Look ma, no Photoshop! Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link Life before Photoshop is one of my favorite categories to write about. It was a time way back when I shot film and everything had to be accomplished in the camera. There was no computer to save your butt, so my fellow photographers and I had to rely on our own imagination and wit. That’s not counting a very good knowledge of every shutter speed and aperture combinations possible and how they reacted to one another. In order to get a certain “look” that the Art Director wan ..read more

 After exhausting efforts to finally solve the mystery as to why Chicago is nicknamed ‘The Windy City’, I now bring you absolutely no conclusion…as of yet. Why you ask? Does anyone besides me really care? Why did I waste so much of my time searching for the answer? Well, my fellow photographers the reason is because Chicago is the site of my next workshop beginning with the “meet and greet” on September 4th, 2024, ending on September 11th. Since most of my recent workshops have been in Europe, I have been asked by several of my past workshop attendees to do one in the good old U.S. of A ..read more

Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link Thilo, a student of mine living in Holland, sent me this photo for me to talk about. Here’s what he said: Hi Joe, I recently got this shot done at sunrise. No post processing beyond reducing the exposure by 1 stop. I wonder what’s your opinion on this one. Maybe I am just too much used to the sight of windmills by now, but I wonder whether this might be too stereotypical to be good?” Cheers, Thilo” Here’s a really good photographer that lives in Holland. Since he has grown up around windmills, he ..read more

What do you see? Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link Elliott Erwitt was a famous street photographer that was born in Paris, and moved to New Your in 1948. BTW, I loved his work and his approach to shooting in the streets. He once said, “Photography is an art of observation. It has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them”. For s long as I’ve been shooting and teaching classes with the BPSOP and conducting my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind Workshops” This quote has been my mantra. I’ve wo ..read more

Close enough? Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link In this category although I always quote an artist, I don’t always quote a photographer. I’ll often quote someone like Kenny Rogers, or Marcel Proust because what they had to say fits in with I often say both in my online class with the BPSOP, and in my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct around our planet. Robert Capa was a well known war photographer and photo-journalist. who documented five different wars. In 1947 he co-founded Magnum ( a international free-lance ..read more

If Cuba has ever been on your ‘bucket List’, then now is the time to fulfill your personal desire to experience something that most people can only learn about and look at pictures in the National Geographic Magazine. If you’re subscribed, that is. Sunrise in Havana Join me and Nick DePasquale in Cuba next year for a fabulous cultural and educational experience. We are returning to Viñales and Havana in February, and for a different trip Santiago/Baracoa in January – two very different parts of the island not only in landscape but also in history and culture. National Ballet of Cuba I jus ..read more

My favorite sunrise, clear with a chill in the air. Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link What do you do if you know you’ve just taken a great photo…a keeper…an OMG shot???? Do you do react differently when you’re alone verses when you’re shooting with someone else? I teach an online class with the BPSOP, and I also conduct my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops around our planet, and I just love it when one of my fellow photographers submits a photo that he or she is very proud of. Is it a series of fist pumps, hootin’ and a ..read more

Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link One of my students submitted this photo after reading my post on “101 things to know about photography“. She’s referring to number 42 that says, “The Rule of Thirds is boring”. Since I meant every letter of every word, we’ll move on to her photo and question which is: “Hey Joe, I’ve been working on using all the techniques I learned in your class.  I have a photo that I would love your input on.  I thought to submit it after reading your “101 Thing You Need to Know Post”, where you said ..read more

Couldn’t happen without a can of WD-40 Check out my new workshop on the six concepts in the Psychology of Gestalt: Gestalt Workshop link FDTate, a past student of mine, recently sent me a question to comment on concerning one of the items to remember on my “101 things to know about photography”. Actually it was number 8 on the list: “Always have a roll of Duct Tape and a can of WD-40 with you. His question was, “A great list, but I’m confused by #8.  I’ve never been on a shoot and thought, “Boy, this would have gone a whole lot smoother if I’d just brought along some duct tape and WD-40 ..read more

Am I doing something wrong? Andrew, an online student with the BPSOP,  sent me this photo with the following question. I always like to share exactly what the photographer had to say since so many of you have either asked themselves the same question or have had similar situations. Here’s what Andrew had to say: ” Dear Joe, Sometimes I shoot the sky from my window. On the attached pictures you can the the original image with houses. Of course the houses are out of interest? so I decided to darken them. I wanted the photo looked like counter light with a “normal” sky. When I show my phot ..read more