Fstoppers Originals

"Is that Photoshopped?" We've all heard it; we might have even said it at one time. But the reality is that it's a ridiculous question in the first place because "Photoshop" is not a verb. Perhaps those asking the question are simply asking the wrong question, because quite frankly, it shouldn't matter whether Photoshop was used or not. 

A rainstorm and a muddy field can make football look great, but if your camera gets soaked, you might miss some great shots. Being inadequately prepared to shoot in inclement weather could be a really expensive mistake.  

“In 2017, just 13.7 percent of magazine covers from the top 10 American fashion publications were photographed by women,” according to Erin Cunningham of Refinery29, and yet, according to the 2010 United States Census, the female population of the United States is 50.8 percent. So, why are there so few women shooting the covers of fashion magazines? 

I was recently involved in a conversation via Facebook that centered around new camera gear and becoming a better photographer. The saying generally goes: “It’s not about the camera gear at all.” While I generally agree with this way of thinking, it’s not always accurate.  

Adventure photography is a broad genre. But whether it's kayaking, skiing, hiking, climbing, trail running, or mountain biking, I always am sure to carry this gear with me. 

SSL has become the preferred way for all sites to be displayed as opposed to only being used for shopping carts and pages where you would enter personal data. For some time, there's been a transition from http to https, and it was a choice mostly based on the intended activities of your website viewers. 

By the time you finish reading this paragraph, 500 hours of content will have been uploaded to YouTube, 65,000 posts to Instagram, and 3.3 million updates to Facebook.

Welcome to the second part of Choosing a Lens for Visual Storytelling in Photography. This week, we’re going to look at the way in which lenses help you to express distance and intimacy and dive deeper into the story you want to tell. 

No, it's not by adding black bars or shooting in slow motion. There's much more to the skill of making your videos look like the movies. 

"Cinematic" is quite liberally used today, and most people relate it to the black bars or wide-screen frame ratios. This term has the same explanation as if you say "this photograph is like a painting."

Sometimes, you have to leave old technology in the dust to move forward. With two of the biggest brands having just announced new mirrorless bodies, with it comes new lens mounts to carry these camera systems into the future. 

Congratulations to the Winners! Fstoppers teamed up with SLR Lounge and B&H to give one lucky person their choice of a premium camera from Nikon, Canon, or Sony. Here are the entrants who won. 

After several years of Sony having its run of the mirrorless world, Canon and Nikon finally announced their full-frame mirrorless cameras. The initial sentiment may not be brilliant for both Canon and Nikon; however, I think Canon has done something absolutely incredible.  

The Orton effect is a popular effect in many other genres than landscape photography. It is used to soften the images with a slight glow, which can give a beautiful dreamy effect. However, I do see one mistake repeated again and again. 

There are many ways to create and use an Orton Effect. Many applications already have a built-in function to apply an Orton Effect.

Studio spaces are sought after by many photographers. While some love shooting in client's homes or in hotel spaces, many do want the tranquility of a defined boudoir space of their own. Building a boudoir studio does not have to be overwhelming or come with expensive price tags.

2018 has been quite a year for new equipment releases. We’ve seen Sony’s impressive a7 III, the Nikon Z6/7, and now the Canon EOS R, among many others. Specifically, these new mirrorless cameras continue to bring up one question for me, and that is: have we lost our minds? 

This week's Lighting Breakdown will focus on composite images, breaking down this specific fantasy image as an example for what you need to do to create believable composite lighting. 

Most people reading this article, going to workshops, and watching YouTube content want to improve their landscape photography. It is the question I get asked the most, and there are many answers and solutions to this. But without doubt, the most important part, but often the hardest, is actually being in the right place at the right time.   

Mirrorless, mirrorless, mirrorless... it's the most public camera debate for some time and if you're already sick of it, don't click this article.

As we are now in the middle of the white shark season in Guadalupe, Mexico, many shark lovers are preparing to make their way to the waters surrounding the volcanic island situated 150 miles off the western coast of the Baja Peninsula.

Who would have thought that one of the hardest yet most important things for me to do would be to say no. I’m still learning how to do it, but I’m here to remind you all that being a “yes man” all the time can catch up to you and bite you where the sun doesn't shine. 

With 2018 being the year of mirrorless, it is tempting for many of us to fall into the trap of trying to spend our way to good photography rather than using our own talents. And while having appropriate gear is essential to the trade, it’s equally important to think twice before sacrificing your business for the latest trends. 

Recently, I realized that the best way to get more Instagram followers (and therefore really be a professional photographer) was to start making all of my photographs orange and teal. I downloaded some Lightroom presets and set to work. 

Children are notoriously hard to shoot and most photographers generally avoid doing shoots involving them. There are ways to make it easier though! It's true, they get grumpy, they don’t listen, they misbehave, cry on set, and this all ends up delaying everything by hours. It can be quite the handful to say the least. Let's just say that I have no idea how parents do it!

With news of Nikon and Canon finally entering the full-frame mirrorless market, there have been endless discussions regarding stats and expectations. Don't let yourself get lost in all the gear talk, and remember that you don't need something new to make incredible photos. 

Meg Bitton, a photographer renowned for her portraits of children, is receiving backlash online for posting images of youngsters — some allegedly aged 11 — wearing revealing outfits, smoking, and in t-shirts supporting cannabis. In an age of children growing up and being sexualized too fast, how far is too far?