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CJ Chilvers

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Should You Have a Portfolio?

"Where's your portfolio?" I hear this question a lot, particularly from those who'd like to find a flaw with what I've written about photography. They've just laid down $3000 on a lens and they're hoping I'm

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The Amateur Advantage

> "It is the amateur - the enthusiast who pursues her work in the spirit of love (in French, the word means "lover"), regardless of the potential for frame, money, or career - who often has the advantage over the professional." - Austin Kleon, Show Your

The Amateur Advantage
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Unrecorded Podcast: We're Not Neanderthals

The latest episode of the Unrecorded Podcast [http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=17ac74e26fc4e20c4b566f584&id=2e8d9166b4] is out. Patrick Rhone and I got a chance to catch up with guest Michael Schechter, who had me on his podcast Mikes on Mics [http://5by5.tv/mikesonmics] a few times. As usual,

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Perfect Photos Every Time (video)

The video of my talk at Ignite Minneapolis has been posted. It's a five minute version of this essay [https://www.cjchilvers.com/blog/how-to-make-perfect-photos/].

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Gearheads and Guitar Gods

No one has delighted in bashing gear-obsessed geeks like me. It's always seemed like such a waste of the time and attention for some of our best and brightest to argue over specs instead of creating things. This topic is a tired and, for the most part, an

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Are You a "Real" Photographer?

An argument I hear all the time (from amateurs mind you, not professionals) is that being a "photographer" must mean more than just having the ability to make photographs. I disagree. You can decide for yourself, but I've yet to hear a convincing argument opposing these

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Perfect Photos

This is the video of the Ignite talk I did on how to take perfect photos every time.

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Productivity Kills Creativity

That’s the core idea behind the book, Autopilot [http://www.orbooks.com/catalog/autopilot/], a science-based rebuttal to GTD, Six Sigma and the modern glamification of productivity. I had a hard time figuring out if I liked the book, because, while the science seems solid, it’s delivered with

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How to Make Perfect Photos

What's the secret to creating great photos? The biggest secret is that you're already making perfect photos. You've been told that you're not, because of the second biggest secret: the teaching of photography has always and will always make more money than

How to Make Perfect Photos
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Unrecorded Podcast: Self Rescuing Princess

Kelly Guimont talks a mile a minute and lives at an even more frantic pace. We try to keep up with her and find ourselves awash in geekery.