After I had retired, and my wife and I had moved to Kelowna, BC from Montreal I became quite serious about digital photography, a luxury I could never have enjoyed while working. Exploring the beautiful Okanagan Valley while hiking with my wife, Jane and our Golden Retriever became a large part of our new outdoor life. Having been married only a short time, I can remember my wife, who knew I was a committed photographer, once asking me why I…
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Life is More Interesting with BAGS
There’s something about photography that can cause it to become deeply intertwined with our lives. Of course some folks are professional photographers and their image-creating skills, as well as their ability to market those skills, are fundamental contributors to their economic well-being. For many other people who’s livelihood does not depend on earning a living from their images, photography is still an integral part of their lives. The simple fact is that life is far more interesting with BAGS, and…
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Never Stop Seeing
What do you do if you spend weeks planning a photography adventure, and then when the time to experience that adventure arrives, something comes up that spoils all your preparation? Maybe its the weather, maybe its a park closure, or maybe the fall colour was two weeks late. Experiences like these can happen to anyone. And unfortunately, I have seen too many photographers throw up their hands, stow their camera, and abandon all that they had planned just because things…
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The Benefits of Revisiting Older Photographs
I must confess that I very seldom go back through my older photographs unless I’m focused on a project that specifically requires me to do so. That’s been the case lately as I’ve been working on a number of eBook projects. What I’ve discovered is that there certainly are benefits when making the time to revisit old photos, and it is something that I will be doing on a much more regular basis.
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Photographing a Kickboxing Class
If you’ll excuse the pun it seemed like a good way to kick-start the New Year. When a friend invited me to her kickboxing class to indulge in some photography while she trained I accepted. Alpha Whiskey needs constant stimulation to get his juices flowing and photography is no exception. Frankly, I’m surprised it took me so long to photograph this subject; having reached 1st Dan in Taekwondo in my youth, I was always enamoured with the flexibility and physical…
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What It’s Like to Photograph a Sandstorm
One of the windiest nights I’ve ever taken pictures turned into perhaps the single most rewarding — and frightening — landscape photography experience of my life. I was on the Mesquite Sand Dunes in Death Valley, a place I had visited twice in the past, though under much tamer conditions. This night, the gusts of wind were far greater than I had seen before, and they kicked up a layer of sand that made for amazing sunset photos. But as…
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Why I Prefer Being a Lazy Post-Processor than a Lazy Photographer
It doesn’t seem that long ago when I wrote my 100th article for Photography Life, and here we are today with article number 150. I must confess that I mulled over what topic that this ‘mini-milestone’ article should cover. My ‘little voice’ told me that it needed to have a philosophical orientation. So, this article shares some of my philosophic approach to photography, and answers the question why I prefer being a lazy post-processor than a lazy photographer. And, make…
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Visions of India – David Lazar
India is a land of great extremes, in a multiplicity of ways. The extreme polarity of beauty and ugliness, rich and poor, are constantly reoccurring themes. The Taj Mahal vs. the slums of Calcutta. The stunning silk brocades of Varanasi vs. the rags worn by those who weave them. You get the picture.
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Photographing a Demolition Derby Race
And now for something a little different. I’m so terribly sorry it’s not yet another article about the latest camera body but it might offer a visual break and much needed respite from the torrential salivation that most of the photography community seem to be afflicted by lately (their absolute prerogative, of course). I was recently invited by friends in mid-Wales to join them at a local demolition derby race and I must say it was a thrilling affair.
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2017 Total Solar Eclipse Images
I am currently traveling in Wyoming with a couple of friends and we are on our way home, after an unsuccessful attempt to stay in Yellowstone National Park – it turned out to be a complete zoo, even a couple of days after the total eclipse. I don’t know what we were thinking! Considering how many people have come from all over the world to see the eclipse, it was only natural that many of them would want to go…
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Does Photography Have Any More Technical Limitations?
Something I noticed recently made me stop and think for a moment, since, if true, it means that the modern era of photography is an especially noteworthy time: With very few exceptions, there are no scenes or subjects that are impossible to capture with today’s technology. Nearly everything you come across, from nighttime landscapes to microscopic insects, can be photographed with high levels of precision and image quality, so long as you know what you’re doing (and you pack along…
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If, at the End…
Life is an ever-changing adventure. We are each faced with our own unique set of opportunities and challenges. Sometimes it can be difficult to navigate our journey through the day-to-day turmoil we often face. Competing priorities. Unforeseen events and twists of fate. Moments of adulation. Periods of self-doubt. They can all be potentially found on the life roads on which we travel. Regardless of the paths, all roads do eventually end.
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Postcards From Niagara Falls
So I wasn’t sure that I wanted to write about shooting this location (especially since my last post was about finding local subjects) but I’ve shot a few waterfalls around the world, and plenty at home in the UK, so I thought I might offer some small, meagre insights into capturing their spectacle. Even if the insights aren’t useful to you it may stand alone as a fluff postcard piece. Niagara Falls, whose popularity is undoubtedly due in part to…
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How to Find Your Personal Style in Photography
The concept of personal style is a fundamental topic in all art, not just photography. Everyone has their own way of seeing the world, and everything that people create is based upon this underlying uniqueness. In terms of photography, though, even mentioning personal style can seem strange — since our work is inherently based upon the real world, is it even possible to have a unique style? This question is especially relevant for fields like landscape and wildlife photography, which…
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A Walk in the Woods
Well, Postcards From The Woods just didn’t seem appropriate. It’s not all foreign travel for Alpha Whiskey, though (well, mostly it is). Sometimes I’m happy to amble through the forest on a bright and breezy weekend afternoon. And while it was more about the walk than the photography I thought I would try to demonstrate how even the most ordinary of environments can provide interesting photographic opportunities. We can all marvel at stunning vistas captured from a mountaintop at sunrise…
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Why Sunrises are Better than Sunsets for Photography
Many photographers do not like waking up very early to take pictures at sunrise, preferring to sleep in and spend the energy to shoot during the day and at sunset instead. While photographing at sunset can yield stunning photographs, there are specific advantages to photographing at sunrise that are worth discussing. Let’s take a look at the topic of sunrise vs sunset in photography in more detail and see why you might be better off shooting early in the morning.
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Four WINNING April Fool’s Day Photography Tips — You Won’t Believe #4
Happy April Fool’s Day! Each year, we try to write an article or two to remind people about the lighter side of photography. Last year, when we said that our entire team was switching over to Canon and refusing to review any other equipment, a solid number of people believed us. Great! Now that it’s 2017, we’re upping the ante by writing four top tips to improve your photography this April, including suggestions that will remain relevant even if Artificial Intelligence…
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Why the Technical Stuff Matters
Along with normal how-to articles and essays, I’ve always liked reading and writing very technical, nitty-gritty articles about photography — sometimes, articles on topics that rarely come up while actually taking pictures. In fact, I usually don’t even use my own sharpest aperture charts in the field, as useful as they are, since I don’t like carrying around charts. So, then, does all that technical stuff matter? Is it even worth talking about in the first place? These questions are very important to ask, since most people don’t want waste their…
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When People Downsize Their Camera Gear
This short article summarizes some of the feedback that I have received from seniors who have downsized their gear, or are thinking about doing so. The desire to downsize camera gear is not restricted to seniors! Some of the actions that seniors are taking may make sense for other photographers as well. It has been quite surprising to witness the number of comments and contacts that have occurred since my senior-related article, Senior Perspectives on Photography. I’d like to thank…
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My Complicated Relationship with Seascapes
I have a confession: I have a love/hate relationship with seascapes. Sometimes I feel like they are easy, monotonous and a little bit of a sham — an easy way to impress others without having to put in the requisite amount of work. On such days I vow never to shoot a seascape again. And then there are moments when I cannot resist the pull of the ocean. When the sky looks like it will go up in flames at sunset casting…
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