I have photographed this building before, but tonight I it drew my attention due to the lovely silhouettes the setting sun was creating.
There’s a lot going on in this image:
1. Silhouettes
Classic case of the light falling on the palm trees being darker than the light falling on the background. Creating silhouettes!
2. The reflection of the sunset in the mirrored panels of the windows of the building. Another perspective.
3. Strong diagonals
The roofline of the building creates a very strong and dramatic diagonal which gives movement and power to this image. Diagonals are a photographers friend. Look for them and use them whenever possible.
4. The light is so smooth.
It seems to envelope each subject as it slowly slips beneath the horizon and gives way to the night. The last minutes of light are referred to as the golden light. This is why.

A very nice image from a church parking lot that I’ve been to hundreds of times and yet it never looks quite the same.
Be inspired!

Michael is the author of, “Take Better Photos Now,” and, “Mommie Pics,” ebooks that help everyone become better photographers through tips and secrets that he has learned during his more than 25 years of experience as a professional photographer and photography teacher. Her currently is an adjunct professor at Cal Baptist University in Riverside, California. To purchase either ebook, click the links. CLICK HERE FOR “TakeBetterPhotosNow!
CLICK HERE FOR MOMMIE PICS

It doesn’t seem like 10 years ago today that everything changed.
I think that every single person in America has been touched in some way, great or small, by that day.
I was working that day and spent the day at the closure of Disneyland, due to the possible threat of an attack, with 7th graders as they watched the events unfolding in their history class and with one of the victim’s relatives as he struggled to make sense of his father’s untimely death on Flight 11 that crashed into the Twin Towers.
The photo that I share today is one before the storm.
One of hope.
I was in New York the summer of 2000 and went to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.
During the ferry ride I shot a few images that featured the towers in the background, standing sentry over the city.
It was an incredibly beautiful postcard-perfect day.
We were so different then as a nation and as a people.
Airport security meant something else before that fateful day and we surely never considered ourselves to be so vulnerable in our own country.
Today I remember those that lost their lives, gave their lives trying to save those that were trapped and the families that had their loved ones taken away so violently.
May we never forget and may we be vigilant and blessed that it may never happen again.

I was on assignment today at an opening ceremony for a local AYSO league.
I was asked to make a number of images including portraits, detail shots, news photos and even check presentations. It was indeed a busy day.
The last image I was asked to make was a feature image that represented something beautiful about the community.
It could be anything, which is freeing but can be overwhelming.
I saw it happen in a different way and area, but I wasn’t quite quick enough, so I waited and saw another man holding his son’s hand walking away from the event.
It said everything I wanted it to say.
The future.
Fathers and sons.
Relationships.
Community.
It was perfect!
I decided to semi-silhouette the subjects. There was a clean expanse of lawn which served as a nice clean background.
It was really distracting everywhere else that I looked so this was perfect.
The boy and his dad were walking under a tree and were shaded but the lawn was in bright sunlight.
I let my camera meter for the lawn and let the subjects go underexposed.
That way they would be more symbolic than a particular dad and son. They would be my every dad and son.
The boy is in the lower left area of convergence and that was good enough for me and I let the rest of the composition stand on it’s own.
Hopefully, all of us can aspire to a day with our kids or a day with our dad. A day when everything is okay because our hand is safely in his firm grip.
Be inspired!

I’m commenting on a guest photographer’s image today.
My son, Sean!
He made this image while traveling in China a little over a year ago.
He followed my rules about travel photography, so I wanted to use this as a reminder.
The number one rule when making travel photos is to take the image now!
Not tomorrow or in a couple of minutes, but now!
You never know what is going to happen that might prevent you from coming back later.
You know, the light might not be just right, or there’s too many people standing around or a myriad of other excuses.
Be safe, take the photo and if you get a chance, come back and make that perfect image.
My son visited all over China, but was in Lujiazui, Shanghai when he visited the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
It’s 1,536 feet high and near the top you can walk onto an area of super thick glass that gives the appearance of standing on nothing.
Looking straight down, is for the strong-hearted only!
Only a few of his friends were even willing to venture out and he remembered to snap a photo to remember his “walk of death.”
Too many times, we forget to document things and we miss the moment and the memory.
That’s why I so strongly advocate, shooting now!
Whether you are a thousand feet up or standing firmly on Mother Earth…shoot now and be inspired!

Not really sure why a beam from 9/11 is on display at the Reagan Library, but it was inspiring and a solemn monument to one of the worst days in our country’s history.
I wanted to capture it well.
Here’s what I was thinking as I approached it. It is long, about 20 feet and sitting in a dim room.
I punched up my ISO (the light sensitivity for my digital sensor) and dialed my shutter speed way down to around 1/15 of a second.
I waited until a few people were stopped looking at the beam to freeze them due to the slow shutter speed, there was some movement at each end, but I figured most viewers would be looking at the center of the beam.

Then I nabbed a nice detail shot to give the viewer more information.
FDNY 343 had been stenciled onto the beam, signifying the number of firefighters who died that fateful day.
Putting the beam parallel to my camera helped to keep as much of it in focus as possible, along with the bystanders. The slow shutter speed allowed more light to illuminated my sensor for the best possible exposure and lastly the detail of the stencil helps to give the viewer’s more information about the image.
Try these techniques next time you head out on vacation.
Be inspired!

I found one more image that illustrates visual complexity.
This is a great technique for vacation photography or travel photography.
It adds the human element, without being too blatant about having a person in the photo. It also adds motion with the slow shutter speed which blurs the subject as they walk through the image.
I noticed these giant photos of “bad guys” who Reagan had to deal with in the 80’s, I knew I needed a human element and waited just a moment for this young woman to walk through the image. I set my camera for a relatively slow shutter speed and just waited for the subject to walk.
The result?
The subject walking is slightly blurred and thus, doesn’t draw too much attention away from the portraits on the wall.
Try this next time you want to show off a static element and you have people walking through the image.
Setting the shutter speed to below 1/15 of a second or slower will probably give the best results, just be careful that your final shutter speed isn’t so slow that you can’t hold the entire image still.
Be inspired!

I have a quick photo taking tip today.
It involves two things, silhouettes and space.
This image utilizes both things. The mystery of a silhouette creates drama and intrigue, but notice how each of the people has their own space in the image?
A lot of photogs forget or don’t notice this and things become jumbled.
Waiting and being intentional will cause your image to be some much more different and unique.
The moment before this image was taken the people were all mushed together, waiting just a beat, helped to separate them as two of them walked towards the steps and the lone figure walked parallel to the camera. That created just enough space between each figure for separation and cleanliness for the image.
This step, especially in a silhouette really takes your photos to the next level.
Be intentional and be inspired!

Vacation photography is an incredibly important type of photography.
We all want to document where we go and what we see.
Here’s a few tips to help you the next time you pack up the family for a day trip or for the vacation of a lifetime!
1) Include people doing something next to or around the iconic place you visit. So many people photograph their family mugging the camera in front of the Grand Canyon, The Statue of Liberty etc. That’s okay, but for an image that will knock people’s socks off, try an image that shows off the neat icon with folks looking at it or enjoying it. For example, in this image of Air Force One at the Reagan Library, I waited till a few folks were admiring and taking a photo of this famous airplane.

2) Silhouettes make iconic and interesting images. This next photo is a line of people waiting to go inside the airplane. Yes, a line of people. Not too interesting, but turn those folks into silhouettes and instantly I have an iconic image that is interesting and eye-cathching. This situation was made for silhouettes with the large glass wall that the line was near, I just put the window behind the crowd and started shooting.

3) Use people for context. Place people in the frame to show how large or small something is. Scale.
In the last image, there is a painting of the various planes that presidents have utilized. It was very large and long. I included a lone figure at the very end that showed scale and size.
Going on vacation is a needed break from work and the drudgery of everyday life, but don’t leave your photo sense at home.
Think and you’ll be rewarded with great vacation photos.
Be inspired!

How do you cover a story?
Most people take a bunch of image with and without people and hold it up as a story.
Unfortunately, it usually falls flat. There are holes in the formula and so, the story is incomplete.
The truth is, most people don’t have the discipline to shoot a story the right way to effectively communicate what happened.
Let’s take a look at the opener or establishing image.
You have to have an opener.
It’s like not putting a title on a book. The opener establishes the story and helps the viewer know where the journey starts.
Let’s take a look at the first image. It’s just a banner attached to a light standard in the parking lot of the Reagan Library.
I noticed them on the way in and decided to make an image. It was a great opening image. It says exactly what and where we are and what the viewer can expect.

As important as the opener, is the closer!
A photographic period.
That let’s the viewer know, the end has come.
These two rules for stories bookend the great images that you make to visually tell your story.
• Use an opening or establishing scene to set the story on the right track. Commonly, an overview of the event or place is used. But, as in the first image, a detail can serve the same purpose when an overall isn’t available.
• The closing image really puts the story to bed. It’s the climax of the story visually. At the library, the final resting place for President Reagan was a natural to end my story.
Be inspired!

Visual complexity, especially in travel photography is a must.
Without it, images are static and contain little visual interest.
Here’s the same image without the human figure.

See how the figure adds visual complexity?
Adding a slow shutter speed lets the figure become an iconic, “every man,” in the frame.
Without the figure there’s no humanity or context to the image.
It creates complexity, mystery and intrigue. All this because of a slow shutter speed and a random passerby.
Utilize this technique to make your images more visually complex and interesting.
Be inspired!