Making a Senior Portrait on Black and White 4×5, (Not That Kind of Senior Portrait!)

I love having a job as a working photographer that permits me to meet new people constantly.When I'm between assignments or client work, which usually is Mondays, I open my studio to local senior citizens age 70 and over to come in for a complimentary portrait.I get to work with whatever camera I want since...

Sisters Portraits: 8×10, Rolleiflex and the In-Betweens

I had a portrait shoot this week with a pair of sisters, ages 15 and 16. I told them to wear fancy formal dresses and meet me at the lake in my town. Their mom drove them over and the two girls had a look of embarrassment and annoyance at being dressed like that when...

The (Quite Worthwhile) Cost of Film Photography

If a roll of film goes up by a dollar, it's still worth it. Yes, I saw the news--Ilford announced a 15% price hike starting August 15. That's the state of the international economy, a world full of supply shortages and the cost of making the best film on the planet. We need to support...

Do People Still Make Family Portraits To Hang In Their Homes? Young People, Too?

So, as some of you know, I make museum-quality silver gelatin hand-printed family portrait photographs using real film in vintage wood cameras. It’s a specialty for sure and the photographs are not easy nor inexpensive to create.  A friend said to me that I’d be lucky to give a photograph away, that no one wants...

“I’M NOT THAT BUSY”

I abhor the way every working photographer when asked how it's going replies, "I'm so busy." Automatically. Whether they are or not, they think it's a badge of honor. "So, so busy."Busy isn't the most important thing to be. A good balance of work and free time is important, not just running from one job...

Watching and Documenting the Lives of Others AKA Joining the Circus

I've been fortunate to be able to be a working photographer all my life. From the moment I left college, I immediately got work as a photojournalist, then a staff photographer position at a large daily newspaper, and then have worked as a freelance commercial, advertising, and editorial photographer, totaling 35 years in photography. During...

RIP Digital Photography (2000-2022)

I have a bold statement to make, but hear me out. It's a conclusion that comes as a result of this post from July 30. With the majority of people (perhaps not you if you are a photographer) no longer using dedicated digital cameras, point and shoot cameras, bridge cameras nor DSLRs, and exclusively now...

Bosbert is a Terrible Photographer and Probably So are You! (That’s Okay, So is Joe Jackson.)

People often discount the need for a professional photographer because they have this computerized imaging device in their pockets. What I often hear: "Professional photographers are unnecessary." "Anyone can take a picture nowadays." "Why would I pay for a pro?" "Everyone is a photographer." "My pictures look that good." "How much do you charge? That's...

Grandma’s Gone With No Portraits To Remember Her By, Just Like in 1890.

I was talking to a woman at a yard sale last weekend and she said the reason she had so many photo frames for sale for 25-50 cents each, is because none of her children or grandchildren want the family photographs—she's moving to a smaller house and thought they'd want to have them. Wrong! She...

Reaching Out, Asking For What You Want

I was traveling through Illinois recently and stopped for the night in Champaign/Urbana. While there, I googled "photography exhibits" and one of the results was the Urbana Museum of Photography. What? There's a museum of photography right in the small mid-western town where I'm staying? And it's dedicated to analog photography? I'm so in. This...