**This site contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links.
After my wife and I returned from our Disneyland vacation one of the images I shared on social media prompted a lot of “how did you do that” questions. A perfect opportunity for another teaching point. In this post I will show you how to make a sunburst without using Photoshop or other software. Read more How to Make a Sunburst
When I first started using a DSLR I was disappointed with my results. I was used to shooting slide film where everything had to be just right at the time of capture since the slide was the final result. When I started using a DSLR I felt like I was always tweaking my images. Read more Taking the picture is the first step…
One of the biggest issues that has faced photographers since the beginning of time is how to organize your images so that you can find them later. Digital has further complicated this issue since most photographers shoot significantly more images now than we did when we shot with film. But one of the advantages digital offers us is the ability to organize each image with multiple ways to find them. The big problem now is figuring out a system that works for you. Read more Organizing Your Images: You Need a DAM System
It is fun to get creative even when taking “snapshots” and that is when photography becomes even more rewarding. Amusement and Theme parks are full of amazing opportunities for images and last year my wife and I visited Disneyland without the kids (Hence the BIG smiles). I always strive to take some fun pictures that require you to get outside of the Automatic or Program modes. Read more You Spin Me Right Round
I am frequently asked by students about settings I use for taking pictures. It is very easy to simply tell them what settings I used, but it is even more important to understand why I used those settings. After explaining, many feel overwhelmed and discouraged, but photography is like any other art, it takes practice. Read more Get to Know Your Camera
There has been a debate since the beginning of serious digital photography: Should you shoot in RAW or Jpeg? I personally choose based on the final goal of the image. If I am shooting a serious landscape, or other image where I know I am going to do additional post processing in Lightroom later (see the previous tip), then I shoot in RAW. If I am shooting my kids birthday party for my wife to use for scrapbooking, I shoot in Jpeg. But why the difference? First we have to understand what the practical difference is between RAW vs JPEG. Read more RAW vs JPEG Real World Example
I am asked quite often what camera settings I use. This is a difficult question since I change several settings based on what I am shooting. However, there are some settings that I can recommend that I use and hardly (if ever) change. These Recommended Camera Settings are based on a Canon 70D, but most cameras have the same settings but might refer to them differently: Read more Recommended Camera Settings
Welcome to my first “Teaching point” article. In this series I plan to post a new photo and provide the camera settings and a detailed description of the how and why for the image. It is my hope that this will help aspiring photographers to see the photo process and inspire them to experiment and grow as photographers. Read more Double Take: testing a camera feature.