Manfred Baumann is a highly regarded portrait photographer specializing in working with the biggest names in Hollywood. Baumann has spent years developing a timeless style to his work that continues to be in high demand. Fstoppers chats with Baumann to get the low down on what drives both his creative process and how he built a strong business in a very tight niche.
A book is a beautiful thing, both for what it is and what it offers within it's hallowed pages. Meet a small publisher who cares about beauty both outside and in.
Most people would search for a new day job after nearly dying in a California wildfire, or after crawling to safety under a barrage of bullets during a Cleveland gang fight while on set. But Steven Holleran isn't most people.
In the world of adventure sports photography being in the right location isn't always enough. Often times you have to match the athleticism of the athletes you are photographing to get those really amazing shots. that means hanging off the side of a cliff hundreds of feet above the ground alongside a rock climber. Or swimming a couple feet above a coral reef in twenty-foot plus surf. In this case, it means spending a week in the desert running up and down sand dunes.
One Minnesota photographer is working to dig beneath the pretty surface in an effort to show women the beauty they hold within. In the process, she is building a living legacy for her daughter, one that she only recently began to see in herself.
Photographing behind the scenes at any large power producing area can be difficult not only to obtain entry but also to capture the massive scale to do the area justice. The areas are normally bustling with workers, smoke from the machines, and dust from the ground. Traveling to these destinations, however, will help show the world just what goes on behind that power that they use daily.
Using photography as a conservation tool isn't a new idea. Photographers like Ansel Adams utilized the medium to help protect some of our country's most beautiful land. But imagine if Adams had the power of social media to help spread his conservation message to a larger audience.
Cedar Wright is a master of not taking life too seriously (an infectious attitude that spills into his work), as well as creating content of professional athletes dangling from rocks, high above the ground. But what makes his approach to photography and filmmaking so successful? And what's the secret to winning award after award for his climbing films?
The art and business of photography has had no trouble in inspiring millennials into finding a path to success within the field. Twenty-somethings have embraced the use of new technologies in their workflow, marketing, and creativity, but there is one lesson on reaching your goals that has not changed since the dawn of commercial photography.
I recently had the chance to speak to Greg Beadle, one of the official photographers for the World Economic Forum Event in Davos. From the start he made it clear that as an official photographer for the World Economic Forum, it is his job to “promote the annual meeting through photographs that best emulate the positive experiences and results here in Davos.” He said the energy is tangible and throughout the week, world leaders, celebrities, and wealthy elite will come together to discuss and try solve the current issues of the world today. This is what a day as a photographer at Davos is like.
We all have that person or two we've been following on social media since first opening our own accounts. For me, Joshua Snow is one of those people. Snow is a fellow landscape photographer who I've been fortunate to follow since I first started posting to Instagram. Recently I was able to chat with him about how he transitioned from aspiring to professional photographer, and where his motivation and inspiration lies.
Erik Almas is an inspiration to many of us not only with the work he does as a commercial photographer but also as a person who shares the struggles and successes he had in his career. No doubt that he works with many companies and brands we can only dream of, but in a recent interview he confessed that despite that there wasn't a moment in his life when he could say he "finally made it." It is exciting to hear what his measure for success really was.
I was completely blown away when I came across Diane Villadsen's project “Old Friends,” a high-fashion, conceptual take on aging. To celebrate the process all of us will go through eventually, why not do it in a unique way through photography and fashion? I got in touch with Villadsen to find out more about her inspiration for the shoot.
The world of fine art photography exists in the lofty shadows of the photography industry, it’s secrets hidden behind an air of elite mystery. While endless tutorials on how to make a living as a portrait photographer can be found with a quick google search, how to make a living as a fine art photographer remains a more nebulous subject. Last year, award-winning Fine Art Photographer Jason Matias made $60,000 selling fine art prints, and he’s taking away some of the mystery by sharing part of his journey — and solid advice — for budding fine art photographers who want to do the same thing.
Stefano Carnelli is an Italian photographer living in London and Berlin, shooting socially-engaged, documentary images on medium-format film with a particular interest in the relationship between people and landscapes. His recent project, “Transumanza,” explores the lives of shepherds and their flocks in the Po Valley of northern Italy, examining how their historic traditions have changed in response to globalization and an ever-shifting landscape.
In this video produced by The Guardian, Australian Photographer Adrian Cook shows a reporter how he utilizes a mobile darkroom to produce striking images using the Collodion Wet Plate Process. It’s a short video but it has a wonderful tempo to it, mimicking the excitement one might feel when creating an image using this technique. It starts off slow and thoughtful, but the music builds towards an exciting crescendo while the plate is sensitized and exposed, then settles again as the plate is bathed, magically revealing the beautifully toned scene superimposed on the aluminum sheet.
It's not every day that a video interview keeps me interested, undeterred by distractions, the entire time I'm watching it. But this one definitely did, mainly because it involves something that probably 90 percent of little boys, one of which I used to be, often dream of: being an astronaut. And learning about taking photos in space is just icing on the cake.
We’ve had our first snowfall of the year here in the Netherlands. It’s one of those instances when most people stay indoors, while just about every landscape photographer is aching to feel the snow on their face. One of them is acclaimed British Landscape Photographer Simon Baxter, who I've asked to help me analyze the introvert mind.
To be a successful photographer, you don't have to be physically stronger, faster, or tougher. It's not like pro sports where it's normal for the number of men to overpower women. So why are women still facing so much systematic sexism and harassment in the photography industry?
It’s been said that when directing any project, 90 percent of your time will be dedicated to communicating with personnel. This means that directing, while it’s often branded as a personal, individual process, is inextricably tied to the quality of the relationships you hold with the creatives on your team.
Sam Stuchbury and Hilary Ngan Kee’s enchanting new book "Hideaways" is a stunning showcase of tucked-away escape spots all over New Zealand that the creative, urban couple sourced and stayed at while researching the book — and they’re all available to the public.
Generations of musicians have expressed their sorrow and grief through their chosen medium, yet seeking inspiration in these dark places is somewhat niche in amateur photography. I caught up with emerging British talent Michelle Mackie to understand how she expresses these sullen tones in her conceptual photography.
I recently spent three days in Ensenada shooting with the talented TEMPT Media crew during the Baja 1000. On the second night while unwinding at our Airbnb, in walks a guy with three beefy rigs with all the lenses wrapped in gaff tape, underneath what would appear to be a layer of dust that most normal human beings wouldn’t subject their Canon 1DXs to.
German photographer Max Leitner travelled to Warsaw, Poland alongside an urban gymnast to capture this series of unconventional architectural shots that possess an air of optical illusion.
What makes one street photographer any greater than the other? Is it the streets which they frequent? Is it a matter of being in the right place at the right time? Or is the answer more about perspective and the people who fill the streets? Remarkable Street Photographer Rinzi Ruiz opens up about the inspiration behind his stunning street photography.
Antti Karppinen is a digital artist, photographer, retoucher, and instructor from Finland with a unique eye for visual storytelling through photography. His work relies on traditional photography skills combined with an active imagination and complex Photoshop editing work to create fantastical images. He spoke with me about his work, process, and the inspiration behind a couple of his most popular composites.
Ultra-high-resolution photography has been around for years now but the technical difficulties associated with the creation of gigapixel images tend to limit the artistic output of this type of photography. People find it incredibly fascinating and like to explore every little detail of a scene, but they wouldn't want to put one on their wall as artwork. The aesthetic is often sacrificed in the race for resolution. That’s precisely why a group of photographers joined forces to create a collective called VAST in order to conciliate beauty and high definition.
When I photograph events, I do my best to become a “fly on the wall.” I try to stay out of the way, to be unobtrusive, to not affect what’s happening around me and just document what I see. To be a photographer in the White House and be a fly on those walls — surrounded by high stress, classified this and that, diplomats, dignitaries, tragedies, and achievements, while being charged with capturing all of it, 24/7/365 — would obviously be a job that would take all you’ve got. And to do it for not one, but two presidents? That’s nuts. But there’s one guy who did it. His name is Pete Souza.
Swedish Documentary Photographer and Filmmaker Pieter Ten Hoopen has a passion for photography that seems to grow much like his success in the industry. This success can be supported by a quick reference to his resume, which boast clients such as the New Yorker and New York Times Magazine and also by his status as a Nikon Ambassador.
San Francisco-based photographer Jeff Colhoun spent the last three summers in Mongolia documenting the activity of various environmental protection projects. The Genghis Khan nation is a huge country with a thin population of three million inhabitants spread out across a vast territory. The remoteness of the place is what made this assignment both appealing and challenging. Here is the story of this photographic journey.
Photographer and Fstoppers alum Limor Garfinkle has been working on a very interesting project for the last two years: designing and shooting portraits of comedians that show off their unique personalities. Now, the project is ready for its gallery premiere at the TBS Comedy Hub as part of the New York Comedy Festival, with the proceeds benefiting the Mount Sinai Division of ADHD and Learning Disorders. Fstoppers recently interviewed her about the process and fun experience of shooting these portraits.
In most difficult economies, photographers will inevitably take on work that is outside their niche area. Having one commission is better than having nothing. Being a multitalented photographer who is able to shoot both weddings and macro photography can come in handy.
As Halloween nears, we are all soon to be bombarded with a litany of images in our social media feeds of our friend’s unwilling pets being forced to don cute/embarrassing outfits picked out by their fawning owners. In fact, it’s highly likely that we have perpetrated this subtle canine fashion abuse ourselves at some point and time in our lives. How can you help it? They’re just so darn cute. But what is far less likely is that any of us will have achieved the rakish heights of the world’s foremost purveyor of canine imagery, William Wegman.
It was supposed to be a quick trip in Mexico to cover the Lucha Libre World Cup for Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine. But Photographer Jerry Villagrana, based in Detroit, eventually spent the next 15 months in the country shooting Mexican wrestling both for major promotions in 18,000 seat arenas as well as local neighborhood areas with dirt floors. Here is his story.
In a recent article entitled "Why You Shouldn't Submit Your Photographs to Magazines," I discussed Vanity Magazines and how, in my opinion, they often fail to deliver enough value to justify the photographer's effort. As a result of that article, I've had the opportunity to talk with the editors of two of the more well-known and better-curated vanity, or submission, magazines, Lucy's and Jute, to find out how their work benefits photographers.
