Pre-PhotoFest Japan Shoot

PhotoFest Japan 2010 beings tonight! As the instructors, Juan Pons, Hal "Bull" Schmitt and I can't wait for the photo fun to begin.

Today we had a pre-show shoot at Tokyo's Tsukiji Market, the largest fish market in the world. Look for a few how-to videos over on DPE this week.

Well, the welcome party is about to being, I gotta take a much-needed shower and scoot over to the event.

See you over at DPE.

Explore the light,

Rick

Pre-Holiday Photoshop/Photography Workshop in Old San Juan, PR

How's this for an idea? Give yourself an early holiday gift by joining the Digital Photography Experience Photoshop & Photography workshop in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Juan Pons (who is not that old) and yours truly will be the instructors. Good learning and good fun for all.

Click here for details.

Hope to see you under the sun in San Juan.

Explore the the light,
Rick

Too Much Fun with RC at the Temple

Yesterday, I took my friend, RC (a.k.a. Rafael Conception from the Kelby Media Group), to one of my favorite shooting spots – the largest Buddhist temple in the US. The temple is part of the Chuang Yen Monastery. Believe it or not, it's only about 1.5 hours from NYC.

RC is in town for the Photoshop Summit, which will be totally cool!

The temple, in Kent, NY, is one of the favorite shooting locations on my Hudson River Photography Workshops.

RC was shooting HDR. His shot is on the left. The shot I took of him shooting is on the right. This dude does not mind getting down and dirty for a shot.

Below (left) is an HDR image I created from a series of pictures that I took on previous visit to the temple. On the right is the average exposure of the same scene.

I hope to see RC again up here! And I hope you can join the photo fun on one of my workshops.

Explore the light,
Rick
P.S. More on HDR all this week at the Digital Photo Experience.

RS on HDR in NJ

I hope some of you can join me for a fun-filled HDR day in NJ on July 18th!

Click here for info.

Explore the light,
Rick

Cool Workshop in Hot ‘lanta!

Hot ‘lanta – a.k.a. Atlanta, GA – here we come!

DPE’s Rob Knight and I are running a totally cool workshop in Hot ‘lanta in August. Click here for details.

Hey, we have some cool door prizes! With such a small group, you have a good chance to win! Here are the prizes:

1 copy of Nik Software's Color Efex Pro.
1 copy of Nik Software's Silver Efectx Pro.
5 gift certificates from Nations Photo Lab for $100 each. Plus $50 gift cards for all attendees.
1 Large Rogue Flash Bender from Expoimaging.
2 Color Checker Passports.
1 copy of Rick Sammon book, HDR Secrets.
1 copy of Rick Sammon's book, Exploring the Light.

Total value of door prizes/gift certificates: $1,000.00+
We hope you can join the photo fun!

Explore the light,

Rick

Two Worlds in HDR: Announcing International HDR Day

HDR Image: Trey Ratcliff

My friend Trey Ratcliff (of Stuck in Customs fame) and I, along with the Digital Photo Experience, are officially designating June 26th (this coming Saturday), as International HDR Day. Hey, if there can be a National Talk Like a Pirate Day, there can be a special day for HDR (High Dynamic Range Photography), too!

Trey and I want you to go out (or stay in) this week and take the best HDR image you've ever taken! You can win our HDR books and a print from Nations Photo Lab.

HDR Image: Rick Sammon

For details on International HDR Day, and tips on HDR photography, check the Digital Photo Experience - all this week. We'll have different post on HDR each day.

All my posts this week will be over at DPE. See you there.

Explore the light,

Rick

A Blog Post for Dad's Day

A while back I wrote a guest post for Scott Kelby, one of the many good dads I know.

In celebration of Dad's Day, I thought I'd share my thoughts again on being a dad/photographer.

Here is the link.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there,
Rick

Butterfly Photo Tips

The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough. – Rabindranath Tagore

Canon 1Ds Mark II
Canon 50mm Macro Lens
Manual Mode
ISO 400
f/9.0 @ 1/80th sec.
Canon MR-14EX Ring Lite

Photo tips:
• Learn about a subject from an expert. He or she can help you find and identify butterflies.
• Use a tripod to steady your shots for natural light macro picture.
• Before heading off to photograph in a butterfly sanctuary, ask if tripods are allowed and if the center offers special photo tours.
• When using a ringlight, experiment with even and ratio lighting (possible by adjusting the light output of the flash tubes in the ringlight. Try top light and side light, too.
• Practice your butterfly photography at home with silk butterflies (available on line) before you go out on shoot.
• Want to attract butterflies? Plant a butterfly bush in your backyard.

Explorer the light,
Rick

Happy Father's Day to iDads: Free Redeem Code Giveaway

To celebrate Father's Day (a few days early), my app developers/friends/dads (Dr. Dave Wilson and Juan Pons) and I are giving away free redeem codes for two of our apps.

Here are the codes for 24/7 Photo Buffet (iPhone app):

W7KPRXRH9JHA
W7TTHRP69NLM
LNX6YN3W7TFT
W96644XT9MXE

That's all we have for now. We gave away our total. More codes to come with the launch of the iPad version.


Here are the codes for Life Lesson We Can Learn From Mother Nature (iPad app):

ERHWL9E4ANNF
M6JY3A6FP3H3
9FHE99K7RNRP
3ATEF369P6P9
76JT4H93N3AP
X44TNFLALWY9
9MHJ34N63PPP

We'll be giving away more codes in the future. Stay tuned.

Good luck to all the iDads (and iKids of great iDads) who have iPhones and iPads. :-)

Happy Dad's Day,
Rick

Rainbow Photo Tips

The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears. – John Vance Cheney

Moab, Utah
Canon 1Ds Mark II
Canon 17- 40mm lens @ 17mm
Aperture Priority Mode
ISO 100
f/5.6 @ 1/125 sec.

Photo Tips:
• Never underestimate the importance of cropping. It's the first thing I do after I open an image.
• Look for rainbows after it rains. Sounds like a simple tip, but looking helps you find rainbows.
• Use the Saturation tool in Photoshop to increase the colors in the rainbow. Select a soft-edge brush and "paint" over the rainbow.
• Slightly darkening the image in Photoshop can add drama to an image.

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click on the iPhone/iPad photographs on the right.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!
Rick

Close-up Photo Tips

To witness two lovers is a spectacle for the gods. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Coconut Creek, Florida
Canon 1Ds Mark II
Canon 50mm Macro Lens
Aperture Priority Mode
ISO 400
f/9.0 @ 1/80th sec.

Close-up Photo Tips:
• Use a true macro lens for close-up photography. It will get you closer than a zoom with a macro setting.
• Pay extra attention to depth-of-field, because depth-of-field is limited.
• Use a ringlight for even illumination.
• The background can make or break the photograph.

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click on the iPhone/iPad photos on the right.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!
Rick

Parish Kohanim Interview on DPE

Photograph © Parish Kohanim. All rights reserved.

I have interviewed many photographers over the years. Parish Kohanim is one of my favorites. You'll here why in the interview over at the Digital Photo Experience.

Enjoy!

Explore the light,
Rick

Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature – iPad App Now Available

Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. – Abraham Lincoln

Kenya
Canon 1Ds Mark II
Canon 1000-400mm IS lens @ 340mm
Aperture Priority Mode
ISO 125
f/8.0 @ 164th sec.

Photo tips:
• Check your histogram to make sure that your highlights are not washed out.
• Don't look directly into the sun at sunrise and sunset.
• Wear sunglasses at sunrise and sunset.
• Have fun in Photoshop creating the mirror effect, as I did here.
• Note that polarizing filters are not effective when shooting directly toward or away from the sun.

• • •

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click on the iPhone/iPad photos on the right.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!

Rick
P.S. Click here to see all my apps.

Africa Photo Safari Tips – live from the Bronx Zoo

Photograph © Jeff Muschar

Today, while I giving a private workshop at the Bronx Zoo, the student (now my friend), Jeff Muschar, took the opening shot for this blog post. Great job Jeff.

Jeff took the workshop as a prelude to his Botswana safari, which he is doing with his son in a few weeks. I know they will have a great father/son time – and come back with great images.

Jeff asked me to jot down some photo and safari tips. I said sure!

For those of you who may venture off on a safari, I thought I'd share the tips with you, too. Here goes.

Safari Tips:

• Be prepared to get up early and come back to camp early. Most of the action happens early in the day - and late in the day (and at night).

• Be prepared for lots of downtime (downloading time), because you probably will not go on a game drive until late in the afternoon.

• Definitely do the night game drives. Pack your flashlights.

• Ask at the camp when they switch power generators. A power surge can zap your charger.

• Talk to your doc about antibiotics. I travel with Cipro. Always.

• Talk to your doc about other travel issues, such as malaria.

• Pack light. Go to www.onebag.com to learn how to pack . . . in one bag :-)

• Do a web search on the camps. Some let your dive off road, others do not. You often get closer to animals when you can drive off the road.

Photo Tips:

Photographs © Rick Sammon

• Try to get a photo of the animal looking up or toward the sun. If you do, you'll get better light on the animal's face – and catch light in the eyes (as illustrated above).

• Keep your camera clean and change lenses only when absolutely necessary. It's very, very dusty in Africa. Don't use liquid cleaners on your sensor. You can make matters worse.

• If possible, take two camera bodies: one with a tele zoom, one with a wide-angle zoom.

• Take close-up shots and environmental portraits.

• Pack a power strip (or two) so you can charge more devices. Of course, also pack the correct power adapter (take two).

• Remove all filters when shooting into the sun.

• Bring back everything.

• Carry one of your hard drives with you all the time. You don't want your pictures to "walk off."

• Use your photo vest a third carry on.

• Keep your flash very handy. You will need it more than you think – even on sunny days. Master daylight fill-in flash photography.

Photograph © Rick Sammon

Well Jeff, have a great time with your son. Here's a shot I took while on my previous trip to Botswana – with the same tele zoom you are taking, Canon 100-400mm IS.

To get a shot like this, you need more more thing: LUCK!

Let me know here (via a comment) if you are interested in a photo walk at the zoo on September 7th – the day before my Hudson River Photo Workshop.

Explore the light,
Rick

P.S. If you have a photo or travel tip for Jeff (and others) please share it here via a comment.

Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature – iPad App Now Available

The bird hunting a locust is unaware of the hawk hunting him. – Chinese Proverb

Vermont
Canon 1Ds Mark II
Canon 100-400mm IS lens @ 375mm
Aperture Priority Mode
ISO 160
f/6.3 @ 1/250th sec.

Photo tips:
• Focus on the eyes.
• Blur the background to make your subject stand out in the scene.
• Shoot at eye level as possible.
• Try to light the eyes, with either natural light or a flash.

• • •

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click on the iPhone/iPad photos on the right.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!
Rick

Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature – iPad App Now Available

Happens to everyone. Horses, dogs, men. No one gets out of life alive. – Irving Ravetch

Double JJ Ranch, Rothbury, Michigan
Canon 1Ds Mark III
Canon 100-400mm IS lens @ 320mm
Shutter Priority Mode
ISO 400
f/8.0 @ 1/500th sec.

Photo tips:
• Use focus tracking when photographing moving subjects.
• Crop out the dead space in a scene to draw more attention to the subject.
• Don't change lenses when it's dusty.
• Use a shutter speed of at least 1/500th of a second to stop action.

• • •

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

So, the app is also like a mini-course in wildlife and nature photography.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click on the iPhone/iPad photos on the right.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!

Rick
P.S. Click here to see all my apps.

Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature – iPad App Now Available

A lake is the landscape's most beautiful and expressive feature. It is Earth's eye; looking into which the beholder measure the depth of his own nature. – Henry David Thoreau

Mono Lake, California
Canon 1Ds Mark III,
Canon 24-105mm lens @ 24mm
Aperture Priority Mode
ISO 100
f/8.0 @ 3 seconds

Photo tips:

• For maximum depth-of-field, set your focus 1/3 into the scene.

• When sharpening, sharpen selectively – the limestone formations in this case.

• Don't place the horizon line in the center of the frame.

• Check the web for sunrise and sunset times.
• Use foreground elements to add a sense of depth of an image.

• • •

Life Lessons We Can Learn from Mother Nature, my latest iPad app, was recently released on the iTunes app store. The concept: On each page of the e-book-type app you’ll find an inspirational or motivational quote accompanied by one of my wildlife or landscape photographs. I tired to match each photograph to the quote, which was a challenging but rewarding process.

The photographs are from my travels over the years; the quotes are gathered from a lifetime of looking for inspiration from others.

To celebrate the iPad app, co-developed with Juan Pons (the dude who started the Digital Photo Experience with me), I’ll be posting a picture and quote from time to time here on my blog – pictures and quotes that are not in the app. I’ll also include the location in which each photograph was taken, as well as the camera data – as I do in the app.

To order the app, which also features my favorite Photoshop techniques for wildlife and nature photography, click here.

If you have an inspiration quote you’d like to share, please share it here via a Comment.

Explore the light – and explore the iPad!

Rick
P.S. Click here to see all my apps.

Rick's New iPad App: Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature

Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature is my first iPad app. It's a combination of an inspirational and motivational work combined with a mini-course on wildlife and nature photography. To order and for more info, click here.

To celebrate the app, Juan Pons (the developer) and I are giving away 10 redeem codes. Please read this first about redeem codes. This is Apple's redeem code process.

Here are the codes (Sorry. Update. Codes already grabbed):

96WM7HWRWFRL
F37WWRF9RWNK
FLHANHYX93MY
M9P3KXM9AP7W
T7P7AL3W4WRR
YATYH73MHXPN
RTKF6XPPKK9A
94APPHW3W69N
JYTHKJ4TAMK7
Y6EWPMMAYLYX

About the App

The app (actually an interactive e-book) has been a work-in-progress for about three years. It’s been a fun and rewarding project.

My original idea was to produce a coffee-table/gift book that motivated and inspired photographers – and all those involved in creative endeavors. After all, many of us need some motivation and inspiration from time to time. Right?

The concept was to put together meaningful quotes carefully matched with my favorite wildlife and nature pictures.

My original title for this work was, Every Animal Knows More Than You. It’s a Hindu quote that you’ll find in this e-book. It’s one of my favorite quotes because it’s so true when you think about it. A polar bear, for example, knows just about everything it needs to know when it is born.

Several friends, however, thought my original title was not serious enough, so I decided on Life Lessons We Can Learn From Mother Nature – because each quote really conveys a good life lesson we can learn from Mother Nature.

Even with more than 35 books to my name, I could not find a book publisher to take a chance on this idea. But I never gave up.

I did, however, put together the images and quotes into a slide show that I showed before my digital photography presentations. The attendees always commented on how they enjoyed the pre-show show – even though no photography information was included.

Enter the iPhone and the world of apps on iTunes. Everything changed. Now, photographers, and traditional book authors like myself, could self-publish their work – worldwide at an affordable cost. In addition, the author was in total control of the content.

But then a more important change came along: the iPad. Now, apps and e-books – and photographs – could look bigger and better than ever. Here, too, worldwide distribution was possible from a home computer.

Enter Juan Pons, my business partner in the Digital Photography Experience.

Juan is talented wildlife photographer as well as an app developer – and a good friend. In his spare time, Juan started an e-book publishing company and asked me if I wanted to do an e-book version of my Life Lessons book. Due to the success of my first app, Rick Sammon’s 24/7 Photo Buffet, developed with Dr. Dave Wilson, I said sure!

Juan put my pictures and quotes together into the e-book. (He also developed my Social Media Marketing for Photographers app, which is a series of Quick Time movies of my Social Media presentation that I narrate.)

In talking with Juan, we decided to add a photography tip for each picture in this e-book, as well as the camera I used and the exposure information. Then we decided to add some Photoshop tips, which also can be applied to Lightroom, Aperture and Elements. So, the book is part inspirational/motivational and part photo how-to.

I hope you enjoy this e-book. If you have an inspirational quote you’d like to share, I’d love to hear it. Please share it here.

Explore the light,
Rick

Embracing the Situation Can Result in a Favorite Photograph

On of the things I learned early on in my photography career was to embrace the situation. It's a good idea – one which may actually result in a favorite photograph. Here's an example.

While on my recent Southwest Photo Caravan, our group stopped in Arches National Park to photograph Turret Arch through North Window. Ten of us were shooting at the same time in basically the same lcoation– so as not to miss the beautiful early morning light. (Getting to this shooting position is not for the fainthearted. Be careful if you make the trek. Good hiking boots are must.)

One of our photographers found a good shooting position. The only "problem" was that he was in everyone's picture.

Embracing the situation, I took a photograph that included the photographer in the scene. Turns out, it's my favorite shot from the early morning shoot.

After I took the shot of the photographer, I handed my camera over to the photographer, Chuck Rohn, and directed him to take a shot of me in the same position. That's the shot the opens this blog post.

Below is the first shot I took of the scene. A shot taken by a million other photographers.


And below is another photograph of the same scene, shot much wider. Maybe 1/2 million photographers have taken a similar shot. I do like this shot, mostly because the strong shadow adds drama to the scene.


Hey! Let me know which shot you prefer, and which shot you'd take if you were there. You may like the shot that does not include the photographer.

We talk about stuff like this on my workshops. Hope you can join the photo fun. And, you don't even need to stay out of the picture! :-)

Explore the light,
Rick

P.S. If you sell to iStock, note that lifestyle pictures like the top shot often sell better than beautiful landscape pictures.

Butterfly

Photograph © Rick Sammon. All rights reserved.

I am just finishing up a new project on butterflies.

Stay tuned for info. Any guesses? :-)

For now, here is some info on this cute creature:
Precis coenia
BUCKEYE
RANGE: United States to Mexico, Cuba, the Bahamas and Bermuda

Directly between the eyes of the Precis coenia is a pair of palpi that are widely thought to be used for cleaning the eyes, as they are often seen brushing across the eyes while feeding or at rest.

Camera info:
Canon 1Ds Mark II
Manual Exposure Mode
Canon 100mm Macro Lens
ISO 100
F/16.0 @ 1/60th sec.
Canon MR-14EX Ring Lite

Click here and scroll down to see a list of my gear.

Butterfly photo tip:
Add light

When adding light, a ringlight is a good choice. A ringlight fits around a lens and can provide ratio and shadowless lighting. The light from a ringlight also adds contrast to a picture, making it look sharper than a natural light photograph. I used a Canon MR-14EX ringlite on my Canon 100mm macro lens for this picture.

You could use a camera’s built-in flash, or an attached accessory flash for close-up flash pictures. If you do, you will probably get a harsh shadow in your picture – caused by directly light or because the lens or lens hood is shading the subject from the flash.

A coil cord is another option. It lets you position the flash off camera for more creative lighting than on-camera flash photography. However, harsh shadows may be undesirable.

Explore the light,
Rick

Location, Location, Location - and thank you, thank you, thank you

Photograph © Rick Sammon. All rights reserved.

A big "thank you" goes to Springdale, Utah-based photographer David J. West.

Last night, after our farewell group slide show, David (a proud new dad) shared one of his secret spots for shooting Zion National Park with my photo workshop students.

Visit his site – and his gallery when you are in Zion.

Check my workshop page in a few months for info on my May 2011 Southwest Photo Caravan with Juan Pons - which will include shoots in Arches, Bryce and Zion - and few of our own secrets spots.

Explore the light,

Rick

P.S. Here is my original image, pre-Adobe Camera Raw. David, who also uses Photoshop, has a good line: "You can't put Mother Nature on paper." In other words, he (and I) have no problem using Photoshop to enhance our pictures.

"Who's the Dummy Now?"

It's Day 7 of my Southwest Photo Caravan in Utah. We started out in Arches National Park and then moved to Bryce. Right now we are in Zion. All the workshop students are doing wonderful work.

On Day 1, I told everyone not to speed in the parks and along the state roads. This is good advice if you come here.

Well, all I can say is, "What a dummy!"

As we were riding down State Road 89, I spotted a dummy in a police vehicle at the beginning of a small town. Of course, this police set-up is designed to keep people from speeding. Good idea!

As we were leaving the small town, I spotted another police set up. So, because I like to have fun on my workshops, I popped out of my car for a quick fun shot. There was not a policeman in sight when this picture was taken. This is just a fun set-up shot.

Speaking of my photo caravan, some of the folks rented cars from "Rent a Wreck." Here's a shot of one of our pit stops. :-)

Actually, this is an official stop on my photo caravan. It's great for HDR and straight photography. Juan Pons and I will be stopping here on the May 2011 Digital Photo Experience (DPE) Photo Caravan. I hope you can join the fun. Contact us through DPE – where I have been posting pictures from the workshop all week.

Here's my latest shot, from Bryce today at sunrise. The canyon seemed to be aglow with the morning light.

Explore the light,

Rick

Some thoughts on criticism and bad book reviews

My good friend/author/photographer/digital darkroom expert Rob Sheppard recently sent me this note. I thought it was well worth sharing.

Explore the light,
Rick
P.S. This picture has nothing to do with this post, except that it was in one of my books, Flying Flowers.

• • •

Hi Rick --

I am a big fan of Seth Godin and have been reading his book, Tribes (which you actually know all about). Anyway, I read his section on criticism and thought about of our experiences with reviews on Amazon.com. He says this:

(Talking about criticism and bad reviews of his books) "One bad review doesn't ruin my day because I realize what a badge of honor it is to get a bit of criticism at all. [By and large, most books are ignored.] It means that I confounded expectations -- that I didn't deliver the sequel or the simple, practical guide that some expected. It means, in fact, that I did something worth remarking on."

That is an interesting idea and a different attitude. He ends this section with a very unexpected idea:

"How can I create something that critics will criticize?"

Rob