Photography Unfiltered with Catherine Hall

Don’t miss a chance to watch or listen to your favorite photographers – download the TWiT Photo podcast on iTunes for free :)

Most people have to separate work and play – for prolific Ukraine-born Alex Koloskov, work is play. Our viewers got a kickass splash photography lesson from the product and advertising shooter. The newly minted American citizen (congrats, Alex!) did a live demo in his studio and showed us how he captures the magnetic movement imagery of splashing liquid – in this case, Alex uses tea to masquerade as whiskey and plastic ice as, well, ice. And get this, our TWiT Photo guest also dispenses tips on how you can achieve the same clarity and precision with just a point-and-shoot. Here are Alex’s top three tips:

“The lighting is not important, light modifiers are.”

“Dial exposure compensation and flash exposure compensation in opposite directions.”

“Learn how to use color gels to create remarkable photos.”

Find out more by watching the video here or on iTunes. Next week’s guest: Award-winning documentary photographer Steve Simon.

Have questions, suggestions or praises? Please email photo@twit.tv.

Don’t miss a chance to watch or listen to your favorite photographers – download the TWiT Photo podcast on iTunes for free :)

Much of the excitement during the TWiT Photo live show is in the chatroom. This week, Dan our super moderator had a tough time because the viewers were all hot and heavy and abuzz with a stream of questions and comments. This was not just because our guest, Arny Freytag, is a Playboy legend who rubs shoulders with Hef and has shot Pamela Anderson, Carmen Electra and Anna Nicole Smith. People were genuinely blown away – and some in disbelief – by his revelation that he doesn’t use Photoshop! Watch the video to learn Arny’s invaluable lessons on posing and communication; here are his top three tips:

“Communicate with your models – all too often the photographer stands there and freezes or doesn’t know what to say. Most of my models are non-professionals and have NEVER been photographed. It is up to me to make them comfortable and turn them into models very quickly.”

“Choose your lens based on compression and foreground to background ratio – not based on how far you are from your subject.”

“The secret to great photography is heavily related to the photographs you do NOT take.”

Find out more by watching the video here or on iTunes. Next week’s guest: Product and Advertising Photographer Alex Koloskov.

Have questions, suggestions or praises? Please email photo@twit.tv.

Don’t miss a chance to watch or listen to your favorite photographers – download the TWiT Photo podcast on iTunes for free :)

He’s known as many things. Director. Photographer. Pulitzer Prize winner. But I bet you didn’t know that Vincent Laforet is a magician as well. With a few minutes left to the end of our live broadcast, Vincent disappeared, setting the viewers in the chatroom aflutter with questions about where he went. Ha! Actually, his entire building lost power! Fortunately, he left our viewers with a wealth of personal insights into his life as a photographer and tips on techniques – we even find out that he has a uber-cool and famous photographer dad. Vincent, we’re ready for Part II when you are :) Watch the video to learn more about Vincent; the following are his top three tips:

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should and kiss”

“Choose your lens based on compression and foreground to background ratio – not based on how far you are from your subject.”

“The secret to great photography is heavily related to the photographs you do NOT take.”

Find out more by watching the video here or on iTunes. Don’t miss next week’s guest, Playboy photographer and glamor photography educator Arny Freytag – he holds the record for the most Centerfolds shot!

Have questions, suggestions or praises? Please email photo@twit.tv.

My TWiT Photo cohost Leo Laporte is famously known as The Tech Guy and the King of the Internet – but at Sunday’s TWiT Brick House Grand Opening party, he also garnered himself a new moniker – Hef. Leo threw a party that could rival one of the notorious Hugh Hefner parties – and even donned a plush velvet red smoking jacket and was the very epitome of lush decadence in his regal man’s chair. The party was a blast, starting with Revision3 host Brian Brushwood‘s daredevil fire-eating stunt and ending with TWiT employees and guests on the dance floor showing their stuff and letting loose. Check out some photos of me, with my studio manager Trish in tow, along with other TWiT folks, such as Mad Magazine’s “Maddest Writer” Dick DeBartolo, Alex Lindsay, Robert Scoble and Bob Heil.