Fstoppers Original Articles

With the popularity of film photography getting traction, it’s time you get caught up. Let’s talk about your film options.

For the last month, we've teamed up with Wix for a series called "How to Build a Website." In this series, Lee and I talk about some of the advantages and mistakes photographers make when creating their own website. Today, we are releasing the last video in the series, and it might be the most important information in making sure your photography business becomes a success financially.

Regardless of my own personal passions, an objective man would say that all art is created equally. So, why is it that I have chosen photography as one of my main means of expression?

When starting with photography, it is easy to be focused entirely on the technical side of the medium. However, paying close attention to your compositions is sure to bring your images to the next level.

If you're in the middle of planning a photoshoot then it would be wise to hold off on buying any props or equipment for just a few days longer. Come November 1 there will be a tsunami of unique items and great savings to be had from all those Halloween festivities. Here's what to expect and the best places to hunt out a bargain.

Visitors are urged to share their reactions to images showcasing English documentary photographer Martin Parr’s view of Scottish life and Scottish stereotypes in a new exhibition taking place this summer.

Returning to the same landscape photography location several times can vastly improve your photos. Here are three reasons to why returning is a good idea.

How do you photograph extremists without giving them the publicity they desperately crave?

Over the years, I’ve acquired an interesting array of “tools” that I use for setting up and maintaining my underwater camera housing. I wish I had known earlier about some of the items I travel with, as they have made my life quite a bit easier. Most of what I carry with me has been a result of trial and error, and I’d like to pass along that information to any budding underwater photographers out there.

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.

Shooting film might be a dying industry, but don’t let that hold you back from the joy of this lost art. I would also argue that occasionally shooting a film will make you a better photographer! The same things we love about our digital cameras are the things that make us lazy.

Photography requires repetitive tasks that can often become habit forming. When we find a way of doing something that works, we repeat those steps to get the desired result. We get locked into certain styles and certain ways of thinking. This can be valuable because it makes us dependable, but these habits can also have an undesired effect: they can make us predictable, bland, and stifle our creativity. What can a photographer do when their creativity starts to atrophy? The answer is play.

It doesn't matter if you work for an employer or run your own business, having one eye constantly on the jobs market will change your perception of the industry and help your career going forward. Your future self will thank you for this.

Have you ever experienced someone attempting to kill your passion for photography?

If there is one inevitable in life, it's that at some point, it will end. So, what do you do about all of the digital photos you've shot on different cameras and smartphones, stored on your PC at home, as well as spread out across a host of social media platforms?

Three-dimensional models are now widely used in the gaming and movie industries and one of the most common methods for creating them uses computational photography. This, the first of two articles, explains how it works.

At this point, we should all know that almost all jobs and opportunities to find success in photography are built off networking. Now there are tons of ways to network and the path you pick will depend solely on the niche you associate with. Either way, the main goal is to meet people with the same professional interests as yourself to feed off each other creatively and to broaden your reach in the community. We tend to forget about the community aspect as we get caught up in chasing money or companies but what we sometimes need to go to that next level is support system built off our love for photography.

When a photographer is desperate for bookings, an inexperienced business owner will turn to the only option they know of: lowering their prices. Before doing this, you should consider all of the other options you have before deciding to compete with others on price.

You’ve just finished shooting a beautiful wedding video and your edits are being finalized. But wait — you still need to find the music to go behind each scene. Use these five insightful tips to find the perfect music that will enhance your next wedding video.

I started using Syrp for time-lapse and motion control almost a year ago and I find the system very good for what it is; a way for photographers to step into motion control at a relatively low price point. The first piece of Syrp kit I purchased was their Genie Mini and having the ability to pan was a way to add more interest in any time-lapse I wanted to create. After a month I went ahead and purchased the rest of their 3-axis kit including the Syrp 5.2' Magic Carpet Long Track Slider which has been great to use. The only issue is if you want a longer slider, Syrp doesn't make a way for you to connect two of their metal sliders together. With very little ingenuity, you can connect as many metal sliders together as you'd like at a relatively low cost.

I'm taking a second to reflect on the lessons I learned from working with the legendary Art Streiber. Part one in the series is the benefits of preparation.

Instagram is the fodder for many complaints straining from what many say are tactics to make money. My problem with these complaints is that they never speak to the business side. They only talk about why Instagram is at fault, but never why they might have had to make these decisions

We, as photographers, are very often gear geeks. There’s no shame in it. We drool over the latest and greatest the camera industry has to offer and dream of owning the ultimate gear setup that will, of course, undoubtedly help us ascend to new heights of photography. But we truly do not need to.

The pursuit of perfection in any creative craft can often inspire the feeling that one is forever climbing a mighty mountain yet never even rising beyond base camp. Photography is no different, any photographer worth their salt will have trudged through great difficulty to reach mastery in their craft. We all commonly begrudge the struggle, but it is through that struggle that we are able to make all of our most impressive gains.

Dear Thumbtack, you’ve been a major national player in service-sector networking, including the field I love, professional photography. I appreciate the jobs I accessed through you in the past. But the door on that past, I’m sorry to have to say, is closed.

There are a lot of videos online, I mean a lot. The two words I hear out of clients that always make me cringe are "viral video." I want you to take a couple of seconds and expunge those words from your vocabulary... great! As many of you know SEO is the driving factor for long form content (such as this article.) Believe it or not, most of the principles that apply here are almost identical for video SEO.

Do you think you've taken an incredible environmental portrait? Would you like to hear what we think about it? The next episode of Critique the Community will feature a selection of 20 environmental portraits which we will give feedback to. Make sure you do the following to be eligible to be chosen.

You've probably seen some pretty comical behind-the-scenes images of the kinds of positions photographers put themselves in just to get a shot. They climb trees, hang off cliffs, stand in the middle of rivers, lay down in the dirt, all just to frame up that perfect shot. Well there's almost always a reason behind the madness and sometimes those reasons end up having a much bigger impact than most people might expect. Sometimes it's about getting a really intriguing angle on a particular subject, but I find myself laying in the dirt quite a lot just so I can create a composition that carries more depth. Let's compare a couple different shots that can help make some sense of this.

Like many photographers around the world, I watch a lot of YouTube. Whether it's for inspiration, gear reviews, news, or beautiful cinematics, YouTube has changed the photography world. But should you start your own channel? Join me as I discuss some of the good reasons you should.

While many drone owners focus on aerial video and photos, there’s one often overlooked item on the spec sheet that your shiny new Mavic can also do: 360 photography, from the sky.

[Update] The winner has been announced. Congratulations to Eric Au for being selected as the winner of the Fujifilm XT30 with XF18-55mm lens kit! His entry of visiting the Fstoppers YouTube channel snagged him the prize.

Let's chat about stock photography. I've used stock sites for nearly a decade while working as a designer and commercial photographer with great success. Most of the options I used in the past left a lot to be desired, which is why last year, I switched over to Adobe Stock. I made the change for many reasons, but the most important was their integration into Adobe Creative Cloud.

The Canon EOS 60D was much derided on its release in 2010 for "dumbing down" the venerable xxD lineup compared to its predecessor, the semi-pro 50D.

Photography is complex. I’ve mentioned it before and I’ll state it again: it is not easy. There’s so much to learn in order to become proficient in the art. Cameras, composition, light, and subject interaction. These are just some of the things that will decide if you’re able to do well. The key to learning each of these things is time. Time, and a sprinkle of perseverance, will get you so much further than any new gear purchase you can make. Today, I’d like to take a look at how we can learn some elements of our photography and further our craft.

Composition may be one of the most widely discussed artistic aspects in photography. In theory, the idea is simple. Putting it to work, particularly in motion arts, is easier said than done. Composition is one of the most important creative aspects of any filmmaking. Simply put, it is the act of defining the position, arrangement, and view of objects within the frame. The composition is, in effect, representing the point of view of your viewer and it will have a direct impact on how that viewer feels when they see it.

Documentary videos have always been there to grab my attention. These short, yet powerful videos can really pull you in, making you want to know more about what you're watching. I have made a few videos like this myself but none that I have really liked until now. I don’t usually like to share my work or go into depth about it, but here I will go over a few things to do when shooting a documentary like this.

We live in a day and age where the phrase "Everything is relative" is the final word for many conversations and a basis for conclusions. This kind of mentality can lead to disastrous results.

When shooting tethered, it’s easy to get lost in files and make things more complicated than they should. However, with Capture One there is an easy way to stay on top of things and cut your image selection time drastically.

It's easier than ever to get started with video, thanks to the great video capabilities of most cameras (and even phones!), but having the right accessories can make a huge difference. Here are some essential accessories every videographer should consider adding to their kit.

There is a common myth about commercial photography: it is a genre just like landscape, macro, and product. However, this could not be further from the truth. As someone who thought so, I spent too much time creating “commercial” work. What I should’ve done instead is this.

Have you ever seen your own plant grow in a time-lapse? You can, and it’s a great exercise to learn something new about your camera and post-processing.

Having recently written a piece in which I explained how my iPhone 14 Pro replaced my professional camera in some cases, I was wondering, in what ways is my phone actually, technically better than my DSLR? It turns out there are a bunch of features that I wish cameras had.

A lot has changed in the photo world over the past decade or two. One big change has been how the focus has shifted from artist intention to end product — the photograph. A good photo is a good photo because it is a good photo. Or is it?

Around four months ago, amidst a harsh lockdown here in South Africa, I moved from the big city to a small coastal town, Betty's Bay, nestled between the Overberg mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. There was no work coming in, and there was no budget to rent additional gear for any shoots. It was worrying, but on the upside, I had to do something to occupy my mind and pass the time, and luckily, I had my camera to shoot while I wait. What followed was two months of intense filming and editing for my first narrative short film.

While strolling aimlessly along downtown streets this weekend, doing a bit of photography just for fun, I was reminded of one of the reasons I fell in love with photography in the first place. I was also reminded that this simple reason still provides benefits, both professionally and personally.

Photographers can be catty. Real catty. In fact, out of all creative groups I can think of, I can’t put my finger on one that is more competitive and judgmental than photographers. So how should you react when you’re hired to photograph an event and find another professional there with a camera?

As raw processing software for wedding editing or batch editing in general, Capture One has nothing to envy from Lightroom. Quite the opposite, it’s perfectly tailored to help wedding photographers get a fast and efficient workflow.

Photographs can cause an instantaneous emotional response; that's what they're good at. So what's stopping you from using that to get people to pay attention to the things that you care about?

What we do in our free time is often connected to our innate passion. Such one random act of passion led us to launch a social documentary filmmaking brand. A lot of us, especially wedding photographers, have this bandwidth of free time where we are not shooting any weddings. In this off-season, do the things we do sum up to make a difference? This post is about how we chose to make short social documentary films and how transforming the experience was on the whole.