Here's a thought…

HT2370 - Our Global Audience

Previous generations of photographers had a difficult time getting their work seen in the neighboring towns, let alone the neighboring states. Today, you and I live at a time where our audience is global. Photography's ability to be a language-less medium of communication would seem to be a tremendous advantage. But then, without a common language there arise difficulties that challenge us.

HT2371 - Curiosity

I've often thought that the best tool we can cultivate for our creative life is curiosity. In fact, when I'm stuck in a creative rut, I find the best thing I can do is stop thinking about what I might photograph next and start thinking about the world. Let curiosity take over and photography always follows.

HT2372 - The One and Only Time

Those of us who choose the art life are presented with a challenge to balance our life with friends and our opportunities to create art. Sometimes that requires some very strategic thinking to fit it all in. I find it useful to remember that for many of these occasions, we will have only one chance to photograph and area. These chances are precious.

HT2376 - No Fall Colors

A podcast listener has written saying that it's too bad my travels will not allow me to photograph the fall colors of northern Minnesota. True, but the creative spirit knows that every day, every moment, every location is an opportunity to express our vision if we can only be sensitive to what we find whenever we are out with our cameras.

HT2377 - Why Not Everywhere?

There are so many places that have become photographic hot spots. It seems that everyone rushes off to these iconic landscapes. But what about the landscape where you live, or where photographers don't seem to appreciate? I maintain that everywhere has photographic potential. I mean that, EVERYWHERE.

HT2378 - Young Brooks

I'm often asked how I got started in photography. Forgive my self-indulgence, but here is the short story that explains my initiation into a life in photography.

HT2379 - Introducing Photographers on Photography

I love a good quote that makes me think about the creative process and the art life. I'm just beginning my third reading of a great book edited by Nathan Lyons published by Prentice Hall in 1966 titled, Photographers on Photography. I first read this book in the early 1970s. It makes me think so naturally I thought I might share selected quotes and my commentary on them here as a sub-list in our series Here's a Thought. Let me start with Berenice Abbott.

HT2383 - Shooting Skies for Sky Replacement

I'm still slightly hesitant to use Sky Replacement because it seems to approach a line of demarcation that I'm not particularly comfortable crossing. That said, there are times when it's the only solution to salvage an image. With this in mind, I've started amassing my own collection of cloudy and colorful sky images. Somehow, probably with questionable justification, it seems less of a cheat if I'm using my own cloud images.

HT2384 - Your Way of Seeing the World

An element of human nature that I find constantly amusing is the advice I receive from others about where to go to make a photograph. Isn't it interesting that no one ever says why I should make a photograph, what it's aesthetic might be, what my intent could be, what the content might reveal, how said location might blend gracefully with my other work, or how their suggestion might be insightful. Advice is always about location, location, location — good advice for real estate, but not necessarily for art making.

HT2385 - Gathering Backgrounds

Surprisingly enough, digital processing has opened the door to texture-like backgrounds for our projects. Applying a textured background is easy and can contribute significantly to the aesthetic of a project. I'm referring to the background that might be in the image as a texture or alternatively a background for the white border of paper behind the image. Gathering backgrounds is another step in the creative process.

HT2386 - A Sense of Immediacy

Regardless of the subject, when the objective is to connect with a viewer, immediacy and presence are important compositional goals. Curiously enough, these goals are obtained in entirely different ways depending on whether you use a wide angle or telephoto lens.

HT2390 - Better Camera or Better Technique

If you want to improve your photography, which will propel your work to the next level, a better camera or a better technique? This is a trick question.

HT2391 - The Only Way to Know with Certainty

Some photographers advise us to turn off IBIS when we use a tripod. Others say it's okay to leave IBIS on all the time. Who's advice should you take?

HT2392 - Response Before Capture

Yesterday, I was asked if I have any rituals I use when I'm out photographing. I assume her question was about routines, not religious actions. The more I thought about her question, the more I realized that I do have a precursor to clicking the shutter that I use with consistency.

HT2393 - Mourning the Loss of Prints

I know, I know, I'm probably being a bit reactionary here, but it seems to me that the world is slowly letting go of prints as a medium for photography. I had a fascinating experience in a Zoom conference last night that became one data point of interest. But the more I thought about it, I realized how many times in recent years I've heard some photography influencer make the case that we all need to make more prints; of course they say that because so few people do.