In summer, many will take some of their vacation time and travel to volunteer with their church mission trip or donate their time to NGOs.

Why take a camera when I have my phone?

Most smartphones have cameras that have fixed lenses. All smartphones fall into the wide-angle lens bracket, typically around 24-30mm [35mm equivalent]; the larger the number, the less wide the lens angle.

Due to the lens limit, most people crop up to take closer photos.

Most smartphones’ light sensitivity tops out around ISO 800; however, some go to ISO 3200, but as that ISO creeps up, the noise and quality of those photos diminish quickly.

Three Camera Recommendations

First is the compact camera with a good zoom range. Here are four to consider for your next trip.

The second category is the bridge camera. Bridge cameras are a versatile and affordable alternative to DSLRs, offering the same kind of manual controls and a huge zoom lens that covers everything from wide-angle to super-telephoto photography.

Here are four that will work great for anything you want to photograph.

The next category is mirrorless cameras. The mirror mechanism of a DSLR is complex and noisy and adds to the camera’s weight, and that’s where the mirrorless camera or compact system camera comes in. They keep DSLR cameras’ big sensors and interchangeable lenses but ditch the mirror to produce a smaller, lighter, and simpler camera.

Here are five I recommend to take a closer look at as an option for you.

I have left the DSLR off the list because I am finding more and more people are enjoying the mirrorless for travel over the DSLR.

When traveling for a client, I shoot with my Nikon D5 because it will work better in any situation than any other camera I could find on the market.

Beyond the camera

Buy extra batteries and memory cards for your trip. Always have one spare battery and a different memory card with you. If your camera takes two cards, you should be acceptable depending on the size capacity. You will be fine today with 32 GB and 64 GB cards. Buy the most significant capacity cards and have one or two extra, depending on how much you like to shoot.

Tips for what to shoot

One of the best things you can have in mind when you are shooting is how you plan to use the photos later. There are generally two things I like to always think of as my end product.

Slide Show

First is a slide show that will be projected or online as a video. A slide show is pretty typical for a church mission trip. A good rule of thumb for a 2 – 3 minute slide show is about 40 – 60 photos.

These talks usually happen in two ways: project a photo and manually advance the images as you talk. The second is just the same show, but it is self-running. You record your voice with your computer or phone and then put your images with that soundtrack. Here is a simple way to do it on a Mac:

Here is how you do it on a PC using Windows Live Movie Maker

Book

Second, I like to create a coffee table book from my trips. Again, the number of photos is also about 40 – 60 to have something substantial. I recommend using Blurb.com to make the book. If you use Lightroom’s latest version, the book tab uses a blurb as the printer.

Here is the Lightroom way of actually creating the book.

What to shoot?

I suggest shooting to a storyline. Come up with a working storyline before you go, and then shoot to the storyline as you travel.

Your storyline will likely change once you get there and start experiencing everything. That is OK. It is normal. Just adjust and continue to shoot.

Now, if you are going with your church on a mission trip, you may have an objective to communicate the problem that your team solved. For example, you may go on a building trip where you finish a project. While that is what you did, don’t tell that story. Instead, tell the story of why they needed the building. Show where they were meeting for services, and then maybe show the group meeting in the new facility when it is done.

Sometimes, your objective is to have a call to action. For example, maybe you went and helped build a school, but you want the audience to help support a child to go to that school. Tell the story of the child’s life if they don’t get to go to school, and then tell the difference the school will make in their lives.

I use Chris Vogler’s storyline as a template and keep it in mind as I shoot.

While thinking about what and why I am telling a story, I also create an essential shot list to help tell the story.

• Opener: Sets the scene for the story
• Decisive moment: The one moment that can by itself tell the story
• Details: Besides being like visual candy to the report, help often with transitions–especially in multimedia packages
• Sequences: give a little variety to a situation
• High overall shot: Gives a good perspective on how the elements all fit together.
• Closer: Other visual ways, besides the classic shot of the cowboy riding off into the sunset, help close the story.
• Portraits: These photos are great for introducing the characters of the story

If you go with a team, try to get everyone to work together. This way, you can pool all the photos together and have everyone contribute quotes from the people you helped.

Each night you are on your trip, take a few minutes at dinner to review what you have seen that day and whether someone took photos of it. Then, look at the pictures and be sure you have good images to use.

Make a list of things you missed that day to get the next day, and then those things you think you are missing that haven’t happened yet.

If you take a few minutes each night and journal your day on who you met, where you went, and what you learned, you will have a great story worth sharing.

Video/Audio

Record some of the people you meet using audio or video. The point is to have in their voice quotes that you can drop into your slide show or later in your book.

Don’t try to tell us all you did and saw on your trip. Instead, stay focused on the “WHY?”. You may have a lot about what you did and how you did it, but that isn’t what hooks the audience. Keep your audience on the edge of their seats with the why of the stories.

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.

One of the most passionate people in the bible was Saul. You may know him by his Roman name of Paul, which he used more after the encounter with Jesus on the Damascus road.

He was one of the most learned men in the New Testament. He had command of Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic. His purpose was to pursue truth, and before the Damascus Road, he saw the fact as it was taught to him and interpreted the scripture.

I believe many Christians would find themselves similar to Saul. They have been brought up in the church and studied the scripture. They listen to their Sunday School Teachers and Preachers and seek to serve God as they have been told and their view of the scripture.

Maybe we are like Saul and are fearful of no one except God. I wonder if God had been trying to get Saul’s attention before the Damascus Road experience. The thing I notice in the story of his conversion, which you can find in Acts 9:1-19, was Saul’s response to the voice of God, “Who are you, Lord?”

All this time of service, Saul’s to God, and he didn’t know God.

Saul, blinded by the light, would spend three days not eating or drinking but just in his thoughts.

Are you like Saul?

Have you been reading your scriptures and listening to the Sunday School Teachers and Preachers? Maybe you, too, are persecuting the Lord.

Priests in many churches will burn incense before the reading of the Gospels.

The smoke symbolizes the prayers of the faithful drifting up to heaven: the Psalmist prays, “Let my prayer come like incense before you; the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice” (Psalm 141).

This key element seemed to be missing from Saul’s life before the Damascus Road. He was lacking the direction of God. Saul had read the scriptures and interpreted them without God.

All this happened to Saul to regain his sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.

The key to the change in Saul’s life was his purpose was to be aligned with God’s purpose rather than his alone.

Are you busy today doing “Good,” or are you seeking God to know his will for you?

Any camera manufacturer has never sponsored me. Most of what I have gotten from them were gifts they give at trade shows. So, all my comments are just how I feel about my gear. However, I do want to disclose that for the equipment links, while you pay the same price, I get a small percentage of that sale.

I went to the Rodeo just a few miles from my house. The Rodeo started at 8:00 p.m. under a covered arena. By the time the cowgirls were roping calves, it was a little after 9:00 p.m. and after sunset.

The few sodium lights there were just not all that bright. Not for sports.

My go-to settings for sports on my Nikon D5 are:

– Auto ISO with high set to 64000
– Shutter speed 1/4000
– Aperture wide open

The camera peaked out and dropped the shutter speed right away to 1/3200.

Soon, I was shooting at 1/2500, with ISO 64000. I noticed many people there with their cameras early on, but as the night progressed, I think most of those cameras couldn’t get anything in the low light, but my Nikon D5 was delivering.

Now, you can see how the color differs from the two frames of cowgirls going around the same barrel. This is due to the Sodium Vapor lights that are cycling. Depending on when you catch them, the color will shift. Often, there is a streak through the image of a color shift and a slight exposure difference.

I didn’t get Rodeoe rodeo early enough to pick a prime location to shoot from. I finally managed to get a spot on the very top of the stands, but they were a little ways away when the bull riders came on. I put the 1.4X converter on and lost another stop of light. I was now shooting with an aperture of ƒ/4 instead of ƒ/2.8 without the converter. Also, that part of the event was when all the light was gone from outside the arena, and I dropped my shutter speed to 1/800.

I continued to get asked if the Nikon D5 was worth the purchase. This is an excellent example of photos I would not have gotten with my Nikon D4.

The photos from the darkest part of the event, bull riding, look better than my ISO 800 images from just a couple of years ago with my Nikon D2Xs.

The color, to me, is better than Kodachrome could have delivered.

This is the gear that I used to cover the Rodeo.

Now, for this last shot I took when I first arrived at the Rodeo of the Little Cowboy, I used my Sigma 35mm ƒ/1.4. I love the image so much that I just had to share it with you, even though ISO 640 was used for this photo.

Here is a link to purchase this lens.

Instilling Good Habits

There are two good reasons why it’s essential to instill the habit of making the bed every morning. First, it does feel good to know we’ve made our bed for the day. While it’s a small task to consider, it makes much difference in getting things done. Considering it’s the first thing that should be done in the morning, it can give a good sense of accomplishment. That’s the same feeling I want my kids to experience. If they experience it at a very young age, they can develop the habit of getting things done.

Cleanliness is the second reason why it’s essential to instill the habit of making the bed in the morning. The bedroom looks a lot cleaner. It boils down to the responsibility of taking care of yourself.

Work Habits

Be sure you are neat, tidy, and clean where you work. Make sure your desk or workstation is neat, clean, and pleasant. Clear perishable rubbish immediately and wash your mug at the end of the workday. The same attitude applies to the general office area and restrooms — use them considerately for others to enjoy.

Employees wait to be told what to do—entrepreneurs think strategically about what needs to be done and then do it. Employees do their job well—entrepreneurs are committed to the team doing healthily—so they mentor other employees, pitch in when needed, and go that extra mile if it means the work is going to be done better.

Work for yourself

Successful freelancers/entrepreneurs are those who are not just making their beds and leaving things neat and tidy for others, but they have personal projects every day. I call these passion projects.

A passion project is something you work on (often outside of your chosen career path) that gives you satisfaction and happiness and puts you in a flow state. It’s what you do to escape it all. It’s your contribution to the world.

Be sure that you Focus on Results, Not Just Activities. It isn’t about the to-dos you’ve knocked off your list—it is about the quantitative results of your work.

For me going and helping missionaries and NGOs around the world is my passion. I help them tell their stories better than they can alone. I come alongside people and capture their passion projects.

My focus on these projects isn’t about traveling and meeting people in different places. My passion is helping someone talk about their love for a people group and business in the world that they want to help improve.

When I am done, I want to hear that because of my work by capturing photos, videos, and audio of their work, their supporters are giving more, and their number is increasing. Sometimes I hear my work helped local indigenous people understand their job and are better connected locally.

Passion Project – My Blog

One of my passion projects is this blog, which grew out of my other passion for teaching.

I realized that many I was teaching were not taking good notes, and my goal was for them to succeed. I started by posting some of my teaching assignments with examples in blogs.

Know How to Pitch Ideas (the Right Way)

Once you have been doing things for yourself and see how this has improved your life, it is much easier to pitch an idea to someone else. However, if you lack good work habits for yourself, what do you have to offer to someone else?

Smart people are full of ideas—but brilliant people also can sell those ideas to everyone else, sharing not only why the picture is a great one but how it will impact the team and business.

Don’t worry about perfection. Put your energy into taking action. It would help if you failed now and then. It is essential to try new things, be willing to learn and grow, and constantly strive to get to the next level, even if you make a mistake or two.

Successful people know exactly what they need to get their work done—and they’re not afraid to make it happen.

Questions for thought

–

• Did you make your bed today?
• Do you have an ongoing personal project?
• Do you have something on your calendar to do for your project?
• When was your last failure, and what did you learn from it?
• When was your last pitch to someone for an idea?
• What is your next idea pitch?

Nikon D750, 28-300mm, ISO 2200, ƒ/5.6, 1/100

My good friend Robin Nelson and I enjoy catching up over coffee, and our latest conversation was about how surprised we are about how photographers dress on jobs.

Now above is my good friend James Dockery getting a video in a church in Romania. Dressing in dark colors like James is doing here is typical for photographers to blend in at events.

The photographers wore dress shirts and dark outfits at my friend’s wedding.

Now I would recommend that photographers avoid jeans at formal events like weddings. Dark dress pants should be something you have in your wardrobe for formal occasions.

Atlanta Business Chronicle Byron Small wore a suit when setting up an interview with The President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández.

The President’s photographer is also in a suit while covering his visit to Coca-Cola headquarters in Atlanta.

However, these are the photographers at the top of their field. Robin Nelson and I noticed that many who struggle for jobs are often the worst-dressed photographers.

I made a few black dress shirts with my logo to wear to formal events and then had some casual shirts with my logo for other events.

I think you need to dress as close to the people you are covering at an event as you can. I even own a Tuxedo and wear this for black tie events.

My favorite shoes, which are also crucial for comfort, are the Clarks Wavekorey Free shoe.

My recommendation is to be successful; you need to look the part. So start by dressing for success.

Nikon D4, 28-300mm, ISO 100, ƒ/4.5, 1/320

Romans 12:6-8

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;  if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach;  if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Everyone is unique, and yet we are all called. We have been given talents and gifts to be used, and when we do, bless the communities in which we live.

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Sometimes I think we have an idea that to be called; we must have some supernatural talent and be one of the Marvel characters we see on the big screen.

Often our calling is just being a friend and listening to another person who has something they need to share.

Today you may just be preparing for what is to come tomorrow. Studying is an act of serving. You are sharpening those skills so that when you are called to act, you can do so with the quality of work.

Sometimes our jobs are to tend to the flock, like this shepherd. Whatever our role is today, we need to embrace that role.

Most of my days are filled with listening to clients and spending my time trying to understand their needs. Once that is understood, I look for ways to help tell their stories using visuals and words to capture moments that engage their audience.

Isaiah 40:31

but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

Nikon D3, 14-24mm, ISO 200, ƒ/13, 1/3

Thinking aloud is a standard and beneficial aspect of human cognitive function. It helps us remember things, work through complicated tasks, and boosts our self-esteem. However, in many situations, thinking out loud is inappropriate, especially when you are the one leading.

If you have a goal and objectives and someone asks questions, you can easily handle this and even think aloud because you will be thinking about how to keep the question on a topic and drive everyone to the goal.

However, if you have no goal, everyone will get lost, and not much is accomplished.

What do communications and education have in common? Well, they have a lot in common.

Goals & Objectives

Both communications and education share that they have an audience and a message. They also have goals and objectives that they are trying to achieve.

Lately, I continue to find myself in meetings and situations where people are leading a group and don’t know what they are doing. How do I know this because they lose me in their train of thought?

In education, you have an Objective – A statement of purpose for the whole lesson. It tells us what the students will be able to do by the end of the study.

In communications, objectives include (1) creating awareness, (2) imparting knowledge, (3) projecting an image, (4) shaping attitudes, (5) stimulating a want or desire, and (6) effecting a sale.

Now imagine playing a sport like a rugby and having no goals. Which way will you run when you have the ball?

When you are teaching or being a communicator, you are very much like an orchestra conductor. You are leading the group to a goal.

Engage First

Your first objective as a teacher or communicator is to hook your audience. A story or question can be a great way to grab the audience’s attention.

With photography, we use a photo that grabs your attention. In teaching, questions are often used to pique the audience’s attention, but your first job is to get their attention.

The best place to start with your attention-grabbing moment is to think about your goal.

Let’s say my goal is to sell light sticks. To get your attention, I set up a situation where the power goes out in a house, and you have to go down to the basement to check the circuit breakers. So to get your attention, I show the product being used but also create that tension of the mother holding the boy’s hand going down the stairs.

Procedure

Now in lesson planning, we write out a list of steps. In communications, you do the same, but we talk about this as sequencing.

In education, you may teach a person English by starting with just spelling. Here is the word and how it is spelled. Then you give spelling tests.

The next stage is then to use a word in a sentence. Maybe you have a word with different spellings and want to test for comprehension. You use the word there in one sentence and then there in another. The students then put the correct spelled word in those sentences.

Then to take the lesson plan to the next stage, you just put the word on the chalkboard and ask them to write a sentence using it.

As you can see, you continue your lesson plan until you meet your goal for that lesson. Your goal may be simple, like on the level of knowledge, or as complex as having a student function at the evaluation level of knowledge about a topic.

Think of your message as using a compass. You can always get back on track to your destination if you know where true north is.

The problem I see with many who lead discussions is they don’t know their true north or how to get there.

A List isn’t a Plan

Too many people have written down a list of things to cover and think that is a lesson plan. That is just a list. If someone asks a question, they get upset. They want to go down their inventory and cover it completely.

They don’t have any objective other than covering their list.

Ask Yourself

Start with what difference was made in your life because of this topic. How did this change your life? This is an excellent place to start with what you are trying to convey.

Think like your audience

Just because the information you learned that changed your life is something you think others should benefit from, it will not unless it is relevant to them.

If the way you came to understand the concept was through the use of a sports metaphor, don’t make the assumption this will work for others.

Learn what is relevant to them.

If you are trying to teach others how God is relevant to our lives and you grew up playing sports, you may talk about God as being the coach or quarterback for an analogy.

However, the geek may need a metaphor of thinking of God like ROM for their computer or if they are a musician as God as the director of the orchestra.

Keeping it Simple

• Know your Objective
• Remember, you are not the audience.
• Know your audience and what is relevant to them
• Remember to start with getting their attention.
• Invite participation with the idea of engaging
• Communicate in stages/steps/sequence
• Know when to stop

For video capture, I attached to my Nikon D5 using the HDMI output the Atomos Ninja Blade 5″ HDMI On-Camera Monitor & Recorder.

Why I do, this is a great question. Most all DSLRs that record video have a 30-minute time limit. I understand this has to do with avoiding a double tax in some countries.

So how do you record a musical as I did that goes an hour and a half for just the first Act? This is where the Atomos Ninja Blade comes to the rescue.

Atomos Ninja Blade 5″ PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

Key Features

• 325DPI, 5″ IPS 1280 x 720 capacitive touchscreen monitor/recorder.
• Waveform RGB & luma parade, vectorscope with zoom, and test pattern generator.
• Adjustable gamma, contrast, and brightness.
• HDMI input and output.
• Real-time monitoring, playback, playout to a PC or Mac with QuickTime, and edit logging.
• Focus peaking, 0-100% zebra, and two modes of false color monitoring.
• Records 10-bit, 4:2:2 in ProRes or DNxHD.
• S-Log / C-Log recording.
• Trigger REC/STOP from the camera (Canon, Sony, ARRI, Panasonic, RED, JVC)
• Timecode from the camera. [Nikon has no timecode]
• 2.5″ HDD/SSD media storage.

It records up to 1080 30p/60i resolution via HDMI to an available HDD or SSD using either Apple’s ProRes or Avid’s DNxHD codecs. Recording at 10-bit with 4:2:2 color sampling, this unit provides a monitoring and recording solution in one compact battery-powered unit.

I bought the ADATA Technology 256GB Ultimate SU800 SATA III 2.5″ Internal SSD card.

Here are the Settings for Nikon D5

Set your frame size and frame rate in the Movie Shooting Menu. Whatever you set, here is what will come from the HDMI connection. I use 1080p/24.

1080p/24. 1080p/24 is a resolution and framerate indicative of Hollywood movies on Blu-ray discs. 1080p is the resolution, implying a full HD resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels. The “P” stands for “Progressive.” which means each frame has all the pixels listed.

Next, go to the Pencil Menu/Custom Setting Menu, select the C Timers/AE Lock, and toggle to the right.

Pick the C4 Monitor off delay and then toggle right again.

Go to the bottom Live view and toggle right once again.

Set this to No Limit. Now you can just click menu button to get out of the menu.

Select video on the Live View and push the button. Now to record on the Atomos Ninja, tap the REC button.

When you do that, there will be a red line around the screen and red light on the right side of the recorder. The only thing limiting your time is the size of your hard drive.

This setup worked great for a two and half hour performance of Oklahoma.

Fuji X-E2, Fuji XF 55-200mm, ISO 1600, ƒ/4.7, 1/100

While the Nikon D5 will record 4K, I don’t need this most of the time, so the Atomos Ninja Blade 5″ was perfect.

If you want to record at 4K, you can get the Atomos Shogun Flame 7″ 4K HDMI/12-SDI Recording Monitor. They make other higher-end models as well.

If you are not a video shooter and are more of a stills shooter, then for capturing video, you need to be a little more hands-on technically.

What I mean by this is that the exposure and sound vary through a production; you may need to adjust this as you are recording.

With the Nikon D5 attached to the Atomos Ninja Blade, using the HDMI port, siphons this off before it hits the H.264 encoder, and you are recording in ProRes format. This isn’t registering in the RAW video but is more like a TIFF file than a JPEG.

Now I cannot share Oklahoma! Video because of copyright. [I am recording it for the Shuler Awards in Georgia]

The cool thing is you can now buy the Atomos Ninja Blade 5″ for $395 without a hard drive which gives you the 5″ monitor. I would recommend purchasing an SSD hard drive of your choice in size.

There are three more performances for me to tweak my exposure and sound to capture the best quality possible from my setup. At the same time, each version traditionally gets better each time.

By the way, Aunt Eller is my daughter Chelle. This is her senior year and last production. She also taught the choreography to the cast.

I hope these tips will help you think of ways to use your DSLR to do more than take photos. I wanted to use the high-quality CMOS chip to get an excellent keepsake video of our daughter to cherish for the rest of her life.

Fake News

Turn on the news or pick up a newspaper today, and there most likely have been articles about how to spot “Fake News.” Sadly it would help if you did a lot of research sometimes.

Some sites intentionally write false, humorous stories under the satire genre. A prime example is An Onion. Many people realize The Onion is a satirical publication. But if there’s any doubt, it’s pretty straightforward if you click on the site’s “About Us” tab.

One of the easiest ways to determine whether a news story is legitimate is to check it against the stories posted on other reputable sites.

If sites like The New York Times, CBS, or CNN run the same story, it’s likely true.

Here are some tips that many of these stories all say to look for:

1. Pay attention to the domain and URL
2. Read the “About Us” section
3. Look at the quotes in a story
4. Look at who said them
5. Check the comments
6. Reverse image search

Product Endorsers

First, I have many friends affiliated with Nikon, Canon, Sigma, Fuji, and Sony. Most of them do a great job of letting you know they are affiliated with these companies. I listen to them and take their advice many times. One of my favorites through the years is Bill Fortney. Formerly Bill was a Nikon Representative. Today he is retired but now a Fuji X-Photographer and does incredible work.

However, nothing ticks me off more lately in the photography industry than those photographers who are not forthcoming with their affiliations with manufacturers. The Federal Trade Commission doesn’t like it either and will come after you.

Here’s the golden rule behind all FTC guidelines: conspicuous disclosure must occur in advance if money changes hands.

As a person reading blogs and articles, you must be careful in this industry. Many who are compensated in some way are not disclosing this to you as the reader.

Endorsers seldom talk about other gear that may work as well or even better than what they recommend. You see their excellent work and think I can shoot like them if I buy that piece of equipment.

While I am first to say it is always the photographer and not the gear that is the main factor in getting a great photo, there are times when camera gear will let you take a picture; otherwise not possible.

I think the bottom line is that I want those photographers endorsing a product to be sure that the audience is aware that they have stepped into the Manufacturer’s Show Room when they are reading the comments.

Photographers being endorsed when they tweet need to generally start the tweet with the words “Ad:” This applies whether you’re using Sponsored Tweets, Promoted Posts, etc., or using paid evangelists or spokespeople who are promoting on your behalf.

This is a great post showing examples of how and not to Tweet. http://www.shiftcomm.com/blog/how-should-you-handle-the-new-ftc-social-media-regulations/

Corporate sponsors like Nikon, Canon, Sony, Sigma, or any other business expect you to be their representative to the public. All of them have you signing an agreement for which you will be compensated somehow.

Sponsorships for photographers can be huge for no reason other than showing a major manufacturer endorsing you. This is great for marketing purposes.

At this moment, I had never had a relationship for which I have been compensated by a company other than recently when I signed up to be an Amazon Affiliate. However, I only make money if someone clicks on my link and buys something. While I may make a tiny percentage of the sale, the cost to the consumer is the same.

One of my favorite corporate-sponsored photographers is Bill Fortney. He always tells people he worked for Nikon and then gave you advice. Sometimes he would be honest and even say while I work for Nikon, I would buy this instead. Now, if he did this too much, I am sure Nikon would have fired him. Bill had found a way to be a transparent Nikon representative that made me listen more to him and take a lot of his advice. I felt like he was looking out for me.

How to know if someone is a Sponsor

1. Find their website and see if they are listed as

a. Nikon Ambassador
b. Canon Explorers of Light
c. Sony Artisan
d. Fuji X-Photographers
e. Sigma Pros

2. Do they post material without revealing their affiliation

a. Tweets
b. Facebook
c. Instagram

I don’t care how great a photographer’s work is, be careful in listening to any photographer being compensated for promoting any gear, software, or product of any kind.

My advice to you is before you buy gear based on a pro’s recommendation, know if they are endorsed and receive compensation of any sort from that manufacturer. If they are, look for some users who are not supported and see what they are saying. Most of the online camera stores now have a comments section that often is more revealing of gear than these spokespersons.

Bill Bangham gives one-on-one reviews to the students in School of Photography at the University of Nations located in Kona, Hawaii. [Nikon Coolpix P7000]

How would you like for me to go over your work with you and give you some feedback?

Professional photographers seek out portfolio reviews to learn what they can do better and also to hopefully get work.

Getting your photos reviewed is probably one of the best ways to learn and grow.

Having your work reviewed can be a real nail biter for sure. While I was teaching in Kona, Hawaii Dennis Fahringer took this photo of the students listening to me.

Each one of the students would be talking to me later about how difficult the assignments were, but now on the other side of them are grateful for the assignment.

Stanley’s Tips for a Portfolio Review

Let your work speak for itself. Please don’t tell people all about the photos, if the photo doesn’t do a good job of that on it’s own then maybe it shouldn’t be in the portfolio. If the person looking at the photos wants to know more they will ask.

Listen for what is not said as much as what is said. Often when reviewing a new photographer’s work I am looking desperately for something good in the midst of snapshots. I want to encourage you, but I don’t want you to think everything is great either. If I don’t say anything about a photo, believe me it is because I am not impressed. If you ask me I might try to find something good to say, however, if you are fishing for compliments your work isn’t that good.

Portfolio review isn’t about praise of your work. If your work is the greatest of all time then maybe you will get a WOW and I wish I had your portfolio comment. You should be looking for pointers on what to do next time to make the photo better.

Millimeters are critical for great photos. One example of how a millimeter can make or break a photo is just the difference in the camera’s point of view and the subject’s eyes. Just tad bit high and you look down at the subject. Eye level with the subject is something quite different than just a little lower and looking up. As you get better this is what you are looking for the little things to improve your work.

There are stages of growth in photography. Early in your career you may need some really basic tips to help improve your photography. At this point someone talking to you about a millimeter of difference will not help you. You have a lot of work to do before they can talk to you about those differences.

Establish a relationship if possible. You need to pick people to review your work that you can go back to later and show them again. They will be able to then see your growth and frankly if you paid attention.

Ask always if you can follow up and how. Plan to go out and shoot as soon as you can after your review. Work on the tips they pointed out to you and then somehow get them to see your revisions in that portfolio. You might just need to show them one project you are working on and get their feedback.

You never arrive at the top. There is always room for growth. Always seek out feedback on your work for the rest of your career. If you are not growing then you are dying.

If you want me to review your work we can do this a few ways. We can meet in person and I look over your work or we can do it by Skype or by phone. I just need you to share a link of photos with me if we are not in person.

Just contact me. Cost is $125 an hour. Maybe you want to get a friend to do it with you and split the cost. That is fine with me as well.

Tim Hawkins – Comedian [Fuji X-E2, 55-200mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/9, 1/100]

Tim Hawkins often says in his comedy routines that there are only two things different between himself and the audience when it comes to comedy.

First, he has the microphone, and second, talent. Of course, he says this towards the end of his shows after you have been laughing so hard that you have been crying.

Often at the root of a calling to do something is a passion for it. I think cowboys who get on bucking horses and bulls must have a real passion for the sport.

For many of my photojournalist friends, we all have met people and felt like their stories must be told. This burning within our hearts is when we realize that if we don’t tell the story, no one will.

I am seeing now, more than at any other time, photojournalist after photojournalist who cannot find anyone who will support them to do a story that self-funds the coverage of the story.

During the 1960s, Eugene Richards was a civil rights activist and VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) volunteer. Richards’ published photographs are primarily intended to raise social awareness, have been characterized as “highly personal,” and are both exhibited and published in a series of books.

Just a couple of years ago, he was speaking about finding a story that had to be told. No one would underwrite the coverage. After he did it himself, the photos were too disturbing for any publication to take it on.

He would then publish the work as a book with his son. This, with other examples like his, has always opened other doors later for more work, but the calling to do the job was personal.

This past weekend I was part of the planning meeting for the Southwestern Photojournalism Conference. Patrick Murphy-Racey asked us all to go around the room and tell of a heart, and the head moment we could share from the conference that impacted our lives.

Pat shared how close he was to giving up and going into another industry when he came to a conference where Eugene Richards spoke about his passion for subjects that compelled him to do a story even if no one would pay him.

Pat felt he had just been taken out to the shed for a good whipping. He realized he couldn’t stop and would find a way to continue.

Today because of that reignited passion, Pat is a Sony Artisan, and his shooting and speaking schedule has him busy again.

The Southwestern Photojournalism Conference is the conference for those who believe photojournalism to be a calling and the act of bearing witness to be necessary.

All those biblical stories of people hearing God call them to require them to take a “Leap of Faith.” That is an act of believing in or attempting something whose existence or outcome cannot be proved. You are moving into often unchartered waters.

This is so true for the photojournalist who feels called. You see, if the story has been told, then you are not needed. But to tell a story that hasn’t been told requires you to take many risks.

Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

– 1 Timothy 6:12

To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.

– 1 Peter 2:21

[Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8, ISO 5000, ƒ/1.8, 1/100]

I love isolating subjects in a room using selective focus. Selective focus is using a limited depth of field to focus sharply on a specific object in a scene while other parts are out-of-focus.

The Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8 is a great lens to use in a social function like I was covering here. It helps throw the background out of focus and keep your eyes focused on the subject you have picked out of the room.

Now I love to have layering as in this photo. The lady in the foreground and the lady in the background are out of focus while the subject is super sharp.

By shooting over a person’s shoulder, I am giving context to who the subject is talking to or listening to in these photos. So while the aperture of ƒ/1.8 uses selective focus, you can still add information that is secondary to the main subject.

Try and always have the eye closest to the camera in focus when using this technique. Many of today’s cameras have a focusing mode that locks in on the eyes.

With the Nikon D5
Auto-area AF: The camera automatically detects the subject and selects the focus point; if a face is seen, the camera will prioritize the portrait subject. The active focus points are highlighted briefly after the camera focuses; in AF-C mode, the main focus point is displayed after the other focus points have turned off.

While this is a great way to shoot an event, please don’t only shoot this way for an event. Always use more than one aperture setting. Vary your depth-of-field, so you have a variety of types of photos to give to your client.