What It's Like Shooting One of the Most Ridiculous Lenses Ever Made

As far as ridiculous lenses go, the Sigma APO 200-500mm f/2.8 EX DG probably takes the cake in both design and price. As such, it is exceedingly rare to see a photographer get their hands on one, but that is just what this video shows, and it is quite interesting to see this beast in action and what it can do.

85mm, 100mm, or 135mm: Which Is Best for Your Portrait Photography?

When it comes to portrait photography, one of the most important choices you will make is the focal length you will use, both because it determines the overall look of the frame and because separate focal lengths can render your subject in drastically different ways. This great video takes a look at three of the most common focal lengths, 85mm, 100mm, and 135mm, to help you decide which is right for you.

Nikon Z 7II for Landscape Photography: 6 Months On

The Nikon Z 7II is a high-resolution full frame camera and the updated brother of the z7. Now 6 months on, how has the camera performed for me shooting landscapes? Faultless in my opinion. Well, except for one thing, but I'll speak about that later.

5 Common Business Portrait Mistakes

Business portraits live in their own world distinct from normal portraits, and they have their own considerations and techniques you should be aware of before you set out on a shoot. This helpful video tutorial discusses five common business portrait mistakes photographers make and how to either fix them or avoid them altogether.

Improve Your Portrait Retouching With This Full Tutorial

Post-production is core to most genres of photography, though it is more important to some than others. Portraiture is one of the most intricate areas of retouching with tricky tasks like skin retouching. Watch as one photographer talks you through his entire portrait editing workflow.

General Use Large Tripod Shoot-Out and Comparison

Tripods are not the most interesting photography tool to research and debate over the positives and negatives of their features, but chances are, you will own and use that tripod for at least two camera upgrades. This makes your tripod something you will end up relying on for quite some time.

A Quick Video on the Eight Special Blend Modes in Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is unfathomably complex with so much nuance, it would be difficult for any person to ever say they have mastered the software. In this brief video, you'll learn how eight of the blending modes are different from the rest and in the same way, and just how powerful they can be.

Why You Shouldn't Photograph Kittens: Another Creative Excercise in Finding Your Style

Having a photographic style is something you discover through creating a lot of work. It’s retrospective! To be honest, I’m still figuring out my own personal style, even though I’ve been shooting for over a decade now. There are some small tricks to nudge the process along though, but photographing kittens is not one of them.

A Portrait Studio on Your Desktop

If you are new to the studio or want to practice your lighting techniques plus save time when in the studio, you should check out this 3D software by Ellixxier.

What Should You Pack for an Overnight Landscape Photography Trip

Landscape photography and camping seem almost meant for each other, especially if you want to capture things like a sunrise or early morning fog. So, if you are headed out for such a trip, what do you need to pack? This excellent video tutorial features a seasoned landscape photographer discussing what he packs on overnight trips.

How to Quickly and Effectively Remove Green Color Casts From Skin Using Photoshop

Green can be a particularly unflattering color to have present in the skin, as it can make people look rather sickly. If you shoot portraits outdoors, it will often appear in the subject's skin. Luckily, it is not particularly hard to correct, and this excellent video tutorial will show you how to fix it quickly and effectively using Photoshop.

10 Top Tips for Black and White Photography

There’s so much more to black and white than the simple removal of color. We must understand both color and tone, plus their relationship with the world of monochrome. Here are 10 tips to help you become a better black and white photographer.

How Does the Sony a1 Compare to the Canon EOS R5?

The Sony a1 and Canon EOS R5 are the two best cameras available from the respective companies at the moment, and both offer the sort of remarkable performance and advanced features that professionals and advanced hobbyists demand. So, which is right for you? This excellent video review makes a thorough comparison between the two cameras.

How to Create Minimalist Long Exposure Seascape Photos

Minimalist long exposures of moving water are a highly popular look for landscape photographers, but they also take careful consideration of your composition to avoid crossing the line between minimalist and simplistic. This great video tutorial follows a landscape photographer as he shoots minimalist seascapes and discusses his process and some helpful tips for getting the best photos.

5 Things to Avoid With Your Headshot Sessions

Headshots really aren't rocket science, but sub-par images being created, which can break the personal brand for which they are intended. This short video points out five relatively simple things that can be fixed with a little preparation before your next headshot session.

My Secret Weapon for Creative Sliding Shots

If you are looking for a compact and travel-friendly motorized camera slider to add some creative and stable shots to your videos, then you need to check out the Zeapon Micro 2 Plus motorized camera slider.

How To Get Pin Sharp Landscape Images From Front To Back

To get landscape images with fantastic depth that lead the viewer's eye, you are likely to have to wrestle with the problem of the foreground or the background not being tack sharp. In this video, you can see behind-the-scenes how one photographer achieves front-to-back focus on his landscape images.

Learn How to Light and Shoot This Dramatic Product Shot

Even if it is not your specialty, product photography is a great genre to practice because it will seriously challenge your lighting and editing skills, both of which will likely carry over to other genres in which you work. This fantastic video tutorial will show you how to light, shoot, and edit a dramatic multiple-product shot using just three speedlights.

SmugMug Source Preview: Say Goodbye to NAS Servers and Hello to the Best Cloud Storage Yet

SmugMug, a household name when it comes to online image hosting, has developed a new service called Source. Already known for their incredible functions in online display and sales of images, SmugMug is taking the next leap towards providing photographers with new, never-seen-before cloud storage and management service for next to nothing.

How To Get a Personal Project off the Ground and See It Through

As busy at professional photographers are with a myriad of different things, it might seem ridiculous to suggest adding a personal project on top of the pile. However, many professionals will tell you that a personal project can be the most important thing you do with your camera. This excellent video tutorial discusses how to get one off the ground and to see it through to the end.

Comparing the Sony a1 to the a7R IV

The Sony a1 and a7R IV are two of the most advanced mirrorless cameras out there, and both offer very high-resolution sensors in tandem with a range of other advanced features. So, which one is right for you? This excellent video review compares the two of them with a particular focus on wildlife and landscape work.

Canon Benefits From the Death of the DSLR

Notwithstanding problems with ramping back up production to pre-COVID levels, manufacturers have been generally optimistic about the emerging camera market as consumers start spending money that has been hoarded over periods of lockdown. Canon looks set to be the big beneficiary, but what about the other manufacturers?

Fujifilm Instax Mini 40 Versus Instax SQ6 Which Is Better?

Fujifilm Instax cameras are some of the most popular instant cameras on the market. In some sense, Fujifilm Instax cameras have revived instant photography. With all the different-sized film and types of cameras available, it can be difficult choosing the right one for you. Here is a comparison that might be of help.

How To Fake Rain in Filmmaking

Rain is one of the most desirable and effective weather conditions for portraying mood and a more somber aesthetic, but waiting for it to occur naturally is rarely viable. In this video, watch as a small production team creates a melancholic scene by faking rainfall and controlling the light.

Soft Light Versus Hard Light for Portraiture

Lighting dictates an enormous amount about your final image, from mood and feel, to exposure and color. However, whether the light is hard or soft can also make a significant difference, and knowing when to use each is crucial. In this video, learn different lighting setups for each and the benefits of them.

How To Get a Natural Look With Flash

There are lots of people who like and prefer a natural light look over flash, but sometimes the conditions outside may not cooperate with you to produce great results. Sometimes you have to grab a flash, here's a few ways you can get a more natural look when you do.

Confusion at the Border: Photography Versus Astronomy

One of the biggest confusions that you might notice as you venture into astrophotography is that photographers and astronomers measure their equipment differently. Photographers tend to refer to their lenses in terms of their focal length, while astronomers refer to their telescopes by the diameter of their opening. Thus, a 75mm f/6 telescope has a focal length of 450mm. Meanwhile, a 75mm camera lens at f/6 has an aperture of 12.5mm. If a photographer is told that someone is shooting a 155mm lens hand-held, it would not raise an eyebrow, but an astronomer told the same thing would be incredulous! I can only barely lift my 155mm telescope onto its mount!

How To Plan a YouTube Video From Start To Finish

If you want to create a YouTube video for your photography, and you don't just want a talking-head on the screen for five to ten minutes, then you need to plan it out before you even turn on a camera. These YouTube creators with over 200K subscribers detail how they go about planning each of their videos.

Should You Disclose the Location of Your Photos?

At the alarming rate of destruction and wanton littering and waste that is happening globally, is it time for us as photographers to stop publicly announcing the location of our shoots?

How to Efficiently and Effectively Shoot Wedding Family Formals

Wedding photography requires you to be at the top of your game, as there are a lot of must-have shots and no second chances. One of the most important sets of images is the family formals, and this helpful video tutorial will show you how to shoot them quickly, effectively, and with as little stress as possible.

5 Helpful Wedding Reception Lighting Tips

Unfortunately, wedding reception venues are not really designed with photographers in mind and are often quite dark, but your clients will still expect high-quality photos of their special day. So, how can you ensure that you are getting top-notch images? This helpful video tutorial features a seasoned wedding photographer sharing five tips to improve your wedding reception lighting.

Are Cameras Becoming Too Expensive?

Camera gear has become remarkably advanced, but on the other hand, it has also become rather expensive. At what point are camera bodies and lenses simply too expensive? This interesting video discussion addresses the topic and if camera gear is simply too pricey nowadays.

How to Set Yourself Up for Success as a Photographer

We talk a lot about the many things it takes to be a successful photographer, including strong creativity, good technique, and excellent business skills. However, before anything else, it requires the proper mindset for success. If you struggle with that, this fantastic video essay will help you get back on the right track.

How to Reduce the Size of Stars in Photoshop

It might seem like a strange thing to reduce the size of stars in a night sky photo, but if you want to better show off deep-sky objects, it can help bring them to the fore. With so many stars in the sky, it can be a bit of a tedious task, however. This great video tutorial will show you three different methods for reducing the size of stars both easily and efficiently.

How Long Should You Spend Editing a Photo in Lightroom?

The ideal situation is to take a photo that requires no editing whatsoever. But those shots are few and far between. In most cases, it's important to edit photos in order to develop them properly, but how long is too long when it comes to image editing? I'll be taking a look using Lightroom.

Cheap Film Stocks That Are Surprisingly Good

Film photographers revere only one thing as much as the camera they're shooting with, and that's film stocks. Every film photographer has some favorites, but here are one photographer's picks that won't cost you the earth.

How To Make Your Videos Pop in the Edit

Videography has become more demanding than ever before in terms of expected quality. While much of this difficulty is found behind the camera, on location, your edit makes up a large part of it too. In this video, find out how one videographer makes his videos pop in the post-production phase.

Canon Can't Meet the Demand for RF Lenses

Canon recently released a list of RF lenses that it cannot meet the demand for. Is this simply poor planning or a clear sign that its new lenses are exceeding expectations?

Motivation Slump During the Summer Months? Try This

Landscape photography during the summer months can lead to a motivational slump due to the weather conditions. Bright sunshine, clear blue skies, long daylight hours, and busy locations can often lead to a drop in productivity and creativity for the landscape photographer.