Exclusive articles and expert opinions written by Fstoppers’ talented team of creative professionals. Here we cover everything from the latest photographic techniques to advice on running a successful photography business, to first hand accounts of working in the photography industry.
Evaluating new gear is always an exciting part of any photographer's day. Here's a great approach to testing the gear, while not potentially upsetting paying customers, yet maintaining a realistic shooting scenario.
As a photographer, becoming a digital nomad empowers you to see the world as a native, not as a tourist. It’s helped me take better photos, boosted my creativity, and given me more time to dedicate to photography outside my day job. You don’t need to wait till you hit the road: you can start becoming a digital nomad now before you ever sell your house.
Everyone wants to bring in money with client work, but not setting aside time for personal projects can be detrimental your growth as an artist, and to the bottom line. Here are three reasons you should always schedule personal projects.
Clients these days prefer to stare at your work on their phones rather than a framed work of art to pass on for generations. This is where the art of selling prints comes in to play. In just five simple steps learn how to take your print sales to the next level and see why once you start selling prints, you'll never look back.
Have you ever kept track of the amount of time that you spend editing each month? I was shocked the first time that I did. Realizing how much of my time that editing was consuming caused me to search out ways to be more efficient, and this is what I found.
In 2017, ACDSee started their Photographer Spotlight program to give back to their users by providing new opportunities to talented rising stars in the photography world. For 2018, the ACDSee Photographer Spotlight program is set to continue with the chance for a budding photographer to win a four night, expenses paid trip to Montreal along with a professional photography assignment from ACDSee. In addition to covering the expenses of the trip, ACDSee is offering a minimum of $1,500 for the completion of the assignment while in Montreal.
I’ve bought and sold a lot of photography gear over the years, between system switches and jumping into mirrorless. Some cameras I remember quite fondly and others not so much (it wasn’t me, Canon 7D Mark II, it was definitely you). What about cameras I loved though. Were they good, or am I looking through rose-tinted glasses?
The Internet can take you to places that you might never get to see in person such as the famed astronomical clock in Prague’s Old Town Square or the Amundsen–Scott research station in Antarctica. And, there are cameras situated at literally the top of the world capturing things in the night sky that you may have never even seen before.
Focal length and maximum aperture are the most common measures for summarizing the principle characteristics of a lens, but are they the best to use? Given the range and proliferation of different camera types, why don't we see field of view used more often?
Being connected to your devices may not always be practical for editing, especially when traveling. Smart previews can help you edit on the go but also free up your storage as well. With the WPPI conference fast approaching this is the best time to create your previews and let your external hard drives stay put at the house.
It can be difficult enough to photograph adult models, but using children as models is a new level of challenging. There are a few tips to remember to make your shooting process a bit easier.
When we create something like a photo, one of the most painful experiences can be receiving negative criticism regarding our photography. However, positive criticism can be equally damaging (and sometimes more so). Here’s why.
A basic formula to attain a fulfilling photography career does not really exist. The industry is abnormal, so your life climbing into it will be too. Whether your dream is to be the go-to photographer in a small town or to be a world-traveling journalist, this is what you can expect in a life full of photography.
Product photography might be one of the subcategories of this business that has seen a growth in available work, thanks to all of the e-commerce opportunities. By using specific techniques, you can showcase any product in a non-conventional way to have it stand out from the rest. While most of product photography consists of an all white background, you can experiment with items available around the house to show the same item in a different light.
While some photographers are on the hunt for the most outrageous image, others become increasingly sensitive to what they shoot. We are confronted with a never ending stream of images that blurs our ability for ethical judgement. I asked Joey Lawrence and Graham Macindoe about their opinion.
Our next episode of Critique the Community will offer a slightly different take on landscape photography as we will be focusing only on shots taken over 50mm. Submit your best telephoto landscape or cityscape shot below and receive a chance to win a free Fstoppers original tutorial.
A week and a half ago we asked the community to submit their best environmental portraits to be critiqued by Lee and Patrick. We got some awesome submissions and one lucky entrant won a free Fstoppers tutorial.
After many long months of waiting, my new D850 has finally arrived! If you read my previous article about the joy/trauma of being on backorder, you’ll probably have some inkling of how excited I am at the moment. But as this is not my first new arrival and most, if not all of you, have experienced the same situation, I thought I’d take a moment to try and describe our universal moment.
Some people are naturally very cluttered while others try to take a very minimalist approach. Does your workspace reflect your personality?
Are you thinking of designing and outfitting a portrait studio? I recently did just that, and through a little research and a lot of trial and error, I discovered some great, versatile finds that make life in a photography studio much easier.
The in-between stages of fashion photography can be knowing which ideas for stories serve best as test shoots and which are worth pushing forward as a full editorial. Do the benefits of a cohesive editorial outweigh the efforts required to make it? This article breaks down the steps required from idea to execution.
A few months ago, Fstoppers released “Photographing The World 3” with Elia Locardi. This 18-hour tutorial covers everything you could want to know about landscape and cityscape photography.
Most landscape photographers argue that scouting locations ahead of time creates the best final product. I beg to differ.
The voyage we opted to take is exactly that, an adventurous voyage and not a straight, smooth road to success. Remember that when you doubt yourself and question your potential. Unlike most occupations, the artist has no roadmap for their success. We’re not handed a list of classes to take in a preferred order created by the educational institute.
There are endless benefits to using strobes over continuous hot lights, but there is one drawback: sometimes, you may actually want to capture motion blur.
I would never have guessed that a simple prompt like "green" could have produced such amazing results this week. Our readers really showed up with arguably the best top 10 list yet.
There's much to be said about enriching the photography industry through positive and honest collaborations between professionals, but one thing I think we don't talk about enough is the benefits of shooting weddings with a trusted second shooter and how it can benefit your business and even your wellbeing.
Sometimes it’s the simplest things that help you appreciate your spare time. When you’re constantly driven to create, not having a personal project stewing can be agonizing the way nails to a chalkboard stab at more than just your ear drums.
My social media feeds are full of awesome photographs at epic locations taken by talented photographers. So, why don’t any of them want to tell the Internet where they got the shot?
Fujifilm has recently announced the X-H1, a larger APS-C mirrorless camera that leans more towards the video crowd. Although this camera is definitely an interesting one, I can't help but feel a little disappointed with the features.
There are all kinds of photographers out there. Those who shoot fashion, products, street, editorial, and all manner of other genres. There are those who trust Canon, those who worship Sony, and those who swear a Leica is the only camera you need. We all have our different gear and varied subjects, but there is one thing that unifies us all. We all make photographs. What is it that makes all these different photographers with their myriad gear make photographs? Why do they release the shutter?
One Minnesota photographer is working to dig beneath the pretty surface in an effort to show women the beauty they hold within. In the process, she is building a living legacy for her daughter, one that she only recently began to see in herself.
Ever wondered how people created those "impossible" photos of them sitting off the ground? Here I teach how to make a levitation photo in just under 10 minutes using some simple tricks in camera and finishing it off with Photoshop.
The Poynter Institute bills itself as a global leader in journalism. For decades, journalists have turned to the Florida-based organization's workshops, resources, and staff to learn about and advance journalism. For a time, that seemed to include the visuals side as well, but if a recent article and the furor around it is any indication, it looks like photojournalists are no longer welcome to the party. It's a sad development to see unfold, and it's not a good look for the storied journalism institution.
Imagine a world of no brands — no Wal-Mart, Google, HSBC, or Canon. Is that the sort of world we would want to inhabit?
For many photographers, separating your subject from the background can be a time-consuming nightmare. What if you could just click your camera's shutter once and have a perfect mask ready in your camera? Freemask by Hensel lets you do that.
“It’s like a Mercedes-Benz. You drive it off the lot, it loses half its value," says artist Peter Lik, describing his own work. This brutal article from the New York Times examines the extraordinary amounts of money that people continue to spend on Lik's work and how he has created his own speculative — and lucrative — economy.
Practicing photography as a hobby versus building a business upon your photography are two very different monsters. Running a successful photography business is what distinguishes a pro from an amateur. Without the proper preparations or knowledge, your budding photography business can quickly flounder. Here’s what you need to know if you’re thinking of turning your hobby into a professional business.
In a mobile world filled with an endless selection of preset filters, there are surprisingly few options to employ more creative color grading that is driven by specific choice rather than by simply perusing a gallery of presets. ACDSee Pro for iOS is one of the few apps that look to bridge this gap with an array of powerful color grading tools that emulate the color grading freedom of desktop editing.
When I talk to a lot of photographers, they seem to think that business and creativity are at odds with each other. Being a salesperson and an artist just don't go together, right? I think we've just been mislead on what it really means to sell.
Photographing behind the scenes at any large power producing area can be difficult not only to obtain entry but also to capture the massive scale to do the area justice. The areas are normally bustling with workers, smoke from the machines, and dust from the ground. Traveling to these destinations, however, will help show the world just what goes on behind that power that they use daily.
After receiving yet another email stating that my new camera order is still backordered, it is becoming even more difficult to fight the urge to look at other options.
We recently filmed a video on the validity of Peter Lik's newest "photograph" of the moon, and it got us thinking: how far is too far when it comes to Photoshop?
Turns out you don't always need to be an amazing photographer to create photographic art. I came across graphic designer Bashar Hjooj's work on Instagram, where he combines two to three photographs shot by complete strangers to create art full of imagination with his own take.
If you are content to remain at the same skill level, taking the same photos for the rest of your career, then please, ignore this article. If you want to become a better artist, read on, but be prepared to be uncomfortable.
The highly-anticipated Mavic Air finally landed at Fstoppers a few days ago. This tiny quadcopter comes with an impressive set of features but everything is not perfect. Here is short preview of what I like and dislike about this drone.
A photo you have taken going viral is a double-edged sword: you want it to happen, but at the same time, you relinquish control and too often, credit for your work. When Michel Klooster’s controversial wedding photo went viral, his Photologo watermark kept his name intrinsically linked with the story.
Ever since the Canon 5D Mark II, it seems as though Canon has been dragging their feet when it comes to innovating. Their new announcements and releases tend to be met with quite a strong negative response, and although this may not be an overall consensus, it's prominent enough.
Our latest series of behind the scenes episodes with Elia Locardi are almost over. In today's episode we continue to explore the rooftops of Dubai in search of the perfect cityscape photograph of the city. We then head out to a remote desert to photograph the stars only to find out our guide had other plans. This is “Photographing the World III” behind the scenes episode 12!
Rooftops hold a certain allure but it's not just urban explorers and extreme sports narcissists that are drawn to the tops of buildings to capture this alternative view of the city. Photographer and Artist Alain Cornu drags a 4x5 field camera onto the rooftops of Paris to create stunningly beautiful images that feel like portals into another world.
