From the Collaboratory

All of us, I think, want to grow as photographers, to develop our work to the point where it knocks people's socks off. Yet most of us lack the time and/or finances to, say, go back to college for a fine arts degree, or even to take classes regularly. So, how do we continue to evolve?

That question has been bugging me for a while.

I’ve bought and kind of thumbed through a few how-to books, but for me, the best lessons come from three sources: talking with other photographers, shooting thousands of subjects under different settings and light conditions to see what works, and finally, studying photos that snag me and trying to figure out why.

A good class can teach us volumes. So can the work of a talented artist. Here are a few examples.

She Remembers a Time by SherriConley

Waterbells by takenby robinlynne


The End of Infinity by NoStoneTurnedPhotography


Landscape Blue Lake Photo by JulieMagersSoulen


Cathedral Park by mesmanimages

Nakedeye17 (Su) thinks of photography as a wake-up call: "Hey, everybody! Are you seeing this?" She loves to capture humor, too, and anything wondrous strange. Find Nakedeye17's shop here.