Fstoppers Original Articles

I am not a big tech fan; I don’t overly get involved in tech reviews, but the death of the DSLR is something that does concern me, and here is why you should be worried to.

If your goal for 2020 is to become a full time professional, make sure that you start doing these things now.

Our histogram shows 256 shades of gray. Besides pure black and pure white Ansel Adams used only nine shades to manipulate the contrast in his famous landscape photos. His zone-system can still be used for our modern digital photography.

Portrait photographers know how overwhelming it can feel to create work that depends on collaboration with a complete stranger. With this in mind, I asked five professional photographers in central Texas for their top portrait photography tips.

This is a short story about a brief moment and the significance of a photograph.

New lenses and cameras are always fun to purchase, but equally important is finding a way to store those photos you’re making with those cameras and lenses. Here’s why you should consider network attached storage before you spend that money on another lens.

For the last few weeks, Fujifilm teamed up with Fstoppers to offer a brand new FUJIFILM X100F Digital Camera to one lucky entrant. The contest has ended and Zeke Moore was randomly selected to win the camera, congratulations! We'll be in touch with you via email.

A long-time friend of Fstoppers Felix Hernandez shoots an out of this world cover for Top Gear Magazine. This project is a perfect example of how brands, publications, and artists can collaborate authentically.

More than ever, people are trying their hand at photography and with it comes a lot of photos meant to emulate the work of others. Do you strive for originality?

The 5th Annual Feature Shoot Emerging Photography Awards is officially open for entries. Submit your creations for a chance to exhibit your work at the world-renowned Aperture Gallery in New York as well as $3,000 cash to pursue your photography projects.

Posting on social media can be tough. Sometimes it feels like there’s nothing new to share at all. Maybe the problem is you’re not using all the opportunities out there. You might be missing some ways to squeeze more juice out of the content orange.

Recently the studio hired a new assistant for the busy holiday season. While the intention was for light assistant work it quickly changed when the applicant mentioned they knew album design, retouching, and much more. Before sitting down with an applicant, have you thought about the possibilities of what more they could do for you?

The targets of many aspiring artists and models have shifted since the rise of social media, and not necessarily for the better.

Canon has officially announced the launch of its new IVY REC wearable “activity camera,” and everything about it is slightly bizarre: the marketing, the design, its purpose, and its intended market. Who is it for, and will you be buying one?

If you're like me and primarily use Lightroom Classic for your photo editing, you probably occasionally edit a photo in Photoshop. If you do, you might be making the same Photoshop file mistakes I made.

Richard Terborg is a conceptual fashion, portrait and fine-art photographer from Holland. Known for his bold and crazy colors, Richard is just as bold and crazy in real life. In a fun way, not a ruin your life way.

Today, cameras are easy to use. The skill of photographers has shifted from learning how to handle a camera to learning how to handle what happens in front of it. Do you have this skill?

Nikon’s newly announced Z50 mirrorless camera may be one of the company’s most important announcements. With sales falling across the industry, product lines will need to consolidate, and the introduction of an entirely new line sets a very significant precedent. Nikon had strong performances in the DSLR era, with cameras like the D3, D300, and D700 as standouts, but were later to the game with significant mirrorless cameras. Is the Z50 the right direction?

There are not a lot of people who are photographing landscapes in black and white. Most of us prefer a nice color presentation of a landscape. Nevertheless, black and white conversion can help a lot when processing a color photo.

It's now officially twelve (shopping) weeks to Christmas and so in the spirit of the 12 Days of Christmas, we start our countdown — not with 12 drummers drumming — with the top 12 ways to pimp your camera.

It's exciting when you are hired for a music video, but you are allowed to film it as a drama short film with elements of musical. In this article I will share the challenges in such a production.

I've seen a lot of changes to cameras since I picked up my first, but one stands far above the rest for me.

The eternal debate: to prime or not to prime. Here are a few thoughts on why less can often be more.

If you have ever wanted to start a YouTube channel, here is my experience of setting up a new channel and giving it a real go for 30 days.

Instagram is a community, and you’re just working inside it. You need to understand that posting a photo with the right hashtags isn’t enough; it’s like putting a flyer on a board with thousands of other flyers. How can you stand out?

No, it’s not a trick question. I recently asked Fstoppers readers about their absolute must-have in a camera, and the clear winner was autofocus. But there is a lot to autofocus, so I want to examine some of its aspects more deeply.

Sony has established the era of the incremental update, offering new bodies at an alarming rate that are putting the old guard to shame. Where flagships used to be replaced every four to five years, Sony has just announced its ultimate camera after the first iteration has been on the market for a mere two-and-a-half. Is this what customers want, and is the a9 II a big disappointment?

For many, wildlife photography is all about natural colors and objective realism. The light, composition, and behavior captured should do all the talking. And for the most part, I agree — for that other tiny little bit, though, I beg to differ. Please allow me to elaborate in more ways than one.

It seems as though almost every time I ask one of my close friends about a particular aspect of their photo, I usually hear the same reply: "I forgot" or "I didn't think of that." My answer is, typically, "make a checklist."

Is any purpose of creating more important than producing something of lasting value?

5 Day Deal is back again and even though Patrick and I made a video attempting to explain it, we are still getting a ton of questions and complaints from confused photographers. People keep asking us if this is a scam. Let me try to answer everyone's questions.

Do you believe that your images are objective representations of reality? You might be mistaken. Here are a few arguments why.

In the age of Instagram, if you can rock a floppy sun hat and big Hollywood sunglasses and have at least 3,000 followers, then you have a voice big enough to represent any number of companies, but being a brand ambassador isn’t all beach-side sangrias and posing with vibrant murals: scam artists have found Instagram, and the perpetrators are plentiful.

It’s no secret that with each new camera release, we’re seeing more megapixels, increased dynamic range and overall more information in our files. So what does that mean for professional photographers and retouchers who are working in the field today?

Gina Manning Photography has been working with the Bruno Magli team for two seasons now, shaping their brand and new campaign and collections visually. I’ve been fortunate enough to harvest an incredibly collaborative and artistic relationship that has led the way for us to make the art I love seeing in the world!

I’m rubbish at taking portraits. I’m definitely better than I was, but it’s very much a work in progress. Other than shooting more, how can you make yourself improve?

I am lucky enough to have hosted or been a part of workshops around the world. One thing I teach in my workshops is that photographers should not look at other photography to be inspired.

Well it had to come… the final installment of the A to Z of Photography appeared last week and with that a huge void in my life! With every end there is a new beginning, but before we reach that, where did the A to Z start, what topics did it traverse in its winding journey, and what were some of the highlights?

The advent of social media plunged the vast majority of us into a new era, face first. The alleged centrality of the medium to photographers meant your work is constantly under review, which isn't without consequences.

When it comes to alternatives to mainstream photo editing software, ACDSee has been one of the best and most popular options for many photographers. I've had the pleasure of using much of their software over the last year and I'm pretty excited about their latest edition.

We look at the world in color, even when we want to shoot black and white photos. Color can be very distracting in that case. Thanks to digital photography it is possible to change the world into black and white before you take the picture.

I’ve written about this before, but I think it bears repeating. Don’t let a lack of finances convince you that you can’t achieve your goals as a photographer.

Lenses are critical, yet many photographers tend to attach mediocre entry-level zoom glass on their camera when there are plenty of affordable quality lenses on the market. Here is a personal selection of some of the best optics that can be found under $300.

In today's Fstoppers video, I set out to create some conceptual fashion images with Puerto Rican model Krystal Xamairy. Using the brand new Tamron 35mm f/1.4 lens, a few strobe lights, and a couple colored LED panels, I will walk you step by step through the entire process.

Strap in people, because this is a tough love lesson for anyone whose goal is to “make it” as a professional in the photography industry.

In my never ending pursuit for the perfect lighting modifier, I tested shooting beauty with a 7” reflector as my key light.

Let me first say, for reasons that will become clear momentarily, that I’m a six-foot-seven-inch tall male who weighs approximately 200 pounds and has about a week’s (…okay, week-and-a-half’s) worth of stubble. And my favorite color is pink. Did you just do a double-take?

I just finished shooting my first video for Levi’s and it was a learning curve of note.

To preface all of this, I shoot film 90% of the time (if not more). I firmly believe that my work is more meaningful because of it. I also believe that we all have our own thoughts/opinion and there is no universally observed benefit to shooting film.

Our lives are collections made up of people and moments. Every day, there is a plethora of wisdom that passes by, but sometimes, you get one piece of advice that can change the course of your entire life or career. In this article, I share the five pieces of advice I've gotten over my eight-year career that helped shape me into the photographer I am today.