LEARN

Welcome to my learning and education page. I’ve picked up a few bits of knowledge in over three decades of being involved in photography and I created this space to share what I have learned. Below you will find information on my in-person workshops as well as a listing of articles, reviews, and tutorials on various aspects of photography.


In-Person Workshops

Understanding Studio Flash

Come join me for an afternoon of hands-on learning with studio strobes and light modifiers. In this workshop, I will explain and demonstrate how to use studio strobes as well as discuss the differences between using flash and continuous light. Another aspect to this is understanding the difference between using studio flash in manual mode versus TTL, and why you would want to avoid the latter.
Click here for more details.

Finding the Light

In this two-hour workshop, we will go out to the streets of the city center here in Valencia. We will go searching for the beautiful available light that occurs on the streets and alleys here. You will learn how to use backlghting and make use of reflected light from walls and windows for a “main light”. You’ll discover you don’t need to bring a reflector or other fill light to get great images, even in the middle of the day.
Details and dates coming soon!

The Headshot

Creating a connection to your subject is the key to creating an engaging and attractive image. This is as important, if not more so, than the technical aspects of lighting and camera settings. Tethered shooting during a session is one of the best tools the  headshot photographer has at their disposal. Having the subject able to view the images as they’re captured brings them into the process. You and the client end up working together as a team to create that “best shot”.
Click here for more details.


Articles, Tips, and How -To's

  • Lab Color Series: What is Lab Color?(And why you should care)

    Welcome to the first entry in my Lab Color series of articles (and videos) on Lab Color. It only seems appropriate to begin the series with an introduction to, and explanation of, Lab color. The Lab (pronounced L – A – B, not “Lab”) color space is formally referred to as CIELAB and is a color space that device independent, which means it is not based on the color reproduction  capabilities of specific output devices such as monitors and printers like the sRGB or Adobe1998 color spaces.

    Read More
  • Loop Lighting | PetaPixel

    Loop lighting is a very common style of portrait lighting that is seen very often in portrait photography. In fact, if you’ve spent much time at all shooting in a studio, you’ve probably employed loop lighting without specifically trying to. Looking through my own archive of portraits, I found I have quite a lot of loop lighting examples where that wasn’t a specific goal. Since this type of lighting can be flattering and also adds some drama, thanks to the shading it creates, it’s no wonder that loop lighting appears in a lot of portrait shots.

    This article in its entirety was written for PetaPixel.com. You can view the entire content by using this link to view it at Petapixel.com: https://petapixel.com/loop-lighting/

  • Glam-Rock Session with Mandy Berry

    In this article, I’m going to lay out the details of my David Bowie inspired shoot that I did with Nashville artist Mandy Berry back in 2019. I want to share the details of this session because of the multiple layers of detail that had to come together for this shoot. To produce the results we were looking required very specific lighting, makeup, raw processing, and some image compositing.

    The idea for this shoot came from Mandy texting me that she’d like to do a shoot inspired by David Bowie, specifically the Heroes album cover and session photos. I leapt at the chance to create with her on this project because (A), I’m a huge fan of David Bowie and (B), I’d shot with Mandy before, and she’s a superstar in front of the camera.

    Read More
  • Butterfly Lighting | PetaPixel

    Butterfly lighting is a basic and popular lighting pattern used by portrait photographers, in which the main light is above and in light with the subject’s face and the camera. The name refers to the “butterfly”-shaped shadow seen under the nose, like the one seen in the image of Alison below. I say “usually” because the shadow may not be as strongly defined in this shot. It will depend on the relative size of the light source and how much the light is diffused.

    This article in its entirety was written for PetaPixel.com. You can view the entire content by using this link to view it at Petapixel.com: https://petapixel.com/butterfly-lighting/

  • How to Make a Double Exposure Photo in Photoshop | PetaPixel

    In the past, double exposing film was one of the most popular special effects used in photography, and often could be hit or miss. The idea was to combine two (or more) photos into the same image.
    In the days of film, this was done by taking two photos onto the same frame by shooting a second frame without advancing the film. Or, in the case of large format cameras, simply leave the film holder in place for a second shot.

    Many 35 mm film cameras could do this by using a special function to allow the shutter to be cocked without advancing the film. You could also do this on cameras not designed with this function by carefully holding the rewind knob steady, pressing the rewind release button, and then advancing the film lever.

    This article in its entirety was written for PetaPixel.com. You can view the entire content by using this link to view it at Petapixel.com: https://petapixel.com/double-exposure-effect/

  • Using a Handheld Light Meter | PetaPixel

    For decades, there’s a piece of gear that I’ve always had in my camera bag. This would be a handheld light meter. I feel I’m in the minority these days by still using a handheld light meter and that’s too bad this is so. While one can certainly shoot using their in-camera meter, there are cases where it’s not the best choice or even feasible to do so. In this guide, we will cover everything from what a light meter is to how to properly use one in your photography.

    This article in its entirety was written for PetaPixel.com. You can view the entire content by using this link to view it at Petapixel.com: https://petapixel.com/how-to-use-a-light-meter/

  • Rembrandt Lighting | PetaPixel

    Photographers who shoot portraits are likely familiar with Rembrandt-style lighting as well as other styles such as loop, butterfly, and so on. This is especially true if you have taken a lighting class or have been reading up on the subject. You may be using this specific type of portrait lighting in previous images and might not even realize it until reviewing later. (Ask me how I know).

    This article in its entirety was written for PetaPixel.com. You can view the entire content by using this link to view the guide at Petapixel.com: https://petapixel.com/rembrandt-lighting/

  • Cropping in Photoshop | PetaPixel

    Various visual aid styles available in the Crop Tool

    Article originally published on PetaPixel.com August 10th, 2022

    One of the most (seemingly) basic tools in Photoshop is the venerable Crop Tool. Used to cut way portions of image to only leave the desired area, the Crop Tool might appear to be simply a one-trick pony. However, there is a lot more to here than you might think. In this guide, I break down the various options for making the best use of the Crop Tool.

    You can find the complete guide on PetaPixel.com here: https://petapixel.com/how-to-crop-in-photoshop/ .

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