Modern cameras have lots of functions. It can be challenging to make the best possible settings. Often, it takes time to get the optimal settings for your personal photography. However, there are some simple things that are worth checking out.

Many photographers begin their careers out of a hobby or simple interest in the field then eventually go part time as they continue to go to school or work another job in an unrelated field. I myself do this as a designer full time for an ad agency while also putting 40-50 additional hours into freelance photography and social media consulting on top of that. Only select few, such as famed photographer Eelco Roos, aka @Croyable on Instagram, get a chance to quit comfortable day jobs such as as an IBM Engineer to take on Intagramming full time.

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. Shields is at it again with his fine art series Sirens which blends the genres of landscape and nude in a beautifully surrealist way. In this video, Tyler takes you behind the scenes in a look at the creation of some of the Sirens images.

This year Tamron is releasing a new ultra-wide angle zoom lens for Sony Alpha full-frame mirrorless cameras. Will it have enough to compare with the Sony 16-35mm f/2.8 GM but at a more affordable price?

I’m sure everyone at this point has explored the vast array of articles discussing all the technical aspects of the newly announced D850. If you haven’t here is one from your very own Fstoppers writer, Adam Ottke. You can read the announcement here. While I agree with most of the assessments that I’ve read or watched so far in that the camera will be a powerhouse with really innovative features, my thoughts come back to what was in the news just a few months ago. What is the financial health of Nikon? Do they still need help from other companies like Fujifilm? Most importantly, should I invest in new equipment from a company whose financial standing is in question? With all this in mind, I did some research.

Leroy Bellet is a 16-year-old freelance surf photographer from Australia who has recently been featured in several major surf publications because of his experimentation with artificial lighting in the water. Using a flash in the water allows the subject to still be illuminated while taking advantage of times when the natural light is most unique, like early morning, sunset, and night. We recently got the chance to talk to Leroy and learn a little bit about him and his technique.

If you are a videographer or a photographer dabbling in video you know how much of a pain in the ass it can be cutting interview footage with just one camera angle. The feared "jump cut" in an interview can completely ruin the overall production and professionalism of your entire video project. Luckily, Adobe has recently debuted their new Morph Cut tool in Premiere Pro CC to help filmmakers fix this sometimes unavoidable problem.

Last week I wrote a post detailing my frustration with getting airline agents to check my bags under the "media rate" that I am entitled to as a photographer or "film making crew." I decided to print my own media pass so that this will never be an issue again and today they arrived.

There are hundreds of 35mm film camera options out there. Everything from cheap drug-store point and shoots to beautiful, bespoke-feeling Leicas, to the Canon AE-1 hipsters wear around their necks with a guitar strap. The Nikon F100 is, without a doubt, one of the best 135 cameras out there and is, in my opinion, is the absolute best choice for a digital shooter to experiment with 35mm film.*

A short walk leads to a short story about how bigger isn’t always better.

Perhaps one of the most prominent roadblocks to efficiency when building a portfolio website is the process of selecting, exporting, and uploading batches of photos. Adobe is seeking to reduce the number of steps in that process with their new feature that allows for one-click implementation of Lightroom collections.

Apple has been causing controversy within the world of "working professionals" after releasing the new Macbook Pro laptops and replacing all old ports including USB, HDMI, power, and MiniDisplay, with Thunderbolt 3 ports. To use almost any accessory with your laptop you'll now need to buy a dongle... but the dongle doesn't even work.

Wide-angle lenses are often considered the go-to lens for landscape photography; however, sometimes they are also useless, and the telephoto lens is the one to use.

You may have noticed during our studies of umbrellas and technique that we have been lighting everything in a very direct manner, illustrating some very basic techniques for you to test out with your own photos.

Those techniques will serve you well, and can be used to create beautiful photos. But it’s time to try something a bit advanced, something that will give you the ability to better control your umbrella light and impart your own style into the photo.