Hi friends,

I have to be honest with you: writing this email felt different than any of the others.

Last week I told you I was heading to DC for an exciting brand partnership. I was trying so hard not to spoil it. But the news is officially out, so here it is:

I've been selected as one of eight creators to work with National Geographic as part of the inaugural Creator Cohort.

I still get emotional saying that out loud. National Geographic is the reason I picked up a camera in the first place. Their TV specials and magazines opened my eyes to the world, inspired me to be curious, and always held to a standard of authenticity. And now I get to work alongside them to tell stories about the places and people I care about most.

I spent three days at their headquarters in Washington, DC this week meeting the team, connecting with the other creators in the cohort, and starting to map out what's ahead. I walked through their offices and just kept thinking: this is real. This is actually happening.

I don't know exactly where this road leads, but I know it's the kind of road I've been dreaming about since before I ever posted a photo online. And I want you along for it.

Thank you for being part of this community. Every time you open these emails, share my work, or reply with your own stories, it reminds me that this community is real. And that's what made this possible. So thank you.

Okay. Enough tears. Let me share some practical stuff with you too.

Here's something that took me embarrassingly long to figure out: the 20 minutes right after sunset is an AMAZING time to shoot.

Blue hour is that window after the sun drops below the horizon but before the sky goes fully dark. The sky turns this deep, rich blue, artificial lights start glowing, and the contrast between warm and cool light creates something you just can't replicate in editing.

A few things I've learned shooting blue hour across dozens of countries:

You have about 20 minutes. That's it. Scout your spot during the day so you're not scrambling when the light starts changing. Blue hour doesn't wait.

Your white balance matters more than usual. Auto white balance will try to "correct" the blue tones and make everything look neutral. This isn’t a big deal if you make sure to shoot in RAW so you have full control to bring the blues back in post.

Bump your ISO or use a tripod. Modern cameras handle ISO 1600-3200 better than you think. I'd rather have a sharp, slightly noisy image than a blurry one because I was afraid to raise ISO. If you have a tripod, even better, but handheld blue hour is very doable.

Look for mixed lighting. The magic of blue hour is the contrast between that deep blue sky and warm artificial light. Street lamps, neon signs, restaurant windows, car headlights. That warm-cool interplay is what makes these images feel cinematic.

It works twice a day. Morning blue hour (before sunrise) is usually calmer, emptier, and the light is slightly cooler. Evening blue hour has more energy and warmer artificial light. Both are worth shooting.

This is going to be especially relevant for me in Taiwan next week. Night markets, lanterns, temples lit up against twilight. I can’t wait to see what I get!

Google Pixel 10a claims "best camera under $500". Google just launched the Pixel 10a at $499 with the same main camera sensor as the $899 Pixel 10. The standout feature for photographers is Camera Coach, which uses AI to give you real-time composition and lighting tips while you're shooting. It also ships with conversational photo editing in Google Photos, where you can literally type what you want changed and the AI does it. Whether or not you shoot on a phone, the computational photography in these devices keeps getting more impressive, and honestly, it's pushing dedicated cameras to innovate faster too.

Female in Focus winners announced. The Female in Focus x Nikon 2025 award winners were just revealed. The award celebrates work by women and non-binary photographers, and this year's theme "On the Cusp" asked artists to explore moments of transition. Two series won top honors: Laetitia Vançon's documentary on Ukrainian youth and Giya Makondo-Wills' exploration of data center expansion in South Africa. Twenty-one single images were also selected. The winning work will be exhibited in London and Dublin this spring and summer. The whole gallery is worth browsing if you want a reminder of what intentional, story-driven photography looks like.

Since this week is all about the Creator Cohort, I wanted to share a bit more about what makes this program special.

National Geographic has over 800 million followers across their social platforms. They've been telling nonfiction stories for over 138 years. And this is the first time they've ever done something like this: selecting a small group of digital creators to collaborate with directly.

Over the next six months, the eight of us will participate in brand events, create content around Nat Geo programming (can’t say just what yet but it’s definitely exciting!), and travel with National Geographic Expeditions.

I'll be documenting as much of this as I can, here and on Instagram. This is the kind of thing I want to be transparent about, not just the highlight reel, but the process, the learning curve, and what it actually looks like behind the scenes.

This is possibly the least glamorous piece of gear I own and also one of the most useful. Sensor dust is real, especially when you're swapping lenses in dusty or windy environments.

A quick blast of air before a shoot saves me from hours of spot-removing in Lightroom later. It never leaves residue and fits in any bag pocket. For around $20, there's no reason not to have one. I've used one for years and it still works perfectly.

(Full transparency: I earn a small commission through this link. It helps keep this newsletter free and my coffee mug full. Thanks for supporting!)

This has been a week. Honestly, this has been a month. Between my birthday, DC, and now packing for Taiwan's Lantern Festival, I'm running on adrenaline and gratitude in equal measure.

Next week I'll have fresh photos and hopefully some fun stories from Taiwan. I'll also recap anything worth knowing from CP+, the world's biggest camera expo, which is happening in Japan right now.

This week's question: What's a brand or publication that inspired you to start creating? For me it was obviously National Geographic, but I'm curious what lit the spark for you. Was it a magazine? A photographer? A YouTube channel?

Hit reply and tell me. I love hearing these stories.

See you next week,
Paige

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P.S. Curious how I edit my photos? These are the exact presets I use for almost every travel & landscape shoot (designed for both mobile and desktop).