I was 14. After a year of mowing lawns and shoveling driveways I had finally saved up enough money to buy my first real camera (a Canon S30). At the the time, online stores like Amazon barely existed. Still growing in their late-90s infancy, the global online marketplaces we have become so accustomed to (like eBay) were barely a blip on the retail radar.
If you are like me, and many others, you love photography. It is something you think about constantly and wish it could sustain you full time if at all possible. So you set out to become a photographer and then… You realize the world is full of photographers. This is nothing new to you either, it should be pretty obvious right out of the gate.
As one of our site's regular film shooters, I naturally tend to post a lot of articles on the subject. Without fail, I'll get a few comments to the effect of digital being so much better than film or vice-versa. I've always laughed off such remarks, but since they keep on coming I figured I'd address them. Maybe the mediums have more in common than some would like to admit.
One thing I’m sure all band photographers, like myself, question all the time, is the necessity for the Three Song Rule limit at live concerts. Is it still as necessary as promoters and agents make it out to be, or is just because it’s become the norm over years?
Mike Kelley and Fstoppers have teamed up once again to produce the third installment of Where Art Meets Architecture. Over the past few years, creating images for realtors, architects, interior designers, and property management companies has become a booming industry for professional photographers.
What if you woke up one morning and found yourself unable to come up with any good ideas on what to shoot next? You spend the entire day scouring the web, reading books, or talking to people and yet you still can’t come up with anything good? You’re so desperate, in the end, you just grab the camera and start shooting, but nothing good comes from it.
My background was in design and web development before I was a photographer. So in my eyes, it's easy to see a connection between design and photography, and how that should translate to a photography website, however I am still surprised at how many photographers’ websites are very much behind the times. Mostly because most photographers are not designers or programmers.
Last week, I posted an article about how to create amazing portraits with on-camera flash. My hope was to help anyone who was on the fence about shooting with flash feel more comfortable and confident in their ability to shoot with flash.
Alongside the highly-anticipated a9 announcement, Sony also introduced the FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 G Master telephoto lens. After the initial buzz and excitement over something shiny and new being announced subsided, I began to question why Sony released this lens at this particular time of intense market expansion.
Sharpening to enhance detail is a critical process to finishing any image, especially when preparing images for print. As a photographer who specializes in creating large wall portraits of dogs, I routinely apply a strong degree of sharpening prior to printing.
Two things converged for me recently: an increase in questions sent to me regarding my commercial photography and the unexpected popularity of my bite-sized Photoshop tutorials. Both occurrences are born from the same inquiry of understanding how certain things are achieved.
We've all seen the Instagram feeds where people post a daily painting, photo or post that displays their art. I've attempted it and lasted about a month before I missed a day or didn't have the time to post.
Makeup artists are an invaluable part of the creative team for many photographers. In fact, there are certain genres of photography that rely so heavily on makeup artists that we simply couldn't work without them. Unfortunately, there seems to be a few serious problems cropping up between makeup artists and photographers.
The past few weeks I have been driving up the parkway here in New Jersey for work, my eye kept getting drawn towards this one specific railroad bridge between exit 136 and 137. Every time I passed by it, my eyes would follow it until I had to turn to see the road in front of me again.
Shooting events with a ton of people can always be a bit overwhelming at times. There are thing constantly happening all around you, pulling your attention in every direction. Add to this being in another country and at an event such as the Holi festival, and you have a recipe for mass mental chaos.
We're pleased to announce that today, the Fstoppers Community reached the milestone of 100,000 photo uploads. As our group of talented creatives continues to grow, we're thrilled to share your work with the photography world.
A spectacular shot of a bride in her gown can be one of the most enduring images in the spectrum of bridal photos. I’ll state up front that I am not a wedding photographer, but as a fashion photographer specializing in bridal fashion, I’ll wager that I’ve shot more bridal gowns than the average wedding photographer.
Change is one of the hardest things people will have to deal with during their life time. Some people love it, others hate it, but there’s really no way around it. And one of those big steps that can really alter your path is a career-related change. Most people spend a third of their day at some sort of job.
Shooting fashion can be a whirlwind of activity as you try to corral a team of creatives into constructing an amazing array of images. More than with any other type of shoot, I find that things have tendency to go wrong during the course of the fashion shoot.
I recently moved to Paris from Cape Town, South Africa. I don't speak French yet, but I have made some friends here due to the photographic industry mixing with the fashion and beauty industry quite a bit. I decided that I needed to get out and meet some photographers and maybe learn and share what I know while having a good time.
Earlier today, Sony released the a9, which basically reads like a dream list of specifications. It's a clear shot across the bow of Nikon's and Canon's professional bodies, but as much as I'd like to pick one up, I won't be buying it.
When you’re planning a trip to visit Iceland’s majestic countryside, chances are that you are probably following the ring road in one direction or another. And with good reason. Almost all the major sights are dotted around this single road. Or are they? Should we even be chasing these well-known compositions to get a copy of our own on the wall?
Everyone has what they would tell you is their favorite photo. The measure of why has changed quite a bit over the years and I think I might like the old way better.
There’s a big trend in the business of weddings. In the old days, when venues had to walk to the bus stop uphill both ways in the snow, they also designed and printed their own wedding brochures. These handouts are given to every couple who comes into the venue.