On or close to my birthday, every year for the last four years, I have recognized and tipped my hat to a photographer-teacher in the industry who makes a significant impact on people's life.

The first four awardees of the Annual Tiffinbox Award are: David duChemin, Spencer Lum, Jamie Swanson and Jenika McDavitt.

This year, I am thrilled to announce the 5th Annual Tiffinbox Award goes to Neil van Niekerk, a South African photographer, teacher, author and speaker who now calls New Jersey home.

Neil publishes two blogs, One Perfect Moment and Tangents, a blog I recommend every photographer bookmark. It is through this latter blog that I learned that Neil also offered workshops on off-camera lighting. If memory serves me right, I have attended at least two of his workshops as a student. If you are starting to make the move from natural light photography to flash photography, Neil's workshops are a must. The day is usually long because he patiently goes over all that you will need to know about using your strobes off or on your camera.

Neil knows his stuff so well that he has written four books on the topic of lighting (see above) and is frequently invited to speak about lighting at conferences and industry gatherings across the US and beyond.

(if you were wondering, yes, that's a real tiffinbox you are seeing on the right there)

Here are some of my favorite blog posts by Neil van Niekerk over the years:

Dragging The Shutter
Black Foamie Thing
Flash and Ambient Light
Using Exposure Compensations vs. Manual Exposure

Please visit and bookmark Neil's websites, buy and read his books and enroll in his workshops. I guarantee you will be a better photographer. You can also follow Neil on Twitter and Facebook.

Meet Brandon Wong, a wedding photographer based in Orange County, California, and listen to the story behind how he and his wife Katrina Santos decided to launch Photobooth Supply Company.

As a busy studio they began to cap off at 30 weddings a year. Savvy business owners, Brandon and Katrina were looking for ways of expanding their business and bring in more revenue without having to be personally involved in the service. They hit upon the idea of offering photo booths but the only ones available were expensive and kludgy.

After sinking nearly $15,000 into a photo booth set up that didn't work for them at all, Brandon and Katrina resolved to bring to the market a more elegant, cost-effective solution that creates a revenue stream for photographers.

I wanted to know more about how Brandon and Katrina decided to launch their photo booth and so I spoke with Brandon earlier this year (yes, when it was winter time and I was wearing three layers of clothes here in Connecticut).

Learn more about Photobooth Supply Company here. If you decide to lease one or buy one, please come back here and let me know what you thought of it. Let's say you go in for the top photo booth (that's $9300 right now), and you charge $1500 an event, it will only take you six rentals to recover the cost of the set up. Surely, if you are a wedding photographer or an event photographer, you can persuade your clients to have one of these fun and easy to set up photo booths at their event!

Here is a few frames of my buddy Dave Jackson and I at Inspire Photo Retreats. Hat tip to Lulawed and Maine Snapshot Studio for making a Photobooth Suppply Company photo booth available for all of us at the photography convention to play with and experience first hand!

You don't know Becky yet. She is married to David, a photographer just like you.

In fact, it was only a few months ago that David and Becky celebrated their wedding with family and friends in Connecticut. Soon after they returned from Hawaii, where they were vacationing for their honeymoon, Becky suffered what in medical terms is called Acute Liver Failure. She has been hospitalized for the last seven weeks, now waiting for a liver transplant at Yale-New Haven Medical Center.

David is a wedding and fashion photographer based in Connecticut. As a neighbor, friend and peer, I couldn't stand by the sidelines and do nothing for him and his wife. So, I decided to find out more about Acute Liver Failure and spread the word about their medical and financial challenges.

The local news channels are talking about Becky and David and how you can help. Becky's friend Tracy Burek started a campaign online to help the newly wedded couple face some very challenging financial times ahead.

If you can step up and help a fellow photographer, please do so. As David says in the video interview, it doesn't even have to be a financial donation at this time. Simply let others know about organ donation and if you can make a financial commitment, then great! Please share this post with your friends and family.

Please note: In the video above, David states that Becky can't receive a liver donation from a living donor. He later corrected himself by saying that she can receive a liver from a living donor.

Update: David was recently interviewed by WFSB, a local television channel. Please check out that video below:

WFSB 3 Connecticut

Molly Marie, a boudoir photographer in Eau Claire, Wisconsin has created a niche for herself. She is so good at what she does, she actually teaches other photographers how to pose, create a business and market and photograph boudoir sessions.

Several months back (you can see me layered up in winter clothing), I spoke with Molly about her business, why boudoir sessions are making a come back, why these sessions are important for women and how male photographers are gaining prominence in this genre of photography. Give this a listen now!

NOTE: Enroll in Molly's Boudoir Shooting Camp now. Doors open on July 12th!

Here are some examples of Molly's work –

If you are wondering if boudoir photography is porn, read this article by Molly. Already photographing boudoir sessions and want to improve your business? See these 8 resources to up your game. Also check out her ebook, “Gain Clients And Sales Without Working For Free.”

Do you shoot boudoir sessions? Are you starting to offer it to your clients? What questions do you have for Molly? Ask them below!

Remember, if you are just getting started, you don't want to miss her Boudoir Shooting Camp that starts on July 12th. Sign up now!

The headline isn't a mistake and it's not hyperbole either. Eileen and Phillip Blume, wedding and portrait photographers based in Athens, Georgia will teach you to make $1500 per hour shooting mini-sessions. Indeed, that's what they do whenever they announce their portrait sessions.

At Shutterfest 2015, a conference produced by Sal Cincotta in St. Louis, they presented a two-part seminar called “Maximizing mini sessions: Make $1500 per hour.” The room was packed with photographers, all eager to learn their secrets. Even though I couldn't find a seat, I stood for nearly two hours and took copious notes. It was one of the top presentation at Shuttefest and I do hope they are asked to present again.

UPDATE: Now through July 11th, The Blume's are making their Shutterfest presentation available for download … for FREE!

Who doesn't want to make $1500 per hour? Right? Well, Eileen and Phillip didn't hold anything back. They walked us through all their steps, one-by-one that guarantees them this high rate of return for their time. Soon after their presentation, I made a bee-line to them and asked if I could interview them about their successes. They both readily agreed to connect with me after the conference and true to their word, we set up a time to conduct a short interview.

In this short chat, we talk about how they structure their mini-sessions and dive deep into how and why they decided to offer mini-sessions in their community. Give this a listen!

One of the things they offered for sale at Shutterfest was a CD called “Maximizing Mini Sessions: The Complete Kit.” Included in the kit is a beautifully designed 30-page PDF that outlines the exact steps they take every time they launch a mini-session in their neighborhood. You'll also find a mini-session contract and a document to help you streamline ordering appointments. The Blumes also have thoughtfully provided a folder of customizable design templates that you can use to announce or advertise your own mini-session. I got the Shutterfest show special of $80, for this wonderful resource. At even its full price, I would say this is a bargain because it will save you time and get you on your way to setting up your first mini-session.

While this post is really about the Blumes and the mini-sessions they offer, check out their fabulous wedding photography:

Do you want to learn about how The Blumes inspire their portrait clients to go from stiff poses to fun, interactive ones? Get their free e-book, “From Posed to Playful” now! Just sign up for their newsletter and they'll hook you up!

Do you offer mini-sessions? Are you profitable? Do you make $1500 per hour as well? Would you like to? Am I kidding … of course you do! Click the graphic below if you are interested in buying Maximizing Mini-Sessions: The Complete Kit.

Lindsay Adler is a renowned portrait and fashion photographer based in New York City. It is quite likely that you have seen her teaching on CreativeLive or KelbyOne.

On July 1st, she will be conducting a free webinar thanks to ShootDotEdit. While she is a master as lighting, posing and photography, she also commands a great level of respect from her peers for her retouching, using Photoshop. Indeed, the free webinar she is teaching is called Photoshop Techniques for Photographers.

Lindsay and I managed to speak briefly about her background in the industry, why she is compelled to teach and of course about her upcoming webinar on Photoshop. Give this chat a listen now:

Be sure to buy and read Lindsay's books:

Creative 52: Weekly Projects to Invigorate Your Photography Portfolio
Shooting in Sh*tty Light: The Top Ten Worst Photography Lighting Situations and How to Conquer Them
Fashion Flair for Portrait and Wedding Photography
The Linked Photographers' Guide to Online Marketing and Social Media.

Reading and learning from her blog is time well spent. And, she has lots of wonderful resources to buy through her online store.

For a small sample of Lindsay's work, scroll down! Do you now see how amazing she is with Photoshop? Register today for her webinar.

And if you are looking for other opportunities to learn from industry leaders, skip on to ShootDotEdit‘s website and check out all the free educational webinars here.

RJ Kern is ranked as one of the top 50 wedding photographers in the US. But that's just one genre of photography that he rocks. He is a passionate artist who pursues personal projects at every opportunity.

“I've gone from a coffee shop show to two solo gallery shows and a group exhibition in less than a year … all after deciding to invest in my art long-term and not pour my money into an MFA (I applied, got rejected last year) and put it into my personal work.”

In this interview for Tiffinbox, we sat down to talk about what inspires him to do personal work. Lean in and listen closely to how RJ phrases his off-season work. I think you will find it interesting. It's not so much that it is something he can do or will do sometime in the future, but he HAS to do it right now!

Check out his personal work here. Learn more about his animal portraits here. His series of couples in love at Burning Man is something else. Lastly, learn from RJ about how to develop a photographic style.

Do you pursue personal projects? Would you think of photographing sheep and goats as a personal project? If you think the concept and the quality of the work is amazing as I do, click the comments box below and leave RJ a note. I am sure he would appreciate it.

The Back Story

My fourth-grader was going to play his violin and sing with his classmates. The stage was nearly set. Like eager parents in the second row, I craned my neck to see where Rohan was going to stand. The curtain had just been closed and a slideshow highlighting the music program at the school played in the screen looming above us.

As we waited for the video to end, I noticed that the chorus was being led in by the teachers, behind the curtain. Towards the bottom of the curtain, I could make out their feet shuffling back and forth in restless anticipation of the big reveal. This was the final concert of the fourth grade and it looked like every student was on stage!

My eyes shifted to the silhouetted figures of the music teachers. Their backs to us, they had their hands stretched out, as if they were waiting to be spirited away. It was graphically interesting. I also noticed the music stands and empty chairs in the foreground.

Background, check. Foreground check. All that was missing was my presence there with a camera. In fact, I had brought my camera along with me.

The Origins Of Failure

As I noticed all of these things in front of me, I was sitting down wondering whether I should go up and make that image I had in my mind quickly. “What would the other parents say or think,” I wondered. Was this my ego talking? Is sure was. Then my younger son insisted on sitting on my lap and that gave me an easy way out of the possibility of photographing what I saw in front of me. This is a text case of laziness. Lastly, as the video wound down, I just became fearful that I wouldn't get the photograph any way. Even as a trained and experienced photographer, there are these moments of sheer anxiety that can't be explained.

But there you have it. Three strikes on myself and I got myself out … I couldn't shake the idea that I had simply failed myself.

If you were to look at the image again, you'll notice that I was a mere three feet away from what could have been a truly wonderful image. But instead, I sat in my seat and refused to move. The cost of a lost moment? Priceless. So, yes, I am kicking myself hard for not committing to make this image when I had the chance.

Future Actions

Instead of beating myself about it, though, I have chosen to write and talk about this part of the creative process I imagine every one of you goes through as well.

So fess up, does this happen to you when you are out making photographs for yourself or for your clients?

Here are my recommendations for doing better next time:

1) If you are sitting down and you see something, spring to action towards the scene. The closer you get to what you want to photograph, the better. (Please use your better judgement however when it comes to photographing something dangerous).

2) Just as soon as your brain starts to fight and says, “NO” … use you inner voice and say “YES”. This sounds simplistic, but try it.

3) Do not be afraid of making a total fool of yourself. If you do and don't get the image, it's ok. There will be other opportunities to create what your vision is propelling you towards. The people around you do not have a camera, nor are they photographers. They simply do NOT see what you are seeing. What differentiates you from them is your capacity to construct these photographs as they evolve in front of you. It's a gift … go out there and receive it.

I am convinced that we often don't reach our goals because we let our unfounded fears and ego get in the way. Do you agree? Have you tried this before? How do you overcome your creative roadblocks? Comment below. Your ideas may not only help you, but also other artists (like me). So, please speak up!