Photography

When I first started to do some research for this article, I decided to look up the word "Magic" because that’s how I feel about photography and—for that matter—any other art form. These are the words used to describe Magic: Enchanted, Thrilling, Powerful, Mystery, Supernatural, and Exquisite. If someone were to describe my work, these would certainly be the words I would want them to use. So the question remains: How do you create Magic with your work? How can you design a beautiful portrait of a person, landscape, animal, food etc. that warrants this kind of description? Let’s not forget that we are also trying to make money and stand out from the crowd—at least that’s what I’m trying to do.

For me, the magic process begins with the image I’ve created in the camera. Lighting is everything. It’s my primary concern, regardless of what I’m photographing. In my case, though, it’s usually a person. I make my living photographing children and families, and creating maternity portraits.

Editor's Note: This is a guest blog post from Judy Host of the Monte Zucker Creative Design Tour. BHInsights readers get a discount with customer code BNHCDTS.

This week in the news: Nikon announced an 800mm lens, but had a massive recall on battery packs for some of their cameras; Canon also had a recall on a couple of cameras; there was a boost in Western Digital's Cloud service, and more.

This is your B&H Pulse News Roundup for the week of July 13^th, 2012.

Take a look at the super-cool landscape photo above. How do you think it was shot? The scene was photographed by photographer Adam Taylor, and we were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to pick his brain on how he achieved the final result.

For even more education, you can check out the rest of our "How I Got the Shot" series of blog posts.

The Fourth of July is coming, and we all love to watch the fireworks. We’ve already talked a little about the basics of shooting them, but we recently had the opportunity to sit down with John Cornicello, an absolute master of the art, who blogs about it fairly often.

Specifically, we chose the photo above, and asked John to break it down for us. How do you think he shot it?

When I was first learning photography, I was often disappointed by my images. I’d go to a beautiful place, and take many photographs. Later, when I’d examine the results on the monitor, I’d find that what had been so appealing in person wasn’t captured by the camera. Sound familiar?

This week in the news: Microsoft presented their brand new tablet to the world; SanDisk's super-speedy MicroSD cards; HP's latest computer is targeted at video editors, and more.

This is your B&H Photo Pulse News Roundup for June 22^nd, 2012.

We can all appreciate the beloved Ansel Adams. He was one of the greats. His story is inspiring, fascinating and enduring. The man worked as a custodian in Yosemite National Park in order to live in the beauty he so much appreciated and desired to record. He seemed a harmonious blend of romantic artist and master technician. He devoted his life to the pursuit of what he loved. As a darkroom junkie myself, the first time I saw an Ansel print in person, printed by his own hands, I admit that a tear, (yes, a tear) fell down my face. The sheer craftsmanship of his prints was surprisingly moving. I am not here to dispute the fact that Ansel Adams was one of America’s greatest and seminal landscape photographers. I am here, however, to challenge you to find another one. After Ansel, who is your favorite photographer?