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The people and websites that sell the most products make the most money, but at what cost?
Your mind plays clever tricks, helping you make sense of the world. It creates imaginary groups and lines. So, understanding how that works will lead you to take more compelling photographs.
Street photography is a genre that requires both a lot of savvy and technique but also a fair dose of patience. Even if you do not do street work, there are a lot of lessons to be learned from the genre that can be applied across pretty much all photographic pursuits. This excellent video essay discusses those lessons and how to use them to improve your own images.
Elias Weiss Friedman, better known as The Dogist, has photographed over 50,000 dogs in his career, and as such, he has learned a thing or two along the way. If you are a lover of dogs and photography, check out this fantastic video interview with The Dogist, in which he reveals why he prefers photographing dogs over people and offers a lot of fun insight into his work.
I've had a preview release of the Noiseless AI extension that will be offered for Luminar Neo users on August 30. It's not quite finished it terms of GUI, but basic functionality is there. My copy only runs under Rosetta on my Mac Studio, but at release, it will be Apple Silicon Native.
Even to the non-photographer, the look of light through a window is quite recognizable, and as such, it is an excellent way to give your portraits an elegant and timeless look. Of course, we do not always have the ability to just use a window with natural sunlight streaming through, and as such, knowing how to create it in studio is a useful skill. Thankfully, it is not that difficult, nor does it require a lot of equipment. This excellent video tutorial will show you how to do it with just a single speedlight.
Most of the time, a worthwhile lens is going to cost you at least several hundred dollars, if not somewhere in the thousands. So, the prospect of a $69 lens is certainly intriguing. Can it produce worthwhile images, though? This excellent video review takes a look at the TTArtisan 50mm f/2 and the kind of performance and image quality you can expect from it in real-world usage.
I had the fortune to sit down recently with London-based photographer Ivan Weiss, whom I consider one of the great portrait artists of our time. Weiss’ unique body of work has been featured by Canon UK, Affinity Photo, Vogue, BBC, and Forbes, among others, and he also leads the Portrait Track in Peter Hurley’s Headshot Crew, where he mentors other photographers. Our conversation focused on the illusion of originality in art, mentorship, and why you need to “stay on the bus” in order to reach your full potential.
Do you have old grainy photos that you'd love to modernize and bring new life to? Photoshop has a new filter that lets you do just that in a matter of seconds.
Shooting portraits on location is a fantastic way to add some drama to your shots or to use the surrounding environment to complement your subject and to tell a story. If you would like to improve your lighting and portraiture, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you how one photographer lit, posed, and shot a series of pin-up portraits using four different lighting setups.
Simplicity is the name of the game when it comes to powering your video system.
The new DJI Avata dropped today and this little drone looks absolutely incredible.
It might seem to be an easy transition for a photographer to become a filmmaker. At the core of each of these disciplines is storytelling. A photographer tells a story in a single instant captured at the decisive moment, while a filmmaker tells a story over a period of time, often incorporating elements such as editing and sound to help tell that story.
The Sony a1 mirrorless camera is, by far, one of the most capable and versatile cameras ever released, with just about every feature you could ever want for any photo or video need you might have. This excellent video review takes a look at the camera and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in usage.
Search the web: hundreds of videos teach you how to get more bookings and nail your marketing efforts. But how do we get our very first booking? I asked a few professional photographers to tell me their stories.
Aside from the price, often in the vicinity of thousands and thousands of dollars, can you actually tell the difference between an f/2.8 lens and an f/4 lens?
The pandemic has been one of the most impactful events in the lifetimes of most that are alive today. It has been singular and brutal, affecting people, businesses, and infrastructure. Whether you're a professional photographer or a hobbyist, it undoubtedly changed the status quo for you, but how?
As a landscape photographer, I don't usually deal with too much noise in my images unless I'm shooting nightscapes. Once I started shooting more wildlife during my time in Alaska, I decided to give it a try and I was absolutely blown away with the results.
Usually, if you want to use a supertelephoto prime lens for things like wildlife or sports photography, you have to use first-party options. However, Sigma offers a rare exception to that rule, the 500mm f/4 DG OS HSM Sports, and it offers that combination of extra-long focal length and wide aperture sought after by many professionals at a significantly more affordable price. Can it match pace with the likes of Canon and Nikon? This great video review takes a look at the lens to answer that question.
Over recent years, photographers have flocked to places like Iceland, the Greek islands, and Bali. It might now seem that there's nowhere new or unique to explore. You'd be wrong to think so. This is an untapped gem you have to see.
Are you struggling to find your style as a photographer? In teaching photography, I am often asked how you even know what your style should be. This is both the easiest and hardest question. Let me explain why.
Selena Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin are close to solving another murder in the building, in a whodunnit that laughs at itself.
Digital camera technology has reached a point where even our phones can produce images that can be mistaken for a “real camera” to the untrained eye. Photographers have never had more affordable access to image-making tools that can produce crisp, high-resolution images, rivaling those of professional gear from not very long ago. So, why then have objectively inferior vintage digital cameras been making a sudden comeback?
Listen up! Whether you have a full-fledged career in photography, the pandemic got you exploring it as your side hustle, or you are just dreaming of taking your hobby to the next level, then look no further. These podcasts will educate, enthuse, and enable you to make your dream career of camera (and paycheck) in hand, come true.
When you want to travel light but still have a quality camera in hand, you often have to make some difficult decisions and settle for regrettable compromises. But what if a light, pocketable camera solved many of those problems?
One of the most difficult aspects of wildlife and bird photography is finding your subjects and having the patience to wait for them to come into position in frame. So, what if you could make your own spot that you knew would attract wildlife? This photographer and filmmaker designed and built his own pond for bird and wildlife photography, and this awesome video shows the location and the beautiful footage he gets there.
I have long felt that perhaps too many photographers prioritize bokeh and blur more than they should, but now I am a hypocrite, because I fell in love with an f/0.95 lens.
Rarely is a compelling landscape photo made entirely in camera; the majority of such images require at least some degree of editing to be complete, and this is your chance to show off both your technique and your creative vision. So, how do you actually approach the edit? This fantastic video tutorial features an experienced landscape photographer discussing how to edit your images properly.
One of the most challenging and often frustrating parts of landscape photography is that you do not get any control over the light. While you can do your best to predict the conditions, nature will not always cooperate. So, can you create good photos in boring light? Absolutely, and this great video will show you some of what you can accomplish and how to go about it.
GuruShots, "The World’s Greatest Photo Game,” recently asked photographers to participate in a Summer challenge by submitting their best Sunny Summer photo into a worldwide challenge. With thousands of entries were sent in and millions of votes were cast to select the top images from the challenge. Check out the three winners as well as the 60 top rated images below.
DALL·E 2 is a new artificial intelligence system that can create realistic images and art from a written description. No more elaborate styling and lighting setups: you can now just pop in a description of what you want, and DALL-E-2 delivers the image. Too good to be true? Too threatening to the forever-taking-hits photography industry? See for yourself with my prerelease test run.
Sony has recently released a lightweight, compact power zoom lens that is perfect for all types of creators regardless of whether you shoot stills or video. What's not to love?
Consumer 360 cameras have come quite a long way in the last few years, and you can now get professional-level video and photos from many models. Well-known manufacturer Insta360 recently released the ONE RS 1-Inch 360 Edition in collaboration with Leica, and this excellent video review takes a look at the camera and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
There are some essential things about being a photographer, most of which photography books don't usually mention. Here are the seven most important lessons I learned as a photographer, including one exercise I use to hone my skills.
The Fujifilm X-H2S is the company's newest mirrorless camera in the renowned X Series, and it comes with a variety of new features and improvements over its predecessor. If you are interested in the camera, check out this great video review that takes a look at the performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
In my latest video, I address seven common mistakes that beginner headshot photographers make and offer ways to avoid these pitfalls.
A variable neutral density filter can be very handy. You only need one filter that covers multiple strengths. Haida released the CPL VND Pro II, a variable neutral density filter that works also as a polarizing filter. Haida asked me to review this new variable ND filter with polarization abilities.
Two of the most fundamental tasks you will perform in Lightroom are importing and exporting images. When you are working with large batches, both processes can take a significant amount of time, and as such, it is well worth taking the time to establish a consistent and efficient system. This excellent video tutorial will show you an effective system to ensure that you are not wasting any time when importing and exporting photos in Lightroom.
In the world of influencers and competition for social media gravitas, it's no small feat to amass 217,000 followers. That tells me they must have something good to offer. So, when this photographer shared which filters he uses, I took notice. You should too.
If I promise to not curse and do my best to keep my rants to a minimum, can we have a discussion about the ongoing dilemma for photographers which is Instagram?
The submissions we got for this contest were incredible but they were made by software so is it really that impressive? Let the debate continue in the comments.
Join the next critique at Fstoppers.com/Contests and check out the tutorials you can win at the Fstoppers Store.
The 50mm lens is one of the most common lenses out there, and yet, it can be a weirdly challenging one to use. Why is it so difficult to master, and how can you create better photos with one? This excellent video takes a look at the 50mm lens, why it is tough to work with, and what you can do to improve your shots.
35mm lenses with wide maximum apertures are some of the most popular and versatile out there, suitable for a huge range of applications, from events coverage to portraits, astrophotography, and more. The Voigtländer Nokton 35mm f/1.2 SE is quite an interesting alternative to many mainstream options, and this excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
For this critique, we want to see any photo that represents "speed." A little blur might help you here.
While the industry move to subscriptions has had pain points, I think it’s a net benefit for post-production.
How big can sensors get on a phone's camera? Leica has done a collaboration with a rather surprising company to give you a glimpse of the future.
If you are looking to break into the wedding industry, one of the best things you can do is become a second shooter. If you are ready to start picking up more second shooter gigs, check out this fantastic video tutorial that features an experienced wedding photographer offering seven tips to help land more bookings.
It is World Photography Day, and to celebrate, Apple has shared some of the most impressive photographs from their #shotoniPhone campaign from around the world. Not only are they beautiful, they are an important reminder that the best camera is the one you have with you.
While the ports on modern laptops are enough for most users, photographers and filmmakers have much higher connectivity demands than the average person. A portable hub can be a lifesaver for a creative on the go. In this review, we take a look at the Anker 555 USB-C 8-in-1 Hub and if it can provide both the ports and performance a demanding workflow requires.
Lightroom is the sort of program that you can spend years using, only to discover something you had never seen before. Whether you are new to the program or a seasoned user, this great video tutorial is likely to have a useful nugget of information in it sure to improve your images and make your workflow easier and more efficient.