David duChemin – JWNPhoto.com

Articles Tagged with: David duChemin

Introducing JOEGOESPro.com

About a week ago I started to write my business plan. I got stuck on my mission statement. I need a mission statement. It’s like proposing to marry someone – it seems so permanent. That’s when it occurred to me, if the entrepreneurial world has drastically changed so much, why do I need to do a traditional business plan?

On the way home from the grocery store a few days later an idea came to me. Why not create a new kind of business plan? Why not ask for involvement of my peers, while giving advice about what I already know from my other business? An interactive business plan that changes with the business! I thought of a domain name for my new idea – I hurried home and immediately looked up joegoespro.com to see if it was registered and oh, the photo gods were looking out for me that evening.

So, I kicked off the site this weekend with 3 articles covering the psychology of becoming a professional photographer in today’s climate. These articles are based on not only my experience as an entrepreneur, but from the teachings of current top creatives and business people, books I’ve read on the subject, and my own observations about what’s going on in the artistic community.

The first article talks about branding yourself, the importance of taking care of your health, and defining your style in all aspects of your life. The second article tackles the fear of success and how to identify and work around it. Finally, the third article is about finding your place in the saturated world of photography.

To help kick off this venture, I’m giving away a copy of one of my favorite photographer’s latest books. It’s “Photographically Speaking: A Deeper Look at Creating Stronger Images” by David duChemin. All you have to do is go over to JOEGOESPro.com and comment on one of the first 3 articles linked above. Say something encouraging, something insightful, or just say hi. Make sure to use a real email address when you comment so I can contact you! I’ll pick a winner in two weeks to a random commenter. The only other rule is that you have to live in the United States (sorry, but I don’t know enough about international contest laws).

Natural Light Portrait

Here’s one of my clients who today became an unknowing portrait subject of mine. I received a really cool book for Christmas by Chris Orwig called “People Pictures: 30 Exercises for Creating Authentic Photographs“. The title of the book really spoke to me, and the cover of it screamed “BUY ME!” so I had to add it to the wish list 😉

I just started reading it this morning, and I was happy to see that the forward was written by one of my favorite photo authors David duChemin, who’s latest book, “Photographically Speaking: A Deeper Look at Creating Stronger Images” I’ve also received for Christmas and have been reading.

So the first exercise is to take a very quick portrait with minimal equipment. I was working with Bobby at his office replacing some computer equipment when I saw that the clouds had covered the sun at one point enough to get an environmental portrait outside in front of his doorway. This was the initial shot I made:

I framed him just outside of the entranceway to his office with his sign hanging overhead so that it looks almost like it was put there in post. He’s in the light and the background is in the shadow. The short-lived cloud acted as my light diffuser and I chose the slight angle to keep all of those elements together while avoiding as much of the reflections in the windows as possible. I positioned Bobby dead center to balance the sign in the shot. The shadows of the entranceway formed a natural vignette, although I did add a little more vignetting in post even it out on the bottom half of the frame. I shot this with a 35mm prime lens at f/1.8 & ISO 200. I was in Aperture Priority with a +1/3 EV and it chose 1/1250 of a second for the shutter speed. I shot a few frames to nail the composition and a few more to adjust the exposure, and got my shot within a minute. It was that easy, and that was the point – don’t worry about lenses, lights, or filters. Just grab the camera and take a simple portrait of a person without forcing it.

The problem is that once I get the bug, it’s hard to squish it. Inside, I shot a few more shots, including the one at the top of this post which I really ended up liking. He’s sitting between two windows, which made for really cool rim lights. I shot it in manual mode at f/1.8, 1/40th of a second, and ISO 200. I got in close to throw everything past his eyes into a slight blur. I also removed a few blemishes and smoothed the skin slightly in Photoshop (a backlit natural light portrait can be a little unforgiving on anyone over the age of 25) and that’s it. The book is really not about flattery though, it’s about connecting with people, which I believe was a successful attempt here.

There’s also a Flickr group based around the exorcises in the book, and so far there are some really talented photographers participating.

Photo Book Recommendations

I was asked in an email today about which books I would recommend for aspiring photographers who are starting to get into photography beyond auto mode. As I began typing my response, I realized that it would make a good blog post, so here we are. Thanks Kelley!

If I had only one book to recommend it would be LIFE Guide to Digital Photography: Everything You Need to Shoot Like the Pros by Joe McNally. This book is a Swiss Army Knife of photo information, and Joe has such an endearing personality in his writing that you will almost forget that he’s giving you valuable information. It’s an easy read and the author is pretty much the top of the food chain when it comes to his knowledge of photography. Joe’s done it all and been everywhere, and has a resume that can’t be beaten. Even if you are an experienced photographer, this book will inspire you with the examples McNally provides. I’ve already lent my copy out more than once, because it’s the easiest answer to new DSLR owners who ask, “How do I use this thing?”

Another good “all-in-one” book that’s an easy read is Bryan Peterson’s Understanding Photography Field Guide: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera. Bryan has written quite a few books on photography, each one going into great detail on a particular subject. This book is almost like a greatest hits of his previous work. He goes through each aspect with enough information to give you a general understanding of the topic. If you wish to delve in deeper, you can order one of his books that focuses on that one subject. I do feel that he is quite thorough in this book and for my needs he explains everything in a way that didn’t leave me wondering if I’m not getting the full picture. Between this book and Joe’s book above, you should have enough knowledge to start using your camera as a tool that allows you to create the images you really want to create. That leads us to the most important books I can recommend…

While learning how to use your camera is an obstacle that seems like a large mountain of technology to overcome at first, no amount of technical expertise can save a photo that lacks a clear vision. David duChemin is the pioneer of vision-based photography, and his book Within The Frame, The Journey of Photographic Vision is an eye-opening look into the why of photography over the how. Anyone and everyone can snap a photo to document what is going on around them, but it’s the skilled photographer that plans out the photograph before he or she squeezes the shutter. Thinking about the photograph and using your tools to best represent the vision of it in your mind are what David preaches. Ansel Adams once said that “There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept”, and duChemin has taken that idea and expanded it across a series of books, his blog, and his storefront for photography eBooks called Craft & Vision. An inexpensive way to get a lot in return without buying more gear is to check out his eBooks Ten, Chasing the Look, & Drawing The Eye.

Finally, bouncing off of the vision of photography is a more advanced book on composition. The Photographer’s Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos by Michael Freeman is an exhaustive look at composition in the two dimensional medium of photography. From understanding the Golden Ratio, the relationship of color, and the movement of shapes, this book will open your eyes to why some photographs work better than others. More importantly, you learn how to make more successful images because of this knowledge. Make no bones about it, there is no substitute for good design. Composition will separate an average photo from a timeless one.

So there you have it – use the first two books to learn how to use your camera and learn the basics of photography. Use the second two to find a purpose for your photography and design your images to best convey your vision. Please feel free to share your suggestions in the comments, on Facebook, or on Twitter.