Above: Image by Gina Milicia “An amazing thing happens when you stop seeking approval and validation: You find it. People are naturally drawn like magnets to those who know who they are and cannot be shaken!” ― Mandy Hale Are you an innie or an outie? I’m not talking about belly buttons, I’m talking about how you create your photos. For the record, I’m both an innie and an outie photographer. But I’m working hard to become more of an innie. So what is the difference between an innie and an outie? Let me explain. There are two ways to create an image, the first and most common is to work from the outside in. An example of this style of photography is when a photographer is commissioned by a client to shoot an advertising campaign. The client will supply a specific brief that includes the type of location, style of...
Above: Image by Gina Milicia “Those at the top of the mountain didn’t fall there.” – Unknown I’ve spent the last 30 years climbing a mountain. I started climbing impatiently, sprinting so fast I barely noticed the scenery. The road was smooth and the incline was gentle. The first part of the climb felt easy, took little effort, almost like I was being carried by some invisible force. Then just when I thought I had mastered mountain climbing 101 I hit my first obstacle. The climb took a turn and I needed to navigate terrain that I had not experienced before. It was physically challenging. For every three steps I took I would lose my footing and slide back two. On several occasions I misjudged a bolder for a ledge and slid back almost to where I started. I was frustrated, felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere but somewhere in the...
Above: Image by Gina Milicia Fuji X100f Have you ever noticed that whenever you point a camera at someone they will go to one of three default settings. Photo face with cheesy smile and dead eyes No smile and a look of sheer terror Duck face or pouty lips Sometimes you might get lucky and photograph someone who has an authentic smile and looks relaxed and comfortable in front of the camera. Unfortunately this usually only happens in about 10% of cases so how do you get rid of duck face, cheesy smiles or looks of terror in the remaining 90% of portraits? Asking your model to say any word starting with ‘ch’ and ending in ‘y’ or ‘e’ when you photograph them will show both top and bottom teeth. This is a great idea in theory, but always ends up looking fake on models. The reason for this is that...
Above: Image, Gina Milicia “Michael” photographed using Fuji x100F It’s been an exciting couple of years for photography lovers with all the big camera manufacturers announcing new technology ranging from better and faster focusing, sharper lenses, In-body stabilization, better low light shooting, faster glass and larger image sizes. I’d be lying if I told you my inner geek girl wasn’t drooling over some of these specs! 50MB raw files gazillions of + focus points touch screens, flip screens WiFi connectivity 4K video coffee maker and inbuilt foot massager (I made that up but it can’t be far off). There is no doubt in my mind that many of these advances have made my life easier as a professional photographer. Larger file sizes and higher resolution give me crisper details. Advances in autofocus have increased the number of keepers or images that are sharp to over 95%. Better low light performance has...
Above: Image, Gina Milicia “When you buy something from an artist you are buying more than an object. You’re buying hundreds of hours of errors and experimentation. You’re buying years of frustration and moments of pure joy. You’re not buying just one thing, you are buying a piece of a heart, a piece of a soul… a piece of someone else’s life.” —Rebekah Joy Plett
Gina Milicia is one of the most widely known and respected photographers in Australia. She is the master of capturing that ‘magical moment’... READ MORE
