I’d mentioned trying to get in a couple more updates before winding down on prophotolife so I sure want to follow through. This post is split into two parts: today I’ll mention some of the more philosophical things I’m realizing from starting the photo a day 2009 project. Next week, in part two, I’ll share a bunch of the technical things I’ve learned from working with the new camera and website.
Since we all enjoy learning about photography it seems a natural to share what I’m learning from starting the photo …

Here it is, the new site design, I hope it works well for everyone! There are a lot of things I like about it and just a few things that I’d like to tweak further. It’s definitely a work in progress and I’ll continue to refine what I can.
It seems fairly easy to present new information on a blog, the most recent posts generally appear at the top of a front page. One of the things I hope to accomplish with this design is to make the categories and older …

The details are in last Friday’s around the net, but in case you missed it, I’ll be taking a rare break from the blog this week. A site revision is in the works, as are a couple of other projects. I’ll see you when we pick things back up on Monday, September 15, with a new design and a new video!
- Jim T.

Our friend Udi at DIYPhotography.net has come up with another great giveaway of interest to any photographer that shoots portraits. Photographers of all levels are encouraged to submit their favorite portrait(s) of someone special in their life for a chance to win one of three copies of the new studio (high end) Portrait Professional 8 Software. More info on the contest, software and how to get a demo download of Portrait Professional 8 are posted at DIYPhotography.net.
Entry is open to all photographers so I had my eye on the prize..until …

I do believe in luck…but I also believe that we largely make our own luck. You might get a great shot because you were lucky, standing in the right place at the right time to capture a moment. But some force put you in that place at that moment. Something also provoked your finger to press the shutter button, so I choose to believe there is always something more involved than just “pure luck”.
Despite this belief, I still call this donut photograph my “lucky shot”. Why is it called that? …

Do you buy used photo and camera gear on eBay?
With talk of starting a new photo project in August (some great suggestions in Friday’s comments) I’ve been thinking about what equipment to use for the project. For myself, I’m thinking film…35mm, 120 or 4″x5″? Hmmm, is there some new (used) camera that would totally spark my imagination? Camera hunting is a great excuse to start searching eBay.
Most of my camera equipment gets used on a fairly regular basis, I’m not that much of a collector. Yes, there are some odds …

Remember the pinhole camera from video episode 8? Of all the many videos and posts here on prophotolife, “how to build a 35mm pinhole camera” provides one of the steadiest streams of search traffic. In the past couple months I’ve moved the camera from desk to desk, taken it home and brought it back to the studio and forgotten it in my truck for at least a week or so.
Well, it’s time the pinhole camera found a real home. At first I thought it might be funny to put …

Aspiring professional and enthusiast photographers work hard to find their own particular style, a visual look that sets them apart from the crowd. Your style is like your own personal signature and it may revolve around the use of a particular lens, color palette, camera or post-production technique. Or it may be the way you communicate with your subject and the responses you elicit and capture. It may be a combination of many of these things.
Do you have a style? If you’ve ever found yourself frustrated, unable to find …

I’ve been receiving emails this weekend letting me know that some prophotolife videos are coming up on YouTube as “no longer available” for certain viewers. I haven’t pulled anything down. Anyone else having problems? A quick search revealed this post of potential fixes:
http://digg.com/tech_news/Fixing_the_video_is_no_longer_available_YouTube_glitch
I’m not sure what’s up, let me know if you have any insight.
Thanks,
Jim T.

thirty seven s…
volume 1 2006
By Jim Talkington

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In 2006 I started a photo blog and decided to publish a photo a day. There was a definite purpose to this. No, it wasn’t so much to get my work seen by a bunch of people, it was so I would commit to creating new work. It was a way to force me to continually create. As a professional commercial photographer I continually photograph for clients. You might think the last thing I’d want to do …