[Video] A Creative, Inspirational Short by Tom Jenkins

Using Google Street View, stop motion animation, a 5D Mark II, everyday objects as props, great lighting and the power of the creative mind, director Tom Jenkins made what maybe my favorite short of the year, Address Is Approximate. The Story: A lonely desk toy longs for escape from the dark confines of the office, so he takes a cross country road trip to the Pacific Coast in the only way he can – using a toy car and Google Maps Street View. All screen imagery was animated - there are no screen replacements. Produced, animated, filmed, lit, edited & graded by Tom Jenkins (TheoryFilms, Facebook). Music by Cinematic Orchestra
Interview with Beto O'Rourke's Photographer

While Beto O'Rourke and Ted Cruz face off for Texas' Senate seat in one of the fiercest battles of the midterm elections, one man has been able to photograph Rep. O'Rourke throughout the campaign.

PowerPole Accessory Adds Much Needed Battery Life and Reach to the GoPro

Introducing PowerPole, a GoPro accessory with some pretty cool features. The PowerPole is designed to add extended reach for people using GoPro camera systems; a necessity when filming yourself skiing down a mountainside, or surfing through those ten foot waves. That's not all though, the PowerPole also has equipped itself with one much needed feature in the modern GoPro system - battery life.

Top 10 WeeklyFstop Photos: Portrait

Taking a successful portrait may seem easy to someone who has never tried it. Transforming something from the simple concept of a camera pointed at a person (or a puffin) into a story-telling captivating photo involves skill.

[BTSV] Contest: Underwater Swim Shoot

With great final images and a very informative BTS video, this contest entry may have made it into out our top 10 but sadly they didn't submit before the closing date. Having missed the deadline but not the point of the contest, they decided to post it anyways. So, thank the guys from 2D House for this most excellent video. Nice work guys.
GoPro Mounts Dangerously Close To The Ground

This video has been making its rounds today through the blogosphere and for good reason. Photographer Josh Maready thought it might be interesting to view New York City from the eyes of his skateboard's back wheels by mounting a GoPro video camera dangerously close to the ground. The result is pretty interesting and extremely creative. However we cannot say no camera was harmed in the making of this video; Josh destroyed the first camera and practically vibrated the second one to death. Read more about Josh's simple video project over on his blog. It should be interesting to see what sort of GoPro projects we see in the near future as they make great tools for exciting behind the scenes contest entries!
[DIY Video] How To Build And Light A Set For A Product Campaign

Yesterday we got an interesting email from our friend Pye Jirsa over at SLRLounge.com. Pye recently helped film a video campaign for a friend's Kickstarter product launch called One and he decided to film a quick behind the scenes video on how he lit and filmed the different scenes. Pye is a big DIY guy and many of the lights he used on this production can be found for super cheap. We don't usually post a lot of Kickstarter proposals but the lighting tips from this one were simply too good to pass up. Watch the BTS video below and then click the full post to view the final video.
This Camera Will Edit Video for You in a Click of a Button

The day has finally come, a camera the will automatically edit video for you. The Graava has five different sensors: a camera, microphone, accelerometer, GPS, and a heart rate monitor. It will detect objects entering the frame, your change of speed, changes in sound frequencies, and will even monitor your heart rate to detect excitement. These sensors help the camera determine which moments are interesting and which moments are boring. That way it know which parts to keep and which parts to delete.

Featured Images from the Fstoppers Instagram Weekend Hashtag Project: Black and White Photography

On April 29 we launched our first ever weekend hashtag project over on the @officialfstoppers Instagram. The theme for the inaugural shooting event was black and white photography. Many photographers contributed wonderful photos and here I’m sharing a selection of images that I enjoyed. We welcome you to join in on the second weekend hashtag project that was just launched and you too can have your photo published on Fstoppers. This weekend’s theme is "pattern" and I have all the details for you at the end of this article.

Student Photography Awards Do Not Cater for All Photography Students

The Sony World Photography Awards, a recognized platform for emerging talents, has come under scrutiny for its age limit policies within its Student award category. There's a growing concern about the fairness of age limits that exclude mature students, with questions raised about imposing an upper age limit of 30 years for participants in the student category.

Nikon Mount In Stock For Sigma's 35mm f/1.4 Lens

The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 lens is now available for your purchasing pleasure, refilling the stock that's going fast. If you want it for your Nikon, you can get it now, and get it you should, because it's freaking amazing.

The Copter Kids Show Off Aerial Slow Motion

Thanks to remote controlled copters, aerial photography and video has brought some fantastic new content to the scene in the last few years, especially from guys like the Copter Kids. For their latest video, the Copter Kids grab the new Sony FS700 and take it to the skies alongside a motorcycle with some awesome results.

'Photographing The World 3' Behind the Scenes Episodes 5 and 6

Our behind-the-scenes series on the creation our photography tutorial "Photographing The World 3" continues today with Episodes 5 and 6. In these episodes, we continue to struggle to film a usable lesson in Pietrapertosa, Italy.

The Wednesday Rundown 4.20.11

Howdy, and welcome to the Wednesday Rundown. This week we have an array of videos sent it from the crowd. Joao sent in a fashion shoot video, with a hotel as the location. What do you think of the vintage filter on the video? I am loving it right now. We also have links to all the photographers sites so you can check out more on the photographer / videographer's work. Thanks again for everyone that sent in a video. If you have a video that you think we might like to post, please click on "submit content" above.
A Slightly Different Skydiving Video Shot With A GoPro

Most skydiving videos are extremely high energy. This video, produced by BettyWantsIn.com, has a totally different vibe though. Instead of the heart pounding "plummeting to your death" feeling, this video creates a calm almost floating sensation by taking advantage of the 60fps that the GoPro can shoot. I thought it was creative so I figured I would share it.
I Got 1099 Problems, But the IRS Ain’t One

A couple of weeks ago a tax-pro-turned-photographer named Brandon Scott helped us navigate the approaching tax deadline with some helpful tips. Now that most of us have (hopefully) filed our 2016 returns, I thought it would be a good time to chat about 1099 forms. If you're like me, you not only hire independent contractors, but you act as one too. Here is a rundown of all things 1099.

Portable Studio Light: We Review the Colbor CL60R

I have a very small office space, which I use for work and filming tutorials. For the filming part, I was looking for a compact lighting solution. Typical studio lights are often quite large and wouldn't have provided the versatility I needed. That's why I'm glad I got introduced to the Colbor CL60R, which I review in this article.

Top 10 WeeklyFstop Photos: Circle

This week, our readers were challenged to find shots containing circles. Using a shape opens up the possibilities and the results are wonderful. Be sure to share with your photography circles if you enjoy.

Try This The Next Time You Are at a Beach 

Ever get stuck looking for photographic ideas when the conditions or timing of your shoot aren't right, or perhaps you are at a location for a day and need to find things to do and photograph after sunrise and before sunset? Try this technique to not only challenge your photographic eye, but to also help you learn something new should the situation arise again anytime soon.

Polaroid To Announce Android-Based Mirrorless Camera

Polaroid is set to announce the release of the first Android-based mirrorless camera, the IM1836. With Android slowly making its way into the cameras we carry, this could be the start of something wonderful. And with the looks and build closely mimicking the Nikon 1 J2, this could be very tempting choice for lots of mirrorless enthusiasts.

Create Higher Quality Smartphone Videos With the Joby GripTight PRO Video Mount

Joby has released their latest products aimed towards mobile content creators with the GripTight PRO Video Mount and GripTight PRO Video GP Stand. The new mount is designed to be used with smartphones for on-the-go video filming, live steaming, or creating vlog content. Here are some of my first impressions.

Wedding Photographers: How Protected Is Your Business?

Providing a service to clients as a small business comes with risks. At some point during the course of photographing a wedding, every photographer will run into an unforeseen circumstance. Are you prepared to face the unexpected?

Seniors Ignite - Drawing Models To Your Senior Rep Program

Jen Basford with Seniors Ignite and 3 girls photography joins us for another interview about building your senior model program. In this article, Jen touches base on what her models receive as part of her program.

Could This Be The Youngest Paparazzo Ever?

Back in September, HBO Films released an interesting documentary about living life within the paparazzi. Teenage Paparazzo was created by Adrian Grenier of Entourage fame and features the story of Austin Visschedyk. The interesting thing about this documentary is that Austin is perhaps the youngest paparazzo ever at only 14 years of age. The film not only focuses on the dark underworld we all have seen of celebrity photojournalism but also how the young Austin is driven by fame as he himself becomes known by celebrities and the media. Interviews by Matt Damon, Eva Longoria, Paris Hilton, Alec Baldwin and Whoopi Goldberg give a behind the scenes view on this strange and often perverse world that is the paparazzi. It's rare for a movie to get a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes so if you missed the movie in theaters you can check out Teenage Paparazzo on DVD.
The Easiest Way to Give Your Images a Fresh New Look

One area a lot of photographers can focus their quarantined free time is updating their portfolios. Unfortunately, taking new and fresh photos is probably not part of that process, but that doesn't mean you still can't find new images to add to your website or social media stream.

Panasonic Announces Sub-$800 Lumix G7 with Internal 4K

Panasonic has announced the Lumix G7, a compact 4K mirrorless camera with a kit price of less than $800. Offering a solid list of features for an entry-level camera, the new Lumix G7 is perfect for amateur photographers looking for a inexpensive camera with both quality video and photo capabilities at almost half the price of the GH4. This 16-megapixel camera and small form factor make it light and compact. Even without some of the pro video features of the GH4, the G7 lowers the barrier to entry on 4K video recording even further.

Huge Backpack Savings at f-stop

If you're anything like me, you're always struggling to find the perfect bag for the job at hand. While we can usually justify getting another bag based on function, it's often the cost that stops us from investing. High-end bag manufacturer f-stop have pulled out all stops (see what I did there?) for their spring sale this year with some great deals to be had across their entire range.

First Look at The Westcott FJ80 and FJ200 Strobes

Last year Westcott released the FJ400, a battery/AC powered strobe. If 400watts is overkill for you, Westcott has now released the FJ200 and FJ80 and all three lights work with the same remote system.