Should You Work for Free as a Photographer?

Art either has extremely high value or no value at all. Getting from one to the other can take decades. Some never make it to the other end. The same is true for photography. At the start of your career, you will surely create art for free. But should you?

A Long-Term Review of the Sony a7S III Mirrorless Camera

The long-awaited Sony a7S III finally appeared on the market last year, and it has been in the hands of a lot of filmmakers for the past year. If you have been considering the camera for your own work, check out this great video review that discusses just how powerful it is in real-world usage.

Learn How This Tricky Couples Portrait Was Shot

Shooting weddings involves a number of challenges, including having to work with whatever light you are given that day while still being expected to produce memorable, compelling images for your couple and their family. This awesome video tutorial will show you how a photographer captured a great couples portrait in a field even with harsh sunlight complicating the equation.

How to Easily Fix Blue Sky Gradients in Photoshop

Often caused by polarizer filters, lens vignetting, or side-lit scenes, gradients can be a pain to handle in post-processing. Follow these simple steps in Photoshop to gain control over gradients commonly found in blue sky images.

How One Photographer Cut The Weight of His Gear in Half

If you work in a studio, it is not a big deal to have a lot of heavy gear, but if you are someone like a landscape photographer who is often hiking miles and miles with a bag of gear, every little ounce makes a big difference. This great video shows how one photographer majorly trimmed his bag while still carrying everything he needs to create.

How to Clean Your Camera's Viewfinder

I am willing to bet that a lot of us have not thought about cleaning our camera viewfinder before, and I am also willing to bet that if those of us who have not thought about it looked at our viewfinders right now, we would be a bit grossed out. Take five minutes and watch this helpful video to learn how to clean yours so it is bright, clear, and clean.

Helpful Ideas for Finding Great Portrait Locations

If you are anything like me, you have probably found yourself agonizing over finding just the right location for a portrait shoot at one time or another. It does not have to be that difficult, though, and this helpful video tutorial will give you some great tips for finding suitable locations quickly and easily.

Fashion Photography Has a Big Problem, but It Is Not Photoshop

What comes to mind when you think about fashion photography? If you are aware of the stereotypes surrounding fashion, then it’s certainly something along the lines of young, sexy models in revealing clothes. In this article, I will try to explain why fashion is so much more than that.

How Exposure to the Right Can Improve Your Images

We are all always striving for better and better image quality, and a lot of the time, it simply comes down to improving our techniques or trying new methods. One such method is exposure to the right, and this great video tutorial will show you what it is and how it can improve your photos.

A Better Way to Increase the Dynamic Range of Your Final Image

As improved as dynamic range is in modern cameras, there are plenty of instances in which you will not able to easily capture full coverage of shadows to highlights. In this video, learn a complete workflow for improving the dynamic range of those high-contrast images.

Join This Collaborative Discord Community for Landscape Photographers

Landscape Photographers Worldwide is a dedicated Discord channel for landscape photographers to come together and discuss the tools of the trade. Whether you are looking to discuss gear and locations, share your images, or receive direct feedback from your peers, this community delivers immense benefit for landscape photographers looking to connect and collaborate with like-minded creatives, and it is entirely free to join!

How to Easily Set Up a Portrait With Paramount Lighting

One of the first lighting techniques I learned in graduate school was Paramount lighting. It's an easy way to come up with consistently solid portraits of almost anyone. Here's a quick tutorial from Adorama and fashion photographer Lindsey Adler on how to get that just right.

Has COVID Killed Travel Photography?

At the start of March 2020, I found myself at a photography convention in Cape Town, South Africa, to present a workshop on travel photography. The central theme of my presentation was the notion that it isn't necessary to travel to be a successful travel photographer. Little did I know that within a couple of weeks of that presentation, I would be putting my advice into practice as the borders of the world slammed shut virtually overnight.

I Can’t Wait for This Photography Simulator Video Game to Be Released

Photographers and gamers, would you play a wildlife photography simulator? At first glance, it seems cheesy, but when I watched the trailer for Photography Simulator, it actually looks fun and engaging. I researched the game to learn more about it and share why you might enjoy this game too.

What Is It That Makes a Good Landscape Photo?

If you are anything like me, you have probably experienced the feeling of sitting in front of your computer, agonizing over which shot from a series of similar images you should select to edit. So, what is it that every good landscape photo should have? This informative video tutorial discusses three things that most (if not all) landscape photos have.

The Guilty: Making Movies With Intention in the Time of COVID

Intention in filmmaking has the potential to elevate movies. As a photographer, watching a movie with thoughtful cinematography is my favorite way to pass a Friday night. Maz Makhani’s work on The Guilty, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and directed by Antoine Fuqua, is an example of realizing this potential.

How to Add Shine to Skin Quickly and Easily Using Photoshop

While the kind of shine one gets from oily skin is something that most people would like to avoid, a touch of shine in the right places can give skin a radiant glow that really enhances an image. This awesome video tutorial will show you how to quickly and easily add a touch of shine to your subject's skin using Photoshop.

3 Skills That Will Improve Your Landscape Photography

Landscape photography takes numerous skills all coming together at once to create successful images. We talk a lot about various camera techniques and post-processing methods, but there are other skills you need to have beyond what you do with your camera and computer, and this fantastic video tutorial discusses three of them that can improve your work in the long run.

The Nets Set to Trap Photographers

Ash wants to take up photography. Never having owned a camera, besides the one on their phone, it’s something they have always had a hankering to do, especially after seeing all those great photos on Instagram. This is a cautionary tale, telling what can go horribly wrong for photographers.

Just How Far Have Sony Cameras Come?

Sony cameras are well known for standing at the forefront of technological innovation, offering top-notch image quality and class-leading features. What were their cameras like when they first started, though? This fun video review takes a look at the company's first digital camera, the DSC-F1, and what it is like 25 years later.

How to Use Dry Ice to Make an Epic Product Commercial

Adding special effects to shots can turn a nice but rather plain image into something truly memorable. In this video, what behind-the-scenes as a commercial is made for a brand of flash-frozen coffee using dry ice.

How to Copy the Color Grading of a Painting to Your Photos

One of the most recognizable aspects of any visual artist's style is their color grading, and it is a fantastic way to really level up your own work. If there is a painting, movie, photo, or some other visual piece that you really love the color grading of, this fantastic video tutorial will show you how to copy it directly to one of your own photos using Photoshop.

How Shadows Can Improve Your Portrait Photography

When we learn about lighting in portrait photography, we mostly focus on where to add light and how to shape it, but the presence of light is only made impactful by the mutual presence of shadows. Shadows can be a fantastic tool not just for contrast but to create a sense of drama or to tell a story with your images. This fantastic video tutorial will walk you through the process of lighting a portrait image with carefully crafted shadows to show you just how powerful they can be.

Skylum Reveals More Details of the Upcoming Luminar Neo

Skylum created a bit of a late summer storm when it announced a new image editor, Luminar Neo. The complaint from users has been that Skylum drops development on an editor, only to release a new one, while essentially going end of life on the current software.

A Complete Lightroom Wedding Editing Tutorial

Wedding photography is a highly demanding genre, both behind the camera and at your computer. Given the intensive post-processing requirements that can often stretch into a multi-day process for a single event, it is crucial to have an efficient and well-structured workflow. If that is something you would like to learn, check out this great video tutorial that will show you one wedding photographer's Lightroom workflow from start to finish.

A Review of the Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 GM Lens

Few focal lengths are more versatile than 35mm, being wide enough to tackle things like events coverage, landscapes, and astrophotography, but not so wide that things like portraits are not reasonable. Sony shooters have a premium option in the FE 35mm f/1.4 GM lens, and this awesome video review takes a look at the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.

We Review the Best Packing App for Photographers: Packaroo

Photographers have gear, and gear needs to be packed without being forgotten. If you’re like us, you obsess about systems that will make sure you have everything you need to create the work you want. Packaroo is an app we have been using to streamline this process.

10 Cameras That Changed Filmmaking Forever

The sheer number of new cameras in the last few decades is staggering, but even so, there are still standout performers that either set the pace or changed the game completely. This video will go through the top 10 and why they had such a profound impact on the industry.

7 Awesome Fall Photo Ideas

Autumn is just about upon us, and soon, the leaves will gift us with show-stopping vibrant colors that beg to be captured. If you are getting ready to head outdoors with your camera, check out this fantastic video that will give you seven great ideas for fall photos.

A Beginner's Guide to Why Photographers Use High ISOs

Along with aperture and shutter speed, ISO is one of the three fundamental exposure parameters, and mastering it is crucial to being able to produce successful images. If you are newer to photography, this helpful video tutorial will show you what ISO does and why photographers sometimes use high ISOs.

How Everyone Can Do Night Photography, From Beginner to Pro

Night photography isn't all about astrophotography and in fact, there are a lot of great shots out there waiting to be captured. In this video, see how night images of varying difficulties are made and use them as inspiration for your own shoots.

A Full Photoshop Portrait Retouching Tutorial

Knowing how to light, pose, and shoot a portrait is only half of what it takes to create a successful final image. It takes strong processing skills at the computer to complement your technique behind the camera. This comprehensive video tutorial will show you everything you need to know to retouch a portrait to a professional standard in Photoshop.

Is Medium Format Worth It?

It used to be that medium format was so prohibitively expensive that its usage was limited to just a few professionals and rental houses. But in the last few years, that paradigm has been completely rewritten, and now, medium format is a viable alternative to full frame for a lot of photographers. So, is it worth taking the dive? This great video discusses the topic.

How to Photograph Layers Within a Landscape

One endlessly enjoyable inclusion in any landscape photograph is layers. Not only does it give the difficult-to-convey depth of the real scene, but it's also often pleasing to the eye. In this video, watch how these beautiful layered landscapes of mountains were created.

Rocket Launch Photography Challenges

Two successful SpaceX missions last week, one on each coast, prompted me to review my rocket launch photo procedures, particularly since the Monday (Sept. 13) launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base was the first after a long hiatus. For those of us in southern California, it was a photo op we were eagerly awaiting since it was scheduled for after sunset.

5 Helpful Tips for Creating Dreamy Landscape Photos

An ethereal, dreamy landscape photo can be a nice change of pace from the common ultra-sharp, super-vibrant photos we are used to today, and it can invite the viewer to find their own meaning and message within the image. If you are looking to create such photos in your own work, this great video tutorial will give you five tips to make it happen.

Learning to See and How It Will Improve Your Landscape Photos

Becoming a proficient landscape photographer takes a tremendous amount of technical skill both behind the camera and at your computer, but even flawless technique is not enough to make a compelling image. It takes creative vision as well, but that is something that is a bit more difficult to learn. This great video tutorial discusses the idea of learning to see in landscape photography and building your creative vision.

A Review of the Fujifilm XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR Lens

A wide angle lens with a wide aperture is useful for a huge range of scenarios, from landscape photography to astro work and events coverage. For Fujifilm X Series shooters, one option is the XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR, and this great video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of image quality and performance you can expect from it in practice.

iOS 15 Is Here: Here's Why It's So Important for Photographers

iOS 15, the next major update of the operating system, is available today, and it brings with it a lot of exciting and useful features, particularly for photographers. Let's dive in and see what you can expect when you upgrade.

24mm Versus 200mm Lens Landscape Photography Shootout

Wide-angle lenses are the go-to for most landscape photographers, but longer lenses are often seen as underrated. In this video, two professional landscape photographers take either end of the lens spectrum to see who can produce the best shots in the mountains of Wales.

What Type of Photographer Are You?

There are a lot of reasons why people pick up cameras and become photographers, ranging from making a living to simply wanting to document life around them or explore their creativity. So, what type are you? This fun video features a photographer discussing the two types of people that head outside with their cameras.

All Photographers and Videographers Should Charge This

If a business does not charge a production fee, they are leaving money on the table. It's standard, and your commercial clients are accustomed to paying an additional fee. We call it a production fee, but others industries may call it a convenience charge or kit fee, among other terms. Either way, it's standard and you are entitled to this fee.

The Art of Digital Imaging

Do you consider this an art form separate from photography, or do you consider this an extension of photography?

A Look at One of the Most Insanely Difficult Shots in Movie History

Brian De Palma is well known for movies like "Carrie," "Scarface," and "Mission: Impossible." His 1990 film "The Bonfire of the Vanities" was panned by critics and was also a box office bomb, but within it is one incredibly cool shot that took an unbelievable amount of planning and technique to pull off, and the result was well worth the effort. This awesome video will show you the scene as well as what went into making it.