WHEN “A THOUSAND WORDS” AREN’T ENOUGH
Get help writing about what happened behind the lens.
Photographers understand how to tell a subject’s story with lighting, color, contrast, and composition. Sometimes, though, photographs can’t communicate everything in a single frame. That’s when photo stories can fill in the gaps to add additional weight and meaning to your images.
Produce poignant stories about your photography with a copyeditor who understands your craft.
My name is Josh Smith.
I started copyediting professionally in 2007. I love photography, globe trotting, tone matching, and turning grammar mistakes into opportunities.
YouTuber Thomas Heaton Discusses Editing His Landscape Photography Book
It took about two weeks to edit Thomas Heaton’s book and then proofread his final layout.
Photography Copyediting Services
Copyediting
Revise your writing to maximize impact, develop story, improve grammar, and fix mistakes.
Proofreading
Review publishers’ proofs and correct last-minute errors just before going to print.
Ghostwriting
Tell your story over coffee, and have someone else write it down in your personal style.
Business Asset Editing
Polish the copy in portfolios, courses, brand proposals, ecommerce sites, etc.
Developmental Editing
Get coached in outlining book ideas, organizing your time, writing, and being published.
YouTube Captions
Be more inclusive by adding human-generated closed captioning to English videos.
Write What Your Frames Can’t Capture
My bucket shot was a vacant panorama of Istanbul’s iconic Blue Mosque taken from the bustling square at Sultanahmet.
I awoke early on my last morning in Turkey to create a massive composite image that would reveal new details every time people walked past the print.
Racing the sun, I captured a series of long exposures to minimize my ISO in the predawn light and hide the other early risers strolling through my frame. With my lens at 300 mm, it took 22 exposures to assemble the composite in Photoshop. I also rebuilt a minaret that wouldn’t stitch and removed about eight stories of scaffolding.
The result continues to inspire me, just as this architecture has stirred four centuries of other visitors.
Autumn was quickly becoming winter in the Grand Teton National Park.
My first wild grizzly moped about the tree line wandering in and out of view. With hibernation approaching, the bear thankfully seemed more focused on foraging than on the human spectator just a few dozen yards away. I almost didn’t get a shot at all. The bear kept plunging its face into the brush to eat. My patience eventually paid off moments before it scurried into the coming dusk.
Most tourists research popular restaurants online, but we prefer a different approach.
A day of exploring Sofia, Bulgaria left my crew hungry and ready for a break. We strolled along a sleepy street looking for an unsung restaurant with an authentic experience. We stumbled on a quiet little eatery with a rooftop terrace. The view overlooking Sofia Valley seemed to go on forever, and our meal arrived just as the sun began to set. Research has its place, but there’s nothing like discovering an unforgettable hidden gem.
Process
Every project is unique, but most of them look like this:
- Discuss your objectives.
- Review your ideas and drafts.
- Outline a schedule.
- Revise copy for better idea development and structure.
- Eliminate areas of unconscious bias regarding race, gender, culture, education, ability, etc.
- Copyedit non-destructively to fix spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
- Proofread final drafts before publishing.
Let’s Talk
Josh Smith Digital Design 