John De Bord Photography Feature - Spectacular Skyscapes

John De Bord is a professional photographer and his deviantart is filled with the most striking photographs of sunsets and sunrises. His gallery is full of evidence of his amazing photography skills however, he actually started off in illustration but always had a deep love for photography. Enjoy this feature as you learn more about this amazing photography.

One of his 4 Daily Deviations: The End of the Day

Are you a professional Photographer?

John: Yes I am a professional photographer. I didn't begin that way however and actually started off in illustration. I always had a deep love for photography though and while I was attending art college, photography was required. It was a B&W darkroom film class and I was hooked. I decided to switch careers after I graduated and had been on my own as an illustrator.

A Sunrise in the Wilderness

I still draw and paint however my real love is in photography. This is the difference between illustration & photography for me; the experience. The things which as a photographer you see when out shooting. That is what really did it for me.

In the Evening

How did you get into photography?

John: I actually started off doing street and retro photography, covering the rockabilly scene in Denver and car shows...also shooting as much vintage architecture and signs I could possibly find. I would shoot some of the rockabilly gals I was friends with and do pinup style photography. All of this was done using film. I did get out of it for awhile after getting married and moving to Germany, however once I came back to the States, I rekindled my love affair with the medium. In about 2005 I decided to really go after my career. I did it rather differently than most though in that I wanted to learn as much as I could from other photographers and I had a deep desire to photograph nature, something I really never did seriously before. I went ahead and immersed myself in it. Learning as much as I possibly could with what my brain would allow. I did also almost entirely online. I would read forums like fredmiranda.com and naturephotographers.net, 2 great resources where professionals go and take it all in. I would then apply what I had learned to my images, or at least try the best that I could.

August Sunflower Skies

I firmly believe that the only to get better at photography is to keep doing it and doing it as often as you can. Learn about the medium and about your camera, not to mention technique. It seems so many these days go and buy a fancy-dancy camera thinking that it will make awesome photos for them, when in reality there is a huge steep learning curve which is involved. The best advice I can give anyone who is just starting out is to go buy an old manual film slr, like a Minolta x370 and use it. They can be had for under $15 on ebay including the lens. This will help you improve drastically because you will learn about exposure, depth of field, aperture, shutter speed; things which are absolutely vital when it comes to photography.

Painting the Sunrise

I also read on your website that Colorado presents a lot of photographic opportunities, 

which photo in your gallery would you choose to best prove this?

Colorado presents a massive amount of photographic opportunities and I thankful each and every day I live here. I have moved away 3 times and have moved back after each time. It is, a photographers paradise here. As far as which image in my gallery represents the beauty of my state? That is a very hard question and there really isn't just one. The terrain here is very varied, from the plains in the east to the deserts in the west, to the high mountain peaks, to the waterfalls in the valleys and then there is the wildlife....

God's Painted Sky

Thanks again to John for allowing me to feature his work and for his advice and insights into his photographic journey. If you want to see his other works, please visit his Deviantart page: kkart or his website: jdebordphoto.com