Fstoppers Original Articles

I got the idea of shooting a total moon eclipse with a long lens. I was thinking about the Canon EF 500mm, but all I could get was a massive Canon EF 800mm lens. The lens turned out to be too long for the eclipse photo I had in mind, but I got a great opportunity to shoot for a while with this long and heavy white beast.

If you've been involved with photography for very long at all, you may have noticed that photographers have a variety of opinions — about everything. Unfortunately, many photographers appear as though they live in a box, where they can only see the things that they are personally involved in.

Many of us have either done this ourselves or have a friend that has done it. I'm talking about getting out to a location only to learn that you don't have a usable memory card or battery.

This is a look at how this affordable home security cam can be used for increasing security of your gear while traveling on assignment. Even though it was never designed for this purpose, unlike a lot of other options on the market the Wyze Cam has just the right features to make it possible.

In my last "Behind the Image" article I talked about looking where other photographers aren't. This week I'd like to talk about the importance of being ready for just about anything — particularly when it comes to wildlife photography, as well as how images can impact our behaviors.

If you have aspirations of being a fashion photographer, London Fashion Week is about as big as it can get. It's one of the main fashion capitals of the world, and remains highly respected for both designers and the press.

Everyone in the industry must know who Pratik Naik is by now. And if you don't, then you should. In ten years Pratik has become one of the most famous retouchers on the planet.

Besides making cool miniature city scapes and stopping converging lines, there are a host of reasons why you should consider buying a tilt-shift lens.

Instagram is the fodder for many complaints straining from what many say are tactics to make money. My problem with these complaints is that they never speak to the business side. They only talk about why Instagram is at fault, but never why they might have had to make these decisions

[Update] The winner has been announced. Congratulations to Eric Au for being selected as the winner of the Fujifilm XT30 with XF18-55mm lens kit! His entry of visiting the Fstoppers YouTube channel snagged him the prize.

Whatever is your wedding photography style, inevitably, a part of your final gallery will be filled with photos of guests. So, how can we make them less dull and repetitive? How can we "wow" our clients?

With the release of the Fujifilm GFX 50R, the Hasselblad X1D II 50C, as well as a burgeoning used market, digital medium format has become more attainable than ever by professional photographers wanting to step up to the next level in image quality. However, the full frame market is firing back on all cylinders, producing cameras that claim to rival medium format, such as the Sony a7R IV. Many medium format users are quick to point out that there is a medium format look that these high-end full-frame cameras are lacking. So, what is the medium format look? Is it real? Why, yes. Yes, it is.

At pretty much three-quarters of the way through the alphabet we stop at R, an eminently popular letter, to look at the foundation of pretty much all contemporary cameras — the Reflex. This is followed by the inspiringly funny work of Tony Ray-Jones whose career was cruelly cut short.

I remember my first post to Instagram. As an Android user, I had to wait until April 3, 2012 before I could get the app, but when I did, I excitedly uploaded my first photo, the Nashville skyline with the seemingly appropriate Nashville filter. I was hooked.

The demands for video production have increased exponentially as online content has boomed in recent years. The team at Motion Array understands that this puts added pressure on overworked video editors. That’s why we’re always trying to come up with tools and templates to help post-production professionals stay ahead of the curve.

One question I often get from my photography students is: "What the heck is that graph?" I often enjoy teaching photography even more than creating it, but explaining concepts like the histogram is one of the tougher parts of teaching photography.

As photographers, much of our time is divided between our camera equipment and our image editing software. And, if you're like me, you spend some time keeping an eye on the latest releases that will improve our editing speed and quality.

We all have goals and aspirations — and I think that's the only way for structured growth — but achieving these aims will often result in a false dawn.

While Adobe continues to spend its time and resources on useless updates such as the texture slider and the fragmented Lightroom CC vs CC Classic, there remains to be an abundant amount of changes that users actually want to see.

Canon’s recently released financial results don’t bode well for the Japanese manufacturer, nor the market more broadly. As much as the executives want to blame camera phones, the truth is that the industry is finally adjusting to a huge marketing con and a total inability to react to social technology. If you want to know why, it's time to examine my Mom's fridge.

A dramatically cascading waterfall is one of the most iconic scenes that can be captured by a nature photographer — by any photographer. Here are some tips to get the most out of such a scene, no matter the scale of your subject.

What's up? Glad you could make it for part 2 of my Art of Composite Photography series.

Our work as photographers says a lot about us as human beings. Continuing to evaluate that work well beyond its inception is important to both our creative and personal growth.

The camera industry is waiting for Canon to announce its mirrorless flagship sports shooter, but even three years after the Sony a9 was released, Canon might still be struggling to keep up. With the a9 Mark II on the horizon, they might be in trouble. Here’s why.

It’s all in the margins when you start looking at how healthy a large business is doing. For Canon, they may be currently hemorrhaging cash year-over-year, but is it as bad as it sounds?

We've been using the Falcon Eyes BL-30TD for three months now, and we are big fans. For $800, it has an amazing list of features. But, how does it compare to another light that sells for the same price?

Before I became a photographer, I had ideas as to what the career might be like, boy was I wrong. Here is what a week as a professional photographer looks like.

The exposure triangle claims to explain the relationship between shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. At first glance, it looks like a useful diagram, until you realize that it’s not all what it's cracked up to be.

With the Perseids meteor shower set to peak in the next few days, it's a great time to review the techniques and gear involved in capturing a meteor. Want to know how to catch a picture of a shooting star?

Couples photography has become more popular in the boudoir industry. It is a way to connect, interact and photograph moments between a couple to give a glimpse into their relationship. Although what happens when the couple is a pair of complete strangers?

I had the wonderful opportunity to shoot this fashion spread for Glamour South Africa back in March while I was in Barcelona. Right before the trip, I did some research and had asked some locals for some location recommendations.

Last week, somewhere between 500,000 and 1,000,000 Puerto Ricans marched along the largest highway on the island in protest against the governor Ricardo Rossello, and I was there.

In this issue of the A to Z of Photography we turn to possibly the thorniest letter of the alphabet: Q. Fear not as we take you on a journey from an interview with the antipodean photographer Wayne Quilliam, through Elvis, Brahmanandam Kanneganti, Kim Kardashian, Princess Diana, and Donald Trump before finally arriving at the Queen.

Every image has a story behind it, and while some can be more obvious than others, a few also provide important insights from which photographers can learn. In this article, which is the first in a series that I’d like to share with the Fstoppers community, I will explore the story behind one of my most recognized images and one of the most basic rules we are taught when we begin our journey into photography. I hope you will enjoy the series and take something away from my experiences.

Recently a number of women have come forward and made some pretty strong accusations against a relatively well-known photographer, Jason Lanier. This has brought the subject of sexual abuse and assault back into many discussions.

Getting new clients is exciting, but often difficult. If you've got no mutual connection, no contact to introduce you, or no event you can bump in to them at, you're against the odds. So don't make it even harder.

Returning to the same landscape photography location several times can vastly improve your photos. Here are three reasons to why returning is a good idea.

Envision flying around with a jet pack creating massive film sets like you are a cinematography superhero. Cinetracer is a realistic cinematography simulator where you play a Director, and your quest is to make an epic movie. The real purpose of this program is to create beautiful storyboards for pitching.

Following the success of their powerful drag and drop album design software, Pixellu has launched SmartAlbums 2019. The latest update is complete with time-saving features, workflow improvements, and faster performance.

The Fstoppers community is brimming with creative vision and talent. Every day, we comb through your work, looking for images to feature as the Photo of the Day or simply to admire your creativity and technical prowess. In 2019, we're featuring a new photographer every month, whose portfolio represents both stellar photographic achievement and a high level of involvement within the Fstoppers community.

A 61 megapixel sensor, 15 stops of dynamic range, 5-Axis Optical IBIS, 10 frames per second shooting capabilities. You're killing me here Sony. Do I want this camera? Hell yeah. Will I be getting this camera? Absolutely not. Here’s why.

I always say, once you have the core foundations of Photoshop down you are pretty much set. There are plenty of neat tricks to learn, but most of the time the tricks are one-offs.

There’s no denying that Italy’s Dolomites are stunning. This monumental mountain range in northeastern Italy is an idyllic playground for both outdoor adventurers and those seeking a taste of the region’s cultural heritage.

"What is your budget?" Have you ever asked that question? Actually, the more important matter is: Have you ever been asked this question? How has it made you feel?

Have you ever heard of our friends over at Viewbug? You probably should have by now because we've collaborated with them on a couple different photo contests at this point and there's more to the community than just photo contests.

As a photographer, personal projects are important to always keep trying out new things and practicing one’s craft while helping to maintain the passion in the art.

Let's really be honest here, Facebook and Instagram have changed the rules enough times now that it's driven most of the fun out of the social media platforms and it's long been time for a change. Instagram used to be great for photographers but has since become an almost pointless endeavor for anyone that doesn't already have 100,000 followers or more.

When it comes to photography, the most time consuming part of the process is the editing. Retouching a beauty photo can take 3 hours with no breaks. Because of this, I’ve been trying to find new ways to be more efficient without cutting corners.

We’ve all seen it before. Everyone runs out to shoot a storm, weather event, or just the sunset at the lake, but it just turns out to be an uninteresting event. Next thing you know someone inevitably posts one or more mediocre photos from it on social media as if it was the greatest thing ever.

With this installment we revisit the whole sub-genre of panoramic photography. Literally(!) a wide subject, discover the history behind it, the software to create it, and the competitions to enter. Once you've scrambled your way through the panoramas, discover one of the most beautiful photos in the universe. Read on.