Beau Sorensen Photography

01/18/2024

In one of the groups I'm in, there were a few people who were asking for photo critiques. Once I gave them some tips, I remembered how important those were when I was learning photography. Folks like Scott Jarvie and Thomas Hawk were generous with their time and their advice and made me a much better photographer.

In the spirit of helping people become better photographers, I want to pass along what Jarvie and Thomas have done for me. If you want me to critique your photos and tell you how you can improve your photography, drop me a line via Messenger and we will set up a time to review some of your photos.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭?
𝙉𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜! 𝘼𝙗𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜! If you did buy one of my pictures, I won't complain about it, but there are no strings attached; it's just me helping you.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐲𝐨𝐮?
1. Your 5 best photos, or 5 of the favorite shots you've taken.
2. An open mind. I am not harsh in what I say, but it can take thick skin to get critiqued. I want you to get better, so I will point out things that you may be tied to and you may not like it. I remember feeling that a time or two back in the day.

I look forward to helping you out!

01/02/2024

I was saddened to hear about the earthquake in Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan yesterday. I traveled there earlier in 2023 primarily to visit Kanazawa and found it to have some of the prettiest and best-preserved older streets in Japan. I hope that they are able to quickly rebuild and that the damage isn't too severe.

Technical details:
Date: April 4, 2023
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 250
Aperture: f/4.2
Focal Length: 48 mm
Exposure Time: 1/400 second

You can buy this image at my website: https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Japan/The-Rest-of-Japan/i-zksjV38

08/10/2023

One of my favorite towns in Austria is a little hamlet called Halstatt. It's about an hour away from Salzburg and is on the shores of a deep Alpine lake, in a glacial valley. We unfortunately didn't have enough time here, I would love to go back some day and really get to explore the town more!

https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Europe/Austria/i-XKWNW45

Technical details:
Date: June 1, 2016
Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 200
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 68 mm
Exposure Time: .5 seconds

08/08/2023

I had a conference in Phoenix, and instead of just flying down, we decided that it would be better to drive so I could get some photos along the way. We stayed in Flagstaff one night, but I drove down early in the morning to get sunrise in Sedona. It was beautiful!

https://www.beau.photo/Landscapes/American-Southwest/Sedona/i-kZqwP8V

Technical details:
Date: October 18, 2014
Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 200
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 28mm
Exposure Time: 2 seconds

This photo hosted by SmugMug; your photos look better here.

07/03/2023

With the 4th of July upon us, I wanted to share one of my favorite pictures from Washington, DC. This was a beautiful spring morning when I ran down to the Capitol to try and get a picture of the sunrise, and what a sunrise it was! I love the architecture in DC, even if it runs to a Greek revival overload. It's appropriately stately and imposing but inviting enough to be approachable (unless it's one of the Brutalist buildings they put up in the 70s - those are just straight imposing and foreboding).

You can see all of my shots of DC on my website!
https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/United-States/Washington-DC/i-WbvfQ3J

Technical details:
Date: April 17, 2019
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 50
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 28mm
Exposure Time: .8 seconds

06/27/2023

I love walking around cities, looking for things to photograph. While I don't think it gets the credit it deserves, one of my favorites is Boston. It's got a really compact downtown area that you can easily wander around for a few hours and pretty much see all the main sights. It's still interesting enough that even once you've seen them, you can still continue to wander and enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells.
This particular shot is actually across Boston Harbor from the downtown area. There's a Hyatt that is right on the waterfront that has a wonderful view of the city.

You can see more of my pictures from Boston and buy a copy at https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/United-States/Massachusetts/i-ZqX2h92

Technical details:
Date: August 8, 2015
Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 200
Aperture: f/16
Focal Length: 50mm
Exposure Time: 30 seconds

05/31/2023

An underlooked gem in Europe is Krakow. It's got a compact old town and was relatively unscathed by the fighting of World War II, so the architecture is still original. Beyond that, you've got the Schindler factory, the old ghetto, town square, and this - Wawel Castle, which is said to have a dragon in the basement. This was one of my favorite places I've been, even though I haven't spent much time there.

See it on my website: https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Europe/Poland/i-SzCJRDd

Technical details:
Date: August 10, 2012
Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 1600
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 58mm
Exposure Time: 1/40 second

05/22/2023

New York City is a photographer's dream. No matter where you turn, there's always something interesting around the corner. While the PanAm building (yes, I know that it's been the MetLife building since PanAm went under in 1991, but it's always going to be the PanAm building to me) is not exactly an architectural gem - so much so that in The Avengers, they had Stark Tower replacing it, I love how it is offset against the grid in a way that no other building in Manhattan is. This shot is coming up Park Avenue from the south, which is the best view of it for my money.

You can see more of my New York photos and purchase one for yourself at https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/United-States/New-York-City/i-RtwLfkj

Technical details:
Date: June 23, 2019
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8
ISO: 200
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 14mm
Exposure Time: 1/50 second

05/17/2023

Sometimes you end up in the right place at the right time. Usually, it's because you planned ahead. On this trip I had tried going several places early in the morning, only to be skunked by everyone else doing what I was doing. For this walk through Gion and Sannenzaka, I chose the right day (a weekday after school was back in session), the right time (early in the morning), and the right place. It was fantastic!

You can see all of my photos from Kyoto on my website: https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Japan/Kyoto/i-jzsr8DN

Technical Details:
Date: April 9, 2023
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 100
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 32mm
Exposure Time: 1/50 second

05/06/2023

The Tokyo LDS Temple was my home temple for a couple of years when I lived in Japan, and even though it's not the most beautifully landscaped, it still has a special place in my heart. I love what they did to update it with the renovation, including the new annex building with an underground garage and a place for photographs that don't end up using a fisheye because the sidewalk is mere feet from the entrance. It's in a great, quiet neighborhood called Azabu in central Tokyo. There's a story we always told that real estate here was so valuable that you could put a $100 bill on the ground and it couldn't buy what was underneath it. That's probably the case in a lot of places though!

You can see all my temple photos at https://www.beau.photo/Religious-Buildings/LDS-Temples/i-6pV4FGH

Technical Details:
Date: April 1, 2023
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8
ISO: 100
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 14mm
Exposure Time: 1/200 second

05/01/2023

It is getting harder and harder to get shots like this without people in them, whether it's day or night. Fushimi Inari used to be a hidden gem, now it's merely a gem. But wow, what an experience to walk through these torii gate tunnels. I still love it!

You can see more of my photos from Kyoto at https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Japan/Kyoto/i-4qQFVxm

Technical Details:
Date: April 10, 2023
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 3200
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 44mm
Exposure Time: 1/15 second

04/21/2023

One of the most visited temples in all Kyoto is Kiyomizu-dera. It's at the top of a long shopping street, and for as difficult as it is to reach (no busses can come up the street, and there's not any public transit for at least half a mile), it seems like it would be a hidden gem. It's not! It is usually packed with tourists as far as the eye can see.
So how did I get it so empty? I came at 7 in the morning when nobody else was around! It was wonderful to experience Kiyomizu that empty. I have been here several times but never enjoyed it as much as I did this morning!

If you like the photo, you can see it and more at https://www.beau.photo/Travel-Photography/Japan/Kyoto/i-PrrL9cJ

Technical Details:
Date: April 9, 2023
Camera: Nikon Z6
Lens: Nikkor 28-300 f/3.5-5.6
ISO: 1250
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 28mm
Exposure Time: 1/2000 second