🚀 This ISO Mistake is Ruining Your Sharp Photos


Hello, my friend!

I’m excited to share a video with you today—one that tackles a challenge I’ve faced for years: getting white balance just right in landscape scenes.

If you’ve ever struggled with white balance or felt like your images looked too cool, too warm, or just… off—this tip will forever solve that problem. After tons of trial and error, I finally landed on a simple process that actually works—and I walk you through it in this video below.

I hope you find some useful information in this edition of The Morning Blaze and as always thanks so much for reading & sharing. Have a great weekend! - Mark D.


📺 MY NEW VIDEOS

This ISO Mistake is Ruining Your Sharp Photos

We’ve all heard it—“Always shoot at ISO 100.” For years, I stuck to that rule thinking it guaranteed the best image quality. But here’s the thing: that mindset actually cost me some of my favorite shots. In this video, I want to share what I’ve learned the hard way—why raising your ISO isn’t something to fear, and how knowing when to bump it up can actually save your photo.


5 Lightroom Masks I Wish I Knew Sooner!

If your landscape photos still feel a bit flat no matter how much you adjust exposure or contrast, this video might be the missing piece. I’m sharing the 5 local adjustment I use on every photo to add depth, guide the viewer’s eye, and bring the entire scene to life. These subtle yet powerful Lightroom techniques are what separate a good edit from a truly compelling one — and once you start using them, they’ll become a regular part of your workflow.


🔓 VAULT FAVORITES

Pro White Balance Tip to Fix Beginner's Greatest Challenge!

In this episode, we discuss a pro white balance tip that's guaranteed to solve beginner's greatest challenge. I'm always open with my struggles related to photography and have mentioned this on more than one occasion that White Balance is by far the most difficult aspect of photo editing for me. But, after years of trial and error, I've finally landed on a process that works great for me and I now feel more confident than ever when it comes to selecting an appropriate White Balance. And, in this video, I'll review the multiple ways to correct White Balance using Lightroom and will show you the process that changed it all for me! .


📖 GOOD READS

Embrace the Journey: Four Essentials Lessons for Landscape Photographers

In the world of landscape photography, there's often a spotlight on the giants—the Ansel Adamses, Michael Kennas, and Clyde Butchers whose images grace the covers of magazines and amaze viewers worldwide. But amidst this reverence for greatness, there's a quieter narrative, one that speaks to the journey of continual improvement and the pursuit of personal excellence.

Although, I personally may never be one of the “great landscape photographers” I find solace in the fact that I’m better today than I was yesterday. In this article, I’ll share the four things that have had the greatest impact on me throughout my journey from beginner to professional photographer, in hopes that some of what I discovered can help you as well.

✅ #1 Experimentation Without the Fear of Failure

Landscape photography is like exploring a new world, both outside and within yourself. It's easy to get stuck doing things the same way, for instance always using wide-angle lenses focusing on the grand landscape was my crutch. But the real magic happens when you step out of your comfort zone and begin experimenting.

Whether it's trying different focal lengths, getting up close with macro photography, post processing in black & white, or taking to the skies with aerial photography, every experiment and subsequent mistake teaches you something new. Embrace the unknown because that's where you'll find your unique style.

✅ #2 Unrelenting Focus on Post Processing

Editing photos is artistry in a digital workshop. It's where you turn flat and dull photographs into jaw-dropping pieces of story-telling art. Many see photo editing as a boring task; think of it as a chance to let your creativity shine. Dive into all the cool tools available, from simple adjustments to fancy blending techniques.

When you work towards post processing mastery, you'll make your images stand out from the crowd while adding your signature editing style. The more photo editing techniques at your disposal the better you’ll be. >> Read More

🤓 PHOTO NERDS

  • 😁 Apparently the left side of your face is the more photogenic side.
  • 📸 The most common compression format for digital cameras today stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG).

✨ INSPO

"Your photography is a record of your living, for anyone who really sees." - Paul Strand
"The eye should learn to listen before it looks." - Robert Frank

🌳 FINAL WORD

I want to thank you for subscribing to The Morning Blaze. A great deal of effort goes into each edition and I hope you find it helpful.

I'm always looking to improve, do you have any feedback you can provide? Is there anything you wish was here, that isn't?

If you have something you'd like me to know, just hit reply on this email.

Thanks so much!

Mark Denney
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Mark Denney Photography
PO Box 3422 80 Blake Blvd, Pinehurst, NC 28374-3422

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🔥The Morning Blaze

📨 Join 56,000+ Photographers enjoying The Morning Blaze - my free, online photography publication where I share photo tips, tutorials, & inspiration I’ve gained throughout my journey from beginner to professional Landscape Photographer.

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