Recent Education Articles

A Common Lighting Mistake Portrait Photographers Make

Portrait lighting takes a good eye for nuance, and as such, it can be easy to overlook smaller details that detract from the overall quality of the image. If you would like to improve your portrait lighting, check out this helpful video tutorial that demonstrates a common mistakes and how you can fix it to improve the quality of your portraits.

What Makes a Good Camera?

Photographers have more choice than ever when it comes to cameras, and there is an option for just about every budget and set of needs. So, what is a good camera? How do you make the right choice for you? This great video features an experienced photographer discussing the issue, mistakes he has made over the years, and how to find what is right for you.

6 Common Wildlife Photography Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Wildlife photography is a challenging genre that requires sound technique, specialized equipment, particular knowledge, and heaps of patience, often for just a few seconds of prime opportunity for a shot. Whether you are new to the genre or a seasoned pro, this helpful video tutorial will show you six common mistakes wildlife photographers make and how to fix them or avoid them in the first place.

The Damage We Inadvertently Do in Photography

I’ve long been a believer that wildlife and landscape photography does a lot of good for wildlife by raising awareness of conservation issues. But there’s a problem that many of us don’t consider. Are you aware of what can you do to ensure your photography is doing more good than harm?

Two Big Reasons Amateur Photographers Are Afraid to Become Professionals

Becoming a professional photographer can be a scary thing, especially because, unlike a traditional job, the pathway to sustainable success is much more nebulous and often changing. What are the most common fears people have about becoming a pro? How can you mitigate those fears? This excellent video features an experience professional photographer discussing the topic.

How to Deal With Rejection as a Freelance Photographer

When going freelance in any profession, you will get faced with rejection after rejection. Not getting enough love on social media, emails not being replied to, and inquiries not leading to bookings are frustrating parts of running a self-employed photography business. “Don’t take it personally,” they say. But how?

Applications Open for Canon's Incubator: Futures (Year Three)

Canon Canada has opened applications for the third cohort of its FUTURES program. Canon's FUTURES is geared to helping emerging storytellers between 20 and 25 years old develop their craft and business acumen. It's heartening to see a major international corporation make a point of nurturing the users of their products. Hurry, applications close on June 30!

How to Light a Portrait Using a Single Speedlight

Portrait lighting can sometimes take complex multi-light setups, but you would be surprised at what you can accomplish with just a single light — even only a speedlight. In fact, you can even create professional images with one, and it is a great place from which to start as a beginner to artificial light. This excellent video tutorial will show you how to use a single speedlight to create compelling portrait images.

10 Books Every Photographer Should Read Now

As a photographer, focusing on improving your craft is one of the most important things to do. Money can buy the latest equipment, but it can't buy you knowledge of how to use that equipment.

A Look at How to Make Expressive Landscape Photos

One of the challenges of landscape photography is creating expressive images, as you have little control over what appears in the frame compared to most other genres. If that is something you struggle with, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will share some helpful advice for creating expressive images and how to deal with issues like composition, aspect ratios, and perspective shift.

A Versatile and Effective Two-lens Kit for Landscape Photography

The beauty of landscape photography is that there are so many different ways to photograph the same scene. As such, it is nice to have options to cover the full range of scenarios, but that also needs to be balanced by keeping the amount of bulk you are hiking with in check. This excellent video discusses a versatile two-lens kit that will not break the bank or your back.

The Beauty of the Ordinary

There are a lot of iconic locations out there, and it can be wonderful to travel to and photograph them, but there is a lot of beauty in the ordinary and what is around us, and you are missing out if you overlook the places you pass by every day. This great video tutorial discusses the power of the ordinary and why embracing it will make you both a better and more content photographer.

Shutterfest 2023: Unlocking the F.U.N.damentals of Photography

Shutterfest stands out as my favorite photography conference to attend each year! As I write this, I am wrapping up day three of the affair. I always look forward to the various workshops, lectures, and unique experiences available throughout this fun-filled event like no other.

3 Ways to Fix Uninspiring Portraits

Have you ever set up your lights, gone through the poses, gotten back to your computer, and realized you have taken some perfectly competent but uninspiring photos? If that is a situation you have recently found yourself in, check out this fantastic video tutorial that features an experienced portrait photographer sharing three different ways to reinvigorate your images.

The Seven Essential Elements for Improving Your Photos

There are different opinions about what makes good photography. Many suggest it’s a single ingredient; they are wrong. If we want to grow in our art, it’s by combining seven elements that we have any hope of improving.

How to Add Glow in Photoshop

Here's a super quick and easy method of adding glow to objects in Photoshop using layers, blending modes, and brushes. This technique can be used to make light sources in your images look more realistic, or add some pop to a portrait. This tutorial would be helpful to anyone looking to start using layer masks and blend modes in Photoshop.
How to Take Better Rainy Landscape Photos

When you step outside and are greeted by rainy weather, it can be tempting to turn around and head right back inside. However, if you are willing to brave those mundane conditions, you might be rewarded with worthwhile landscape images. This helpful video tutorial offers five tips to increase your chances of coming home with compelling shots.

Why You're Being Ghosted by Potential Clients

How many times have you had a promising conversation started with a potential client, only for them to simply stop responding to you, never completing a booking? It is a very frustrating but also very common experience. This helpful video tutorial shares some useful advice and techniques to decrease that ghosting rate and land more clients.

A Look at How to Break Out of a Creative Rut

Whether you are a new hobbyist or a seasoned professional, creative ruts are something that happens to all of us, and trying to get out of them can be a frustrating exercise that only makes them worse. If you find yourself mired in a creative rut, check out this helpful video that features a photographer sharing what helped him break free and get back to work.

How to Improve Your Sports Action Photography

When it comes to sports portraits and action photography, employing a bit of artificial light can make a huge difference by giving you the ability to shape the look of the frame and add a lot of drama to the image. If you are ready to get started working with artificial light in your sports action portraiture, check out this excellent video tutorial that will give you a range of helpful tips and advice sure to put you on the right track.

How to Take Unique Landscape Photos in Popular Places

Popular landscape locations are like that for a reason: they are often quite breathtaking and can be a real joy to experience. Nonetheless, the challenge is creating unique imagery that stands out from the thousands of other photos of the location. How can you do that? This great video tutorial features an experienced landscape photographer discussing the dilemma and how you might approach it.

The Importance of Knowing and Photographing Your Local Landscapes

When you look at landscape photography online, you will probably notice that, for the most part, it is of extraordinary locations that are difficult and pricey to reach, at best. And beyond that, you have further issues to contend with, such as distinguishing your images among the thousands of others created at the spot. This great video tutorial discusses why you should be embracing your local area and how to go about doing it.

How to Color Grade Images in Lightroom

Color grading is a subtle art, and yet, it is one of the most powerful ways to give your image a professional look, convey a certain mood, and establish a recognizable personal style. If you are new to the technique and looking for some advice on how to do it in a professional manner, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you a wide range of useful tips and techniques for color grading images in Lightroom.

Make Your Own Film Presets With This Simple Tutorial

The nostalgia of film and the decades gone is fascinating so no wonder film presets and looks are popular to buy for your editing software. They’re pretty easy to make yourself if you put a little bit of time into understanding what elements in editing make the film look different from digital. Follow my tutorial to make your own vintage film presets for Capture One, Lightroom or PhotoShop.

How to Edit Skies in Landscape Photos in Lightroom

The way you edit the sky can have a tremendous impact on not just the quality of a landscape images, but the mood it conveys to the viewer. Lightroom offers a lot of power and versatility for editing skies, and this fantastic video tutorial will show you how to take advantage of those capabilities to create better and more precise edits.

Helpful Tips for Using Your First Ultra-wide Angle Lens

The ultra-wide angle lens is one of the most exciting out there, able to take sprawling, majestic scenes and bring their entirety into a single frame. They can be rather challenging to use, however. If you just picked up your first ultra-wide angle lens and you are ready to get started, check out this helpful video tutorial that will give you a range of useful advice sure to have you on your way in no time.

One of the Biggest Pitfalls of Being a Professional Photographer

Without a doubt, finding success as a professional photographer takes solid technique and a strong creative voice, but those alone are not sufficient. Becoming a successful professional takes quite a bit of business savvy, including the ability to monetize your work, anticipate market trends, and understand how to convert one-time clients into loyal returning customers. This great video essay featured an experienced pro discussing one of the most common mistakes newer professionals make and how you can fix it.

5 Common Landscape Photography Mistakes

Landscape photography is a challenging genre that takes a combination of strong technical skills, planning ahead, a keen awareness of conditions, and often, a smidgen of luck. As such, there are a lot of places where things can go a bit wrong and end up derailing your images. This great video tutorial details five such mistakes and how to fix them or avoid them altogether.

Why Film Directors Avoid Deep Focus in Cinematography

You may notice that most cinematography has a shallow depth of field. There are lots of reasons for this, and in this video, one filmmaker goes through the pros and cons of using it and why it is often avoided.
Photographers and The Cost Of Living Crisis: Can We Really Survive?

In the land of the photographer, times are harder than ever before, with companies ending their contracts at lower levels and shoots being less available, with budgets cut and a huge number of working photographers facing hard times. With all this uncertainty in the world, can we really survive doing what we love and live comfortably?

How to Retouch Lips in Photoshop

We spend a lot of time working on perfecting our retouching technique when it comes to hair, skin, and eyes, but just like those aforementioned aspects, the lips are also a crucial part of the face, and as such, they deserve equal attention in the post-processing phase. This excellent video tutorial will show you the ins and outs of retouching lips in Photoshop to ensure your portraits are in tip-top shape.

How to Create Better Landscape Photo Compositions

Landscape photography takes a wide variety of skills and techniques in order to find success, and often, just a bit of luck thrown in. However, one skills that tends to elude photographers more than any other is composition. If composition is something you tend to find yourself struggling with, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you a range of helpful advice sure to improve your landscape image compositions.

The Importance of the Everyday: Why I Shoot Street as a Pro

Street photography is a realm of photography that carries enormous weight. A genre derived from some of the world's photographic pioneers — the big names. The generations taking cameras to the front lines of war, documenting death, destruction, humility, and the human spirit, and bringing it home to document the everyday. It’s a genre of photography like no other, and here’s why you should be shooting it.

The DIY Food Photography Setup: The Gear You Shouldn't Bypass

It's annoying, I know. You thought you had it figured out. You thought you'd ticked every box, but I guarantee you didn't. I certainly didn't and haven't to this day! The amount of gear we use as photographers is ridiculous. It makes even the smallest of shoots a test in organization, packing, loading, unloading, setting up, packing down, and remembering to do it all again. But there are some items that simply can't be ignored.

Helpful Practical Photography Tips

Want some easy and immediately actionable advice that will improve both your images and your workflow in no time? This is the video for you. This helpful tutorial features 10 helpful tips, tricks, and accessories that will make you a better photographer in no time.

Common Scams Photographers Should Watch Out For

Photography is a common hobby and profession in which high amounts of money and valuable equipment frequently change hands, making it a popular target for scammers. This excellent video essay details some of the most common scams in the industry and how to recognize and avoid them to ensure you are not taken advantage of.

Why Just Mastering Photography Technique Isn't Good Enough

The technical side of photography takes a lot of committed study and practice to master, and it is something to be proud of when you have gained the skills to stride confidently into a variety of scenarios and produce adept images. Nonetheless, just that alone is not enough to find success and recognition, particularly in the professional realm. This great video essay features an experienced photographer discussing what it is that differentiates the most memorable pros from their peers.

5 Important Rules Every New Photographer Should Learn

Learning photography is a complex process that takes the confluence of a variety of skills and knowledge sets in order to find success. And while there is certainly a ton of specific information you will need to learn, if you follow the five simple rules contained in this helpful video tutorial, you will find yourself ahead of the curve in no time at all.

Important Advice for New Photographers

Being a new photographer, whether you have aims of going pro or you simply enjoy the hobby, comes with a lot of challenges you need to overcome to find success and contentment with the craft. If you are just getting started and looking for some guidance, check out this helpful video tutorial that features an experienced photographer sharing some important advice.

One of the Most Important Traits of Any Photographer

Being a photographer, whether you are an amateur or a professional, is a complex thing that takes knowledge of and experience in a multitude of factors and scenarios in order to find success. And though all of those factors are undoubtedly crucial, there is something else that all successful photographers share in common, and this great video essay discusses how you can embody it to become a better creative.

How to Add Realistic Light Using Lightroom’s Intelligent Presets

This tutorial looks at using Adobe Lightroom Classic's intelligent masking and preset tools to create realistic light in post-production after you've already shot your images. Then, you can save the preset to use on any photo with just one click. This is essential for portrait and landscape photographers and will make your images better with less effort.
How to Get Rid of Dark Circles Under Eyes Using Photoshop

By far, one of the common retouching requests photographers receive when editing portraits is to lighten dark circles under the eyes. Thankfully, it is not an especially difficult problem to address, and this excellent video tutorial will show you everything you need to do to lighten those circles in a convincing and high-quality manner.

How to Enhance Eyes Using Photoshop

The eyes are one of the most important of any portrait, and as such, they deserve a little bit of extra attention when you are in the post-processing stage of your work. If you would like to improve your portraits, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you how to brighten and enhance the eyes in a portrait for natural, compelling results.

The Future of In-person Photography Education

Photography education is a constantly fluctuating space, ever evolving from one approach to the next in an effort to differentiate from the pack. The Photo Creators Conference is the next evolution in the chain.

How to Use a Wide Angle Lens for Landscape Photography

Wide angle lenses are the tool of choice of countless landscape photographers, but they can be particularly tricky to work with, especially when it comes to composition. If you are new to landscape photography and hoping to improve, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you how to use a wide angle lens for creating effective and compelling landscape images.

How to Create Beauty Lighting With Speedlights

When it comes to studio lighting, you might think that you need powerful monolights or pack and head systems, but you can accomplish quite a bit with speedlights. This great video tutorial will show you how to do just that using affordable and easy-to-use speedlights.