How Can You Make a Great Photograph?

It's something we are all seeking. There is no doubt that some photographers are fantastic at what they do, but even the best won't create a great shot every time. So, is there a secret formula to creating one?

Helpful Advice for Better Landscape Photos

There are a lot of approaches to landscape photography, and each offers different benefits and drawbacks and places different demands on your time, effort, creative vision, and technique. If you would like to improve your landscape images, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will walk you through a few shots and offer some great tips and advice along the way. 

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Enter your Best "Dark" or "Low-Key" images

Welcome to the April Critique the Community!  For this contest/critique, we are doing another abstract theme that should allow more photographers to enter. For this month we want to see your most "dark" or "low key" photographs.

You Don’t Always Need a Camera Bag

Like most photographers, I own more than one camera bag. There is my main bag, my video gear bag, my small kit bag, my rolling bag for airplane travel, and that one, never-been-used, just sitting in the back of the closet, camera bag of unknown origin.

5 Mistakes Made by Landscape Photographers

Landscape photography takes a combination of technical skill, creative vision, and the ability to work in and with a wide range of conditions. There are some common mistakes all landscape photographers make at one point or another, and this fantastic video tutorial details five of them and what you can do to fix them or avoid them in the first place. 

We Review the Hasselblad X2D 100C Medium Format Mirrorless Camera

The Hasselblad X1D 50C and X1D II 50C helped to redefine the paradigm of medium format, putting a large sensor inside a sleek, small body. Now, the X2D 100C is here, and not only does it double the resolution of its predecessors, it brings with it a bevy of impressive improvements and new features. In this review, we take a look at the camera and what you can expect.

How Mistakes Can Lead to Better Photos

Landscape photography is a genre with an above-average emphasis on technical skill and perfection, and we often try to avoid making any mistakes. Mistakes are not always bad, though, and occasionally, they can even lead to "happy accidents," as Bob Ross would say. This great video shows how mistakes can sometimes be a good thing and why you might want to embrace them just a bit more. 

A Review of the New Venus Optics Laowa 58mm f/2.8 2X Ultra-Macro APO Lens

Venus Optics is well known for making unique, interesting, and versatile lenses that offer capabilities that are not possible with other options. Their newest lens, the Laowa 58mm f/2.8 2X Ultra Macro APO, offers the promise of fantastic image quality in tandem with ultra-high levels of magnification, all at an affordable price. How does it perform? This great video review takes a look at what you can expect.

What Focal Length Should You Use for Portrait Photography?

In order to create great portraits, you need to have a lot of great components: lighting, composition, as well as camera and lens choice. Deciding what focal length to use for portraiture can be difficult, so in this article, I will make a few suggestions on lenses you should use for your next portrait photoshoot.

New Blur Filter in Photoshop Works Incredibly on Portraits

Some of Photoshop's most recent updates have added some incredibly powerful editing tools. This new blur filter not only works amazingly well on landscapes images, it is stunning on portraits as well. See how to use it here.

Do You Actually Need a Tripod for Landscape Photography?

When it comes to landscape photography, few pieces of equipment are considered more vital than the tripod. And while it is certainly a fantastic piece of equipment, it also significantly alters your workflow. So, do you really need a tripod? This great video examines the question and if you can afford to leave your tripod at home the next time you head out.

Where Is the Canon EOS R1?

The Canon EOS R3 has been quite well received, and though it has some top-level professional capabilities that help it compete with cameras like the Sony a1 and Nikon Z9, it is not meant to be Canon's flagship mirrorless camera. That title will belong to the EOS R1, whenever it gets here, but when will that be?

The Better You Get at Photography, the Harder It Gets

It sounds counterintuitive, but there is a lot of truth to it: the better you get at photography, the harder it gets. Why is that? This excellent video discusses this seeming paradox and how you can avoid falling into a rut because of it. 

Testing the iPhone 14 Pro for Nighttime Street Photography

Mobile phone cameras have taking gargantuan strides forward in the last decade, to the point where they are unquestionably able to compete with dedicated cameras in certain areas. So, how is the new flagship iPhone in one area it claims dominance?

Why Is Exposure so Crucial in Landscape Photography?

It is no secret that the proper exposure is fundamental to creating a good landscape image, but it is even more important than you might think. If you would like to improve your landscape photos, check out this fantastic video tutorial that features an experienced photographer discussing some of the many reasons that getting the proper exposure is so crucial to a successful shot. 

Help! What Can You Do When Your Photo Mojo Abandons You

How many times have you been stuck in a photographic rut? If your photo mojo got up, walked out, and slammed the door in your face, then there are things you can do to get it to come back. It has happened to me.

Common Misconceptions About Artificial Lighting

Artificial lighting is its own world, and it can be a bit overwhelming to try to tackle it all when you are new to the pursuit, which leads to some common misconceptions about the different types of flash, what they are used for, and how they work. This excellent video tutorial examines a lot of those misconceptions and offers a lot of helpful information that will make you better prepared to tackle working with artificial light. 

Which of These Versatile Lenses Is Right for You?

A few years ago, if you wanted good image quality from a supertelephoto zoom lens, your only real choice was a first-party option. In the past few years, however, we have seen a real surge in high-quality third-party options that offer a lot of versatility and image quality at prices that often significantly undercut first-party lenses. This great video review takes a look at three of those, the Tamron 50-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VXD, and Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Contemporary.

5 Important Traits of Successful Photographers

Becoming a successful photographer takes a combination of a lot of factors coming together all at the same time to make successful images, some objective and some subjective. And while every photographer will have a unique approach to the craft, there are some common traits that almost every successful creative has. If you would like to improve, check out this fantastic video tutorial that discusses five common traits of successful photographers.