Episodes

Episode 287 I often think of photography as an active verb. It is something that we do, see, and respond. It involves action on both the creator of the image and the viewer. We create photographs to see better, learn about the world and our place in it, and share those insights with others. Hopefully, people look at our photographs to have the same experiences as we did when we created them. There is, however, a whole set of photography that is created without the photographer. Video and photos...

Episode 286 Sometimes I hear someone say something and it gets me thinking about my approach to my photography. I recently overheard someone say don’t shoot the messenger. This got me to thinking about how many times we blame the viewer for not getting our understanding of our photographs. This week’s podcast is all about how we can help to overcome our frustration with others when they just don’t get our work. It is easy to blame the viewer as just not getting it, but I believe there is an opp...

Episode 285 I was recently updating a lot of software on my computer. As some of the updates were installing, I took a look at the software release notes. If you have never looked at these notes, they tell you what is included in the update. Nearly all the release notes have the same basic information. They contain bug fixes, new features, and compatibility notes. As I looked at those, it got me thinking about how similar those notes are to editing and making photographs. This week’s podcast di...

Episode 284 This week’s podcast dives into how we define a photograph and photography. There is a lot of room to experiment and play with what defines photography, but I think knowing what is an isn’t photography and a photograph can help you be a better photographer and consumer of visual images. For me, there are three key aspects of a photograph. They are time-bound, indexical, and is represented by an object of some type (print, slide, etc). For you, I imagine you might have different ideas ...

Episode 283 This week’s podcast talks introduces two new long-format workshops I am offering in 2020-2021. Each workshop will run for 6-7 months and is limited to six particpants. There is a foundation workshop about editing and workflow and an advanced workshop about finding more meaning in your work. You can get more information from the Workshops/Teaching menu above or using one of the links below. https://www.danieljgregory.com/2020workshops/perceptive-photographer-foundation-workshop-the-d...

Episode 282 There are a number of aspects of photography that fall into two camps. There are artistic decisions and technical decisions. For some people, you might think of this as left-brain (technical) and right- brain (creative) decisions. However, to be successful, you need both sides of your brain to make a good photograph. Not only both sides but also some language around how both sides work together to make a successful photograph. When we can talk about how our camera decisions help or h...

Episode 281 One of our listeners sent in a great question about distractions. Her question was a two-part approach to dealing with distractions. The first was dealing with the distractions of editing the wrong images. Were there ideas or strategies for making sure what we can edit the best images and not waste time on the wrong images. Before you actually edit an image in Lightroom do the following, write down on a piece of paper the following: emotions you want or feel in the image the story ...

Episode 280 Make yourself the best photographer in the world. To do so, all you have to do is wear a mask. If you think it kills your freedom, put one and walk around and see if you can still do things. If you can, the mask hasn’t destroyed your freedom but has kept the rest of us safer. In this week’s podcast, I reflect on how our emotional state can drive how we approach our photographs when we are out in the field. The shifts in emotions, feelings, and experiences while out with a camera can...

Episode 279 I get asked a lot of questions about photography. Some are good, and some are not so good. When we look at our own work and spend time behind the camera it is all about asking and answering questions. Is this the right composition? Do I have the right settings? Is my narrative on point? In my experience, when we ask the right question we get what we want in our photography sooner than later. So, this week’s podcast is a look at the process of asking questions and how we answer those...

Episode 278 As COVID-19 continues to build in the USA, I thought I would use the podcast this week to share five things you can do with your stay at home time. These to-do items will work even if you aren’t stuck at home under quarantine. Still, these to-dos can help pass the time and improve your photography and photographic inspiration if you are at home. Read and do the work in one of your photography books you bought Inventory your camera gear for insurance and to do a keep, sell, donate, o...

Episode 277 I often get asked what the things you can do to be a better photographer are. The two that are always at the top of my list are printing and consuming other people’s work. I like to use the analogy of ice cream when discussing other people’s work. Our work is one flavor of ice cream. Different people all have their own flavor. When we look at others’ work, it is like getting to try a new flavor of ice cream. We might like it. We might not. Either way, it helps us broaden our palate a...

Episode 276 We used to be able to go to the movies, one of my favorite traditions was getting something from the concessions stands. Now I know they are a rip-off, but I just love having a treat during the movie. I am always somewhat annoyed; however, by the time it takes some people to pick a type of candy while in line. Now, I have read enough research to know that given too many choices, most of us can’t make a decision. Given too few choices and we rebel against our options. That leaves most...

Episode 275 Ah, the great American past-time of complaining. Nothing beats hanging out with friends over a beer and complaining about all sorts of things in life. We love to complain about lots of things such as politics, weather, work, and even our photography. Photographers love to complain about all things photographic. Subscription fees, cameras, software, editing techniques, other people’s work are just the tip of the iceberg of topics photographers like to discuss. In this week’s podcast,...

Episode 274 A couple of the things I hear photographs talk about all the time is hitting a wall, not getting good feedback, and fear in the face of change. In this week’s podcast, I tossed all of those issues into the Vitamix blender and hit high speed on the dial. No matter what problems you face, odds are you try to solve it by repeating the same behavior over and over. When we do that, more times than not, there is no change in the outcome. When we need to have a change in our work, we need ...

Episode 273 In her classic essay On Photography, Susan Sontag makes the statement: Photographing is essentially an act of non-intervention. So in this week’s podcast, I thought we would take a look at that quote and discuss how photographing and the viewing of photographs can be a non-intervening act. The photographs we make that are significant to us, and some of the photographs we view have a lasting impact. These things become acts and objects of the intervention. These photographs and the ac...

Episode 270 In this week’s podcast, we focus on two aspects of the nature of critique. The how and the why of taking a photograph. The how is the technical side of things in creating the image. The why is who you are as a photographer in the photograph. The story of the image so to speak. When we work on images, ideally, we would have both aspects in our images. The image would be our best foot forward in both technical and story. However, in my experience, this isn’t always the case. There are ...

Episode 270 In this week’s podcast, I talk about some of the impacts that might appear in your photo editing and viewing as a result of binge-watching. While it is fun to sit down and consume a show from beginning to end as fast a possible, there is a cost to this approach. Much like eating good food, without a palate cleanser, our ability to sense subtle nuances in how we see, taste, and experience the object of our affection is lost. We need to have a way to reset our visuals and start fresh. ...

Episode 270 This week’s podcast focuses on the impacts in our photography when the days, projects, images, and seeing seem to drag into each other over and over again. The groundhog effect, so to speak. I don’t think there is a person out there who hasn’t had a negative sense of deja vu when it comes to there photography. Maybe you are stuck working locally rather than getting to travel. Perhaps you think you are editing what seems like the same image again and again. The mundane comes in all so...

Episode 269 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. This week’s podcast is based on a request from one of our listeners regarding a question of ethics in photography. Ethics, our sense of doing what is right and wrong, is at the core of each of us. As photographers, our understanding of right and wrong regarding what and when to photograph should be a key consideration we make.. While those ethics are different for each person and depending on your job might be di...

Episode 268 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. This week’s podcast is a direct response to conversations I have been having with my friends and associates as they struggle to deal with their creative process during the pandemic. As the days drag on from one to another, the creative spark for many people has become less enjoyable and harder to maintain. This week’s podcast focuses on the importance of doing a daily check-in. Really looking at how you are doing...

Episode 267 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. I have been having some conversations with people lately about how they create their work. In the course of those discussions, I have found that a lot of people seem to focus on the next thing. However, in my experience, there is a lot of information to be gained by returning to your own photography library and looking at it with new eyes. In this week’s podcast, we talk about a few different ways to dive deep int...

Episode 265 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. As we all have been forced to make changes to our daily routines, it got me thinking about time. Time is one of those things at the foundation of photography, and I believe, defines a unique aspect of photography as a medium and form of communication. I also have begun to really realize the awareness impact of having less time everyday can have on my approach to my work. As photographers, we are bound by our sense...

Episode 265 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. We recently added a new family member, Cora the dog, to the house. She is a loving, energetic ball of Aussie Shepard fur. Lori and I are working at training her to be a happy, well-adjusted, non-cat chasing member of the family. Part of that training is Lori, and I getting on the same page about the language we use when talking to her in training. After all up, down, lay, sit, stay, come, here, touch, and a ton of...

Episode 264 I hope that you and your family are safe during the COVID-19 outbreak. For a lot of us, we are following stay-at-home orders and not going out much. For those of you stuck in essential jobs, thank you for continuing to do your job. I have had several conversations with my photographer friends about how they are dealing with all of these changes. For many of them, while stressed about the general situation, they felt it was an opportunity to really dive into their work. While this has...