In the Moment:
Michael Frye's Landscape Photography Blog
by Michael Frye | Dec 1, 2011 | Announcements, Workshops
Aspen circle, June Lake Loop
Eastern Sierra Fall Color: Composition and Creativity Among the Aspens
October 18 (eve.) – 21, 2012
Is an eye for composition something you’re born with, or can it be taught—and learned?
The technical aspects of photography are pretty concrete. With a little instruction anyone can learn to read a histogram or control depth of field. But composition, creativity, and seeing are more nebulous. The infinitely varied world we photograph doesn’t lend itself easily to compositional rules and formulas. There’s a reason no one has yet developed an app that tells you when you’ve framed a good photograph!
I used to think an eye for composition was innate, but over the years I’ve changed my mind. I’ve seen my own compositional skills improve with time, but more importantly, I’ve watched many students—even some who thought they lacked that innate ability to “see”—grow and develop their sense of design, sometimes in great leaps. Composition can be taught, and learned by anyone. And no matter how long you’ve been making photographs you can always learn more.
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by Michael Frye | Nov 28, 2011 | Workshops
Table Rock at sunrise
To those who celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you had a great holiday. And if you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you had a good weekend anyway!
The week before Thanksgiving I flew to South Carolina. A couple of people who had previously taken my Spring Digital Camera Workshop got some of their friends together and invited me to come to their home and teach a workshop.
I’d never been to this part of the country before, and found it to be quite beautiful. This region, in the mountains along the border between North Carolina and South Carolina, is home to a great concentration of waterfalls. Of course I live near another great waterfall area, Yosemite, but the character of the falls is quite different in each place. Yosemite is known for its big, thundering, dramatic, vertical drops like Yosemite Falls and Bridalveil Fall. The Carolina waterfalls are smaller, and usually slide down less-than-vertical rock faces, but they have braids and channels that lend themselves to slow shutter speeds and more intimate compositions, and in their own way they’re equally photogenic.
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by Michael Frye | Nov 25, 2011 | Announcements
I’ve seen some great deals today! B&H has Lightroom 3 for half price (it’s normally $299), as well as discounts on Canon cameras and lenses. Friend of this blog G Dan Mitchell has all the details. Also, Craft & Vision is offering 50% off their whole photography eBook collection, including my eBook Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom. Or you can get a $40 gift certificate for $20. All these discounts are today only.
I’m sure there are some other good deals out there too, so if you see anything, please let us know by posting a comment.
by Michael Frye | Nov 23, 2011 | Announcements
My son Kevin on a swing at age three
I have so much to be thankful for. First and foremost, I have a wonderful, supportive family. I’ve been lucky in love, and been married for 25 years—to the same person! And raising our son Kevin has been easy and enjoyable; he’s just a naturally grounded person. I also have some great friends who enrich my life. And then there are the three cats and two dogs we live with who keep us continually entertained!
I’m grateful that we live in a warm, comfortable house in a quiet neighborhood, surrounded by oak trees and meadows, and that we live so close to Yosemite, my spiritual home. I’m very grateful that my family and I are healthy, and happy.
I’m particularly thankful for all of you, the wonderful community of photographers I’ve met through this blog, for reading, listening, and commenting. It’s great to discuss photography with people who share the same passion, and your participation makes writing this blog fun.
Happy Thanksgiving!
—Michael Frye
by Michael Frye | Nov 15, 2011 | Announcements, Yosemite Photo Conditions
The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite is now a universal app, built for both iPhone and iPad. The new iPad version takes advantage of the bigger screen to give you easier access to all the information.
Since we were able to make this a single universal app, this iPad-optimized version is a free update for those who have already purchased the app. Just go the app store on your iPad and tap on Updates. The app is fully functional right away, but hi-resolution images for the iPad download when you open the app and connect to Wi-Fi.
If you haven’t already purchased the app you can do so here.
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