James Staddon, Author at Lenspiration

On Assignment: Perfect Order in Nature

According to the details for the current assignment, perfect order in nature could also mean perfect order in man-made landscapes, so off I went looking for symmetrical gardens and manicured lawns at the closest botanical garden I could find! Oh what a surprise I was in for! It was different being on a time-crunch... Read More »

Waiting for Just the Right Storm

The wind rustles through the trees, revealing the light undersides of every leaf. It starts sprinkling on the windshield. Puffy white and gray cumulonimbus clouds roll along the horizon. Maybe today will be the day? I’ve been keeping an eye on the weather for the past week or so, hoping for an opportunity to... Read More »

Pulling It All Together!

Back in January, it was exciting to announce the launch of the Pro Posing Database . . . now, it’s time to announce a big update to the Portraiture Training section of Pro Posing!All sorts of disconnected, portrait photography stuff has randomly gone up on Lenspiration over the years. A blog post here. A forum topic... Read More »

Can You See Yourself Growing?

I thought it was pretty funny how, after posting a survey about Lenspiration last week, I got an email from this other photographer who was sending out his own survey. Jeff Schultz is a professional Alaskan photographer, and after visiting his studio in 2014, I’ve been following his blog ever since. He was asking... Read More »

Just Curious

Homeschool Summits is wrapping up their online Curriculum 2.0 convention today, and they’ve given me two All-Access Passes that I can give away for free. If you’re into homeschooling and would like one of them, feel free to enter the drawing by filling out this quick little survey about Lenspiration. Survey will be... Read More »

On Assignment: Go Forward!

When I read the details for this month’s assignment, I thought “Hey, this is going to be easy; I have plenty of brothers to use as models, it’s a bright sunny day, and I know exactly where to shoot it!” Well, as usual, it didn’t exactly turn out as expected. . . . The dynamic range between the light and dark areas... Read More »

Photos from the Triple Wedding!

Have you ever heard of a triple wedding? Read how a whole team of photographers came together to capture this unique day!

Invisible Enemies Worse Than COVID-19

It’s 2020. The year the world found out how vulnerable it actually was. An invisible enemy has entered our world, and we are all taking extraordinary precaution against it. Suddenly, we are willing to endure incredible sacrifice and inconvenience for the sake of ourselves and others. Who would have thought the... Read More »

On Assignment: Into The Danger Zone

This month for our photo assignment, we'll be illustrating Psalm 119:103, “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" If you decide to go out and take pictures of honey bees like I did, beware. Don’t get stung like . . . well, watch the video. It’s quite the adventure being in the... Read More »

A Special, Unexpected Pass

Remember the blog post, One Picture Only!, recounting the hilarious encounter my friend John and I had while photographing in Virginia a while back? Well, that wasn’t the only crazy thing that happened that day. It only got better! Here’s what happened next, from John . . . After a short and memorable time exploring... Read More »

A Rare Opportunity to Wait

Today, I was scheduled to drive up to Pennsylvania for Miracle Mountain Ranch’s annual Photography Summit. Of course, it was canceled because of you know what (and they’re working on something to replace it online . . . will try to keep you up on that). But this meant I suddenly had some extra time! Well,... Read More »

More Than Just a Picture of a Blue Bird

I had an idea of what I wanted to take pictures of for this month’s assignment, but I had to patiently wait for the right timing. It’s interesting how things worked out perfectly! Almost. Now let me show you the photos I took in the video! Keep in mind that these are my favorite select few from well over 400 photos... Read More »

First Real Snow Day of the Year!

Very soon after trying to shoot for the “Pure” assignment in the very un-pure looking surroundings that February was giving us at that time . . . it snowed! So I re-arranged things on my calendar and went out again hoping for some better shots. And I was kinda surprised. Just because it was snowing wasn’t making... Read More »

When What You’re Looking for Doesn’t Exist

This new assignment turned out much better than I expected! Isn’t it great that ideas from sources outside of yourself are often what help you find exactly what you could not find by yourself? I think it’s interesting how, without my intending it, this video actually illustrated my own personal pursuit of purity.... Read More »

Behind the Scenes of a DIY Family Photo Shoot

How this low-budget lighting set up worked well for an indoor Christmas family photo shoot.

For Those of Us Who Prefer to Learn Hands-On

Most photographers I meet are the hands-on type. I remember last year at the MMR Media Summit, we talked for over an hour in the classroom about how to shoot in manual. And this was important. But it wasn’t until after we got outside for the hands-on stuff that it actually started to click with people. And it is SO... Read More »

What To Do When “Wow” Subjects Don’t Look “Wow” In Your Photos

One catches a first glimpse of their destination. They scramble forward to get the best view, pull out the camera and take their prizewinning shot. But is it really prizewinning? Was it the subject that made the photo great? If so, the viewer will probably be disappointed at how un-prizewinning their photo is when... Read More »

On Assignment: Chasing the Light

Know the common thread between the four hymns Let Him Have His Way With Thee, O For A Closer Walk!, Precious Name, and Teach Me Thy Way, O Lord? Here’s the answer, and how I went about trying to capture it! It sorta felt like I failed miserably in my pursuit of a path that was very bright. But that didn't mean I... Read More »

The Story Behind the Pro Posing Database

Learn the history and vision behind Lenspiration’s Pro Posing Database.

“One Picture Only!”

It’s pretty funny what happened on a recent photo excursion I went on with a friend. 🙂 I’ll let John tell it to you in his own words . . . When was the last time you went to photograph an epic location and only took ONE photo? Recently I had a friend in town (i.e. Mr. Lenspiration 🙂 ) for a few days, and... Read More »