With the wide theatrical release of "The Picture Of His Life" just a few days away, I thought it might be interesting to create a list of some of the best documentaries about photography and photographers ever made. What are your favorites?
A couple of months ago a rogue wave destroyed my Nikon D850. Today I got back it back from Nikon and it's been fully repaired.
Many street photographers might claim that the Leica M series is the best street photography camera. While they are not wrong, necessarily, I think the Ricoh GR Digital IV offers more flexibility and value.
You're trekking across Scotland and you come up to a waterfall that's screaming to be photographed. In your mind, you already know you want that beautiful, streaky, long-exposure water. As luck would have it, you're hungry, shaky, and your tripod is enjoying a day off in your Airbnb. What's next?
Do the colors in your photos sometimes look wrong, but you don't know how to correct them? This article and video can help. I show you how to get brilliant colors in your images.
“It’s like a Mercedes-Benz. You drive it off the lot, it loses half its value," says artist Peter Lik, describing his own work. This brutal article from the New York Times examines the extraordinary amounts of money that people continue to spend on Lik's work and how he has created his own speculative — and lucrative — economy.
Every couple months or so, I find myself in a conversation about the state of photography. There is no doubt technology is pushing our field farther and faster than ever before, but is this technology actually killing photography?
Last week, we continued our exploration of Puerto Rico with our second shootout challenge. This time, we mixed it up a little bit with a guest photographer, and the results were pretty interesting.
I recently got my hands on the new Tamron 100-400mm zoom lens and wanted to try a unique portrait idea. Unfortunately, this photo idea involved wind, tides, fast moving kiteboarders, and the ocean. What could go wrong, right?
The last decade has seen a gradual increase in the number of new manual focus lenses manufactured and sold. Who are these lenses for and why would anyone buy them over a lens with autofocus?
A few weeks ago, an online mob doxed a street photographer for taking candid images at a county fair. The incident raises questions about where we draw the line when it comes to invading someone’s privacy in a public space.
The ultimate lifehack tool or an unnecessary distraction? Love them or loath them, the Apple Watch is here to stay. But does it have any real use case for a photographer? Well, here are five of them!
I promised a while back that I would do a comparison between the Profoto B1 and the Godox AD600 head to head. I have finally had the chance to rent and spend some time with the Profoto B1 again, and I am ready to give my thoughts on the two as they pertain to the way I shoot and the situations I spend my time in.
I think we can all agree that the thing we want more of as photographers is additional time in a day. How exactly do we get more hours in a day? It's simple: we cheat. Over the last few years that I have been shooting, I have tried to hone my skills in photography while also learning any way I can to refine my process in shooting, editing, and eventually delivering my shots to either clients or posting them to social media. Here are a few hacks I have learned to use on my iPhone in a pinch.
The mirrorless tsunami is well under way. We have a wealth of full-frame options with new mounts, smaller flange distances, vastly improved EVFs, and smaller bodies. Given the dent that this is already putting in DSLR sales, what’s the next step? Sony already has a well-established range of crop-sensor mirrorless bodies, but will Canon and Nikon follow suit?
I get a lot of commentary on using expensive photo equipment, most notably lighting. Fair enough, a $400 softbox is not for everyone, and most people find it ridiculous to use a modifier this expensive. However, there are good reasons to use such tools. Here is why.
Nikon has just released its 2020 financial results alongside its medium-term management plan. How does the manufacturer see its future in the wake of last year's financial results?
If there's one thing I've learned over time, it's that there are often different ways to accomplish the same task. Likewise, every Lightroom user does things in different ways. That doesn't make it wrong; it's just different.
Zen photography comes naturally with an empty mind. It’s both waiting for a moment where light, shape, and dynamics fall into place, and being devoid of planning in advance. Instead of checking the weather online before a shoot, you just venture out and essentially wing it. It’s all about being in the moment. As a landscape photographer, I want to share the ways of this minimalist sub-genre.
Get acquainted with Urbex photography as we chat with the Nikon-endorsed photographer who has travelled the globe to visit the best abandoned spots in the world.
There is quite a lot of excitement about the new Canon cameras. Of course, the much-anticipated Canon flagship is bound to attract attention, as well as the much-improved Canon R5 Mark II, which builds on the legacy of the famous R5. Yet, I am not buying any of these cameras. Here’s why.
Last week, we featured an interview with the awesomely talented retoucher and photographer Marina Dean-Francis. This week, she's shared a video with Fstoppers showing her retouching on a hair and beauty image. Although the video has been sped up tremendously, it's not hard to see that there aren't many quick tricks in play here. It's no secret that maybe the greatest skill in retouching is patience.
Pay close enough attention, and there are some very useful tips in this video - my personal favorite comes in around the 2:30 mark and is a great way to add highlights on...
Using something in the foreground of your landscape image can add a lot of depth, but placing a foreground in your composition without consideration is not the way. It can be smart to give it a little thought. In this article, I will give you a couple of things to consider that may lead to a better composition.
Over the last several months, the Fstoppers team was able to link up with Clay Cook, an acclaimed editorial and portrait fashion photographer, to produce a comprehensive tutorial teaching his photography techniques. If you want to learn more about the full tutorial and what it offers, check out the store page. One of the key elements of Clay's work is the variety of gear he has used throughout his career. Included in the tutorial, and now available here on Fstoppers, is a peek into the equipment he uses to craft his stunning images.
Given the choice to bring one accessory when shooting landscapes, it absolutely needs to be a circular polarizer and this is why.
Pentax launched a new "brand vision" recently in preparation for its upcoming product release, going as far as to develop an extensive webpage and supporting video to promote its DSLR cameras. Here are 10 reasons why their camera strategy is in disarray.
There has been a disturbance. Have you felt it? Some astute photophiles (not a word I just made up) have noticed a change in quality in their posts when Instagram pushed a photo to Facebook after the most recent update, 7.5. So I decided to run a few comparison tests of my own to see if the quality really was different, and why my photos suddenly started to look so gritty.
Professional-quality photo printers and paper are expensive. It can be difficult to justify the steep price of the machine and upkeep for most photographers who shoot as a hobbyist or even a starting professional. Outsourcing your printing needs to a pro photo lab alleviates the cost, but there are some inherent complications in not being able to print from home. These four helpful steps will minimize the disconnect when sending out your images to the lab.
Lens filters are useful for achieving a variety of photographic effects in camera, such as long exposures of moving subjects. But did you know you can achieve the same great results with Photoshop CC?
I love shooting on location and am passionate about deep blue skies. Usually I would use CPL and ND filters to get the best skies to my taste. A detailed article about how to get dramatic skies is described in my previous article, "The Ultimate Guide to Dramatic Skies in Portrait Photography." After the shot is taken I always play with the luminosity and saturation values of the blue tones. One issue I often face while darkening the skies via luminosity is having a white outline appear around my model. Today I will take you through a short tutorial of how to get rid of that quickly and effectively, without the need to compensate on your luminosity.
Fujifilm’s introduction of the X-Pro3 has continued their trend of quirky design choices, but has also raised the question of whether bucking the trend is actually making for a better experience for photographers.
Until 18 months ago, affordable 35mm primes for the Sony system were like hen’s teeth. Last year, Sony finally plugged the gaping void in its lens lineup, and now, a new contender has appeared: the lightweight, affordable AF 35mm f/1.8 from Samyang/Rokinon — appealing to full frame and APS-C shooters alike.
Finding the perfect camera system is not that easy. Before you make a large and long-lasting investment, you should do proper research and critically analyze your own needs. Step by step, you will get closer to the best possible system for yourself.
While researching and deciding on what camera or lens to buy next, there can be a lot of banter, back and forth, and noise on opinions on what camera or lens is right for you. It is possible that some websites, influencers, or average Joe’s can hold slanted biases that may play a role in your purchasing decision, and we don’t want that. So what if I told you that there was a more objective resource to help aid your purchasing decisions? Well, I have a site to share with you: DxOMark.
Creating sharp photographs can be challenging, a vast array of camera settings and subject matter can make it tricky. But there are three ways to successfully enhance the sharpness of images using Lightroom.
Landscape photography, at its core, is more than just a visual art form; it's a profound emotional experience. It's the art of capturing feelings, not just scenes. I want to take you on a journey through my lens to explore how photography transcends mere pixels and lenses, with my backdrop being the unforgettable Storm Agnes adventure at the Devil's Horns in Dingle.
Photography is an art that allows us to freeze moments in time and capture the beauty of the world around us through the form of photographs. Among the many tools a photographer can utilize to create their art, a telephoto lens stands out as a distinctive and excellent choice for those seeking to easily capture attractive and compelling images. In this article, we will discuss the advantages that telephoto lenses offer and also how they can help you get attractive images easily.
Want to be an awesome pro photographer just like Annie Leibovitz, Dan Winters, or even the next Ansel Adams? Here are a few tips that can enhance your techniques. From what I've learned in the past, the one tip that all photographers share is "practice makes perfect." Remember, don't practice until you get it right; practice until you can't get it wrong. When I feel that creative rut creeping in, I just remind myself of that phrase.
There are lots of ways to improve your photography. Getting your workflow in order, learning to light, but I think I have learned the one thing that has impacted my photography more than almost anything else. (Other than practice, of course).
Boudoir photographers know that collaborations with vendors that fit their brand can be extremely beneficial for all parties involved. It alleviates some cost of the product for the photographer and it gives the vendor professional images for their sites. Getting connected for shoots such as this is not as difficult or impossible as it may seem.
High ISO is usually meant to be used when there's not enough light. However, there are cases when you have to take it up from its minimum value even when the sun is bright.
One of the reasons I love art is that is it the most effective way not only to entertain us, but to help us reflect on life itself. A well-placed verse or a well-timed press of the shutter can connect the world in ways that a thousand politicians simply can’t.
As a young, rebellious teenager in love with music and films, I discovered my love of photography when I was handed an old Olympus film camera and I have since fallen deeply in love with the art of photography. Years went by as I experimented with different ways of shooting and discovering new ideas I wanted to pursue in this medium until I finished school and needed to think seriously about what I wanted to do in life. The choice was easy: either become a musician or a photographer.
In this article, I share the photo editing workflow I use for all my photos, and if you want to achieve high-quality results, this is for you.
It is easy to feel overwhelmed with the many different features of Adobe Lightroom. Lightroom has so many possibilities, that even after years of using it, I still am consistently learning something new. I have found that there are so many new photographers who either feel too overwhelmed to start learning the intensive software, or they still aren’t confident that they have been using it correctly. Because of this, I wanted to create a simple beginner’s guide to using Lightroom. This is the first of what will be a multiple part series of articles on Lightroom basics.
Kickstarter has allowed the photography community to share and create incredible ideas. We all know the success stories. What about the underdogs, though?
A few weeks ago I published an article here on Fstoppers about handheld focus stacking. In this article I share my in-the-field workflow, as well as the automatic stacking option Photoshop offers to put all images together during photo editing. This option has its limitations though and because I lately had to work on some very complex stacks, I had to look for a better solution. And with Helicon Focus I found it.
The Sony a7S series of cameras is strange. They're described as stills cameras; however, most customers seem to use them for their video features. At best, they're an odd compromise that doesn't fit anywhere properly. For this reason, I'd like to discuss why Sony should get rid of this line completely or at the least, revamp the series.
One of the simplest ways to make your images more effective is by paying attention to this one fundamental component of photography and applying it in ways that you may not have thought of.
Last month, I wrote an article called Hacking Instagram to Grow a Huge Following and Build Better Engagement with "Instagram Pods" that was received far better than I ever thought possible. I received hundreds of direct messages within the app of people asking about Instagram pods as well as wanting to join one. I apologize to those I have not yet gotten back with but rest assured, the hack seems to work and has sparked new life into my social media experience on the platform. Not only has it doubled my engagement, likes, and blown comments through the roof in comparison to a few months ago but its become a new found way to connect with new creatives from around the world.
