1. Get Inspired
Scrutinize the work of the masters and the pros.
"To improve my own photography," says Will van Overbeek, photographer and photo instructor, "I look at other photographers' photos and treat them like a puzzle. I ask myself, how was that done? Then I figure it out."
The Web is full of pictures worth scrutinizing. For starters, go to Masters of Photography, a plain-looking site displaying prints by a good sample of photographic greats, such as Ansel Adams, remembered for his large-format black-and-white pictures of Yosemite Valley; Margaret Bourke-White, the first female photojournalist to shoot for Life magazine; and Gordon Parks, a barrier-breaking African-American photographer.
A deeper source of historical imagery is the Library of Congress. Its website contains a million digitized photographs, including those by such masters as Dorothea Lange, who photographed scenes of the Great Depression for what became the Farm Security Administration, and Mathew Brady, the most famous photographer of the Civil War. Another treasure of classic photos—from the collections of New York's International Center of Photography and the George Eastman House—is browsable at a joint website.
Photography books, often of the coffee-table variety, have long been a source of inspiration to photographers, and now you can browse them on the Web. "When a photographic project gets to the stage of being published in a book, typically that means the body of work is really solid," says photographer Justin Guariglia. "I look to photography books more than magazines to get inspired." His favorite publishers: Aperture Foundation, Twin Palms, Phaidon, and Nazraeli, not to mention National Geographic Books.
Photo-eye, an online photo store, lists some 14,000 photography books, as well as an online gallery of fine art photography by the likes of Steve McCurry, Robert Capa, and Imogen Cunningham. "Looking at photo books feeds ideas into your subconscious," Guariglia says, "and they come back when you're out photographing."
A source of inspiration unknown to many amateur photographers is photo agencies, or "stock houses," which sell images by thousands of contemporary photographers as well as from historic archives. Search their collections to see how the pros have already shot your upcoming travel destination—say, the Grand Canyon or Angkor Wat.
"Before going on a trip, I go to Corbis to see what a place looks like in general," says photographer Catherine Karnow. "That helps me narrow my shooting list." Corbis, founded in 1989 by Bill Gates, has some 70 million images. Other stock houses worth browsing are Getty Images, Magnum Photos, and VII. "For inspiration," says photographer David McLain, "I go to Aurora Photos more than any place else on the Web. It's the photo agency I belong to, and I always like to see the weekly features that are up as well as keep up with what my colleagues are shooting."
Another way the pros get inspiration and ideas is by visiting other shooters' own websites. "If you run across an interesting photographer," says van Overbeek, "say, in a magazine article, look for the photo credit, then google the name and check out the photographer's website." Adds photographer Farah Nosh: "My Web designer and I comb through hundreds of personal photography websites every time we are preparing an update for my own site."
Finally, realize that photography is part of the evolving digital media revolution, so keep an eye on "cutting-edge multimedia sites" like MediaStorm, says Daniel Westergren, Traveler's senior photo editor. Projects on the site converge photos, text, audio, and video.
