Recent Videography Articles

Wedding Photography Tips: How To Start Your Wedding Photography Business

In B&H's latest episode of "Wedding Photography Tips" wedding photographer Susan Stripling offers up some solid nuggets of advice for you to chew over before taking on your first wedding gig. Susan addresses some really important issues, that a lot of shooters wouldn't even consider, prior to embarking on a career in wedding photography.

Drone Strikes West Hollywood Power Lines, 647 People Lose Power

We’ve long passed the beginning of the end and are now certainly in middle-of-the-end territory with respect to the freedom to fly drones. The latest high-profile drone incident further ensures that drone piloting will remain a privilege and not a right, though rightly so, as some people apparently can’t exercise enough common sense to stay away from populated areas (i.e. Los Angeles) and critical city infrastructure (i.e. power lines).

Learn What All the Job Titles in Movie Credits Are

Large-scale film productions take an incredible amount of work by a veritable plethora of talented people fulfilling numerous roles to pull off. It's easy to overlook just how much goes on behind the scenes as the credits roll past, but this great video explains who does what and just how much goes into making a successful film.

Is This the Ultimate Rig for Shooting Handheld Video on a DSLR?

Small cameras are great for run-and-gun shooting and as bit rates and resolutions improve, you may want to start figuring out how to get your handling to match up to the image quality. Caleb Pike of DSLR Video Shooter has put together a modular system that seems to tick all of the boxes without breaking the bank.

Sony Unveils the a7II & 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 G SSM II A-Mount Lens

Sony seems to be stealing the show this week, first with the US release of their new 16-35mm f4 and then the announcement of the world’s first stacked CMOS sensor, they just keep bringing the fire with today’s announcement of the a7II by Sony Japan. The a7II builds upon the already stunning a7 lineup with a plethora of upgrades, most notably its in-body 5-axis image stabilization, the first of its kind in a full frame body.

Behind-the-Scenes on a Stop Action Photoshoot Using the MIOPS Laser Trigger

Jay P. Morgan with The Slanted Lens has released a new video that demonstrates how he and his team were able to precisely capture the exact moment they wanted, using the laser mode on the MIOPS trigger system. Morgan breaks down the tricks for getting just the right shot, without having to rapid-fire a bunch of extra, useless images.

'Reverie of Vietnam' Is a Short Video Adventure for the Soul

For over two weeks in late March and early April, digital director and photographer Oliver Astrologo traveled through Vietnam exploring its best treasures. His 1,650 kilometer north-to-south journey takes the form of “Reverie of Vietnam,” a beautiful short video that places you inside the country face-to-face with the residents and the historic and natural wonders that surround you. Read on to learn more about the production as well as see many great images captured during the expedition.

Gravity: A Detailed Look at the Oscar-Winning Special Effects

Prime Focus World’s Richard Baker and Matthew Bristowe breakdown a scene from Gravity, explaining how they converted the movie from 2D to 3D formats using View-D™ and how the special effects were fully integrated in the process. The videos below show the full breakdown of the special effects used in the film with interviews from director Alfonso Cuarón and more.

A Glimpse of the Future from DJI

In a recent video, DJI aims to capture what the future with drones may look like. Personal video recording with multiple drones, anyone?

How to Create Multiple Lighting Setups With an RGB LED Light

As high quality RGB Led light panels become cheaper and more compact, more and more photographers and videographers are finding just how useful these little lights can be. In this video, I compare the new Falcon Eyes Pocketlite F7 light to my favorite RGB light panel as we explore a few unique lighting setups any photographer can create on the fly.

How To Record Great Natural Sound In Camera

For many of our readers here, their bread and butter is photography. In the past we've talked about why you should be creating BTS videos of your shoots. Or you could be a one man/woman band that has found themselves on a video shoot by themselves with no dedicated sound person. Our friends over at Story & Heart have put out a great new tutorial from their Academy of Storytellers about how to capture and use great natural sounds.

A Beginners Guide to Speed Ramping

A few weeks back I spoke about one of the advantages of mobile videographer. One of the key features I highlighted was the ability to shoot in slo-motion in 720p on most mobile devices. Let's not forget other DSLR's and video cameras that are able to shoot slo-mo in even higher resolutions.

The biggest question now is how do you go about utilizing the footage you've shot for yourself or a client? There are a variety of techniques we as filmmakers and videographers can use. One of the being speed ramping, which is when you use varying frame rates in a video to bring...

[Video] First 4K Short Film Shot on The Canon 1D-C DSLR

Shane Hurlbut was asked by Canon to produce a short film with the new Canon 1D-C. This past week at NAB he debuted this short, "The Ticket" in full 4K glory. Shane sings the cameras praises, and is equally impressed by the simplicity in it's workflow, which he discusses in his blog post here. Hit the jump for the short film and tell me what you think of the quality. It's hard to tell just how high quality it is on the web, but I think it looks impressive nonetheless!

Testing The Kessler CineDrive With A High Speed Camera For Slow Mo Awesomeness

Tom Guilmette and Jon Connor got together at Kessler HQ to have some fun with a FasTec High Speed Camera mounted to a Kessler CineDrive. The CineDrive is able to perform programmable camera moves at high speed, and in this behind the scenes video Tom shows us their setups for various shots, which revolve around food.

Hands on With the New DJI Osmo Action

A few months back, the GoPro Hero 7 was released with some incredible in camera stabilization. This camera caused a ton of hype, but with DJI's new Osmo Action, GoPro could be in trouble.

Can This Disastrous Wedding Footage Be Salvaged?

As both the photographer or videographer, and the client, horrendous results are our worst nightmare. So when the videography of a wedding was dire and deemed unsalvageable, Josh Yeo stepped in to see if he could rescue it.

The Great Gatsby: Breakdown of a Scene

Baz Luhrmann the master of dazzling audiences with his self-coined style of filmmaking known as the 'Red Curtain' style is back. This week's new addition to his small filmography, 'The Great Gatsby' looks to fall under the same flourish and design as previous Luhrmann films, and certainly doesn't look disappointing. In this video Baz Luhrmann breaks down one of the scenes in the upcoming movie.

Lighting, Shooting, And Retouching Architectural Interiors

Architectural photography is something I can never seem to get down. I love shooting people much more than buildings, but when it is executed correctly I love it, even though it is not my favorite thing to shoot. I could look at good architectural photography all day. What's interesting is how architectural photographers use light to sculpt, add contrast, and bring out details in their work. Check out this really in depth tutorial from Vancouver architectural photographer Roger Brooks on how he lights and retouches an architectural interior.

DJI Phantom 4 Used to Create Beautiful 4K Video in 'An Aerial Perspective of Nordland'

Lofoten, Norway has been getting a lot of attention in the last few years, and rightfully so. Known for its incredible mountains, open waters, and unspoiled lands, it has quickly become a favorite for photographers looking to capture dramatic landscape images. Australian filmmaker Michael Fletcher took two trips here recently and came away with a fantastic aerial film, captured during the season of the midnight sun.

Stunning Timelapse Displays the Many Sides and Colors of Los Angeles

Those that know me know that Los Angeles is one of my favourite cities in the world. The city just feels like home for a number of reasons and this timelapse from Chris Pritchard absolutely embodies everything I love about it. The ever changing conditions and light, the mixture of urban and landscape and the way the city just feels alive.

Five Overused Video Effects and Tropes

Trends come and go; some become mainstays, some become clichés. Video is certainly no stranger to trendy effects that become overused or outstay their welcome. Here are five such effects to consider before you drop them in your next video.

The Stories Behind Annie Leibovitz's Most Meaningful Works

AYP just put out Part Three of Annie Leibovitz's exclusive gallery tour where she shares the stories behind some her life's most meaningful works. These short unpolished videos provides insight into this legendary photographer and some of the works that have made her one of the most notable shooters of all time. Get the back story behind her pregnancy shoot with Demi Moore, moments with her family and more from this ongoing series.

Allison Stokke Takes You for a Ride in Point of View Pole Vaulting Video

GoPro and Allison Stokke take you for wild first-person experience into what it’s like to pole vault. The 2016 Olympic hopeful and former Cal vaulter takes you through the process from a variety of GoPro placements. In my track days I used to think that pole vaulters were nuts, and this video reinforces that sentiment.

The 2011 Subaru WRX STI Commercial

It's to easy to do things in post these days. If you can think it, someone can do it on a computer. To stand out, we are beginning to see a trend in TV commercials where directors do it "the old fashion way". So far on Fstoppers we have posted BTSVs for Old Spice, Lexus, Nissan, and Levi's commercials. Subaru didn't want to be left out so they decided to film an animation in a single take using a perfectly timed car. Check out the finished product in the full post. Keep'em coming! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6ROaFrFQvs<
Wes Anderson Announces New Stop Motion Film, 'Isle of Dogs'

You fall into one of two camps when it comes to Wes Anderson films. You either absolutely love his stylistic, quirky work, or you don't. And while those of you who fall into the latter of the two are entitled to your wrong (very wrong) opinion, we should all be excited about his latest film announced today, "Isle of Dogs."

Behind The Scenes With Peter Coulson As He Shoots A Model In The Streets Of Melbourne

Australian Fashion and Commercial Photographer Peter Coulson with Arterium Creations put together this video from one of his fashion shoots in Melbourne. Not your typical studio setup, Peter is out with his crew shooting in the open streets, complete with the public watching and potentially ruining some of his shots. See as he works with his model and they have a great time creating some stunning street-fashion images.

Why TTL is Joe McNally's Default Flash System Over Radio

Here is a 13 minute video of Joe McNally testing out the range and application of the built-in and SB-900 flashes. If your knee jerk reaction to TTL is that it's too limited and too problematic watching this demonstration by Joe may just have you giving TTL transmission use a second look.

Between the Lines: A Beautiful Short Film

Once in awhile, a story teller is able to capture something of what it means to be a photographer. Between the Lines is a short film showcasing beautiful cinematography and scenery. It is artfully and masterfully crafted and is possibly the most inspirational 13 minutes you will watch this year.

[Video] The Biggest Surf Competition Ever, Filmed On The Phantom

"The French Navy labeled this day a double code red prohibiting and threatening to arrest anyone that entered the water. Kelly Slater described the day by saying "witnessing this was a draining feeling being terrified for other people's lives all day long, it's life or death. Letting go of that rope one time can change your life and not many people will ever experience that in their life.""