Russell James is an extremely talented photographer who has shot for a long list of high end clients and famous celebrities. This behind the scenes video gives us a quick rundown of what it takes to produce and execute a high caliber photo shoot for a upper echelon glossy like GQ. Even though it moves fast, we can see from this glimpse what types of gear used during the shoot, how lights are set up and what it takes to work with talent like Erin Heatherton.
You can find more work from Russell James on his site www.studiorusselljames.com
Self portrait series have increasingly became more and more popular over the last few years, making your standard series a bit bland and overdone. Wataru Yamamoto’s series, Drawing A Line forces you to stare into his self portraits, as if they’re a Where’s Waldo book from your childhood. [more]
The 35mm focal length is one of the most popular primes made, probably only second to the 50mm if second to anyone. It’s popular because it is good for so many things, making us feel like we have to own fewer lenses to capture more amazing images. Most of you know that I’m very attached to my Sigma 35mm f/1.4, but when shooting with Canon’s new 35mm f/2 IS, I did my best to remain objective. [more]
In January we posted an unexpectedly captivating behind the scenes video of the Sigma factory in Aizu, Japan that many of you really liked (and which was shot entirely on Sigma glass). Sigma has just released another piece of eye candy in a new concept video that mixes really stunning visuals with equally beautiful music. It too was shot 100% with Sigma optics. [more]
Having ambition, creativity, and passion are not enough to make an independent documentary or photo project a reality. To see the movie play or hang the photo project in a gallery you will need money. It is a cruel reality for creatives, but money is needed to make large and ambitious projects happen. So what does one do?
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Where do you place cameras to capture someone taking a 400 foot plunge into a rocky abyss when you can’t get to the bottom? On the person falling of course! The popular YouTuber Devin Graham is up to his usual hijinks, but this time with a little help from some friends. If you enjoyed his Epic Rope Swing video, then you’ll definitely want to check this out. Final video inside! [more]
ModelMayhem is to budding photographers and models everywhere what Craigslist is to…well…budding photographers and models (and then some) everywhere, though with a few more perks that let you have a profile complete with photos, model measurements and opportunities to network within the site. Unfortunately, just as anywhere else in the world, both have their share of creeps. And when three young women go missing in one area, we have to remind ourselves yet again: no matter the situation, be safe… [more]
For the longest time, I’ve been using a 17″ Macbook Pro for tethering. The big screen is great. Everything else, however, was a nightmare. I recently saw some colleagues of mine raving about a new product called the CamRanger, which allows you to tether to your Android device (April 2013), iPad or iPhone to your camera and had to try it out, as any solution that would resolve my near-daily tethering headaches would be fantastic. [more]
Just recently a friend of mine posted some rather stunning images on his Facebook page. While vacationing in Vegas, Réjean Brandt, a very talented fashion photographer from Canada decided to take the opportunity to organize a portfolio shoot. The photos taken at Red Rock Canyon were beyond splendid to say the least, and I quickly jumped on Réjean to get behind the scenes details for an article on this very site. The next day the images were abruptly taken down. Why? Because Red Rock Canyon threatened to seize his equipment if he didn’t. [more]
Lighting is one of my favorite things to play with on a shoot. Creative lighting can really give you’re photography a large edge over just shooting natural/ambient light. I love using lights, because I am always growing and learning new techniques. This week I will walk you through the relatively simple setup for one of my favorite shots in my portfolio.
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Magic lantern is by far the best thing to happen to the DSLR cameras. It offers so many options not given to you by the normal Canon firmware that it should be sin not to install it. This is a quick little walkthrough on how I use ML for easy, accurate free-lensing. [more]
I have always wanted to shoot editorial work. Getting my work in print has always been my number one goal. In my opinion, it is the mark of having “made it” as a photographer. The problem was that I never knew how to get my work in front of the right people to even be considered for an assignment. I had read articles in industry photo magazines about how to make brilliant and eye-catching marketing materials to nab that client that you are after. [more]
Its that time of year, the dreaded tax season. During this time, we all either hire someone to do this work for us, or we spend hours on websites trying to decoded the complicated tax laws that apply for us all. This can be a painful process, especially for us self employed photographers. Well, I’m here to help you dig through the complicated process, and simplify your taxes into some terms you may be able to understand. [more]
HP may not be making cameras anymore but they still have a strong hold in the printer market and they are still moving. To expand on their existing offering they are trying to build excitement about a new consumer printing experience which embeds a video into a printed photo via augmented reality. So far the app HP Live Photo appears to only be available on the iPhone and uses video (45 seconds or less) [more]
I have had quite a few people ask about my skin smoothing ways. Its really, really simple. I use Imaginomics Portraiture 2 and have figured out how to get it so it smooths the tones instead of all the texture. So if you use Portraiture, follow along and stop killing your textures! [more]
