[Review] Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC VS Canon 24-70mm

I've been waiting a long time for a 24-70mm full frame lens with stabilization. Tamron was the first to create this lens and we got our hands on a Canon version. In this review we compare the Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 VC to Canon's 24-70mm 2.8. Which is the better lens? The answer to that question is a little more complicated than you might expect.

Simple But Great Tip To Naming Your Photography Folders

There is no wrong or right way of naming the folders on your computer. It is really just a matter of preference and what works best in your workflow. Having been doing this for a number of years though I have experimented with quite a few different ways and this is by far the one I like best. Here's a quick video, less than 2 minutes long, that shares with you how I name my folders and why I chose to do it that way.

The Anatomy of a Beauty Shoot: Step by Step

Since joining Fstoppers I had planned on doing a "behind the scenes" of one of my shoots, so today I've put together a lighting diagram courtesy of Kevin Kertz, and a detailed description of how the finished product was produced. Fair warning, I am a bit of a technique nerd and can get pretty detailed. We've all seen diagrams online, and brief descriptions on what goes where, but it seems there are always details left out that can significantly impact the results. I didn't want to do that. I wanted to leave no stone unturned and give you guys as accurate of a diagram and explanation as possible.

Photographers, Stop Asking Clients for Their Budget

One of the most common questions photographers have is about how to effectively price their work. Rates vary so widely based on location and skill level that many are left scratching their heads as to what is fair. This has led to the common mantra stating “ask for the clients budget.” Here is why I think that's a ridiculous way to price yourself and a horrible piece of advice.

Starting a Photography Business as an Introvert

I didn’t realize I was an introvert until I was well into my 20s. I’m not shy, and I don’t mind speaking up in a crowd if I’m asked a question, so I always assumed I was an extrovert. You can imagine my surprise, then, when taking the Myers Briggs personality test in college yielded the result that I was an introvert. It all started to make sense. I would constantly find myself shying away from social events, although I considered myself social and had many friends, and I never liked any job that included a high volume of social interaction within a day, it exhausted me. When starting my business, one of my biggest struggles became working with my introversion.

Adobe Gives a Sneak Peek at New Photoshop Feature Coming June 18

Adobe is hosting a special event on June 18 to show the world what's new in their Creative Cloud set of applications, but today they released a short video highlighting one of the features they're working on in Photoshop: a new way to make automatic selections based on pixels in focus against those out of focus.

iOS 15 Is Here: Here's Why It's So Important for Photographers

iOS 15, the next major update of the operating system, is available today, and it brings with it a lot of exciting and useful features, particularly for photographers. Let's dive in and see what you can expect when you upgrade.

Finally an Affordable Anamorphic Lens?

The striking and desirable visuals of anamorphic lenses in cinema have been largely gated behind a high financial entry point. Is that about to change?

How to Combine Focus Stacking and Exposure Blending for Better Photos

I have already written two articles about focus stacking here. The first article dealt with how I use automatic focus bracketing in the field, and in the second article, I shared my focus stacking workflow in Helicon Focus. To provide you with even more tools, I now show you how I combine focus stacking with exposure blending.

When to Not Use a Polarizer in Landscape Photography

Using a polarizer in landscape photography is often advised. And with reason: colors will be enhanced, reflections in water and on the leaves can be removed, and skies can turn deep blue. But it is not advisable to use a polarizer as a standard filter, because there are situations when it can turn against you.

Canon Expects a Massive Drop in Sales by the End of 2020

Canon’s chairman and CEO Fujio Mitarai acknowledged in a recent interview that the company expects camera sales to drop from 10 million to 6 million a year by the end of 2020. Despite this dramatic fall, Mitarai is confident for the camera manufacturer's future.

Consider Using a Flat Picture Profile When Shooting in Raw

I think it is always wise to shoot in raw. The raw file format will store the maximum amount of image information. This can even be optimized when shooting with exposure to the right to make full use of the dynamic range of the camera. Although intended for JPEG photographers, a flat picture profile can have a benefit or raw shooters also.

How to Create Luminosity Masks for Better Retouching

When learning about retouching, selections and masks should be on top of the list along with curves and brushes. But each of these tools have so many options, and it is hard to know the in and out of each of them. In this article, I will guide you through different ways to create precise and refined luminosity masks to help you improve your retouching skills.

Aftershoot: Hours Worth of Editing Reduced to Minutes

Working as a photographer for over a decade has helped me realize one important thing: I hate editing photos. I absolutely love every aspect of being a photographer, except for the editing. This is why Aftershoot has been incredibly useful to me.

Is Every Photograph From Chernobyl a Lie?

Pripyat, once a town of 40,000 people and now a short distance from the world's single most deadly object, stands inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. As I waited to get a coffee at the tiny shop alongside the Zone's checkpoint, I cringed slightly at the array of glow-in-the-dark knickknacks on sale. Chernobyl, the site of the biggest nuclear disaster in history and now a slightly Disney-fied tourist destination, is a reminder that photography's "truth" is always a little suspect.

Stop Selling Yourself to Photographers

With social media ever present in our daily lives, it's easy to turn to photographers across the world for critiques. Photographers everywhere, some much better than you, some much worse, will climb out of the woodwork to tear your work apart, or give it the praise of a lifetime. Because of this, its so easy to get caught up in the thoughts of other working pro's opinions about what to do next. Stop.

Up the Ambient, Create Beautiful Portraits by Mimicking Daylight

When I first picked up a DSLR and got a taste of artificial lighting, I loved shooting in darkness. I felt like I could control light a lot easier without having to fight the ambiance of a location or sun. Using an array of speedlights, I would light the location and subject how I wanted. Sometimes, that included putting speedlights in lamps or mounting them in the background. Eventually, that style took a sharp 180 degree turn, now I love using natural light in my favor to create a dramatic portrait.

Five Lenses Nikon Desperately Needs to Remake

It is no secret that Nikon is starting to fall behind in the lens game, partly because competitors, such as Sigma and Tamron, have doubled down on quality and focused heavily on innovating, but also partly due to Nikon's seeming unwillingness to invest in new and updated, innovative designs. As the demands of modern sensors expand, so does the demand for sharp, high resolution glass. Nikon has several legendary lenses in their past, which with a modern facelift could become some of the most competitive lenses in today's market.

Think Twice Before You Purchase More Photography Gear

A lot of interesting photography equipment is released almost every week. This could be an upgrade to something you currently are using or something new that you've never considered buying before. However, think twice about spending your hard-earned money on new photography equipment.

Dangerous Situation for Models and Photographers

A few minutes ago I received an email that contained some big red flags and alerted me of a dangerous situation that all photographers and models should be aware is happening. Recently here on Fstoppers we reported on models that went missing after accepting jobs on these modeling sites. Well now I have discovered that someone is actually representing themselves as me on one of these sites and trying to setup various shoots with models.

Let Me Throw You A Curve and Get You Away from Prepackaged Presets

The hottest trend nowadays is Photoshop presets. Presets to mimic the look of films past, to add a bit of editorial edge to those mundane studio shots, or to just expedite the editing process. Many companies have come out with pre-packaged presets, treatments, and plugins to help users reach a new level of creativity.

Fstoppers Reviews the New Adobe Lightroom CC

Adobe just announced some major photography-centric updates to its Creative Cloud programs. Alongside a new release of Lightroom Classic CC (the new name for what we all used to call "Lightroom"), Lightroom CC is a brand new application that works across all platforms: desktop, web, and mobile. The new software offers nearly all of the same editing features we're used to, but with an entirely new organizational structure reliant upon the cloud. While there's a standalone Lightroom CC plan, the current Photography Plan includes both the CC and Classic CC applications. So which should you use?