My good friend John Stanley is pictured with his father's clock. Here is the story John shared about the clock.
Daniel brought a painting created my his mother. He told me about how he grew up watching her paint and she created this awesome painting of his wedding day.
Melanie's item was her grandmother's ring. Check out the rest of the story!
An introduction to the ONE Project. My latest personal project: a study of people and their sentimental items.
It is back- Celebration of Smiles 2017! Every year, we do free portraits to support Operation Smile. For a donation of merely $25, we photograph you and give you the digital file. No strings attached. For every 10 we do, enough money is raised ($250) to pay for a child to have surgery. What a de...
Just returned from a fun weekend in Yakima, Washington where I judged images at PPA’s Western States District Image Competition. If you’ve never entered photographic competitions, you are missing out on one of the best educational opportunities available. It truly forces you to hone your craft and ...
Ok, I’ve fallen a bit behind in my blogging, but had to take a second for a “shameless self-promotion post.” Several years ago, I started a YouTube channel to share tips on photography, Photoshop, etc. It started out as just a fun project and just continued to grow. Recently, the channel reached ...
It is that time again. Time to take on a huge charity venture to help some kids smile. My son Dean is helping me promote again this year, so here he is to tell you more…. WHAT IS IT? Operation Smile provides free surgeries to repair cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities for children...
Ready to get your learn on??? I’ll be doing a presentation tomorrow for the 2016 Digital Art Summit. My program is on “Growing as an Artist” and there are plenty of other presenters doing some amazing programs as well. You have the option of just purchasing my program or they have some packages th...
This project has produced some very emotional stories, but this is one you won't forget. Here is Marsha's story.
Guest Post by Brian Testa From a Renewed Bingo Setting to Instant Photo Sharing Capabilities Social media has already made its presence felt in the photo industry with more technologies that cater to portability and ease of access. Although the DSLRs are still a must for professional shutterbugs, ca...
Read moreI get a lot of emails asking which Photoshop filter plugins I use on my images. By far, my favorites are the Topaz filters. I like the fact that they offer easy-t0-use presets, but also allow you to go in and fine tune the look as much as you want. I don’t really endorse too many photography items...
Read moreEvery year, I teach a darkroom class to 8th graders at The Westwood School in Dallas. Although it is truly a dying art, I think there is still a lot to be learned from the whole development process. You have to work to get a nice image and can’t just shoot 1000 shots and hope to get a good one. Whi...
Read moreBack Where It Started Fifteen years ago, I joined the Dallas Professional Photographers Association. I didn’t really know anyone there and was just learning the ropes of photography. I knew so little, that I didn’t realize how far I had to go – if that makes sense. In hindsight, it turned out to ...
Read moreDon’t get me wrong- there are certainly days when I long for the “good old days” – when we used film and people didn’t stare at their phones all day. Technology can certainly be a nuisance. However, sometimes it comes in pretty darn handy! OFF TO THE ARCTIC This week I was scheduled to speak in Mi...
Read moreI am excited to be a part of the PROSPER eConference Summit January 14-23. This summit brings together 15 of the brightest minds in the industry — leading photography experts who will share proven strategies, real-world techniques, and hands-on tools designed to help you: • Attract, close, and thril...
Read moreAnyone Remember Records? The era of the vinyl LP is pretty much behind us. Sure, there are a few die-hard collectors and DJs who still covet records, but by-and-large, the music industry has left them behind. Remember when you were a kid and you got a cool new album for Christmas? It was always ob...
Read moreThe First Album The first official album cover for my “Off The Record” project has been completed and was unveiled today – appropriately enough – in London during my program at SWPP. I decided to start the project off with an iconic album cover from a British band that helped define 80s music – Dur...
Read moreOff The Record For this cover, I took on the album cover of one of my all-time favorite albums: Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits Vol 1 and 2. When photographer Cris Duncan suggested the cover, I knew it was one that I wanted to work on! How It Happened Cris is located in Lubbock, Texas – which would hav...
Read morePink Lady This next image in my Off The Record Project is a tribute to Pink’s “The Truth About Love” album cover. While it might not be quite as iconic as some of the other ones we will be tackling, it was certainly a fun one to create. After all- isn’t that what it is all about? The Concept When K...
Read moreBack From The UK Well, I’ve fallen a bit behind on my blogging lately and realized that I never really mentioned something BIG that happened to me earlier this year! I had the opportunity to speak in London at the Societies’ 2014 convention- which was a blast. The Society of Wedding and Portrait Ph...
Read moreWith The Beatles When I first started this Off The Record Project, I knew one of the albums I needed to include was the iconic cover of the Beatles first US album, “Meet The Beatles”. It is a very distinctive look that most rock and roll fans recognize instantly. I thought it would be fun to recre...
Read more