Hi!

In today’s dPS newsletter, we’re trying something new. 

Instead of providing a list of recent articles to read, I want to have a conversation with you - about taking photos, about choosing gear, about what’s going on in the photography world today. 

I’ll share a few links to dPS content, but I’ll also offer a lot more, including:

• Advice for improving your images
• Inspiring photographers whose work you should check out
• Products that I currently recommend
• The latest gear news

If all goes well and you like the new format, this could turn into a regular weekly newsletter. (And if you prefer the standard dPS newsletter, don’t worry - our Thursday email will stay the same, with a quick rundown of recent pieces published on the dPS blog.)

So let's get this show on the road!

My (slightly basic) tip for amazing photos

After 15 years of doing photography, it’s become clear to me that while practice, advice, and (to a lesser extent) gear can all make a big difference, there’s one simple technique that works without fail:

If you want to improve your images, just spend time looking at photos taken by great photographers. Even if you can dedicate 10 minutes per day to photo-viewing, over time, you’ll start to see real results. 

When you look at each photo, try to analyze it with a critical eye. Ask yourself: What makes this image special? What was the photographer trying to convey? How did the photographer use lighting, composition, and/or settings to great effect?

You can view plenty of outstanding images online - on Instagram or portfolio websites, for instance - though I’ve recently become a fan of photo books, which allow you to view images in gorgeous detail. You can buy plenty of great ones, including lots of the classics, on eBay and Amazon, but I’d start by checking out the photography section at your local library.

A little inspiration: two photographers to know

If you’re not sure where to look for inspirational images, I’d like to kick things off with two recommendations. 

First, Albert Dros is a landscape and cityscape photographer from Amsterdam whose images are expansive, expressive, and wonderfully enchanting. Landscape photography fans might start with his World Landscapes series, while street and cityscape aficionados will appreciate his Modern Cities portfolio. 

Second, Joel Meyerowitz has covered a wide array of subjects since he first picked up a camera in the early 1960s. His pioneering color street photos are breathtaking - while his Cape Light portfolio features a subtle mastery of color, form, and light that begs for regular, repeated viewing.

Gear news

Canon has announced three new lenses for its EOS R-series cameras: The RF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM ($329.99 USD), the RF 24-105mm f/2.8L IS USM Z ($2,999.00), and the RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM ($1,899.00). 

All three lenses will be available in December, and you can click the links above to preorder any/all of the lenses on B&H.

The Portrait Photography Business Course

If you’ve ever wanted to start a portrait photography business of your own, be sure to check out The Portrait Photography Business Course, created by Ed Verosky (a portrait photography expert and creator of several popular educational resources).

The course walks you through a step-by-step plan for launching a successful career as a portrait photographer - and for the next few days, it’s 70% off for Digital Photography School readers.

The dPS bi-weekly photo challenge: collage

From Sime: We get to use multiple images this time around, and for some, we get to learn a fun new technique! 

A collage isn’t just an excuse to stuff multiple photos into one frame, that it certainly can be used like that I guess… I prefer to think of a collage as a way to tell more of a story or give the viewer more information in one image.

Make sure you include the hashtags #dPSWeeklyChallenge and #dPSCollage in your post, here in the comments or over on social media. You can tag us on Facebook, in the dPS Group, Instagram, or Twitter!

Last, an introduction - and two questions

I want this newsletter to be real and personal, and I don’t want to do that as a nameless and faceless individual on the other side of the screen. 

Some of you know me already, but for those who don’t, I’d like to introduce myself; that way, you have a sense of who I am and where I come from.

I’m Jaymes, and I’ve been photo-obsessed for about 15 years now. It started with birds, then expanded to macro, and now I photograph anything and everything - landscapes, portraits, street scenes, architecture, still lifes, you name it. (My current project involves documenting buildings in Detroit, Michigan.) Here I am in late 2018:

I’m also the managing editor at Digital Photography School, and while I started in my current position back in 2020, my roots here run a lot deeper. When I was a teenager, I was a regular dPS reader. Then, as a college student, Digital Photography School brought me on board as a contributor, and aside from a brief stint in a full-time editorial position just out of college, not a month has gone by where I haven’t worked on an article for dPS. 

In short, I owe a lot to Darren and the rest of the dPS team, and the dPS community means a great deal to me, too. For me - and perhaps for you? - photography is often a solitary activity, and it’s spaces such as dPS that provide not just education, but engagement and inspiration and everything else that photography should be.

So as a member of the dPS community, I want to ask you two questions: 

1. How did you get here? That is, how did you first become interested in photography, and how did you find dPS?
2. What would you like from this newsletter? That is, is there anything about photography - image critiques, advice, news, image inspiration, etc - that you’d like me to offer, either on a one-time or a regular basis? 

Feel free to just hit “Reply” and let me know - I’ll do my best to respond, but regardless, I can promise that I’ll read every email.

Talk to you next Saturday,

Jaymes Dempsey (and the dPS team)

[email protected]