Recent Commercial Articles

[BTS Video] The 2012 D1 Combine Class

In this video, Photographer Tyler Oxendine takes us behind the scenes on his shoot for the 2012 D1 Combine Class. In the first lighting setup, he's using two Alienbee B800's with a PLM Umbrella and a yellow gel attached. In the second setup, Tyler dropped down to using just one of the Alienbee B800's with a PLM Umbrella. In his third and final setup, he used a simple Canon 580ex speedlight inside of a Photoflex LiteDome.
DJI Phantom 2 Now Features Autonomous Flight

DJI has been a major player in the quadcopter arena for quite some time. While there are MANY other brands out there, DJI has set out to make flying easy, especially for those with no experience. Now it will be even easier to start flying thanks to the addition of Autonomous flight. They call it Ground Station.

Interview And Behind The Scenes With Fashion Photographer Luke Schneider

I have been following Luke Schneider's work for quite some time and it just keeps getting better and better. He has a nack for fashion photography and it clearly shows. I decided to find out a bit about him and what his goals are for the future and current project. He is still in college so he has quite a bit of time ahead of him to achieve his goals. From the looks of it, he is well on his way there.

Yokohama's BTS of Sports Cars Playing Duck Duck Goose and X's and O's

In one of their most recent advertising campaigns, Yokohama blends a fun mix of high speed sports car chases and childhood games to produce two different commercials. The filming process involved multiple rigs and setups to get a variety of shots, including the director hanging through the windshield of a truck filming the driver. Check out the final commercials below.

Truth In Advertising? "This Is A Generic Brand Video" Is Equally Parts Scary And Funny

Creative writer Kendra Eash wrote a painfully accurate article for Timothy McSweeney's Internet Tendencies that put into perspective what most brand and corporation videos look and sound like. Taking it to the next level, stock clip site Dissolve realized it was indeed generic, and pulled together their own stock clips cut to Kendra's writing, resulting in a hilarious edit.

Capturing The Catwalk: The Ultimate Guide To Photographing Runway

Zoom, focus, spray and pray. That seems to be the M.O. of many photographers who shoot runway. I admit, I was one of those photographers. The one who scours through thousands of images at the end of the night, wishing they had shot more strategically. And, after two hours of culling, flagging three images per look, they’d be lucky if only one was tack sharp. After many shows, I’d criticize my every move and would long for a time machine to do it all over again.

How to Breathe Life Into a Complex Dance Photoshoot

Have you ever wondered how dance companies and productions get those amazing photographs of their artists in perfectly posed dance stances? Well, Benjamin Von Wong has recently thrown some light over the intricate process of lighting and shooting a complex dance campaign.

Give Credit Where Credit Is Due

In the often collaborative world of fashion and commercial photography, there are many who contribute to the final product. From the styling of the model and the brands involved, to your crew and retoucher. No fashion image is a solo act, yet there are many who will never credit those that were a part of the production. This phenomenon is not exclusive to photographers, but to models and other creative professionals. Before you post up your next photograph without credits, give the following reasons some consideration.

An Inside Look At Car Photography Post Production

Have you ever seen a car ad in a magazine and wondered "how did they do that?" The car itself seems to be glowing and the location is always perfect. I've always known that tons of photoshop is involved by I didn't know if the car was actually shot in that location or if it was shot in the studio and dropped into the scene in post. In the case below, the car was shot on location and lit with a very simple rig (umbrella on a stick). The magic happens in Photoshop afterwards.
Annie Leibovitz Shoots Kirsten Dunst

The video below is a short excerpt from the DVD "Annie Leibovitz: Life Through A Lens". Annie is commissioned to shoot for the movie "Marie Antoinette". I found it really interesting how incredibly quick her shoots are. Before the subject ever shows up the concept and lighting has already been figured out. After a few clicks, the shoot is over.
[BTS Video] Backstage At A Victoria's Secret Shoot With Photographer Russell James

Russell Jamesis perhaps my favorite photographer of all time. His images of sexy women never look cliche, and basically everything about his photographs are brilliant. But few people probably know what steps Russell took in becoming one of the world's most successful photographers. Check out this behind the scenes video as Russell photographs the 2011 Victoria's Secret Christmas campaign and dives into his history of becoming a photographer. I love how much attention goes into making the models comfortable and creating a connection with them. If it wasn't for Peter Hurley teaching me otherwise, I would have completely gawked at Russell's lighting and production. In reality, what makes every one of Russell's images stand out is his subject's connection with the reader. Hope you guys enjoy this as much as I did.
Proof That Hand Models Are Insane

Does anyone remember the Domino's Pizza "cheese puller" video that we posted a few months back? Well I remember commenting about that lady because she seemed a little crazy. Well she did seem crazy until I saw this interview with Ellen Sirot. We all take our job seriously... but com'on... Check the full post for another video of her acting insane and a Funny Or Die spoof. <
A Most Unusual Portfolio Meeting: Instagram Edition

You don’t need me to tell you the importance of social media. Many of you under a certain age likely can’t picture your life without it. Judging by the number of selfie sticks and Facebook screens annoyingly lighting up dark movie theaters, social media had apparently become as important as breathing. Even those who came of age before the dawn of the smartphone are not immune to its charms. And in an increasingly connected world, our devices are not only a social diversion, but can also become a business necessity. This week, I had an experience that drove home just how necessary it can be.

New to Commercial Photography? You Should Try Up-Selling.

Up-selling is part and parcel of the wedding and portrait photography business. Many photographers depend on these selling techniques to generate a decent income. But similar opportunities can be found in the commercial genre — you just need to know how to target them.

One Part BTS Video, Three Parts Victoria's Secret

The holiday season is almost behind us and if you've spent any time watching college football tv then you've probably seen the new holiday Victoria's Secret commercials. The creative team at VS always makes some of the most high intensity commercials year in and year out. This year they have at least three different themes and one of the directors is even Michael Bay (creator of the greatest movie of all time Transformers 2). Of course VS can't give away all their secrets so don't expect to be shooting Adriana Lima on a white horse anytime soon! Hopefully you can at least pass these videos off as educational should your gf or wife question this content :) Two more videos in the full post. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_4l_LpvL1M
Testing Centers and UAV Rules for U.S. Drone Pilots

If you are a member of the United States and you own a drone, you know that some rules were made. Thankfully these rules didn’t kill us, they didn’t stop us from flying for commercial use, but they did give us a reasonable way to deal with drones in all kinds of different situations.

Smart Campaign of an Animal Shelter Speaks for Itself

Visual imagery, when used properly, can become one of the most powerful tools of making an impact around any disturbing topic. The recent campaign for an animal shelter World for All in India is a bright example of it. Photos of puppies and kittens might work, but I am inspired by how the creative team took this campaign beyond what we see on a regular basis. Optical illusion, more precisely figure–ground reversal, is used intentionally to create new visual images with the play of foreground and background within an existing image.

A Photoshoot For The Star Wars Fans

When I received an email from Marie-Louise Cadosch saying she had a behind the scenes video featuring "Lord Vader" I may have rolled my eyes. Chances were good though that her photoshoot would be badass because her previous videos on Fstoppers are some of my favorites. I have come to expect the worst when photographers use famous super heroes or villains in their shoots, but what Marie-Louise did with this theme is pretty stunning. I can't remember the full story of the Twi'leks but the story told here in these images is pretty interesting. It looks like everything was shot with large softboxes in a cross lit position with a final key softbox up above. I'll try to get someone from Marc & Louis Photography to leave some additional information in the comments because these images are pretty cool.
Behind the Scenes on the Set of Metallica's 'Hardwired' Music Video

Here’s a really cool behind-the-scenes look at the set of Metallica’s "Hardwired" music video. This is the first single from their new album “Hardwired To Self Destruct” slated for a November 18 release. Let’s take a look at this video from a cinematography point of view. I think this video is a great example of how you can create an effective music video out of a seemingly simple set. This music video features no B-roll, just great footage of the band hammering it out.
For Your Next Photoshoot, Try Building An Interesting Set

Taking your creativity to the next level can make all the difference between typical photographs and artistic photographs. Orb Outerwear just released their new Fall 2011 fashion designs and they included a fun behind the scenes video to go along with it. So many photographers already have a pretty solid understanding of lighting to produce great photos. What they lack is artistic vision to do something different and unique. Everyone who reads this blog can easily create a small team of set designers, hair stylists, makeup artists, and clothing stylists to produce studio quality catalog profiles. Try putting something like this together for your entry into the Behind The Scenes Contest we are running. Unfortunately I could not find out who the photographer was so if you know the talent responsible for these please reply in the comments. Click the full post to see a stop motion video of some of the final images (the snow shoot doesn't appear to have been published yet).
A Guide to Working With Modeling Agencies: Part 2

Alright, So you've made it past the hard part, making contact and getting the ok from the agency to work with their talent (As discussed in Part 1). Now what? Well now you book your first model!

Review of Two New Post Processing Tutorials from Retouching Academy - Now Available in Fstoppers Store!

We at Fstoppers have always been big fans of the incredible photographers and retouchers who form Retouching Academy. The talent and educational knowledge of Julia Kuzmenko McKim has been shown in our 2015 Fstoppers workshop, through many posts on Fstoppers and Retouching Academy, and is condensed in her Studio Beauty photography tutorial. Now, another instructor at Retouching Academy is stepping up to bring more invaluable information to the community. Michael Woloszynowicz presents the newest tutorials from RA with an in depth look at the process of Dodge and Burn as well as Color Grading.

Learning From The Masters: Albert Watson Photographs Dancer Sergei Polunin

Albert Watson. Legend. Period, end. With a career spanning five decades and multiple iconic images, his career in fashion and portraiture would be the aspiration of any budding photographer. Alongside Irving Penn and Richard Avedon, PDN recognized him as one of the twenty most influential photographers of all time. And in a new video by Profoto, the man whose subjects have ranged from Alfred Hitchcock to Kate Moss, discusses his approach to lighting, photography, and life.

360 Degree Camera Drives The World's Most Dangerous Road

Last year we showed you some of the first footage of a new 360 camera made by Yellowbird. Well now Mitsubishi is using that technology in their campaign Test Drive The World's Most Dangerous Road. The Yungas Road is found in South America connecting the Bolivian cities of La Paz and Coroico. Apparently this path, which is only wide enough for one car in places, is responsible for 300 average deaths a year. Below is a little teaser on how they made the campaign for the 2011 Outlander and Outlander Sport. Click the link above to view the 360 degree footage throughout the entire 40 kilometer test drive and the full post for a truly horrifying first person experience on the death path.
[BTSV] The Making Of Canon's 5d Mark III Promo Video, Radball

You may remember Canon's promo video for the 5d Mark III that I posted a couple of weeks ago, which showcased the, ehem, interesting sport of Radball. Love it or hate it, I think we can at least agree that it was pretty entertaining. Canon recently released a companion to the promo video which goes behind the scenes into the filming of the piece.

Behind the Scenes of My Nike-Inspired World Cup Photoshoot

Every four years during the summer, the sports world pauses to draw its attention to the top echelon of professional football. I decided to put together a World Cup inspired shoot, shoot some concepts I haven't done before, and give you a behind-the-scenes, education glimpse.

Cat Footwear Produces A Slow-Mo Matrix Style Commercial

Director Paul Clements produced a pretty amazing commercial for Cat Footwear. By using a single high frame rate video camera and a large array of DSLRs he produced something that I am having trouble describing with words. You'll just have to watch it for yourself. Check out the BTS below and the finished product in the full post.
BTS: Kitchen Heat for an Art Museum

A while back, while on a shoot for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art here in Northwest Arkansas, I was asked to get a shot of the museum’s executive chef and the Director of Culinary for their members magazine. Time was short, the kitchen was starting to prep for dinner service, and every second I was there I was inconveniencing someone. I had to get in and out quickly and create a dynamic image in the process. Here’s how it happened.