Reading Time: 7 minutes

The first days of school are happening this month all over our country. Our family always took a photo of the kids on their first day. We were all excited every year for that first.

Watching your child grow in stature through the years was just one way of seeing positive changes for them and you.

When Nelson, our oldest, graduated from high school, he was now in charge of that next school choice and what he would take. Most of us have fewer choices about what to take up through high school. We had some say in which science course or English course we would take, but we still had few options compared to the next step–college.

When it comes to the first days at college, the experience varies greatly; we came to learn when our oldest, Nelson, decided to enroll at The Citadel. My wife helps other parents each year by assisting them in navigating military college life and teaching them how best to support their students without being helicopter parents.

When the youngest, Chelle, went to college, the experience was so different.

Both of them embraced college and all that it entails. They did a great job picking majors that perfectly suited each of them.

Others choose alternative education, like YWAM’s University of Nations in Kona, Hawaii. These students take one course at a time for 3 to 6 months. This is a group photo of the class I taught this past February.

Most colleges and universities have some “general education” requirements, forcing students to take at least a few math and science courses. Still, many non-science majors will take the bare minimum and work hard to put those off as long as possible. Disgruntled spring-term seniors who don’t want to be in the course but can’t graduate without it are a regular and unpleasant feature of “Gen Ed” courses.

I had a one-course requirement for statistics that frustrated me to no end. I took the class three times. The professor’s English was complicated to understand my first time taking it. Later, when I retook it, I realized this wasn’t the only reason I struggled with that course.

“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”

― Albert Einstein

I then retook the class at Brookdale Community College while home from East Carolina University during the summer. I still struggled. I finally passed the course during summer school at East Carolina. My motivation that last time was I needed to graduate.

In college, everyone is looking to take an easy or fun class that counts toward their degree. In these classes, students’ interest in the subject is often better than their interest in a “required” category, but from my experience, this is not much better than where their passion lies.

As an adjunct professor, I felt like this mom with a child on the back through the years at different colleges. I was carrying these students way too much. There was little self-motivation on their part.

I stopped teaching in a college’s communications program a few years ago. I had taught there for many years, but the problem was simple: the students didn’t care to master the subject.

However, I continued to teach photography workshops. There was a big difference between the two classes. In the workshops, every student I had wanted to learn the material.

I never had a student break down in the “college” courses in tears because they wanted to understand something wrong and were upset they were not comprehending the content. During my first time teaching at the University of Nations in Hawaii, I again fell in love with teaching. I cannot thank Dennis Fahringer enough for inviting me to teach Lighting and Business Practices.

Everyone seems excited when I teach the studio lighting but is not as thrilled with the business practices. Through the years, I have been able to help more of those students jump-start their professional careers as photographers. It had less to do with the lighting and more about the business practices.

“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”

― Benjamin Franklin

Now, more than 12 years later, I hear that the reputation of the class teaching business practices has many eager to learn this topic. Still, many in the class are not as enthusiastic about it as I wish they would be.

The best students are those who are “knowledge‐seeking.” These are those who are emotionally engaged in expert work.

This photo of the two young ladies is so exciting to learn that they shared during their shooting in the Nicaragua workshop I did in the summer of 2016.

Since 2008, I have attended The Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, to guest lecture on business practices for Mark Johnson. These were so different from the students I had taught at other colleges.

When Mark called me last fall asking if I would teach two sections of Intro to Photojournalism this coming year, I said yes. Since then, I have dug deeper into the program.

I asked if the class students were constantly engaged in the content. You see, that was what turned me off before. An instructor can only do so much to get a student excited. The student must also make an effort, or there will be no success.

Mark told me that there are two classes that they need Intro to Photojournalism to take later before they graduate. In those later courses, they must do photojournalism with videography, writing, layout, design, and posting projects on social media and blogs. If they don’t come out of the Intro class knowing photojournalism well enough to do it professionally, they will not be able to do those classes well.

Some of the students I have taught life worldwide are pretty successful today. Kongs has a successful photography business in Nigeria and West Africa. He was excited to take photography classes and kept in touch, letting me know all he was doing.

Tom Kilpatrick is an excellent example of how you are never too old to learn. Tom had trained thousands of college students to help young photographers as a newspaper photographer. He taught a few of my closest friends who went to National Geographic.

Going from film to digital was very difficult for Tom. He told me a few times he almost gave up photography because of how complex the new technology was for him to understand.

After finally making the switch, he decided to go to the Storytellers Abroad Workshop at 72 to learn how to do video editing and storytelling in this new medium.

How we value the future affects our desire to learn.

Ever since Dennis Fahringer asked me to teach, I have been working with students who had a passion for using photography as a profession. Extraordinarily, few have ever been gifted and just got the content quickly. Most have a moment where you can see a real struggle with the content on their faces.

There is a fundamental difference between these students who come up against a wall they push through. When I went to pass statistics, I wasn’t interested in ever using it again. These students are overcoming all the struggles of mastering the content because they want to use photography in the future.

“It is not that I’m so smart. But I stay with the questions much longer.”

― Albert Einstein

I have autism, and I think Aspergers Syndrome best describes my situation. One of the traits is an obsession with specific, often unusual, topics for those with autism. It was all about G.I. Joe when I was young. Thankfully, I grew out of that obsession.

Over the years, I would find different topics from playing trumpet, chess, toy models, and today, photography.

I was blessed with Autism. This helped me overcome difficulties because my wiring wouldn’t let it go.

Try to learn the content in all your classes this new school year. You may not see it now, but this will help you live a better tomorrow.

Reading Time: 5 minutes

“The most powerful words ever said to you are your own,” said Garrett Hubbard. The self-talk we do can be the most damaging or uplifting. We are in charge of which that will be.

“Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground.” – Wilfred Peterson.

I have some of my best friends. James Dockery, who currently works as a top video editor for ESPN, is leading the way in incorporating innovative editing and communication techniques.

James has me laughing as much as anyone these days. I love his teaching style, and most of all, I love his positive attitude and joy in living.

We didn’t drink all these by ourselves. We had a few students in the workshop help us with all these macchiatos.

When I first met Morris Abernathy, I knew I had found a good friend. No one has ever had me laughing as hard as Morris. He has helped me see the world in new ways.

Morris provided coverage for the Dallas Cowboys, the Tennessee Titans, the Texas Rangers, California wildfires, the Oklahoma City bombing, 9/11, and five U.S. presidents.

Morris and I have had so many heart-to-heart conversations. He was a good friend who helped me during tough times with work and personal life. He is one of the best listeners I know.

Everyone needs a Morris in their life.

For many years my agency was Black Star. Howard Chapnick had told me about Robin Nelson, another Black Star photographer, in Atlanta when I first moved here in 1993, but it would be more than ten years later that we would meet.

Robin has a passion for social justice and human rights issues, which I also have a heart for doing. I quickly realized how outstanding Robin is at capturing people’s stories. Robin always says, “Everyone has a story if you dig deep enough.”

Now my best friend of all is my lovely wife, Dorie Griggs. She has helped me grow in so many ways. Her heart for serving others is truly inspiring.

I have met more interesting people from all walks of life because Dorie has made it her purpose to be inclusive of people from so many different backgrounds.

Now, my family has also been a great support system for me. My and Dorie’s family have been there for us throughout everything.

Now with all this support, you would think this is the key to success, but people with this type of support and more have been depressed and even suicidal.

So every Friday on my Facebook feed, I see this:

Garrett continues to build up each other. He knows this can help each of us with our inner voice.

An old Cherokee told his grandson, “My son, there is a battle between two wolves inside us all.
One is Evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy, and truth.”
The boy thought about it, and asked, “Grandfather, which wolf wins?”
The old man quietly replied, “The one you feed.”

– Author Unknown

If your self-talk is negative, then it needs to change. One of the best ways to do that is to surround yourself with positive people. I have done this all my life.

Whatever you do in life, surround yourself with smart people who’ll argue with you. – John Wooden

Surround yourself with the right people, and realize your worth. Honestly, there are enough bad people out there in the world – you don’t need to be your own worst enemy. – Lucy Hale

“Be a star in someone’s dark sky.”

― Matshona Dhliwayo

While finding your support system, also remember to be the one who lifts others.

“Some say, “Once you learn to be happy, you won’t tolerate being around people who make you feel anything less.” My Christ says, “Your job is to get off your self-righteous butt and start reaching out to the difficult people because my ministry wasn’t about a bunch of nice people getting together once a week to sing hymns and get a feel-good message that you may or may not apply, depending on the depth of your anger for someone. It is about caring for and helping the broken-hearted, the difficult, the hurt, the misunderstood, the repulsive, the wicked, and the liars. It is about turning the other cheek when someone hurts you. It is about loving one another and making amends. It gives people as many chances as needed because God gives them endless chances. When you do this, then you will know me, and you will know true happiness and peace. Until then, you will never know who I am. You will always be just a fan or a Sunday-only warrior. You will continue to represent who you are to the world, but not me. I am the God that rescues.”
― Shannon L. Alder

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“It’s gonna take time, a whole lot of precious time.”
– George Harrison

In the age of instant everything, speed often gets mistaken for quality. Businesses reward those who can move quickly, and journalism is no different. But when it comes to storytelling—especially in journalism—it is essential to get it right. Speed without depth risks creating shallow stories that lack integrity, like “parachute journalism” and sensationalism. For those who aim to tell impactful, authentic stories, here’s why patience and precision are indispensable.

The Drawbacks of “Parachute Journalism”

In the military, airborne troops can be deployed almost anywhere, often with little warning and minimal preparation time. This concept, known as “parachute journalism” in the media, involves reporters dropping into unfamiliar territories and trying to cover stories without in-depth knowledge. This approach, often rushed, can lead to errors, misinterpretations, and a lack of understanding about the community or subject. The result? Stories that miss the mark and ultimately erode public trust in journalism.

Similarly, “yellow journalism” prioritizes attention-grabbing headlines and sensationalism over well-researched, accurate news. While both approaches differ in form, they stem from the same issue—rushing without prioritizing the time and effort needed for accuracy.

Essential Ingredients for True Journalism

True journalism requires far more than quick dispatches and viral headlines. Here’s a breakdown of the vital ingredients that make stories resonate with the public and stand the test of time:

1. Truth through Verification
   Journalism is built on the professional discipline of assembling and verifying facts. Rushing to publish before verifying can lead to misinformation and damage to credibility. Thoughtful verification is at the core of storytelling that people can rely on.
2. Commitment to Community
   Great journalism serves the community first, not advertisers or click-through rates. The audience consists of everyday citizens who trust journalists to present facts responsibly. Serving the community over profit helps build credibility and trust in the long term.
3. Objective Methods
   Journalists must consistently test information objectively. Unlike social media, where “trusting your gut” may prevail, journalism’s backbone lies in systematic verification, minimizing bias to maintain integrity.
4. Independence in Reporting
   Independence is crucial to avoid bias, whether pressure from influential figures, advertisers, or even internal influences within a newsroom. A journalist’s loyalty should be to the truth, not any organization or crowd.
5. Watchdog Role
   Journalism is crucial in holding institutions accountable by keeping the public informed. From fact-checking public statements to investigative reporting, the journalist’s role as a “watchdog” helps citizens stay informed about issues that may demand social change.

The Challenge Today: Fighting “Fake News” and Mistrust

With sensational stories and unchecked information rampant online, the public often turns to friends or unverified sources rather than professional journalism. This preference has contributed to a rise in “fake news,” exploiting the erosion of trust in established media. Unfortunately, the actions of a few unethical journalists have cast a shadow over the entire profession, just as isolated scandals have in other fields. Now, many journalists find themselves in an uphill battle to restore trust.

The Takeaway: Great Stories Require Patience

Good journalism doesn’t happen overnight. When you rush, you risk distorting stories and letting assumptions shape the narrative. Take the time to understand the subject, research meticulously, and verify every detail. As George Harrison sang, “It’s gonna take patience and time.” You can only deliver stories that genuinely resonate, inform, and inspire change.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Over the past few months, the massive destruction of the Kilauea volcano hasn’t been what we expect from Mother Nature.

We don’t expect our homes to be destroyed with no hope of rebuilding.

In this photo, you can see the home in the path of the destruction. This looks more like a scene from the 1958 science-fiction-horror film The Blob.

While enjoying my tourist helicopter ride to see the volcano’s power, I wasn’t thinking about the lives being destroyed by nature.

I was in the sky with other tourists on numerous helicopters flying over the volcano, being entertained.

I was in Hawaii to teach photography at The University of Nations, which is part of Youth with a Mission. The campus is now in the process of seeing how they can help some of the families displaced by the volcano.

I was listening to the founder Loren Cunningham as he talked about the plight of those who have lost their homes to the volcano.

I had been teaching on storytelling and knew that when you tell a good story it actually affects the audiences physical body.

In a good chase scene, you can feel your heart racing. When the main character is hiding and close to being found, your palms may sweat.

The gut-wrenching feeling I get when bills are due and the tight cash flow is how I felt when Loren Cunningham pointed out that these people had not just lost a home but still had to pay on their mortgages. They were now paying for something that they couldn’t rebuild or resell.

This is a different kind of natural disaster than the past fires, tornados, or hurricanes I have experienced. Volunteers organized to help clean up and rebuild the destructed areas during those disasters. They helped to restore people’s lives.

The closest disaster with some similarities was Katrina, where many could not go back and rebuild.

As you watch the updates on the volcano, please keep in mind all those who have lost their homes and are now in financial crisis.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

It was a thrill to get the chance to go up in a helicopter and see the lava flowing at the Kīlauea Volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii. Dorie and Chelle gave me this present for father’s day.

While I had been in helicopters many times, clients paid for the experience. This time it was out of our pockets. I had wanted to do this for years.

I have been coming to The Big Island of Hawaii at the invitation of my good friend Dennis Fahringer. I have been teaching photography to his School of Photography students with the University of Nations, which is part of Youth with a Missions.

Now for 12 years, I have been driving to the Volcano, hoping for good photos. I have taken some pretty good pictures through the years. Here is one from February this year before they closed the Volcano National park due to the recent activity.

The best way to see the volcano is from the air.

This is an untouched photo right out of the camera. I just converted from Nikon NEF to a JPEG.

By shooting RAW, you can work with the photo in Lightroom just like we did in the film days in the Darkroom.

The number one tool that helps you when shooting from a helicopter is the Dehaze Slider.

There is a lot of haze created by the atmosphere, and over the volcano with VOG, you need to use this tool, or the fog clouds the photos.

Just compare this photo of Rainbow Falls I processed to the unprocessed image.

Now here are two short videos I shot while up as well. I processed these in Final Cut Pro X and corrected the footage for better contrast and color.

Kīlauea Volcano from Stanley Leary on Vimeo.

Kīlauea Volcano Fissure 8 from Stanley Leary on Vimeo.

I hope these tips help you see why shooting RAW and using Lightroom can make a HUGE difference in your photos.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Your old photos can look even better today due to technological advances. I returned to this photo of my daughter’s first day of school ten years ago to re-edit the image in the latest version of Adobe Lightroom.

You may like the earlier edit, but there are more possibilities with a few changes in Lightroom. First, they did a significant overhaul of the main engine in the software and then added new tools like Dehaze.

Today you can pick a color profile and use Dehaze; that was not an option in 2010.

Another control implemented in 2010 was Lens Correction improving all lenses by correcting for their imperfections.

Back in 2010, I didn’t even try to edit this photo. With the dehaze control, I could make the background much more accessible than doing this in 2010 would have required.

TIPS

Shoot RAW – you have more information to work with before exporting a JPEG in Lightroom.
Folder for a RAW and separate folder for JPEG – I ingest and put all my RAW files into a folder, and then when I finish editing and exporting, I put those in a different folder JPEG
Archive all photos – Keep the RAW images and your JPEG images. You can later return to these photos and discover some gems due to the software improvements in the future.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The key to fireworks is the foreground. The context helps give a sense of place.

When I started shooting the July of 4th fireworks this year in Roswell, GA, the location was slightly different than years past. I wasn’t sure exactly where they would be in the sky. I had a general idea, but I had a few problems when they started.

As the sun set, all the street lights in the parking lot we were in started to come on. When I first started shooting, this is what I was getting. The street light was creatine a flair and wasn’t very interesting. The street lights were distracting.

Using a tree in the parking lot to help with the street light also blocked some of the lower flying fireworks.

I picked up the tripod, went closer to the shops, and pointed the camera toward the high school where the fireworks were being launched. It gave me the best photos of the fireworks and making the street lights no longer a problem, but you only see a couple in the lower left.

I determined that the best place was to shoot the fireworks wide with a 14-24mm lens. This let me show all the community that turned out for the fireworks and helped to tell the story.

Earlier in the fireworks performance, I shot this with my Sigma 24-105mm ƒ/4 at 58mm. Fireworks look great, but this could be anywhere in the world. The wider shot helped me to show you what it looked like where I was in Roswell, Georgia.

Carry a couple of different lenses so you can change your approach if necessary. Be willing to move to get a different perspective. Most of all, take lots of photos. Only a few will be the keepers that you want.

Technical

ISO:                        100
Aperture:             ƒ/11
Shutter Speed:  5 seconds to 14 seconds [using Bulb]
White Balance: Fluorescent to match the Street Lights

I used a tripod and a cable release. I would start taking photos and stop after 2 to 4 fireworks go off.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Getting a well-exposed, color-correct photo will bring the most out of any subject.

When your photo is well exposed, you will see all the gradations on a grayscale. When you have your digital camera set to the proper white balance under flash you get the most dynamic range possible.

The color space of flash is dead center in the color wheel. Other lights like Tungsten, Fluorescent, Mercury Vapor, LED, and others are skewed off the center of the color wheel. While you can color correct these images by adding or subtracting colors to try and slide them back to the center, your color is never as good as under pure flash.

I shot this photo outside on the shaded side of my house. I color-corrected using “Custom White Balance.”

Using the ExpoDisc, I put this over the front of the lens and did an incident light reading and custom white balance.

I do this when shooting in the studio because softboxes often have a slight color cast that I can correct.

I cannot stress enough that the one thing that separates the very top photographers from the rest technically usually is white balance.

Colors pop when your exposure and color balance are on target.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

SOBERING statistics published earlier this month show that the annual rate of suicide in the US has risen by almost 28 percent between 1999 and 2016.

I believe this is affecting businesses as well as individuals.

For this topic, I believe many of us are experts. Almost everyone will go through events that cause upheaval and crisis.

Depression causes one to look for relief. Unfortunately, many who are dealing with addiction start with depression.

I believe that in today’s economy, companies are showing signs of depression.

When you are depressed, you are prone to reach for things that give you pleasure but are not always the best. Ask any addict.

So many of us are looking for Likes or comparing our life to other people’s Facebook feeds.

We have gone from liking a post to loving, laughing, wow, sad, and even mad.

We are losing our compasses on how to navigate life. Instead, we are now looking to measure what is good or bad based on skewed analytics.

Opioids are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Many in business reach out for things like an opioid to make them feel better. That person has more followers than us. Let’s hire them. They can make it better. Remember, opioids not only can relieve pain, but they can also anesthetize you. I think many in business today are operating in a fog.

Communications departments have moved away from a solid story to choosing to use work based on the content providers’ social media feeds of likes and several followers.

Teaching in college and workshops, I experience more students who feel like they are already good photographers based on their social media likes from friends.

Brandon Stanton, the creator of Humans of New York, said, “Photography felt like a treasure hunt, and even though I sucked at it, I’d occasionally stumble upon a diamond. And that was enough to keep me wanting more.”

Stanton’s success is based on one simple truth–Everyone Has A Story!

People were drawn to his storytelling, which led to his massive following, but he didn’t go out and find someone doing something and copy it. Instead, he just went with his interest in the people on the streets of NYC. At first, he focused on visually exotic people, but slowly he discovered that everyone had a story.

Instead of trying to find the next “Cool Trend,” why not go with storytelling?

Stories allow the listener to learn vicariously and discover lessons seemingly on their own.

Stories make us feel a part of the situation.

Storytelling is tapping into people’s emotions that will help you to influence or persuade them.

Stories build connections between people. Those who tell stories are the ones making solid connections with their audience.

Storytelling is powerful because it engages the entire brain. A story, if broken down into the simplest form, is a connection between cause and effect.

Let me work with you and make your stories visual to be more engaging.