Why I Went Mirrorless With the Fuji X-T1

Fuji X-T1 system

In 2014 I decided to refresh my approach to photography. I was heading to Cuba to collaborate on a historical photography project. I wanted a greater connection to subjects than I’d been having with my face obscured behind my big beloved Canon dSLR. I needed a camera that could also frame subjects if held high, held low or when shooting from the hip. I wanted a lighter and smaller system for greater agility and spontaneity. Image quality had to be excellent, with great low-light performance … more >>

A Realistic Photoshop Composite for Yankee Magazine

I was contacted by the art director at Yankee Magazine asking me to illustrate a feature for their 80th anniversary issue. The subject: “Inventions and Ingenuity from New England”. Nancy had seen several of my Photoshop montages over time, and believed that my style would be ideal the project. She especially liked my “Telling History” piece, a realistic montage project I’d done for the Baltimore Sun. I accepted the assignment knowing I’d enjoy another challenge of creating a illustrative visual using historic images. … more >>

Adventures and Tips From a Weekend Photo Safari

Cal Academy African Antelope

There I was, finally alone in the wilds on a photo safari.  Barely off the plane, I met the others in my group and we drove through the busy streets and markets to find some photogenic wildlife. Two hours into our tour, we huddled together, checked our cameras and stared across steamy African wetlands and grasslands. Suddenly, a territorial bull Antelope surprised me on the grassy hillock, staring me down from just yards away. My heart … more >>

My Photoshop Process : A Revealing Collaboration

Duggan's book DJ spread on Sky 6k

Recently, I received a little gift— a chance to slow down, reflect on my favorite creative Pho­toshop tech­niques and recall how my artistic style emerged from grade-school experiments.

This collaboration began with an email from artist/author/instructor Seán Duggan. We had met a few summers ago while both teaching Photography and Photoshop at Maine Media Workshops, and revealed that we admired each others’ work. In his email, he asked if I would like to con­tribute to “Pho­toshop Masking and Com­positing”, a new Pho­toshop book he was co-writing with digital artists Katrin Eismann and James Porto.

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Announcing Three New Creative Photoshop Workshops in Seattle!

After many requests, I am excited to be leading three new Creative Photoshop day-long workshops in downtown Seattle. Learn the creative potential of Photoshop by attending one (or all) of my three new workshops tailored to fit any artist or photographer’s abilities and goals. Creative Photoshop workshops are held in small groups of up to 10, so they’re more content-efficient and personalized than the larger classes at conferences and touring workshops. The day consists of on-screen … more >>

My June photography workshop: “Imagination Vision and Voice”

I love to teach workshops in beautiful locations, and none are finer than the coast of Maine. This summer I return for my seventh year to Maine Media Workshops. I’ll teach a workshop called “Imagination Vision and Voice”. Last year this workshop was very well received, and I was fortunate to have a great group of students at all levels or experience. We have a helluva lot of fun too!  

A Pre-visualization Collage Technique in Photoshop

          “Making a Photoshop collage is a defined yet flexible process.” One can approach this with complete spontaneity, like a child with a crayon, or with a methodical approach as seen here. For client work, I first create a sketch, then once approved, I begin to create or search for my existing visual elements. This technique is called ‘Pre-Visualization’, because one must first think of what one wants to create. It’s a … more >>

Next workshop: Santa Fe Workshops in March 2012

“Creative Photography with Any Camera”  MARCH 14 – 17 :  Santa Fe, NM “Join me to capture the beauty, history, and nature in and around Santa Fe!”                   No matter what your photography experience is, this workshop will inspire and give you hands-on instruction to master camera settings, use intuition to capture the best moments, artfully compose shots, edit and organize images and create slide shows, prints and web galleries. You’ll … more >>

An Intuition for Design

“Beauty is not just in the details, but in all things observed with an intent to really see.” I’ve always been attracted to patterns, from the tiny cracks in weathered paint to the aerial graphic patterns of farmlands seen from a window seat on a plane. One fine summer day I was driving from Boston to teach my annual summer workshop at Maine Media Workshops in Rockport. Passing some smooth green fields and perfect ponds, I … more >>

Notes From a Creative Soul

Welcome to “Notes From a Creative Soul”. I share my travels, tips, creativity and my expertise. I’ll post stories, images, techniques, tutorials and information about my group and individual photography workshops. I invite you to subscribe to this blog (or use the orange RSS link at top), and please share it freely so that others will enjoy and hopefully contribute. I can promise you will enjoy the show for months to come. As a bonus, … more >>