Starting off in any genre most photographers will go through the feeling of being on top of their game. This is until years later when they look back at their portfolio and cringe compared to the work being produced now.
Critique the Community "Backlit" Edition
We want to see your best images that capture "Backlit" lighting for our next Critique the Community.
Recently, someone in our comments suggested a really cool idea, and we need your help. If you've been featured on an episode of our Critique the Community, help us with a future video by responding to this post.
Most photographers look back at their very earliest work and cringe; I am no exception. But what could I learn from harshly critiquing my earliest imagery and what value might it hold for beginners? Let's find out.
Submit your best foliage photo for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
We want to see your best images of plants or flowers for our next Critique the Community.
Submit your best long exposure image to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Our next Critique the Community will feature your best shots with long shutter times. What cool effects have you created with long exposure?
In late September 2019, I joined up with three other wildlife and landscape photographers to take on Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a few days surrounding the International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP) WildSpeak West symposium. In this video I review my best images taken with my new gear from this short but productive three-day trip to the Tetons.
Critique the Community: Commercial Beachwear
Have you taken photos of swimwear or resort wear that are worthy of being in your portfolio? Are you looking to have your work critiqued by someone well known in the industry? If so, our next Critique the Community is going to be a barn burner!
I know, it’s a loaded question. Heck, it’s a loaded word, that one — good. According to whom? By what measure? Who do you think you are to criticize my work? I know. And, I agree. But I suspect there are still a few checks we can make to see if an image is headed in the right direction. Let’s look at five of them!
Submit your best image taken with a cell phone for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
The best camera is the one you have with you, or so the saying goes. However, just because it's easy now to grab a quick picture with your cell phone doesn't mean the shot is portfolio worthy. See how your best cell phone images match up to the rest of the community by submitting them below.
Lately, I've found myself really thinking a lot about portfolios, in both physical and digital form. This throwback video helps with the most basic question: how do you choose the work for your portfolio?
In the latest video from Fstoppers, professional architectural photographer Mike Kelley critiques images submitted by fellow photographers. All of the images were submitted by architectural photographers who are part of a closed group on Facebook.
Submit your favorite images that have made you money for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
When it comes to maintaining a photography business, the images that make you money are the ones that really matter. For the next episode of Critique the Community, we will be providing feedback to only images that have generated income for you.
Photography can be a lonely journey for some. If you are just beginning your foray into wildlife and/or underwater photography, then please join Mike O’Leary and me as we host a free webinar on Saturday, August 24th at 3pm EST. With this webinar, Mike and I hope to answer any questions you may have in relation to starting out in wildlife or underwater photography, as well as how one can use the medium as a positive force.
Submit your best automotive photo for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
It's time to see what the community thinks of your automotive photography. Submit your best three images now and receive feedback from your peers.
Submit your best real estate image for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Real estate photography is a thriving business opportunity but it takes skill to shoot a home. Do you think your images are good enough to meet the industry standards?
Submit your best live music photo for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
When you attend a concert, at some point you probably pull out a camera to grab a shot or two, but so does everyone else. What sets apart a good concert photo from the rest?
Submit your best male fitness image for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Lee was recently challenged by Pye Jirsa from SLR Lounge to do a male fitness photography competition. Although the results of that shoot have not been published yet, this week's Critique the Community was inspired by their images. Are your male fitness photos up to professional standards?
If you are an avid outdoor photographer like myself and will be in the New York area next week, you’ll be delighted to know B&H Photo and Video is holding their annual OPTIC Outdoor, Photo/Video, Travel Imaging Conference this coming June 2-5.
Submit your best dog photo now for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Pet photography can be a huge business and there are some among us who make their living photographing man's best friend. Do you think your pictures of dogs are good enough to be in a professional portfolio?
Submit your best photo with a bird in the frame for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
To play off some of the recent trends that have arisen in the Fstoppers competitive shoot out videos, Pye Jirsa has called for an episode of Critique the Community highlighting "portraits with birds."
Submit your best wedding photos for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
We're excited to host Pye Jirsa from SLR Lounge for our next episode of Critique the Community. Pye is one of the best wedding photographers in the United States and will be sure to provide some excellent feedback to the images.
Submit your best image taken with a constant light for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Some photographers claim to shoot only natural light while others depend largely on their strobes. This episode of Critique the Community is for those images shot only with constant light.
Late last month I did a post on my ongoing problems with Adobe and the Creative Cloud software and apps. I sometimes find Photoshop unreliable, as well as Bridge. I've also had numerous crashes with the Creative Cloud app too. There were a lot of good comments on my piece, and I also attracted some of the good folks at Adobe who were anxious to weigh in on my experience, which I welcomed.
If you want to continue to grow as a photographer you need to have honest, real time feedback and yes, criticism. Sure, you can ask a friend maybe see if Mom wants to flip through your portfolio and you might get some feedback but more than likely you’ll get some “wow, that’s a cool shot” or “Honey! This picture is lovely!” but no really push back on your composition or lack of. So, go find a photo editor.
Submit your best image taken on a seamless background for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Seamless backgrounds can be used to create a wide variety of images in the studio. Do you feel like you've mastered how to use them? Put your best work in front of the community now and see what they think.
Photoshop and I go way back. I had the first version in 1990, and it has served me well as a photo editor for both my landscape and deep sky work. Over the last couple of years, though, every time I use Photoshop or Lightroom in their Creative Cloud versions I can't help thinking something is wrong.
Submit your best image that fits the theme "technology" for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Technology is constantly changing but it always requires good imagery to sell. See if your images are portfolio worthy by putting them in front of the Fstoppers community to be judged.
We have some incredibly talented photographers posting images to the Fstoppers Community and in today's video, Patrick and I picked out 10 of our favorite photographs that are currently trending.
Submit your best composite images for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
It's time to pull out your best composite images and see what the Fstoppers community thinks of them. For our next episode of Critique the Community, we hope to bring in a special guest who is a master compositor, Josh Rossi.
Submit your best image with a theme of "strength" for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
What is your best image that conveys a message of strength? It could be a capture of a physical feat, similar to the featured image by Andy Day or it could be something that's more subtle. Submit your images now to get direct feedback from your fellow community members.
Submit your best image with a love or romantic theme for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! In honor of the day that celebrates love and romance, our next Critique will be centered around the theme of the day. Submit your best love and romance centered images and be critiqued by your peers.
Opinions are like cameras: everybody’s got one, and it should be upgraded once in a while. If you love giving feedback on photography, great, but make sure you're doing it in a way that’s right for the giver as well as the receiver.
Submit your best color graded image for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Color grading is a great way to set your images apart from other photographers. Have you refined this part of your post processing? Submit your best color grade now and see if the community approves of your techniques.
Submit your best Winter themed photos for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
This week's Critique the Community theme will be "Winter." Submit your best images now to receive feedback from the community and a chance to be critiqued by Lee and Patrick.
Matthew Leifheit, Yale graduate and recent student of Gregory Crewdson, had his first solo exhibition at DELI Gallery in Brooklyn.
Submit your best unedited photos for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Photoshop is so prevalent in the industry that the line between photography and digital art often blur. With the theme of this weeks' Critique, we hope to focus only on photography skills.
Every photographer needs a good website; that's a given. What isn't so obvious is should you have a contact page? What about a photo on your bio? Is it best to have multiple galleries or everything on one landing page? Today Lee and I review a few websites to show you what does and doesn't work when displaying your work.
Submit your best street photo for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial."
Have you shot any street photography? We invite you to join the next episode of Critique the Community and submit two of your best street photography shots for feedback and the chance to win one of two Fstoppers tutorials.
Submit you best images featuring repetition for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial.
Our next episode of Critique the Community will feature a fairly subjective topic. We invite you to submit your best images that give a sense of "repetition."
Submit your best wedding photos for a chance to win one of two free Fstoppers tutorials.
It's time to pull out your best wedding imagery to see how well it stacks up against the community and how you can be improving.
Submit your best black and white photo for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Got a killer black and white image? Submit it to this weeks episode of Critique the Community for your chance to win a free Fstoppers original tutorial and receive feedback from Lee and Patrick.
Every couple weeks we release a new episode of Critique the Community where Fstoppers members can submit their best images to a genre specific contest for a chance to receive feedback and win a free Fstoppers original tutorial. This week, we changed things up and selected only 5 star images to discuss.
Submit your best product photos for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
It's time to pull out your best product photos and see how they stand up against rest of the community.
Submit your best underwater photos for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Do you want to know how to improve your underwater photos? Submit your best shots now for a chance to receive feedback and win one of two Fstoppers' original tutorials.
How long do you spend looking at an image on Facebook versus an art gallery? The duration we spend admiring someone’s work depends on the context, but to what extent can you stall viewers on your own landscape photography?
Dear Thumbtack, you’ve been a major national player in service-sector networking, including the field I love, professional photography. I appreciate the jobs I accessed through you in the past. But the door on that past, I’m sorry to have to say, is closed.
Submit your best adventure image for a chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Although adventure photography is a pretty niche part of the photography industry, we want to give it the spotlight in our next episode of Critique the Community. Let's hear what the community says about your pictures.
Submit your best landscape photos for your chance to win a free Fstoppers tutorial
Elia Locardi is going to be at the Fstoppers studio for the next week and a half filming the post processing section for the newest iteration Photographing the World. We figured it's the perfect opportunity to let him critique your images.
Why do we care so much what people think of our photos? Do we shoot for others or do we shoot for ourselves? Does it help us progress by having strangers or even people we know comment on our photos? What about formal reviews by so-called experts?