Playing with Tone Curve

by | Oct 24, 2020 | Tips & Tricks

Playing with Tone Curve
While editing the Assateague Island Field Day group photo not too long ago, I felt my typical adjustments in the Basic panel just weren’t getting it right. Maybe it had something to do with how bright both the foreground and background were? I don’t know. Here’s the best I could do using just the Basic sliders like... Read More »

A Twinge of Sadness

by | Oct 17, 2020 | Perspective, Stories & Expeditions

A Twinge of Sadness
Have you ever been out taking pictures someplace that you’ve never been to before, enjoying the beauty of the place simply because it’s a beautiful place . . . and then someone starts giving you a glimpse into the history of the place? It gives a deeper perspective on the way you view the location. No longer is it... Read More »

Behind the Shot: Crimson Display

by | Oct 10, 2020 | Stories & Expeditions

Behind the Shot: Crimson Display
It was a quaint little place. Not all that attractive in and of itself. But the view was amazing! An especially great place for morning devotions, even when it was cold outside. But on one particular morning, I saw the horizon begin to glow red, I knew it was time to jump into my wool socks and wind-proof jacket!... Read More »

On Assignment: An Illustration of Selfishness

by | Oct 2, 2020 | Assignments

On Assignment: An Illustration of Selfishness
Oh, this is going to be a good assignment! Surely, everyone has a water hose, an algae-covered pond, or an old rain barrel somewhere close by! But has anyone ever thought to take artistic pictures of them?? The pond that was supposed to be all stagnant and ugly turned out to look way too healthy to illustrate the... Read More »

Creative Posing Ideas

by | Sep 4, 2020 | Assignments

Creative Posing Ideas
This month’s photo assignment, Creative Posing, is a little different than normal! Instead of asking you to photograph a concept or come up with your own interpretation of an idea, this assignment is to photograph something specific. Very specific! So specific, in fact, that it will require you to study provided... Read More »

Constraining Factors

by | Aug 19, 2020 | Perspective, Pic of the Month

Constraining Factors
The sound of my alarm going off was evidently louder than the pitter patter of water dripping off the trees onto the rainfly. Everything inside the tent was still pretty damp from the previous evening’s rain, but outside, the moon was making it’s appearance through broken clouds. Our group of four slowly piled into... Read More »

On Assignment: Harvest!

by | Aug 4, 2020 | Assignments

On Assignment: Harvest!
We’re shooting to illustrate two different verses this month, both with a theme of “harvest” (more details about the assignment here). If you live where golden fields of wheat or rye are around, photograph that! That’s what we’re really looking for. But if you’re like me, and the only kind of harvest around is the... Read More »

Quick Tip: Shoulder to the Sun

by | Jul 17, 2020 | Tips & Tricks

Quick Tip: Shoulder to the Sun
Last night, I was putting together a training video about the different times of day and how they relate to photography. If you’ve done much photography, you’ll know that each time of day offers the photographer something completely different to explore! Anyway, I came across these three photos from my archives that... Read More »

What Quality Setting Should I Use for JPG Photos?

by | Jul 13, 2020 | Recommendations

What Quality Setting Should I Use for JPG Photos?

The topic of image quality (specifically JPG format image quality) comes up every so often in photography circles, and Lenspiration is no exception. I’d venture to say that all of the photographers here at Lenspiration are shooting for the best, so they naturally want their photos to be the “highest quality” possible. However, the downside to high quality is high file size!

Read More »

Homeschooling Photo Shoot!

by | Jul 3, 2020 | Assignments

Homeschooling Photo Shoot!
If your family already does homeschooling, this month’s photo assignment should be easy! To make it more challenging for me, I focused on lighting and doing what I could to get it just right…. While bounce flash certainly is better than direct flash or no flash at all when photographing not-so-well-lit areas, I feel... Read More »

Caught by Storm Chasing

by | Jun 29, 2020 | Tips & Tricks, Stories & Expeditions

Caught by Storm Chasing
A self-described country boy from a farming family on the coast of southern Virginia, John has been active on the Lenspiration forums since 2015 and a member on Lenspiration since 2018. When he has time for photography, his excursions tend to evidence his undeniable hard-work ethic, love for adventure, and complete... Read More »

A Little Experiment with Focal Length

by | Jun 22, 2020 | Perspective

A Little Experiment with Focal Length
I’ve been having way too much fun preparing the Premium Training for next week’s photo assignment launch! After doing some video recording with Jonathan at a lake, we went driving around on some local back roads to find a good spot to run an experiment I wanted to do with focal length. I wanted to illustrate how the... Read More »

Locals Are the Best!

by | Jun 15, 2020 | Stories & Expeditions

Locals Are the Best!
Last Friday, I went out waterfall hunting! Needing some specific photos related to flowing water for a new training video, I headed to Valley Falls State Park. It was about an hour away, but it was the closest place I knew of where I could find a “big” waterfall. Well, when I arrived, there was this guy fishing on... Read More »

On Assignment: Perfect Order in Nature

by | Jun 5, 2020 | Assignments

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

by | May 29, 2020 | Assignments

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!

by | May 25, 2020 | Updates & Opportunities

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 »

Pin It on Pinterest