In writing for periodicals, having photos to submit along with your articles can enhance your chances of publication and will sometimes even be prerequisite to getting an assignment. Bear in mind however that writer-submitted photos need not be of professional quality. If the publication needs a high quality photograph to go with your story they will send out a professional photographer to shoot it. If they ask you, the writer, to provide pictures they will accept any decently framed, properly exposed, correctly focused image. Unfortunately, meeting even these simple requirements can prove a seemingly insurmountable challenge to the uninitiated. Trust me, it's really not that hard. All that is required is a fairly decent camera of modest price, a wee bit of technical knowledge and a little practice.

      These pages are divided into three sections. The first deals with features to look for in choosing a camera. The second with buying accessory equipment to go along with it. The third section concentrates on the fun aspects of photography; technique, composition, lighting and how to deal with the myriad of varying photographic situations you will find yourself confronted with in shooting your semi-pro photographs. You will find thumbnail photos like this one scattered throughout the third section. Clicking on these will bring up an example photograph and additional text further illustrating the topic under discussion at that point. Clicking the "BACK" button on the photo page will return you to the discussion at the same place you left it.

      Keep in mind that, being an art, photography is a subjectively measured endeavor. The advice and opinions offered here are strictly my own and are based solely on my personal experience. That, although I've had more than a hundred of my photos published (mostly in support of my own writing), have shot a few personal and executive portraits, a couple of model portfolios and a couple of advertising layouts, I do not consider myself a professional photographer. I've never shot the swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated and don't expect I ever will--I'm just not that good. I am, however, a decent amateur who has enjoyed photography as a hobby for many years. Still, you will undoubtedly run across people whose opinions will differ from those expressed here. That doesn't mean they're right and I'm wrong or the other way around--it just means there's more than one way to skin any given cat. So don't treat anything I've written here or anything you may hear from someone else as gospel. Just get your hands on a camera and start shooting. You'll quickly discover what methods work best for you and settle into your own ways--and that is how it should be.