A tripod is a vital tool for many photographers. There is a wide range of tripods available in every price range. You can invest as little as fifty dollars or go as high as fifteen hundred dollars. There are some things to watch out for, regardless the price range.
TrekPak on KickStarter is one of the lastest funding projects aimed at photographers. A innovated design that allows owners of large camera bags and pelican cases alike, easy adjustments of compartment space without having to fight with velcro inserts.
Advertised as the "first consumer 4K camera by Sony," the FDR-AX1 is now available for pre-order at a (consumer friendly?) price of $4,499. It shoots 3840 x 2160p video at 60 fps on a 1/2.3" Exmor R 8.3MP CMOS Image Sensor through a Sony G Lens with 20x optical zoom. Sony says it has packed technology developed for their professional video cameras to create a compact, easy-to-operate 4K consumer model that's designed to make 4K video and professional-quality audio available to the masses.
I never really used to take photos on my phone; in fact, I used to be really against it because I never thought the camera was good enough to capture what I wanted. Of course, it's great to always have a camera on you so you can take a photo, which makes the smartphone one of the best tools around. With today's technology, these cameras just keep getting better, and I am finally beginning to use my phone's camera just to work on my composition and angles when I see something of interest.
You’re not a writer, so stop trying to be one. For the past 10 years I’ve struggled with the same thing, and that's website copy. I finally put that burden to rest and hired a copywriter. Here's why you should too.
For years we wondered why external hard drives didn't come with multiple USB ports so that two or more computers could work off of the same drive at once. Sadly, there isn't a simple way to connect two computers to a single hard drive, but we've found a better solution.
It's 2021. Why are seasoned male photographers still treating female models like sex objects under the guise of education?
Serif launched the beta version of Affinity Photo a few months ago, and it impressed many retouchers. Very robust, not so costly, and quite stable despite its young age, the beta version had everything to seduce amateur photographers and retouchers, as well as professional. It had a couple of functionalities lacking, but Serif was listening to the community and made the software even better. Why do I write everything like it is in the past? Well, because today the stable and official version is here. Affinity Photo is available on the Mac App Store.
The idea of a travel tripod causes hesitation. On one hand, you have a size that makes bringing a tripod on location no longer a physical strain. On the other, these tripods tend to be thin, causing them to be less sturdy than larger, thicker tubed tripods. The key to a good travel tripod is striking a balance of size and strength. For the past few years, MeFOTO has been the leading brand in travel tripods with their wide selection of sizes. Their introductory line of tripods offered everything from tabletop height to a full size 64" tripod. With their newest release, they seem to be pushing the boundaries of how small a tripod can really be.
As a photographer who constantly experiments with new ideas and techniques, I have been busy playing around with some unconventional things that you may find in a photographer's kit.
For photographers looking to get into scanning their own film, the Epson V600 is the perfect first flatbed scanner.
It is the time of the year when we look back at the past 12 months and decide what worked and what didn’t work in our businesses. This is the most common time of the year to re-vamp pricing for the upcoming season.
Having seen many beautiful images of newborns in the past, when I recently became a father for the first time I was keen to get some images of my newborn daughter. Unfortunately, the photographers I wanted to use had no availability, so I thought I'd try it myself. It was an interesting experience.
I don't think there is anything sexier in the lens world than the Zeiss 28-80 T2.9 Compact Zoom Lens. Its robust cine-style housing and calibrated focus scales make pulling tack sharp focus a joy. What is lacks in affordability it drastically makes up for in the most epic of lens performances you can find. If you have the option to rent this on your next shoot, don't think twice. Make sure to check out the Carl Zeiss showreel below as well.
The first thing that comes to mind when panoramas are mentioned is an extremely wide field of view. Often, you need multiple photos to cover such angles. A panorama can also be achieved by a crop. Which method should you use for landscapes? Cropping or stitching?
Yesterday, we talked about five common mistakes beginner photographers make. Now, let's talk about five common mistakes professional photographers make.
Living in the desert, I don’t see a lot of water. And while I lived on coastline, I never really played with water for shoots other than the occasional beach photo. This is why I became fascinated by Nick Pugay’s work when I first saw it. That’s because Nick Pugay takes your wedding photos and engagement photos, underwater.
I had to watch this video three times. It simply blew me away. For years movies have been created using green screens, as is the case here with the 2012 hit "The Avengers." The part that amazed me in this behind the scenes video is the amount of detail that is captured to perfection by the digital artists and how they team up with photographers to recreate reality spheres to insert the actors. Read on to check out some of the facts on how it was created.
Voightlander, maker of one of the sharpest pancake lenses I've ever used, has a new lens on the market, and it's unbelievably fast. Their new 42.5mm f/0.95 lens has the potential to be amazing if you're in the market for a new micro four thirds prime, and with an equivalent to 85mm after factoring the crop magnification, this lens could be amazing for portraits and is available for pre-order now for shipping by August 21.
Sony may have changed the game with the introduction of eye autofocus but Canon might be about to resurrect a feature that’s not been seen since the Canon EOS-3 and EOS 7 were released around twenty years ago: eye-controlled autofocus.
Seven years since inception, I have shot over 250 weddings across the world and it all began from that first itch to capturing someone’s special memory and putting a smile on their face. Looking back is always fun; a lot of mistakes made and lessons learned. As a wedding photographer, I sat by and thought over what I’d say to myself if I were to begin fresh now. Now, this post is not just to those who are raring to get started in photography, but also to the beginner in each one of us who loves to get started every now and then with a fresh perspective.
Let’s not lie to ourselves and try to sugarcoat the issue -- in many circumstances, gear matters. There is no shame in admitting that despite all your talent, some shoots can’t be done without the appropriate hardware. Here is why.
Sony's 85mm f/1.4 is a fantastic lens... but you could save $1,100 if you buy the Samyang version.
Fans of Fujifilm will be pleased to know that the company has announced the development of the X-Pro3, the next in their line of rangefinder-style cameras. The camera will have some very unique features and upgrades; check them out here.
The Overseas Press Club of America is an organization who recognizes photojournalist and photographers for exceptional reporting in the photography medium. Since 1939 the OPC has seeked to maintaining an international association of journalist working abroad and here in the United States. Last night, they awarded 4 different photographers with awards of exceptionalism.
Ever since Benjamin Von Wong took a leap of faith and left his successful career as a engineer to persue his artistic passions, he has kept a legion of die hard fans enchanted by his ability to turn the ordinary into epic. Whether it be organizing complicated pyrotechnics, photographing surreal scenes of ultraviolet models, or chaining models to a shipwreck 25 meters below the surface in Bali, Benjamin has never been interested in being ordinary. In his insanely creative mind, his thought process of "If it's not epic, than what's the point?" has led to some of the most memorable photoshoots in the last several years.
What would you do if one of the proudest photographs in your archive suddenly took on a very dark association? In 2004 I sold an image of a parkour athlete to Adidas to launch a new line of trainers. That athlete is now a convicted sex offender.
Tamron has announced a new generation of wide-angle lenses that surpass their older models with superior optical, build, and stabilization features.
I don’t do a lot of gear reviews, in fact, this is my first for Fstoppers (bear with me). But Lumu is a product I’ve been following since it’s launch on Kickstarter back in 2013. I didn’t invest back then, I’ll tell you why later, but it's a great concept that has become a reality so I’m here to give you my honest thoughts and a short video we hacked together using the meter in the field.
For a long time, Leica was known for producing some of the best cameras on the market. Some of the most iconic images in history have been shot on a Leica and the M series has remained one of their most sought after and almost idolized series of cameras. Recently I had the immense pleasure of testing the Leica M10-P and here are some of my thoughts on the camera.
![[Gear] Camera Bag Padding that Eliminates Velcro](https://cdn.fstoppers.com/styles/med-16-9/s3/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/tp.jpg)
