Photographer Profiles

This amazing image might look like it was shot on a different planet but it was actually captured in commercial photographer Michelle Monique’s living room for her first paid gig back in 2009.

Every pet parent understands the fact that no dog can resist a tasty treat—and they’ll go to great lengths to get them. 

In this column we look at some of the business aspects of fine art photography: getting established, finding clients, looking for gallery representation, marketing techniques, and finding your style and direction. Special thanks to this month’s contributing photographers: Sean Bagshaw (Outdoor Exposure Photography, LLC), David Bowman, John Granata (John Granata Fine Art), Robin Hill, and Cheyenne L Rouse.

What’s the biggest challenge about photographing a dirt bike jumping into a swimming pool? “Aside from not dying by either being hit by the bike from landing so close, or being electrocuted by the lighting power pack since the area around the pool was only about two-feet wide, the hardest part was to understand how to send a signal underwater to fire off the strobes above to get the necessary lighting,” photographer Jean-Paul Van Swae said about this spectacular shot.

For a sports photographer, the thrill of the game is superseded only by the thrill of capturing that peak moment of action. For the uninitiated, photographing a sport—especially football—can be intimidating and certainly challenging. Hit-or-miss, in fact. But not to a seasoned pro like Peter Read Miller. This illustrious Sports Illustrated photographer, who now largely shoots for commercial clients, shares with us his experience and knowledge of how to shoot the game of football.

Here’s the one thing you can count on in sports photography: the pictures won’t be there waiting for you. Images of key moments, athletes’ efforts, and fans’ reactions—you’re going to have to be at the top of your game to get them.

Stephen Shore fondly recalls his Polaroid SX-70. Shore, known for color images of everyday America, in books like Uncommon Places and American Surfaces, loved the immediacy of the SX-70. “Whatever you observed and chose to picture was right there,” he says of that ingenious little device.