Fujinon XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR Lens (mark I)

More than a decade ago, my career path led me away from the weddings and event work that I’d cut my teeth doing in photography toward focusing more on my art practice. This was in my years as a Nikon shooter, before converting to Fujifilm, and though my personal work remains a focus, I have transitioned back to accepting client work on a limited, highly selective basis (I’m no longer shooting weddings). I’ve also begun to take on more editorial work for regional publications, something that was virtually non-existent in my Nikon days. I mention all of this because the turn toward personal work meant that I didn’t need the same tools that I did as a wedding photographer, which is why I’ve written in the past that I “couldn’t imagine lugging heavy 2.8 zooms around anymore” (a statement in favor of my intervening switch to prime lenses). However, my uptick in event and editorial work has pushed me to reconsider, so I’ve added a suite of “heavy zooms” back into my kit–and I couldn’t be happier with that decision. 

The lenses I review are measured in terms of their performance in three categories: Specialist, Utility or Passion. As always, I am not a technical reviewer, so this won’t be charts and tests driven, just real world experiences.        

What is a Photographer’s Relationship to Gear?

Among artists, photographers are curious in their proclivity toward fetishizing the gear that they use to create their work. Perhaps there is a bit of the artisan’s obsession with tools (a woodworker, for instance) as rationale behind this tendency, but it cannot account for all of it. There are photographers that “collect” cameras after all, which means that they are generally not, or rarely ever, using them for their intended purpose–I myself have a handful of cameras that I no longer use that decorate shelves or sit atop piles of books. So, what is the reason for this behavior and is it solely tied to dispensable income (I don’t think so)? Let’s explore.

My Best of 2025

1. Nat’s Uptown Books, Minneapolis, from Midwestern

What a crazy year! 2025 had me very busy with both personal and client projects, and saw the publication of my second monographic photobook (and my images published in three other books). Though stressful at times, it was largely a positive year for me creatively, in which I was able to stretch and expand the scope of my work.

Love in the Time of Tariff-a

It has been a minute since I’ve last discussed gear on this blog, though current economic climates have rushed me to think about it. Let me explain. Back in 2023, I upgraded the main camera in my kit to the Fujifilm X-T5. Around the same time, I sold two of my older cameras to help finance some professional training that my wife was doing, which left me with the X-T5 and an X-E3. This setup was quite good for me and allowed me to do all of the things that I typically do in photography. However, late last summer, while shooting waterfalls along a shut-in in Missouri, I slipped and tumbled into the river–cameras and all.

Missouri’s New Rhineland Cottages and Cellars

Hermann, Missouri is a quaint river town, located about 80 miles west of St. Louis. In the mid-1800’s, amid a flood of German immigrants to the region, the town became an epicenter for the New Rhineland (a description based on an account by Gottfried Duden), a place where German culture and language could be openly exhibited and old world customs preserved, free from the pressures of assimilation.

The settlers brought with them old world skills like winemaking and beer brewing, which brought considerable acclaim to the community. In the years prior to prohibition, Missouri had the second-largest wine producing region in the United States, after New York’s. Interestingly, in the 1870’s, Hermann and other Missouri wine rootstocks were instrumental in saving the French wine industry from an invasive louse that decimated European wine crops. The Missouri rootstocks were resistant to the louse, and were grafted to those of French wine strains, thus preserving an entire legacy from ruin.

German prosperity in Hermann was not meant to last, however. In the 20th Century, German identity clashed with anti-German sentiment in America during the World Wars. The language, which was once  taught as part of the curriculum in St. Louis public schools, could incite violence if spoken openly on the streets. This, combined with prohibition of alcohol, led to a disappearing of German heritage from cities and towns in Missouri, including Hermann. A period of economic decline followed for the town, and industry largely evaporated.

In the 1970’s, Jim Dierberg, a bank owner, recognized the potential latent in the old town of Hermann, and made his first investments of the millions of dollars he and his family would contribute to the revitalization of the community. Over time, the Dierbergs restored deteriorated buildings, opened new businesses (like the Hermannhof Winery and Hermannhof Inn), built attractions (like the Hermannhof Living History farm and Festhalle), and sought to bring back some of the German character lost over time. In doing so, the Dierberg family has created innumerable opportunities for many small businesses and the local economy to thrive.

In the slideshow below, take a step behind the scenes into the former cellars of the Hermannhof Winery (originally a brewery) and get a glimpse into some of the vacation cottages available for rent nearby (some with their own surprises). NOTE: the “waves” in the floor of the cellar are actually imprinted in the bedrock from an ancient ocean that once existed across Missouri.

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The Asylum on the Hill

For anyone growing up in St. Louis, the former St. Louis County Insane Asylum (now St. Louis Forensic Treatment Center) is a building that has loomed large, both physically and in the imagination. Completed in 1869, the institution was only the second asylum constructed in the State of Missouri, making it among the oldest west of the Mississippi River, and was designed and ornamented according to the grand architectural tastes of the era. Nonetheless, the building’s layout is one of pure function, with the built-in ability for natural light to stretch even into its darkest reaches, and long, straight hallways providing proper ventilation.

Though the physical structure has changed little over time, approaches to mental health have thankfully evolved. If you’ve ever wanted to take a look inside, here is your chance. Scroll through the slideshow below to travel from the basement tunnels to the former cafeteria (now a library housing the largest collection of mental health journals in the country), to the patient rooms and physician conference rooms, to the upper reaches where the city’s elites entertained foreign dignitaries and held elaborate balls, to the wooden stairwell leading up into the dome itself. Enjoy!

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Earthbound Beer: An Eagleland Epilogue

Earthbound Beer opened for business in November of 2014, in a long, narrow commercial space on Cherokee Street. The original location’s odd layout turned out to owe something to the space that would eventually house the brewery. It was, in fact, the carriage turnaround (basically, an alley) for what was once the grand, old Cherokee Brewery–the business whose stockhouse (only remaining building from the original complex) Earthbound would beautifully renovate and occupy. This is one of many things I learned during the almost ten years that I spent photographing the site’s transformation, transition and eventual closure. Another is the idiosyncratic way that I light unlit environments (unique in both deployment and for how shape and depth are rendered, vs. flattened as they would be under traditional long exposure lighting); something that I developed while in a situation of urgency, deep underground at Earthbound and since refined. In truth, education, it would seem, was a part of everyone’s experience at the brewery, where questions were answered, like: what lies beneath; can it be done; will this community sustain it; and finally, should it remain?

As a testament to this fascinating journey, please enjoy the slideshow below–from the beginning of their renovation to just before closure.

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My Best of 2024

1. Former Shapleigh Hardware Company Warehouse Fire, from Mound City Chronicle

2024 was an interesting year. I resumed photographing for more personal projects and some client work, while also taking some time off from speaking events. Getting back to shooting more, though seemingly simple, was actually challenging. It required me to push myself to find more reasons to go out and find images, rather than wait for image assignments to come along (something that I had sort of fallen into the habit of). Unexpectedly, just getting out and finding subjects led to other opportunities; a process that I plan to continue to pursue in 2025.

ISO

A beginner’s guide to ISO.

What is ISO?

When the photographer aims the camera at something and takes a picture, he or she is making an exposure.  An exposure is the net result of a combination of several mechanical, chemical or electronic factors working together in unison.

An exposure fixes an image in time, and can be considered “proper”, “under-“ (meaning too dark), or “over-“ (meaning too bright).

Aperture, shutter speed and ISO are the three primary adjustments that affect exposure.  In a proper exposure, a change to any single one of these will necessitate an equal and opposite change in at least one of the others.  This truth is known as equivalency.

The simplest definition of ISO is that it is a measure of light sensitivity; the higher the ISO number, the more sensitive the film or sensor is to light.

Fuji instax mini Evo

For the 6+ years that I have been a Fujifilm shooter, what I’ve enjoyed most about the brand is their seeming commitment to the photographer’s experience. When you hold any of Fuji’s cameras in hand, there is a strong sense that someone (probably many someones) has thought in depth about how a photographer would interface with the device, or how the device may interact with the photographer to produce not a seamless experience (these cameras hardly disappear), but an experience that makes using them fun. There is even enough variation between camera lines that any photographer can likely find a product that resonates with how they like a camera to operate, thereby actually inspiring the photographer to do photography. While Fuji’s instax line may not be the cameras one might choose for every situation, they do have their place in the lineup–a place defined by fun and simplicity, and a bit of nostalgia.