We take ridiculously powerful autofocus that can lock onto something like a subject's eye and track it through a challenging environment for granted nowadays, and we sometimes forget that there was a time when autofocus did not even exist. However, in the late 1970s, autofocus began to appear, and even though Canon's lens mount at the time did not support it, they found a way to put it in a lens anyway. This neat video review takes a look at that lens.

Recently Adobe released Lightroom version 11 and with it came a completely revamped interface for masking. After a month of real-world use, this guide will help you get up to speed on anything you could possibly want to know about masking in Lightroom for 2022.

Working with a new model can be a brilliant way to practice and help someone else with their aspirations, but it's undoubtedly tricky. In this behind-the-scenes video, a veteran photographer works with a model on her first shoot and walks you through some of the difficulties and offers some tips.

I've talked about the Insta360 GO 2 a lot. And with good reason. It's an awesome little powerhouse of a camera. While the release of the "Minions Edition" of the camera doesn't fundamentally change that camera, it's just plain cool.

Growing your skillset and your career as an artist can be filled with pitfalls. But even though many mistakes are shared amongst nearly all photographers, the good news is that most can be avoided if you only know where to look.

Apple's M1 chip turned the computing world on its head when it first arrived, and the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips took things several steps further, promising even better performance in tandem with highly impressive battery life. So, how does the latest MacBook Pro perform in practice, under the demands of a professional creative? This great video review will show you what you can expect from it.

Pricing is a tricky thing and something that a lot of photographers struggle with, particularly since there is less objective guidance on how to go about it than in many other industries. One especially difficult topic is knowing when it is time to raise your prices. This helpful video tutorial will show you five signs that it may be time to charge a bit more for your services.

Smartphone cameras and AI technology can produce beautiful results. Many of them can intelligently boost colors in an image, blur out a background to mimic larger optics, or even change how you look. The question is: how far is too far with smartphones and AI manipulation of images?

The Canon EOS R5 grabbed a lot of headlines when it came out, mostly for features like blazing fast autofocus, a 20 fps burst rate, and 8K raw video. And while those are all quite impressive, the EOS R5 also came with one of the best sensors the company has ever produced, making it an intriguing option for landscape photographers. This excellent video review takes a look at the EOS R5 for landscape work and the kind of image quality you can expect from it.

I recently wrote a piece for Bradt Guides' Travel Club offering tips on how to get the most out of a trip to the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. I, for one, am feeling serious withdrawal from travel. If you're planning a trip to Antarctica or love landscapes and wildlife, climb aboard.

Capture One has become the image-editing software of choice for a ton of professionals. Not only does it have some of the best color-editing abilities of any software, but it is also one of the best when it comes to speed and performance. But with Capture One 22, things just got even better.

This major midterm upgrade to On1 Photo Raw brings more exciting and unique features that will certainly win it more converts from other asset management, raw development, and editing software programs

Lightroom was one of the first serious photo-editing tools I used when I was getting started with photography, and it’s still a mainstay of my editing workflow. Whether you’re new to Lightroom or a veteran user, there are several unique considerations of the software: some are quirks of the program, while others are more recent changes that can impact your established workflow.

Artificial intelligence is bringing incredible advances for photographers, from relighting portraits and making people smile, to cleaning up skin and swapping out skies. However, photographers everywhere would beg developers of photo-editing software to harness deep learning to create one simple tool.

Nikon has announced that its new flagship full frame mirrorless camera, the Z 9, will begin shipping on December 24, though customers should probably brace themselves for delays.

In some genres, flat, even light can be a real boon for the photographer, but in landscape photography, it can rob a scene of the drama created by the interplay between light and shadow and the natural contrasts across the frame. That does not mean you can't create great images in flat light, though. This excellent video tutorial will show you what you need to know.

50mm lenses run the gamut from under $100 to well over $1,000 and everywhere in between. Almost every new photographer is told to buy one of the budget options, a nifty fifty, but this lens offers a bit of an upgrade in performance and image quality without flirting with the stratospheric prices of top-shelf options. Is it worth the bump in price? This great video review takes a look.

Much of commercial photography is about marketing. Agency Access is a service that is aimed at helping commercial photographers market their work efficiently. But how good is it? Here is my review of Agency Access.

All of us want to be better photographers, and it seems like the internet is overflowing with methods that claim to help you do that — some legitimate and some not. That being said, there are some dangerous rabbit holes you can go down in this pursuit of improvement, particularly when they involve your wallet. This excellent video essay features an experienced photographer providing a good reminder of what really matters when it comes to becoming a better photographer.

It takes the meeting of several factors to create a good photo, and the absence or poor execution of any one of them can often derail the entire image. Some of these factors are obvious, but some can sneak up on us, often not noticed until we are back at home to examine our shots on our computers. This great video essay discusses one of the tricker factors and what you can do to get it right.

There are several business management platforms on the market, but few are aimed solely at photographers. Light Blue is a fabulous option, and its unique features set it well ahead of the competition.

The holy grail of time-lapse videos is smooth day-night transitions. Could it be as simple as a few settings on the right camera?

How do you bring your gear for a hike while keeping yourself comfortable? This is a viable option.

Modern cameras are incredibly powerful tools, but there are still limitations to what they can do, some imposed by the current state of technology and some forever imposed by the laws of physics. That does not mean you are simply out of luck, though, as there are ways to work around these limitations. Often, this is done via bracketing, and this excellent video tutorial will show you some of the different kinds of bracketing, why they are valuable, and how to use them.

Rumors about the forthcoming Leica M11 are circulating, and one particular feature stands out: 64 gigabytes of internal memory.

How many times have you gone out after dark, wishing you had your camera with you? Night photography opens up a world of extraordinary images, and with the advanced technologies of our mobile phones today, you can get excellent image quality.

Few lenses are more classic than a wide-aperture 85mm, which is often the preferred choice of portrait photographers. Nonetheless, a good 85mm lens can be awfully expensive. There are some quite affordable options out there as well, with one such example being the Viltrox AF 85mm f/1.8, and this excellent video review takes a look at the image quality and performance you can expect from it in practice.

I'm a long-time user of Nik Tools, and the suite of filters and presets has been advancing rapidly since DXO took the software over in 2017. There are tools to create a variety of monochrome looks, perspective corrections, sharpening, HDR renders, analog and film replication effects, color adjustments, noise reduction, and sharpening. Now, DXO is offering version 4.3 with 35 new presets, most useful to landscape photographers.

November’s astronomical events led me to plan for a week-long marathon astrophotography session. The catch was that it had to be around the full Moon, normally a frustratingly unproductive time for astrophotographers.

Some cameras are designed to be pragmatic tools, meant to reliably get the shot without fuss no matter what situation you throw them into. Other cameras put form first, offering stylish designs meant to inspire your creativity. It is a rare camera that does both equally well. This excellent video review takes a look at one such camera and why it will make you want to go out and shoot with it.

Most creative industries are highly competitive and difficult to earn high income. In this video, Lizzie Peirce walks you through her nine income streams and how they work, which may give you inspiration for your own business.

Some discoveries in life are intentional and some are just happy accidents that work out in ways we never anticipated. I rely on the Transform tool in Lightroom to correct lines and perspectives, but I learned that it can completely change the look of an image to add interest and trick the eye of the viewer.

Irix has created a name for themselves by manufacturing manual focus prime lenses that are rugged, affordable, and quite sharp, making them a compelling option for any genre where autofocus is not a requirement. This excellent video review takes a look at one of the company's newer lenses, the 30mm f/1.4 Dragonfly, and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.

It is not difficult to get an okay shot as an advanced photographer. The problem is not seeing the things that would bring your photography even up to a world-class level. What if I would tell you that there exists a tiny subgenre in photography that makes not only most of the things you have to improve visible for you but also makes you a better photographer in all genres of photography?

Changing the background of an image convincingly is about a lot more than simply creating a precise mask for your subject and dropping in a new backdrop. It takes the ability to accurately evaluate and match things like lighting, color, perspective, depth of field, and more. If you are wondering how to do all those things, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you everything you need to know to convincingly change the background of an image using Photoshop.

As all facets of technology take large, confident strides forward, there are many unintended synergies and applications between them. One example of this, which is still relatively new to being viable, is using a projector as a background for photography and videography.

Neither of these looks like a regular photographer’s bag. They are rugged but attractive, and no matter where you go, you'll look stylish while knowing your gear is safe and well protected.

For many of us, 2021 has been no better a year than 2020. Take a break, and rise above the fog with this incredible video from Michael Shainblum, as he captures long exposures, time-lapses, and film images from high above the clouds in San Francisco.

Whether hobbyists or professionals, we all became photographers because we enjoy the process of creating images and sharing them with the world. But often, somewhere along the way, things go awry, and we end up unsatisfied and/or unhappy with the pursuit, sometimes turning our back on it altogether. If you find yourself in that place, this awesome video essay discusses how to make yourself a happier photographer.

After all the excitement we got last year from the comet NEOWISE, it's hard to believe that right now, there's another potential naked-eye-visible comet screaming through the solar system at 158,000 miles per hour.

Welcome to the next—and 6th—episode of our 8-part video tutorial series about long exposure photography and how different filters can produce dramatic results. As a reminder, each time we drop a new video, you have the chance to win some awesome prizes. Follow the instructions included in this post to enter this week's contest.

2021 brought a huge array of excellent gear. Here’s a roundup of the best and worst releases of the year, including a decision for the best stills camera that will take a lot of people by surprise.

The Sandmarc Motion Pro Variable filter can be used for both filming and photography. For me, it excels at one more than the other, not because of quality, but because of ease of use.

One of the challenges of landscape photography is that unlike many other genres, you do not have control of the elements in the scene, only where you position yourself and how you choose your composition. This can often lead to overly busy compositions, but this helpful video tutorial will give you some good advice on how to counteract that and produce stronger, more compelling images.

A 24-70mm f/2.8 is the workhorse lens of choice for a lot of photographers and filmmakers, offering a versatile focal length range and wide maximum aperture. One such lens for Fujifilm shooters is the XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR, and this excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of image quality and performance you can expect from it in practice.

There’s a lot more to the placement of subjects in a frame than many photographers know. Considering left and right can impact how impressive your photos appear to others, and the flip horizontal is a more powerful creative tool than most people give credit to.

Tamron has had some excellent lenses over the years but nothing quite reached the caliber of their 28-75mm f/2.8 which was extremely well-received. Now, with that previous model discontinued, Tamron has released the new version, but can it keep up the earlier model's legacy?

Should you put your pricing on your photography website? It is a tricky question: on one hand, without it, you might annoy potential customers who want an idea of what they should expect to spend. On the other hand, with it, you might scare aware potential clients before you have had the chance to make your case for why you are worth the money. If you are wondering how to approach this, check out this great video tutorial that will give you some helpful advice on the topic.

A 50mm lens with a wide maximum aperture is one of the most versatile lenses a photographer can own, offering a relatively neutral focal length suitable for everything from portraits to landscapes and the ability to shoot in low light or leverage subject-isolating narrow depth of field. If you are a Nikon shooter looking for the right 50mm lens, check out this great video comparison that looks at three options at a range of price points.

In September this year, Fujifilm announced a wide range of new primes, seemingly part of an ongoing effort to update its range of glass with sharper lenses complete with better autofocus and wider apertures. Has Fujifilm produced a better lens than the 33mm f/1.4 R LM WR?