On-Location Photography

New technology from the University of Washington allows for millions of photos taken by different people over the duration of years and years to be sorted through, selected, and pieced together to create jaw-dropping time-lapse videos.

There is a romanticized dream of what it is like to be a destination wedding photographer. Outside of that idea lies a reality of what it actually entails. It is hard and exhausting work to photograph weddings full-time, let alone fly internationally on a weekly basis to cover them while also hosting workshops across the planet.

Documentary photographers, fashion photographers, businessmen, housewives, househusbands, you, the world – everyone should know the name and works of Sebastião Salgado. His work has moved millions of social workers, doctors, politicians, economists, and photographers alike. His work moves humans because it is human.

Gnarly Bay, the guys who brought you “Rambo Day,” are back with a compelling story aptly titled “The Important Places." The story follows lifestyle and adventure photographer Forest Woodward who sets out to reunite with his father and a sense of youth after unearthing a poem.

If you aren’t familiar with the work of Dave Lehl, it’s about time that you change that. Dave is not only one of the top photographers in the snowboard industry, but he consistently creates work that transcends genres and has landed him gigs shooting for a list of clients that includes the likes of Red Bull, Nike, and Lamborghini.

This couple took wedding photography to a whole new level when they got their wedding shots taken. They used a series of drones in order to capture their big day. The shots that they created are undoubtedly original and stand out from the crowd... for now.

The natural beauty contained within Enrique Pacheco’s latest time-lapse video “Reflections from Uyuni” is striking and remarkable. During South America’s rainy season, Pacheco journeyed through the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world, down to the Bolivian desert capturing surreal landscapes of these flooded lands.

Shooting in harsh sunlight is always a challenge. Recently I shot a test while out on a trip in Los Angeles. Due to scheduling we had to start shooting around 4 p.m., so we were dealing with hard sunlight. In this post we will look at five different setups you can use to shoot in and manipulate these less than ideal lighting conditions.

Michigan-based photographer Vincent Brady spent five weeks in Iceland living out the back of a rental car to capture the ethereal footage found in his latest 360-degree time-lapse project “Aurora Panoramas Acoustic Borealis.” The video depicts Iceland in its full fantastic glory, with brightly colored auroras floating above fairytale landscapes.

Ever used a drone? If you have, you've almost certainly had that "oh sh*t" moment as your expensive, and admittedly, super awesome toy narrowly escaped a crash that would inevitably end its life. Well, Ryan Chatfield knows that feeling exactly.

Polish cinematographer Maciej Tomków’s “Treasures of Zakynthos” is a beautiful, award-winning time-lapse that highlights the titled Greek island. Going far beyond only filming for the final project, Tomków also took the time and care to create incredibly well-done behind-the-scenes videos that give a true sense of what production is like shooting epic time-lapses.

When you’re first starting out as a professional photographer, nothing seems quite as sexy as getting your first traveling gig. Initially, it's a status symbol — an illustrious validation of your success. Eventually though, that quick hop to New York or jaunt to Cozumel becomes less revered.

If you haven’t seen the stars in the sky in some time, you’re not alone. Thanks to the ever growing amount of light pollution in populated cities’ celestial domes, the heavens above us are becoming harder and harder to see. The Skyglow project aims to, forgive the pun, shed light on the subject.

I, like many photographers out there, don't have a studio, or don't have the money to rent out studio space every time I want to do a shoot. While shooting inside my house or garage is always an option, I found myself wanting to experiment more with ambient and natural light.

When a fashion photographer travels between both coasts of the U.S., shoots assignments in the Caribbean islands, and spans the continents of Europe and Asia for work, it’s safe to say he’s “made it.” Living through those experiences when the stakes are so high prepares you for anything – and that’s experience from which we are all lucky to learn. 

Photography isn't always the safest pursuit, especially when you delve into the world of documentary and travel photography. Shooting out in the field can be unpredictable, from the weather and terrain, to the wildlife and the local people. The more you push the extremes of your photography, oftentimes, the more risk you'll take — to both your gear, and yourself. 

Markus Andersen is back at it again on the streets of Sydney, Australia… but this time he has teamed up with fellow street photographer Elif Suyabatmaz of Istanbul, Turkey. The pair of photographers has just wrapped up a three year long project titled Mirrored where they responded to one another’s images by presenting a similar viewpoint from their respective nations.

Warm smiles and serene sun flares seem to be landing on the shoulders of portraits all over the internet nowadays. Complimented with beautiful bokeh from a shallow depth of field, the allure of a sun-kissed image image is easy to see. What happens when mother nature doesn't seem to be on your side?

Last week I traveled to Utah to shoot the athlete that landed the first ever double backflip on a downhill bike. Upon arriving at the Red Bull Rampage site, my mind was blown witnessing the extraordinary things these athletes are capable of. This trip has taught me more than any other sports photoshoot I have ever done.

Recently announced at the head of WPPI a couple weeks ago, was the Profoto B2 strobe system. The unit, small in comparison of its competitors, was arguably the most exciting product announcement this year at the popular photography convention. However, the burning question everyone has been asking is… is 250Ws enough for on location work like Profoto suggests? 

In November of last year, Coty Tarr traveled to Lake Placid in Upstate New York to document the US Bobsled team as they practiced and prepared for upcoming competitions. Coty, as per usual, has not only photographed these incredible athletes and the work that goes into this level of training, but he's done so gorgeously.  

Aaron Eveland, the videographer of the wedding duo in Hawaii known as Makai Creative, set out to recreate the classic look of The Endless Summer movie poster – gigantic sunsets behind surfers on the beach – and that he did with the help of a Canon 800mm f/5.6 lens, a 2x Extender, and a lot of trial and error.

The latest time-lapse by astrophotographer Brian Spencer shows us the beauty within our galaxy by highlighting the bright stars paired with the beautiful nature found in New Mexico. Using a collection of sliders, cameras, and patience, Spencer was able to capture this beautiful time-lapse highlighting both the beautiful night sky of New Mexico, and the world we view it from. 

Have you ever wished there was a function in Photoshop that would just erase all the unwanted objects at the touch of a button? That dream very well may now be a reality as Aaron Nace of Phlearn shows us in this tutorial.

It's certainly no secret that the United States’ 58 National Parks are home to some of the most incredible landscapes in the world. The sheer number of parks alone is quite impressive, but the vast range of diversity is even more notable.

Perhaps the benchmark of “making it” in this business is to earn an assignment that would cause all but those with the strongest moral character to push both ethical and legal boundaries if an opportunity to supplant the rightful hire were to present itself.

Photographer, director, and writer Tyler Shields is known for his world class, oft avant garde, work. We've covered many of his previous over-the-top projects here on Fstoppers, including feeding a $100,000 purse to a crocodile, his Mouthful exhibit, and blowing up his Rolls Royce Silver Shadow — all in the name of art.

Since February 2010, NASA has captured more than an image per second for over 1,800 days to string together this amazing time-lapse of our sun. This year marks the five-year anniversary of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). To celebrate, NASA has publicly released this mesmerizing video of the sun's daily dance in sharp definition.

If you're planning on attending Lin and Jirsa's Ultimate Wedding Workshop 101 down in the Bahamas you will want to act fast. With only 6 seats left in this class, Pye and Justin will be covering proper exposure and how to shoot in manual, how to pose your couples, how to modify natural light, on and off camera flash, and much more.

Rob Whitworth builds upon his previous experience from his innovative Barcelona "flow motion" time-lapse with this new production covering the business oasis, Dubai. In his latest piece, Whitworth makes it apparent that he has perfected his craft to create the most fascinating time-lapse we've seen so far. We asked him to comment on his process.

Learning to find the perfect light is something that takes time and experience. But what do you do when the perfect light isn't there? Shooting in hard sunlight isn't always the most flattering or ideal situation. Don't settle for less than ideal results, bad light doesn't have to mean bad images.

That's 10K – as in your 4K monitor, but not really...because it's 10K. Yes, photographer Joe Capra created a stunning 10K time-lapse with a PhaseOne IQ180 that shoots images with a resolution of 10,328 x 7,760 pixels. While this video is clearly put together in a proof-of-concept style, the clips still astound.

While on location for Red Bull's King of the Air in Cape Town, South Africa, digital art photographer Lars Daniel Terkeleson caught up with professional rider Nick Jacobsen for an incredible photo session. In a unique approach to using speedlites in sports photography, he was able to capture action in rare form against the breathtaking South African sunset. 

When people walk through my living room studio, they are puzzled that I do not own or rent a permanent studio space. What many do not know is that when I’m contracted for a commercial assignment, about 80% of the time I must travel to a location or shot at the client’s home base. And, in many cases that requires transporting several 9 foot seamless backdrops and a whole lot of equipment.

Benjamin Von Wong has always been known for his elaborate, fantasy-like photo shoots. However, recreating the fairy tales that he had grown up watching took time, patience, luck, and most of all, a lot of help. These jaw-dropping photographs are bound to generate the customary "Is this Photoshopped?" question.

Joey L. is a photographer best known for his stunning personal work creating portraits of the peoples of Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, and other exotic places of the world. He uses studio lights on-location to achieve his unique and dramatic look for his portraits of these exotic people.

Have you ever wished that you could simply walk into your studio space and immediately have perfect lighting? Japanese architecture firm FT Architects has created a gorgeous photography studio which uses diffused skylights and windows to harness ambient light and do just that. This beautiful studio located in Kanagawa, Japan seems to be the first of its kind. 

It has happened to all of us. We spend countless hours planning, scheduling, and coordinating for a beautiful golden hour photo shoot only to have our parade rained on by weather or other mishaps out of our control. Perhaps you didn't plan for those mountains in the background that's cutting your shoot 30 minutes shorter than anticipated.

Australian wedding photographer Jonas Peterson is one of the best around, shooting extravagant weddings in exotic locations on a regular basis.

Patrick and I have been in Iceland for 2 weeks with Elia Locardi filming our next tutorial on landscape/travel photography. We brought a truck-load of gear with us but our favorite piece has been our DJI phantom quadcopter. Here's a quick cut of our best drone footage in Iceland. 

For years I found myself making excuses as to why I wasn't creating the type of images that I so desperately wanted to make. I didn't have the gear, I didn't have a model, I didn't have access to a studio. At the end of the day, it came down to one simple thing, I never tried. 

While a great image of the Milky Way can be awe inspiring in and of itself, it becomes something else entirely when you add some motion. In just 20 minutes, you will have all the information needed to go out and shoot a time-lapse yourself. Whether or not you are willing to spend countless hours alone in the darkness however... 

FroKnowsPhoto's own Jared Polin recently got his hands on the previously unannounced DJI Inspire 1 to get some test flights in with DJI's upcoming new drone. The new system shows off 4K video, larger, more powerful carbon fiber body, and an affordable $3K price tag. Fro was able to get an inside look at this new drone system, and pull some footage from his test flight. 

Whether it's capturing a close encounter with a great white, documenting an Eiger ascent or riding the dash of an F-16 the GoPro has been used for some pretty amazing things.  Here is one recording I don't see any of us re-creating anytime soon though. 

When he's not sitting in southern California traffic, San Diego editorial photographer, Rob Andrew, spends his days freelancing from one gig to another with all his gear in tow. In order to stay nimble, Rob has developed a style of shooting creative food photography with a surprisingly minimal amount of gear.

Atomos, known for their field recorders, has recently announced a new portable power solution. The Power Station, as it is called, has the ability to power up to 3 devices simultaneously and features hot swapping. The device is powered by Sony L-series batteries, but adapters for Canon LP-6 and Nikon EN-EL15 battieries will be available. 

OK Go has developed a name for themselves as making some of the most iconic and creative music videos over the last ten years. In their latest music video, released today, OK Go shows off a cleverly scripted video using motorized unicycles, umbrellas, and a single take video mounted on a drone. You need to watch this deliciously clever video with an equally catchy song to back it. 

Las Vegas based commercial photographer Michael Herb recently got his hands on Westcott's 59 inch Zeppelin  to test out on location in the Nevada desert. The photoshoot featured three models in an apocalyptic theme at a salt lake bed. In the behind the scenes video he shows just how difficult it can be to put together the Zeppelin on the separately purchased speedring.