Podcasts about black and white photography

HT2565 - The Updating Dilemma Major software updates have become a part of our photographic life. Some of these updates in software features are subtle, but occasionally an update introduces a major game-changing capability. What are we to do if a new update in software processing allows us to make a significant improvement in one of our images from yesteryear? Do we go back and "fix" the images processed with older software? If so, where do we draw the line? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2564 - I Saw This Very Cool Thing Here's another thought experiment about producing artwork. I looked back at all I've done and divided my productivity into two piles. The first pile was photographs that essentially say, "I saw this very cool thing." And the second pile was the artwork where the essence of the work was to say, "This is what I have to say about this thing." I found I had way more work in the first pile, but that the most meaningful work I'd done was in the second. I wouldn't be surprised that you might find the same divisions in your work. If I'm right about this, what does that say about those projects we are yet to complete? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2563 - Advice on Travel Photography Here is some advice about travel that doesn't come from me, although I do agree with it. Strangely enough, it's a passage from the book Dodsworth by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1929. Not aimed specifically at photographers or artists, it still is an observation about travel that I think fits perfectly with our creative process as photographers. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2562 - More on Framing At the risk of beating a dead horse, here are a few more thought about photography in frames, an extension of yesterday's comments about whether or not mats and frames are part of the artwork. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2561 - Is the Frame Part of the Artwork? We don't just thumbtack our prints to the wall. Instead, we dress them up a little bit. We mat them and frame them and then hang them on the wall. Where does the artwork stop and the presentation embellishments begin? Said another way, are the mat and the frame part of the artwork? This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2560 - Describe What You See Before you click the shutter, tell me what you see. I would be willing to bet big money that your description would mostly include details of the things you mentally isolate from the larger context. In essence, your description would be a list of objects you deem important enough to notice. Reread that last sentence and replace the word "description" with "photograph." To make a better photograph do we need a better description? Or, is what's missing emotional content and connection beyond mere description? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2559 - A Catalog of Your Work A friend of mine (who is a little older than I am) is involved in a massive project to create a digital catalog of his life's work. This consists of over 2500 finished images. He has inspired me to think about doing a similar project and catalog for my own work. But then, I had to ask myself, who would ever see it? Why would such a catalog be important to anyone other than me? Which is more important, doing new work or recording that past work has been done? Perhaps here is a compromise Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2558 - Losing History When I started in photography some 50 years ago it was axiomatic and universally understood that it was important to learn the history of photography. There were, I'm guessing, a couple of hundred photographers who are still important to this day, who were the pioneers, whose work we needed to know at least briefly if not intensely. We built a library of their books, study their images, read their essays, and recognized intuitively that this was a prerequisite for our own photographic growth. Instagram and internet influencers have replaced the need to study the masters from the history of photography. I'm trying to imagine a novelist who doesn't read novels or a pianist who never listens to music. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2557 - Key Tones There's a theory in fine art photography that every image needs to have key tones, some spot in the photograph that is absolute black and another that is absolute white. These tones supposedly calibrate our vision for everything else in the image. They become tonal reference points. Like all other rules in photography, I find this one contains a truth, but not a rigid one. Key tones are worth considering, but not with inflexible rigidity. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

LW1496 - When do you own a photograph? Do you own a piece of music because you purchased the CD, or do you own it when you have memorized the tune? Do you own a novel because you purchased the book or because you read it? Do you own a photograph when you've purchased the original print? Or do you own a photograph when it becomes so familiar that it's part of your mental gallery? Thought about another way, do you own a photograph because of the physicality of the print, or is it more important that the image is treasured in a corner of your soul? All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2556 - Knowing When to Move I think it was Picasso who said, "The trick in painting is knowing when to stop." I've adapted Picasso's thought for photograph. When out photographing, try to remind myself that the trick is knowing when to move on. I'm always tempted to move on immediately after I've pressed the shutter. I have it, so be done. If I can remember to resist this temptation, it's amazing how many times I find a better picture by being still, waiting a few moments, paying attention to the changes, and looking for the unexpected. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

LW1497 - Dates, Time, and Eras When was Edward Weston's famous Pepper #30 photographed? How about Ansel Adams classic Moonrise Over Hernandez? Or Dorothea Lange's now icon image, Migrant Mother? What year were they photographed? If you can't recall the year these famous image where made, can you at least place them in chronological order? If not, why not? Simple — the year nor the order are important, at least not to our emotional response to the content. All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2555 - My Advice Cannot Make Your Pictures I spend way too much time on YouTube because it's such a great way to learn tidbits about the technology of photography. That said, there are also gazillions of videos that will try to tell you the steps you must (or must not take) to make an aesthetically pleasing photograph, in essence how to follow the rules without admitting that you are following the rules. The challenge is to learn from the technical while simultaneously using aesthetic advice with extreme caution lest you find you are making other people's photographs. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2554 - Scant Feedback, If Any Applause is lovely. Accolades are lovely. Sales are lovely. Relying on such feedback to fuel your motivations is to place yourself in a position that doesn't help your creativity. Statistically, it just doesn't add up. Produce your work because you need to do it and because the Universe needs you to do it, not for the applause and (God forbid) not for the sales. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2553 - Minutia It can be quite entertaining to hear photographers talk about their images. Almost without exception, the photographer will examine tiny areas of the image including details, juxtapositions of composition, perfect tonal relationships, extremely subtle things that non-photographers would never see, or I should say never notice. For some reason, photographers think these minutia can make or break the success of a photograph. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2552 - Big Things and Little Things Some friends of ours are visiting Kyoto this week, many of the same places I visited in 2019 in my last visit to Japan. They are sending lots of pictures and I can't help but observing a difference between what they're photographing and what I photographed. Same locations, different visions. I suppose this shouldn't be a surprise, but it does have me thinking. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2551 - Four Hundred Donuts We all like a donut now and then. Two donuts on occasion. Three donuts? Might be entering the realm of excess. A dozen? Impossible without getting sick of donuts. Enough is enough and more than that leaves us overwhelmed, repulsed, ill. This comes to mind because I recently received a 400-page monograph of photographs. Roughly 40 pages in and I started feeling numb. At page 100, I gave up, realizing I hadn't really seen the last 60 images at all — and there were 300 more pages left to go! Too much of a good thing finds us racing for the exit door. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2550 - The Best Way to Add Value to Your Photographic Artwork Not everyone is pursuing the sale of their photographic artwork, but it's also not uncommon. The foundation of this pursuit is to try to build value into your artwork. If history teaches us anything, there are two keys to building value in your artwork: produce your prints prior to 1975; be sure you died in the 20th century. Both are difficult tasks here in 2026, but at the very least, announce you are not feeling well and you fear your art producing days are limited. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

Last week, we explored Aaron's Instagram detox and evaluated some hot takes from photographers on Threads. This week, we're back for round two! We dive even deeper into the Threads community, breaking down more opinion posts from photographers and creatives. From debates about building a photography style to whether wedding photographers need to "love" their craft, we're here to evaluate, elaborate, and share our own perspectives.Expect to Learn:Whether you need to "love" a genre of photography to succeed in itHow to Build and Evolve a Photography StyleWhy finding your community isn't just about waiting for them to come to you, but about actively participatingWhy black-and-white photography isn't just for people who "can't handle color"Why opportunities don't just fall into your lapSponsors:Thanks to WhiteWall for being our lead sponsor this episode! They're the top choice for photographers who want the highest-quality prints: https://www.whitewall.com/Our Links:Join our subreddit where you can share stories and ask questions:https://www.reddit.com/r/photographermindset/Subscribe to TPM's Youtube page and watch full length episodes: https://www.youtube.com/thephotographermindset/Make a donation via PayPal for any amount you feel is equal to the value you receive from our podcast episodes! Donations help with the fees related to hosting the show: https://paypal.me/podcasttpm?country.x=CA&locale.x=en_USThanks for listening!Go get shooting, go get editing, and stay focused.@sethmacey@mantis_photography@thephotographermindsetSupport the show

LW1495 - Ten Lesser-Known Masters You Should Study Have you heard me talk about the "airport test?" Name for me 10 famous painters, 10 musicians, 10 novelists. I'll bet you can. Ask 100 people at random at the airport to name 10 fine art photographers. Everybody is familiar with Ansel Adams, and a few might know of Edward Weston. Here are 10 lesser known masters of photography you should study precisely because they brought something to photography that has made a greater impact than their reputation would indicate. All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2548 - Exposure Tones vs Exposure Textures The so-called "exposure triangle" is usually thought of as a means of controlling the lightness and darkness of an image, and that's obviously true. But we old timers learned in studying the Zone System that tones are related to textures, particularly in combination with the angle of illumination. Human vision almost never sees tones without textures. Even the absence of texture is a form of texture. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2547 - Ten Is the Perfect Default All media have a comfort zone within a common range of sizes, plus or minus. Novels are typically a couple of hundred pages, popular songs 4 minutes, statues are commonly life-size. Exceptions are not uncommon, but it seems as though every medium has its default size. I've always felt that the default size for photography is 10 inches. We might see more detail in a larger print, but do we need to? This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2546 - The Love of Fast Shutter Speeds Here's an odd observation spanning the opposite poles of my 50 years in photography. In my youth almost all of my work involved long shutter speeds, reciprocity failure, and sturdy tripods. Now, at the opposite end of my artistic life, my favorite shutter speeds are all a 1/2,500 of a second and faster. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2545 - On Long-term Survival Just as a thought experiment, let's assume the long-term survival of your artwork is a concern to you. What could you do that would increase the odds of your artwork surviving into the long-term future? Would it be making prints with the most archival materials and techniques? Are you sure? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2544 - Famous or Decor I may be wrong about this and I'm more than willing to admit that, but I think photography on the wall divides itself into two fundamental types. There are photographs we frame and hang for their value as decor (goes good above the couch) or it is a photograph that is celebrated for its maker (often a collectable master). This is the main reason why I so rarely frame my photographs for display on the wall. My work tends not to be decor because it is too personal and I'm not famous nor collectible. Worse, I'm not interested in chasing fame nor chasing those kinds of images that make great decor. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2543 - Choosing Your Preferred Medium Let's say you want to read a book. Do you go to the library or bookstore, get the book and consume the miles of text across the physical pages? Or do you download the e-Publication onto your tablet or e-reader and consume the miles of text across the screen? A live symphony performance or a recording? Physical prints, or a PDF? Such decisions used to be about fidelity of the experience, but I'm not sure that's true anymore. I have countless images in my mental gallery about which I can no longer remember the medium in which I first saw them. It seems as if medium has become a matter of personal preference and choice. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2542 - Cameras and the Limits of Human Vision We all need new, better, more feature-packed cameras, right? That is what we are being told everyday by the makers of cameras. But do we really? Has it occurred to you that today's cameras can resolve more detail than human vision? Can register more dynamic range than our media of presentation? Think and execute focus and the exposure triangle calculations faster and more reliably than is humanly possible? What more — from a technology point of view — do we need? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

LW1494 - An Annual Series In 2007 I conceived a long-term project that I still believe in. I decided I would do an annual project consisting of five images each year whose subject would always be winter trees. (This was before Seeing in Sixes) This started off as an annual folio project but quickly expanded to an accompanying PDF version. For reasons I can't quite pin down. I did an annual five-image project for 7 years in a row and then stopped. I shouldn't have. In fact, I'm thinking of restarting this annual series. The reasons for continuing this project are still valid and have overwhelmed my lethargy. All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2549 - From Whence We See the World Photographing is always a subjective act. I can't think of a single instance in which a photograph is truly objective. After all, as photographers we choose where to stand, when to click the shutter, which things to include in the photograph and not, all of which are subjective decisions, decisions that reflect our point of view, our value system, our statement about what is important to observe. Photography becomes art when we embrace that subjectivity. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2540 - There Is No Favorite I received an email I had to think about before responding. The writer asked if out of the 180 projects I've published in Kokoro, did I have a favorite? I couldn't help feel this was like asking which of all the breaths I've taken today is my favorite? The answer, of course, is the next breath and, no doubt, the next project. This did have me thinking, however, about what work I choose to exhibit, publish, submit, or produce as a digital publication. As the producer, I may value the most recent work, but our chronology of production may have no impact on how others select their favorite work of ours. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2539 - The Medium That Encourages Your Productivity Simply said and factually undeniable, the medium you choose for the production of your images will either support and encourage more work or it will erect barriers that can make your work more difficult, more expensive, more discouraging. It's a matter of balance. We need a medium that challenges us, but not too much. We need a medium that allows us the freedom to create, but is substantial enough to require our sincere effort. We need a medium that allows us to connect with the audience we value. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2538 - Recognizing Excellence, Second Attempt "Even those who fall flat on their face are at least moving forward." In the spirit of true confession, yesterday's Here's a Thought was not my best effort. Let me try again from a slightly different point of view, hence "Recognizing Excellence, Second Attempt." Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2537 - Recognizing Excellence I attended my first workshop 40 years ago. I did so because I wanted to learn the specific techniques that were being taught by the instructors. Looking back on that experience, I realize the most important thing I experienced was seen hundreds of wonderful prints by the three instructors. The techniques I learned back then have been replaced during the digital revolution. The way I learned how to see and recognize excellence in a photograph is still one of the most valuable lessons of my creative life. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2536 - You Cannot Fake Sharpness I'm always hesitant to say that we can't do something because there may be a way to do it that I just don't know about. To date, I have no idea how to fake sharpness. I can process an image to fake dynamic range, exposure, contrast, etc. But once an image is captured with soft focus, it's going to look like soft focus forever. At least it will until the software engineers figure out how to resolve this for us. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2535 - Sitting Patiently, Waiting for the Response One of the most challenging formats I produce is what I call "One-Picture Stories." I pull up an image and then just sit with it until an idea, a response, a question, perhaps some sort of reaction occurs. This might take a few minutes; it might require an hour or more. My job in this exercise is to be quiet, be aware, be receptive, be open. It's a quiet meditation where I try to empty my mind of interference and just let the process unfold on its own. Here is the Special Edition PDF of "One-Picture Stories" that was discussed in Brooks' Here's a Thought Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

LW1493 - Six Photographs That Changed My Life Photography, we hope, is an art medium that can have an impact on our life, add content and meaning to our viewing experience. If a photograph succeeds at the highest level, it's not only memorable, but has the ability to change our life. Not many photographs are that powerful and even fewer are universally that impactful. Here are six images that literally changed my life and why. All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2534 - The Criteria For Which Is Best You found an interesting subject with interesting light and made a dozen or so captures that you hope will produce a terrific image. When you look at those dozen or so captures in review, how do you determine which one is best? What criteria do you use to determine which is best? This spawns an even more fundamental question: Why should you determine which one is best? This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2533 - Congratulations On Your Photographic Skill Do we admire Dickens for his extensive vocabulary? Do we admire Beethoven because of his chord progressions? Do we applaud the work of Ansel Adams because of his masterful use of depth of field? I've thought for years that if someone compliments my photographic technique the photograph has failed entirely. Tools and techniques are not supposed to be noticed accept perhaps by students and academics. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2532 - Twelve Significant Photographs I'm not sure if this assertion by Ansel Adams is apocryphal or true, but I know I've heard it my entire photographic life. "Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop." In light of today's realities, is this still valid? It's clearly not valid from a technical point of view. So what did he mean? What are the implications for photography if it's now possible to produce hundreds, perhaps thousands of good prints per year? What's the difference between significant and good? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2531 - Earth-Shaking, Mind-Blowing, Breath-Taking Photographs Must we? Does every photograph have to blow our socks off in order to be worthy of our attention? Are we so addicted in our entertainment that everything must be a car chase that concludes in a massive explosion? When did art become so connected to an adrenaline rush? When did subtlety, sensitivity, a quiet connection, a moment of insight or understanding fall out of favor with artists? Not everything has to be cranked to 11. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2530 - Photography Is Fundamentally an Act of Sharing A case could be made that a photograph without an audience doesn't exist. Think the proverbial falling tree in the forest when no one is there to hear it. "Yes," you might say, "but I just photograph for myself." I understand because most of our photographs will never be seen by anybody but ourselves. But isn't that still fundamentally an active sharing, at least with our future selves? This seems to imply a few questions. What is it we're trying to share? What is the most effective way to accomplish sharing? How does thinking about that audience influence what and how we photograph? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2529 - Processing the Goldilocks Way Artists are often encouraged to push the boundaries. That's my philosophy when it comes to processing individual images. Simply said, I never know if I've gone far enough until I go too far and then come back just a bit. I apply this strategy with every step of processing from sharpening to color balance to contrast and clarity. I never know beforehand when a processing step is going to require pushing to the extremes or restraint to the extremes. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2528 - Made for the Purpose I know of only two effective strategies that photographers use with consistency. They search for something to photograph or they manufacture something for the purpose of being photographed. I've never done the latter, but we've published quite a number of these portfolios in LensWork and they're always impressive. Find or make. Are there other options I should know about? Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

LW1492 - Media Agnostic Content We do live in fascinating times in the history of photography. There are so many changes happening simultaneously. One of the biggest changes that is rarely discussed is the increasing separation between content and its medium. In my youth, if there wasn't a print, there wasn't a photograph. The two were inexorably intertwined. Doesn't that seem quaint? All previous episodes of our weekly podcast are available to members of LensWork Online. 30-day Trial Memberships are only $10. Instant access, terabytes of content, inspiration and ideas that expand daily with new content. Sign up for instant access! You might also be interested in. . . Every Picture Is a Compromise, a series at www.brooksjensenarts.com. and... "How to" tutorials and camera reviews are everywhere on YouTube, but if you're interested in photography and the creative life, you need to know about the incredible resources you can access as a member of LensWork Online.

HT2527 - Master or Accomplished Hobbyist It's been my experience that most photographers desire success in one form or another. Yes, they want to make good pictures, but for most it goes further than that. For some that means being praised by one's peers. For others, there are loftier goals. Has it ever occurred to you that most of the photographers we now think of as "masters" were accomplished hobbyists in their own time? What makes them MASTERS? This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2526 - Different Signatures An astute observer has noticed that I have two different signatures. I have one signature that I use for business, check writing, my non-art life. It is an attestation of identity. I have a different signature that I use to sign my artwork. It is a testament that I'm happy with the artwork as completed. I developed this strategy 40 years ago and still think it's a pretty good idea for a couple of reasons. This RSS feed includes only the most recent seven Here's a Thought episodes. All of them — over 2500 and counting! — are available to members of LensWork Online. Try a 30-day membership for only $10 and discover the literally terabytes of content about photography and the creative process.

HT2525 - The Thread That Binds The Achilles heel of multiple-image projects is the risk that viewing the work devolves into a popularity contest. Instead of looking for threads and connections between the images, viewers search for the one image they think is the best or at least touches them deeply. Overcoming this subconscious winnowing project becomes one of the great challenges of presenting a body of work rather than a single "greatest hits" image. The best technique I know is to sort of force-feed the connecting idea. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2524 - The Connection It's often said that the greatest challenge in photography is learning how to see. It's been my experience that seeing — deep seeing — is a function of connection. The great challenge of photography is not learning how to see but fostering, encouraging, developing, surrendering to, recognizing a deeper connection that engulfs us in the moment. Making a record by clicking the shutter is less important than having the connection to begin with. I think this is precisely what Wynn Bullock was getting at when he titled his monograph A Way Of Life. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2523 - The True Selfie Here is a great quote from one of my favorite anthologists: "To see ourselves we have to use a reflecting mirror — for example, art." Take a moment to think about the questions that pop up in the art life. What do I want to produce? Why do I want to produce it? Why is it important that I produce it? Why is this meaningful to me? What difficulties am I willing to endure to produce it? And these are just a few introspective questions off the top of my head! It seems that art can be as much about our inner-directed questions as it is about our outward-directed expressive statements. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!

HT2522 - When the Image Takes Charge Over the years I've noticed a curiosity that pops up from time to time. I'll have in my mind's eye an idea of what I want an image to look like, but when I start processing it imposes an alternative I'd never thought about. Novelists will talk about their fictional character taking on a momentum of its own. I think the same thing can happen with photographs. Show your appreciation for our free weekly Podcast and our free daily Here's a Thought… with a donation Thanks!