How often do you hear the words, “I’m so awkward in front of the camera,” or “I’m not photogenic”? And let’s be honest, some clients might be totally awkward and might not like having their picture taken. At all. We believe it’s a HUGE part of our job as wedding and portrait photographers to turn those…

Do you ever just pick up your camera and snap a quick photo without much thought?  If so – it’s my goal today to show you why you should never just pick up and snap away.  A proper exposure and technical expertise will only get you so far, photo composition is often the element of…

Everyone loves a good candid photo.  Everyone.  Well, unless they are making a funny or awkward face, but assuming that it’s a nice capture – we all love candid photos! The problem though, is actually getting the candid photos – especially when your subjects are more than aware you are there taking photos and having…

Let’s face it, it’s often a sigh of relief when we arrive at our photo location and it’s a photographers paradise, right?  We instantly know that our job is going to be just a tad bit easier given our “location perfection.” Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out that way and it is our job, as…

Summer is here and with the USA’s 4th of July/Independence Day just about upon us, I wanted to share with you some quick tips on how to photograph fireworks. By the end of this tutorial, you will have the preparation needed to bring your camera along with you for the fireworks celebration and actually be…

Lunar events are some of the coolest events to take place.  Throughout the year a lunar eclipse happens at least twice a year and it can be seen in different parts of the world.  The occurrence of the lunar eclipses are not as rare as many might think. However this particular occurrence of the lunar…

What Is The Exposure Triangle? Switching the camera mode dial from auto to any non-auto mode is a nice start, but to truly be a proficient photographer who must truly understand the exposure triangle, is tough. This exposure triangle is simply the relationship between three elements: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. These three components work…

Earlier in the week I was asked by a loyal Cole’s Classroom subscriber if I had any guidance on the best “camera settings” for sunset photos.  While I did give some guidance and suggestions, the key to taking great sunset photos is more involved that you might think.  So today I am going to share…

Many photographers struggle with how to consistently get sharp photos within each and every photo shoot.  I was once one of those photographers too.  Sometimes I’d get an awesome winner and other times the photos wouldn’t be as sharp as I’d expect, or want. Once I “cracked to code” and figured out exactly what to…

Not all shadows are created equal.  There are good shadows and there are bad or even….horrendous shadows that can make or break our photos.  But which are the good ones and which are the bad ones?  After reading this quick post you will know exactly the how to utilize shadows to add a lot of…

If you are like me at all, when first learning the fundamentals of photography, your main objective is to learn to take photos the “right way”.  Intriguing composition.  Perfect exposure.  The right amount of depth of field and I can go on and on and on….but those are just rules, and as artists, shouldn’t we…

Capturing the motion of a beautiful waterfall requires the understanding of long exposure photography, one of the coolest techniques you can use as a photographer. With a good location, the right light, and a little luck, you can capture some extremely interesting images that will most likely leave others with a sense of wonder. LIGHT…

Some of the most opportune moments in photography happens when you least expect it. For me, this happens a lot when I am hanging out with my friends.  There is this thing that happens that the light-bulb goes on and the magic of collaboration and creativity come together.  This is what happened to me recently…

What is Depth of Field? Depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appears acceptably sharp in an image. Depth of field refers to how acceptably sharp or blurry the area is around your subject. There’s a particular area in front of and behind the subject…

Let me start by saying that I love aperture and I think YOU love aperture too, you just might not know it yet 😉 You know how sometimes you see photos that have a gorgeous blurred background and the subject just “pops” right off the screen like the photo below? Aperture helps you get that “blur”…