Just go. No matter what it looks like. Whatever the weather. Storms in Colorado don’t last long. “It’s so cloudy out, there won’t be anyone out.” Just go. There will be people out if you show up. “There’s not enough light and it’s a 25-minute drive.” Go anyway. Push the film a stop if you have to. I had already given myself an out–I had earlier made a drive to the local lake looking for photos and had made this one. That should suffice for today. “Okay, right, I have no good excuse. I just have to go.” So, I went down to Boulder yesterday evening after watching the clouds roll in all afterno ..read more

It certainly is not the gear. I photographed the Longmont PrideFest this past weekend and chose to use a $60 70-300mm f4.5-5.6D Nikon zoom lens knowing its quality is top notch and to save weight. And I chose to forego the wide angle lens. I photographed this event on spec for a local magazine which ended up buying the photographs. I used this lens because I knew it could handle the job plus because it’s lightweight. Here’s the lens which works great in bright light and has great reach. It’s so inexpensive–it lives in my car’s cup holder covered by a hat to always have it with me in case I st ..read more

Who says film is not relevant anymore? The Los Angeles Times just ran a feature on Michael Richards–Cosmo Kramer from Seinfeld–and the photographer, Marcus Ubunge, used an 8×10 film camera for the black and white portrait that was the lead photograph. The photographer posted these to his Facebook page showing the behind the scenes. Film is very much alive and there is a place for film for editorial and commercial work today. There are creative directors who see the difference between just another digital photograph and one made on large-format film, and I can’t help but imagine Michael ..read more

Not those Olympics, the ones at the high school where I teach photography. Events such as these are so much fun to make photographs at, where the faces of the participants are full of elation, struggle, joy, defeat, and a thousand other emotions. I used two cameras, one Nikon DSLR with a 17-35mm, and another with a 150-600mm on a monopod. These two lenses make a great combo for sports, especially one where I have access to the whole field to move around to work. Here are the faces I photographed. There are more in this online gallery. The energy and competitiveness w ..read more

I’ve written in the past about how I don’t use hunting terms to describe my photography. No snapshots, capturing, shooting, etc. And also, how I don’t like the phrase “taking photos” because it implies all the other arts are made and ours is taken. Photographs are made just like a painting or a sculpture. So, I’ve adopted a new phrase explaining how I don’t take photographs: I take light and make photographs. It’s really what we do. We use the light to shape the photograph we want to create. We don’t photograph stuff, we photograph the light on stuff. I bring light to my subjects in the form ..read more

Front Range Colorado women and men, I’m looking for YOU for a “fashion” shoot. Wearing your best clothes, bringing your best style. LA and NY, I will be in your city this summer. Got a hot car? Bring it. I have urban and suburban locations that are perfect for a photography session in Boulder and Denver. Who are we photographing this series for? For a modeling agency? Nope. For a magazine spread? Nope. For a runway talent scout? Nope. Who then? For YOU! To see how amazing you look when you get a little direction and are put in front of the right photographer who knows a bit about light and p ..read more

It used to be a big deal. (We were a big deal!) It was a special occasion. It was a time to get dressed up. It was a place to look our best. It was the photographer’s portrait studio. Not the JC Penney bargain-quality department store studio with the standard poses and fixed lighting for $9.99. Or Kmart’s. Or Sears. Nope, not those. The artistic portrait made by the photographer downtown in the big brick building with a north-facing skylight on the top floor. The one with the big lights and huge camera. The one with the fancy hand-painted muslin background. The photographer who also photograph ..read more

We’re either preparing to live or we’re living. We can’t be doing both at the same time. You’re either buying and peeling potatoes, or you’re eating them at a dinner party with friends. One is prep. One is living. You’re either pumping up the tires on your bike, or you’re soaring at 20mph under a canopy of trees on a country road. One is prep. One is living. Shopping is done to get the things that we need to live at a later time. I was driving to a store and was stopped at a red light. I saw a bicyclist ride past me as I waited for the light to change. I looked at him and thought, “That guy is ..read more

I’ve had such a good time meeting people the past couple of days that I knew I had to go back out again today and see who I would find. Who I’d meet and strike up a conversation with. That’s the beautiful thing about a classic film camera, it’s a great ice breaker. This time from the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder on Easter Sunday. Another fun day walking around with the TLR and looking for people to approach. It takes a little bit of selling–“Hi, may I make your portrait?” “For what?” “For you, I want to make it for you.” (I will print and give them framed printed photographs to live with in th ..read more

Yesterday’s street portrait walk with the Rolleiflex made me want to go out again today. And so I did. This time I loaded Ilford HP5 in a Rolleiflex 3.5F. First stop was in Longmont where I found this wonderful couple. Then I had to run an errand in Arvada Colorado to deliver a framed photograph, so I figured I’d use the rest of the roll there. Here’s who I found. This woman I approached and asked to make her portrait. The TLR is a great way to approach people because they’re enamored by the old fashioned-looking camera. Some people approached me. Like this woman. Her indication is clea ..read more