A Lack of Curation: Lost on the Internet

With so many images being created and pushed out into the internet it’s starting to look like the Pacific garbage patch. Instagram had so much promise in the early part of its evolution, but hashtags are watered down or filled with ads and mis-labeled images that don’t belong. Where do we go now to look at a tight collection of great photography? Even if I took out the axe and started pruning the people I follow on Instagram the ads and sponsored images would infiltrate my feed and my feed would look no better.

A to Z of Photography: Yevgeny Khaldei and Kodak

How could we pass K without perhaps the last word going to the most iconic of iconic brands? Yes, this installment of the A to Z of Photography outlines the rise and fall of Kodak. Can the phoenix arise from the ashes of it's photographic self-immolation? Yevgeny Khaldei accompanies Kodak and, whilst not a household name, his signature image is one of the the most recognizable. Read on.

The Macro Photography Rule Book: Think Differently

Macro photographers learn over time that this genre of photography can break rules you’d always follow in other areas like landscape or portrait photography. It’s a different world to explore, and taking a different approach is an asset when mixing science with art.

Shooting Outdoors With Bad Light

When shooting portraits outdoors, you will hear many photographers saying you will get the best lighting within a few hours before dusk or after dawn. Unfortunately, there are many times when you find yourself shooting at other times of the day. Depending on the skies, the sun could be producing a much harder light than desired.

Canon RF 85mm f/1.2L Versus EF 85mm f/1.2L II: Which Is Better?

Portrait photographers who have shot with the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II will probably tell you about how wonderful that lens is. Having this particular focal length with such a wide aperture produces very unique and beautiful results. The new RF mount lens looks to take the crown for the best portrait lens, however.

Creating a High-Key Look

High-key lighting has a great look to it. It can be very clean and can be fun or elegant or edgy, depending of course on a few other factors of the shoot, such as makeup, hair, clothing, model/client, etc.

What Has Improved Your Photography the Most?

With more information available to us than we could consume in a thousand lifetimes, we're forced to do what humanity has always had to do: look at what has been successful for others and emulate it.

Seven Things to Consider Before Starting a Photo Studio With Your Romantic Partner

After nearly a decade of experience in the Toronto wedding industry, having met countless wonderful couples who work together and having had a lot of personal intimate conversations with industry pros, my personal advice would be to venture into starting a studio with your romantic partner with caution. Here are the top seven reasons why.

Time-Lapse Photographer Captures Stunning Meteor Explosion While Fast Asleep

One cold night a few weeks ago, photographer Matthew Vandeputte set a time-lapse running and went to bed for the night. In the morning, he discovered that his sequence had captured an incredible meteor crashing into the Earth’s atmosphere, creating a stunning trail and leaving a spectacular puff of smoke. If only we could all shoot images like this while unconscious.

This Ice Cream Truck Is so Fed up With Instagram Influencers That It Charges Them Double

Social media influencers are known for drawing the ire of photographers and other businesses when they request free products and services in exchange for that ever-nebulous thing known as "exposure." Fed up with the ridiculous requests he has received, the owner of a famous L.A. ice cream truck has made it his new policy that influencers pay double.

Photography Tips: How to Use Color Effect Gels

Telling a story doesn’t stop at your subject in photography; everything in an image gives the viewer context clues to build a narrative around. One of my favorite ways to facilitate interest and story in photography is incorporating color effect gels into the scene, but what are the best ways to use them and why?

How to Get Cinematic Results From Your Gimbal

Along with improvements in resolution and dynamic range, one of the biggest changes witnessed in the world of videography in recent years is how easy it has become to add movement to a shot. A gimbal can open a world of possibilities, and this short video gives an excellent introduction.

Avoid the Photoshoot Hangover With These Simple Tips

Have you ever gone to a photoshoot you were so excited about, had the greatest time there, just to go home and realize all the images were shot in JPEG? Or you go through the photos and you realize a lot of the shots the client’s hair was in the way? These are both examples of a Photoshoot Hangover.

The Most Important Photography Book in Your Possession

The arrival of a new camera at my doorstep yesterday and the coming holiday weekend brought to mind an easy but often overlooked lesson from long, long, ago. Here is a short story to highlight what I learned.

Leave All Your Worries Behind: Run Away and Join a Surf Camp!

There comes a time in every budding photographer's life, and for you, that time just might be now, when the promise of an incredible opportunity comes along — an opportunity that seems like just the thing you've been waiting for: a chance to travel to someplace tropical and live that insta-influencer dream life.

Iconic Images from the 2019 Solar Eclipse

To witness a solar eclipse is a once in a lifetime experience and to photograph two within 2 years is an amazing opportunity to leverage your experience to create incredible imagery. Ted Hesser was able to garner a second opportunity with the 2019 eclipse and put his ideas into motion with only weeks to spare before this year's eclipse to gather ideas and compose images that engage our humanity within the cosmos.

Building a Travel Story

All too often, I find myself guilty of concentrating on hero images — the one phenomenal image that will get noticed by the right people and will propel my career. In this video, National Geographic photographer Susan Seubert talks about the process of creating a story.

The Best Astrophotography Subjects You Can Shoot Right Now

Want to know what objects you should be shooting in the night’s sky? Astrophotography can be a complex discipline, since knowing what important astronomical events are occuring can be a challenge in itself. Check out this guide and see what you should shoot.

Adding the Human Element to Landscapes

Let's be honest, landscape photography is just fun no matter where in the world you are shooting. I would even venture to say that it is growing with more and more popularity over time and with increased exposure from social media outlets.

Let's Make an End to All Those Pointless Camera Discussions

I keep on wondering about the discussions of photographic enthusiast about camera technology and brands. Some enthusiasts even react very angrily at brands they used to have, or at other people when they mention some sort of shortcomings of their new camera. I would think a camera is just a tool… isn’t it?

Kando 3.0: What It Is and Why I'm Excited to Go

At a momentary glance, Kando 3.0 might seem like the traditional photography workshop you see announced almost every day. But give it a minute instead of a moment and you’ll see Kando is way more than that. In fact, it’s not really a workshop at all.

Nikon's D1 Changed Photography 20 Years Ago

With all of the noise about new mirrorless cameras and all the benefits they bring to the digital photography table, it’s time to take a moment to recognize a pioneer whose 20th birthday just quietly passed: the Nikon D1.

Hands On With Sony's $13,000 600mm f/4 Telephoto Beast

If you’re wondering whether to treat yourself to Sony’s new 600mm f/4 GM lens, you probably want to check out this hands-on video from Jared Polin. If a $13,000 lens isn’t for you, you might simply want to see how much of a difference the autofocus tracking on the Sony a9 can make when shooting sports.

Cinematographer Dicusses His Work on The Empire Strikes Back

Ever wondered how the filmmakers of probably the best-looking Star Wars movie managed to light Darth Vader's blacker than black costume without seeing the light fixtures in the helmet? The answer to this and a few more nuggets of film history and cinematography tricks are revealed in this short but fascinating interview.

Who Else Wants Sony to Change This One Thing?

Canon managed it. Nikon managed it. And, thinking about it, the new mirrorless cameras from Panasonic would feel weird if they didn’t have it. If I could change one thing about my otherwise awesome Sony a7 III, this would be it.

A to Z of Photography: JPEG and William Jackson

J takes us back to the very foundations of digital photography with none other than the, love-it or loathe-it, JPEG file format. If that seems like old hat, then step back another century to the iconic work of William Henry Jackson who produced some of the first photos of Yellowstone National Park.

How I Shot These Rooftop Fashion Images

I shot these images for fashion ecommerce store Zilingo when we were doing a recent campaign/catalog shoot. What a fun team to shoot with! They really have a vision for what they want to pull off and are very supportive in terms of getting there.

Tips for Printing Your Work

Printing your photos is one of the best things any photographer can do for themselves. There are lots of reasons why you should be printing and it gets brought up here on Fstoppers all the time.

What to Do When You Just Don’t Have Anything Worth Photographing

Have you ever made the effort to go out and look for something beautiful to photograph, only to find that it just wasn’t happening for you? Like many of us, Steve O’Nions has, and instead of just chalking it up to failure, he tells us why it's ok to not get it every now and then.

Selectively Dodge and Burn Your Landscape Images in Photoshop

Landscape photography, as an art form, has benefited from techniques such as dodging and burning long before the advent of the digital camera. There are plenty of tutorials out there, both good and bad, about what to do with your images after you snap the shutter but sometimes the simplest methods are often the most rewarding.

Behind the Scenes of Erik Johansson’s Work: Stellantis

Erik Johansson is an award-winning photographer and digital artist, known with his surreal composite images. He recently published the behind the scenes video of his project Stellantis, where he shows the pre-production stages and how he achieves the final look on his composite image.

Five Photo Hacks to Paint with Light

Besides shooting cars or architecture, light painting can also be useful when you want to achieve creative results without spending lots of money.

The Art of Portraits: Telling a Story with Gavin Hoey

When you move beyond the technique of capturing people with appropriate lighting, while maintaining a flattering expression and pose for the subject, what should you be adding or recreating in your imagery next?

How I Shot These Studio Beauty Images

I’ve always loved the color red and the emotions it invokes. I suppose that's the fun thing about backgrounds, props, and general settings in that a color theme can evoke so many different thoughts and emotions. Needless to say the power of a model is critical but what you can create around the model can go a long way in conveying the feel you’re aiming for.

Who Else Is Struggling to Choose Their Next Wide Angle Zoom Lens?

My ultra-wide zoom spends more time attached to my camera than any other lens, so for me it’s fascinating to see how first Tamron with its 17-28mm f/2.8 and now Canon with its alleged 16-28 f/2 have decided to shake things up. I'm in the market for a new lens and it's coming at quite an interesting time.