Fstoppers Original Articles

When I was considering whether or not I should write this article, I went back and forth between not feeling qualified to write it and knowing that it is an important topic. It’s an article involving sexual assault, and I haven’t been sexually assaulted. But, I know many people who have been, and I know that if there’s any way to help survivors of any type of sexual violence overcome the trauma that comes packaged with that terrible ordeal, it should be made available to them, and it should be talked about. I didn’t ever expect photography to step in to help, yet here we are.

It’s simply impossible to ignore the change our industry is undergoing. The wide availability of industry-standard equipment has seen an uprise of people pursuing photography as a career. Photographers are battling against many threats to their careers; increasingly, celebrities who are trying their luck behind the camera. Be it models, socialites, or the rich and famous, people who are not renown for their photographic skills are increasingly booking jobs ahead of established professionals. So are those of us who work behind the lens full-time being made redundant? Can anyone be a photographer these days? It’s time to discuss.

The arts — very much including photography — under the umbrella of expression and free speech can explore the boundaries of what is acceptable. Often these boundaries are harmless and prompt little more than a debate regarding the meta of the relevant discipline. Occasionally, however, the debate is darker in nature as the boundary being pushed is one of moral significance. The photographer and director David Hamilton was somewhat of a permanent resident of such debate and his suspected suicide recently has brought a number of questions to fruition.

Over the past few months, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota have successfully managed to temporary halt construction of the $3.7 billion Dakota Access oil pipeline. The subject of much debate and media coverage, one incredibly powerful and emotive photo has emerged from the site, encompassing the ongoing battle.

Recently I put my eyes under a lot of pressure. There are habits that anybody should abide by, but sometimes it's not always easy to stick with them. What's the worst that can happen?

While many of us have grown to love the services offered by the web giant Squarespace, their e-commerce options have been seriously lacking one important feature needed for professional photographers. In this candid letter to Squarespace, I pose a couple of questions that I feel the company may not be listening to.

I am a firm believer that the very first minutes of interaction between two people is a breaking point for their collaboration. Whether you are an introvert or extrovert, you have an obligation to create a trustworthy bond, even if both of you are meant to know each other for only a couple of hours. This is especially crucial for portrait photography. The easiest way to start is being polite. A welcoming smile will break the ice and let you make a comfortable zone for both you and your subject.

Something I get asked often is how to add color tones to your images. Often the easiest option is to use filters either in Lightroom or with a plugin software such as Google Nik. However, as you delve deeper into the world of color grading you will eventually become curious how to create your own effects.

Motion Array has been hard at work adding new features recently. For example, they recently came out with a video portfolio site builder. With this feature, any paid subscriber can create a custom site to show their video work, complete with text, images, and contact information (all editable). Users can even use their own custom domain or have one supplied by Motion Array. But now, Motion Array is at it again with Requests. Essentially, any paid member of the Motion Array community can put in a request for any type of creative asset that Motion Array offers.

One of the most important compositional decisions to make when photographing pets is choosing a focal length. Due to perspective and lens distortion, ultra wide angles (generally considered to be less than 24mm on a full frame camera) can yield unflattering results when photographing humans. However, when photographing pets, shooting with an ultra-wide angle lens can do wonders in making your photos stand out.

Off-camera flash is a great way to augment your existing photographs. There are so many times when existing light just doesn't give you the result you desire, and that flash could be a solution to creating the image you have in your mind. When you first start, however, the options can be quite overwhelming and it can be difficult to know exactly what you'll need. Let's look into a simple but versatile kit that will allow you to stay mobile and work in many different situations.

One of the biggest industries in photography is that of photography education. Photography is a very difficult craft to learn without help, and as a result, almost every aspiring photographer must invest in some sort of education source at some point. Fortunately, this demand has created a massive market of educational content that can sometimes feel overwhelming, especially to new entrants. In this article, we are going to go through the various educational options, including the pros and cons of each.

The weird thing is that I've actually learned something from Snapchat Spectacles, so much so that I actually want to become the Snapchat of my photography brand and industry. Just like Snapchat captures these random moments of your life and broadcasts them into your story for others to enjoy watching, so too have they gone and made it an experience to wear their glasses.

One of the best camera deals is back, and it is just in time for the holidays. Ebay seller BuyDig is selling refurbished Nikon D750 camera bodies again for $1249. We've featured this deal before in the past but this is by far the lowest price we've ever seen on one of the best full frame cameras on the market. It's unclear when Nikon will be updating the D750 camera so this might be the best deal on this camera until 2017.

During the holiday season many find themselves looking for ways to help out in their own local areas. The Professional Photographers of America (PPA) Charities are making it possible for photographers to do it on a global level while simultaneously raising money for charities.

SLR Lounge creates some incredible educational photography content. For the next few days, they're offering a big discount on every product in their store. Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, every single product in the SLR Lounge store is 30% off. Check out their incredible deals and find which tutorial you'd like to buy HERE.

It's the time of year to save on your spending. Cameras, computers, lenses, tripods, grips, and just about any other photography related item is on sale this Black Friday at B&H. If you've been planning on buying any photography equipment this season, now is definitely the time to act with discounts and rebates being offered for hundreds of dollars.

Ansel Adams once said “you don’t take a photograph, you make it.” I have always thought that what he meant by this quote was the process involved in reaching the final image. It has never been about clicking a picture simply, but it involves the creativity the photographer pours into his image. And creativity and sensibility also are what transpire in the beautiful conceptual project of Finnish photograper Christoffer Relander, titled “Jarred & Displaced.”

When you hear "Sony Alpha" and "battery life" in the same sentence, it tends to be followed with a groan or sigh, because if one article has covered it, a dozen have covered it and made a big deal about how quickly the small batteries in the Alpha cameras run out. For me, 90 percent of my time with my Sony a7S II is spent doing video work, frequently during fast-paced events or sequences or racing the clock with lighting conditions. There's nothing more frustrating than being mid-shot and seeing that dreaded "Battery Exhausted" display pop up on your screen after draining your last battery after a long day of production. So, what options do you have to help extend the life of your battery?

Post-processing at the computer for hours on end often leaves me feeling nostalgic. Maybe there’s something tangible to film photography that I’m overlooking. After seeing a fellow landscape photographer working his 4x5 near a tree in the local dunes, his approach to our hobby had me contemplating my choice of hardware. There are so many analog-inspired pictures circling the web, that it’s obvious that I’m not the only one. Today, I want to share my thoughts on film photography with you.

I have had the blessing and curse of having too many photos to edit in the past few months. I've had plenty of opportunities to improve my work with the high frequency of shoots, but it's caused me to feel buried. During a typical shoot, I'll take between 250-400 photos. With each light setup, I'll take a few shots to ensure it's just how I want it, then I'll start directing my model. I strive for 3-4 solid shots per setup, one of which will end up being the final image. Both myself and my hard drives are feeling the pressure. In order to make sure that everyone gets their photos in a reasonable timeframe, I've adopted a new workflow for my editing.

Wedding photography has evolved into a stunning genre of photography. Photographers across the globe are bringing a level of creativity to wedding photography that elevates the images into something more than just photo-documentation.

Need a few suggestions to help you take full advantage of that inevitable Turkey-coma that's sure to set in at some point this Thanksgiving? Fstoppers compiled a few photography-related shows and documentaries for you to comb over – just in case you need some “Netflix-and-chill” time while all of that tryptophan hits your system.

Whether it's the glamor of Paris, the captivating shores of Ireland, or the natural beauty of the Grand Canyon, it is very easy for a photographer to assume that one must go above and beyond to capture the landscape images that he or she desires. Dennis Ramos, a world-renowned fine-art and landscape photographer, took a completely different approach. He captured the beauty that surrounded him where he resides in Tampa, FL.

In 1990, Sir Elton John got sober and unknowingly began collecting one of the most significant private collections of photography in the world. He has collaborated with the Tate Modern to exhibit an extraordinary collection of photographs from the classic modernist period of 1920-1960. On a cold and wet Thursday afternoon in London, I went to see The Radical Eye exhibition for myself, and it didn’t disappoint.

Have you ever considered the responsibilities we bear as photographers? Without wishing to get too dramatic, in many ways, we photographers are the guardians of history. Just as our knowledge of history has been shaped by the paintings and drawings of our ancestors, the photographs we capture today may well shape the knowledge of future generations as they endeavor to understand our society today.

Let's chant it from the rooftops: Film is not dead, whether as a medium in art or as the thing that makes instant photos at parties possible and will let you take pictures in places where digital cameras and phones aren't allowed in.

I'm that photographer who watches silently while waiting for the moment to arrive and snap one or two frames, then quickly moves on to the next worth while split second to capture. Yes I'm that girl, the one who shoots on slow shutter. At weddings this style of shooting suites me just fine, however it wasn't until this last year I learned with this skill there is another genre that lights me up even more. Grabbing up a single moment, purely just off gut instinct as a Still Photographer on an Indie film starring Ed Harris called, "A Crooked Somebody," I really harnessed my timing. Rather hunting you could say, for the exact moment when I choose to fire away, just less dramatic.

Being a long time Lightroom user has helped me have a well polished workflow for my photography projects. So why should I bother trying Capture One Pro?

A major concern I hear from boudoir photographers is the lack of a formal studio space for shooting. While I do have a downtown studio in a historic area of Palatka, Florida, if I am traveling there is not always that option of finding a shared area. Understanding how to create your own studio space in hotels, vacation homes, or Airbnbs can bring your boudoir business front and center to potential clients.

Fstoppers is happy to announce the next round of Critique the Community. We invite everyone to submit your best editorial and fashion images to be critiqued by Clay Cook. Please follow the guidelines for submissions below to ensure eligibility for your image to be chosen. We will be accepting submissions through Friday night, November 18 and will be offering feedback to a total of 20 pictures.

A lot of us think we know what set photography is, but Ron Jaffe is here to tell us about his incredible career and what’s going on behind the scenes that we don’t know about.

Often, when a client requests a shoot from a photographer, be it for a product or portrait shoot, you will exchange a few words about what is needed exactly. But even after they have agreed over the price and the direction of the shoot, the photographer may still be at risk of having a disagreement with the client or even his team on the shooting day. Whatever the initial plan was, the client can change his mind. Sometimes, the ideas proposed can challenge you and lead to fantastic photos, but they can also be disastrous and as a photographer, you need to learn to get bossy and speak with experience to get the job done.

If you weren't aware, there is quite a market for mobile lenses within the photography community, and sitting atop the pack is a little company called Moment. They came bursting on the scene about two years ago with the plan to bring high quality glass to the mobile photography market. Here are my thoughts on their brand new super fisheye lens, the Superfish.

Think back to the first time you experienced the world through a viewfinder. The moment you found focus on whatever it was that caught your eye, and the excitement that followed hearing the mechanical slap of the shutter, there to verify that you’ve captured that specific moment in time forever. For me, that excitement was experienced at a young age, and as I watch my oldest child near the same age that my memories of photography begin, I feel a responsibility to share the same opportunities with him that I was afforded early on.

French photographer and digital artist Cal Redback has been creating images that bring new meaning to the term, "organic portraits." Sparked by a fascination with double exposures, Redback began to photograph friends along with local plant life, blending the two together to create a unique set of portraits that seem to take on a life of their own.

One lens that is a staple in almost all camera bags of professional photographers is a fast, ultra-wide-angle zoom. Being a Canon shooter, the Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 II found a place in my bag when I purchased it back in 2008, and I have been using it constantly for work ever since. However, it also was the weakest lens in my kit from a sharpness standpoint. But if I needed 16mm and f/2.8, it was what I had to grab. Until recently, there simply wasn't a sharper option available.

Are you using Instagram Stories in your marketing? Are you wondering how photographers are using Stories? With new features like tagging and Boomerang being added this week as well as the possibility of links being added in the near future, Instagram Stories is quickly becoming a great tool for marketing that every photographer should take advantage of. Here is a list of ways you can start using Stories for your business today.

Planning and timing is the key; especially, when it comes to a serious photography or video work. Usually, you have to deal with lots of details in a fast-paced environment, and manage your own crew as well. Therefore, it's better to be planned and be prepared against any possible misfortune. All you need is a well prepared production call sheet.

This article is a twist on the more common behind the scenes post. Instead of writing about the thought process of the shot in retrospect, I am starting this article several days before the full moon, to showcase my process and mindset when planning for a once in a lifetime shot of the Supermoon.

Fstoppers is bringing it back to the basics with our latest project, Photography 101: How to Use Your Digital Camera and Edit Photos in Photoshop. If you're just getting started in your photography career or simply want to learn how to take better pictures, this tutorial will teach you the fundamentals that bridge the gap into any genre of photography. This tutorial also offers ground up training in how to successfully use Photoshop to improve your images dramatically.

Live music session recordings have always been a pillar of the YouTube community, as much as movie trailers and sneezing cats. But over the last few years, thanks to the VEVO dscvr & Sofar Sounds movements, they have seen a great surge in popularity. Here is our essential guide to filming and editing live band sessions.

Dogs are among of the most difficult subjects to photograph. They are unpredictable, easily distracted, and move quickly. The challenges that accompany photographing our canine counterparts are multiplied when working with more than one dog at once. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to help get the perfect shot of a group of dogs.

I never really used to take photos on my phone; in fact, I used to be really against it because I never thought the camera was good enough to capture what I wanted. Of course, it's great to always have a camera on you so you can take a photo, which makes the smartphone one of the best tools around. With today's technology, these cameras just keep getting better, and I am finally beginning to use my phone's camera just to work on my composition and angles when I see something of interest.

Color management is probably amongst the hardest things there is to understand and learn when it comes to retouching and photography. So many elements are to be taken into account to create the perfect final print that it can be extremely complicated and time-consuming. Part of that process is to have a raw converter software able to match your vision and your needs. Capture One is known for its modularity and customizable features. Let’s see how we can use it to help us get the colors we want out of all our raw files.

Jaana and Lorenzö of the studio Cahute have put a spin on the digital age of instant viewing by taking a step back into the past with a classic process of portraits on paper. They created a market for themselves that is so micro-niched they have yet to find another studio specializing solely in this process.

The X-Pro2 and X-T2 are the most recent flagship models from Fujifilm and on paper, they seem very similar. They both have the same sensor, processor, auto focus frame, etc. So it makes sense that a lot of people want to know which one to get. While each camera has its obvious differences, there are also some little things that could have you lean one way or the other.

Adobe Sneaks is the software company's behind-the-scenes sneak peek into ongoing projects that could eventually — if we're lucky — find their way into one or more products. This year at MAX, Adobe previewed a number of tools that should excite virtual-reality editors, desktop designers, and audio editors working on long-form speech formats.