12 Signs You're a Better Photographer Than You Think

Self-doubt and imposter syndrome can plague even skilled photographers, making it difficult to recognize genuine progress in your craft. Understanding the key indicators of photographic growth helps you acknowledge your achievements and maintain momentum in your creative journey.

KEKS Announces New Leica Rapid Advance

Several days ago, KEKS—a company you most likely know from their line of hot-shoe mounted light meters—announced their release of the new KEKS Rapid-Winder for classic Leica bodies. Designed to fit the M1, M2, M3, and classic MP, this accessory is a recreation of the original Leicavit MP and is designed around the same internal structure and materials.

Mastering Photoshop’s Clone Stamp, Healing Brush, and Generative Fill

When it comes to cleaning up images in Photoshop, understanding the best tools for the job is essential. You might think AI tools are the obvious choice, but the classic Clone Stamp and Healing Brush tools can sometimes be more effective. These older methods are reliable, and knowing when to use each can save time and give you more control over your editing.

Mastering Landscape Photography Challenges

Landscape photography often comes with challenges that aren’t always apparent until you’re in the field, and knowing how to handle them can make all the difference in your shots.

Can You Mix Full Frame and Crop Lenses? Here’s How It Works

Using a full frame lens on a crop sensor camera—or the other way around—has its quirks, especially when it comes to field of view, resolution, and camera settings. Understanding these factors can help you make better lens choices for your camera setup, giving you more control over your shots.

Common Photography Traps That Waste Your Time

Photographers often get stuck in traps that drain time and energy without adding value to their craft. These mistakes can be discouraging, leading some to abandon photography altogether. However, identifying these pitfalls early on can save you a lot of frustration, helping you grow without unnecessary setbacks.

Hands On With the Peak Design X Carryology Collaboration

Peak Design, known for their straps, bags, and carry accessories, has partnered with Carryology, releasing special editions of their popular products. I was sent a few of these, so consider this a hands-on first look at them.

Eight Steps To Capture Motion Blur Seascapes

If you’re looking for a new, creative way to shoot landscapes, this may be the video for you. Tom Woods' video might inspire you to capture your own motion-blur seascapes or use this technique for another creative landscape scene.

Why Titanic Still Captivates Audiences Over 25 Years Later

James Cameron’s "Titanic" had a production journey nearly as epic as the historical event it portrayed. With a staggering budget of $200 million—equivalent to the original ship’s cost after inflation—the film was a huge risk. Hollywood was skeptical, anticipating Titanic to be a financial disaster. Yet, Cameron’s commitment to recreating the real-life tragedy down to the smallest detail changed everything, turning what could have been a box office iceberg into one of cinema’s most successful ventures.

Canon EOS R1: Is This the Ultimate Camera?

When you’re shooting fast-paced wildlife or demanding sports, the right camera can make all the difference. Canon’s new EOS R1 aims to be that difference, equipped to handle action photography, where timing, speed, and image quality are key.

Color Theory Pro Will Help You Manage Color Like a Pro

Managing colors is one of the most important things photographers need to get right. It’s true for portrait, landscape, and wedding photographers—all of us. And there are a lot of approaches to getting the color right.

Hasselblad Expands XCD Portable Lens Series With XCD 3.4/75P

Hasselblad has unveiled the XCD 3.4/75P, a new addition to its XCD Portable (P) lens series, designed for versatility in portrait, street, and still-life photography. This lens introduces a standard focal length to the XCD P lineup, providing a 59mm equivalent focal length on full frame, while maintaining portability and high optical quality.

The Art of Intention: Transforming Pictures into Photographs

Is there a difference between a photograph and a picture? In my mind, yes! A picture is a snapshot documenting a person, place, thing, or moment without intention. A photograph is created with intention, process, and technique.

Is the TTArtisan 75mm f/1.5 Worth the Hype?

Using unique lenses can add artistic flair to your shots, and the TTArtisan 75mm f/1.5 Swirly Bokeh lens is one of those options, offering a distinctive, swirling bokeh effect. This lens, designed for full frame mirrorless cameras, doesn’t prioritize sharpness but instead provides an out-of-focus background with a swirling, almost dreamlike quality that can add depth and style to certain images.

How to Simplify Your Photos Using Negative Space

Negative space involves large areas of emptiness that direct attention to the focal point of an image, creating a sense of simplicity and depth. This technique can add balance to a composition, enhance its mood, and simplify otherwise cluttered scenes. It’s especially effective in high-contrast environments where shadows and light can be used to sculpt the frame.

5 Tips for Capturing Stunning Forest Scenes

Photographing forests isn’t always straightforward. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the dense trees, tangled branches, and layers of textures that can make it difficult to find a clear shot. The forest can seem chaotic, but with a few simple techniques, you can transform a seemingly complex scene into a captivating photograph.

Why a Single Workflow Doesn’t Fit All Photography

Choosing a photography workflow isn’t about following a set formula. Each step you take—from picking up the camera to final editing—is part of a sequence that can shift depending on your style, subject, and even personal preferences. There’s no “correct” way to approach it, so flexibility is key.

The Joy of Using Vintage Lenses on Modern Cameras

Modern lenses are perfectly sharp and crisp. But perfection is overrated and can be rather boring. I have a solution to add some character back into my photography and videos.

Using Lightroom to Restore Vibrant Colors in Night Photography

When shooting landscapes after sunset, colors often fade, leaving your image looking a little flat and lifeless. But with the right editing techniques, you can bring back some of that warm, vibrant glow, creating a visually compelling result.

Photography When Conditions Aren’t Right

Foggy mornings and moody atmospheres can add a surreal quality to your landscape shots, but capturing the perfect image isn’t always easy. Sometimes, you have to keep returning to the same spot, waiting for the right conditions. And when you’re determined to get that postcard-worthy shot, persistence becomes just as important as your technical skills.

How to Capture Stunning Portraits on Cloudy Days

When it’s cloudy, you might think it’s the worst time to take portraits. The light is often flat, and contrast is missing, but those clouds are actually providing you with a soft, even light that’s ideal for bringing out natural skin tones. This approach can open up new creative possibilities when you learn how to make the most of that natural light.

Why Leaving Social Media Improved This Photographer's Work

Social media can be a double-edged sword, especially when it comes to sharing your creative work. Posting your photos online may help build an audience and gain exposure, but the impact on creativity and mental well-being can be surprisingly negative. Lately, some creatives are rethinking their approach to social media, looking for alternatives that don’t rely on addictive algorithms or compromise ownership of their work.

The Family Archive is Dying: Protect Your Family Photographs Now

Access to photography has never been greater, yet now the risk of the family archive dying out has never been more of an issue. This article explains why the digital age has put the family archive in danger, and what we, as photographers, can do about this.

This Photographer Built His Own Lens and The Results Are Gorgeous

Creating your own DIY lens for photography can be both simple and surprisingly effective. With just a few materials—some drainage pipe, magnifying glasses, and a little ingenuity—you can build a lens that opens up new creative possibilities. The idea here isn’t about high-end equipment but rather about experimenting, learning, and having fun with a setup that’s low-cost and custom-made.

Using Lightroom to Transform Flat Images

Using masking techniques in Adobe Lightroom, you can guide the viewer’s eye and create a dynamic feel that makes a photo stand out. This tutorial dives into how to enhance depth and contrast in your images, transforming a flat-looking shot into one that feels alive and immersive.

Using Full Frame Lenses on a Medium Format Camera

Medium format cameras offer an elevated experience for those who want more detail and depth in their images, yet they’ve traditionally been seen as impractical or overly expensive. Fujifilm's GFX100S II challenges this idea by bringing impressive quality in a compact, user-friendly format, but lenses are still pricey. What if you could adapt more affordable full frame options?

Unboxing 73 Pounds of Mystery Camera Gear

Buying large lots of camera gear is like a treasure hunt for anyone who loves photography. With the right approach, you might discover rare, valuable, or simply interesting pieces that add character to your collection.

Advanced Dodging and Burning With Curves in Photoshop

Dodging and burning can transform an image, but traditional tools aren’t always the best route. Instead, using curves adjustment layers in Photoshop lets you refine highlights and shadows with control and flexibility, bringing out depth in your images. Here's how.

The Scam: How Photographers Became Targets

Scams targeting freelance photographers are becoming more elaborate, sometimes making even the savviest professionals vulnerable. This story, shared firsthand by someone who narrowly avoided being caught in this scheme, exposes just how easily these scams can ensnare even experienced photographers.

How to Overcome the Challenges of Natural Light

Natural light is one of the most important elements in landscape photography. It shapes the landscape, creates mood, and brings depth to a scene. However, natural light is also highly unpredictable and can either enhance or ruin your shot. For landscape photographers, understanding and ultimately mastering light is crucial, but it comes with several challenges. In this article, I want to explore the complexities of working with natural light and how you can overcome these challenges to improve your landscape photography.

Essential Tips for Shooting Wildlife in Wet Weather

Wildlife photography in the rain offers opportunities you won't find in fair weather. The atmospheric mood, unusual animal behaviors, and transformative effect of rain on landscapes can make your images stand out. Beyond the challenges of staying dry, rain brings scenes to life in ways that fair weather simply cannot, adding depth and story to your photos.

The Fujifilm X100VI Is Changing Photography and Now I Understand Why

I never understood why the Fujifilm X100VI is so popular, especially considering how lackluster it appeared on paper. After using it for a few months, I now fully understand exactly why this camera is still sold out everywhere. The answer is not what you'd expect.
Canon’s New Patent Hints at a Game-Changing Lens for Professionals

Canon has set its sights on a lens many photographers have only dreamed about: a high-speed, mid-range zoom with impeccable optical quality. With their recent patent for the RF 70-150mm f/2L IS USM, Canon appears ready to push boundaries in both image quality and innovation.