Hi!
It's Jaymes again, wishing you a happy Saturday! Here in Southeast Michigan, the trees are finally budding in earnest and the tulip plants in my garden seem to have survived the extreme temperature fluctuations over the last couple of weeks - so I am in good spirits!
Unfortunately, despite the good weather, I haven't had much chance to get out with my camera over the last few weeks. How about you? What have you been up to, photographically speaking? If you've recently captured a photo you're proud of, I'd love to see it!
Anyway, for those of you who sent in images, I very much appreciate it, and this newsletter will, of course, include a couple of critiques for the dPS community's pleasure.
And while I know that not everyone is currently heading toward warmer weather, I wanted to share a few dPS articles that can help you improve your outdoor photography. Wherever you are in the world, and whatever the temperatures and precipitation, hopefully there's an inspiring subject or two that these articles will help you capture!
Oh, and before I move on: There's a lot of talk in the US about the solar eclipse that's coming up on Monday. If you're interested in photographing the eclipse, expert photographer and dPS author Simon Ringsmuth wrote an excellent piece on solar eclipse photography a few years back, and I highly recommend you check it out.
I do want to emphasize, however - as Simon does in the article - that solar eclipses are dangerous, both for your eyes and for your camera equipment. Please, please, please do not attempt to view or photograph the eclipse without proper protection! The protective equipment detailed in the article won't cost you much, and viewing/photographing without the necessary protection is simply not worth the damage.
With that out of the way, let's dive in, starting with:
Tips and ideas for outdoor photography
If you're looking to get outside with your camera and take some photos, we can help! Here are just a few handy articles - many of them recently updated - that offer both inspiration and advice:
- How to Photography Flowers: A Beginner's Guide - With flowers starting to bloom in some locations, I've recently expanded and updated my dPS flower photography guide to include fresh insights. In the article, I cover everything you need to get started with flower photography, from my gear recommendations and favorite camera settings to my best tips to improve your lighting and composition skills.
- 16 Nature Photography Ideas (for Easy Inspiration) - Need some nature photography inspiration? This recently expanded article includes a slew of ideas to get your creative juices flowing. And the best part is that most of the photos can be captured directly in your backyard!
- 9 Tips for Beautiful Spring Landscape Photography - Spring is a great time for landscape photography. You can capture green pastures, budding trees, flowers in the environment, and more. For landscape photographers hoping to level up their shots, this article is a must-read!
- Bird Photography: 17 Expert Tips for Breathtaking Images - Whether it's spring or autumn where you live, the bird photography opportunities are likely outstanding! Read our comprehensive bird photography guide, then use the advice to create amazing images of migrating warblers, shorebirds, and so much more!
- Outdoor Portrait Photography: A Comprehensive Guide (+ Tips) - For those of you who prefer more people-focused photography, don't worry; I have a recommendation for you, too! Our comprehensive guide to outdoor portrait photography will help you create better portraits (and it'll likely inspire you to schedule some fun photoshoot sessions with friends and family, too!).
Of course, if I didn't address your favorite photography genre, I'm sure we have an article (or 10!) that'll speak to your interests. Just head over to the dPS home page and type your genre of choice into the search bar (in the upper right-hand corner) - the search will return plenty of articles written by our expert authors!
Two more critiques!
First of all, thank you to everyone who sent in images! I really enjoyed looking at them all, and while I don't have time today to critique each and every file, I'll certainly try to get to many of them in the coming weeks.
(And as always, for those of you who would like to see your images critiqued in a future newsletter, feel free to hit Reply to this message and send along a file or two! Just make sure you mention that the images are indeed for critique in the email body or subject line, and please make sure the files are JPEGs and at least 1000 pixels on the long end!)
First, we have this wonderful mountainscape from Rob:
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