Portrait Photography How To

Regardless of the type of photography you enjoy most, it’s a good bet you’d rather be out shooting than sitting behind a computer editing your work. And it’s an even better bet that the video below will save you more processing time than any other tutorial you’ve watched recently.

“Earlier this year, I was invited by JIB TV in Tokyo and Olympus, Japan to help document the recovery taking place after the terrible earthquake and tsunami that hit the northeast part of the country in March 2011. I agreed to do it even though I knew it would be a traumatic experience.

Two of our favorite photography channels on YouTube finally got together in the collaboration video (aka “collab”) everyone has been waiting for. In the entertaining and informative clip below, Los Angeles-based Daniel and Rachel of Mango Street travel north to visit Peter McKinnon in Canada to try their hands at shooting in each other’s styles.

Some experts call it “Color Theory,” while others refer to “Color Psychology,” but the point is that the colors of objects around us have a significant impact upon our moods, attitudes, and perception. In the video below, you’ll see how this concept applies to the photographs we make and how they are viewed by others.

Does using social media as a marketing tool work for photographers? That’s what we aimed to find out by interviewing five photographers who have successfully used this particular marketing technique in very specific ways. Unlike advertising and direct mail, where you send out your material and wait for a response, and sales calls, which are more time-consuming, social media is a unique technique that can breed success, but only when properly and fully utilized. Many thanks to our photographers for taking the time and attention to share their thoughts and experiences (websites at end of column): Liz Cowie, Clark Dever, David Alan Kogut, Brad Mangin, and Chuck St. John.

What happens when you pack your gear, head out for a portrait session, and your model is a no-show? Well, if you’re a quick thinking photographer and willing to step out of your comfort zone, you find a willing stranger and make some stunning images. And if the stranger happens to be beautiful, consider that a bonus!

Brian Dowling is an American photographer living in Berlin, with a project that would drive many of his peers to envy: He traveled to 20 countries across the globe in search of gorgeous redheads to photograph in all their natural beauty.