Photographer's Journal (Photography tips)

Welcome to my online journal, otherwise known as a blog. Here I'll be sharing pertinent information, inspirational stories, trip reports, behind-the-photo stories, photography tips and techniques, and various random thoughts that you might find interesting. If you have any questions or comments regarding the opinions and information shared here, feel free to contact me. Thanks for your interest in my work!

A Change in Perspective
November 6, 2023

The surest way to take something familiar and make it new again is to look at it from a new point of view. This is true of anything in life, whether it be a TV show that we've seen that we suddenly watch with a different point of view, a social or political issue we never considered except from our own perspective, but now look at in light of someone else's concerns, or simply considering a new use for a room that you've always used another way...

Nature's Fury: Photographing in a Tropical Storm
September 18, 2023  |  Acadia National Park, Maine

As a photographer, I appreciate a good storm for the opportunities it can provide for interesting photos. But I'm also torn. Because there's nothing like a stormy day spent at home curled up on the couch all cozy and warm, as the wind and rain whip around outside...

Making the Most of Your Visits to National Parks
August 22, 2023

National Parks have been called America's "Best Idea". Over the past decade, the number of visitors to our national parks has grown immensely. Some of the most crowded parks now require entry reservations to help manage the crowds and traffic, in an effort to ensure that our natural resources within the park are preserved...

The Creative Decision Behind Lens Choice
June 25, 2023

When I started taking photos way back when, I thought of lenses the way most people who are new to photography, or who aren't photographers at all, think of them. Specifically that telephoto lenses are used when things are far away, and wide angle lenses are for tight spaces or wide vistas...

Rick Berk's Guide to Acadia National Park
June 14, 2023  |  Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine

It should be no secret that Acadia National Park is one of my favorite places to photograph. Now that I live just over 2 hours away, it’s much easier for me to get to, and I still find there are plenty of places to photograph there that I’ve never photographed before...

Behind the Image: Sunrise at Montauk Point
June 7, 2023  |  Montauk Point, New York

Since I began selling my work, "Sunrise at Montauk Point" has become one of my most popular, selling a fair number of prints. It's easy to see why. The iconic Montauk Point Lighthouse stands in the distance atop the bluff, as the sun rises above a bank of clouds while a wave washes over the rocky shoreline west of the lighthouse...

What's In My Camera Bag?
February 26, 2023

I get asked quite a bit what gear I use to make my photographs. To be completely honest, it doesn't really matter what camera I use. Throughout this website, there are images captured with cameras from Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Fujifilm...

Photographing in the Winter
January 20, 2023

Having just returned from photographing in the Rockies in winter weather with my friend Kristen Wilkinson, I thought some might find it helpful to hear some tips about photographing in winter weather...

Tips For Photographing In the Snow
December 8, 2022

Winter can be a lot of things. Cold. Wet. Damp. Raw. But it can also be magical. Fresh snow and ice can sparkle over the landscape, make it clean and fresh, and change it from the norm. That's one of the reasons I love photographing in the snow...

Behind the Image: Capturing A Long Exposure Sunset on Deer Isle
November 15, 2022  |  Deer Isle, Maine

This past weekend, eager to avoid spending the day at home doing nothing, I asked my wife if she'd like to take a drive. I'd been looking at weather reports, tide reports, and sunset positioning for a few different locations I've been wanting to photograph, and everything seemed to line up well for a sunset at Sand Beach on Deer Isle, Maine, near the village of Stonington...

What Makes A Photo Good?
November 9, 2022

We live in a time when more photographs are taken than ever before, and more photographs are shared with the general public than ever before. We also live in a time when it's easier than ever for anyone to set up a website, or use any of more than a dozen marketplaces, and try to sell their photos...

Deconstructing the Composition: Maroon Bells II
October 1, 2022  |  Maroon Bells, Colorado

One of the primary things that elevates a photograph from snapshot to art, whether it be a portrait, a candid street photograph, or a landscape or cityscape, is the composition. Composition, or the arrangement of elements within an image, can often look random, when in fact, the photographer has considered the placement of even the most minute object...

Five Tips For Amazing Fall Foliage Photos
September 16, 2022

Autumn is my absolute favorite season of the year! The air gets cool and crisp. You can smell the scent of wood burning from fireplaces and wood stoves. Apple cinnamon and pumpkin spice flavors and scents are everywhere, warming us up on chilly mornings...

Can Landscape Photographers Get Artist's Block? And How I Deal With It
September 10, 2022

We all know writers get writer's block, unsure where to take a story or article or essay. And you're probably aware that painters and other visual artists like sketch artists and illustrators can deal with artist's block...

The Elegance of Black and White Photography
September 9, 2022

If you've followed my work for any amount of time, you're accustomed to seeing the bold, vibrant color I tend to work with. And make no mistake, I very much see the world in color, and enjoy capturing the color I see with my camera and in my editing process...

A Year In The Making
May 29, 2022  |  Bailey Island, Maine

Many of my photos are fairly spontaneous. I watch the weather, decide where I'd like to photograph, and off I go. There is some amount of planning, but it's usually limited to checking the weather and finding a day to go...

Developing My Style
April 20, 2022

It's easy to discover an artist or photographer or writer when they are more advanced in their craft, and feel like they've always been that good at what they do. Often the hard work, the learning, and the growth goes on behind closed doors, and rarely do we get to see evidence of that growth when the work is taken one piece or image at a time, as it so often is when shared on social media...

The Passage of Time: Using Long Exposures to Create a Sense of Calm
April 5, 2022

One of my favorite things to do with a camera is to transform the landscape in some way as I photograph it. There are several ways to do this, such as choosing a specific lens to frame the landscape a certain way, or using a unique point of view to force a viewer to see things differently...