Neil Corman Photography

Denver Photographer

Photography Tips

Along the Journey…

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A few months ago I went to a joint ADCD/ASMP presentation where Chase Jarvis talked about creativity. One thing which resonated from this talk is your best camera is the one which is with you. It doesn’t matter if it is a high end Nikon camera, point and shoot or even a cell phone camera.

Most of the images you see on this blog were taken with either a Nikon D700, Nikon D200 or a point and shoot camera. However I decided to follow in the steps of Chase and many others and start using the mobile phone as a way to express creativity and also to start to see things different in the world. Now the quality you will get from a cell phone is much different than a high end camera, but the composition elements remain the same.  Using an Apple iPhone 3GS and an iPhone application I am able to be creative on the go.  By doing this I have found I am looking at objects differently that I would in the past, bringing more creativity to my photography.

For the past few months I have been posting images on my Twitter feed as well as Facebook Fan Page for Neil Corman Photography.  However now with a collection of images, they are now featured on this website and available for purchase in small sizes.  The collect is called ‘Along the Journey…‘ as life carries on there is always time to stop and enjoy the surroundings you experience.  New images will continue to be posted on Twitter and Facebook, with the top images being included for sale in the gallery.

The following images are samples of some of the images taken with the mobile phone.

Chair Lift - Avon, Colorado
Chair Lift – Avon, Colorado
Coors Field Seats - Denver, Colorado
Coors Field Seats – Denver, Colorado

Do you have a collection of images taken with a mobile device, if so feel free to provide a link in the comments.

Where did you take this image?

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The question “Where did you take this photograph?” is one which I receive quite often at gallery nrc with pieces of work shown during the Denver Art Walk each month.  During First Friday in May one image which received a lot of questions is the following photograph from Rainbow Curve in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Rainbow Curve Clouds - Rocky Mountain National Park
Rainbow Curve Clouds – Rocky Mountain National Park

The first question I received was “Were you in an airplane?”, or “How far did you hike to get that image?”.  My response was always, I was at Rainbow Curve just off of Trail Ridge Road instead of a story which I could have made up to stretch the truth.  For those of you not familiar with Rainbow Curve, it is the pull off just above treeline on the eastern side of the park and included at the location are restrooms and enough parking for maybe 20 or 30 cars.  To me the location doesn’t matter, but it is about the story the image tells.  When this image was taken I was heading up the road towards Bear Lake and about 1/3 of the way up decided to backtrack and head to Trail Ridge Road.  Just prior to hitting treeline I popped out of the clouds and was treated with the following scene.  As I chatted with a few people prior to sunrise who stopped as well, I told them to wait 10 minutes or so since sunrise was right about to happen.

I bring up the question of where did you take this image as I was at the Downtown Denver Art Festival this past weekend, and noticed a photograph which looked like a familiar location.  I inquired about the photo of the mountain lion and was told a story which didn’t seem to sound right as the background was in some of the images I have of mountain lions taken at a place in Montana which caters towards video and still photographers.  Using a “game farm” allows the safety of both the photographer as well as the animals since you are not tracking animals in the wild which could put an animal in harms way.  I did some research prior to selecting this place to see the photographers using it and why it makes sense to get photographs in this manner.  So the story I was told by the photographer at the arts festival was that he hired a guide outside of Glacier National Park who knew there was a mountain lion in the area but it still took a great deal of time to get this image.  I could have asked more questions to the photographer about specifics about this but decided to take the high road and let him get back to his booth and his story for other patrons.  Upon getting home I confirmed the location based on past images of mine, in addition to asking another photographer who has been there during the winter.

But I am wondering, does the story he is sharing with people help sell the image?  Would you buy the image based on the story of him being in the wild finding the animal or is it just the image itself which would draw you to purchase the photograph?  If you bought the image based on the story, and later found out the truth how would you feel?  To me deceiving the buyer doesn’t make any sense as a photographer and a business person as the truth will come to light at some point which not only hurts your reputation but those of all photographers.  A photograph tells the story, but maybe in this case the story needs to tell the story to sell the image.

Resources for Photographers

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Yesterday evening fellow photographer Christopher Rice hosted an event for a group of nature photographers we know from the Rocky Mountain Nature Photographers online forum at gallery nrc as well as Bentwave Gallery in the Tennyson Art District.

The follow is a list of items either I mentioned during the course of the evening or wanted to get to and just ran out of time.  If you have any questions on anything discussed, please let me know.  First off here is the link CAZ mentioned on the NPN side, it may be a few years old but does have great information and some of the same items discussed last evening.

Photography Books

Business Books (More so available at your local library)

Organizations and Groups

Mailing Lists

Blogs

Local Resources

Magazines and Journals

Online Networking

Other Items

Keep in mind for some of the above links you will get a discount for being a member.  An example is being a member of ASMP gets you a discount on Livebooks and PDN, A member of NAPP gets free 3 day shipping from B&H Photo Video.

Challenge Yourself with Film

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Have you ever photographed with a camera which required either a negative or positive film?  How was that experience?  Is this something which you think you could do once again easily and produce the same results you get right now with digital?  With a film camera there is not the opportunity to check the histogram for exposure, adjust the white balance and look at your result.  It all comes with instinct and knowledge of exposure and judging a scene when shooting with film.

Why do I ask these questions?  Since it is a good check to make sure you understand the basics of photography and can produce a consistent result no matter what type of camera you are using.  I was also reminded of this and how important it is to have this skill with the release of the new Sports Illustrated Slide Show book which looks at past covers and the corresponding slide.  What you will notice is that cropping needs to take place to fit the need of the cover, but also you see how important it is to know the exposure and factors for making a proper image.  Now just like with digital during the printing process some tweaks do have to be made, but think about how difficult lighting conditions can be at a sporting event plus throw in the limitation of 36 frames on a roll of film as well before having to change cameras or rolls on the fly.  People say that with digital so wide spread now in the industry knowing the basics is not as important, however having the technical skills in place will always improve your image and let you concentrate on the many other factors which must be considered when creating an image.

A fun project which I do is to shoot film every so often for fun and see what result you get with your images.  You may be surprised at the result, but it also makes sure you are sharp with the basics and remember everything which must be considered as there is no “cheating” or “chimping” using film.  By keeping fresh on the basics, your photography will continue grow and the results will just become natural as is the case in the new SI Slide Show book.

Groups and Associations for Photographers

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Yesterday I mentioned the Rocky Mountain Spring Camera Show which is being hosted by the Denver Photographic Society.  DPS is a local camera club, and one of the questions I am often asked is what group, organizations or clubs do I belong to and how do they benefit your work.  As I mentioned this event sponsored by a local club I thought this would be a good time to talk about the options available.

First off, I am not a member of DPS and I have not been to any of their meetings, but I did mention the camera show as I thought it may be of interest to the local Denver readers of this blog.  There are many positives to joining a local camera club, however if it is the right decision for you depends on your objectives and what you would like to get out of the club.  In the Denver area there are quite a few options for photo clubs you may consider depending on your location, I recommend checking out a few prior to joining a specific club.

Since photography is quite popular in Colorado there are many options available, but if you are in a smaller town or restricted on time an online forum may be the right option for you. Depending on the type of photography which interests you, there is most likely an online forum which will focus on your subject.  For my personal work, I follow or participate on Nature Photographers Network, Nature Photographers of Colorado as well as Sports Shooter.  There are others I also look on occasionally, but these three are the top.  Besides the traditional forums, you have sharing websites like Flickr, and photo.net however I encourage you to read the terms of usage for whatever online forum you use to make sure how any photos you upload may be utilized by the site.

For the professional side of my work, I belong to Indie Arsenal which is a local group of creatives who through online forums collaborate and network at no charge.  With members from varying disciplines it also provides the opportunity to talk to other creatives who may be having similar problems whether in the same discipline or not.  From the meetings, I have found an issue discussed by a web designer may be something I am dealing with as well and it is helpful to have different backgrounds trying to find the problem.  In addition to Indie Arsenal, I am also a member of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce.  While Indie has creative businesses strongly represented, the chamber represents businesses of all sizes and provides many opportunities to network with fellow members at events during the course of the year.  The main item to remember with the chamber is that the more you take part in the events, the more you will get back.  If you are in the Denver area and are interested in trying out the chamber, let me know and I would be happy to take you to an event and provide you a contact at the Chamber to talk to in more detail.

On a National level, I am a member of two different professional organizations.  The first is the American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) which is an organization of photographers who mainly photograph for publication.  ASMP helps promote the interest of photographers in the industry as well as provides resources which help photographers with their business and growth.  One publication which is a great resource is the ASMP Professional Business Practices in Photography which is available for anyone to purchase.  While ASMP is at a national level, there are also local chapters which have events.  ASMP Colorado is my local chapter and they have meetings about once a month allowing members to get together and network.  While I have heard in the past some people do not like this as it is more so a gripe session, just like any organization it is all about what you wish to get from the opportunities.  The other national organization I am a member is the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP).  To be honest at first I questioned joining this organization, however with their extensive online resources as well as printed magazine I have found great value in being a member.  Additionally with the discounts you can get through being a member the membership basically pays for itself.  If you are using Lightroom and/or Photoshop there is a great wealth of information available to help you naviagte the complexities of these programs.

There are many more groups and associations out there whether local, regional, national or online.  The bottom line is to find what works best for your specialization and see if being a member is right for you.  Whether it is PPA, NANPA, WPPI, APA or any of the many others talk to your peers as well and see what makes sense. Are there any organizations which you are a member of currently, leave a comment and let me know.