Quick Hit Monday: All The Latest News; Lots Of Inspiration: and Photoshop Freebies!

Good Afternoon Everybody,

I'm back home today and sticking around for about 4 days before we head off to New Orleans for the big Imaging USA Convention on Friday.  It was kind of nice to come back to all the Christmas decorations still decorating our home. Heck, I even caught a whiff of the pine scent still lingering from the main Christmas tree.  Alas, the job of taking it all down begins today. 

As usual, it's a busy week.  I'm finishing up guest blog posts for Rick Sammon, B&H, Datacolor; working on my Digital Newsletter which goes out this week, and trying to keep DigitalProTalk on schedule.  AND, on top of all that, I'm continuing to push the word about our PhotoPro Expo happening in only 3 weeks!  WHEW!  Let's get right to todays news.

The Latest News From PhotoPro Expo!

One of the main events at PhotoPro Expo this year is the juried print competition [link] where you can win part of the $5,000 in prizes and trophies being awarded. Every year photographers will submit their favorite images to be judged by our esteemed panelists.  It is truly one of the best ways to improve your photography. I can remember my first print competition many years ago  – I selected my four favorite images, printed them up to 16x20 perfection, and submitted them to the jury panel. I was pretty disappointed when my highest scoring print only scored a 79, just to point shy of a 80 score blue ribbon print.

I continued submitting prints year after year in the early days of my profession and within four years was taking the top awards at the state and regional conventions. In fact, one of my images scored a perfect 100!  That was quite a thrill. It is an excellent way to compare your work to others in the photography profession. You can get all the details of this year's PhotoPro Expo Print Competition right here. 

Why Print Competition?

Anyway this year's PhotoPro Expo Print Competition is a wonderful opportunity for photographers to see how their images stand up against their peers. We all think we are so good until we see our work compared to other really great photographers. The excitement this year begins on February 2, the first day of our PhotoPro Expo. It's exciting to watch the prints being scored and hear the judges comments. It's easy for me to sit there for hours and just hang on every word.  I did an earlier blog post discussing what the judges are looking for in print competition [link].  If you are seriously considering entering the print competition, I suggest you give it a read right here.

Bet On The Print Scores & Win CASH!

At this year's PhotoPro Expo Print Competition we have a brand-new treat for all photographers who enjoy the judging process. This year we are hosting our Clubhouse Print Lounge where you'll be able to bet with the judges.  The photographer most closely guessing the judges’ scores has a chance to take home $50-$100 in the process. We have my good friend, Ralph Romaguera, flying all the way in from New Orleans to moderate the event. It should be a great time and a lot of fun.

Win The LexJet Award & $200 Gift Card!

Also this year we are offering a brand-new print award sponsored by LexJet. Any photographer submitting their entries on LexJet media will be eligible for the LexJet award which includes, not just a beautiful trophy, but also $200 in LexJet media. I think this is a wonderful opportunity for someone to take home a great prize. Lexjet has available an outstanding blog post on just what is involved to win the Lexjet award. You can find that link right here.

To be eligible to enter PhotoPro Expo Print Competition, you need to be a member of the PhotoPro Network. The cost to join is only $49 a year and there are a ton of membership benefits just for joining including being able to enter the PhotoPro Expo Print Competition. You can get all the details about PhotoPro Network VIP membership right here.

Seriously, Wedding Photography

Hey gang, I've got three great links for you today pertaining specifically to wedding photography. I found all three excellent reads. 

Denis Reggie: The State Of Wedding Photography 2012

The first is from a post [link] from my good friend Denis Reggie who photographs the top weddings in the country. Denis, like myself has seen wedding photography change dramatically over the many years we have both been in business. I've certainly blogged about the state of affairs here DigitalProTalk many times. Here is another great article on that topic right here from one of the industry leaders – highly recommended.

BTW, Denis will be offering complimentary portfolio reviews this Sunday afternoon at PPA ImagingUSA in New Orleans at 2:00 p.m. along with Joyce Tenneson. Please come by the Canon trade show booth with a selection of your images... laptop, iPad, or an album is fine. We hope to see you in New Orleans.

History Of Engagement Rings With 40 Wedding Ring Photography Ideas

This second link discusses the history of wedding rings.  As a wedding photographer, I've always been this interested in wedding customs not only in the United States but also around the world. I encourage you to give this quite interesting article a read right here.

In addition to picking up a little bit of history on weddings, the article also includes 40 very creative wedding ring ideas that you just may want to incorporate in your next wedding shoot. Some of these images are off-the-wall, some are quite beautiful,  but they all get the creative juices flowing  when looking for new ideas on how to photograph the wedding bands.

Winter Wedding Light Painting
I found the image below and this third link really interesting. Years ago I was photographing a Fourth of July wedding and the bride and groom asked me to find a way to use sparklers in one of my wedding photographs that illustrated the Fourth of July holiday. I set the camera on a tripod and held the shutter open while they traced the heart through the air with the burning sparklers. As they touched the sparklers together at the bottom of the “heart” I fired my off-camera flash, had them kiss, and got a great image.

The photographer featured in this post, Danny Turcotte Jr., used something completely different – steel wool. Yes, that's what I said steel wool. I didn't even know that you could set fire to a piece of steel wool but apparently you can. Anyway he came up with this great wedding photograph – why not give a read right here on exactly how he did it.

So What Have You Done Lately – A Little Inspiration 

One of the highlights of my week is to peruse Zite on my iPad and find interesting sources of photographic inspiration and then share that information with you, our DigitalProTalk readers. This week I have three great links that I think you'll really, really enjoy. 

Top 20 Young Photographers 2012

The first features the top 20 young photographers of 2012.  Check out the link right here to see what some of these new top guns, like 21 year old Faye Thompson above are accomplishing photographically. As I look through the list, and yes, you will recognize a few of the names, it sure puts me in awe of the talent these young photographers exude.

As you review this list of wonderfully talented photographers, I also want to point out that PhotoPro Expo’s very own Lindsay Adler is featured in this list. Yes, Lindsay is one of the speakers presenting at our PhotoPro Expo in just three weeks. Her fashion work is truly amazing. She has an eye for color and composition that rivals the best of the best. I sure hope you can check out her program here at PhotoPro Expo in three weeks.

44 Beautiful Eyes Photography

I also enjoyed looking through the images of this link. You know, a person's eyes other Windows on the world. How we photograph a person's eyes is important in capturing the essence of our portrait subject.  Each of these images [link], captures something truly special in each one of the subjects featured in this post.

10 Beautiful Landscape Photos From Chip Phillips

And finally, some of the most inspirational links that I find feature landscape photography. There's a lot of great landscape photographers but the images featured in this post are just absolutely amazing. I always enjoy making landscape photographs myself as we tour around the country and the world. I just wish that when I press the button that occasionally what I capture is something similar to these incredibly beautiful images featured in this post today.

Photoshop Freebies

I got some great Photoshop freebies for you today. Just consider it is my New Year's gift to all of our DigitalProTalk readers.  All kidding aside, I think there's some great resources  that we can all use on or 2012 projects. Enjoy!

• 30 Free Photoshop Actions Which Never Fails To Amaze: [link]
• 25 Useful Dirt Texture Collection: [link]
• 80 All-You-Need Photoshop Brushes: [link]

Thanks to H.W Capps, one of our DPT readers, for sharing the link with me to share with you.

One For The Road; 20 Mile High Flying, and Dropping iPads

I don't know about you but I'm just not a huge fan of watching lots of YouTube videos. But, every now and then one comes along that captures my attention.

iPad Survives 100,000+ Foot Fall From Space

This YouTube video posted by Mashable [link] shows how they used a weather balloon to carry an iPad about 20 miles in the air just at the edge of space then pop the balloon and let the iPad drop 20 miles back to earth.

It's a fascinating video because they filmed both the accent and the much more rapid descent of the iPad. Their entire balloon apparatus also included  GPS devices that they could use to track where the iPad finally landed.

It was amazing to me that after rising nearly 20 miles into the air and then dropping 20 miles back to earth, that the iPad landed only about 70 feet from where they had released it.  To have such little drift over that 40 mile iPad journey the wind sure must've been nearly non-excitant.  Anyway, like I said, I don't watch many YouTube videos but the scientific aspects of this one  piqued my curiosity, hope you enjoy it too.

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Hey gang that's it for me today. I have Tom Nickell, CEO of Delux Gear, stopping by for a visit. Delux Gear is a brand-new company and is producing some very fascinating photography gear for the wedding and portrait photographer.  I can't wait to see what Tom has to show. I'll fill you in on our visit in tomorrow's post.

Have a great rest of the day and I'll see everybody tomorrow for a brand-new episode of Technique Tuesday: 5 Fabulous, Fantastic, Fun Ways To Super Cool Backgrounds.

See you then, David

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Good Morning Everyone,

Throughout the holidays it’s great to be with family, friends, and co-workers and to reminisce all the successes and blessings of the past year. The December holidays are a change for many of us to re-charge our batteries as we transition into the new year.  I sure hope everyone reading today has had a chance to do just that.

But Sunday is the BIG day – the first day of a brand new year! As I said in the past, we turn all the dials back to zero. What ever happened in 2011 is now a thing of the past. The race begins anew – new possibilities, new choices, new opportunities for success!

A bright future is ours, all of ours for the taking IF, we approach those new challenges with fortitude, determination, optimism, and with gusto!

I offer you your first 2012 success tip from this African proverb:

"Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed...every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle...when the sun comes up, you'd better be running."

This wonderful profession of ours continues to change and grow and we need to move quickly to embrace those changes if we want success to be within our grasp.

I wish each and every one of you only the best for 2012 and beyond.

DigitalProTalk will continue to be a source of knowledge and inspiration for you nearly every day.  And, as always, I look forward to your thoughts/comments, questions, suggestions and ideas to be an inspiration to me, as well. I hope you’ll continue to join me for an exciting New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone!!! –David

The Most Important Tool In Your Gear Bag

Good Morning Everybody,

Can you believe we are almost at the end of 2011?  Time flies when you're having fun.  We've got some personal items, Christmas with LaDawn’s family, on our plate today so let's get on with today's post.

The Most Important Tool In Your Gear Bag

How important are F-stops and shutter speeds in your life?  In many of the comments I read on my DPT posts the question comes up all the time about why I used this shutter speed, that F-Stop, a certain ISO, etc…..  and it got me thinking.  Are those numbers all that important?  Well, the quick answer is of course they are.  But let me ask again, are they the most important aspect of photography.  I would have to answer categorically - NO!

Of Course F-Stops and Shutter Speeds Are Important

Wait, don’t leave yet - hear me out. Obviously shutter speeds and F-stops are important to your photography. The proper use of both, including the appropriate ISO all can be used to finesse the image to it's final result.  Shallow depth of field can be used to isolate the portrait subject from the background. Panning a race car at a slower shutter speed can really increase the feeling of motion in the finished image. High altitude ISOs allow us to capture images never before possible.  And all this is good.

But, what is the best thing we can learn to do for our photography? Better said, what is the most important item we need to practice, learn, and still continue to practice if we want to be a great photographer?  The answer - learning how to see.  And that includes knowing how to effectively spot and capture the moment and compose the image for maximum impact for the viewer.

Too many photographers get "mostly" wrapped up in the "nuts and bolts" of this profession, let's call it the "craft" of this profession.  And that is good - it's the "mostly" part of the previous sentence that will "kill" any chance of you becoming a great photographer.  You may indeed be a good photographer but never a great photographer if you forever languish in the nuts and bolts tool shop of this profession.

The Journey To Greatness

A photographer can become great if he/she constantly strive to learn how to see and constantly raise their expectations as to what the final image should represent.  Visualization is the key - knowing in your mind's eye what you want the camera to capture.  And, unfortunately this important element does not come easy or fast to many photographers.  For most of us, our journey to "greatness" is a process that we need to exercise often, if not everyday.

I’m surely not claiming any greatness on my behalf.  I still look over my images and know I could do better.  But one thing I continue to do - is practice, practice, practice!  I love the piece of advice I received from one of the outstanding photographers of our time, Jay Maisel, when I asked him why he always had his camera with him.  Jay quickly answered, "You can't take a picture without a camera, and you never know when that great photograph will come along.  I'm always ready for it."

It was an eye opening remark for me as a photographer who has been in business longer than I will admit in this post. I nearly always had a camera with me where ever I went.  The difference today is that I ALWYS have a camera with me now - yes, ALWAYS!

And did I say practice was important too - of course.  I defer to Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hour rule he references in his book "Outliers".  The bottom line of that chapter was that great/successful people spent 10,000 hours working on being great and/or successful.  How many hours have you got invested?  Are you close yet?  And even when you invest those 10,000 hours, is that it?  Is that the time to quit?  No, it’s time to start your next 10,000 hours.

Not many photographers care about being great.  But some us want to push the envelope.  Some of us want to continue to learn and grow. To not do so would be anathema to ourselves and our profession. How great do you want to be? The choice is up to you.  Maybe it’s time to set aside the nuts and bolts for a while and simply grab your cameras and practice, practice, practice!. 2012 is just around the corner so let’s all set new goals and shoot for the stars.

-Food for thought.

p.s. You may also like this related article entitled:

How to Be a Great Photographer [link]

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Hey gang, that's my soap box speech for today.  We've got a family gathering this afternoon and Chef David needs to return to his kitchen duties and continue with all the preparations.  So it’s off with my camera and on with my apron;~) Then dash away, dash away, dash away all!

I'll plan to see everyone tomorrow for another Business Day Thursday post.

Have a great one and I'll see you then,  David

Wednesday: F-Stops? No, Not For Me!

Good Afternoon Everybody,

Ralph, Kent, and I were sitting around recently reminiscing some of the great experiences we have had teaching at the numerous photography schools around the country.  All three of us have been in this profession for quite a while and have heard just about everything. 

F-Stops? No, Not For Me!

Ralph's story was the best though.  He was telling of a time last year while teaching at Texas School - LaDawn and I were teaching there at the same time and BTW we’ll all be there next year too.  Ralph enjoys teaching the beginning portrait class because, as we all agreed, of lot of new shooters are perfectly clueless, when it comes to knowing anything about the CRAFT of photography. 

Ralph's story says it all.  He was approached by a student who asked him to review a few of the student's portrait images. Ralph tells how he looked them over and saw the the F-stop the student used was far to small and put everything into sharp focus.  Ralph suggested the student use a larger F-Stop to get the benefit of selective focus for his subject.

The student was taken back and looked completely confused by the remark.  Ralph quickly noticed the reaction so he asked straightforwardly, Well, what F-Stop did you use when you made these images?". The student quickly answered, thinking he was above it all, "F-Stops?  I don't even use f-Stops!". His answer says it all.

I’m not trying to get up on my soap box here, well, maybe a little, but that type of attitude is more prevalent with today's new digital photographers. In years past when one used film one really needed to know and understand the workings of their cameras. Digital has made it easy to capture acceptable images. Many ways this is a good thing and in many ways it is not.

We also looked up to, respected, and admired our instructors.  There was a lot less "know it all" attitude floating around back then compared with today, I think.

Don't get me wrong, I’m VERY honored that my DigitalProTalk readers take the time to read my posts.  I'm thrilled when I see young photographers like Jody and Zak Gray, Blair Phillips, and so many other  new young guns, who expend the necessary ongoing effort to attend seminars and conventions, read books to improve their photography, sales, and business building skills.  Those guys got it right and I am one of their biggest fans. 

It’s too bad a few others think it is OK to express themselves by breaking the rules, and just doing their own thing.  Hey, I'm OK with breaking the rules too, but you know what, you've got to know the rules before you break them otherwise you are just taking a shot in the dark, hoping for the best, and may even get lucky now and then.

Now for a little confession

Early on, I was one of those "know it all's". Thankfully I got over it early in my career and became an earnest student of the photographic masters in the field.  In fact I still am attending as many seminars as I can each year.  I hoped I've learned a little over the years which I'm trying to pass on to you here at DigitalProTalk.

I did a post a number of months ago entitled: "Are You A Good Student Or A Bad Student?"  It speaks to my coming of age as a student in those early years.  You may enjoy the read again right here.

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Hey gang, that's it for me today. The sunshine and Cabo breezes are calling so I'm on my way.  Plan to stop by again tomorrow for a very fascinating Business Day Thursday: Time To Cut Your Prices In Half.  Hope to see you then.

Adios, David     

Help The World, Change The World, Enjoy The World: It’s All Up To You!

Good Morning Everybody,

We awoke to another beautiful sunrise this morning with the new day vividly announcing its presence across the San Jose sky.  It strikes me, being in San Jose del Cabo, not only how the days down here proclaim their debut with the exciting early morning displays of color but also how the days also celebrate their close with a crescendo of vibrant oranges and reds cast against the vast sky contrasting with the serene blues and hues of aqua of the ocean waters. 

You know, sometimes in the rush of life, we miss to many of those beautiful sunrises and sunsets.  I’m really glad to be able to slow down for this small part of the year to recoup, recharge, and re-energize with these inspiring gifts of nature’s beauty – and I sure hope I make time down the road to witness even more of these spectacular moments.

Prepare To Be Inspired!

And speaking of nature’s beauty, check out some of these amazing images being shown at National Geographic’s website.  They’re featuring their Week 11 image entries to their latest photo contest.  Here is the link right here – a nice way to head into the weekend, enjoy!

Your Chance To Win $1,000 Next Thursday!

Don’t forget PhotoPro Network’s Image Competition, Review, and Webcast [link] coming up next Thursday – yes, next Thursday, December 8th!  It’s right around the corner and you still have plenty of time to enter and sign up to listen to the webcast being broadcast “LIVE”.

We unfortunately need to limit the number of entrants because of the 2 hour time constraint on the webcast, so don’t wait any longer and miss a chance to win.  Be sure you take advantage of this opportunity to have your prints reviewed – remember, $1,000 worth of prizes given away to the winners! Here is the link to all the info on how to enter and register for the webcast right here. I’ll be moderating the event and I hope to see you there! – David

Also, don’t forget to check out PhotoPro Expo 2012 – all details right here.

And Speaking Of Helping The World…

You can do just that by participating in the worldwide Help-Portrait Project next Sunday. On December 10th, you can take part in Help Portrait by giving a portrait to someone in need!

“With the forthcoming Christmas tree installations and mall traffic, give a portrait to restore dignity, bring smiles and even remind people, many of whom have forgotten, how beautiful they are.” (Photojojo.com)

Here is the link to How to Give a Portrait to Someone in Need. We’ve got it covered while we visit in Cabo San Lucas. I hope you’ll participate in your part of the world too.

Worlds Of Wisdom From A Person Who Followed His Own Advice

“When you grow up you tend to get told the world is the way it is and you're life is just to live your life inside the world. Try not to bash into the walls too much. Try to have a nice family, have fun, save a little money.

That's a very limited life. Life can be much broader once you discover one simple fact: Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you and you can change it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that other people can use.

Once you learn that, you'll never be the same again.”

-Steve Jobs

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Hey gang, that’s it for me today. Take time this weekend to smell the roses, enjoy sunsets, and hug on someone you love.

Have a great one!  -David