Step into the world of 35mm photography with the Photography Discussion Roundtable, heard every Monday evening at 7:00 PM ET on BrandMeister DMR Talkgroup 31266 — the MichiganOne Nets channel. This engaging net is your chance to explore the art and science of photography, ask questions, and sharpen your skills in a welcoming, knowledge-rich environment.
Hosted by James N8TMP, Bob KB8DQQ, and Rick AD8KN, each brings a wealth of experience to the mic. Bob and James are seasoned wedding photographers, while Rick adds deep technical insight and practical know-how. Together, they guide discussions on camera features, techniques, terminology, and everything from aperture to artistic vision.
Whether you’re just starting out or looking to refine your craft, tune in and join the conversation. Your next great shot starts here.
How to Develop Your Own Personal Photography Style
Welcome to today’s roundtable discussion on one of photography’s most rewarding yet challenging pursuits: developing a distinctive personal style. Whether you’re just starting your photography journey or looking to refine an established voice, this conversation will explore the pathways to discovering what makes your work uniquely yours.
Understanding Personal Style
What does “personal style” really mean in photography? At its core, your photographic style is the consistent visual language that makes your work recognizable. It’s the combination of technical choices, subject matter preferences, compositional tendencies, and emotional resonance that threads through your portfolio. Style isn’t something you force or manufacture overnight—it emerges organically through sustained practice, experimentation, and self-reflection.
The Foundation: Shoot What Moves You
The most authentic photographic style grows from genuine interest and emotional connection. Rather than chasing trends or imitating photographers you admire, start by asking yourself what subjects, moments, or scenes make you want to pick up your camera. Do you find yourself drawn to the quiet intimacy of street corners at dawn? The raw energy of live music? The geometric patterns in urban architecture? Your natural gravitational pull toward certain subjects is often the first clue to your emerging style.
Technical Signatures
Your technical choices become part of your visual fingerprint. Consider the photographers whose work you can identify immediately: you might recognize their preference for shallow depth of field, their use of natural light, their commitment to black and white, or their particular approach to color grading. These aren’t arbitrary decisions but deliberate tools that serve their vision. Experiment with different approaches—shoot wide open and tightly cropped, then try stopped down with expansive compositions. Work in harsh midday sun and soft golden hour. Through this experimentation, you’ll discover which technical approaches feel most natural and expressive for you.
Compositional Voice
How you arrange elements within the frame reveals much about your perspective. Some photographers favor symmetry and order, while others thrive in chaos and negative space. Do you prefer centered subjects or dynamic rule-of-thirds placement? Tight crops or breathing room? Leading lines or layered depth? Pay attention to the compositional patterns that recur in your favorite shots—these repetitions aren’t accidents but expressions of how you see the world.
Color and Tone as Language
Color palette and tonal choices are powerful style markers. Some photographers embrace vibrant, saturated hues while others work in muted, desaturated tones. Some find their voice in the timeless quality of black and white. Your post-processing approach, whether minimal or heavily stylized, becomes part of your signature. The key is consistency—not rigid uniformity, but a coherent aesthetic that ties your work together.
The Editing Process
Developing style happens as much in editing as in shooting. When culling through hundreds of images, which ones make you stop and feel something? Those emotional responses are guideposts. Over time, you’ll notice patterns in the images you keep versus those you discard, revealing your instinctive preferences and values as a photographer.
Influence Without Imitation
Studying other photographers is essential, but the goal isn’t replication. When you admire someone’s work, dig deeper than surface aesthetics. What draws you to it? Is it their use of light, their timing, their subject matter, their emotional impact? Extract the underlying principles rather than copying specific techniques. Let influences cross-pollinate and combine with your own experiences to create something new.
Consistency and Evolution
Personal style requires consistency, but not stagnation. As you grow as a photographer and as a person, your style will naturally evolve. The work you create at different life stages will reflect your changing perspectives and skills. This evolution is healthy—forcing yourself to shoot the same way forever because it’s “your style” can become creatively suffocating. Allow your style to be a living, breathing aspect of your practice.
Subject Matter as Style
Sometimes style is less about how you photograph and more about what you photograph. Specializing in specific subjects—whether that’s environmental portraits, architectural details, or documentary work—can itself become your distinctive approach. Depth often trumps breadth when building a recognizable body of work.
Trust the Process
Perhaps the most important advice: be patient with yourself. Photographers often spend years shooting before their style crystallizes. This isn’t wasted time—it’s necessary exploration. Every image you create, whether successful or not, teaches you something about your vision and voice. Style can’t be rushed or manufactured; it emerges through thousands of clicks, countless hours of editing, and honest self-reflection.
Closing Thoughts
Your personal photography style is ultimately an expression of who you are—your interests, values, aesthetic sensibilities, and unique way of seeing. Rather than asking “How do I find my style?” consider asking “What do I care about showing the world?” The answer to that question, pursued with commitment and honesty, will lead you to work that is distinctively, authentically yours. We look forward to hearing your experiences, challenges, and insights on this journey toward photographic self-discovery.
Questions for you?
- What photographers or bodies of work have influenced your approach, and how have you made those influences your own?
- Can you identify recurring elements in your photography that might be emerging style markers?
- How do you balance shooting what’s commercially viable or popular versus what genuinely interests you?
- Has your style evolved over time? What prompted those changes?
- Do you consciously cultivate your style, or do you let it develop organically?
- How much consistency is necessary for a cohesive style versus creative freedom to experiment?
- To see a portfolio of Bob’s photos: https://robertstrobel.smugmug.com/
- To see a portfolio of Jame’s photos: https://www.jbiphotography.com/
Next week we’ll discuss: Color theory (histograms) in photography
Previous and upcoming Photography Discussion Roundtable topics:
| Date | Topic |
| 8/4/2025 | Welcome to the world of 35mm photography |
| 8/11/2025 | What is Aperture in photography |
| 8/18/2025 | What is the Golden Triangle? |
| 8/25/2025 | Top photo editing software available in 2025 |
| 9/1/2025 | What is Depth of Field? |
| 9/8/2025 | What is Bokeh in photography? |
| 9/15/2025 | Understanding Lens Focal Length |
| 9/22/2025 | What are leading lines? |
| 9/29/2025 | What is Back-Button Focus? |
| 10/6/2025 | 5 important photography facts that I didn’t know when I started |
| 10/13/2025 | How to shoot in manual mode |
| 10/20/2025 | The different types of lenses |
| 10/27/2025 | All about camera filters |
| 11/3/2025 | On-camera flash vs off-camera flash |
| 11/10/2025 | How to use tripods and stabilizers |
| 11/17/2025 | What is ISO? |
| 11/24/2025 | Film vs digital? |
| 12/1/2025 | How to find and organize your photos in a logical manner |
| 12/8/2025 | Understanding long-exposure photography |
| 12/15/2025 | Enhancing the sky in your photos |
| 12/22/2025 | Where and how to learn more about photography techniques |
| 12/29/2025 | DSLR vs mirrorless cameras |
| 1/5/2026 | The exposure triangle |
| 1/12/2026 | How to develop your own personal photography style |
| 1/19/2026 | Color theory (histograms) in photography |
| 1/26/2026 | Photography ethics in the digital age |
| 2/2/2026 | The future of film and where the analog industry is going |
| 2/9/2026 | How to build a portfolio |
| 2/16/2026 | Photography hints and tips |
| 2/23/2026 | How to take action/motion photos |
| 3/2/2026 | Explaining photography terms |
| 3/9/2026 | Macro photography hints and tips |
| 3/16/2026 | Landscape photography hints and tips |
| 3/23/2026 | Portrait photography hints and tips |
| 3/30/2026 | Night photography hints and tips |
| 4/6/2026 | F-stops and how to use them |
| 4/13/2026 | What are the AE-L, AF-L, and *-buttons? What do they do? |
| 4/20/2026 | White balance explained |
| 4/27/2026 |
https://thediabeticham.com/previous-and-upcoming-photography-discussion-roundtable-topics/
