flickr

Merkley??? – Artist, Blogger, Flickr-er

Merkley is one of the most popular photographers on Flickr, with over 17,000 contacts, and millions of photo views, he’s a real testament to how digital imaging technology has changed the way we consume photography. The last time I sat down and had a chat with Merkley he told me if it wasn’t for Photoshop and Flickr none of this (his photography) would have been possible.

In talking with Merkley, one of the things that impresses me is the his total disregard for his tools. He’s more focused on the end result than how he got there. As you’ll see in the video, having the most expensive camera doesn’t necessarily make you a great artist.

Much of Merkleys work is done with a simple point-and-shoot camera — and Photoshop of course.

Shooting with Thomas Hawk

Last Friday I had the opportunity to hang out with Thomas Hawk. One of the most popular photographers on Flickr, and one of the founders of Zooomr. It was a fascinating conversation, and I can honestly say that I’ve never met any photographer who shoots as much as Thomas. He shoots every single day, between 100 and 500 shots on average! If you add to that the fact that he maintains a very popular and active blog, runs a company, has a day job, and is also a Dad and it becomes a mystery how he finds the time to do all of this stuff. Thomas tells me part of the secret is that he’s “always online”. The easiest way to keep up with Thomas online is probably through his FriendFeed page.

Check out the video for some great tips on how to increase your Flickr popularity. And you’ll learn how Thomas manages to keep all of those images backed up (hint Drobo), and more. To get more tips from Thomas on being successful on Flickr, check out his blog post on the topic. This was a great chat.