Making the jump from amateur to professional photographer can be both an exciting and scary thing, and it’s important to know how to do everything correctly. Make sure you do all these things before you open for business.
At the beginning of October, I challenged photographers to make amazing photographs using only a flashlight, and the winning image is a testament to the creativity of the Fstoppers community.
A chilly September morning. The crispness in the air added weight to the solemn moment. My composition was all figured out. I patiently waited for the final elements to come into place.
Running a photography business can be a lonely job. When you take the plunge into running a small business full-time, you quickly realize how solitary the work can be. Here’s why it’s so important to meet and build relationships with other photographers.
A little over a month ago, I got married. Now that the dust has settled, I thought I might share some realizations I had from being on the other side of the camera lens for a change.
When it comes to liquify, less is usually best. Unless you have a model or client who specifically asks for heavy shaping, chances are you are going to have an unhappy client if this tool is overly used.
It doesn’t always take expensive equipment to make big changes to the mood of a shot. Here are a couple ways I found to improve my portraits with a tool I didn’t so much buy as I found laying in the trash.
There is a lot of debate within the photo community on the importance of a social media presence. As social media has increasingly evolved as an essential in daily life, it’s time for photographers to stop fighting against the current. No matter your niche, there is value in participating in an online presence.
If the majority of what we and our clients see online are beautiful couples' portraits, is there a place for reportage wedding photographers, and how would you step into it?
It’s an awfully exciting time to be a creative, as the tools we use are becoming more portable, more powerful, and more connected.
Whenever a new iPhone is released, we start to see comparisons being made against "proper" cameras. Generally speaking, these comparisons are met with some hostility and the most frequent comment I see is about how iPhones will never replace proper cameras. I wonder, would it be a good thing if smartphones actually did replace our cameras?
Using your personal interests and hobbies can be a great way to create a stock photography niche that is both creatively and financially rewarding.
Lenses are primordial, yet many photographers tend to attach mediocre entry-level zoom glasses on their camera when there are plenty of affordable quality lenses on the market. Here is a personal selection of some of the best optics that can be found under $300.
By now, no one is surprised by the actions of reality television star, Kim Kardashian-West. With such a massive following on social media, it seems like she could wipe her rear, post the paper on Instagram and we'd have an instant Instagram hit. After all, art is subjective, right?
When someone asks me how long I’ve been doing photography, it’s a complicated question. I worked in the film industry for years and still do. Many of those concepts and techniques are directly translatable — composition, exposure, color, etc.
In this article, go behind the scenes on a year-long photo project, a "Century of Portraits," and see what it took to make this ambitious series a reality.
We all have those big ideas, but often, the fear of the unknown and doubt stand in the way of our dreams. However, it is crucial that you overcome those obstacles and bring your visions to life.
Yes, you read that correctly. But before I’m berated in the comments section, let me explain how this has worked for me.
"Laughter is the best medicine," they say. Find out how I used photography and laughter to overcome feelings of sadness in this photo series called "The Beauty of Laughter."
Capture One is regarded as one of if not the best pieces of raw-developing software available for professional photographers. Image quality resulting from Capture One processing is undoubtedly among the industry leaders, but the software itself could use some updates to make it the absolute gold-standard for raw developing and digital asset management.
It turns out that every different kind of paper out there isn't going to be the right choice for every shot that you have. Sometimes, you'll make the wrong choice and the content won't make sense on the type of paper.
Running a business always entails risk, and photography businesses are no exception. Let's explore the various financial challenges we face and ways we can protect ourselves and our livelihood.
Whether you are a professional or an amateur, you will eventually be asked to work on a project in an area of the industry you are not so familiar with. Assuming you are technically savvy, would you accept the challenge?
The Eyemore S1 was supposed to be the next big thing in mobile filmmaking. Instead, it's one of the worst video cameras I've ever tested.
Normally, when a product doesn't live up to consumers' expectations, it's a bad thing. In the case of the Eyemore S1, though, it's so bad that it's actually entertaining.
Televisions are not only a great place to view horror, but they have also played a key role in a number of scary films over the years from Poltergeist to The Ring. See how an artist has tapped directly into our psyche with some truly chilling imagery created using a series of analog devices to create the effects.
Throughout the course of my creative career, I’ve overdrawn my bank account a lot, shed tears over stress, and stared in the mirror for hours in dejection. I’ve made my share of professional and personal mistakes and certainly learned the hard way from all of those choices. I’ve lost, I’ve won, I’ve sacrificed, and I’m blessed to have earned.