pacificLIGHT Photography - Dream — Create

Sunset view of domed church and countryside.

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Latest Sketches

Before the Click

Before the Click explores the decisions that shape a photograph before the shutter is pressed. It explores observation, visual awareness, composition, and the creative choices photographers make in the field. It's a Free download... click the link below ...

Panning (blurred image) from Singapore of cyclist riding by within a sea oc colour

Perfection Kills Creativity

“The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection.” Great slogan for a car manufacturer, but for photographers? Not so much. Lately, I've been thinking about how easily we fall into this trap. I know I do at times. So in part, this essay is me giving my own head a (virtual) shake ...

Winding road with car light trails at night

A Twist on Implying Motion at Night

Learn how to photograph night traffic trails using multiple short exposures and image stacking for cleaner files, rich light trails, and more creative control than a single long exposure ...

Rustic patio table with two metal chairs in Lourmarin France

Get Lost….

One of my favourite things to do in any small town, particularly in Europe, is to simply get lost. Just wander the small backstreets. If your first inclination is to turn right, turn left instead. Make the effort to climb that steep alley to see what's around the corner ...

Clichés are nice, but…

There’s more to see and photograph in Provence than lavender and sunflowers. Wanting to find more than these clichéd images requires a willingness to go off the well-worn roads and onto the smaller side roads ...

Abstract red and white LED light display

New York Reflections

If you stand in front of the Hard Rock Café at the corner of West 43rd Street and 7th Avenue, in the heart of New York's Times Square, the US Military Recruiting Centre will be directly across the street ...

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Improve Your Photography

Before the Click explores the decisions that shape a photograph before the shutter is pressed. This short book gathers twenty-five practical ideas drawn from years of photographing, teaching, and working with students.

How we observe, interpret, and shape the scene before us before pressing the shutter, affects our images more than anything we can do later.

This ~100-page eBook is available free of charge
(click the cover image above)

About…

Pensive older man in glasses, black and white photo.

If we haven’t met, I’m Mark English. I’m a photographer, teacher, and author. For over 40 years, I’ve followed a passion for capturing the beauty in the world around us and, along the way, enjoyed helping others do the same. Welcome.