Samyang XP 50mm f/1.2 Lens Announced

After the release of the Samyang XP 14mm f/2.4 and XP 85mm f/1.2, the company has now announced the latest “XPert” lens, the 50mm f/1.2.

Alt-J Writes Entire Song About Two Photographers Dying In War

Chances are you've heard of Alt-J or could recognize several of their hit songs currently being played on every indie rock station. What you may not know is that their song Taro was written about the first female war photojournalist and her life partner who both died doing what they love.

Profoto Adds High Speed Sync to Beloved B1 Strobe through Firmware Update

Until now, High Speed Sync (HSS) has been a luxury feature designed exclusively for speedlights (and select new strobes), allowing you to shoot using strobes at shutter speeds previously unavailable. However, announced this morning, Profoto has enabled High Speed Sync solutions to their beloved B1 studio strobe, and best of all? It's available now as a simple firmware update.

Blackmagic Cinema Camera Catches Fire During Filming

First reported on planet 5D, then picked up by our friends at PetaPixel, earlier this week producer and videographer, Forest Gibson's $4k+ Blackmagic Cinema Camera kit caught fire after filming. This a video he shot of the aftermath.

Is Paying to Advertise as a Wedding Photographer on WeddingWire a Waste of Money?

It’s time to answer the often-asked question I hear from many wedding photographers. Is it worth the money to advertise with online marketplaces for professional wedding vendors? I track everything in my wedding business. If you can record it, track it, analyze it, and summarize it, I’m aware of it. There’s nothing quite as satisfying as opening up a spreadsheet of raw, unrefined data and pulling out the hidden truths that lie dormant in the numbers.

Free Training:  Learn All The New Features of Photoshop CS6

If you are like me, you probably update to new versions of Photoshop only to not take advantage of any of the new features. Learning new techniques on your own time is always time consuming. This week(end) only, our friends at CreativeLIVE are offering a free download of Lesa Snider's CS6 course (normally $79) which is Live now! Lesa covers all of the new features like Puppet Warp, Liquify, Lighting Effects, Video, and Content Aware as well as some basic tools you might already know about. Details are in the full post

Five Shots You Need to Get When You Are an Industrial Photographer

An industrial photographer is someone who photographs the people and the products associated with multi-million dollar companies that make machines and tools for industries such as power and electric, trucking, and construction. As an industrial photographer, you will photograph everything from a two-ton drill used underground to a two-inch screw that secures a safety harness used by workers from a state electric company.

Fstoppers Chats With Algolux About the Future of Computational Photography

Computational photography is quickly becoming one of the leading threads for the future of our industry. Whether we realize it or not, it is already deeply integrated into our DSLRs and cameraphones in a supporting role, while other manufacturers have embraced it as the fundamental basis for equipment. Recently, I chatted with the team from Algolux about how they’re tackling some of the most relevant problems in photography to enable a future in which software and hardware work more in tandem than ever before.

Winners of the 2017 NYC Drone Film Festival

I attended the Third Annual NYC Drone Film Festival this year and I have to say I was beyond impressed with some of the work I saw. I expected a lot of cinematic, crazy drone filming type stuff, but I was glad to see that there were a bunch of categories for all kinds of different drone work that was submitted. From all this, I was inspired to keep going out there and creating the work I do and maybe even submitting something myself for next year. Here are the winners of each category, check them out and enjoy some of the work that went into all this filming!

Educating Mothers About Breastfeeding Through Photography

We have seen various projects appear that celebrate and normalize humanity's oldest and most natural action: breastfeeding. However, while some photographers try to focus on how the public perceives a woman who breastfeeds in public, Emma Shardlow Hudson from Hudson & Rose Photography does something quite unique.

A Fantastic Glimpse Into The Tricky World Of Photographer Agents And Representation

Disclaimer: This post isn't riddled with eye candy, nor will it be the next viral hit of the month. What it does contain, however, may be far more valuable to any working or aspiring commercial photographer than any viral video or cutesy photo series. Norman Maslov is a well-known artist's and photographer's agent who recently performed a great interview with PhotoPolitic, a website specializing in promoting photographers

How To Compose An Image For Concert Photography

Guest writer J. Dennis Thomas is an Austin, Texas based photographer and the author of the Nikon Digital Field Guide series by Wiley Publishing as well as the author of Concert and Live Music Photography, Pro Tips from the Pit and Urban and Rural Decay Photography ,Finding the Beauty in the Blight published by Focal Press.

Will Fstoppers Upgrade to the GH5S?

The rumors were true and today Panasonic announced the new GH5S, the "updated" version of the GH5. It's certainly better in some ways, but not all.

Godox Officially Releases the A1 Flash for Smartphones

Last month, Godox announced that they were working on a flash unit that was specifically designed for smartphones. Now, they've made the Godox A1 available for presale. We already knew that the A1 would be capable of being used as an off-camera flash, a constant video light, or as a trigger for other Godox flashes. With the release of the product, we now have more specifics about the flash.

Fstoppers Reviews the New Tamrac Anvil Professional Series Photo Backpacks

For almost 40 years, Tamrac has been producing bags aimed towards photographers who embraced the great outdoors. Their brand new collection of Anvil backpacks — which replaces the Expedition line — continues their tradition while making a number of exciting design choices that make this collection their best ever. In this review, I take a look at the Anvil Slim 15, which is sized for photographers who have entered the exploding mirrorless market, but shares the same look and feature set of the rest of the Anvil collection.

The Story Behind a Landscape Photograph

What is it about landscape photography that draws us back into nature? Is it waiting for the perfect light to hit the mountains overlooking a vast, green valley? Is it sitting on a rocky shore, listening to and witnessing the sheer power of Mother Nature's waves crash against the rocky shore? Is it the calmness of a misty pine forest at dawn, waiting for the sunrise and hearing the gentle crack of the trees, as a gentle breeze sweeps through the branches? Or is it the thrill of chasing a storm, down a highway in the countryside, while being pelted with hail the size of golf balls?

Helmut Newton: Portrait Of A Fashion Icon (NSFW)

Recently over at the forum, a conversation came up about shooting nudes and glamour style images. One of our readers recommended a short documentary on famous fashion photographer Helmut Newton. We've all seen Helmut's images but if you were like me you might not have known the man behind the images. This 5 part documentary, filmed by June Netwon, shows Helmut working through his shoots with such famous models as Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer as well as the legendary Luciano Pavarotti. It always amazes me how images I would consider 'snapshots' can become iconic images in the fashion world. Fashion photography today often involves studio lighting and extensive photoshop, but as this documentary shows, Helmut was able to cut through the heart of his subjects with nothing more than a film camera often times in auto exposure. Check out more about Helmut over at the Helmut bookstore.
Why We Should Get Excited About Landscape Photography 

When it comes to landscape photography, few other genres offer both the rewards and disappointments it can bring. However, we should avoid the easy route of annoyance and instead get excited about our landscape photography, and here's why! I understand the struggle – the elusive perfect composition, the uncooperative weather. It's easy to become frustrated, annoyed, and perhaps even consider giving up. But before you dismiss the excitement, I have something to share that might just change your perspective!

Astropad Studio Aims for Professionals to Use the iPad Pro as a Graphics Tablet

The team that brought us Astropad, the popular iPad-to-Mac graphics tablet, has debuted an all new advanced product aimed at creative professionals. The new Astropad Studio features customizable gestures, keyboard support, unlimited shortcut sets, and sports Liquid Extreme which offers five times faster performance over the standard Astropad.

Capturing Wingsuit Flyers And Directing A Video Shoot At 10,000 Feet

Working at high altitude is always a challenge, but trying to follow fast moving objects that are actually people defying death is a whole other level of intensity. In this behind the scenes video for a Verizon Fios ad, Director Rob Cohen has wingsuit flyers recorded jumping off of a cliff, but then has to get creative to shoot the not-so-real landing. See how they did it and check out the final ad inside.

The Latest Camera Trend:  Throwing Your Camera In The Air

It seems like there are at least a dozen "photo trends" going on right now but this one has to be the most abstract and definitely the most risky. Steven Leckart of Wired Magazine explains how you too can bring out the artist inside of you by throwing and twirling your point and shoot camera into the air with a long exposure. While Steven explains that you need a few constant lights, I'm willing to bet that you can come up with some interesting results with just natural light too. If you really want to up the ante, throw your DSLR camera with fish eye lens up in the sky ala Mike Larson. I can't find his wedding video at the moment but he demonstrates his unique portrait toss in the full post.
[Pics] Positively Glowing: Creative Photography Isn't Dead

You have to take a look at these amazing shots by Christopher Bucklow. Yes, I said, "have to", as in you don't have a choice. This unique concept is proof that creative photography isn't dead. See the shots and read how he pulled them off in the full post.

Hasselblad Officially Announces Availability of H5D-50c CMOS Camera Back

Hasselblad has made the camera they said existed back in January official: the H5D-50C CMOS medium format back will retail for €20,900. Ian Rawcliffe, Hasselblad CEO, stated: "There is no price premium at all for customers who wish to acquire this groundbreaking technology. The H5D-50c will ship with the same price tag that applies to our H5D-50 model."

Reuters Photojournalist Dies in Afghanistan After Being Left Behind During Retreat

Danish Siddiqui was no stranger to dangerous situations, having captured images of the Rohingya refugees fleeing Myanmar that garnered a team Pulitzer Prize in 2018. He put himself in harm's way during the tensions between the Hindu majority and Muslim minority in Delhi and again during the pandemic. His images of funeral piers in India were in stark contrast to the government's statements that the COVID response was well in hand.

OM System Announce the New TOUGH TG-7 Adventure Camera

Historically, the Olympus TOUGH cameras were well respected by outdoor adventurers, divers, and those who work in extreme environments. The New OM System TOUGH TG-7 has taken a huge step forward with a host of exciting new features.

Holiday Gear Guide: Gift Ideas Under $200

Ah... tis the season of giving! Last week we introduced you to some great gift ideas under $100. We are continuing our Gear Guide this week with ideas that cost just a bit more. For those of you who have a little bit of a budget and you want to make sure you're spending it wisely, we wholeheartedly support that endeavor with these fantastic gift ideas that will keep you under $200 but still put a big grin on your favorite photographer's face.