Lenspiration Blog
Welcome! Wherever you are on your photography journey, learn to take better photos through the photography tips and stories you'll find in the following free articles. By learning from the experience of others, you can also start taking pictures that you're excited to share with others!
About the Shot: June
June 2015 - Daybreak Over Emerald Bay Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe, California Life is most fulfilling when I have had the opportunity to serve other photographers in a way that helps them grow in their skills as a photographer as well as encourages them to honor the...
About the Shot: May
May 2015 – Lily White in Morning Light Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina On a family vacation in the Blue Ridge mountains in spring, I was looking for the “perfect flower”. Not every flower is pretty, and I was on the lookout for the best flower out there. One...
About the Shot: April
April 2015 – Beneath the Pier Ocean Beach Pier, Point Loma, California The hymn for this month is “I Must Tell Jesus”. Though written over 100 years ago, it’s message is still so applicable today: “O how the world to evil allures me! O how my heart is tempted to...
Behind the Shot: March
March 2015 – Country Evening Homestead outside Topeka, Kansas “Love of Christ so freely given, grace of God beyond degree; mercy higher than the heaven, deeper than the deepest sea. All that thrills my soul is Jesus; He is more than life to me; and the...
How You Can Have a Truly Valuable Calendar
I just finished up the very first Artists calendar! An artist sent me 12 of her best pictures, I plopped them into the calendar design that I had already made for 2015, and voilà! Actually, it wasn’t quite that simple. Perhaps if evolution were true. But of course...
Behind the Shot: February
Time for another story! Here’s what was going on behind the scenes in the February picture in the 2015 Lenspiration calendar. Only God can plan incredible occurrences. February 2015 – Successful Crossing Glacier National Park, Montana I would have to say that that...
Implementing a Brilliant Idea
New things never cease! I received a request to include something in a Personalized Calendar that I had never received before. Have you ever seen a wall calendar that had a Bible Reading Plan in it? Neither had I! So when Olivet Baptist Church purchased some...
Free Webinar with Tom Mangelsen Starts Tomorrow
If you want to some free training from the experience of a professional photographer, you might be interested in a free, two-day webinar presented by Tom Mangelsen. And if you enjoy wildlife photography specifically, you may be especially interested: the title of...
Behind the Shot: January
I wonder, sometimes, about the stories behind those “wow” shots we see so commonly displayed in calendars these days. Grant it, not all “calendar” shots are “wow” shots, but having put together my own calendars for about 5 years now, it’s almost habitual to wonder...
The Secret to Beautiful Product Photography
You know a professional product image when you see one. And you probably don’t even contemplate the fact that it’s professionally taken. The professional product photographer has done his job well when viewers think about the beauty or quality of the product, not...
Need Some Pro Gear?
Greg, a friend of mine, sent me a message letting me know he is selling a lot of his camera gear. I’ve listed out below what he has for sale and a comparison to what is might currently find it for new and used elsewhere. I don’t think you’ll be able to get a better...
The Amazing Zoom Effect . . . and How to Create It!
Have you ever seen pictures like this before? Can you guess how it was created? Nope, it wasn’t Photoshop! It was done with just a normal lens and SLR, like any cool photography effect should be done. While you may not consider it to be an “easy” effect to create,...
What I Learned From Frans
I was only able to watch a few hours of the 2-day webinar by Frans Lanting today and yesterday, but I still came away with quite a few things that were very helpful to me. Overall, I was very impressed with Frans’ humble confidence as a presenter, engaging...
Free, Live Webinar!
Can't beat this! Franz Lanting, a world-renowned wildlife, travel, and landscape photographer from California is offering two full days of free training via live webinar! I'm watching every spare minute I have . . . and I am learning new things almost faster than I...
Sunset Tonight
It’s not every day that you see a snow-capped mountain in West Virginia, glowing in the rosy light of sunset! I sorta did a double take when I got up for a break and looked out the window after working for a few hours on a design project late this afternoon. The...
Confidence in the Chosen Path
Hi photographers, a company called Inertia Interactive Media Inc. contacted me asking for an image that conveys “Confidence in the Chosen Path.” I’m pulling together my own collection of images to submit, but I thought I would let other photographers join in on the...
Best Shots from Kansas
It’s always fun to look at the pictures from the other photographers at the close of any CAPTURE Workshop! I make sure we go around and look through everyone’s top 12 picks sometime on Saturday at the end of the workshop so we can tell stories, share how we found...
Yup, It’s Free!
That’s right! I’m shipping out quantities of 10 or more Original 2015 Lenspiration calendars for free, from now till the end of the year! It’s one of those special perks for all of you folks who are subscribed to the Lenspiration Updates. Thanks for being a...
Worth “Driving All Day”?
I have a new appreciation for folks who tell stories about “driving all day”. After CAPTURE Kansas, two of the photographer attendees (Sarah and Stephen, both from Ohio) and myself left Topeka at 6:15am and didn’t arrive at our designated drop-off point in Dayton,...
Capturing Kansas . . . Again!
I’m back in Kansas, looking forward to holding the very last CAPTURE Workshop of the year! This is the second time a workshop has been held in this location so it will be neat to revisit some of the great places we went to last year. Being in the same location...
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New month - new photo assignment! And this one is pretty sweet. 🙂 Our goal is to take beautiful photos that reflect the truths of Psalm 119:103, “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”
Get all the details at the link in bio!
Another behind the scenes shot....thanks to @real_lukas_n Though I usually use a tripod for landscape photography, there was no time in this situation where it was literally raining. When I saw the distant mountains after pulling in for only a short time at this open-to-the-public farm, I knew there was a shot somewhere. This vast field of flooded strawberry plants was the foreground I was looking for, offering perfect leading lines to the triangular peak framed by the sweeping mist.
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Family-friendly photography training: www.lenspiration.com
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#farm #landscapephotographer #shootingintherain #rainyday #behindtheshot
New blog post! The last bit of light after sunset doesn`t take long to disappear. Sparkling stars were peering through the pinyon pine boughs above us. We were in the deep shadows of dusk as we picked our way down the rock strewn trail back to the parking lot. Read more at link in bio.
#lenspiration #homeschoolphotography #homeschool #christianphotographer #photographyeducator #photoinspiration #photography #photoblogger
Behind the shot photo.... When it`s rainy, and you`re not on lights`s time table, there`s time to chat with friends while you`re out in the field! 🤩 Thanks @real_lukas_n for the second photo! --
Family-friendly photography training: www.lenspiration.com
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#outdoorphoto #lowkey #mystery #photographyfriends #explorenc
Happy Memorial Day! Let us honor their sacrifice by using our freedoms not to do as we please, but to live as we ought. #freedom #integrity #selfcontrol #memorialday #Godblessamerica
New blog post! Rain poured down in torrential waves as we made our way through the Smoky Mountains. We had gotten up insanely early—long before dawn—to make the most of our time photographing at the high-elevation overlooks before the storm. But now the rain was coming down so hard that even the most dedicated among us didn’t feel like stepping out of the car for a photo. Until we rounded a bend and saw... Read more at link in bio.
#lenspiration #homeschoolphotography #homeschool #christianphotographer #photographyeducator #photoinspiration #photography #photoblogger
Join me for some LIVE photo coaching on Tuesday, May 26 as we look at "Glowing Scenery" photos. . . Register at link in bio!
Foreground element, framing, leading lines, human element, vibrant color.... Definitely one of my favorite shots from EXPLORE Springtime in the Smokies.
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Family-friendly photography training: www.lenspiration.com
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#photographycomposition #photoworkshop #composition #landscapephotography #springtime @greatsmokynps @blueridgenps
Before/after....look at the difference! A little editing is just what it needed to make it pop (IMO). What do you think?
"For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills." Deuteronomy 8:7-9 Every time I photograph a waterfall I should thank the Lord for letting me live in such a blessed land.
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Family-friendly photography training: www.lenspiration.com
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#waterfall #verseoftheday #landscapephoto #thankful #godsblessing
New blog post! The photographer who makes decisions based on comfort won’t get out in the field, even in a place like the Smokies—and therefore won’t come home with any photos. Read more at link in bio.
#lenspiration #homeschoolphotography #homeschool #christianphotographer #photographyeducator #photoinspiration #photography #photoblogger
The photo assignment for May is live! Take beautiful, landscape photos that have a warm, glowing sense to them. Photos could include warm sunlight glowing at the end of a path, over water, over a stream, in a field, or over a mountain. Details at link in bio.
New blog post! Read more at link in bio.
#lenspiration #homeschoolphotography #homeschool #christianphotographer #photographyeducator #photoinspiration #photography #photoblogger
Someone got a photo of me taking the group photo at Family Conference last week! @familyconfs @alertacademy #familyconference #eventphotography #groupphoto #eventphotographer #adventurous
A quick stop in Paris for a selfie! 😄 #paristexas #travel #selfietime #texas
So much fun to photograph a family conference as an actual family! (Thank you Rebekah for the photo!)
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Family-friendly photography training: www.lenspiration.com
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#family #behindthescenes #together #teamwork #wvphotographer
On the lookout for puddles on a rainy first day of Conference!
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Family-friendly place to learn photography! www.lenspiration.com
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#rainyday #homeschool #conference #familylife #puddlejumping
Join me for some LIVE photo coaching on Tuesday, April 28! Register at link in bio.
