Perseid Meteor photographed from Rose Hill Cemetery west of Lamoni, Iowa. 4:55 am CDT, August 13, 2018.
Tonight (January 3-4) is the night of the Quandrantid Meteor Shower. This article will tell you what you need to know to see and photograph the first meteor shower of 2019. Predictions are always just estimates, but this shower is predicted to produce about 25 meteors per hour. Best of all, this will be a dark sky night without interference from the moon.
Tom Ang: Digital Photography Through the Year and The Complete Photographer.
Looking for a series of photo projects to inspire you for a full year? Tom Ang wrote a great book with 144 projects arranged by season. He also wrote an excellent companion volume arranged by topics.
Kristin, Columbus Ohio. December 29, 2014.
Kristin and I were doing a photo shoot in downtown Columbus. It was chilly out (the windchill was 26°), but we did it anyway.
Christmas Ornament, Columbus Ohio. December 24, 2013.
After decorating our Christmas tree I did images of some of the the individual ornaments. For this exposure I zoomed the camera lens for about half the time the shutter was open. This is my favorite photo for today’s date.
Leg Lamp and Legs, The Pizza Shack, Lamoni Iowa. December 23, 2018.
My favorite photo for this date was taken just a few hours ago.
Grand Canyon at Dawn, Arizona. December 2, 1985.
Landscapes photos are rare for me in December since we aren’t usually traveling unless we are going to see family for the holidays. But in 1985 we were driving across country on I-40 to spend Christmas with family in California. The Grand Canyon isn’t far from I-40.
Jennifer at the Piano, Worthington Ohio. December 20, 2009.
This photograph was spur of the moment. Jennifer played the piano at church for a Sunday morning service and I decided after church that I wanted a photo of her playing the piano.
Dina, Columbus Ohio. December 19, 2007.
It is December and most of my favorite photos are of family, friends, and models. My favorite photo for December 19 is this image of Dina, a model in Ohio. I used one studio light to camera left, bounced out of an umbrella, to create the semi-high contrast light. The camera was right on the floor to catch some of the reflection in the hardwood floor.
Sunny on the Sofa, Columbus Ohio. December 17, 2015.
Our dog Sunny didn’t sit, lay, or sleep on the back of the sofa until our “granddog” Jack came to visit. Jack loves the back of the sofa so Sunny picked up his back of the sofa habit from Jack. This is my favorite photo for today’s date.
Stephanie, Columbus Ohio. December 16, 2016.
To my eyes, a mother looking forward to the birth of her child is one of the most beautiful sights on the planet. That is why I love baby bump photography.
Autumn Leaves, Columbus Ohio. December 15, 2015.
I was surprised these colorful autumn leaves were still hanging around this late in the year, so I got out my iPhone and took a picture. This is my favorite photo for December 15.
Chinese Lens Ad on Facebook
Don’t waste your money!
The short story: You can buy this same exact lens on Amazon for $10 – $15, or on eBay for $3 – $4. Don’t pay the $37.99 price in the ad. The lens quality is lousy. Lots of people have been ripped off by some of the companies selling these overpriced lenses.
Sarah, Downtown Columbus Ohio. December 13, 2006.
In my “favorite photos” folder, all of my favorite photos for December 13 are from photo shoots with Sarah and Lela Rae, two of my favorite models to work with.
The River Walk, San Antonio Texas. December 12, 1992.
The River Walk in San Antonio is a great place to be most any time of year, and certainly at Christmas. You can tell this is a long exposure from the blurred boat. This is my favorite photo for December 12.
Children with Santa, Worthington Ohio. December 11, 2006.
We were at a mall in Worthington Ohio, and children were visiting with Santa. Such a great looking Santa and happy children. This is a quintessential Christmas moment. I asked the mother of these two children for permission to post this photo on my web sites.
Tracks in the Snow, Columbus Ohio. December 10, 2017.
I went out one morning after a light dusting of snow and found these tracks. This is my favorite photo for December 10.
Cougar, Wildlife Prairie Park, Illinois, December 9, 1995.
My favorite photo for today’s date happens to be one of my all time favorite images. The intensity in the face makes this photo. It was a bitter cold morning with a windchill of -40 degrees. I was in my heaviest winter clothes and I still got chilly in the brisk wind..
The Graceland University orchestra and choir, Lamoni Iowa. December 7, 2018.
It was my happy privilege to photograph “Christmas at the Shaw” at Graceland University. This photo of part of the orchestra and choir, along with the director is my favorite photo for December 7.
Anoush Anou, Columbus Ohio. December 6, 2016.
This is my favorite photo for December 6. I was working with Anoush Anou, a professional model from New Zealand who has relocated to Ohio.
Graham Parsons and the Go Rounds. The Strutt. Kalamazoo Michigan. Dec 4, 2009.
I was in Kalamazoo for a fashion show followed by a series of local bands in concert. This photo of Graham Parson and the Go Rounds ended up being my favorite photo of the evening, and one of only two favorite photos for this date in my “favorite photos” folder.
Terran, Iowa. December 1, 2018.
Our grandson Terran at three weeks old. My favorite photo for December 1.
Cadence, Columbus, Ohio. November 30, 2007.
This photo has special memories for me, which is why it is my favorite photo for today’s date. It is one of my all time favorite portraits.
I have a collage of nature and landscape images headlining the home page at JimDoty.com. It gives the impression I am primarily a nature photographer. I decided I also needed a portrait collage that would say “Yes! I do portraits!” This is what I came up with. Each one of these images has a story.
“Daybreaker” © Erik Johannson
This remarkable conceptual image was created by Erik Johannson. “Daybreaker” is the person in Sweden who controls the switch that changes night to day.
Bryce Canyon
Winter provides some wonderful photo opportunities in our national parks. So if you haven’t gone into hibernation for the winter, here are the best national parks to go photograph this winter, grouped by state from the west to the east. There are a few bonus locations thrown in too. At the end I give you my “best of the best” list.
Family portrait, Ohio. November 28, 2014.
Yep, my favorite photo for today’s date is another family portrait, taken four years ago. It is the time of year families get together and do pictures.
Sarah Ellis, Window Blind Shadows, Columbus, Ohio. November 27, 2007
This is my favorite photo for November 27. Sara Ellis and I were working together to create images for our portfolios. This is not only one of my favorite images from our photo session, it is one of my all time favorite portraits. The light and shadows were created by sunlight shining through a window blind.
I finally found an excellent series of photography lessons on video to complement my book, Digital Photography Exposure for Dummies, and it is by Joel Sartore, a world class photographer for National Geographic. He does stunning photography in amazing situations all around the world. You can see some of his work in the galleries at his web site.
My Favorite Photography Magazines
There are a lot of photography magazines out there but some are clearly better, more accurate, more useful, and with better images. The magazines that follow are, from my point of view, the best of the best photo magazines.
Photoshop Masking and Compositing (2nd edition)
Two essential and challenging Photoshop skills are Masking and Compositing. Fortunately for all of us out in Photoshop land, Katrin Eismann (along with Sean Duggan and James Porto) have written a masterful book on developing these skills, Photoshop Masking & Compositing (2nd edition).