Make it like it was

Photo restoration...  While you need to be aware of the tools you use and there is technique involved, you need more patience than anything.  You also want to really think about what the color should look like.  Probably the best thing about restoring photos is the joy that the client feels when they see a picture from yesterday that almost looks like it was shot today.

Trust your eye

I actually noticed this tree years before I became a photographer.  This area has a lot of nice, lonely and weird trees that I've wanted to shoot for a while.  I had some free time so I drove there and saw what I can get.  I really got to express my 'photo that looks like a painting' thing that I love.

Purchase and see more of my work at www.asharpphoto.biz

365 days in 2 years ... ?

On May 31st 2012 I decided to radically improve my photography by processing a photo daily for 365 days; a Project 365.  I took my last photo for the collection on August 27th 2014.  Yeah, took a little longer than it was supposed to :).  I learned a lot and had a lot of fun.  Probably the best lesson for me and what shaped my art the most was my inability to get out and shoot whatever I wanted.  Because I have a family, I ended up having to shoot things in my house.  That made me develop an ability to turn the mundane into something interesting.  In many ways, this is the underlying theme or approach that I take to photography (actually, to a lot of things in my life).

I would recommend that you do the same for your discipline.  I mean, have you really dug in and put yourself on a practice schedule?  How are you going to get better, discover more about your art and yourself if you don't immerse yourself in it? 

Seeing is ... photography

With most disciplines, it is easy to see the work that the practitioner put in to reach mastery.  If you go to the doctor, you know they graduated from high school, went to med school and had to pass a test to get where they are.  Even a dancer; we all understand that there is a measure of natural talent and years of hard work and practice.  Photography seems different because if you have the money, you can buy all of the equipment and then POOF!!!! you're a photographer.  But being a photographer is much more than the gear.  Without artistic vision, it is impossible to tell a story, to paint a picture, to express a thought or emotion.  You need to be able to see the world around you and translate what you see to others.  Or you need to be able to take the images in your head and bring them into the visible world.  Photography doesn't start with Canon or Nikon, Olympus or Pentax but it does start with a camera. 

The camera is you...

www.asharpphoto.biz

This has absolutely nothing to do with photography

So, I just moved near some friends of mine and they have a landscaping business.  Its hot and my lawn is large so ... I'm not gonna cut it.  I secured their services and they are great!!  When they came to cut my grass, I meant to go out and say hi and they were gone before I even knew what was going on.  So, they aren't just good at what they do, they are fast.  If you are in the Central Florida area, contact Aloha Lawncare Specialists to take care of your lawn.

Show and tell

So I got an email a few weeks back from a representative of RAW Artists.  She told me that she'd seen some of my work on Instagram and she wanted to extend to me the opportunity to show my work in their arts showcase.  Uh... YEAH!!!!!!  How cool is that?!?

So check out my profile on their site here.  Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.  Of course I want you to come and buy all of my prints :), but even if you know you don't want to purchase anything, you should come anyway.  RAW's objective is to make local communities aware of the up and coming talent that lives among them.  Avengers II doesn't come out until Summer 2015 so I know you will be free on 8/21/14. 

A classmate and fellow musician, MoZaic, will be there as well.   Mozaic has a smooth, penetrating, captivating sound.  She's definitely worth the price of admission.

See you there!!!!

Working with the Possibility Guru

So, over the past few weeks I have had the opportunity to work with Nerissa Street.  She has been helping me build one facet of my marketing platform.  When you are running your own business, you have to know what you do well and what you hate doing.  A photographer that I follow, Sue Bryce, says that if you don't like doing it, pay someone else to do it so that you can put all of your energy into what you enjoy.  Nerissa does a great job of assessing goals and direction and tailoring a plan that gets you up and moving.  I am really excited about the initiative that she has helped me put together (yep, I'm keeping it under wraps for now). 

Nerissa believes that being a successful artist has nothing to do with a lucky break (take the time to watch her speak at TED in Miami).  Your success has everything to do with knowing that you have something to bring to the table and your clients are waiting on you.  Passion, conviction and courage are the tools needed to take you beyond the lucky break.