The Profoto B1 vs. Godox AD600 for Flash Photography

I promised a while back that I would do a comparison between the Profoto B1 and the Godox AD600 head to head. I have finally had the chance to rent and spend some time with the Profoto B1 again, and I am ready to give my thoughts on the two as they pertain to the way I shoot and the situations I spend my time in.

The Future Is Full Frame: Will Canon and Nikon Ditch Crop-Sensor Cameras?

The mirrorless tsunami is well under way. We have a wealth of full-frame options with new mounts, smaller flange distances, vastly improved EVFs, and smaller bodies. Given the dent that this is already putting in DSLR sales, what’s the next step? Sony already has a well-established range of crop-sensor mirrorless bodies, but will Canon and Nikon follow suit?

The Real Difference Between Cheap and Expensive Light Modifiers

I get a lot of commentary on using expensive photo equipment, most notably lighting. Fair enough, a $400 softbox is not for everyone, and most people find it ridiculous to use a modifier this expensive. However, there are good reasons to use such tools. Here is why.

This Street View Hyperlapse Is The Coolest Thing You Will See This Month

Yes, that is a bold claim, but hear me out. Sometimes something so creative yet so painfully simple comes along and just blows me away. This timelapse/hyperlapse video created using Google Street View is just one of those things. My mouth was agape the entire time I was watching this. Teehan+Lax Labs created this project by recording Google Street View movements all over the world and

ParaZero Announces Chutes for Mavic, Phantom Drones

Drones are incredible tools for capturing unique images, but they are susceptible to lost signals, crashes, and other calamities that can hurt your wallet or, worse, someone else. Drone pilots looking to add another layer of safety to the already impressive features on their vehicle will be excited to hear about the latest announcement out of Xponential 2018.

The Updated Science on COVID and Surface Transmission

About a year ago, I wrote an article about the importance of cleaning your camera as we faced the reality of a COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the science at the time, I strongly advocated for a "better safe than sorry" approach. Recently, the CDC has published a brief explaining updated science on surface transmission.

Photographer Jason Lanier Is Out to End Discrimination Against Small Business Photographers

Photographer Jason Lanier is on a mission to end discrimination against the small business photographer. As seen in the video above, he and his group were confronted multiple times while attempting to do a shoot. In the first location they are asked to leave the premise altogether. In the second they were asked to "make it look less commercial" by getting rid of a strobe. In both instances they weren't interfering with any event around them nor were they disturbing the public and only had a single portable strobe setup. Lanier notes a growing trend to neglect and discriminate against the small business photographer.

The 7 Ways of Zen Landscape Photography

Zen photography comes naturally with an empty mind. It’s both waiting for a moment where light, shape, and dynamics fall into place, and being devoid of planning in advance. Instead of checking the weather online before a shoot, you just venture out and essentially wing it. It’s all about being in the moment. As a landscape photographer, I want to share the ways of this minimalist sub-genre.

One Million Ways to Do Things in Lightroom

If there's one thing I've learned over time, it's that there are often different ways to accomplish the same task. Likewise, every Lightroom user does things in different ways. That doesn't make it wrong; it's just different.

Why the Canon R1 and R5 Mark II Aren't for Me

There is quite a lot of excitement about the new Canon cameras. Of course, the much-anticipated Canon flagship is bound to attract attention, as well as the much-improved Canon R5 Mark II, which builds on the legacy of the famous R5. Yet, I am not buying any of these cameras. Here’s why.

Sony Unveils the 24 MP, 4K HDR a7 III Body at $1,999

Sony just unveiled its next big body. The third-generation a7 III brings a much-needed update to the more reasonable-resolution a7 line. Here are all the specs and everything you need to know about this new 4K mirrorless beast.

Win the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 or 17-70mm with Your Best Shallow DOF Photo

Sigma's new lenses are making some real waves in the photo community. They're affordable, beautiful and most importantly perform amazingly. The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 is one of our favorite lenses currently on the market, and it can be yours if you win this month's contest (for the camera mount of your choosing). We want to see your best shallow depth of field image! Enter now!

Watch Amazing Retoucher Marina Dean-Francis Speed Retouch

Last week, we featured an interview with the awesomely talented retoucher and photographer Marina Dean-Francis. This week, she's shared a video with Fstoppers showing her retouching on a hair and beauty image. Although the video has been sped up tremendously, it's not hard to see that there aren't many quick tricks in play here. It's no secret that maybe the greatest skill in retouching is patience.

Pay close enough attention, and there are some very useful tips in this video - my personal favorite comes in around the 2:30 mark and is a great way to add highlights on...

The Relationship Between the Foreground and the Background

Using something in the foreground of your landscape image can add a lot of depth, but placing a foreground in your composition without consideration is not the way. It can be smart to give it a little thought. In this article, I will give you a couple of things to consider that may lead to a better composition.

How To Find Your Best Natural Light Source

You probably know by now that natural light from a window will create beautiful images. This free and readily available light source is my first go-to when shooting food and portraits. It yields beautiful results, but has a downside. It can change on you throughout a shoot. In order to achieve the look you are after, it is best to understand your options and find the best natural light source for you!

Fstoppers Reviews the Incredibly Portable and Powerful Lume Cube Lights

It's been nearly two years since the people at Lume Cube launched their Kickstarter to bring their vision of an incredibly powerful and portable light to the photography community. For the last few weeks, I've had the pleasure to test these bad boys out in the wild and see what all the hype is about.

Adobe’s Creative Cloud 2017 Updates Concentrate on Improving User Experience and Supporting New Media

Adobe concentrated its Creative Cloud 2017 updates heavily in newer media areas as it announced an After Effects improvement to render 3D elements up to 20 times faster, a Premier Pro update that automatically detect and create settings for different types of virtual reality content, and a new project, Project Felix, to aid in the creation of photo-realistic images by combining 2D and 3D assets. Meanwhile, cloud-based document collaboration across Creative Cloud, universal search in Photoshop, and other new features improve usability across a number of applications.

Camera Gear You'll Want to Have for Shooting Fashion and Editorial Photography

Over the last several months, the Fstoppers team was able to link up with Clay Cook, an acclaimed editorial and portrait fashion photographer, to produce a comprehensive tutorial teaching his photography techniques. If you want to learn more about the full tutorial and what it offers, check out the store page. One of the key elements of Clay's work is the variety of gear he has used throughout his career. Included in the tutorial, and now available here on Fstoppers, is a peek into the equipment he uses to craft his stunning images.

Take These Four Important Steps Before You Outsource Your Printing

Professional-quality photo printers and paper are expensive. It can be difficult to justify the steep price of the machine and upkeep for most photographers who shoot as a hobbyist or even a starting professional. Outsourcing your printing needs to a pro photo lab alleviates the cost, but there are some inherent complications in not being able to print from home. These four helpful steps will minimize the disconnect when sending out your images to the lab.

Pentax's Chaotic DSLR Strategy

Pentax launched a new "brand vision" recently in preparation for its upcoming product release, going as far as to develop an extensive webpage and supporting video to promote its DSLR cameras. Here are 10 reasons why their camera strategy is in disarray.

Why Do Your Instagram Photos Suddenly Look Terrible on Facebook?

There has been a disturbance. Have you felt it? Some astute photophiles (not a word I just made up) have noticed a change in quality in their posts when Instagram pushed a photo to Facebook after the most recent update, 7.5. So I decided to run a few comparison tests of my own to see if the quality really was different, and why my photos suddenly started to look so gritty.

What Photographers Do To Entertain Themselves In An Airport

Okay this video has no real educational value at all but I really enjoyed it. Larry Chen and Joe Ayala, two drifting photographers and videographers for Tandem of Die, recently were stuck overnight at the Dallas Fort-Worth Airport. Instead of trying to sleep on the fluorescent soaked vinyl benches, they decided to create a fun video of them playing around the empty airport while security was apparently asleep. Using a few Gopros, their Canon 5D Mark II DLSRs, and some really clever camera angles, Justin and Joe have made a video that is sure to go viral. Already there is a lot of debate going on about the lack of security in Dallas causing the DFW Airport having to issue the statement found in the full post. This isn't the first time something like this has happened, but I'm pretty sure things are soon going to change. Hopefully as photographers and videographer, you can appreciate the cinematography and clever camera angles. UPDATE: Full article from the guys themselves Link Inside!
Annoyed With That White Outline Around Your Model? Here's How to Remove It in Photoshop

I love shooting on location and am passionate about deep blue skies. Usually I would use CPL and ND filters to get the best skies to my taste. A detailed article about how to get dramatic skies is described in my previous article, "The Ultimate Guide to Dramatic Skies in Portrait Photography." After the shot is taken I always play with the luminosity and saturation values of the blue tones. One issue I often face while darkening the skies via luminosity is having a white outline appear around my model. Today I will take you through a short tutorial of how to get rid of that quickly and effectively, without the need to compensate on your luminosity.

How to Shoot Behind the Scenes Videos for Your Business

A few days ago Creative Live posted this video of Benjamin Von Wong explaining the importance of creating meaningful behind the scenes videos and how they can help shape your career. It's no secret that I do post Ben's videos to the site often. His videos are not only educational, but fun to watch, as well. You too can go on to create your own informative and noticeable BTS videos with these tips.