Events like concerts and professional sports are some of the most exciting and desirable things to photograph, but they almost always require a specialized pass for access. If you are wondering how to get one, this excellent video essay discusses when you will need one and how to go about obtaining it.
While things like choosing camera settings are fairly objective, composition is a bit more nebulous and is often something that gives photographers a bit of trouble. If you have been struggling with your portrait compositions, this excellent video will give you six helpful tips that will improve your photos.
Modern cameras are highly advanced machines, often with dozens of features and customization options to help you get the shot. With so many features, it is easy to overlook some of what you can do. Here are five camera features you might not know about that can help you take better photos.
Fujifilm's GFX series brought medium format to the masses, with prices that competed with the upper end of full frame cameras. The GFX 100 took things further, pairing a 102-megapixel medium format sensor with modern features for under $10,000. Now, there is the GFX 100S, which keeps almost all of the GFX 100's features but costs about half as much, and this great video review takes a look at how it performs in the real world.
Lenses are getting faster and cheaper, and Laowa's newest prime is really pushing that to the limit! Check out this hands-on review with example images.
Over the history of mankind, the best way found to archive data was to carve it into stone, then bury it in the sand. Photographically, the most stable form of archiving is probably a black-and-white silver-based image on a glass plate. For digital data storage, there is no perfect permanent storage option. Most digital storage media can’t be confidently recommended to be dependable beyond 5-10 years.
Sunrise photography is no easy task and takes some real dedication to pull off. Here's why one landscape photographer loves getting up at 3am to shoot epic sunrises.
When Canon confirmed the EOS R3 recently, it highlighted specs that went toe to toe with Sony's flagship a1: 30 fps continuous burst rate, eye-controlled autofocus, a vertically integrated grip, ultra-weather-resistant body, and a sensor with much faster readout times. As such, it might seem like the EOS R3 is meant to be Canon's flagship, but that's not the case, as something even better is coming.
Canon has been releasing some mightily impressive lenses ever since they first dipped their toes into the professional mirrorless market, and it looks like they are showing no signs of stopping. The company recently filed patents for three new lenses, with one of them being yet another that pushes the boundaries of design.
Every few years, some brilliant young mind at an ad agency decides that the best way to promote the imaging capabilities of the latest and greatest upcoming smartphone is to create a series of campaign images on the phone. At this point, it’s a convention but proves the point: “This camera is so great that anyone can take great images with it. You know you want to be that person!”
Scranton, PA: A local photographer drained his son's college savings to purchase a new camera.
One of the neatest capabilities of modern editing software is the ability to automatically replace skies in a convincing manner with just a few clicks, something that used to be a rather tedious and involved process. Nonetheless, there is still a lot of creative control over the process and things you can do to improve the final result. If you are using Luminar AI, this excellent video tutorial will show you everything you need to know.
There is a lot of new tech showing up in monitors the last few years higher. With higher resolutions, HDR support, multiple color spaces, and ultra-wide panels, it can be difficult to find the monitor that meets your specific needs. If you're looking for productivity and a clean look, the MSI Prestige PS341W 34" WUHD IPS 5K2K might be worth checking out.
Landscape photography is a genre that rewards patience and perseverance. If you are just getting started or have been struggling with your work a bit lately, this excellent video essay discusses three important lessons a seasoned professional wishes he had learned earlier in his career.
Occasionally, I'll come across a camera that really excites me as a photographer. This offering by Fujifilm may be the weirdest camera I've ever seen, and I love it!
Multiple exposures are a relatively straightforward and fun way to make interesting and unique photographs. While you can easily blend images during the editing process, creating successful multiple exposures in-camera can be a good challenge and a way to flex those creative skills.
The Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV offers fans of the company's micro four thirds cameras the chance to jump into the system at a very affordable price. What kind of features and performance can you expect out of the body? This excellent video review takes a look.
We have all made mistakes and assumptions about photography that we have eventually come to realize were wrong, and the sooner we can recognize those and correct them, the better. This excellent video essay features a professional photographer discussing 10 things he got wrong about photography and what he did to fix them.
Early on in our photographic career, it seemed as though every photo we took was a new masterpiece. It was clear that I was meant to be a photographer by the awe-inspiring photos I was taking of the streets of New York. Fast-forward a few years, and you couldn't pay me to admit those photos were mine, much less show them.
We've all heard before the advice that in order to succeed we should wow our customers by over-delivering through the services we provide, but is it actually worth going above and beyond?
The beauty of landscape photography is there are so many ways to shoot the same scene and to express your creativity. If you have been struggling with your landscape photography a bit, check out this fantastic video that discusses five techniques that can improve your work.
Standing at the edge of Tunnel View in Yosemite National Park I didn’t feel an immediate connection with the iconic tableau. It wasn’t that the scene, El Capitan, Bridalveil Falls, and Half Dome, wasn’t spectacular, as it was. It is among the most captivating scenes in the world. In spite of the beauty, my camera remained in its bag. I couldn’t conceive of a shot that felt personally connected to the scene. Instead, I only saw vignettes of Ansel Adams' deep love for the place.
Professional landscape photographer Michael Shainblum shares this incredible 8K UHD time-lapse featuring amazing light at many of the best locations in New Zealand for landscape photography, including Milford Sound. Be sure to check out the full-size image gallery as well.
Medium format is known for producing some of the best image quality. Companies like Hasselblad offer some of the best cameras currently on the market. Its latest lenses for the Hasselblad X1D II are brilliant, so we decided to see how well a full frame camera system such as the Canon EOS R5 would fare against it.
100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 lenses are highly popular among photographers, as they offer the reach of supertelephoto focal lengths and the versatility of a zoom, all in a package that is significantly more affordable than professional supertelephoto prime lenses. This excellent video review takes a look at Sony's option, the FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens.
A lot of modern photography is very intricate, multilayered, and complex, with every space in the frame filled by an element that balances other aspects. On the other hand, however, a photo that makes good use of negative space can be equally compelling. This excellent video essay discusses how to use negative space effectively.
It was big news when Adobe introduced a super-resolution function in Adobe Camera Raw. Although this kind of enlargement is not new, many photographers were excited. I know four ways to get super-resolution. Which method do you prefer?
Do you charge for your photography? For the photographers who want to use their passion as a revenue opportunity, you will have to figure out what works best for you.
Anyone familiar with Karl Shakur's work is aware of his creativity, extreme attention to detail, and recognizable style. This video he produced during the COVID shutdown takes a quick dive into how he achieves his consistent color grading and clean aesthetic using Lightroom and Photoshop (although I was able to accomplish all of these things using Capture One Pro).
One of the greatest things to happen in recent years for photography is the huge increase in incredibly well-designed budget lighting systems. Although most of them come from the same factories as the premium brands, offer similar specs on paper, and often have alarmingly similar looks, what is the real difference?
Fuji's Instax line of products — the legacy of its film heyday — is successful. They've sold more than 50 million cameras, with 10 million alone in the 2019 business year. However, more than that, it's the financial powerhouse for its Imaging division, turning over twice as much money as its digital counterpart. It's strange to think that film is where the money is, but for Fuji, that is the case. So, why is it making digital cameras?
The newly announced Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art DG DN is the updated version of the previous and popular DG HSM version. With a greater number of elements, more aperture blades, and weather-sealing, all contained in a lighter design, the new lens seems like it could be a brilliant option. However, how does it compare with some of the other options on the market?
Whalebone Magazine (the self-proclaimed ninth-best magazine in the world) just wrapped up their Second Annual Whalebone Photo Contest, leading up to the release of their aptly named Photo Issue. Categories included Water, Adventure, Human, Motion, Joy, and Weather — whatever those things mean to you.
Composition in photography is deep if not fairly abstract subject matter, and beyond the Rule of Thirds and Golden Spiral, things can get very subjective or in need of contextualization. This video offers quite a different way of approaching composition, using a technique developed by graphic designers.
Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom are tremendously deep editing suites that have been developed over so many years, it's hard to keep track of all the features. Here are some of the lesser-known tools courtesy of Adobe themselves.
This isn't one of those first impressions or my thoughts about the Sony a1 from behind a desk. In fact, over my course with the camera, I have shot more than 10 thousand frames. So here is the good, the bad, and the ugly.
There is a common misconception about strobe lighting that might be holding back your images, and it's an easy one to make. Here is a concise and clear explanation of the problem.
If you've ever left a shoot a little disappointed with how the weather panned out — and I imagine this is a feeling we're all familiar with — perhaps changing the sky in post-production might salvage your images.
Wedding photography is a rather polarizing genre, with many people warning against getting into it due to its pressures and expectations. But for those who have an interest in it but might be put off by its demands, there is another option: being a second shooter. This excellent video discusses five reasons why being a second shooter might be the best choice for you.
Luminar AI offers a very different workflow when compared to Lightroom and Capture One, and one of the biggest differences is probably the speed at which changes can be made, thanks to some intelligent automation. This short video gives you insights into simple techniques that deliver great results.
Mirrorless cameras have become incredibly advanced in the last few years, but not all of us need top-shelf features in our primary or secondary bodies. For Canon shooters, the EOS RP offers full frame mirrorless at a very affordable price, and this great video review discusses why it is still a relevant body a few years after its release.
Last week, on April 20th, 2021, Apple announced a range of new products. The Apple April event this year was one of the most eagerly anticipated in recent memory. Usually, the tech community has a good idea of what to expect from Apple at their events, but this time was different.
Have you been told to stop messing around shooting models and get a job? Do your loved ones wish you'd do something more stable instead of wondering when the next job will drop into your email? Well, I believe they're on to something.
The Fstoppers community is brimming with creative vision and talent. Every day, we comb through your work, looking for images to feature as the Photo of the Day or simply to admire your creativity and technical prowess. In 2021, we're featuring a new photographer every month, whose portfolio represents both stellar photographic achievement and a high level of involvement within the Fstoppers community.
Sony's new FE 14mm f/1.8 GM lens is here, and it stands as one of the widest-aperture ultra-wide angle lenses ever made, giving photographers and videographers unique creative capabilities. If you are interested in what this new lens can do, check out this excellent video review that examines the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
The floodgates for artificial intelligence’s interference (or improvements, depending on your point of view) in digital photography have opened up since Apple and Google made it mainstream, with advancements such as Portrait Mode and Night Sight. Adobe took it another direction when it added an A.I.-powered “enhance” feature that enabled the enlarging of photos beyond what’s naturally possible. But is this making photography less real than it should be?
Film photography has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years, and it is a fun way to explore your creativity and experience a different way of making images. If you are new to film photography, this excellent video tutorial will provide you with a variety of helpful tips to get you up and running in no time.
There is a lot of debate back and forth about just how important sensor size is in photography. And with professional-level camera and lens lines available in Micro Four Thirds, APS-C, full frame, and medium format, you might wonder which is right for your work. This great video compares APS-C to medium format for landscape photography, and you might be surprised by just how well the smaller sensor holds up.
If you're looking at buying a new piece of equipment, you will likely just look at the spec sheet and compare it to something similar. But even the numbers don't tell the full story.
Wet plate photography is an old technique that still has a number of fans today. But is the process dangerous to the photographer?
