Malcolm Turcotte

Thomas Heaton on the reality of crowded photo locations

Thomas Heaton nails something here that I had to learn the hard way over many failed sunrise outings: showing up to a spot you found online and realizing thirty other photographers had the same idea.…

Do you shoot everything or wait for the moment?

Some of us fire away — bracketing, bursts, variations — knowing the real work happens in culling, and we'd rather have options than miss the shot. Others shoot only when they see it, arguing that the…

Portfolio power: 15 killer shots or 50 solid ones?

Some say your portfolio should be ruthless — 10 to 20 absolute bangers, period, because every weak image drags the whole thing down and clients judge you by your worst shot. Others argue you need 30,…

Thomas Heaton alone in the mountains, sort of

Thomas Heaton captures something here that I think a lot of us who shoot landscapes know but rarely talk about: that tension between wanting solitude in the field and the reality of what a solo mounta…

Do you shoot RAW, JPEG, or RAW+JPEG?

The RAW camp swears by maximum editing latitude — all that sensor data means you can recover blown highlights, shift white balance freely, and deliver gallery-quality prints. The JPEG shooters counter…

Prime lenses or zooms: which makes you a better photographer?

The prime camp swears that a fixed focal length forces you to move, to think, to see in one focal length until it becomes second nature—and the sharpness and low-light performance don't hurt. The zoom…

Getting eyes on a blog post through Instagram

I finally started writing about my process on my blog. Mostly behind the scenes stuff from shoots out in Shenandoah, the conditions I waited through, why I chose a particular composition. I'm proud of…

How do you verify royalty reporting when licensing your work?

A couple years back I started licensing some of my landscape prints to a regional home decor company. I had a contract, I had the copyright language nailed down, I felt good about it. Then the first r…

Do you watermark your photos?

Some swear a visible logo protects your work and builds your brand when images get shared. Others say it ruins the viewing experience and makes you look less professional — that great work should spea…

Freezing up on camera when talking about my photography

Last week I tried to record a short video talking about a Blue Ridge sunrise series I shot, and I completely locked up. Couldn't get through three sentences without stumbling over my words or going bl…