I'm sure you as me often like to know when the sun is going up and down in connection with shoots or workshops you are planning. It is many places to find out, but I really like the website sunrisesunset.com , here is a link to where you can make your own calendar for each month. I like that so you can have it all printed out for the year. On a personal note, I'm such a night person, so it is very seldom I need the sunrise info, but it is sure nice light at sunrise. Please make sure you shoot the minutes before it comes up, it is usually such soft nice directional light.

Today I want to just give a little hint on a way to control the direction of the natural light on a subject. This image is 100% natural light bouncing off buildings etc. something I talk a lot about in my classes. Like most images you can read the light in the eyes and reflections on the skin. Example, if you look to the left on his face you can see the sun hitting a warm building next to him.

The image is from a Workshop I did in Cuba for a group of European Photographers. I was standing talking to this man and my Spanish is close to zero, but if I wanted him to turn his face to the left or right, all I had to to do was to take a step to the side and his eyes and face would follow. Also having so little depth of field let's me not have to worry too much about what was happening where in the background. Very often what we can do while photographing people is move ourselves instead of telling them to, happy shooting :-)

I've been posting several shots from my classes done after sunset with tungsten spots and great blue sky in the past. Last Saturday after the nice blue with tungsten was done I told my students how they can use store windows and lit up walls etc for backgrounds after it gets totally dark outside. I saw this really ugly wall with a greenish outdoor light lighting it up. I thought this would make a great example of ugly turned nice. So I first positioned my model so the lamp backlit her and gave her great hair light. Then we used a Vector 3 mill candle light lamp from Target ($45) with a homemade 8x10 diffusion screen for main light. In the middle you can see the image straight out of camera, it is shot on AWB, 200 mm. 2.8 800 ISO. I told my students this needs to be made black and white or sepia. We could also of course have filtered our spotlight green, but...... The final image is run in Linge's Workflow Actions PS 1.03 BWPerfect. I love making something nice out of the worst places, and using spots rather then flash after sunset is GREAT FUN!!!

It's about time I recommend a great photographer again. I wrote Jens Haugen in Norway who I admire greatly, and got permission to post one of his images. He lives and mainly work in Norway, he is plenty good to work for anyone anywhere. With his young age and energy we have lots of great things to look forward to.

One of the great things besides awesome pictures in his blog is the behind the scenes videos, PS symbols with shows showing his steps in Photoshop etc. I know he can be of great inspiration to you as he is to me. Thank you Jens.

Here is the Link to his blog www.jenshaugen.blogspot.com and website  www.jenshaugen.no  PS. Yes, his blog and web is in English. ENJOY!!! :-)                

Today I had the great opportunity to attend PhotoCamp Utah 2009. It was very special to me, and I also gave a short presentation in the part called "Ignite". Since it was more meant to inspire then to teach, I choose one short theme before my slideshow, NO SECRETS! Today's image is the main slide my wife made for me for the presentation. One of the best decisions I have ever made when it comes to photography is to be completely open about my Photography rather then having "secrets". When I moved to Utah for the first time in 1983 it was to work as a Stills Photographer at The Osmond Studios. One day one of the owners took me to visit a Photographer in the valley who was " The Photographer " in the Valley at the time. I remember how protective he was about what he was doing and didn't even let us into his camera room from what I remember. For the next 7-8 years I just assumed Photographers don't like other Photographers! Oh how wrong I was! So for the next years I was not very involved with other Photographers, but one day back in Norway I got involved with an association and learned how wrong I had been. I also decided to become a "No Secrets" Photographer. That decision has truly helped me soooo much to progress in my profession, get so many great friends, teach in so many countries etc. to truly be a happier and better Photographer. It is amazing how other Photographers open up when you do! When it comes to the Photographer I went to in 1983, he is still in the Valley, one of many, I think even his logo is the same as in 1983, his Photography is about where it was then. I wish he could have enjoyed the blessings of "No Secrets" and enjoyed all that comes with it, maybe someday? Thanks to everyone involved in PhotoCamp Utah 2009, it was an emotional thing to me, to see and enjoy so much sharing and openess among Photographers in the very same Valley. What a great bunch of people, THANKS!