One of the most overlooked but essential elements in strong composition is critical separation—that small, intentional gap between your subject and their surroundings. It helps body parts and shapes stand out clearly, avoiding unwanted mergers and visual confusion. This detail makes all the difference. It lets your subject breathe in the frame—and your viewer read the […]
Understanding Critical Separation in Photography Read More »
The simplest definition of a good or great photo is one that the viewer simply cannot ignore. Whether it’s due to the subject matter, the message it conveys, its graphic elements, its palette of colors, or the reaction it elicits, a photo that captures attention is doing something right. Street photography excels at this. It
What’s in a Photo: The Power of Street Photography and How It Makes Us React Read More »
On this August 19th, 2023 World Photography Day, I found myself examining where I am in life as a photographer. I consider myself truly fortunate to have discovered my passion for photography early in my adult life. As a dear friend of mine, Carmit Hirsch, insightfully expressed, photography is more than an art or a
Photography: My Soul, My Identity, My Destiny Read More »
Many years ago, while I was a staff photographer at the Boston Globe, I was assigned to Cape Verde to cover a story on education. The resulting piece, a lengthy feature in the Sunday edition of the Boston Globe, included a front-page image that played a significant role in an incident that cemented my beliefs
The original photo on the left captures a scene in Havana during a light rain, viewed through a bus window on a sweltering afternoon. In contrast, the photo on the right was digitally altered using filters, resulting in an illustration that clearly deviates from reality. Despite my discomfort, I felt compelled to create and share
AI-Generated Images… beware of Wolves in Sheep’s clothing Read More »
First of all, let’s be clear about this. There are many different types of portraits. In this post, I am only going to refer to two kinds: Controlled- Setting portraits and Candid or “Found” Portraits. However, these categories could be subdivided into many other categories. So for the sake of simplicity, in this blog, I
Portrait Photography: 7 tips to creating Compelling Portraits Read More »
Unbeknownst to my friend and fellow photographer David Marshak, who’s taken classes from me and has heard me talk in several occasions, he gave me the answer to this question. He recently sent me a link to a Vanity Fair video in which director Rian Johnson breaks down a scene of his movie “The Glass
On the Similarities Between Photography and Cinematography Read More »
The more you familiarize yourself with good composition, the easier it will become for you to be able to add this element to your photos, and a great way to learn this is by studying great paintings and the principles used to create these. I recently came across this fascinating article: “The 31 Top Composition
On the Similarities Between Photography and Painting Read More »
A great technique to depict motion is panning because of its ability to combines camera movement and slow shutter it can produce extraordinary results. It is a tool best used to depict motion around a moving subject, which usually is moving horizontally and preferably parallel to the camera. However, this technique requires practice and a
