Journal (Making the photograph)

My old journal/blog commenced in 2006 and was retired in early June 2021. Fifteen years worth of posts - articles, gear reviews, announcements, trip reports, photographs, environmental issues, and much more - can be found here. Please subscribe to my Journal to stay tuned (I recommend Feedly). Thank you for reading.

Categories:

Strange Worlds

June 29, 2026

A monochromatic departure from reality - not merely in subject content but in the photographic concept itself - can allow a viewer to establish a deeper and more immediate connection with the essence of the image.

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Breaking it Down: Refining Photographic Composition

November 19, 2025 | Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona

“When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave until you have captured its essence...

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Rayleigh Scattering in Nature and Landscape Photography

November 13, 2025

Many photographers have likely never heard of Rayleigh Scattering or considered its impacts on their own photographs. In short, Rayleigh Scattering is the scattering or deflection of light by particles with a size much smaller than the wavelength of the radiation...

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Vibrant sans Garish

August 24, 2025

A follow-up question landed in my mailbox following a recent webinar. Webinar participant and writer Mark asked:

The color shot that you processed last evening had soft, subtle color...

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For What Else It Is

May 5, 2025

Equivalents was a photographic concept and body of work developed by the godfather of modern photography, Alfred Stieglitz, around 1925, based on his series of abstract cloud photographs. New York Times art critic Andy Grundberg said that Equivalents offer an "existence of a reality behind and beyond that offered by the world of appearances...

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Photographic Myths: #1

January 28, 2025

Photographic Myths #1: "the light isn't great, let's try black & white"

Good black and white photography is way of thinking and visualizing. It is not a casual afterthought, nor can it be effectively used as a rescue for poor quality of light or composition...

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Welcome!

January 22, 2025

Welcome! Whether you're here at the Journal for the first time or a repeat visitor, I sincerely thank you for reading. My goal is to steal attention away from social media platforms and divert it back to my Journal, where there are no ads, fake users, stupid AI photos and videos, nor an oligarchic owner spying on your use behaviors for monetary or political gain...

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Join me on August 7 for my Summer Speaker Series Class!

July 8, 2024

Please join me August, 7, 2024 for a live Zoom session with *Nature Photography Classes Summer Speaker Series!*

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Scouting, Vision, & Perseverance

June 5, 2024 | Death Valley, California

Location scouting is a vital element of filmmaking and commercial photography. Many landscape photographers also employ scouting in their strategies, although the strategies of most differ greatly from my own...

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Published: ELEMENTS #34, Special Black & White Double Issue

December 15, 2023

It's an honor to have my article Strange Worlds and thirteen of my images appear in the December special double issue of Elements Landscape Photography Magazine, dedicated exclusively to Black & White photography...

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Photograph: Storm Over Cochise Head

27 September 2022 | Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona

Although I hike a great many miles and climb a number of new mountains every year in the pursuit of my photographs and in the best life possible, I rarely talk about my exploits (certainly not online) and typically refrain from location specificity...

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You are visiting the Journal of fine art landscape photographer Michael E. Gordon. Please follow the navigation links at the top of this page for additional photographs and information. The old blog (2006-2020) has been retired but is archived and all articles remain available for reading. You can also find Michael on Facebook and Instagram.