Fstoppers Original Articles

A Small Streaming Startup Big Companies Better Watch Out For

I think it is fair to say that streaming is complex, especially if you want to go beyond “Instagram live from a selfie camera.” Adding several angles, multiple cameras, and overlays is complex, and you would need quite a lot of gear for that. Well, say goodbye to that. RecNGo is a simple app that makes streaming affordable and accessible.

Here's Why It's a Great Idea to Invest in Digital Asset Management

When I first started out in photography I didn't have any specific process to manage any of my images and files. This is one of the primary reasons I don't have many of my early images anymore. It's a shame because I was quite proud of some of the images I had produced.

How Printing Solves Modern Issues

The true value of photographs comes from the appreciation of them in the long-term, not just for short-term beauty appreciation through digital devices. And the best way to preserve these memories is through the form of print. In today’s age of digital photography, where thousands of images can be viewed within seconds from our devices, it has clearly diminished the way we value photographs, and the act of viewing images through prints has become a forgotten art. Despite all this, I am here to advocate that printing your work is not just another option, but a commitment to your craft and a way to elevate your photography to a whole new level.

Fstoppers Photographer of the Month (September 2019): Barbara MacFerrin

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 2019, 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.

How Pro Photographers Are Staying Creative During Lockdown

This is undoubtedly a crazy time for photographers. There's no work, and we can't stretch our creative muscles as often as we're used to. How are the pros coping? Many pro photographers are using their photography skills to create something they'd never normally have time to do, and the results are remarkable.

Here Is How You Should Travel as a Photographer

In 2023, I traveled extensively, frequently visiting cities and discovering new countries and cultures. Despite all my travel being within the EU, I feel like I've learned a great deal. I will share all my travel insights in this article.

Bad Touch: Why You Don’t Have Cooler Photography Clients

In today’s overly connected world, it’s relatively easy to gain access to nearly anyone, but meaningful access has become much harder than it used to be. People in general are incredibly guarded against the random DM and the unsolicited “let’s shoot” comments on Instagram to the point that it’s almost laughable to think anything would ever come of it. That’s not to say that nothing ever will, but your odds will be much greater if you follow at least some of the rules I’m laying out below.

What Are the Differences Between the DJI Zenmuse X5S and X7 Cameras and Which One Should You Buy?

Less than a year after the release of the X5S camera, DJI just introduced the new Zenmuse X7 with superlative specifications. The Chinese drone manufacturer is innovating so rapidly that it may be hard to keep track of all the new features associated with its ever-expanding product range. Let’s check what the main differences between the two cameras are and which one you should buy.

How to Convert Negatives to Positives Using Capture One

Last week I showed you how you can use just a DSLR and a few accessories to digitize your negatives. However, that article wouldn’t have been complete without explaining how to convert the scanned analog picture to a positive image. The process is quite easy and only a few steps are required to achieve a great result. Let’s dive in!

How 2011 Fundamentally Changed the Camera World

It was the year that Osama Bin Laden was killed, Barack Obama was President, the Space Shuttle was retired, and "Game of Thrones" was premiered. Meanwhile 2011 turned out to be one of the most pivotal years in camera history, putting us on the path to where we are today. Here's what happened.

Experiment With Different Types of Photography to Stay Creative

At some point we will all get stuck. We will all feel like we’re not developing as creatives. These ruts can drive us down or they can be a wake-up call to do something different. How we handle them determines how we function as creatives afterwards. In this article, we’ll discuss the power of doing something different.

Build Rapport on Your Photography Shoot With the Language of Music

At the onset of a portrait shoot it is important to come packing the usual garden variety of a few safe jokes to lighten the mood, some fail-proof poses to keep things moving, and direction for the model to play off of. It is easy to forget, with all the headspace that pours into reflecting the images from inside of our heads, towards reality, that when the time comes to start working with our subject, we are not just setting a tone visually, but also emotionally. One simple way personally for me to connect and as well bring additional personality out of a model is via the universal power of music, which has long played a predominant role in my life.

The Concept of Your Favorite Photo Has Changed

Everyone has what they would tell you is their favorite photo. The measure of why has changed quite a bit over the years and I think I might like the old way better. I only say this because Social Media is the main source of validation for a number of photographers today. Applying modern day metrics of likes, shares, retweets, and views creates a score of sorts that someone can use to justify why a photo might be their favorite. This score didn't used to exist. The old equivalent might have been a photo placing well in an art show or being used in a print publication.

Clean NFTs Exist, but We Are Not Using Them

This comes almost as an unplanned part two to my article on the environmental costs of NFTs. As was pointed out in the comments, clean NFTs are a thing. This got me wondering, why are we not using them? Why aren't artists jumping to clean NFT platforms?

The Importance of Being Fluid in Landscape Photography

Landscape photography thrives on flexibility and spontaneity. The ever-changing nature of light and weather requires us to adapt quickly, abandon rigid plans, and let the natural elements guide our shots. This fluid approach often leads to the most captivating and memorable images, showcasing the dynamic connection of light, land, and sky. Here’s why being fluid in your landscape photography is essential, along with some practical tips to help you embrace this mindset.

Learn How to Restore Vintage Photographs

Old and damaged photographs are easy to come by. Most have been stored in boxes in the back of a closet left to dust and wither without a second thought. That is until said person goes to tidy up one day and finds an invaluable treasure trove long forgotten.

100 Years of Men in Love: An Accidental Collection

Photos are, at their essence, about acting as a witness to a feeling or emotion. Neal Treadwell and Hugh Nini's accidental collection, 100 Years of Men in Love, is a witness to love and hope. Showing on HereTV, David Millbern's documentary about Nini and Treadwell's collection is well worth the 60 minute investment.

Better SEO: Finding Keywords for Your Photography Website

If you know anything about SEO (search engine optimization), then you know that finding good keywords is, well, key. Here are a few ways to find new keyword ideas and how to implement them on your website.

Official Davos Photographer Shares a Day Shooting the Event

I recently had the chance to speak to Greg Beadle, one of the official photographers for the World Economic Forum Event in Davos. From the start he made it clear that as an official photographer for the World Economic Forum, it is his job to “promote the annual meeting through photographs that best emulate the positive experiences and results here in Davos.” He said the energy is tangible and throughout the week, world leaders, celebrities, and wealthy elite will come together to discuss and try solve the current issues of the world today. This is what a day as a photographer at Davos is like.

Headstone of Pixels: Using Photography to Deal With Death

The concept of permanence is flawed. Nothing can keep its state, unchanged indefinitely. What is young and vibrant will eventually wither and fade. I never fully grasped this simple truth until my father lay dying in the next room. While he would always be my father, I realized my dad wasn’t as permanent as I once thought. I had confused permanence with stability, and stability was exactly what I needed as my world spun out of control. Gut-punched, I reached out for the most stable thing I could find: my camera.

These Five Tips Will Help You Stay Organized While Editing Video

Working as a video editor can be a hectic and tedious experience. Spending some time to think about organizational tools and methods can help you out significantly when working with a lot of files, or in a large group of colleagues. Renaming files, creating proper folder structure, logging metadata, backing up files, and developing a workflow can make your life much, much easier. While some of the advice listed below is geared for Premiere Pro users, any video editor can take advantage of these tips.

Five Ways to Get Re-Hired

In some ways, working with clients is a lot like the dating scene. So how do we get that second date? Wouldn't life be easier if you didn't have to look for new clients all the time? What if you could retain the best clients you've worked with before? Maximize your resources, get better recommendations, and make freelancing far more relaxing. Maybe we're all guilty of annoying a client or two, but if you find you're not being approached by anybody for that second date, then maybe it's more than your bad breath. Here are five great ways to go about it.

red miniature pinscher standing on rock at sunset

Creating stunning portraits of our canine companions requires so much more than technical knowledge of photography. Understanding how to coax a dog into just the right spot while keeping them relaxed and happy is crucial to capturing genuine expressions with perfectly composed surroundings. Adding a few special items to your gear bag for those times when you venture out to photograph someone’s four-legged friend can have a much larger impact on your photos than choosing the perfect lens.

I Would Not Be a Photographer if Not for Peter McKinnon

He has played a significant role in making me into the photographer I am now, so much so that I would've quit without getting started if it was not for his content. This is probably true for a lot of "new generation" creators. Yet, there is a lot of debate surrounding him, as well as other creators. The core of this debate is simply that YouTubers are not "real" photographers and should not be listened to. In this article, we will discuss the importance of educators, presenters, and, of course, real photographers.

What It Takes to Photograph an Extreme Event Like the Marathon Des Sables Peru

In the world of adventure sports photography being in the right location isn't always enough. Often times you have to match the athleticism of the athletes you are photographing to get those really amazing shots. that means hanging off the side of a cliff hundreds of feet above the ground alongside a rock climber. Or swimming a couple feet above a coral reef in twenty-foot plus surf. In this case, it means spending a week in the desert running up and down sand dunes.

Five Must-See Tutorials for Editing Audio in Premiere Pro

If you shoot photos on a professional level, there’s a chance you also shoot video. If you shoot video, there’s a chance you edit. And if you edit, there’s a good chance you have to work with audio at some point. But, it may not be something you know a lot about, especially if you are just getting started with editing video.

How to End Messy Folder Structures With the Power of Search

I have been struggling with my bad filing hierarchy for years. An inefficient, inconsistent, or straight up bad folder structure not only robs you of of your hard-earned time but it can also sabotage entire projects, hiding your files in the deepest, darkest corners of your hard drive, nowhere to be found ever again. I recently came up with a system that enables me to easily and efficiently store files as well as retrieve them. Follow along to hopefully also put an end to your digital storage struggles.

The Best Images from GuruShots "Night Photography" Challenge

If you're a photographer and haven't participated in "The World’s Greatest Photo Game," hosted by GuruShots, you'll want to take a peek at their latest challenge. Participants submitted a wide variety of night photography to their latest challenge. Thousands of people entered and cast millions of votes. See the three winners of the challenge as well as hundreds of top rated images below.

Behind the Scenes on Photographer Ray Demski’s Latest Personal Project, ‘Fireball’

I know that I’m preaching to the choir when I say that personal projects, free from the constraints of commercial clients dictating production details, are an important outlet for creativity and staying sharp on your skills. Photographer Ray Demski just dropped his latest passion project, "Fireball," combining parkour, football (soccer), and beatboxing.

The Story of One of the Earliest Composite Controversies

The use and misuse of composite photography is a story we hear about quite often. Long before the days of Photoshop and digital manipulation, though, composite photography existed. Here's the story of one of the earliest controversies surrounding a composite.

Squeezing Extra Autumn Colors Out of Lightroom

If you've been out shooting recently, there's a good chance that you're now sitting down to edit a pile of photographs that capture the incredible colors that autumn brings. This brief tutorial shows you a quick and dirty trick (jump to three minutes to skip the waffle!) for getting Lightroom to make the most of those gorgeous, orangey tones.

Separate Stuck Filters and Step-Up Rings With This Simple Trick

Step-up and step-down rings are useful for attaching filters to multiple lenses with differently sized filter threads, but when they get stuck, they're almost impossible to separate, which can leave your filter completely unusable. So, use this quick tip to separate them with ease.

Instagram’s Ham-Fisted Approach to Labeling Photos as AI Is Bad for Creatives

In the last week, Instagram has been automatically labeling any photo touched by artificial intelligence tools as "Made with AI." On the surface, this sounds like a win for photographers decrying the use of AI as intellectual property theft. But in practice, the way Meta has decided to call out AI leaves little room for nuance and debate.