Reed Hoffmann’s Photography Blog
Scouting for a Photography Workshop
A big part of my work life this past decade (at least pre-COVID) has been leading photography workshops. If you’ve attended one, you know I try to keep them fun and filled with lots of places to make good pictures, as well as opportunities to learn and grow as a...
Praise for Eye Autofocus
Like most photographers, I love wide aperture (“fast”) lenses for their ability to turn a distracting background into a beautifully out-of-focus blob. But that shallow focus can also make it hard to keep the subject sharp. If you’re within ten feet, an inch or two...
Visiting the Past in Prison
At first it felt like I’d walked into “The Shawshank Redemption,” except that as the heavy steel bars clanged shut behind me, I knew I could leave whenever I wanted, not years in the future. The Missouri State Penitentiary closed in 2004 after housing some of the...
Serendipity Strikes Again
With a forecast for clearing skies late last week, I made a last-minute decision Thursday afternoon to drive out to the Flint Hills of Kansas. It’s the nearest “dark sky” territory to me, and my primary goal was to scout for a night photography workshop I’m leading...
Why and How to do infrared photography
One of the things I preach when teaching photography is the power of “different.” I urge my students to always be on the lookout for ways to create photos that are different from what other people are doing. That’s the reason why, after color photography became the...
Try, Try Again (or why you should shoot the same thing over and over)
I’ve always tried to be a “glass half-full” kind of person, which has been a challenge the past year. Having to cancel most of my workshops was frustrating, but it did push me to create and start teaching online classes. Not only has that turned out to be fun, but...
Sandhill Crane Road Trip
Every spring, 80% of the world’s sandhill crane population ends up just five hours away from me. At its peak, about a million cranes find their way to the Platte River near Kearney, Nebraska during their migration north. So last week I did my own two-day migration...
Online classes, hands-on workshops update
Online classes: Over the course of three nights in February, I taught my new “Mastering Flash” class, and it was so well received that I’m now offering it again. This time I'll teach it over three Tuesday nights, March 16, 23 and 30. As with my other classes, the...
Favorite Moments of 2020
I doubt that many of us will look back fondly on 2020, with lives turned upside down due to COVID. Despite having to cancel over a half-dozen workshops, I count myself lucky. My wife and I, our kids and extended family, have been able to stay healthy and avoid...
Fun with water droplet photography
Looking for a fun way to while away a few hours this winter? Why not use your photography skills to make some cool water droplet photos? You'll need a little patience, but the pay-off is well worth it. Below is a short tutorial on the process. Here’s all you need to...