How do you stay motivated at work when you’d rather take a nap or curl up with a good book? These 5 tips can help get you in the right frame of mind to approach work with a positive attitude, a clear head, and plenty of motivation.

Every photographer struggles with self-confidence. We are convinced our work isn’t as good as that of our peers, and that someday people will see us for what we really are: frauds who happened to get lucky a few times. Of course, none of that is true, but it’s a trap we can’t seem to struggle out of.

As a composite photographer, one of the most tedious parts of post-production can be dealing with selecting and masking both the subject(s) and elements of a scene. One of my favorite parts about post-processing 3D renders is that you can export render passes that save loads of time in making selections and masking.

Lifestyle photography gains its power from the vicarious nature of seeing people engaged in activities with which we are familiar, or which we long to experience. The unscripted appearance of lifestyle photography, where the viewer feels as if they’re getting an uncensored peek at the life of a real person, makes it a perfect fit for family portraits or selling products.

The idea of making mistakes causes professional and beginner photographers alike no end of anxiety. What happens if we miss focus, flub our camera settings, or show up to a shoot without a memory card? No one will ever hire us again.

When working as a 3D artist, there are times that I like to change the focal length of my perspective viewport to match something similar to my final camera. Though this isn't always the case, it helps gauge compression and the base for composition as I work. 

Retouching, like any artistic pursuit, is subject to taste. Every photographer has their own visual style and will retouch photographs to suit their preferences. But there are a few portrait retouching mistakes to watch out for that will bring down the quality of your photo in almost every circumstance.

Business systems are one of the most important and powerful tools photographic business owners can use to increase their productivity and income, but most will never take the time to build them. Whether they’ve never heard of systematization or they just don’t think it applies to them, they’re missing out on the incredible benefits systems offer.

If there is one thing that can tank a photographer's career, it’s lack of focus. There are so many things to make, so many people to work with, projects to start, events to attend, and an endless pile of new ideas to sift through. With so many important things to do and so many great ideas to consider, how does a photographer know when to say no?

Improving a skill set takes rehearsal, repetition, and hours of purposeful practice. In photography, photographing every day is, of course, the very best way to improve. But, is daily practice the only way forward? What happens when life, planning, or obstacles stop you from shooting every day? 

When compositing render layers, there can be problems worth solving during post-production rather than in your 3D software. Fireflies are one of those artifacts that we get from time to time with 3D rendering. They can be a pain when working with motion, but it's an easy fix in still renders during post-production in Photoshop.