Articles written by Patrick Hall

The future of sharing live video through social media is definitely heating up through apps like Periscope and Meerkat. Basically these apps turn your phone into a live streaming webcam that you can use to share whatever you want to the world. Although Ustream and Youtube have already allowed users to stream live video from other devices like a GoPro, Meerkat is about to make things a lot more interesting by being the first native app to broadcast from the sports camera. This could make social media way more interesting to watch.

When it comes to all things headshots and manipulating human expression, the best guy to seek council from is Peter Hurley. Peter's career has spanned about 15 years now, and over those years he has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge. Last year with the help from our friends at Profoto, Lee and I were able to film a supplemental free chapter to Peter's Illuminating the Face Tutorial. In this video Peter takes us outside to show some of the techniques he uses out on location.

Since Lee and I first started Fstoppers 5 years ago, we have always wanted it to be a place for inspiration, news, reviews, and of course educational behind the scenes material. One thing has always been missing though, and that is the voice of you our readers. Today we are expanding the Fstoppers Community by opening Groups to the public. Anyone with an Fstoppers account can now create and moderate their own photography community directly on Fstoppers.com

The other night I was asked "what is the most frustrating thing about shoot weddings?" I thought about this question for a second and shockingly my answer had nothing to do with bridezillas, wedding planners, hot and humid weather, or even post production. Easily the most frustrating thing about shooting weddings is dealing with unreliable radio triggers during the reception. Perhaps this simple yet unreleased hotshoe adapter could make this problem obsolete if only someone would create it.

UPDATE INSIDE: Nikon's newest camera, the D750, is our all time favorite DSLR camera ever. We own the D750 and D810 cameras and actually favor the D750 for video and wedding work because of its small size, articulating screen, fast focusing, and manageable 24mp full frame sensor (the D810 is a badass camera too). Today there is a crazy sale where you can a Nikon D750 Body on Ebay for only $1499! This deal is so good we just bought 4 new D750s for the Fstoppers studio.

Let's face it; the industry is changing. Art directors and potential clients are not looking to simply hire a photographer anymore. They do not care about your lighting, your gear, or even your previous clients. So what do they care about then? Photographer John Keatley sits down with artist rep Maren Levinson at Redeye to discuss the future of photography, and there is a very good chance you are not going to like what she has to say.

The 2015 Fstoppers Workshops is right around the corner, and 2 weeks ago we launched one final contest. Today 5 lucky winners will receive a free spot in a class of their choosing and one of those winners will receive an additional free class, a paid flight to the Bahamas, and a free hotel room for the 6 day event. If you entered this contest through one of our 5 social media platforms you definitely need to keep reading!

UPDATE: Two More Days! The second Fstoppers Workshops is only two months away, and just like last year we want to give someone the photography experience of a lifetime. On March 19th we are going to give away 5 free classes away to 5 lucky photographers. Our grand prize winner will recieve 2 workshops and we will also cover the cost of their flight and hotel.

After becoming the best selling off camera flash light modifier on Amazon.com in 2014, we were sad to announce that we had completely sold out of our entire Fstoppers FlashDisc inventory. If you have been waiting patiently for our stock to replenish wait no more; our US Amazon Store now has a fresh batch of inventory. For those of you who have been waiting for the FlashDisc in your region of the world, we have good news for you too!