Becci Manson Helps Restore the Reputation of Retouchers

A professional retoucher does so much more than just pushing pixels about. To say the least there is a lot of artistic interpretation, collaboration, technical understanding and skill involved. Then there are master retouchers like Becci Manson who go even deeper, show us the nonsuperficial side of the industry and help restore pride in a profession that has gotten a bad rap over the years. This video will give you some understanding of what it means to work as a high end retoucher but more importantly it will show you that, being a retoucher doesn’t mean you don’t have a conscience or something important to offer.​

Inklet App for Mac Turns Apple's New Force Touch Trackpads Into Your Next Portable Pen Tablet

TenOneDesign, makers of the popular Pogo and Pogo Connect tablet pens (among other things), are the first to market with a Mac desktop application that takes advantage of the Force Touch trackpads in Apple's new MacBook and refreshed 13" Retina MacBook Pro. Rather sweetly named Inklet, the application runs in the background to allow users with any capacitative tablet pen to convert the capabilities of the new trackpad into a pressure-sensitive writing and drawing pad -- no Wacom needed (sort of).

The Upside of Brand Loyalty For Photographers and Filmmakers

Sometimes, loyalty is the gift that keeps on giving. Now, before a large sector of the reading audience skips straight from the title of this essay to the comment section to tell me I’m a fanboy or being foolish for proposing the idea that committing to one brand is sometimes a good idea, let me start off with a few concessions.

The Creation Of A Modern Wedding Video

Wedding videography is no longer the boring handycam crap it was a few years ago. Visual Masterpiece takes us behind the scenes on their latest wedding video and gives us fantastic details into what it really takes to produce a video at this level. Shooting the footage itself is hard, but the editing is really what makes their videos shine. Check out the full post to see the finished product.
[Video] Same Day Wedding Videos By Antonio Domingo

Hi there F(stop)'ers! Today I am posting from the AFP Photo Expo in Caldas, Portugal. I must say this is the most fun and unique expo I've yet to experience. Last night during the Gala event, I sat across from wedding videographer, Antonio Domingo. During conversation he mentioned that upon his client's requests he sometimes shoot, edits and delivers the newly weds their wedding video the night of their wedding! more in the full post

Improve Lightroom's Graduated Filter With These Six Tweaks

Lightroom's graduated filter is like magic, offering incredible editing options from the comfort of your own home, but it's not perfect. Take a whisk through these top six ways to improve the graduated filter for better image editing success.

Friendly Reminder: Photography Is Subjective

While it is tempting to constantly compare ourselves to other photographers, it’s important to remind ourselves of what we already know: the quality of art cannot be measured in numbers.

Fstoppers Reviews the HEX Back Loader DSLR Backpack V2

HEX has been on a tear lately, releasing plenty of functional bags with some meaningful limited editions. The HEX Back Loader DSLR Backpack V2 continues the trend with a useful and stylish package that’s just about perfect for shooters with DSLR or mirrorless cameras.

How I Shot This Natural Beauty Shoot

Beauty can be a lot of fun to shoot and it’s fun to find different ways to light a face in a flattering way. We might not be perfect in real life, but on camera? On camera we can be as perfect as the lighting setup and editing allows us to be! Magic? No. We still need gorgeous models but a great setup certainly helps.

Apple Vision Pro for Photographers: How Useful?

The Apple Vision Pro is all over the news lately. It's an expensive $3,500 wear-on-your-head device that offers augmented reality, virtual reality, and what Apple calls "Spatial Computing." (That's just the base price. Adding memory and prescription lenses adds to your ticket.)

Have You Ever Tried This With Your Photos?

If you're not exploring all the possibilities that modern digital editing software offers you then you're letting potential earning opportunities pass you by. This article explores how you exploit different markets with single images.

Optimizing the Light in the Caribbean

Having just returned from the Caribbean on an assignment last week, I thought it might make a nice subject for my first post here on Fstoppers. Photography in the Caribbean (and really any tropical island locale) presents a few challenges - or opportunities depending on how you look at it. Namely balancing good light with good water color.

The Dangers of Sitting to Work: How Too Much Time in Front of the Computer Could Be Putting Photographers' Health at Risk

Yoga balls and standing desks may have become a stereotype of the hipster office space, but there is a legitimate reason for this alteration in traditional office paraphernalia: sitting is bad for you, and photographers should take heed before their health begins to deteriorate. Aside from the musculoskeletal dangers of spending too long sitting at the computer, like neck strain and back problems, other parts of the body may be suffering in silence, such as the heart and pancreas.

Traveling, Shooting, and Uploading: The Workflow

The thrill of traveling to a new place and striking out to document it on our is the reason why many of us travel. But travel can include more than the rush of capturing images, it can have a payout.

Samsung Goes Slim with Thinnest Fisheye on the Market: 10mm f/3.5

UPDATED WITH SAMPLE IMAGES
Though Samsung is a brand very few of us associate with either pro optics or cameras, they really want us to take them more seriously. I've used their mirrorless cameras on occasion and have been generally happy with the experience. To try and sway us further into their camp, Samsung has just unveiled a new addition to their lens lineup: the thinnest fisheye on the market in the 10mm f/3.5 wide angle lens.

Shooting Landscapes from Space

Being in the right place at the right time is often critical for making iconic imagery. Astronaut Chris Hadfield is always in the right place for creating powerful landscapes of planet earth. In a video released yesterday by the Canadian Space Agency, Hadfield demystifies his photographic process for capturing stunning landscapes of the planet from the International Space Station.

Window Photos Will Make You Think

There is just something about portraits of people looking out the window - doesn't matter if its in a building, train or car. Its something we do all the time, but never really pay attention to it. This is why seeing these awesome images capturing this quick-everyday-moment is really great. It makes you think. What are they seeing? What are they thinking of? are they happy? sad? maybe waiting for someone?.

Did an APS-C Canon EOS R7 Just Get Another Step Closer?

Canon enthusiasts are waiting patiently to find out if the manufacturer will add APS-C sensors to its R-series cameras and a new rumor brings the possibility of a model such as an R7 — perfect for action and wildlife photography — another step closer.

"Into The Mind" A Trailer Worth Watching

The guys over at Sherpas Cinema sure know know to put together a epic video. Traveling to ethereal locations and filming the sports best athletes is definitely a winning combination, add the Sherpas behind a camera to film it all and you get one hell of a movie. The Sherpa's filming style is on a completely different level than the rest of the playing field. They have some cool cinematography tricks like at 2:35, which they've done in several of their other films. I'm guessing they do something similar to Mike's last post to get that effect. I always get excited when I see they released a new trailer.

Why I Bought Ancient Flash Kit in 2024

One of the biggest tendencies I see among photographers is the pursuit of the latest and greatest kit. I, however, did the very opposite and invested in some truly ancient equipment. Not because I intended to write an article about it, but because there is a valid reason behind my choice. Let's delve into it.

Pure Garbage: Analyzing a 'Fastmo & Slowmo' Cinematography Technique

The rock band Garbage is out with the first single off their forthcoming album "Strange Little Birds," and while the track is undeniably awesome rock fare, the visual geek in me cannot get past this extremely cool camera effect that invokes "bullet time" from The Matrix. I have a hunch as to how it was done.

Photographer, Chase Jarvis, Talks About New Models Of Creativity

The path to success changes based on who you ask. There is no one path that gets you where you want to be. As creatives, we keep defining that path daily. Chase Jarvis recently talked at the PSFK seminar and he spoke about the new models of creativity. He argues that the traditional system is broken and most people who have 'made it' have done so through a-typical methods.

Should Fujifilm Completely Discontinue the X-H1 Series of Cameras?

When the X-H1 was first announced, I wrote an article talking about how it was a disappointing release from Fujifilm. My thoughts about that camera haven't really changed; however, since rumors of the X-T4 started to circulate, I've had a think about the H series and where it sits in the line-up.

Intellytech Announce New Foldable LED Panels

It’s no secret that flexible and foldable LED panels are a trend right now. Intellytech has stepped up their game by expanding their offerings, to something much bigger than we’re used to.

500px Prime: A New Commercial Licensing Marketplace

Last week, 500px published an article on their blog stating they will be releasing a new project called “Prime”. It is a commercial licensing marketplace for photography on their website. The 500px team seems excited about it, the details are quiet intriguing, but the community has been showing mixed responses.

An Affordable Cinema Zoom Lens: The Fujinon MK 18-55mm T2.9

The video world is changing. If you thought you'd never be able to have a cinema lens because you couldn't afford it, think again, because Fujifilm just released their Fujinon MK 18-55mm T2.9 zoom glass. It will surprise you with its features and price tag.

What Was Your Best Photographic or Video Gear Buy?

The quest for gear can be fraught with disappointment, not to mention expense, but occasionally one piece of equipment exceeds your expectation. A best buy doesn’t need to be the highest quality or most expensive lens or light to find its way into your own hall of fame. For me it represents unexpected value versus the investment. Mine is the Profoto Acute 600e kit. What was yours?

Lensbaby Introduces New Burnside Lens With Extra Creative Control

Lensbaby, known for their creative specialty lenses, has a following of folks that either love or hate the effects. I personally love the effects when used properly. The latest offering, called Burnside, is a 35mm f/2.8 which is similar to the Twist 60 but with more versatility.

 The Lollipod: An All-in-One Tri-Mono-Selfie-Boom-Pod

There are a lot of products out there that try to be the one device to rule them all, and there are a lot of failures. The Lollipod is the newest contender, and it seems to be nothing more than a colorful, collapsible light stand with a cheap tripod head. Have I used one yet? No, and truthfully I can't see why I would. With a maximum support weight of just under one pound (420 grams specifically) I don't see how it could really hold anything