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.

One of the most versatile and powerful secrets of Photoshop is the luminance mask. Similar to a channel mask that allows you to select very precise parts of your image based on color, the luminance mask allows you to select parts of your image based on tonal range. Using Photoshop to select those tonal ranges for you, you can quickly and effortlessly make very specific color and contrast adjustments to color grade like a pro.

It was something I’d been thinking about for a while. Casually admiring others and how they went about it so naturally. Watching from afar, admiring the differences between them and me and wondering if there every was going to be a day when I was comfortable enough to do it myself. The more I watched, the more interested I became. Soon, I began visiting websites, looking at the photos and day dreaming what it would be like when I had the nerve to do it myself.

Sharpening is a mystery to many, some do it well and others don't. There are quite a few methods to sharpen an image including the use of a High Pass Filter, Unsharp Mask, Smart Sharpen and Camera Shake Removal in Adobe Photoshop CC. However, it’s similar to hearing nails on a chalkboard when I see an image that is over sharpened. I'm no saint, I'm certainly guilty of cranking Unsharp Mask, I just never found the right solution. Until now.

Your quickest way to becoming a better photographer is real world experience from a seasoned photographer. As studio manager for a busy studio servicing the commercial advertising world we have a crew of assistants in multiple cities that we rely on heavily. All of which need to understand the following rules, mores, and tips to get you to become the best assistant in the industry.

You would have to be from Mars not to know who Peter Hurley is at this point. He was one of the first photographers to let Fstoppers into his studio, and together we produced the wildly popular The Art Behind The Headshot tutorial where he shares all of his secrets. Today Peter is publicly sharing perhaps his most important tip for making people look good in front of your camera, and it is appropriately named "squinching."

We are bombarded with videos and articles talking about the latest and greatest gear. No wonder we, as photographers, start to think we need new or better gear to improve our photography. But instead of buying gear, start practicing these five things to really improve your landscape photography.

Photography is a marathon, not a sprint, and each person's journey is unique. Although your path may evolve, photographers' stages can be similar.

Making money with photography isn’t as simple as social media makes it seem. The reality is, whether you’re just starting or already running a business, turning creativity into income takes strategy. Finding ways to optimize how you earn—without relying on luck—can help you stay sustainable.

Modifiers are essential tools for shaping light, and knowing how to use them can dramatically affect the look and feel of your images. These tools allow you to control the quality, direction, and intensity of light, which is crucial whether you’re shooting portraits, products, or events.

Making digital photos look like film is something many people are interested in, but achieving authentic results can be tricky. One area that often gets overlooked is the appearance of grain. Getting it right can significantly enhance your images by mimicking the subtle imperfections that define film.

When you think about improving your photography, you might picture buying new gear or chasing perfect light. But some of the biggest improvements come from small adjustments to technique and mindset. Addressing these common challenges can not only improve your photos but also make the process more enjoyable.

Editing isn’t just about fixing mistakes; it’s an opportunity to add depth and character to your photos. With a few simple tools in Lightroom and Photoshop, you can create dramatic effects that bring your vision to life.

Understanding why some landscape photos captivate while others fall flat is a question that goes beyond mere composition. One critical factor that often separates a striking image from an ordinary one is depth. Depth not only gives photos a sense of dimension but also guides the viewer’s eye, making an image more dynamic and engaging.

Lighting can make or break your photos. It’s one of the most important elements to get right, yet it’s also one of the most common areas where mistakes happen. By understanding a few key missteps, you can improve your results quickly and avoid some of the pitfalls that hold many people back.

Shutter speed plays a huge role in how your images turn out, but it’s easy to fall into default habits like 1/125 of a second. Moving beyond those defaults opens up creative possibilities, whether you’re capturing motion blur or freezing fast action.

Natural light portrait photography demands a nuanced understanding of how light interacts with the environment. By learning to read and work with available light, you can transform challenging conditions into opportunities for creating captivating portraits that stand out from the crowd.

You’ve got your new upgraded camera, maybe a new lens, and Santa delivered a cool new magnetic filter kit. Now you’re all set this year to take sharper photos, faster, without reflections. But is this enough to help you become a better photographer in 2025? Spoiler: No. It may actually make you a worse photographer.

We always want more time, but where do we find it? Many of us could start by analyzing and adjusting our editing workflows. By doing so, we will see the time we are looking for. Here are five tips I’ve used to gain more time and allow me to shoot more.

As a Creative Cloud subscriber, you gain access to the beta version of Photoshop, where you can test cutting-edge tools before they’re added to the main release. One of these tools is a powerful update to people masking, offering more flexibility directly in Photoshop.

Photography often involves making decisions about what to focus on, especially in environments with overwhelming details. Breaking down a scene into smaller, compelling parts can reveal perspectives you might not notice otherwise. Instead of aiming for grand compositions, isolating shapes, textures, or light within a setting can lead to more striking and personal images.