Fstoppers Original Articles

Lighting schemes should always have a purpose, whether it's to flatter a client, show the details in a product, or create a mood. In this fantasy portrait, my purpose was both to flatter the model and to create a sense of place. Let's talk about how it was done.

A few of the major players have recently released cameras that are attracting quite a bit of attention. The Canon EOS R, the Nikon Z7, and Fujifilm’s X-T3 are all great for their intended purposes. But are new releases enough to keep you loyal as a customer?

Behind the scenes videos are a fantastic way to increase the visibility of your work, and ACDSee Video Studio 3 will help you get your BTS video edited and ready to view in less than an hour.

I find so many photographs today to be technical masterpieces, yet they lack any sense of life. They don't draw the viewer into the photograph or encourage the viewer to spend several moments viewing the photograph.

This has been the year of mirrorless! There have never been so many attractive options for DSLR shooters to make the transition as there are now. But should we?

By now, most of you have figured out that light is everything in photography. When the time of day isn't a variable you have control of, you may have to visualize how the available light will work with your subject.

Maybe you don't need any practice in Photoshop, maybe you do. Perhaps you're just looking to kill some time and create something fun, bizarre, hilarious, or something simply unlike anything you've ever done before.

In late 2017 I shared the photography podcasts that constituted my listening rotation. Thanks in part to our awesome community, 2018 has been even more insightful with these updated podcast additions.

We all have our favorite songs that we sing when are going through bad times or want to pump ourselves up. In this hilarious photo series, a photographer captures his friends singing their favorite songs and imagining that the camera is not there. See which song each person was singing!

We have all heard the old adage: buy cheap and buy twice. Here are five things you shouldn’t skimp on.

One of the most common questions photographers have is “should I upgrade my camera?” It’s right up there with “what lens I should buy” and “can I take selfies with this?” (That last one isn’t actually a common question.)

The Fujifilm X community of photographers are a loyal bunch, sometimes to a fault. It’s understandable, though, as Fujifilm provides consistent updates, even for cameras of previous generations. But recently, this seems to have become a crutch, and the X-T3 has inspired me to write this open letter.

For all you creators out there! LG understands there’s more to the final output. There’s also the “process.” All the hours spent working, toiling, creating, that no one ever sees. The endless brain-strain and ideating a creator dedicates to their goal is what makes up their UltraWide Time. Few will ever see or understand the process, where all the work and magic happen. But LG understands.

Do you have a lens in your kit that delivers results every time? Is it your go-to lens or is it one that you don't use as much as you should?

Dear Thumbtack, you’ve been a major national player in service-sector networking, including the field I love, professional photography. I appreciate the jobs I accessed through you in the past. But the door on that past, I’m sorry to have to say, is closed.

Are you stuck in an artistic routine or struggling to become comfortable photographing people in the street? Try this simple project that'll get you out there, shooting and gaining confidence!

Hashtags are a lot more than fodder for your social media posts. You need to use them and do so correctly in order to be noticed being one small fish in the giant ever growing pond we refer to as Instagram.

It’s no secret that Instagram has been working on its algorithm for quite some time. Gone are the days of tricking the algorithm to get more visibility. Now, more than ever, Instagram values excellent content. Here are a few practices to avoid when posting on the popular social platform.

The Profoto B10 is here, and it's one of the most exciting advancements in lighting that I've seen in years.

Listen, I know what you're all thinking. "Whoa, it looks cool. The modeling light is even bi-color. But it costs how much?" I get it, but bear with me.

Time-lapse videos have grown in popularity as a direct result of their unusual perspective on the world and the success of digital stills cameras. Here's my low cost route to creating them.

Of the many lighting techniques available to us as portrait photographers, using backlight with a simple reflector is one of the most versatile and least expensive methods you can choose. This method is widely used outdoors, but did you know that you can apply the same strategy to studio portraits?

We're heading into the realm of storybook fantasy with this week's Lighting Breakdown that blends natural and artificial light.

Deciding which images to keep and which to throw away is one of the hardest lessons to learn for new photographers. One would think that it gets easier with experience, but the more you learn the harder it can get.

Storage has become increasingly inexpensive which means there are a lot of options out there to back up your photos. One of those options is reliable, unlimited, and even free if you already have Amazon Prime.

I caught up with Matt Lever, one of the top photographer’s you’d expect to see backstage at Fashion Week. He explained how he’s shooting for Elle Magazine, and the hoops you’ll need to jump through to break onto the scene.

"Is that Photoshopped?" We've all heard it; we might have even said it at one time. But the reality is that it's a ridiculous question in the first place because "Photoshop" is not a verb. Perhaps those asking the question are simply asking the wrong question, because quite frankly, it shouldn't matter whether Photoshop was used or not.

A rainstorm and a muddy field can make football look great, but if your camera gets soaked, you might miss some great shots. Being inadequately prepared to shoot in inclement weather could be a really expensive mistake.

“In 2017, just 13.7 percent of magazine covers from the top 10 American fashion publications were photographed by women,” according to Erin Cunningham of Refinery29, and yet, according to the 2010 United States Census, the female population of the United States is 50.8 percent. So, why are there so few women shooting the covers of fashion magazines?

I was recently involved in a conversation via Facebook that centered around new camera gear and becoming a better photographer. The saying generally goes: “It’s not about the camera gear at all.” While I generally agree with this way of thinking, it’s not always accurate.

Adventure photography is a broad genre. But whether it's kayaking, skiing, hiking, climbing, trail running, or mountain biking, I always am sure to carry this gear with me.

SSL has become the preferred way for all sites to be displayed as opposed to only being used for shopping carts and pages where you would enter personal data. For some time, there's been a transition from http to https, and it was a choice mostly based on the intended activities of your website viewers.

By the time you finish reading this paragraph, 500 hours of content will have been uploaded to YouTube, 65,000 posts to Instagram, and 3.3 million updates to Facebook. It is easy — and sometimes not a conscious choice — to become enveloped by this constant flow, but as artists, it is important we take intentional time to remove ourselves from the noise and continue to learn, grow, and succeed from the incredible tools the world has to offer. We just need to go out and utilize them.

Welcome to the second part of Choosing a Lens for Visual Storytelling in Photography. This week, we’re going to look at the way in which lenses help you to express distance and intimacy and dive deeper into the story you want to tell.

No, it's not by adding black bars or shooting in slow motion. There's much more to the skill of making your videos look like the movies.

Sometimes, you have to leave old technology in the dust to move forward. With two of the biggest brands having just announced new mirrorless bodies, with it comes new lens mounts to carry these camera systems into the future.

Congratulations to the Winners! Fstoppers teamed up with SLR Lounge and B&H to give one lucky person their choice of a premium camera from Nikon, Canon, or Sony. Here are the entrants who won.

After several years of Sony having its run of the mirrorless world, Canon and Nikon finally announced their full-frame mirrorless cameras. The initial sentiment may not be brilliant for both Canon and Nikon; however, I think Canon has done something absolutely incredible.

The Orton effect is a popular effect in many other genres than landscape photography. It is used to soften the images with a slight glow, which can give a beautiful dreamy effect. However, I do see one mistake repeated again and again.

Studio spaces are sought after by many photographers. While some love shooting in client's homes or in hotel spaces, many do want the tranquility of a defined boudoir space of their own. Building a boudoir studio does not have to be overwhelming or come with expensive price tags. While a brick and mortar location in a downtown area works for some, for others, creating a spot in your home can be the best option for your company.

2018 has been quite a year for new equipment releases. We’ve seen Sony’s impressive a7 III, the Nikon Z6/7, and now the Canon EOS R, among many others. Specifically, these new mirrorless cameras continue to bring up one question for me, and that is: have we lost our minds?

This week's Lighting Breakdown will focus on composite images, breaking down this specific fantasy image as an example for what you need to do to create believable composite lighting.

Most people reading this article, going to workshops, and watching YouTube content want to improve their landscape photography. It is the question I get asked the most, and there are many answers and solutions to this. But without doubt, the most important part, but often the hardest, is actually being in the right place at the right time.

Mirrorless, mirrorless, mirrorless... it's the most public camera debate for some time and if you're already sick of it, don't click this article. We're going to look at the specs of all three of the big brands' mirrorless cameras and see who comes out on top.

As we are now in the middle of the white shark season in Guadalupe, Mexico, many shark lovers are preparing to make their way to the waters surrounding the volcanic island situated 150 miles off the western coast of the Baja Peninsula. Having photographed white sharks in various locations around the globe, I thought I’d put together a few tips for anyone keen to shoot them for the first time.

A great white shark investigates cage divers

1. Fish-Eye and Wide-Angle Lenses: While I mostly shoot underwater with a fish-eye lens, I...

Who would have thought that one of the hardest yet most important things for me to do would be to say no. I’m still learning how to do it, but I’m here to remind you all that being a “yes man” all the time can catch up to you and bite you where the sun doesn't shine.

With 2018 being the year of mirrorless, it is tempting for many of us to fall into the trap of trying to spend our way to good photography rather than using our own talents. And while having appropriate gear is essential to the trade, it’s equally important to think twice before sacrificing your business for the latest trends.

Recently, I realized that the best way to get more Instagram followers (and therefore really be a professional photographer) was to start making all of my photographs orange and teal. I downloaded some Lightroom presets and set to work.

Children are notoriously hard to shoot and most photographers generally avoid doing shoots involving them. There are ways to make it easier though!

With news of Nikon and Canon finally entering the full-frame mirrorless market, there have been endless discussions regarding stats and expectations. Don't let yourself get lost in all the gear talk, and remember that you don't need something new to make incredible photos.