Pro Techniques

One moment you can find him photographing people diving off a boat in Bali, the next focusing on a businesswoman returning to a hotel restaurant in Bangkok to savor the haute cuisine, and then back in his studio capturing a telling portrait. That’s the life of an advertising photographer specializing in portraiture, lifestyle, and fashion, as David Allan Brandt knows it.

...

"The Great Swamp was a treat," observed one of the photographers from the American Museum of Natural History's photo studio after returning from a trip to photograph this New Jersey marshland. "Nothing like slogging around in chest waders and dodging mosquitoes (unsuccessfully, I might add) for four hours in really nice smelling swamp water," he...

“I can trace my roots in photography back to when I was a student at the Ontario College of Art (Toronto),” Andrew Eccles recalls. “But there was one problem: back then, I found it intimidating to approach people with the camera, so I avoided photographing them.

“Then I came to New York and started studying magazines such as Rolling Stone, and, through a...

I have always been a big supporter of joining and participating in professional groups. The growth of my career as a photo rep, teacher, and author all came from joining and participating in groups that brought together like-minded individuals. For photographers looking to enhance or initiate their careers there are numerous professional associations worthy of attention.

Chase Jarvis is one of a new breed of successful young photographers who’s at the top of his game. His use of social networking has brought him an enormous following while his exploration of radical business models is opening new markets. Best known for his lifestyle and sports images, the creative and financial success of his personal projects has earned him top corporate clients like Nikon, Reebok, and Microsoft.

 

Shutterbug: You have no formal training as a photographer, yet arguably you’re one of the top photographers working today. How’d you get there?

Chase Jarvis: I wish I could answer that in a sentence. I think maybe the shortest description is by being incredibly curious and very hardworking. And throw a whole bunch of luck in there, too. There’s a lot of timing and luck involved in anything I do.

Last year I wrote about the need for every photographer, regardless of their ability, to have a current portfolio. In my business as a commercial photographer, a killer portfolio is a necessity. I received a few e-mails inquiring about the...

One of the claims often heard when talking about medium format cameras is, "With this camera you can get practically 4x5 quality." How realistic is that claim anyway? Let's face it, a 4x5 sheet of film has over three times the total real...