Recently, I shot my first environmental street portrait. It was fun. The thing is, my original plan was to get an architectural street photo. Sometimes, you just have to grab opportunities when they present themselves. Embrace the unexpected and sometimes you get rewarded. Both environmental street portraits and architectural street photos are amalgams of two…
Last week the Stony Brook Camera Club (SBCC) meeting included the Image of the Year competition. I was interested to find out what this was about and figured I would be able to at least see some great photos. Since I am a newbie to SBCC, I had no idea how photos were entered for…
I enjoy watching the PBS show, Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. I recently saw an episode (“On Broadway”, Season 7, Episode 9) featuring renowned actor and singer, Mandy Patinkin. It was a very emotional show, both for Patinkin and viewers alike as the story of his family was revealed and Patinkin learned…
There’s something special about trees that makes them such wonderful photographic subjects especially if it is a bent and twisted tree. They are so many shapes, forms and textures. Trees are majestic in life and in death. There is simply a beauty to them that draws us like a moth to a flame. For a…
I recently ran across a very good article, Photo Editing Is No Substitute For Photography Technique, by Andrew Goodall, that refutes the recent trend emphasizing the importance of editing over getting it right in camera. This wasn’t a SOOC (Straight Out Of Camera) diatribe as the author recognizes the need for editing. Rather, he makes…
Street photography is one of the more exciting genres in photography. It forces us to get out of our comfort zone and go out in public to photograph random strangers. How will they react? How do I respond to that reaction? It’s about overcoming your anxiety and pushing those boundaries. It is also about the…
One of the age-old discussions in photography is whether or not photography is art. Personally, I believe that some photography is most definitely art and some is most definitely not art. Some of that is by design. Photo-journalism is intended an accurate documentation of the scene. At the other end of the spectrum, we have…
Through a friend I learned of a beautiful old church in ruin. It wasn’t abandoned but was no longer an active church; and it was slowly deteriorating. Its character, however, wasn’t diminished by the relentless process of aging. The church stands tall and proud as if waiting for its members to return for worship services….
I belong to a number of camera clubs, one of which is the Stony Brook Camera Club (SBCC) in Massachusetts. One of things I enjoy most about SBCC is the quality of speakers they have at the monthly meetings. Recently, Sarah Marino presented. Marino is an accomplished photographer who specializes in both grand and intimate…
