Are Your Photographs Aesthetic?
Do you want your images to look “good”? Aesthetics will help you understand the value of an image beyond its informative and representative character. Let's ask some great philosophers what they think about it.
Do you want your images to look “good”? Aesthetics will help you understand the value of an image beyond its informative and representative character. Let's ask some great philosophers what they think about it.
With the amount of technological advancements that we’ve come to expect, or in some cases demand, from camera manufacturers, where can they go without simply making a camera that does everything for you? All manufacturers, of any worth, are continually enhancing the features of their cameras. Fujifilm is one of these manufacturers, with one of the highest pixel count APS-C sensors, and their range of affordable medium format cameras puts pressure on other manufacturers to keep up in some aspects
Flour bombs to the head, water balloons bouncing off my face, ribbon dancing, beer pours, back flops, a ginger eating cinnamon, and silly string to the face. These are a few of of the things we tried today in slow mo on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus from Apple. Check out the results here.
On August 21, hundreds of thousands of people in North America and millions watching live at home will be experiencing a once, maybe twice, in a lifetime celestial opportunity. A total eclipse of the sun. Thousands of photographers will be traveling to locations along the path of totality to get the best possible photographs during the event. Photographing an event like this requires some special equipment so I will go over what you’ll need and some extra tools like the Sky-Watcher Star Tracker Mini (SAM) that can help you take your images to the next level.
The X-T3 brings a host of changes and improvements over previous X-series cameras. Its new sensor and processor enable much faster performance and significant feature enhancements for both stills and video.
Imagine one day you let a photographer, maybe even a friend, take some photos of you. Then imagine that a few years later your friends and colleagues alert you that you are the poster child of an HIV positive ad in a free AM New York Newspaper. This appears to be the situation for a Brooklyn woman now suing Getty Images for the infraction.
Creating dramatic headshots using multiple lights doesn't have to be difficult. One of the best ways to become proficient at using a three-light setup is by building it one light at a time. In this article and the accompanying video, I will demonstrate how you can easily create dramatic headshots and portraits using a key light, kicker light, and fill light.
Several weeks ago I wrote an article about Profoto's new-ish pack, the Pro-B4, which has a flash duration of 1/25,000th of a second. Well, last week I was finally able to take it for a test drive. And what better way to test an insane flash duration than with water?
According to the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA), the tour agreement photographers must sign to document her concerts requires transfer of the full copyright of the images taken to her tour company and that they obtain written permission from Ariana Grande herself for the photographer to be able to even post the images.
Yes I said it. I can hear the outraged shrieks of equipment addicted photographers, but hear me out. In February, I went to Capetown for a month to please my trigger finger and shot eight stories in the same location using just natural light. South Africa is a renowned location for occidental productions. When it is snowing in Europe and in the States, it is summer season there. During that time the only weather complication can arise from wind with the upside being constant blue skies. During my stay, I got unpredictable rain and clouds. When I was done throwing tantrums at the black skies and banging my head against a wall questioning my decision of spending hard earned bucks to fly to the southern tip of Africa, I capitulated and went with the flow. And learned a lot in the process. Getting out of my comfort zone reminded me about the core of photography: my vision.
The Einstein E640 strobe from Paul C. Buff is compact, light weight unit capable of shouldering studio work yet portable enough to take on location. The unit weighs in at four pounds and because it is self contained, it does not require a battery pack which cuts down on gear bulk.
I shot around with the Einstein 640 and the 86 inch PLM (parabolic light) umbrella in studio to test the products and see how they stacked up in my work flow.
There is no substitute for hard work when it come to being a photographer. In my opinion, the best way to improve your work is to shoot as much as possible. If you want to be a surf photographer, shoot surfers, if you want to be a portrait photographer, shoot portraits, and so on. However, for photographers just starting out, chances are it's going to take some time and experience to build your skills to the point where you are able to specialize in one thing. While this is not always the case, here are some tips to help you make the most of the simple things and improve your photography.
The Fstoppers Logo contest has ended and after over 1500 submissions I can say that I believe all possible avenues have been explored. Both Patrick and I went through every single logo one by one separately and we narrowed them down to our favorite 17. Check out the full post to see our best options and vote on your favorites.
Sigma has announced several new pieces of gear in preparation for Photokina this coming week. Firstly, they have announced the availability of two different versions of the150-600mm f/5-6.3, one a Sport line lens and the other a Contemporary line member. They also announced the 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3 lens, also a member of the Contemporary line. Finally they announced the first global vision accessories: teleconverters and filters.
There are quite a lot of complaints like: "Canon won't release a 4K video camera." At the end of the day, most photographers and filmmakers publish visuals online, and most viewers watch them on sub-2K mobile devices. Here's how much resolution you truly need.
Beginning in 1995, consumer electronics giant Sony and high-end optics company ZEISS entered into a partnership that is still going strong. Today on the market you will find Sony, Sony/ZEISS, and ZEISS branded lenses. So what’s the difference between all of these, or are they actually quite similar?
I don’t use Adobe Lightroom. I use Bridge and Photoshop to retouch my client’s and my own images. Here are some tips and advice on how to use certain tools in Photoshop to get the best out of your work.
Would you ever turn your back on a river full of roaming crocodiles while your cohorts chucked food into the water? I wouldn't either, but this photographer at the “Crocodile Bridge” over the Tarcoles River in Costa Rica, got a close look at one of the river beasts while perched in the grass.
Robert Capa said, “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” This might be an exception to that rule.
What do you think about him pushing the boundary?
I feel like I write a similar article every few months, but this whole theory I have about going and shooting is something that just continues to benefit me day after day. Of course it can be challenging to always go out and shoot or to always even just want to shoot. I know some of us are young, some of us have other jobs, some of us have families or some of us do photography as a hobby...
Haida recently sent me their new M10 Filter holder kit for review. I tried to spice up our review video with an interesting photoshoot and ended up destroying our Nikon D850 in a rogue wave.
How many times have you wondered which model or brand of camera is the best one to fit your needs and budget? Every photographer has had to go through the frustrating process of slogging through reviews and websites trying to get a feel for how they should use their money. Now there's an incredibly easy website to compare any camera with the click of a button.
Photography is a lot of fun, but it can also be a very lonely journey filled with worry and self-doubt. It is important to surround yourself with other like-minded artists and people who inspire you and that you can learn from.
Sometimes tattoos can add a lot to the character and the general feeling of your images. The problem is most models you'll work with wont have any tattoos, or won't have the type of tattoo you would like to have in the image. In this 15 minute video tutorial you can learn how to add any tattoo to your subject in Photoshop, and make it look real. The techniques used in this tutorial are very useful for many other uses, so if tattoos are not your thing, it's still a great video to learn from.
Spoiler alert: building a successful Instagram page takes work. Hard work. I'm sorry, but to be incredibly honest with those that have followed me since the beginning it takes more than a snapshot with my iPhone and hitting the post button. Breaking down the hours and even minutes in my day to show you my process and commitment to the platform will give you an insiders look to the mindset you need to be successful on Instagram.
There is something very special about taking a self portrait of yourself. Being both the model and the photographer makes you feel very comfortable, relaxed and open for trying unique ideas. You don't need to be afraid of the results because you have the control over what gets out, you dont need to feel shy trying cool ideas, because no one needs to be around when you shoot. No pressure, just you, your camera and all the time in the world. Check out these 20 great self portraits found on Flickr.
The latest firmware for the Canon EOS R6, version 1.3.0, is no longer available after reports of a "fatal Bug" less than 24 hours after release.
Turning the work you do on a personal project into something that makes you money isn't a new idea (just ask stock shooters.) However, the forethought required to concept a personally fulfilling shoot or production that will also have the chance to generate some income can be tricky to figure out. This past weekend I had three shoots, and they were all because of one personal project I created a month ago. And I actually planned for this to happen.
So much of the discourse surrounding the latest cameras is usually about Eye AF: how fast it is, how consistent, is camera X’s better than camera Y’s. There’s a reason for that, and it’s not just because it’s the latest buzzword.
Architectural photography is an exacting discipline. Consequently, small mistakes can make a large impact on your body of work. In this article, I cover five common mistakes that I’ve observed in architectural photography.
Remember the Olympus E-5? If you don't, I can't say I blame you. It was Olympus's last attempt at a "professional" DSLR that was anything but. Everything about the E-5 felt outdated as soon as it was released. It's been years since the E-5, and Olympus is finally ready with its successor, the micro four thirds OM-D E-M1.