Assignment & Publication Updates
Some recently published interviews & articles
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The Pro Photo Daily Master Series Interviews
Some recently published interviews & articles
and
The Pro Photo Daily Master Series Interviews
Nader Abushhab is one of those portrait photographers whose images immediately beg us to know more about his subjects. Whether it’s an acrobat dangling with grace and power from her apparatus or a wide-eyed innocent offering a soulful glance into the lens, his photos convey his subjects in a carefully crafted and yet honest way that both demands attention and piques our curiosity. Read my Pro Photo Daily/Tamron Master Series interview with photographer Nader Abushhab here.
To say that Colorado-based shooter Aaron Anderson’s work has a flare for the dramatic is an almost laughable understatement. In fact, some of his photos are so intensely theatrical and so perfectly captured that the first thing you find yourself wondering is just how in the heck he created them in front of the camera. Asked about how he developed such a powerful style, he replies: “You find your voice by taking a lot of pictures, a lot of bad pictures, and then taking more pictures until slowly you emerge.” Read my Pro Photo Daily/Tamron Master Series interview with photographer Aaron Anderson here.
Before she committed her professional life to nature and wildlife photography, Scottsdale, Arizona-based photographer Lisa Langell had a lot of different careers. As a teenager she managed a pizzeria, later she worked as a master floral designer and then after college and grad school she became a licensed psychologist and a professional trainer and consultant in the area of K-12 education. And while she took a somewhat circuitous route to her current career, today she is one of the world's premiere nature and wildlife shooters and her assignments and workshops take her from the Everglades of Florida to the most remote and beautiful wildlife parks of Alaska. You can read more about her amazing career in my Pro Photo Daily/Tamron Master Series interview here.
When you first look at photographer Greg Boratyn’s meticulously crafted landscape images it’s almost inevitable that the work of another great nature master, Ansel Adams, comes immediately to mind. It’s not just the similarity in their subject matter—some of the planet’s most wild mountains, deserts, forests—that begs the comparison, it’s the obvious reverence both share for nature at its most dramatic moments and their ability to capture it with perfect craftsmanship. In our recent interview, Greg shares his passion and his techniques for capturing such splendid images. You can read the Pro Photo Daily/Tamron Master Series interview here.
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There's nothing I like photographing more than a dramatic sunset and I often head to the local beach at the end of the day to do just that. Recently Bottom Line newsletters published a short how-to story that I wrote with tips on getting great shots of sunsets. Enjoy!
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California-based photographer Monica Royal spends much of her time and creative energy exploring a lilliputian cosmos of rarely-noticed details of flowers, looking-glass droplets of water and abstract graphic patterns in both natural and manmade objects. Her photos offer an intimate glimpse into subjects so tiny most of us barely notice them. Monica is the subject of one of my recent Pro Photo Daily "Master Series" interviews and the interview includes a nice gallery of her beautiful work. If enjoy macro photography, you'll love Monica's inspiring work. (Photo Copyright Monica Royal) Read the interview.
When I was assigned to interview wedding photographer Robert Evans for Pro Photo Daily, I thought, "Oh no, a wedding photographer--what can I ask that I haven't asked one before?" And then I looked at his work and was blown away. Evans' wedding photos are a really fun blend of glamour, travel, romance and quirkiness. This is not your father's wedding photographer. It's no wonder he's asked to shoot weddings all over the world--and for some of the world's biggest celebs. He also happens to be an incredibly nice guy and he's the subject of one of my favorite "Master Series" interviews. Read the Interview.
Austin Lottimer is kind of a hard person to describe quickly: he is a filmmaker, a talented still photographer, a director of photography, a screenwriter--and he's pretty much self taught at all of it. He and his girlfriend and his brother own their own film-production company in Boulder, Colorado--and they're making some extremely cool films. Austin has a fascinating story to tell and he is the subject a recent Pro Photo Daily Master Series interview. Read the interview.
Chad Wadsworth is living every music photographer's dream: he works full-time photographing the music scene in Austin, Texas and beyond. On-stage, backstage and everywhere in between, he captures the high-volume energy of the cutting-edge music world. Chad Wadsworth is one of the subjects of my Pro Photo Daily Master Series interviews. If you like great explosive photos from the music world, you'll enjoy reading this interview. Read the Interview.
It takes a lot of talent, hard work and determination to make it in the world of commercial photography these days. John Sterling Ruth is one of those photographers that has turned his passion into a hugely successful business. And Ruth built an impressive national clientele from his studio in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He is the subject of my my recent Pro Photo Daily Master Series Interview. Ruth's photos are quite amazing and range from huge earth-moving trucks to classic Martin guitars! (Photo Copyright John Sterling Ruth) Read the interview.
If you are a fan of simpler times (and aren't we all) and love images that gently call to your eye and to your heart, you're going to love the work of photographer Caroline Jensen. Caroline lives on the prairie of southern Minnesota and she and her family lead a kind of Laura Ingalls Wilder lifestyle and she captures that lifestyle in her photographs with lots of romance and a very skilled technique. I think you'll enjoy my Pro Photo Daily Master Series interview with Caroline. (Photo Copyright Caroline Jensen) Read the interview.
Anne Day is one of those photographers whose work instantly touches my soul. The very first time that I looked through her photographs, I knew I had found a kindred photographic spirit. Then I began reading about her life, about a tragic fire that took not only a dear friend but also her home and her studio. I recently interviewed Anne, a fellow Connecticut resident, for the Pro Photo Daily Master Series. The story of her tragedy, of the community that rallied behind her and her phoenix-like return to life is the stuff of Hollywood screenplays. If you have a minute, please read about her and look at her wonderful photographs. (Photo copyright Anne Day) Read the interview.
Eli Reed is a fascinating man and one of the most accomplished photojournalists in history. He has covered wars, natural disasters and documented life in America, particularly the lives of African-Americans, with unparalleled depth and soul and great visual talent. I interviewed Eli for a recent Pro Photo Daily "Master Series" interview and he shares great insights about how his journey from being a kid in a New Jersey housing project to becoming one of the world's most respected photographers--and how he overcame a wall of racial prejudice to get there. (Photo Copyright Eli Reed) Read the interview.
Describing Jamie MacDonald’s photography is a bit tough because while many photographers are easily categorized by the subjects that they shoot or one particular style, his work often defies simple categorization. Indeed, in many ways, other than using real cameras and real subjects, he pretty much fabricates his own reality after the fact. What he photographs in the world around him serves largely as what he calls his canvas—a jumping-off point from which he almost always reinvents those subjects. Jamie is the subject of one of my recent Pro Photo Daily "Master Series" interviews and he has some very interesting thoughts about the photographic process and what it takes to transform reality into his personal vision. (Photo copyright Jamie Macdonald.) Read the interview.
On her website, Laura Hicks describes herself as a “keep-it-simple kind of girl” with a love of nature — including bugs, frogs and spiders — as well as a passionate traveler, a collector of shoes who prefers going barefoot and an avid reader who often stays up far too late in the night. She is also a wife, a mother to four energetic boys (ages 9-14), a foster parent, and a professional photographer who believes that perfection is unattainable, though it’s a goal she strives for on a daily basis. Hicks is one of Cincinnati, Ohio’s most talented, successful and prolific high-school senior portrait and wedding photographers. I recently interviewed Laura for my Pro Photo Daily "Master Series" interviews and I think you'll find her photos and her thoughts about photographer very interesting. (Photo copyright Laura Hicks.) Read the Interview.
Neil Leifer has always been one of my favorite photographers and I think it's safe to say that most people would regard him as one of the greatest sports photographers of all time--and he is the greatest boxing photographer in history, no question. But sports is not all that Neil has shot, he also covered events around the world for Time and Life Magazines. Neil is the subject of one of my recent Pro Photo Daily "Master Series" interviews and I have to say that it was a thrill to be able to speak with this legendary photographer. I confess that I was more than a little intimidated to speak with him (and there's hardly a photographer on this planet that I haven't interviewed), but it turns out we had a great deal of fun doing the interview--he's an amazingly nice and open person. There is a link in the story to a full gallery of his Muhammad Ali photos and they will blow your mind. (Photo Copyright Neil Leifer) Read the interview.
Photographer Jay Dickman has enjoyed the kind of career that most aspiring photographers today would probably hesitate to even fantasize about.He began his career shooting for the Dallas Times Herald – an opportunity, he admits, that intimidated him almost to the point of backing out of the job offer. “One of the first photographers they introduced me to was Bob Jackson, who took the Pulitzer Prize-winning picture of Lee Harvey Oswald being shot by Jack Ruby in the basement of the Dallas Police Headquarters following the assassination of President Kennedy,” he says. “I thought I was so far in over my head it was ridiculous.” Not many years later, however, Dickman himself won the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the civil war in El Salvador while shooting for the newspaper. I recently had the great pleasure to interview Dickman for the Master Series interviews on Pro Photo Daily and I think you'll find the story of his life and career quite fascinating. Read this rare and revealing interview from one of National Geographic's most legendary contributors. (Photo Copyright Jay Dickman) Read the Interview
Over the past 34 years, wildlife and nature photographer Daniel J. Cox has traveled to seven continents in search of wildlife subjects, ranging from pumas and porcupines to polar bears. In 2013, he was named Outstanding Nature Photographer of the Year by the North American Nature Photography Association; he’s also won awards in the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year and Nature’s Bestcompetitions. His images have appeared in countless nature magazines, more than 20 books (including his most recent children’s title, Portia Polar Bear’s Birthday Wish). He also has two National Geographic cover stories to his credit. And today, with his wife Tanya, he teaches workshops and guides shooting trips around the planet. On top of all that, he works with Panasonic as a LUMIX Luminary team member. During a pause in his relentless assignment and workshop schedules, I had the opportunity to interview Cox for the Master Series interviews on Pro Photo Daily. If you've ever wondered how all of those amazing nature photos are made, you'll enjoy this interview with one of the world's best wildlife shooters. (Photo Copyright Daniel J. Cox) Read the Interview
Photographer Benjamin Lowy has spent much of his career in one of the most exclusive and certainly most grim niches of photojournalism: He photographs wars. Unlike many war photographers who had long journalistic careers as a preamble to covering conflict, Lowy came to his career when he was just a year out of college. Then 23, he was embedded with the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division to photograph the Iraq war for Time magazine. I recently had the opportunity to interview Benjamin for my Master Series of interviews on Pro Photo Daily and learn more about this fascinating, brave and, on might say slightly off-the-wall photojournalists. (Photo Copyright Benjamin Lowy) Read the Interview
As a photojournalist, Kevin Gilbert (that's him taking a selfie with President Bill Clinton) has had the kind of success that many aspiring photographers daydream about. He’s also had a few experiences that might have them rethinking their career choice.
“I remember being in Borneo, deep in the jungle, having leeches sucking blood out of our boots, all over our legs,” he says. “And I recall being in a helicopter, high over the Chilean Andes, when we hit a down draft, and the machine tipped on its side, and the cameraman and I both fell out the door. We were harnessed in, but for a few seconds, I saw nothing but snow and heard the pilot yell ‘Oh, s--t.’ And then there was the weekend with the Ku Klux Klan when they blindfolded us for the ride to their event so we wouldn’t be able to tell anyone the location.” Read more about Gilbert's fascinating career and his recent work as a "memory evangelist" for Mylio in my latest Master Series Pro Photo Daily interview. (Photo Copyright Kevin Gilbert) Read the Interview
“I remember being in Borneo, deep in the jungle, having leeches sucking blood out of our boots, all over our legs,” he says. “And I recall being in a helicopter, high over the Chilean Andes, when we hit a down draft, and the machine tipped on its side, and the cameraman and I both fell out the door. We were harnessed in, but for a few seconds, I saw nothing but snow and heard the pilot yell ‘Oh, s--t.’ And then there was the weekend with the Ku Klux Klan when they blindfolded us for the ride to their event so we wouldn’t be able to tell anyone the location.” Read more about Gilbert's fascinating career and his recent work as a "memory evangelist" for Mylio in my latest Master Series Pro Photo Daily interview. (Photo Copyright Kevin Gilbert) Read the Interview
Photographer Rick Gerrity is very intense in both his personality and in the directness of his photography. He’s the quintessential in-life’s-face photographer, and his forte, in addition to a clean and flawless technical style, is his ability to relate to a wide range of people. “I try to find people and places that take me to another side of life. Hard working people—truckers, construction workers and first responders—are my favorite subjects,” he says. Rick is the subject of my most recent Pro Photo Daily Master Series interview and I think you'll find his thoughts on photography an interesting take on how a photographer can use his personality and his interests to shape his career and his photographs. Enjoy! (Photo Copyright Rick Gerrity) Read the Interview
Berlin, Germany photographer Christian Dandyk is the subject of my most recent Pro Photo Daily Master Series interview. Christian is an interesting and accomplished shooter with a very broad range of specialties that range from moody landscapes to architecture to powerful portraits. Interestingly, though he was always a passionate photographer, he didn't go into photography as a full-time career until he was in his late 40s. Read the Interview
My interview with renowned celebrity photographer and filmmaker, Michael Grecco, has gone live on the Motion Arts Pro Daily site. The interview marks the release date of Grecco’s ambitious new 4K short film Forever Young, which he created for Panasonic. Grecco’s conceptually dramatic portraits have also been used as covers of magazines like Time, Wired, Newsweek, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone and Esquire. The celebrities he’s photographed include a who’s who of Hollywood’s elite, including Will Ferrell, Kirstie Alley, Steve Martin, Mel Brooks, Martin Scorsese, Hugh Hefner, Robert Duvall, Chelsea Handler and a long red-carpet list of other famous names. Grecco is also a highly sought-after commercial shooter; his clients include Apple, Pfizer, Yahoo!, IBM, HBO, Paramount, Sony and the Walt Disney Company.As you'll learn in the interview below, he now splits his time between his ambitious still shoots and an expanding catalog of motion projects. Read the Interview
If you're heard the term "hybrid photography" and wondered what it was all about, you'll enjoy my recent profile of photographer Giulio Sciorio for Motion Arts Pro Daily. Even though motion and still capabilities exist side-by-side in virtually all digital cameras, most of us tend to think of still photos and video as separate mediums. Sciorio, however, is among a few pioneering photographers who have found an innovative and intensely creative way to blend these two formats into an entirely new creature known as hybrid photography. It’s a technique so new, in fact, that even many professional photographers have never seen the images before. Read the Interview
My most recent interview for Motion Arts Pro Daily has gone live and the subject is Dave Surber, a really interesting still and motion photographer. He has worked on everything from commercials and television productions to video newsgathering and mobile events; he’s also been the DP on several feature films and just finished working as DP on the Team Nike series, a 12-episode collection of black-and-white shorts about the Nike World Basketball Festival Tournament of Champions. His most recent collection of shorts, the Big City Hustle series, is a very cool look at some fascinating New York creatives. Check out my interview with Dave, I think you'll find it a very entertaining behind-the-scenes look at a successful young filmmaker. Read the Interview
If you happen to be near a newsstand soon, be sure to check out the August issue of Shutterbug magazine, it contains a feature story that I wrote and illustrated on how to photograph neon signs called The Beauty of the Living Flame. You will learn how to expose neon signs correctly, how to get a jet-black background and how you can improve your images using both RAW and post-processing tips. Cruising with your digital camera for cool neon signs is a great way to spend a hot summer night.
I recently had the opportunity to interview Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and motion-picture director Vincent Laforet for the website Motion Arts Pro Daily. Few photographers have jolted the filmmaking world the way Vincent Laforet has. A winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography in 2002, Laforet was named one of the 100 most important people in photography in 2005 by American Photo magazine. But then his career took a new turn. In 2009, he released a short film called Reverie, made with the Canon 5D Mark II. The film helped spark the DSLR filmmaking revolution. It also turned Laforet into an acknowledged leader in this emerging film world. This spring, Laforet launched a popular 10-week workshop tour called Directing Motion, and in this interview he shares his insights into what makes a great shot, a great film—and a great director. Read the complete interview on MAP Daily.
I'm happy to announce that I've recently begun writing for the great photo website DPReview.com and that my first story, a two-part profile of the exciting young Canadian photographer Benjamin Von Wong has gone live. Ben is an incredible talent with an amazing story to tell. Just two years ago he left his day job as a mining engineer to pursue his dream of being a full-time photographer--and he is now living that dream--and living it large. He has developed a huge following of fans around the world and his behind-the-scenes Youtube videos have had nearly two million views. His work is a blend of surreal vision, creative collaborations and superb technical skills--and his photos (like the one above, a self portrait of him breathing fire) will just blow your mind. I think you'll find Ben's story inspiring and you'll find his photographs different and exciting. Perhaps most fascinating of all, almost all of his special effects are created in front of the camera--there is almost no Photoshop. (Photo copyright Benjamin Von Wong; courtesy of the photographer.)
Petersen's Photographic: Issue #20
If you're headed out to the newsstand soon, keep an eye out for Petersen's Photographic, Issue 20--I wrote the entire issue from cover to cover. The theme of this special issue is "The Photographer's Way: Focus Your Vision and Explore Your Passion." It features profiles and portfolios by eight master photographers that I interviewed about their specialties--why they chose them, how they've managed to thrive in the very competitive photo business and what they love about their work. Each of the photographers also shares a lot of inside secrets about how they do such incredible work. Really, this issue is like a master class in magazine form. The photographers included (and their specialties) are:
Janet Loughrey: Garden photography
Ron Niebrugge: Alaska wildlife
Jill Reger: Classic and antique cars
Brian Oglesbee: Fine art photography
Jon Van Gorder: Food photography
Greg Hartford: Maine landscapes
Derek Doeffinger: Wilderness waterfalls
Steven Hyatt: Architectural/church interiors
The reproduction in the magazine is superb and there are no ads so the magazine is 100% editorial content. It's a super issue and the editors and production staff did a fantastic job. I couldn't be happier with the look of the magazine. You can read two sample articles from the issue on the Photographic site. By the way, I'm about to finish a brand new book and I'm pretty excited about how it came out--so I'll post more about it soon.
If you're headed out to the newsstand soon, keep an eye out for Petersen's Photographic, Issue 20--I wrote the entire issue from cover to cover. The theme of this special issue is "The Photographer's Way: Focus Your Vision and Explore Your Passion." It features profiles and portfolios by eight master photographers that I interviewed about their specialties--why they chose them, how they've managed to thrive in the very competitive photo business and what they love about their work. Each of the photographers also shares a lot of inside secrets about how they do such incredible work. Really, this issue is like a master class in magazine form. The photographers included (and their specialties) are:
Janet Loughrey: Garden photography
Ron Niebrugge: Alaska wildlife
Jill Reger: Classic and antique cars
Brian Oglesbee: Fine art photography
Jon Van Gorder: Food photography
Greg Hartford: Maine landscapes
Derek Doeffinger: Wilderness waterfalls
Steven Hyatt: Architectural/church interiors
The reproduction in the magazine is superb and there are no ads so the magazine is 100% editorial content. It's a super issue and the editors and production staff did a fantastic job. I couldn't be happier with the look of the magazine. You can read two sample articles from the issue on the Photographic site. By the way, I'm about to finish a brand new book and I'm pretty excited about how it came out--so I'll post more about it soon.
And for more updates, news and tutorials, check out my Photo Tip of the Day blog.
