I love photographing big family groups. I do lots of them, usually in the summer when families get together, and many times at the beach since it's so gorgeous and people love it. It's one of my specialties, but many photographers shy away from...
My strong point has always been natural light. When clients call me about weddings, I tell them I am a "natural light specialist." I love shooting outdoor portraits and have trained myself to "see the light" in the locations that...
If you're like most photographers, you probably prefer to spend most of your time behind the camera rather than in front of it. I am no exception. Inevitably, however, there are times when smiling for the camera is unavoidable. For instance, my...
In the fast moving world of wedding photography, speed of delivery counts as much as style. In 1984, I contributed a chapter to Jack Curtis' book Wedding-Portrait Photography World on the impact...
If you are just starting out with a digital camera or are making the switch from traditional to digital, you will do well to take some extra time to learn a few important principles of digital photography...
I think I've got a new career here. Me, probably the least technical of all the Shutterbug writers, writing about technical stuff! I'm basing that on the flood of e-mails and comments I received about my digital portrait article in the April issue.
Most people assume that professional portraiture requires expensive camera strobes for good results. Strobes can work beautifully with portraits, particularly when used with softboxes, but they are not necessary in many situations. Armed with equipment to...
A few short years ago, many writers and photographers, myself included, were of the opinion that in a few short years film would be history, with the exception of a few "niche" areas of photography, like, say, infrared. Now that I've been...
Black On Black Is Easy Still under cover, I photographed the church's Father Frank. I photographed him in black robes against a black background. My aim was to show detail throughout the portrait and separation between his robe and the background.
While it's clear to every serious photographer that digital cameras will eventually replace film as we know it, there's still cause for concern with the skin tone of digital portraits.
As any portrait photographer knows, taking pictures of children can be a lot of fun, but also very difficult. Usually, most kids don't want to smile or sit still for the camera, particularly in front of people they don't know. Capturing a genuine...
I keep growing, changing, and evolving. Nothing stays the same. I learn from experience and use my successes to trigger more. Some work, some don't. So, I decided to put together a few of my recent successful images and tell you how they...
Photo enthusiasts often ask me, "What's the most important accessory I need for professional-quality outdoor people pictures?" I reply, "A flash unit, of course." Then they ask me for my best tip for using a flash. My advice: Think flashy...
A recent class in South Carolina brought to mind quite a few things that photographers have heard before, but for one reason or another just never seem to remember at the appropriate time. So, skimming through some of the images that I created that week...