In this episode, I’m answering a question I get a lot, especially at this time of year… Which order should I take the Live Snap Love courses in? We have quite a few courses on offer (which you can check out here!) so I understand it can be difficult to know where to start….and what to learn next! In this episode, I’ll break down a typical learning path, the reasons why I recommend this order, and the Live Snap Love courses that align with that learning pathway.  Even if you are not...

In this week’s episode, we are diving into Lightroom Presets - what they are, what they do, and how they can help you speed up your editing process, so you can get more done in less time!   In this episode we discuss:  What Lightroom Presets are, and how they work https://livesnaplove.com/bloWhy many photographers, from beginners to pros use presets Why presets are not the be all and end all when it comes to editing, and what to watch out for What we have coming up for you in...

Although I don’t always want to remove day to day clutter from my frame (for example for more documentary photos) there are times when I want a cleaner, more streamlined look to my images than my cluttered, messy home will allow!  Over the years I have come up with lots of tricks to help me create beautiful, clean photos in less-than-picturesque environments, from my home, to clients home, or even just being out and about with my camera.  So in this week’s episode, I’m sharing with you 6...

Are you planning on taking your own family portraits this year, but not sure how to go about it? Then listen to this week’s episode as I walk you, step by step, through how to take your own family photos!   Being able to take your own family photos, either for a traditional portrait to hang on your wall, for your holiday cards, or just to have a snapshot of your family at this stage of life,  is actually pretty simple to do - you just need to have a few basics down.  Tune in to learn:  ...

In this episode, I’m talking with an incredible photographer, Pam McIntyre, who was actually a student of Live Snap Love many years ago, but has gone on to do amazing work in all different genres. The story of her photography journey is an interesting one - she had a highly technical job in a male dominated industry, and took up photography as a way of having a creative outlet.  She then recently retired, and worried that her life would lack focus and purpose, so she started a blog, and has...

Have you heard people talking about Lensbaby lenses, and wondered what they are, and why the heck you might want one?  Or maybe you’ve already been thinking about adding a Lensbaby to your collection but not sure which one you should get, or even if they are the right choice for you? I have coveted a Lensbaby for years, but was never sure which one I wanted, or what the difference was between the various options! So I’ve been busy doing my homework, researching all the options, and in this...

In this episode, I’m answering a question from one of our listeners, Emma, who wanted to know a little bit more about documentary and lifestyle photography, and what the difference was between the two. She asked: “I’m never sure whether to call myself a lifestyle or documentary photographer. I like capturing unposed shots, and more candid moments, but I’m not really sure of the difference between the two. And does it matter?” So tune into this week’s episode where we’ll chat about both...

I know from personal experience that when you first start out in photography, it can often feel very overwhelming and frustrating, and for many new photographers, this leads to you giving up, thinking you might “never get it” or that you’re just not cut out for photography.  Which is why I want to share with you 11 things that I think you should know right at the start of your photography journey! These are the things I wish that I had been told, realized or simply paid more attention to in...

Fall is one of the best times of the year for portraits, whether that be of your child, your family, your pet, maternity or any type of portrait!  That’s because nature creates a fantastic backdrop for us in fall (or autumn in you are in the UK) with the leaves on the trees turning into beautiful shades of red, orange and yellow,  creating a vibrant, warm, cozy look to our portraits. So in this week’s episode, I’m sharing how you can plan for a fall photoshoot - from when to find the best...

One of the questions I get a lot from my students was about lens filters, so I created a free training for them inside our student community, the Live Snap Love Insiders Club. But I thought that you would probably enjoy it too, so today on the podcast, I’m sharing the audio of that free training. Although it was obviously created with slides to show. you examples, I still think it will be incredibly interesting to listen to even with audio only (and if you are a student, you can watch the...

Have you heard the terms aperture, f-stop and depth of field and wondered what the **** they all are, and how they all work together? Then this is the podcast episode for you! Today, listen is as we go over what Aperture is, what the term F-stop means, and how this impacts your depth of field, and how this changes the look of your photo. (Want to see pictures? See the full show notes for this episode here!) In this episode you’ll learn: What exactly aperture is, and how it is really just...

In this episode, I’m taking you behind the scenes of our brand new community for our students! We recently moved our student community away from Facebook, and into a new home on our course website.  Today I want to get into what you’ll find over at the new community, and why we made the switch, and how you access the community if you are a student, and what to do if you’re not! In this episode we discuss:  Who is this community for, why we have one (and why it’s better than any free...

Learn how to get started with macro photography, from which gear you need, to camera settings and composition!  Macro photography has been an unexpected joy for me in my photography journey. . It allows you to see the world in a whole new way, and appreciate the beauty that can be found everywhere if you get close enough!  So many people come to me and say that they would like to try macro too, but they don’t know where to start.  So that’s exactly what we are going to look at today - how...

How to find more time in your day for learning photographyWhenever I ask people about what the number one thing is that is holding them back from learning photography, one of the most common answers I get is not having enough time!  I can definitely relate to that - most of us are struggling, trying to juggle several plates at the same time, so learning photography can get shunted down to the bottom of the pile.  Although I can’t help you add more hours to your day, I can try to help you...

The 5 must-know editing tips to help you edit your photos like a pro!    If you have been following Live Snap Love for a while, you'll know that I LOVE editing photos. It’s a HUGE part of photography for me, because it's another area where I get to be creative, or get the photo looking exactly the way I want it to look! Editing is like the icing on the cake or the seasoning on your food - you might not technically need it, but without it, your photos can be a little bland and...

How many times have you heard that in order to get the best photos, you should try to shoot in the Golden Hour, in other words, the hour right before sunset or just after sunrise? Probably a lot!  However, many times, we simply cannot shoot at that time of day.  Maybe we’re taking our kids to the beach or the park later in the day, or we’re photographing a wedding that is happening in the afternoon, or we’re on holiday and sightseeing during the day, or maybe you’re in business and your...

There has been a lot of chatter recently about the use of AI in photography, especially as Photoshop's AI tools have been growing steadily, and very recently both Lightroom and Lightroom Classic introduced a new generative AI tool inside Lightroom, making it even more accessible to use AI on your images. So where do YOU draw the line when it comes to the use of AI in photography? I'm definitely no expert in AI but it did prompt me to think more closely about the use of AI in my own work!  ...

Over my 17 years of practicing and learning photography, I have had plenty of a-ha moments or changes I have implemented that have totally changed my photos for the better.  So today on the podcast I am sharing just three of these, but these three are ones that you can do today (as in right this minute!) and they don’t require any new equipment,  spending money or learning anything too complicated!  Tune in today and learn the 3 simple changes you can make today that will change your photos...

In need of a new photography project for summer? Then I've got you covered!  In this episode of the Photography Made Simple podcast,  I'm giving you 4 ideas of photography projects you can do that will help you document summer, get more creative photos, or just motivate you to pick up your camera.  Whether you are photographing your young family, or you’re retired and capturing your travels or you just want to capture the beauty of your days and the world around you, there will be a summer...

The way that you show movement or motion in your photos can give your images a totally different look and feel,  and today on the podcast, we are looking at all the different ways you can capture it!  Using motion is a great way to make your images look more creative, have stronger compositions, or just play and have fun!  You can choose to freeze the motion, have motion blur in the background, have motion blur on your subject, introduce motion blur just by camera movement and even do time...

As much as I love using Lightroom Classic for editing my photos, it doesn’t mean that it can do absolutely everything you need! There’s a damn good reason why Adobe bundled both Lightroom Classic CC and Photoshop CC together in their Photography Plan - because when you have access to both programs, you can do absolutely anything your little editing heart desires! But when should you use Photoshop - and what can it do that Lightroom Classic can’t?  That’s exactly what we’re covering today...

Choosing a lens can feel like a difficult and overwhelming task- there is so much choice that it can be hard to narrow it down and decide which would be the best lens for YOU.  Let’s face it, lenses are expensive, so it’s an important thing to get right! Although you can always sell your lenses if they turn out not to be the one for you, it’s easier and more cost effective to get it right the first time.  So today on the podcast, I’m going to walk you through 8 questions you should ask...

This week’s episode is a little bit of an indulgent one, because I’m talking all about the courses we have at Live Snap Love, and the biggish changes we are making to these in 2024, and what we have coming up! If you are new to the world of Live Snap Love, then you’ll learn exactly what courses are coming up, so you can see what might suit you based on where you currently are on your photography journey, and what you need help with. And if you’ve been here a while and were planning on taking...

Do you know how to find beautiful, dramatic, interesting light for your photos? Light is EVERYTHING in photography. Good light will illuminate your subject, draw your eye to what you want the viewer to focus on, minimize distractions, make images more dramatic or magical, give them a three dimensional quality and just generally make our images more compelling and unique. Thats why learning how to see the light, use it in different ways, and be able to control or manipulate it is crucial for...