September 6, 2014
A quick PHOTOGRAPHIC School (subscribe on YouTube) for you today. I found myself tinkering with the Lightroom ID plate and hunting for file dimensions, so I made a quick video that covers making and setting up your ID plate from start to finish.
— Gav
September 5, 2014
.
This was our camp spot up on Smith Mesa and my view was a few yards from my trailer. It’s one of my favorite places, overlooking the entire Zion Valley. I come here every year or so to relax and get images that due it justice. This year I took home two, this one, and a spectacular panorama that we’ve not finished yet. I’m ecstatic since this not an easy area to get the right conditions in. This is a unique combination of sunset light and visible stars. It’s the real thing, exposed for around 30 minutes just after sunset.
For Photographers. How it was made… 
September 2, 2014
Our camera is just an instrument. It’s what happens in our mind that makes a great photograph. When we understand the tools, we focus on the artistry. Sometimes we fall for the scam that we can just fix it later and so we fail to expose well and never get that truly magical light. Today’s tip takes on a simple truth about exposure in the camera. I call it, Doubles and Halves!
Photographic exposure and simple math are one on the same. Don’t run away, it’s more elegant than it seems. F5.6 to F8 doubles or halves your light. ISO 200 to 400 doubles or halves. So does 1/50th to 1/100th and so on. Ditto for Zones and Exposure Value and Ratios. They are all connected. All tools to manage and understand the Stops (flow) of light. Just doubles and halves.
Understanding these terms helps you nail the light and focus on the vision. This video from the first chapters of my EXposed series explains in simple terms. EXposed also covers deeper aspects, so if you love understanding light, check it out here.
— Gav
July 9, 2014
Early this year we released OUR new miniseries, PHOTOGRAPHICS, covering everything from composition, to line, light and history. You can also watch here on YouTube.
There’s a great lack of photographic history out there and knowing where we came from can truly change how we work. Today we’re releasing the entire history segment from PHOTOGRAPHICS for no cost. We hope you’ll check out the entire series, but you certainly don’t want to miss this historical overview of photography. Perhaps someday we’ll be able produce a full history miniseries on the topic.
In the next 20 minutes you’ll get the basics and we encourage you to take it further by joining organizations like the International Photography Hall of Fame and taking deeper studies of painting and history to discover makes our craft so beautiful. You can also check out the full trailer for PHOTOGRAPHICS and get the rest of the 3 hour series here. — Seim
May 18, 2014
by Gavin Seim: Today we’ll dig deep into using signatures and branding on images. Both on the web and in print. We’re going to address nearly every aspect representing years of trial and error for me. Everything from using your digital logo and signature to what pens to use on your prints for hand signing. lets start with a question?
How often do you go into a gallery and see a masterpiece not signed?
How often does that same piece have a HUGE watermark across the front?
If your name is not on your images, you lose. The truth is, selling images is not simply having passion, it’s about business. Is your work a piece of paper, or is it a piece if art? Many people who don’t brand their images do so because they lack branding experience, or don’t consider their images of enough value to hang equally next to other art. Some on the other hand some take things too far, ruining their presentation by going overkill. Petapixel did a fun satirical article on this awhile back.
Remember, classy branding on an image generally adds value. How often do you buy a book without the authors name on the front? Even our cars have branding on them. If you bought a Ferrari would you want it without the emblem? I think not. Why then should the art we sell be unmarked! Are there exceptions? Sure, but not many. For example a commercial client may require unbranded images, but they should also expect to pay a premium for that. Artists have been branding their work for centuries and so should you. Lets examine different approaches that I have discovered over years by trial and error.
This whole topic is fraught with debate. No doubt some will disagree with me. That’s fine. Though I’ve probably slaved more than most in the industry on this. I’ve come to a place where I have an understanding of my brand and my presentation. This is not my random inexperienced opinion. I have gone to galleries, looked at the works of master painters and studied the techniques of others. I sell all my portraits and my fine art using the approaches I’m about to share. I’m always refining however and will update this study accordingly in the future.
Page [tcb_pagination_current_page] of [tcb_pagination_total_pages]