Category Archives: philosophy

Houston Wedding Photographer

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Bad Wedding Photographs are Everywhere

By gmiller | Published October 8, 2011

someone's bad wedding photograph

I have to say that I just don’t get it. Everywhere that I look I see it. There it is in plain sight for anyone to see. Don’t people notice? Don’t people care? I am talking about bad wedding photographs. I do not understand why wedding photography has become like that old joke about people who can’t do anything, teach. And people who can’t teach, teach gym. Well it seems that we have come to the point where people who can’t photograph very well, and are not willing to learn to improve their skills, photograph weddings. I think that I get the most upset about bad photography when it comes to weddings because a wedding is such a special and important event. Those photographs are your lifetime memory of the event. People only get one shot (not pun intended) at it. If someone hires a poor photography then they are stuck with poor images. You can read more about this in my post ‘Mediocre is Unacceptable.’ If you could buy one car for say $15,000 an another more reliable, better looking, lower maintenance, longer lasting model for $25,000 would you go for the cheaper one just because it is cheaper? If you think that there is no difference you should read my post about ‘Why Wedding Photograph are so Important.’ These unskilled photographers are cheating their clients. They are willfully deceiving them just to make some money. And that stinks for everyone.

Unfortunately anyone with a camera can have some business cards printed, created a poor website, and they are instantly a wedding photographer. What about knowledge and skill? What about years of practice and specialization in wedding photography? Why does everyone think that it is so easy? Wedding photography is actually one of the most difficult photographic areas around, and I have done many types of photography including corporate/industrial location work with high ranking executives and high pressure deadlines. Wedding moments happen in a fraction of a second. You have to know what you are doing, have the right equipment, and the right knowledge to get those great photographic moments. Then you have to have an artistic aesthetic to make them look great, with great lighting, mood, emotion, and composition. That is why I am a fine art wedding photographer. I have many years of photographic experience. I know what I am doing. I have insurance. I have professional level photographic equipment, way too much of it, including backup systems to cover any malfunctions or problems during the wedding day. I take the time to get to know my clients, their likes and desires, and I deliver a custom fine art wedding album of the highest quality along with fine art wall prints. You can’t just hire a photographer because you want to save money, or you like them. Look at their work. No, really look at it. People can tell a good photograph from a bad one? I hope they can.

I am a real photographer and I am not ashamed to say it. I am getting tired of all of those wanna be’s entering the wedding market. They are land mines just waiting to explode during some wedding ceremony and you will have lovely blurry, crappy images to cherish for the rest of your life. Hiring the wrong wedding photographer is a big mistake. Spend the money and get a competent wedding photographers! I do not know how much more I can keep saying it and shouting it to the rafters. I am tired of all of those lame photographers out there. Go away and stop cheating your clients!

For more advice on how to hire the perfect wedding photographer you can read my post ‘Hiring the Perfect Wedding Photographer.’

Also posted in digital photogarphy, photography, Uncategorized, wedding photography | Tagged bad, bad photograph, lame, lame photograph, wedding, wedding photography | Comments Off

Photography Technology, More or Less?

By gmiller | Published September 5, 2011

old meets new in photography

Photography, like many other things, is very linked to technology. From the start, because photography was more of a scientific instrument, it was linked to the technology of the day. As technology changed from metal plates and paper coated with light sensitive silver salts, to flexible acetate film, to now digital sensor based cameras, photography has joined right along. Now, as we are firmly in the digital phase of photography, that technology is ever changing. It seems that even other week a new camera comes out. At first it was just smaller packages or more megapixels, or both. Then is was the addition of high definition video capabilities that showed up first in the Canon 5D Mark II camera. This one small event has had a very dramatic effect on the photography industry and we will see more and more video come into play in both the commercial photography and the consumer photography world. This one technology could forever change the balance or the medium. Photography has remained mostly a still-based medium. I know that there have been movies around for a hundred years, but the division between a moviemaker, a filmmaker, and a photographer has always been distinct. Now, those lines are really blurring. Just look at people like Vincent Laforet or Philip Bloom. Both of these guys have fully embraced the HD video DSLR technology and have really pushed into new visual territory.

In my field, wedding photography, I am seeing more cinematic video pieces like those from Joe Simon. Joe produces beautiful, artful work that I really love. The days of boring wedding videos with ugly lighting and a full on documentary style are falling to the new aesthetic produced by the DSLR cameras. At Red Photo we have begun producing fusion video pieces. This is where we take stills, video, audio, and music from the wedding ceremony and reception and combine them into a multimedia presentation. It is a hybrid of the current technologies of still photography and videography. So once again the technology link of photography is pushing us into new creative territory.

There are many people, professional photographers and videographers, who fear the change in the medium. It was the same way 170 years ago when photography came onto the scene in 1839. Prior to the invention of photography if you wanted a portrait or an image of your town, you had to hire a skilled artist to paint it. Photography changed this overnight and many artists were afraid that photography would cause the death of art. If anything, it actually helped free up art and lead to Impressionism, my favor style of art. Artists were no longer confined to realism. Photography could capture realism better than they could. Many classical artists moved on with the shift in the media and benefited from it. Many did not move on and they faded away.

In the end we have to remember that it is not the technology that we cherish in a wedding photograph. We reward the vision, the art, and the creativity, and hopefully, no technology will ever replace that. That is where artists are unique and should continue to grow. This is where being a fine art wedding photography is more about passion and vision and less about technology and toys.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography | Tagged digital photography, film, HD, HD video, impressionism, Joe Simon, Philip Bloom, technology, Vincent Laforet, wedding photography | 1 Comment

The Neverending Journey of Photography

By gmiller | Published September 5, 2011

the neverending highway

I have been photographing since I was a kid. Like many photographers it was just something that I fell into during my curious childhood. There wasn’t a specific reason or person or incident that I can recall that sparked my interest. I have always been creative and photography was just another form of creative expression for me. I went through many different phases beginning with landscape, then more abstract, like Pete Turner or Jay Maisel, documentary, commercial, black and white, fine art and now fine art wedding photography. Each phase has taught me something about the world and about myself as an artist. I never consciously moved from one phase to another but rather I just drifted into it. I let my creative part guide me all of the time.

For me photography is a neverending journey. To many people that does not seem like something that would attract them to it but rather something that would deter them. Many people cannot start something unless they can see a firm goal in mind. They want to know when we are going to arrive at our destination and in the process they forget that the journey is much more important than the destination. Now I am not advocating being goalless, aimless, some kind of new age artist that is riding the wave of life man. I lived in California for five years and I have seen many of those people. While I admire their free lifestyle I never saw them going anywhere except in circles. Photography attracted me, still does, because there is no end in site. There is always something else to learn, another photographer or artist to study, another level that you can take your skills to, another whatever. There is always another challenge. You can read more of my thoughts on this in my post ‘Never Stop Learning No Matter What.’ One of mentors/teachers in graduate school, Jim Wood, used to remind us that every time that someone goes to the gym they don’t use the same weights over and over again. Hopefully they get better, stronger, more in shape, then they have to increase the weights or something else to continue to stress the body and to grow. There are too many lazy photographers out there who reach a level of complacency and then they stop growing. They have lost their passion for photography and then it just becomes another job. Well that is not for me. The day that I am totally satisfied with my work, or I lose my passion, or I stop growing, is the day that I will stop photographing. And if I have my way that will never happen.

I encourage all artists to continue their journeys and enjoy the challenges that are presented to them along the way. There are many reasons why I now do wedding photography. I want to help couples capture those special memories of the day to keep forever. But I also do it for the challenge, because it makes me grow as an artist and as a photographer.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, wedding photography | Tagged fine art, fine art photography, houston wedding photographers, Jay Maisel, Pete Turner, tutorial | Comments Off

Respect the Past, Create the Future

By gmiller | Published September 2, 2011

fine art photograph from an amusement park

Photographing wedding always reminds me how important our memories are to us and our family. We need to make sure that these are preserved and I prefer to do that with fine art wedding photography for my clients. I have written before about how important wedding photographs are, for keepsakes, for lifelong memories, for respect of our family members. You can read more about this in my post ‘Why Wedding Photographs are so Important.’ That is one of the reasons why I really prefer to deliver custom designed wedding albums to my clients. They are tangible, physical, you can feel them, touch the leather. They are an integral part of the fine art process for me. There are so many more cameras around now, even in phones, and so many more casual pictures are being taken by everyone. But these digital images are becoming very temporary. They are easy to work with, post online, email to friends, but they are also easy to loose. I talk about this in great length in my post ‘Back Up or Be Sorry‘ because most people are not archiving these images. Even professional photographers, and so called ‘professionals’, are either not backing up their images or not backing them up properly.

So all of your digital photographs, your memories of fun times and historical records, could be lost, misplaced, killed by a virus, etc, in a fraction of a second. At least in the film and print days you had the prints. Who is going to find a box of CD’s or DVD’s in an attic twenty or thirty years from now? And if you did will you even be able to read that disk? Maybe you left all of your images on your high tech laptop. But twenty years from now is someone going to be able to boot that thing up and actually work with it? Chances are no.

We are living in a very disposable society where technology has made things easier, but there is always a price to pay. We need to protect our memories, our images, and our past. They will help up create the future. I love looking through old family photographs , finding those albums that my parents or grandparents kept. I cherish old wedding albums. What will the experience be like for us in the future? We really need to think about that now.

One of the most importance functions of photography is historical record. It is the main way that we know what things, people, buildings, places, looked like. It will always serve in that role unless we let it slip away. The image above is from the Lake Winnepesaukah Amusement Park in Chattanooga, TN. It is eighty-six years old. That is history that we want to preserve.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, wedding photography | Tagged amusement park, digital photography, fine art, fine art wedding photographer, houston wedding photographer, wedding | Comments Off

The Communication Power of Photography

By gmiller | Published August 30, 2011

petroglyphs in Monument Valley photograph

petroglyphs in monument valley, az

Photography is a powerful medium, but many people forget how important it is in its role as a communicator. Photography is all around us most of the time. Pick up any newspaper or magazine, go to any website, wall around any store or mall, and you will be surrounded by photographs. We now use our phones to take pictures and nearly every person in the industrialized world has a camera. We use photographs for many different reasons. As a fine art wedding photographer my job is to capture the memories of people in unique photographs so that they will be able to look back on these images and remember a special time in their lives. I freeze moments, fractions of a second, of details and emotions, and places. So it alarms me that many people do not take their wedding photography very seriously and they look to spend as little as possible, and in the end get little in return. You can read more about my thoughts on this critical area in my posts, ‘Hiring the Perfect Wedding Photographer‘ ‘Why Wedding Photographs are so Important‘ and ‘Photography is not a Commodity.’ If you have been following my blog at all you know that I am a big proponent of educating the public about not hiring lame photographers who are not experienced professionals just to save a little money. The memories that are being captured by your wedding photographer as your memories. They will communicate the wedding day tomorrow and for years to come. Many couples are so busy and occupied during their wedding day that they are genuinely surprised when they see the images from the ceremony and the reception.

Besides photography serving to preserve memories, this is part of the history recording aspect of it, it is a form of communication. I used to teach a Visual Media class at Texas Tech University. We covered all types of media. Many students were not surprised when we spoke about art, printing, movies, TV, and graphic design. But many were surprised when we spoke about photography. It is everywhere, as I mentioned above. And it is so powerful that people rarely see it’s strong communicative side. Photographs can influence society and laws. When Jacob Riis photographed child laborers and slums in the early 1900′s in New York, laws were enacted to change things. That is the power of photography, that is communication.

The image above is from some petroglyphs in Monument Valley, Arizona. This is a very ancient form of communication, the photography of the day if you like. Like photographs these petroglyphs recorded history, opinion, and daily events. These were memories that were important to the people who put them there. For us today, photography is fulfilling that same role. Even though there are many other media out there, some newer and some older than photography, I still think that photography remains the most powerful and the most cherished.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, photography techniques, wedding photography | Tagged communication, fine art, fine art photographer, houston wedding photographers, Jacob Riis, Monument Valley, petroglyph, Texas Tech University, Utah | 1 Comment

Dedication and Wedding Photography

By gmiller | Published August 25, 2011

bride and groom dancing at their wedding reception

I am always amazed by the number of people that decide to become wedding photographers. I think that many of them are a bit misguided and are getting into the business of wedding photography without really knowing what that entails. Because there is nothing stopping anyone there are unfortunately many people who just go buy a decent digital camera, get some business cards printed, and they are in the business of photography. These people are in for a big shock because most of them do not know much about photography, the fundamentals, the technical aspects of it, or business. No one should ever go into business without fully understanding what it means to run a business properly. That could be why 80% of new businesses fail within the first three years. People get an idea, get an impulse, and think that it is easy and they are going to be rich. This is like watching a skydiver, thinking that it would be cool to do it, going out and buying a parachute, and then jumping out of a plane the next day without any training or knowledge. We all know how that is going to end.

Many people that have no business doing wedding photography have been coming into the market at a rapid pace. They charge low rates which attracts many potential customers. But these photographers are not professionals, are poorly trained, have inferior equipment, and will disappoint their clients every time. I have written several post related to this subject including ‘Hiring the Perfect Wedding Photographer‘, ‘Why Wedding Photographs are so Important‘ and ‘Service in the Photography Business.’ I write about these subjects so much because there are tons of lame photographers out there and I do not want people to be disappointed in their wedding photographs. Unfortunately, when a couple chooses the wrong wedding photographer those special memories of their wedding day are lost forever. I am very sensitive to this because you can’t do it over again. If you had one chance to get lifesaving surgery would you just go with the cheapest surgeon? Or do you want to go with the best, most competent one you can find? I know my answer.

The Red Photo team photographed the beautiful wedding of Jessica and Antonio a few days ago. I will have an entire post with images shortly. After working over 14 hours photographing in three different locations, traveling 100 miles, and sorting through a few thousand images the word dedication came to my mind. If you want to be a good wedding photographer, or any type of photographer, you have to be dedicated. This is in addition to other attributes that I have spoken about before in ‘4 Simple Truths of Photography‘ ; passion, persistence, patience, and practice. Many photographer-wanna-be’s will also lack dedication. They are in it for the money, the quick turnaround, and are willing to put in as little effort as possible. I have been at this for years and I am constantly studying and working to improve my images. That is passion. That is dedication. That is what you should look for when you hire a photographer.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, wedding photography | Tagged dedication, fine art wedding photographer, houston fine art wedding photographer, houston wedding photographer, passion, wedding photography | Comments Off

Why I Photograph

By gmiller | Published August 25, 2011

one reason why i photograph

I think that every once in a while people should stop and take the time to reflect on various aspects of their lives. Recently I was asked, for about the millionth time, why I photograph. And I had to think about it for a bit and search to find a real answer. Like many photographers I began photographing when I was young. I do not remember how it started. I just know that one day I was interested in the camera and it continued to grow from there. At first I just dabbled. Then I began to read everything that I could get my hands on. I was an amateur, then a serious amateur, and somewhere down the road I turned around and I was a professional photographer. That took many years, loads of learning, and lots of practice. For more advice about this you can read my posts ‘4 Simple Truths of Photography.’ If you are really the philosophical type there are several other ‘truth’ posts like ‘Even More Truths About Photography‘ and ‘Photography Truths- Christmas Edition.’

So back to the ‘why’ question, why I photograph. For years my first response was because I was passionate about it. And I am, but then someone pressed me for a more unique answer. They pointed out that many photographers are passionate about their work. I think that if you are a professional photographer and you are not passionate about your work then you should be looking for another job. Photography, especially wedding photography, is hard work, and you have to gain great pleasure from producing unique, creative, artistic work. I knew that I was passionate about photography but I had to really search for my unique position. And then it came to me. I am obsessed with photography. I mean truly obsessed with it. I constantly am striving to improve my work, to challenge myself, to learn more, and to do anything that I can do to produce better and better work for me and for my clients. My fine art sensibility won’t let me produce anything other than my best. Everyday for me is a photo day. I am either teaching, photographing, working on photographs in the computer, designing something, planning a photo session, or reading about the subject. And it has been this way for a long time now. I am never fully satisfied with anything that I do. My satisfaction is only temporary and then I am looking for the next great image. This is the fine art photographer mentality. And rather then letting it be a curse I use it to fuel my artistic drive to produce better and better work. Read more about this philosophy in ‘Becoming a Fine Art Photographer‘ and ‘Fine Art Wedding Photography.’

I am drawn to photography like a moth to flame. I encourage you to ask the next photographer that you hire ‘why they photograph.’ Then listen to their answer carefully. It will be very telling, telling you whether you should be working with them or not.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, wedding photography | Tagged digital photography, houston wedding photographers, inspiration, wedding photograph | Comments Off

Hiring the Perfect Wedding Photographer

By gmiller | Published August 24, 2011

a natural light portrait of a bride and groom in houston, tx

Too often people are quick to hire a wedding photographer. In most cases they either hire the first person that comes along, because it is easy and they want to get it out of the way, or they hire the lowest priced photographer that they can find. I recently wrote a post about the pitfalls of hiring a low price, inexperienced, non-professional wedding photographer. You about that in my article ‘Photography is not a Commodity.‘

To help people find the right wedding photographer I recommend the following six points.

1. hire a pro

We live in the digital age and one of the downsides of this great technology is that anyone can go down to their local store, buy a cheap digital camera and lens, and then instantly go into the wedding photography business. Weddings are tough places to photograph and you want to make sure that you hire a professional photographer with the proper training and experience. Don’t take changes here or your precious wedding memories could be lost forever. These special moments only happen once. Are you going to trust that to some poser?

2.look at their work

Don’t just take someone’s word for it. Look at lots of samples of work including website images, Facebook posts, and blog posts. A blog, like the wonderful Red Photo blog, will showcase the photographer’s work and give you a sense of their true style and breadth. Look at their non-wedding work to to get a real sense of their skills and style.

3. meet face-to-face

We are all strapped for time, but take the time to meet with the photographer candidate face to face. Anyone can post images, but you need to know that you and the wedding photographer are on the same page, that you get along, and that you like each other. People who like each other will create a better working environment. Remember that you are hiring a person first. They need to have a good personality and good manners.

4. make sure they are insured

The easiest way to spot an amateur, or a weekend photographer want-to-be, is to ask them if they have insurance. Any reputable, professional photographer will have liability, indemnity, and equipment insurance. You can read more about the different types of insurance in my post ‘Photographer’s Insurance.’ If they do not have these then they are fools and they are not serious about their work. Please do not hire uninsured photographers. This is a recipe for disaster. Venues do not want an uninsured photographer on the premises.

5. hire someone who is good

This may sound so obvious, but make sure that the wedding photographer that you hire is good. They should be competent and skilled. Who wants ordinary photographs? I know that I don’t and I strive to do everything to produce unique fine art wedding photographs all of the time. I am constantly looking to improve my work because I am totally obsessed with producing great photography for my clients.

6. find a good fit

Just because a photographer is good does not mean that they are right for you. Just because your friend loved him/her does not mean that you should work with them. Most of the time a recommendation is the way to go. But make sure that you fit with the photographer. If you love country and they are rockers you might want to consider someone else. It just depends on personalities and you need to make sure that you both get along and are on the same page.

I hope that these tips will help you to hire the perfect wedding photographer. If you take just a little time and do some legwork you will get the right photographer, a professional, experienced, insured, one and you will have great images that will last a lifetime.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, photography, wedding photography | Tagged fine art wedding photographer, houston fine art wedding photographer, houston wedding photographer, wedding photography | 3 Comments

Photography is Not a Commodity

By gmiller | Published August 24, 2011

i give you money

Everyone seems to be looking for the best deal. We want to buy things at the lowest possible price. While that may work for some items, especially products that are all the same, that approach does not work very well when it comes to services, like wedding photography. Too often customers looking for a wedding photographer will make the mistake of going after low price without realizing that they are sacrificing many things and will more than likely not be pleased with the level of photographs that they receive. You should read my post ‘Why Wedding Photographs are so Important.’

In my experience everyone who is making a buying decision is looking for three things; high quality, great service, and low price. I have found, and I would think that you have too, that you can not get high quality and great service at a low price. The equation will never balance out. Low priced items are cheap, both in cost and in workmanship. Yet people mistakenly believe that they can go out and look for the lowest priced photographer for their wedding. Or worse yet they have their cousin Joe or their hobbyist neighbor do the job. This is a bad idea on several levels. So which part are you willing to give up. High quality, great service, or low price? Which ones are the most important to you?

Wedding photography should be done by an experience professional photographer. You do not want a jack of all trades. Your wedding is a very special day that will only happen once and you want to capture those memories in great, creative photographs. Those are precious memories that you and your family will have for a lifetime. Now do you want your cousin Joe with his $200 digital camera to do that job for you? I hope not. You see, wedding photography is not a product. It is a service, and with services the high quality, great service, low price equation is in full effect. Too many people make the mistake of seeing photography as a product. Well it is not. I am a fine art wedding photographer with years of experience. My business partner and I at Red Photo have years of photography experience in the wedding, portrait,commercial, and fine art worlds. We know what we are doing. We have been there and captured beautiful, timeless images before and we will continue to do it. That expertise and experience demands a higher cost.

People have to see the value in something before they are willing to pay more for it. If I show you two oranges and tell you that one of them is 50 cents and the other is $1.50, which one are your going to take. Most people will go for the lower priced one. But if I told you that the $1.50 orange is organic, has more flavor, more vitamin C, lasts longer, and does not have mold like the cheaper orange, you might change your choice.

Photography is not a commodity and you should not be buying it based on price alone. Wedding photography is an important service and you should buy it based on what you want and the level of product and services that you need.

Gary Miller