Wow, I first told my story (along with photo tips for you, of course!) in the video above—”Me and My Camera: A Love Story”—made back when my kids were that young!  I recently updated it to bring my story currrent.

Now the boys are starting 7th and 4th grade and the feelings I share in the video about the importance of the camera to our family are just as strong as ever.

And the boys seemed especially excited to go back to school this year.  After the lazy hazy days of summer spent lolling around the neighborhood, or up at Grandma’s house in the country, going back to school brings its own set of memories and special relationships. When Alexander first saw his teacher this fall it was all hugs and kisses and the warmest of eye contact. Back to school is a good thing and we’re glad to be settled back into our school routine.

Learning is a source of joy.

Of course, that’s my little way of segueing into a conversation about how you can learn to be a better photographer. When the kids or grandkids are at school we have several ways for you to spend some personallhy enriching time with your camera. 

If you don’t already know me well, I’ve been taking photographs since I was the yearbook photographer in junior high school, I studied photojournalism in college and I’ve been a professional photographer ever since. That’s a long, long time. I’ve written and/or photographed nine books for amateur photographers and have been asked to share my photography tips many many times—including multiple times on Oprah and The Today Show. And over the years I’ve built this website, online courses and, our latest exciting undertaking, live multi-day photography workshops in a variety of locales across the country.

Watch my video and you’ll see just how—but, more importantly, why—I ended up here. Teaching you!

I believe that our website and Facebook page, How To Photograph Your Life, are among the very friendliest, most supportive places on the Internet to learn how to take good photographs. And taking the best photographs you can is important to preserving your family memories and spreading joy with your camera. It’s that simple.

We’ve been at this for 7 years now. How To Photograph Your Life has come a long way. After all, as some of you may remember, we used to be How to Photograph Your Baby. We started when Alexander was a toddler and Teddy was a baby—they’re 12 and 9 now. So this is a logical time to take a little look back.

Here’s a little video I made in earlier days that seems like the perfect place for us to start—I mean re-start. I would love to pretend it’s current, but my boys’ cameo toward the end—as preschooler and toddler—would be a dead giveaway! 🙂  By the way, I’ve watched the ending of this video several hundred times at this point. It’s really amazing. Their voices! Oh my!

So please watch to see my photographic journey and, along the way, I’ll be giving some tips to help you in yours….

Okay, so now that you’ve seen my story, what exactly IS that first step to help take yours to the next level?  (Or if you’re at a higher level already, that next step?)

It’s simple…

Just make a commitment to improve your photography this September! (and read on to see 3 ways I can help you do that!)

Going back to school at its very best is fun—and believe it or not, it’s most fun when you’re committed. Learning photography is no different. Sure, there’s always going to be a speed bump or two—I can’t deny that—but committing to making yourself a better photographer by preserving your most precious family moments and creating treasures that will span the generations can actually be a peak life experience.

We’ll get you started with the basics if that’s where you are. And if you’re already more advanced, we’ve got opportunities to keep you learning and really taking your photography to the next level.  In the month ahead I’ll focus on helping you, wherever you are in your journey, and at whatever level of commitment you want to make. That’s my commitment!

So who’s with me this fall?!

Throughout the fall we offer you three ways to make a commitment to your photography—a commitment to yourself—and to the people you love—that will last a lifetime. And just to be sure, we do our very best here at How To Photograph Your Life to make photographic commitments fun—committed fun.  September is the perfect time of year to commit to photographic fun.

I have three levels of commitment to photographic fun and learning to offer you that all start soon:

FREE PHOTO CLASS WEEK!

I belive we offer the most content-heavy free photography class webinars on the Internet. We pride ourselves on packing tons of information into one webinar hour. Thousands of people have had their huge aha moments at a free Nick Kelsh webinar.  Click here to choose from 10 classes all week that will help you take better photos… immediately!

INTERACTIVE ONLINE COURSES – NOW 25% OFF with our Fall Sale!

Online courses with personal Nick Kelsh reactions to your work.  It’s that almost daily interaction that can take your photography to the next level. Click here to check out our interactive and self-study courses (and get 25% off select courses with code FALL25).

LIVE WORKSHOPS – Save $200 Now on Workshops!

In-person, multi-day Nick Kelsh Photography Workshops held around the United States. These intensive workshops held at some of North America’s most beautiful locations are pure joy.  Click here to see where you can CLICK WITH NICK LIVE! Register now to grab a spot before they fill up and get the $200 discount!

So, no matter what your skill level, available time, budget or interest, I hope you’ll take advantage of this back-to-school season and make a commitment to taking your photography to the next level this September.

Whichever way you choose, I look forward to helping you…

Which learning experience is best for YOU?

So what’ll it be… Free one hour classes to jump-start your learning? An in-depth interactive course with me holding your hand for a month or two and giving you personalized feedback on your assignment photos? Or maybe you’re lucky enough to invest in a live photography adventure in a place you’ve always wanted to visit! Whatever opportunity you choose to take advantage of, just make the commitment to yourself and I’ll make my commitment to helping you become the photographer you want to be.

Stay in Focus.

p.s. Let us know in the comments below which way YOU’d like to learn photography this fall.