At the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas last week, Wacom announced the 13.3″ Cintiq Companion 2, which is essentially the 2nd generation in their line of powerful and portable tablets. Built with digital artists, photographers and graphic designers in mind, these devices not only come with a pen stylus and 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity, but they run …
A Year in Reflection – 2014
It is that time of year again when many of us not only look forward to new beginnings and making resolutions for the next 12 months, but also look back on the challenges and successes that the previous year brought with it. 2014 was certainly full of both. Travel Like most full time travel photographers, I spend a good portion of the year …
Initial Hands On: Sony a7II With 5 Axis Image Stabilization
On November 20th, 2014 Sony surprised the photography world with the announcement of the second generation of the full frame a7 mirrorless camera, known creatively as the a7II, which retails for $1698. While this announcement caught even the Sony rumors sites off guard in terms of timing, the big surprise was that Sony had managed to fit 5 axis in …
The Colby Brown Holiday Giveaway
It is that time of year again and I have a pretty spectacular giveaway this time around. I have reached out to a variety of my partners and sponsors and have put together something special. Each week through the month of December, I will giveaway a mix of products from Sony, Wacom, G-Technology, Formatt Hitech, Nik Software, onOne Software and …
So You Want to Become a Travel Photographer?
While we live in a day and age where camera gear is more affordable than ever, photo editing applications are much more accessible and social media platforms have connected each of us with more and more people from around the globe, many photographers still struggle with the idea of working professionally as a photographer. When it comes to travel photography specifically, things …
An In-Depth Review of the Sony FE 16-35 f/4 OSS Wide Angle Lens
While Sony has continued to take the photo industry by storm with their a7 series of full frame mirror-less cameras, many of us have been eagerly awaiting the FE lens mount lineup to grow. At the top of that list was one of the only holes in Sony’s mostly incredibly impressive lens options for their a7 cameras…namely a native wide angle lens …
Sony Announces New Professional Services Program to Rival CPS and NPS
As a professional photographer that spends much of his time on the road working in extreme environments, I have found the use of a Professional Services Program to be integral to my various photography businesses over the years. As a Canon shooter previously, there were many times when I had to take advantage of CPS (Canon Professional Services) to help …
First Look: Sony FE 16-35 f/4 ZA OSS Lens
*UPDATE – The full in-depth review of the Sony FE 16-35 f/4 is now live. LINK Over the last two years Sony Imaging has continued to push the boundaries of the photo industry. Between the dynamic range found in the a7r (In Depth Review) to the incredible low light performance of the a7s, there is a lot of reasons to love …
A Photographers Guide to Visiting Yosemite
There are few places in the world that are as beautiful and inspiring as Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. When it comes to iconic locations that define a country such as the United States, it is hard not think of images of Half Dome or Yosemite Falls, both of which have been made famous over the years …
An In-Depth Review of the Sony a7r
There is no doubt that Sony has the photo industry talking lately. While you can certainly purchase a very capable Canon, Nikon or Fuji camera, it is Sony that seems to be the most innovative these days, both in sensor and lens technology. So when Sony announced the a7 & a7r last year, I (like my of my colleagues) was …
Adobe Adds Multiple New Features to Photoshop CC (June 2014)
When Adobe first moved to the subscription model, many photographers were up in arms about the new pricing structure. Among the complaints was the mindset that Adobe was just going to take our money and not provide any real benefits to the end user, even if this was against everything Adobe was saying. Part of the reason for the change …
Spring 2014 Photography Contest/Giveaway
Spring is here and it is a time for rebirth and new beginnings. As a photographer this can have several important meanings from a simple shift in the seasons to a change in our mindset of what is to come for us in the coming year. To me it stands for the rebirth of mother nature. Between the wild flowers blooming …
The Wonder of Australia
When it comes to bucket list locations around the world, I often hear other photographers mention Australia….the Land Down Under. Having explored the 6th largest country multiple times over the years I certainly understand why it is so sought after. Like Canada, much of the interior is full of vast empty spaces known as the “Outback” with the majority of …
Mini Review: Updated 2014 Toshiba 13″ Kirabook
In August of 2013, I wrote a in-depth review of the new 13″ Toshiba Kirabook laptop that was one of the better Windows travel laptops at the time. However while it was lightweight, portable and contained a gorgeous 2560×1440 screen, it wasn’t perfect. Battery life was ok but not great, Windows 8 didn’t support high resolution very well and Intel …
Gear Review: A Photographers Take on The HTC One M8 (2014)
Last year HTC released their latest flagship phone known as the “HTC One”, which took much of the Android photo industry by surprise. While the Android OS has caught up and exceeded IOS in terms of features and functionality over the last few years (in my opinion), it was the first time that an Android manufacturer had released a phone …
An In-Depth Conversation With Sony – Focus on a7/a7r
When Sony announced the a7/a7r on October 16th, 2013 it lit the photography world on fire. For the first time, a camera manufacturer had managed to make an affordable full frame mirror-less camera in an ultra portable body. Photographers all over the globe, myself included, began to realize that the mirror-less revolution might be here sooner than we realized. Unlike …
Who Says That Travel Photography Is Not A Contact Sport?
When it comes to travel photography, I am not all that surprised that many emerging and aspiring photographers have a somewhat over romanticized notion of the challenges many of us face in making a career out of this profession. In all honesty, I was just as guilty nearly nine years ago when I purchased my first DSLR and decided that …
A Year in Reflection – 2013
It is that time of year yet again where the promises and resolutions of a new year fuse with the reflections of what the last 12 months meant to each of us. While 2012 was a year of growth for me and my photography businesses, 2013 was about broadening my horizons, expanding business opportunities and cherishing the time I had …
Your Favorite Images of 2013 Photo Contest/Giveaway
As the end of 2013 approaches, photographers from all over the globe have begun compiling their photos from the past year to share with others. While I enjoy this time of year as an artist, I tend to see too many photographers get way too wrapped up in having others choose their “best” images of the year, often relying on …
Camera Awesome for Android Released – The Best Camera App on the Market?
While the Android mobile ecosystem has no shortage of photography related applications (i.e. SnapSeed, Sun Surveyer, Touch Retouch), there is one area that it has always seemed to fall short, camera apps. Now before I upset Android fans, Android does have a handful of well built camera apps such as Camera 360 and Camera Zoom FX, but the most popular …
Fall Photo Contest – Giving Away Two HTC One Mobile Phones
For those of you that follow me on social media or via this blog, you know that fall is easily my favorite time of the year, especially as a photographer. As the summer changes into fall and the weather begins to dip, we are often greeted with an amazing infusion of color across some of the beautiful landscapes many of …
Where Is The Fun In Specializing As a Photographer?
When it comes to professional photography, you commonly find that photographers choose to specialize in a specific genre, such as wedding, landscape or travel photography for example. Some photographers even take this to the next level, labeling themselves as “HDR” photographers or “Black and White Fine Art” photographers. This mindset is certainly not endemic to just the photo industry and …
Gear Review: A Photographer’s Take on the HTC One
As technology has increased over the years, the devices that we carry with us have gotten smaller and more powerful. In situations where we might of once reached for our trusty point and shoot cameras, we are now reaching for our smart phones and tablets instead to capture the world around us. The Apple iPhone was one of the first …
An Adventure Through Tanzania with an IQ260 from Phase One
As many of you know, I enjoy the business side of photography almost as much as the creative hands on time I get with my cameras year after year in some of the most amazing locations on this planet. Through this combined love of what makes photography special and unique to me, I have found myself working hard over the …
Photographer AMA (Ask Me Anything) – A Focus on Social Media
As many of you already know, I have been running multiple Photography AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions on Facebook and Google+ over the last few months. These incredibly popular posts were opportunities for photographers from all over the globe to have direct access to me in order to get answers for any questions they might have that pertain to photography, …
Gear Review: Toshiba’s Ultra Resolution 13″ Kirabook Laptop
In May of 2013 Toshiba announced their new flagship 13″ ultrabook laptop, the Kirabook. Their goal was to create a premium laptop for Windows users that not only competed with Apples Macbook Air, but also their Macbook Pro laptop line. With a retina like touch display (2560×1440), i7 processor, 8GB of ram and a solid magnesium frame that is said …
Welcome to the New SmugMug – A True Game Changer
As photographers, we are constantly looking for new ways to improve how our images are viewed on the internet. While many photographers have begun to choose to use Facebook, Google+ or 500px as their photo hosting site of choice, nothing beats having your own website. Unlike Facebook, a website is the one piece of the Internet that is truly yours. …
Can Photo Spheres Change the Way We Experience The World?
On October 29th, 2012 Google announced the Android Jelly Bean 4.2 operating system as well as a slew of new Android Nexus devices (Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10). One of the key photography focused features in 4.2 that was showcased was called “Photo Sphere“, which effectively allows you to capture immersive 360 degree panoramas (covering both horizontal and …
Twenty Apps Every Android Photographer Should Have Vol 2
If there is one thing that I can say for certain, it is that it is an exciting time for mobile photography. Every year the phones and tablets we use get faster, lighter and more efficient When it comes to mobile photography, both IOS and Android are continuing to push the boundaries of what we think is possible in sensors that are incredibly …
A Year in Reflection: 2012
Another year has come and gone and all of us are left with memories of the last 12 months. As a photographer, I am fortunate that my art-form allows me to capture many of these moments and share them with the world. 2012 was a year of growth, travel and experiences I will never forget. I taught photography workshops in Death Valley NP, …