What Are Some of the Downsides of Becoming a Professional Photographer?
Loving what you do is the goal of most, but can doing what you love threaten that passion?
Loving what you do is the goal of most, but can doing what you love threaten that passion?
Guest writer, Patrick Gensel is a photographer from Northeast PA with a passion for travel and adventure. He sent us this fun inspiration project on abstract macro photography. Hopefully this very thorough demonstration will spark your imagination for your own abstract macro project.
I love photography, and I have more than a passing interest in tabletop games. You can only imagine my excitement when I heard there was a tabletop game being developed which lets you play as a wildlife photographer trying to get the best shots!
Each week on Fstoppers Answers, we answer a question asked by the photography community. This week, we were asked - "How do you market to social media? (When marketing your photography on social media, is it more effective to always be trickling out content constantly, or less frequently but higher quality and more content at once. For example, if I do a shoot with a model, should I post a photo a day, or a set a week?)"
Over the past three years, the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs minister, Eamon Gilmore, was reported to have spent €119,284 on photography. We members of the photography community may think, “So what?” but that's a whopping $163,408 US dollars, in a world that seems to be discouraged with paying photographers their dues.
With photographic lighting, there is plenty to learn. Each surface requires its own type of light and every modifier produces its own signature light. One other element we must always consider, though, is the photographer’s intent.
One of my favorite things to do, when I'm able to, is to do pro bono work for local charities that need the help. There's something special, in a way, about not being paid: the "client" is usually a lot more flexible in their expectations and they allow you more leeway in your creative process. So when I got a chance to do some marketing material for a half-marathon that benefited local emergency services, I took it.
It's no secret that the majority of the photography and art community tends to lean towards Apple for many of their services. Google is hoping to convert a few of us with the announcement of Android 5.0 L this past weekend. Adding RAW support, full manual controls, and any other features to the camera system might make Android the best option for photographers everywhere.
Action sport photography has always been something that I have been drawn to, but I just don't have the access and opportunity to shoot it very often. So when I got the chance to shoot some wakesurfing, I Instantly jumped at the opportunity. The one thing I wanted to do going into the shoot though, was come out with something different.
Samyang Optics is about to release a new lens with the perspective control function — Samyang T-S 24mm 1:3.5 ED AS UMC. The official product presentation will take place on September 18th 2012, during international photographic Photokina fairs held in Cologne.
Jerry Ghionis probably doesn’t need an introduction anymore. He is a Nikon Ambassador, a WPPI Grand Master, as well as a three-time AIPP Australian Wedding Photographer winner, just to name a few of his achievements. Many that have attended his five-day workshop speak highly of his teaching skills and technical knowledge. If for some reason you cannot get a seat to one of his masterclasses, there is still the Ice Society, and it is now available for only $100 a year.
Guns N Roses was one of my favorite bands growing up. I recently read Slash's biography and realized that his friend Robert John had not only shot all of those iconic album images, but he also documented the band's entire road to stardom. Of course I had order Robert's book Guns N Roses, The Photographic History. If you enjoy band photography check out this interesting documentary on how he made the book, and what it's like photographing the most dangerous band in the world.
Tara Minshull is a rather successful fine art photographer based in Los Angeles who specializes in conceptual and cinematic images, oftentimes utilizing mixed media to realize her vision. Tara was kind enough to give us some of her time for an interview, in which she discusses the merits of art school, her motivations and the constantly evolving themes of her work.
For this shoot, Michael David Adams developed his concept from the story of Hypnos, the god of sleep. It's moody, it's dark, and I love it. But check this out... lately I've gotten a lot of questions from people looking to make the move from naturally lit location shooting, into the studio. The problem many of these photographers are running into isn't just confined to learning strobes.
Is it perhaps too simplistic to assume that photography should always be approached through the age-old saying "picture is worth a thousand words"? Or is it maybe a field that is more multifaceted than that?
In this behind the scenes video, Photographer Jay P. Morgan of The Slanted Lens explains in-depth, the differences between lighting with the Octodome and a rectangular soft box. By building a 12 foot tape wall, he was able to clearly explain the area of coverage and quality of light for 14 different lighting set-ups.
A man has proposed to his photographer girlfriend in an unconventional manner: etching a huge thigh tattoo of a vintage film camera along with the message, “Can’t Picture Myself Without You. WYMM?”
The legendary photography brand LEE Filters, founded in 1961, has announced a new version of their popular SW150 filter system specially designed to be compatible with a broader range of ultra wide-angle lenses. This system is designed to adapt filters to ultra wide-angle lenses with built-in petal sunshade lens hoods and without screw threads.
Running a photography business, or even just posting to social media as an amateur, can end up driving some of us crazy with worry and anxiety. I'm one of these people, but thanks to friends, family, and my own doggedness I've learned some ways to cope with the madness.
Canon has revealed that it will announce two more RF lenses before the end of 2021. Which lenses can we expect and what would you like the Japanese manufacturer to add to the lineup?
DxO, now celebrating its 20th anniversary, has done a solid update to PhotoLab, its class-leading RAW editor.
Just the other day I was thinking about the great footage and images I have that might do well in a stock library. I just didn't know where to go and which site was best. so I closed the folder and let it go. But, here at Fstoppers we get the best news first. Perfect timing for sure. We got a heads-up from Dissolve that they are launching a rights-managed stock library with 50,000 images on June 1st. They also want to open it up to individual photographers to contribute and form part of their premium stock offering.
For an app that brings the hipster out in everyone, Instagram showed it can really grow up today. Five new filter updates almost wouldn't matter. So what? We have a million other apps and editing tools and already sometimes too many Instagram filters. But today's update brings something that Instagram has lacked from Day One: subtlety.
Famed Magnum photographer Elliott Erwitt, known for his powerful black and white work and mastery of Bresson's "decisive moment," sits down with Gaia Squarci and Edoardo Mari for a rare brief interview. In it he discusses his immigration to NYC in 1939, his alter ego (André S. Solidor), and life as one of the most impactful photographers of the 20th century.
Pixels has launched a pretty slick little app that will let prospective clients who are purchasing your prints on pixels.com to see them on their walls in different frames before making a purchase. The app, simply named pixels.com, targets a wall and then shows you on your iPad what the framed artwork would look like there.
I've heard several arguments in the past against cropping images. But in my opinion cropping is OK. Here's why.
Nikon has just announced the new D3200, an upgrade for the entry-level D3100, with a whopping 24.2 megapixels and some serious bumps in important areas. Full specs after the jump!
Before we even get started on this video be sure to hit the closed captioning option on the Youtube video because the interpreter doesn't get it all. For those of you that don't know, Liu Bolin is also called "The Invisible Man" due to his series of images where he is painted to match his surroundings. In this video he talks not only about his process but also about his motivation. Like most great artists Bolin starts off by coming to an understanding of what he is trying to say. Not only