How a Beloved Photo Software Suite Avoided Extinction — My introduction to Nik Software was at a photography conference in 2009. Tony Corbell, who was a Brooks graduate and senior manager at Nik, was demonstrating Silver Efex Pro. It was the most impressive 20 minutes of the week. Not only was Tony an amazing photographer with an impressive pedigree…

And the lesson I learned as a result. — When my grandfather was sick, very sick, I went to visit him in the hospital. His bed was propped up at an angle, maybe so he could have a bite to eat. Everything in the room seemed very white. His name was Webster. Most people called him Web. I brought…

Combine Analog Skills with Digital Convenience — I agree that shooting film will make us better photographers. Analog photography requires a certain level of awareness at the moment of capture. Film sees the world differently than our eyes, and we must adjust accordingly. As a result, we learn how to better control our cameras in analog…

Excellent Software for Photography Pros and Enthusiasts — Photography is far more enjoyable and productive when you’re happy with your end-to-end workflow. That means having a camera you’re comfortable with, a capable computer that can manage thousands of images, and a photo management application that facilitates importing, organizing, editing, and output. …

My Quest to Trust Object Recognition for Finding My Photos — The room lights were dimmed low, and I could barely read my notepad. Fortunately, a glow from the stage cascaded just enough brightness for me to scribble down a few helpful gems from the speaker. Photographer Seth Resnick was before me, standing in front of a giant screen showing his…

How the Answer Came to Me in a Mexican Restaurant — I was working in a camera bag booth at a birding show on a muggy Florida afternoon. Since most of the visitors were birders, not photographers, we didn’t have much to offer them. I wasn’t even sure why we were there. “Maybe your spotting scope will fit in this…

How to take your monochromes to new heights — Every photo app on the planet has some way to convert your colorful digital images to monochrome. It could be as simple as total desaturation by moving a slider all the way to the left, or as sophisticated as a dedicated B&W conversion panel that lets you play with the…

Even though you’re familiar with RAW, do you know how to get the most out of it? There’s a lot more to this camera format than you may realize. Why Shoot RAW in the First Place? In a recent poll, I asked enthusiast photographers: Why do you shoot RAW? …

My vision of Live View is to bring together talented photographers — each with a unique perspective — to share their stories. As editor of this Medium.com publication, my request is for them to focus on topics they’re excited about. I believe this approach brings out the best in artists. …