Another Walk in the Park

You can say many things about Ada, Oklahoma, but one thing everyone says about it is that Francis Wintersmith Park is a jewel, an asset many communities don’t have. Last week I had the chance to poke around Wintersmith Park with my photographer friends Mackenzee and Robert (link). We had fun, and it was a…

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Fill Up the Frame

When I was just 18, I found myself interning at my then-hometown newspaper in Lawton, Oklahoma, under the supervision of a veteran photographer named Bill Dixon. My first assignment on the first morning there was to ride along with Bill and photograph severe thunderstorm damage at Fort Sill. It was typical Oklahoma late spring tree…

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The 2017 Solar Eclipse

There is a fair amount of excitement building around the first total eclipse of the sun in the United States in 72 years, on August 21, 2017. Undoubtedly, millions of people will be attempting to view and photograph it, mostly with marginal success using their smartphone cameras. My wife Abby and I have been planning…

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Other Photographers and Our Egos

A friend of mine, who I regard as a very talented photographer, recently asked me for some advice about photographing the American West. Among her destinations was Mesa Arch, a beautiful, easy-to-reach attraction at Canyonlands National Park in Utah, which I have visited many times. I told her that this feature is classically photographed in…

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Fact and Myth: “Full Frame” vs “Cropped”

For a couple of decades now, a cacophony of myth and misinformation has stemmed from digital photography regarding sensor size. This all started because professional and advanced amateur digital photography was rooted, for economic reasons, in 35mm film photography. Driven mostly by the engines of sales and popularity, not necessity or creativity or technical superiority, the…

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How to Rock the Sunset

Those who follow me on social media might recall that my current batch of students were disappointed that it rained during last week’s class, forcing us inside. Tonight’s forecast is more likely to produce a sunset opportunity. All photographers with any experience know that a good sunset can be difficult to pin down, and it’s…

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Decapitation

It’s true. I am a “lopper.” I cut off heads. One of the most common criticisms amateur photographers and non-photographers spout is, “You cut off their heads,” or, “I can’t believe you cut off the top of my head!” The idea is that all images of people should always include the entire person, head to…

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The Right Idea

The photographer in the image in this post is using the latter-day technique of shooting from an angle that’s hard to get while looking through a viewfinder. Looking up or down with a wide angle lens at a ladder, hillside, ski slope, swing set, church, Christmas tree, hiking trail, fountain, radio tower, Ferris wheel… you…

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