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How do you keep yourself motivated and your photography fresh?

First off, I love what I do! I think itandrsquo;s so important when shooting weddings especially, that you are passionate about your work and your couples! I also shoot a limited number of weddings per year {about 30} and Iandrsquo;ve made a pledge to only shoot one wedding per weekend in 09. I typically take the winter off to learn new techniques, relax and stay inspired for next season!

What (or who) has inspired, and continues to inspire, your work?

I find that my couples are most inspiring! I get to work with amazing people who want unique and fun pictures. Each couple and wedding is a completely new experience, making the entire process so cool! I also keep tabs on some amazing wedding photographers whose work is always pushing the boundaries of wedding photography!

You describe your photography as modern, candid and fun. Show us an image that displays all three of those qualities.

I really strive for all my images to speak to these 3 qualities, itandrsquo;s not just a catch phrase for me, but rather a way I take pictures. One in particular would be during Lauren and Ryanandrsquo;s Engagement shoot, a completely candid moment occurred when an ice cream truck pulled upandhellip; I think the composition as well as the editing keep the image modern and ice cream is always fun!

Tell us one thing we should know about you and one thing your client should know about you.

I can spend hours online looking at etsy, design blogs and wedding blogs! Slightly obsessed, I can only be torn away by my husband bribing me with a spoonful of raw cookie dough and a project runway marathon on the couch with my dog ruby! I am also slightly obsessed or maybe just obsessed with shooting weddings! I love the process start to finish and
put 200% of my quirky self into each one!

If there was one person you could photograph, living or dead, who would it be and why?

I think Barack Obama being elected president represents great progress in this country and it would be awesome to photograph him and his family! I would want to keep it fun and easy and maybe a little wacky.. not the typical presidential family photo. Something that truly represents the light side of him, maybe taken at their favorite hangout!

Do you take anything unusual but particularly useful with you in your camera bag or in the trunk of your car when going out to photograph a wedding?!

As a I rummage through my bag right nowandhellip; I carry granola bars, chapstick, moo cards and gum in my shootsac at all times! I always keep an umbrella and extra pair of shoes in my car. I suppose none of those things are that out of the ordinary but definitely necessary!

Mac or Pc? Canon or Nikon? Photoshop or Lightroom? Favorite action set?

Macandhellip; just made the switch! Canon, Iandrsquo;ve worked with both, but love Canon. I shoot with the 1D Mark II and the 5D and of course all their fabulous lenses. Photoshop, I use CS2 for all my editing. Itty Bitty Actions are my favorite! Barbara Uil is an amazing childrenandrsquo;s photographer and the creator of these so easy and so great actions!

What has been your most effective marketing technique or sales technique this year?

Word of mouthandhellip; referrals and reputation are the most important thing in this business. I would also say putting myself out there to wedding blogs and magazines also keep me in the loop!

Which photographer would you like to shoot with for a day and why?

Hmmmandhellip; so many great ones, I think my bookmark list has over 200! I love Ben Chrisman and Anna Kuperberg but, I would love to shoot with Amelia Lyon. Her work is amazing! Her compositions are so unique, her editing is flawless and each wedding is interpreted so differently! A photographer who seems to always be looking and searching for a new angle on weddings!

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Loktah products are as unique as is its modern, organic name. For your chance to receive a sample package from Loktah we want you to think of a catchy name if your company went green. What would you be called? Leave us a comment. The most fun and original idea wins a sample package from Loktah!

Jinky Art Website

Jinky Art Blog

How do you keep yourself motivated and your photography fresh?
Staying offline is the best cure for the 'uninspired'. I find I get the most creative when I look within myself.

What (or who) has inspired, and continues to inspire, your work?
All the ametuer and pro photographs on photoblogs.org.

Why did you choose to specialize in family and children's photography?
I have a background in child care - and just love kids.

Tell us one thing we should know about you and one thing your client should know about you.
I am a hopeless cook.
I am an honest photographer.

Do you have any tips for photographing uncooperative children? 2 year olds for example?!
Take your time and get on their level.

Name one website or blog you regularly visit.
http://www.photoblogs.org

The colors in your images are beautifully vibrant. You have two of your own action sets available at www.ittybittyactions.com. Which is your favorite/most used of the set?
I currently use a mix of both - however for colour proofing my most used action is in the Sweet set. 60% of my photographs are proofed with the sweet set alone.

Show us your favorite image that you''ve shot so far this year and tell us what it is about this image that makes it special to you.
I dont really have one... My work is mostly commercial now and varied. I do alot of travel photography now too. I think over-all this year has really firmed up my understanding of the commercial industry.

Mac or Pc? Canon or Nikon? Photoshop or Lightroom? Most used lens? Flash or natural light?
Variety is the spice of life. I use Mac and Pc, Canon and Fuji, Photoshop and Lightroom, Flash and Natural.

Tell us about the Child Photographer Weekend Retreat. Eg, who should think about attending and what kind of feedback have you received.
The weekend reatreat is for ameteurs and semi-professionals. The feedback is completely positive so far..which is great.

What has been your most effective marketing technique or sales technique this year?
Customer satisfaction.

What's the best part about photographing children?
Hanging out with kids.

We'd love to find a way to share more of our readers' work as there are only so many photographers we can contact and feature each month. As we thoroughly enjoyed viewing everyone's images on the Don't Box Us In Flickr group, we've decided we'd love to see much more from all of you! After all, sharing and inspiring was the reason behind the website.

If you haven't yet joined the DBUI Flickr group, go ahead and join because we want to see your favorite images of 2008. Yes, if you haven't already noticed, the Christmas decorations are on sale and those toy adverts are coming in hard and fast! It's only two months to go before 2009 and we want you to wow us with your work from 2008 and then in earlu 2009 we'll feature a selection of our favorite images and do mini-interviews with each of the photographers selected.

There are no themes or rules but your images must have been taken in 2008. You can post up to four images per month and you have two months to blow our minds with your work.

This isn't a competition as such but rather a way to share some of your favorite images from this year and get those creative brain cells inspired for next year! Who knows though... we might just throw in a prize!

Please introduce yourselves:
Claire and Steve. For our wedding, we had 31 members of our family and closest friends travel and stay all together at St Raphael Hotel, Cyprus, for 1 week. We got married on the 4th day. Wedding date: 9th Oct 2008

The all-important question... did you enjoy your wedding day?
More than enjoyed it. It was more perfect than we could have planned!

Do you have any advice for couples about to get married?
When we decided to get married the most important thing on our day was being together with all of our family and closest friends. Many people forget that a wedding is not about the flowers, dress, make up and the food, its about your love for the person you are going to spend the rest of your life with.

We caused no stress to our family and ourselves by not expecting anything over the top. I have never remembered someoneandrsquo;s wedding by their cake or the bridesmaids dress!

Weddings are not about being better than the last one you went to!

How did you go about looking for a photographer (e.g., where did you look)?
We found the Don't Box Us In website which linked us to Amorphia Photography. We could not compare the photography to anyone else, it was truly amazing!

What were you looking for in your photographer and your final images?
Something very relaxed and very fun as our wedding was far from formal.

And what was the deciding factor for the final choice of photographer?
It turned out we actually knew Sofie as we had worked together in the same photography franchise. Both Paul and Sofie have a skill for composition and technical ability. A true compliment in photography.

How important was the photography to you in comparison to the other details of the wedding, for example, catering or flowers?
The photography is extremely important; as this will be the lasting item you will keep forever. We didnandrsquo;t have flowers or a cake, as we didnandrsquo;t feel these were a big importance to the day. Our memories all came from the people around us captured on film.

Did you provide your photographer with a list of shots or did you prefer to give them free reign?
We gave Sofie a disc of jpegs we had seen on websites.
We had a very specific look we wanted to achieve. We really wanted the beach and blue sky to appear in a lot of the images and this would give the images a really dramatic feel.

If you did give them a list, do you think this hindered or helped them on the day?
I think that is all down to how particular you are about the images, if you totally trust the photographer as we did, you will understand they will get the range of group images but use their professional ability to get the best out of you.

Did you allocate time for the "staged" photos and if so, how much, was it enough and when during the day did you take them?
We spent 3 hours on the wedding day (bride/groom preparation, ceremony, formals) with Sofie and Paul, which we felt was more then enough to capture the day. We then met up with them the next day for 8 hours to go out on location to do the more staged or dramatic images I would call then. It was really great to have fun on the wedding day with the family and even better we got to dress up again for a second day and then have fun with just me and my husband!

How did it feel being in front of the camera and can you suggest anything that can be done to make clients feel more comfortable when having their photos taken?
We donandrsquo;t mind having our photographs taken but Sofie and Paul made it very comfortable to just be ourselves.

Why did you opt for a "day after" session? And was it worth getting dressed up all over again for it?
Having both days gives you the option to have 2 different looks to your images. We were lucky that we were in Cyprus for the week so had the time to relax even after the day after shoot.

We were looking forward to the 2nd day shoot as much as the wedding day. It puts a really nice end to the wedding. All brides look for any excuse to wear her wedding dress again!

As photographers yourselves, you appreciate the importance of capturing your wedding in photos but speaking as a bride and groom who have recently been married, is there anything you would say to prospective couples regarding the importance of the photography on the wedding day?
The more research on images and designs that you like is very important. I would meet with your photographer and discuss your ideas. Go to the location and notice the ground's pros and cons. What will the lighting be like at the time of day you are getting married?

Photography is such a personal thing. There is never an image that is right or wrong. Photographers look at images technically, and the subject will look at it emotionally.

Which is your favorite photograph from your wedding images?
Well at the moment we love all of them but it would be hard to say 1 ultimate favorite image as we currently have about 10 super, super favorites short-listed. The reason for this is because each of those images has either a strong composition or a very big emotional attachment to them.

Did you have any glitches or funny moments on your wedding day?
The whole week in Cyprus was brilliant and all 31 of us were all on holiday together, which made the whole week a none, stop party. Many funny drunken moments. I would totally recommend it!

In hindsight, was there anything on the day you would have done differently?
Not a thing!

The Wedding Day

The Day After

Many thanks to Steve and Claire for our first client interview and for letting us share some of their images.

Do you have a recent client - be it from a wedding or a portrait session - that you feel would like to tell their story from the other side of the camera? If so, drop us an email at admin@dbui.org

If you live in Jodi Friedman's house, apparently this!

We love Jodi! Her actions, MCP Actions, are great, and she is amazingly supportive to others in the photography community. She is frequently found helping others on forums, and her site offers solutions to make photographer's workflow easier. So go check her out, we just love Jodi, even if she does Box In her own kids! ;)

BILL: I am a photographer and web software developer from Central Pennsylvania. Though I take pictures every day, and get paid for my photography, it is not my primary employment. I am employed full-time as a web application programmer and have been a partner in an Internet media company for several years

ED: I'm also based out of South Central Pennsylvania as well. I've been in a creative career for about 20 years now. Started as a technical illustrator, then an art director, multimedia developer, video editor, and now I'm a web developer by day and a photographer by night and weekends.

You run a very informative and useful lighting website for photographers called StudioLighting.net. What made you start the website and how popular has it been?
BILL: I started the web site in 2004 when I began posting my personal notes about my experiments in lighting for photography. Having spent most of my time photographing nature and landscapes, I had become enthralled with portraiture and was looking for places online to help me learn to light. I posted an article on my personal web site about the softbox I built out of foamcore and was surprised to see how many people began to visit the page. I saw an opportunity to help other photographers learn as I learned. The first set of articles on StudioLighting.net were really just a collection of my notes. We registered a domain name and built a site which was designed to place well for those searching for lighting information. Since then, the site has grown tremendously in content as well as traffic. We've been able to make some great connections with photographers and
manufacturers and build a community with our readers. It feels good to receive email from all over the world from photographers who have improved their skills by spending time on our site.

Who writes your articles and do you market your site to beginner, intermediate or pro photographers?
BILL: We have several contributors at StudioLighting.net. Ed and I write reviews of products that we use in the studio, Chris Malinao keeps our news content fresh, Mark Wallace feeds us video and David aka Prince of Cheap is the expert at showing folks how to save money with their gear. The site started as a resource for the emerging photographer, but has grown in it's appeal to all levels of shooters. Much of the responses we get to the podcast are from professionals who simply enjoy hearing about how other pros work.

You also host a podcast, LightSource. Who have you featured and who do you have on your list to interview?
BILL: The podcast has been an amazing addition to our efforts. We began in October of 2005 and have released over 70 episodes since! We have featured pro photographers from all over the world and from all genres as well as several product manufacturers and experts. It's very hard for me to pick favorites, but a few of the more popular ones according to our listeners were the shows with Dave Hill, Chase Jarvis, Michael Grecco, Kirk Voclain, David Hobby (Strobist), Mark Robert Halper, David Tejada and Paul Buff.

In coming episodes, we'll be talking to Zack Arias from One Light Workshop and some folks from Profoto and Pocket Wizard. Of course, we're always looking for suggestions.

ED: I think what I find most interesting is that we touch on someone from all the areas of photography. We have talked to editorial assignment photographers, commercial corporate guys, senior portrait shooters, boutique portrait studios as well as internet "legends" and top equipment guys. It makes for a well rounded show and a little something for everyone.


Do you try to introduce new features to the site and if so what have you introduced recently?
BILL: We try to introduce new features and authors, but much of the new content we have is being held for the release of our web site redesign which we are in the middle of right now. We have recently added a new episode of Digital Photography One on One with our friends from Snapfactory.com about lighting ratios, good stuff. New featureswe have planned for the new site all center around bringing the community at StudioLighting.net more to the center stage.


What kind of feedback have you received from your readers and listeners?
BILL: We get all sorts of positive feedback from around the world. The biggest complaint we hear about the podcast is that it should be more frequent. The most common question we receive is "What should I buy?". In general I think photographers recognize the value of sharing with each other. We are very proud to be a part of that.

ED: I always find it amusing when someone tries to introduce me to a "cool podcast they found called LightSource" when we get talking about lighting. I also love when people will tell me the moments they found most interesting or useful and then I go back and review and learn something else.


What have been the most popular tutorials and why?
Our three most popular tutorials this month were:
1. Home Made Light Box for Product Photography

2. Creating Killer Head Shots the Cheap Way

3. A Quick Start Guide to the One Light Setup


Why would you recommend StudioLighting.net to our readers?
BILL: StudioLighting.net is a great resource for discovering more about light. Since this is the fundamental element in every photo we make I've found that online learning resources and podcasts can be invaluable for the emerging photographer as well as the seasoned pro. In addition, the community found at our web site and our Flickr group is a source of inspiration and knowledge for any photographer. The podcast is a great way to get exposed to the best professionals and peek into what their careers look like from the inside.

Rosie wins Red Leaf Studio's complete set of Vintage actions and textures. To view the sets and some example images, please visit the following links: {Vintage Actions I and II + Vintage Textures I and II}

And, from what we can tell from Rosie's blog, she is quite the fan of Red Leaf Studios - so we have no doubt that she'll enjoy this fantastic prize! Congratulations Rosie!!

Again, thank you to everyone who participated. Remember, Don't Box Us In is about showing your creativity and thinking outside the box. We plan to continue hosting monthly contests and look forward to seeing your inspiring photos. So keep checking in for your chance to win some amazing prizes!!

Now, the hard part - choosing a winner. Here is where you come in - you get to decide. Yes, that's right, you get to choose the winner. The prize is a complete set of Vintage actions and textures from the talented Red Leaf Studios.

Voting will be open until Wednesday, October 8th, and the result will be posted shortly thereafter. Again, thank you to all who participated - way to think outside of the box!

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Theorie website

Theorie blog

How do you keep yourselves motivated and your photography fresh?
Motivation is not really a problem for either of us. Itandrsquo;s probably one of our biggest faults, but weandrsquo;ll admit that weandrsquo;re both a bit obsessed with our business. When people ask us if we have children, we answer by asking, Does having a business count?andrdquo; Just kidding! But we are both really hard workers at heart and take a tremendous amount of pride in what we do, and we can both honestly say that we LOVE what we do. We constantly remind ourselves that we donandrsquo;t work in a cubicle, and we do get to control every aspect of our own lives, from days off to where and when we vacation, so weandrsquo;re pretty grateful and happy to commit the time to making sure what we do is as good as it can be. As far as keeping the photography fresh, thatandrsquo;s not a huge focus for us, because to be honest, we have worked really hard over the last few years to create an identifiable style. So though each new client is a fresh photography experience, and while we continually look for new spots to shoot and each location presents new and different challenges, we donandrsquo;t try to reinvent the wheel every time we shoot. One of the things we do try to do is to create beautiful, fun, and amazing images for each and every client while keeping a consistent feel to our work. We always want our clients to recognize that their images came from our studio.

What or who has inspired, and continues to inspire our work?
Probably the biggest inspiration to our work is the artist Matisse. We have always loved the point and purpose behind his work, and we liken it to what we do when we capture the joy and excitement of peopleandrsquo;s weddings. Matisseandrsquo;s paintings were always bright, happy interiors, intimate in nature and focused on a moment in time. A fish in a bowl, or flowers on a table. Even the women always had a timeless quality. He created his art during a time when the world was at war, and he said that he always tried to create a beautiful, peaceful space for respite amid the chaos of the outer world. For us, weddings are a lot like that. They are an amazing joyful day that is really unlike any other day in most peopleandrsquo;s lives. They are an absolute celebration that is somewhat separate from the rest of the world beyond. We try with our images to capture the beautiful, happy, joyful memories from that day for our clients to take with them into their futures.

For further and more current inspiration we are huge fans of movies and TV. We love to see new and different things that are being done with lighting and the shooting angles and we really love the experimentation that we happening with color in movies (300, for instance). We try to bring in a bit of experimentation into our images when we shoot and edit.

What do you say or do to put your clients at ease in front of the camera?
We donandrsquo;t try to be anything we arenandrsquo;t. We try to keep things casual and talk to our clients about themselves, and really try to connect with them. When you connect with people, itandrsquo;s easy for people to feel at ease with you. And laughter helps, but neither one of us is a center-of-attention type, so we donandrsquo;t entertain. We just act like ourselves, and weandrsquo;re both naturally people-people, so that helps. We love the things that people do and experience, and are constantly fascinated by what our clients do for work and in their lives. This year alone weandrsquo;ve worked with a nuclear physicist, a marine archaeologist, anthropologist, brain surgeon, and a professional bagpiper. How can you not feel at ease when people are interested in what you do? Get them talking themselves, and itandrsquo;s a piece of cake.

Show us your favorite image this year and tell us what it is about this image that makes it special to you.



Sheila and Jared were really wonderful to work with. They really are our ideal client. They value high-quality photography, and trust our instincts and our creative approach to what we do. They are also very much in love and really absolutely enjoy spending time together. Their wedding day was no different from their engagement session, with the exception that their smiles were about 20 times bigger and you could definitely feel the love and joy that they had whenever they looked at each other. One of the only props weandrsquo;ve ever used during weddings are a couple of funky old picture frames, which we are surprised and delighted to find is something that our clients ask for us to bring to their weddings : ) Sheila and Jared were so much fun to photograph and they had a really good time behind their respective frames. They were everything we try to create in our work: fun, happy, and beautiful! This image really captures pretty much everything we try to do for our clients. And the color editing really adds to the beauty and happy feel of the image.

What was it that first drew you to photography, and why wedding photography in particular?
Maurice has had a camera in his hand since he was eight when his dad gave him a camera and encouraged him to take pictures. Using a camera is as natural to him as riding a bike. I (Amy) picked up the camera shortly after high school, but really got inspired to photograph people on a trip to Uganda to study chimpanzees. The people I met were absolutely amazing, and LOVED having their photos taken. Upon returning to the States I met Maurice within a couple of weeks. He encouraged me to enter my portraits into a contest at my school, and they won. That was probably the first time I thought about pursuing photography in my career. It wasnandrsquo;t until a few years later when we were creating a website for a wedding photographer that we were introduced to the crazy world of weddings.

Why weddings in particular?

We knew from the moment we met (and got engaged just a few months later) that we wanted to have a business together, and that we wanted to work for ourselves. When we stumbled onto wedding photography, we realized it was the perfect blend of all the things that we love: technology (computer and camera gadgets galore), graphic design and photography (we get to play while we work), and people. The one aspect about this business that we didnandrsquo;t know that we would enjoy so much was the business side. It turns out that we are naturally business minded people, so thatandrsquo;s been a pleasant surprise. The business of this business, the numbers, the statistics, the balance sheet, etc., it turns out we love that aspect as well!

What makes you different from the photographer down the road from you?
We have worked really hard to differentiate our work and what we offer our clients. From our packaging to the products we offer to the way we shoot. Itandrsquo;s really not just one thing that makes us different; itandrsquo;s the whole package.

What has been your most effective marketing technique or sales technique this year?
This year we went through a tremendously huge undertaking when we launched a new name and identity for our business. There was so much work involved, from deciding on the new name, to creating the logo, to building the new website and blog, to developing all new marketing materials. I think our most effective marketing technique this year would have to be the whole enchilada of renaming and announcing our new name to our audience. We timed everything for the beginning of the summer season, and got the word out through a combination of email, mail and through networking. Our launch was two months ago, and we have been extremely surprised at how well things have gone.

Which photographer would you like to shoot with for a day and why?
We have a Project Workroom client, Dino Lara, who lives in the Philippines, and I love the images he creates. The landscape and cityscape that he works in are incredible and breathtaking and his images really capture the feeling of that part of the world. I think it would be really fun to shoot somewhere completely new and different like that.

Youandrsquo;ve developed a solution for photographers who want their clients to preview their album designs and leave feedback prior to printing which is called Project Workroom. Can you tell us a little about it?
Yes, Project Workroom is something that we developed to assist our clients through the album review process. We used to email a PDF to our clients and ask them for their feedback. This was a nightmare of hoping the email got through, hoping they could open the attachment, and then hoping they would be able to send us easily understandable feedback in a timely manner. We quickly realized we needed a solution to make this system easier both for our clients and us. Project Workroom is the result. It is an online solution that presents your album much like a blog, complete with a comments section next to every page design. Clients can view their album designs full-screen on their computer from the comfort of their own home, and they can either click a button to Approveandrdquo; the page design as is, or leave a comment to request a change. Once theyandrsquo;re done, they click another button to Lockandrdquo; the gallery, which sends an email to the photographer alerting them that the client has finished reviewing the designs. It has totally and completely changed the album design process and made our lives immensely easier. At the moment we have clients using the system all over the world, and itandrsquo;s available for a yearly fee of $99. Anyone can check it out or sign up by visiting http://www.projectworkroom.com.

Red Leaf Studio's have very kindly donated their complete set of Vintage actions and textures. To view the sets and some example images, please visit the following links: {Vintage Actions I and II + Vintage Textures I and II}

To win this great prize, we'd like you to send us your take on the theme RED.

Remember, Don't Box Us In, is all about creativity so we're looking for an artistic and inspiring image to win this great prize.

Your entry needs to be uploaded to our new Flickr group so if you don't yet have a Flickr account, now's the time to register for one! After the competiton deadline, the DBUI admin will pick out 20 of their favorite images to go on DBUI and you, the readers, get the chance to vote for the winning image.

Rules:

Two entries person. If more than two entries are posted, all entries from that photographer will be disqualifed.

No identifying marks, logos or branding on the image.

Images must be uploaded to our new Flickr group and not emailed directly to us. Sign up to Flickr here.

Deadline: The contest will run until the 30th September 2008 before moving across to Don't Box Us In for a public vote.

Although RED is an open theme we ask that no offensive images are entered into the contest. Any images deemed to be obscene will be deleted.

Many thanks again to Red Leaf Studios and we look forward to viewing your RED entries!

FC Wong's Blog

Tell us a little about yourself...
First of all, thank you so much for having me. Iandrsquo;m really honored to be featured here!

To answer your question, I was working on a documentary photography project on the homeless in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2006, when a good friend asked me to fly to Miami to shoot her wedding.

I said I would do my best, but I warned her that I had never shot a wedding before. She said she had complete confidence in me. I ended up shooting it for free, anyway.

As it turns out, she was stunned by the images I took, and that was it. I was hooked. In the following months, I shot a few more weddings for free, to build my portfolio. And finally, in 2007, I started charging to shoot. I remember my first checkandmdash;I was incredulous that someone would pay me real money to shoot! Sometimes, I still am.

Image by:Loic Nicolas

How do you keep yourself motivated and your photography fresh?
I am most inspired while doing mundane things, like driving, or walking around. Just quietly experiencing the world. Ideas really start to flow, and I start seeing things in very interesting ways (I am completely sober and lucid when I do this). Also, I try to read a poem everyday, go see great paintings, sculptures, and photographs, watch great films. I try to do all of it. Great art can be so overwhelming and intimidating, but itandrsquo;s also extremely inspirational. Every art formandrdquo; is just another way of trying to find a little bit more truth in yourself and the world. And I think that constant struggle to understand a little bit more is what really drives me. I try to see things differently every time I look through my camera lens, no matter what Iandrsquo;m shooting. It is my tool of discovery.

What (or who) has inspired, and continues to inspire, your work?
In relation to photography, I am most inspired by the great photojournalists and documentary photographers like Sabastiao Salgado, James Nachtwey, Dorothea Lange, and of course the great Henri Cartier-Bresson. My wedding work is very emblematic of that style, even though I am shooting humanity at its best and happiest, while their work documents the great challenges of humanity.

But beyond similarities in basic style and composition, these photographers capture the essence of their subjects by really seeing (not just looking, but seeing) them in their most vulnerable states. A bride is also in a very vulnerable state, and if you can gain her trust and pay close enough attention, she will show you the most beautiful sides of herself that anyone has ever seen. Click. Click. And Click.

What's the best part about being a wedding photographer?
Wedding photography allows me to express myself through a medium that I love. And then I get to show what Iandrsquo;ve done to my biggest fan, my client! Her (and His) reaction is beyond priceless. I canandrsquo;t think of anything better.

What advice do you have for other photographers just starting out?
Find your inspirationandmdash;your true reason for doing this. That will lead to finding your unique voice. I want to just share this poem by Charles Bukowski. He wrote it for aspiring poets, but I think it applies to every aspiring artist:

So you want to be a writer?
by Charles Bukowski

if it doesn't come bursting out of you
in spite of everything,
don't do it.
unless it comes unasked out of your
heart and your mind and your mouth
and your gut,
don't do it.
if you have to sit for hours
staring at your computer screen
or hunched over your
typewriter
searching for words,
don't do it.
if you're doing it for money or
fame,
don't do it.
if you're doing it because you want
women in your bed,
don't do it.
if you have to sit there and
rewrite it again and again,
don't do it.
if it's hard work just thinking about doing it,
don't do it.
if you're trying to write like somebody
else,
forget about it.


if you have to wait for it to roar out of
you,
then wait patiently.
if it never does roar out of you,
do something else.

if you first have to read it to your wife
or your girlfriend or your boyfriend
or your parents or to anybody at all,
you're not ready.

don't be like so many writers,
don't be like so many thousands of
people who call themselves writers,
don't be dull and boring and
pretentious, don't be consumed with self-
love.
the libraries of the world have
yawned themselves to
sleep
over your kind.
don't add to that.
don't do it.
unless it comes out of
your soul like a rocket,
unless being still would
drive you to madness or
suicide or murder,
don't do it.
unless the sun inside you is
burning your gut,
don't do it.

when it is truly time,
and if you have been chosen,
it will do it by
itself and it will keep on doing it
until you die or it dies in you.

there is no other way.

and there never was.

Do you make time to photograph any personal work? If so, what do you photograph and show us an example or two.
As I said earlier, before this grand experiment called wedding photography, I was doing portraits of the homeless in San Francisco. It occurred to me that some of them have never had their picture taken, ever. I always shoot these portraits with a 6x6 waist-level camera, so I can be face to face with them. I always have them look right into the camera. My most important objective is maintaining their dignity.

Do you take anything unusual but particularly useful with you in your camera bag or in the trunk of your car when going out to photograph a wedding?!
I always have sports GU with me. Itandrsquo;s this energy pudding that marathon runners can quickly suck down to give them a boost on the last leg of the race. I take it right after the ceremony, throw a cup of water over my face, and get ready for the formals and reception!

What challenge have you personally faced since becoming a photographer and how have you overcome it?
My biggest challenge when I first started was deciding what type of wedding photographer I was going to be. Did I want to be like Yervant and Jerry Ghionis, with heavily posed and photoshopped images? Or did I want to shoot like Jeff Ascough and Denis Reggie, who shoot in a completely natural and reactionary way, without ever imposing their thoughts or ideas? They just act as recorders of the event.

My style is more reflective of the latter, though my methods are not as purely or rigidly photojournalistic as Ascoughandrsquo;s or Reggieandrsquo;s.

I also had a lot of trouble deciding what lenses to use-- zooms or primes. And I couldnandrsquo;t decide what mode to shoot in-- Program, Manuel, or Aperture Priority. I was really just trying hard to find myselfandrdquo; as a photographer.

I developed my personal method after months of experimenting and refining.

Eventually, I just made a conscious decision to stop emulating other photographers and to start shooting images that pleased me. Thatandrsquo;s how I found my voice.

Now, from a technical perspective, 90% of the time, I shoot with 2 prime lenses (35mm, 1.4L and 85mm 1.2L) at wide open apertures, manual exposure. Itandrsquo;s not the easiest way to shoot. It takes some practice, but I think it yields the biggest rewards. Those prime lenses are simply the best, and they allow me to greatly experiment with selective focus, low-light situations, silhouetting, tilting, creative composition, patterns, and using negative space. I push my equipment to the edge.

Show us a photograph by another photographer that you would have liked to have taken and tell us why!
To me, great storytelling is always about layers. A great storyteller can weave several stories together to tell one whole story. Curt Littlecott does this so brilliantly with this image. It starts with a reflection of the mother getting ready on the right, with a peeking bridesmaid. Then you see the bride with her head down, maybe in prayer or nervousness, and then the little girl, unable to take her eyes off of the bride and her dress. Is she picturing herself in that dress 20 yrs down the line? Maybe. Then this whole scene is reflected back at us through a mirror in the middle of the image, as if to remind us that this ritual repeats itself at every single wedding, throughout the ages. It has so many layers, so much complexity. But itandrsquo;s also very simple- itandrsquo;s a scene at every wedding. You can feel the tension and excitement gradually build as you study the image. Itandrsquo;s perfect.

Please share a link to one of your favorite wedding albums and tell us why it's your favorite wedding album?
One thing that I am pretty adamant about is personally designing my clientsandrsquo; wedding albums. Thereandrsquo;s a huge difference between an album designed by me, and an album designed by a 3rd party designer who didnandrsquo;t attend my clientsandrsquo; wedding, have no emotional attachment to them, and are seeing their images for the first time. Iandrsquo;m actually designing the albums while I am shooting the wedding. So every image is created with a purpose. Then, I put the album online for my clients so they can send the link around the world:

http://www.fcwongalbums.com/richardsonweddingalbum/

I really donandrsquo;t have a favorite album. I put %100 into each one.

Tana, we wanted to take this opportunity to welcome you to the Don't Box Us In team and we're looking forward to working with you again.

Richard and Amy have very kindly donated their complete set of Vintage actions and textures. This is an amazing prize and a very generous donation. To view the sets and some example images, please visit the following links: {Vintage Actions I and II + Vintage Textures I and II}

To win this great prize, we'd like you to send us your take on the theme RED.

Remember, Don't Box Us In, is all about creativity so we're looking for an artistic and inspiring image to win this great prize.

Your entry needs to be uploaded to our new Flickr group so if you don't yet have a Flickr account, now's the time to register for one! After the competiton deadline, the DBUI admin will pick out 20 of their favorite images to go on DBUI and you, the readers, get the chance to vote for the winning image.

Rules:

Two entries person. If more than two entries are posted, all entries from that photographer will be disqualifed.

No identifying marks, logos or branding on the image.

Images must be uploaded to our new Flickr group and not emailed directly to us. Sign up to Flickr here.

Deadline: The contest will run until the 30th September 2008 before moving across to Don't Box Us In for a public vote.

Although RED is an open theme we ask that no offensive images are entered into the contest. Any images deemed to be obscene will be deleted.

Many thanks again to Red Leaf Studios and we look forward to viewing your RED entries!

Date: Oct. 7-8

Location: Dallas, Texas

Who: JVS and Anne

Name: 2 Day Lighting and Portrait Workshop

What: Electronic flash in a portrait environment

This 2 Day Lighting and Portrait Workshop with JVS and Anne will take you from being timid with strobes to understanding the ins and outs of lighting techniques with small strobes and monolights. Explore the world of light with JVS through multiple demonstrations and hands-on learning. You will become familiar with using your own strobes, multiple strobes and have the chance to use Alien Bees in studio and on location. Anne will help you breathe fresh air into your portraits by offering ideas on how to control your portrait session with unique results. JVS and Anne are excited to have several awesome Workshop sponsors! For more information please visit http://www.jvspictures.com/2day