June 2012 wallpaper

As part of my job, I occasionally travel to other cities to train digital agencies in a content management system used by particular client of ours. (Could that be any more cryptic?) Sometimes on these trips, I have a few hours to spend some time in the city I'm visiting. Recently, my travels took me to both Chicago and New York City. Now, if you've paid attention over the last few years, you know I love photographing Chicago, but this time I found myself with time in The Big Apple. My visit this time was to Manhattan near the Flatiron Building, but the Empire State Building was just a few blocks away.

Now, I'm working on my sixth decade on this planet, but I had never visited that building and I decided to rectify that. I bought my ticket and rode up to the 86th floor observation deck. It was much more crowded than I anticipated, but eventually I got a turn at the outside wall. The sight was, of course, awe-inspiring. The light was starting to go as dusk settled in and so I jammed my M9 tightly into the protective fencing and gently pressed the shutter, a little worried that my Leica was about to take an 86 story plunge to the street below. I took a couple of shots to be sure, then made my way over to another part of the observation deck and tried a different view, but it just wasn't the same. I was pretty sure I already had what I wanted.

Sure, it's a cliché shot, but it's still a stunning view of what many still call the greatest city in the world, so I thought I'd share it with you this month. To download yours, simply click on the image above. I hope you enjoy it.

May 2012 wallpaper

Whew! April was a busy month here for me with the release of Shoot + Share: Getting Your Photographs Out Into the World, my new ebook from Craft & Vision, along with the final sessions of my digital photography class for this semester at Cornerstone Center for the Arts. For May, I feel like I need to provide everyone with more of a feeling of calm; something to gaze at each day that relaxes us. A boat, perhaps, resting in calm waters, reflecting the bright blue sky above it. Yes, that's the ticket.

I feel better already. Just click the image above for your own 2560 x 1600 pixels of peace and quiet. Enjoy.

Shoot and Share

"It takes a lot of nerve to show your dreams to someone else." - Erma Bombeck

I thought you'd like to know that today Craft & Vision is releasing my newest ebook, Shoot + Share: Getting Your Photographs Out Into the World. As with Close to Home, I'm both excited and a little bit terrified. My biggest goal is that you find it useful to you and your work.

I feel deeply that photography is a gift that is best shared, and this book is designed to help you decide where that works best for you, whether you intend to sell your work or not. At it's core, it's a guide to help you figure one thing: how to put your photographs in places where the people you want to see them will be able to. Whether that's your family and friends or major art collectors, the book helps you figure a plan to reach your photographic audience, both on- and offline. It's written to help you navigate the numerous places for posting your photographs—Facebook, Flickr, 500px, etc.—and for talking about them through social media and other channels. In addition, I've pulled examples from my current approach to sharing my work as examples throughout the book.

Of course a Craft & Vision book isn't complete without an abundance of photographs, and there are many in this book to serve as examples that I've shared along the way… and even a few that may be new to you. There's also a bonus section at the end of the book about sharing your knowledge of photography with others through teaching. Whether you lead a photo walk in your neighborhood or formally teach classes at your local art center, sharing your experience with those who need a little help is a very rewarding experience… for both of you.

As always, I'm grateful to many others for the help and encouragement they've given me in writing and publishing this book. Of course, the folks at Craft & Vision have been terrific in helping me put together a quality product for you. My friends, Sabrina Henry and Ray Ketcham read early versions of the book and offered valuable counsel as it progressed, and Justin Van Leeuwen was gracious enough to allow me to use his experience on Flickr as an example in the book. Merci beaucoup, Justin!

And, of course, my thanks to my wife, JoEllen, who talked me into first sharing my images publicly a couple of years ago. Sometimes we all need a little push, and for nearly 30 years, she's always been the one willing to do that for me.

I look forward to seeing your work out in the world.

Special Offer on PDFsFor the next five days only, use the promotional code SHARE4 when you checkout so you can have the PDF version of SHOOT + SHARE for only $4 OR use the code SHARE20 to get 20% off when you buy 5+ PDF eBooks from the Craft & Vision collection. These codes expire at 11:59pm PST April 28, 2012.