Interview

In this interview, I speak with Russ Turner, a photographer who is relatively new to shooting fantasy portraiture, but has already received awards and praise for the quality of his work. Russ talks about working with costumed models, how he incorporates Photoshop, and shares some of the places where an aspiring shooter can get started doing photography in this genre.

As a creative professional, your marketing tools can be one of the most important aspects of your business. Facebook has always been a great place for your social marketing strategies, but what happens when that is stolen from you? It happened just recently with the creators of The Underwater Realm. This is their story.

Finding a great retoucher (if you use one) can be a pretty daunting task. Most photographers end up doing their own - picking up techniques and tricks along the way. Ashlee Gray is a beauty and fashion photographer and [primarily a] retoucher based in New York whose clients include Tresemme, Starbucks, Rebecca Minkoff and Gatorade. As a photographer, her images are beautiful, feminine and even delicate. It's that same underlying aesthetic that she applies to her retouching- yet still managing to retain the unique style of the individual photographers she works with.

"Coty Tarr is an active lifestyle photographer based in New York City," so says the not quite so lengthy bio on his website. On initial thought, one might think the concise personal description is a little off-putting, but to anyone that has ever met Coty, it is nothing if not an apt discriptor. In a world where many photographers feel the need for shameless overpromotion (not that there's anything wrong with that), Coty takes a more subtle approach, working tirelessly and letting the caliber of his images and his work ethic speak for him.

Olaf Heine is one of the world's most acclaimed music photographers and has photographed music icons such as Iggy Pop, Sting and Jon Bon Jovi. In this interview from H&M Life, Olaf talks about what it's like to work with these musicians and how best to convey your portrait ideas so they are well received. Obviously this is a good skill to have when trying to get someone on board with a more "off the wall" portrait concept...like tying Sting up and throwing him in a pool with his mouth taped up.

GL Wood is an editorial fashion photographer who's work has graced the covers of Nicki Minaj's Pink album as well as magazines like Elle, Vogue, Out and Bullett. When you look through his portfolio, this caliber of client comes as no surprise. It may, however, shock you to hear that Wood rarely uses Photoshop, but instead opts for old school methods of collaging, painting and drawing to alter his final images.

Though we all are pretty familiar with how Photoshop has helped make us better photographers and digital artists, what we don't often think about is how the program has affected non-artistic segments of society. Today, in honor of National Police Week, Adobe has decided to show how law enforcement uses Adobe Photoshop to help combat crime. It's the kind of thing we all have seen on the television series CSI for years, but never really believed was real.

I love animals and many of us do. They're so expressive and it makes you wonder what they're thinking of. You see the innocence in their eyes and you know it's genuine. Let's not forget to mention their ever ready playful demeanor. When you combine these vibrant attributes with photography, it sets up for some endearing work. Cue in animal photographer, Jessica Trinh.

This new video from the Life In Focus series from F-Stop Gear tells the story of Brian Matiash, an urban and landscape photographer from Portland, Oregon. A departure from the usual mountain or expedition setting, it's cool to see a photographer who is working on the streets of a city and how he makes use of the rugged F-stop bags. Hear Brian discuss how he got into photography and what motivates him to shoot urban areas.

About a month ago we featured a video from the guys over at Neko Neko Films. In this video, they cover a mix of tips that while some may be no-brainers, you might find some very helpful if you having a tough time figuring out where to begin. We interview people all the time and I can't emphasize enough just how important the little things are to create an engaging, yet informative video.

If you have ever opened up a motocross magazine or have seen pictures of the best motocross athletes you were probably looking at one of Garth Milans pictures. He has definitely made a name for himself in the action sports world. He also shoots all the red bull events. To say the least he is a photographer that deserves much respect. I was privileged enough to break him away from his busy schedule for a interview.

A captivating photograph often tells a story. That story is – more often than not –the story of the one taking the picture. Sometimes the story is obvious, and sometimes not so much. It’s in that delayed gratification that we are able to explore the nuances –when we have to reach into the subtleties for meaning behind a photo. Lara Jade is a classic example of this and her images are a vivid interpretation of her life.

People create photo series for a number of different reasons. Sometimes you come up with an idea and pursue it while others just fall into your lap unexpectedly. For portrait photographer Willis Bretz the Washington D.C. metrorail system is where his series was brought to life or rather awakened from other commuters' slumber. We sit down and talk about his series entitled, 'Sleep in Transit'.

There is that popular phrase that goes "the best camera you have is the one on you." That phrase has never been more true in this day and age with considerably powered cell phone cameras living in the pockets of nearly every person you might come across. Even as professionals with thousands of dollars in gear, sometimes we will find ourselves in a situation we shoot on our mobile cameras, whether by choice or by circumstance. I spoke to the product manager of Lightroom to get his take on the best ways to bring the most out of your iPhone images.

I know you all have seen tons of life style photographers, all the happy, smiley shots of girls wearing weird, fashionable clothing. However, I think each photographer who shoots these is able to tell a different story with them. Joseph Tyler is one of these photographer who is able to tell a different story then the others. These shots are not all happy, smiley, and fun looking. They are more on the serious side of things which is a nice little change from the ordinary life style shots.

Kevin Jairaj, wedding and sports photographer based in Dallas, is usually shooting for USA Today Sports Images or for different unknown couples. Recently Kevin was hired by one of the most famous girls in the world to shoot her new set of images, for her own portfolio. Her name is McKayla Maroney, and she has more Olympic Gold medals than you. Check out the BTS video, and the final results.

Photojournalist David Eulitt recently completed Punching Back Time, a series of photographs that features senior athletes who at seasoned ages, strap on gloves and spar in the ring.

The boxers were participants in the 2nd Annual Ringside Masters Championship boxing tournament, a competition for amateur boxers ranging in ages from 35 to 75.

Slowly but safely, photographer Rob Woodcox guides a young girl through a dangling maze of razor-sharp glass. His idea: use the concept of shattered mirror fragments to represent this girl's story of struggling to cope with being an abandoned child. In this dual BTS video and interview post, find out how Rob made the image seen here, but read on for the full story behind the project.

Most people think lifestyle photography is over rated. Just pictures of people hanging out having a good time and thats about it. Technically, yes that is it. However, it's more than just that. It's not that easy to just have the shots look like people hanging out. They have to work well with each other, you have to be able to tell a story with the images, show emotions, ect. Basil Vargas is one of the many Life-style photographers I really enjoy looking at.

You have likely seen Italian photographer Gabriele Galimberti's photos floating around the internet lately. His latest series, "Toy Stories" is the result of an 18-month project documenting children from around the world with their favorite toys. Many of the portraits were taken in the kids' rooms. We see a range of living conditions from sparse to affluent. The concept is so simple yet so brilliant. It doesn't hurt that the photographs were also expertly executed.

The Verge recently interviewed Markus Spiering, Flickr's 'head of product.' Since Spiering has taken over in 2011, Flickr has received a visual face-lift and an updated iPhone app among other things. Flickr was starting to get lost amidst Instagram and Facebook, but with over eight billion photos from over 87 million users, it doesn't look like it's going anywhere soon.

If you're familiar with Fstoppers, you'll know our love for Benjamin Von Wong. We've featured him so many times over the past couple of years on our site. We just can't help ourselves! With his equally educational and entertaining BTS videos, everyone seems to love them. I decided that it would be a great time to take a moment and look into his world to learn more about him and what keeps him going.

I have been following Stephen Hamilton’s work for the past couple of years. I first came across the Chicago-based food photographer’s work through his personal work and project called “The Restaurant Project.” In this project, Stephen has dined at restaurants throughout the country experiencing new dishes that chefs have to offer. While dining he takes an iPhone image. From this image, he recreates a beautiful shot of the meal back in his studio. I have enjoyed seeing Stephen's recreations and contacted him to learn more about the project. Here are 7 questions with Stephen Hamilton.

Warning: The following interview contains adult language, adult situations and nudity.

Michael Donovan rules. It says so on his website. It also says so on his Tumblr. It says so anywhere you’d find his name. And to be perfectly honest, believe the hype. Michael Donovan does rule. This is why I’m here, in a Lower East Side bar that never left 1982, having a drink and trying to hold a conversation while Asian fetish porn plays on TVs that I’m sure were taken from the dumpster behind a Motel 6.

Americans love football. For around four and a half months every fall fans by the thousands flood parking lots on Sundays to eat, drink, and celebrate their team. This is the world of NFL Tailgating. Last season, brothers John and Mike Trupiano traveled over 25,000 miles in an RV with a film crew to see how the NFL tailgates. The Trupianos attended a regular season game at all 32 of the NFL’s franchises. Last September, I met John and Mike when they were at a Carolina Panthers game in Charlotte. Now that they have completed this tailgating journey, I caught up with the brothers to find out more about their 32-game trip.

Independent Filmmaker Tom Durham recently sat down with the folks over at Red Giant and gave some very great advice on filming your very own independent movie. Tom has spent the last several years creating his newest independent movie, 95ers: Echoes and has endured both the highs and lows of independent filmmaking. Why not learn from his mistakes and successes? His biggest piece of advice when making your own independent movie... 'Whatever you do, don't go into debt!'

It’s six o’clock in the evening; Joey Lawrence and I are having what could only be described as the trendiest cups of coffee in all of Williamsburg at that very moment. To be fair, this part of Brooklyn takes its coffee (as well as its trendiness) very seriously. Outside, it’s not unlike being inside of a freezer during a power outage – it’s bitingly cold, wet and smells like something somewhere is spoiling. Luckily, we’re inside, sans rainwear, meeting over a table made from reclaimed wood while Edison bulbs on simple fixtures drip unassumingly from the ceiling.

You might remember Brooks Reynolds, we have featured him and his amazing photography on here before. Recently I had a chance to catch up with Brooks and discuss his latest project, Footsteps, a short film based on a story he was introduced to via the internet.

Filmed on a Red Scarlett he used

Ian Ruhter is quickly becoming a household name in the world of creative photography and wonderful documentaries. His name first broke into the scene last year, with his film entitled 'Silver & Light'; where he discussed his van which has been converted into a camera, but more importantly, takes us through his journey to find his passion again. Yesterday, Ian gave us a new story where he tackles death and the coping process.

Early in February of 2013, Rovio announced a new side project called "Angry Birds Superstars," which juxtaposed athletes with the hugely popular Angry Birds imagery. Though there likely are more on the way, Rovio has started the project with NHL Stanley Cup champion Anže Kopitar and NBA All-Star Veteran Andrew Bynum, both photographed by Jere Hietala. The point? Because it’s fun and awesome.

I recently came across the work of Miller Mobley on Twitter on a random chance of browsing through a few recent tweets. I was linked directly to his blogwhich had a post about his recent shoot with Quentin Tarantino and Jamie Foxx. What I loved, more than his impeccable results, was how he was quite giving in regards to the details of the shoot.

Niko Tavernise has every portrait photographers dream job. Well at least my dream job. He hangs out on movie sets and takes pictures of what he sees. And what he sees are the top actors of our time in impeccable costumes and makeup, on sets that are pre-lit by masters in lighting. And before you start scheming about how you can try to get a job like this, read about how he came about landing this epic gig.