mindset

As we all know, there are many things that can make or break a photograph. While technical aspects might immediately jump to mind and the light may grab our attention, one word that tends to pop up a lot in my feedback is “intent”.

Some years ago I wrote about the (now fairly obvious seeming) perspective of photography as a process of grounded, present awareness in order to achieve a result.

There's an expression in relation to investment banking I've heard which I think translates quite well into advice for documentary photographers: "it's not timing the market, its time in the market."

My name is Jordan McChesney, and I'm a photographer based in Japan. Let me start by saying that I am not a professional photographer, and I’m well aware that my movement towards success is an ongoing process that is (hopefully) in the early stages of even bigger things to come. That being said, I think it’s a good idea to reflect on my last year or so of growth.

Consider this: think like a painter. Painting is basically an additive process: the painter adds paint to a canvas. Photography is basically subtractive: the photographer, through careful composition and cropping (or cloning in the digital darkroom), subtracts unwanted or distracting elements from a scene to create a vision -- or impression -- of a scene.

Whenever I travel for photography, there’s a real sense of anticipation for the scenarios I might face, the feeling that the next great moment is just around the corner. As a street and documentary photographer, my intention when traveling is not to see “the sights”, or to eat the foods, or to hear the music -- instead, it is specifically to meet the people and see what aspects of myself exist in foreign situations.

Being a monk who has photographed monastic communities from many years now, many people have asked me if I have something to share from my experience. Well, there isn't much.

It’s an ongoing joke with my friends and I that I am really not a fan on the current marketing messaging that the “universe has my back” and that the success of my business is down to my “mindset”.

My name is Brian Carey, and I'm a photographer in St John's Newfoundland Canada. I'm like a lot of photographers in that I like to complement my professional work with something personal, something I can connect with.

The state of photography is chaotic and rapidly changing. The definition of photographer is evolving, the barrier of entry is at its lowest yet, and imposter syndrome is taking hold. Let’s review the mental gear needed to shoot in this new landscape.

How do you go about shooting a subject when you know they could die in a split second while your camera is pointed at them? That's the reality filmmakers Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi faced while creating their documentary Free Solo. The duo followed climber Alex Honnold during his attempt to be the first human to ever climb the 3,000ft El Capitan in Yosemite without safety equipment.

When most people think of the word Zen, a meditating monk in a monastery comes to mind, a practice of enlightenment, a person being in the present or someone without attachments. When I think of Zen, I think of a lifestyle that has profoundly influenced my photography practice. I would like to dive into the ways of zen photography and how it might enlighten your creative practice.

The kind of photography I do begins as a moment of theft. Finding the scene, finding your angle, and stealing the moment for yourself. Some photographers are creators. They build a scene, a still life, or arrange their models and angle their lights and create an image from nothing. I’m not one of those photographers. I’m a thief.

Here's an inspiring 5-minute video in which renowned street photographer Joel Meyerowitz talks about his approach and mindset to making photos.

Here’s a quote by photographer Richard Benson on …