Posse

Images - Photographs, Images - Statements  Comment
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“The stunning presences, within the series Allies, reminiscent of Native American totem poles, African sculpture, or Hindu figurines, had been pursuing me for months. There were, and still are, dozens waiting to find homes. While the majority of the images I had created featured solitary figures, I was drawn to explore the effects of many within a single image — group dynamics …  Most leading actors need supporting actors, all save the soloist need accompaniment. But, when supporting actors compete with main actors, the thrust of the drama is confused …”
Read the rest of this statement here.
Read more statements here.

Play

Creativity, Creativity - Exercises  Comment
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Each summer my we go to Italy to visit my wife’s family. My son and I share point and shoot camera’s and make whimsical interpretations of our experiences there. I’ve learn a lot when I take time to play. I become more versatile and improvisational. I take interest in and see things I never would have seen otherwise. I see things in new ways. The reasons I make different kinds of images and the expectations I have for them become clearer. Play’s valuable. Really valuable. And fun! Take time to play.
Check out my Creativity workshops here.

Family Albums

Creativity  Comment
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I make family albums every year. If I didn’t have the project and deadline and a commitment to others I might not take the time to find, finish, and print the best images. Without identifying the use for them, I might not make many of the images. Now we have a useful a family record. How important is this? I hear these kinds of things are the things people take with them first if they have to evacuate their houses in a disaster.
One of the keys to the success of any project is to make it easy and fun to do. Make it easy to make the images. I use a point and shoot that’s always nearby. Make it easy to store. I’ve got one place I keep all the material that I organize as it accumulates. Make it easy to process. I use many automation features such as Lightroom’s Export function and Photoshop’s Actions and Image Processor to get the job done fast. Make it easy to produce. Lightroom generates contact sheets in seconds. Blurb makes putting books together a matter of hours not days or weeks; they can even deliver the books to family members.
These days, I imagine some people have online family albums.
What’s your family album like?
Check out Blurb here.
Check out my Creativity workshops here.

Earth Day

Environment - Causes  Comment
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It’s Earth Day! What are you doing today to celebrate? Do something to contribute! Plant a tree. Make a donation. See the new movie Earth released today – $1 goes to planting trees. Or one of so many other things.
Check out the great resources on earthday.net.
Check out Earth Day TV. Hear what Thomas Friedman (Hot, Flat, Crowded) has to say about the current state of affairs, including what he thinks would be good areas to invest in. And many others.
For a list of great environmental organizations see my Environment page.
What will you do today? Comment here!

Bulletin Boards

Creativity  Comment
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This is my bulletin board. It’s full of ideas I’m working on. Finished images. Snapshots. Clippings. Text. You name it. Frequently seeing the ideas I’m working on helps me develop them on an ongoing basis. I’m constantly incubating ideas. The board changes dynamically. I make photographs like this one to record it’s current state. The collection of photographs is a kind of journal.
Get a space. Your own space. Fill it with inspiration. Keep filling it.
Check out my Creativity workshops here.

How Do Live With Your Images?

Creativity  Comment
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How do you live with your images? You make a lot of them. 1% get finished. Some become used in projects – slideshows, exhibits, books, etc. But, day to day, how do you revisit our images?
Website (gallery or splashpage)?
Online social network (Flickr or other)?
Computer desktop?
Printed contact sheets?
Post up boards (refrigerator or bulletins)?
Single prints?
Portfolios?
Print exhibits (in house/studio or offsite)?
Desktop calendar?
Greeting cards?
Posters?
Books (published or self-published)?
Give yourself many ways to look at and interact with your work – frequently. You’ll come to understand it better. Ways to improve it will become clear. New ideas will come to light.
How many other ways can you think of? Comment here!
Check out my Creativity workshops here.

Duane Michals

Photographers - Video  Comment
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One of the most creative voices in photography. Period.
If you don’t have time for the full 30 minutes, skip to 6:00.
Find more artist’s videos by typing video into the Search field.

Triple Goddess

Images - Photographs, Images - Statements  Comment
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Edge was critical throughout the entire process of composing Triple Goddess. First there was contour. What shape would the stone finally take? The original had been buried in sand. The stone was far too large to dig out, so I cut away the background that threatened to envelop it. This made certain determinations of shape. It may even have been the shape the sand made out of the stone that first attracted me to it. Had I seen the entire stone I might not have been so drawn to it. To date I have no idea what the full stone looks like, as I was only able to see a portion of it …
Read the rest here.
Read more statements and see more images here.

Canon 5DmkII

Tools  Comment
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I’m loving my new Canon 5DmkII.
I asked Steven Inglima (Explorers of Light – Professional Products Marketing Division) about the new Canon 5DmkII
JP   We all know the 5DmkII is an awesome 21mp DSLR capable of shooting HD video. Tell us a few other amazing things most people don’t know about the 5DmkII.
SI Here are three things.
1 – The 5DmkII has a very wide range of ISO settings and excellent exposure latitude in the Raw data. With the custom function ISO expansion engaged, the camera’s settings allow for a low ISO of 50 for extra
exposure control, and up to ISO 25,600 for the ability to shoot in near darkness.
2 – Live view mode offers the ability for very accurate focusing in critical shooting, particularly with specialty lenses like the Tilt-Shift type. When using a the Tilt feature of these lenses, obtaining very accurate focusing
on a plane not parallel to the imaging plane has always been a challenge… until the advent of live view. Now, particularly because of the 5x and 10x magnification possibilities on screen using live view, it’s easy to review
perfect focus with the lens’ tilt feature engaged, as what’s being viewed is the actual feed from the sensor itself.
3 – The LCD monitor on the rear of the 5DmkII is a very generous 920,000 pixels for an excellent review experience.
Here’s a quick roundup of Canon 5DmkII features.
21.6 mp – 5616×3477 pixels – 18.72″x12.48″ at 300 ppi
14-bit – 16,383 tones per channel
Highlight Tone Priority – adds one stop to the highlights
DIGIC IV processor for increased speed
3.9 frames per second
16-19 Raw frame bursts
310 continuous JPEG frames
New AF modes – Quick Mode, Lens Mode, Face Detect
Live Mode rear display
920,000 pixel display
ISO 50 – 25,600
Self-cleaning sensor and dust delete function
HD video (1920×1080 pixels) at 30 frames per second
Priced under $3,000
Find out more at Canon.
Find it in my Astore.

Learn to Earn

Creativity - Exercises  Comment
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audio_green


Listen – 1:52
Idea
Learn to earn. The more you know the more opportunities lie before you. The more you know the more productive you are. The more you know the better your product becomes. The more you know the more valuable you are. Investing in your knowledge base and skill set is the best investment you can make. Make time to learn. Learn after you wake up. Get up early and spend an hour inspiring yourself and satisfying your curiosity. Continue learning by doing new things during the day. Learn before you go to sleep. Go to bed early and read or watch educational enriching material. Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers suggests it takes 10,000 hours to become a master in a given field. You can’t make10,000 hours go faster, or pass them without interruption, but you can get to there one hour at a time. And you don’t have to spend 10,000 hours to see immediate benefits. Sometimes all it takes to transform ordinary into extraordinary is one good idea. But that one good idea won’t find you. You’ve got to find it. Make time to explore the hidden potentials in any situation and in yourself. Make time to learn. You’ll start earning immediately.
Exercise
Take action now. Make a list of the subjects you’re interested in learning or are most valuable for you to learn. Write at least six things down right now. Keep adding to this list over time. Next, prioritize the items on your list. Rate your items based on two criteria. What’s easiest to learn now? What’s most valuable to learn over time? Start learning the items that are both most valuable and easiest to learn. Plan to work your way to the others over time. Take a first step right now. Demonstrate your commitment to yourself. Find an online resource, order a book or DVD, sign up for a seminar or workshop. Do something. Do anything. Start now.
Listen to more inspiring ideas here.

Find out how to be more effective in your creative life in my workshops.