by Hope Cruz I want to live where soul meets bodyAnd let the sun wrap its arms around meAnd bathe my skin in water cool and cleansingAnd feel, feel what it's like to be new — Death Cab for Cutie, “Soul Meets Body” (2005) These opening lines from a Death Cab for Cutie song tap into something many of us feel deeply, something that speaks to our shared humanity. It’s the longing to feel something real, to know we’re grounded in something true, and to be changed by the experience. In a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence (AI), that...

by Matt Fabiano If I’m being honest, this is mostly your fault. Before I met you (and I mean ALL of you), I was a mild-mannered iPhone user who occasionally would pull my brick of rare earth minerals out of my pocket (or more often, cycling jersey) and point it at things I found mildly interesting. That’s called being a normal person—definitely not a photographer. I’m not saying I didn’t think of myself as a creative (hell, I went to film school, so you know I lack good judgment), but over the years, I’d allowed myself to stop making things....

Betting On Potential by Hope Cruz “A person is successful if they know where they are and they know where they’re going and they’re progressively moving in that direction.” – Earl Nightingale When I started as a Marketing Operations Specialist at Think Tank Photo, I believed I knew what to look for in a successful collaboration: high engagement, strong follower counts, and polished, professional work. These were the typical markers of influence. Then, I received an impassioned email from a 16-year-old photographer in France, Jack Paterson. His numbers didn’t meet the usual criteria and under normal circumstances, I would have...

Walking 550 Miles Through Italy, Portugal, and Spain  By Todd Bigelow, Contact Press Images  When people ask me what to see and do when traveling in Europe I tell them “nothing,” and I’m completely serious. Ditching the travel agenda, taking to the streets, and becoming a wanderer is the key to travel. I’ve walked over 550 miles the last few years in small Italian towns tucked against the Alps to the backstreets of southern Spain and the mountains of Portugal and believe that a street photography approach to travel will yield far more insight and experiences than an overbooked itinerary. Let’s...