and management companies. After doing this for the past 3 years, I’ve managed to pick up a few tips and pointers along the way that have made my job a LOT easier. Here are 7 of them:

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A Small Gesture Goes A Long Way - The Power Of (Baby) Photography

A few months back, I was on a photo trip up north in the Pacific Northwest and it was incredible. I’m sure you’ve already heard me gush enough about it. Anyhow, our hosts were friends of the guy that hired me, who not only graciously allowed us to commandeer their home for a week, but also one of their cars. They were some of the warmest, most hospitable people I’ve ever met and it was incredible how they were immediately able to diffuse any anxieties about staying with strangers.

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8 Quick Tips For Candid Pet Photography

I was recently asked by a friend of mine who runs Ocean Walk Pet Sitting to shoot a few candid shots of one of his clients dogs so that he can present them as a gift to the client. Since this was, one, for a good friend, and two, another excuse to be outside in the sunshine on the beach with a camera, how could I say no? It’s not the first time I’ve done pet photography as I've shot some of his client’s pets in the past, so I knew a bit of what to expect, and I was able to draw on what I had learned the last time and apply them to this session. Here are 8 pet photography takeaway tips from those sessions that I wish I knew right away:

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A Quick, Easy And Effective Alternative Method Of Sharpening Your Images

When most people think sharpening in Photoshop, they understandably default to the ’Sharpen’ or ‘Unsharp Mask’ filters. But since I learned this trick a few years back, I don’t believe I’ve opened a single one of Photoshop’s native sharpen plugins a single time. Instead, I’ve relied on one of the ‘Other’ filters in that ‘Filter’ menu -

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