Some photographers still believe that it’s important to shoot in manual mode, no matter what situation they’re in. As long as the correct exposure is achieved, it isn’t important if this is done manually or partly by the camera itself. But sometimes, manual is indeed the best choice.
You don't have to look too far right now to see terms like crypto art and NFT being banded around. What is all the fuss about? And what could this "gold rush" mean for photographers?
When the Sony World Photography Awards (WPA) suddenly decided to remove photographs of Hong Kong protests from its website, it destroyed its credibility as a competition. If the decisions of the judges are being edited to avoid upsetting the Chinese government, how is this not censorship?
We’ve all been there; the studio is set, the model is awkwardly waiting, but the light isn’t quite right and the stress begins to build. With every test shot, the light quality increases and the anxiety level decreases. Finally, like a blast of cool breeze on a hot day, everything clicks into place. The light is perfect.
The Perseid Meteor Shower peak has come and gone for 2021. This year the Moon’s interference was minimal, setting early in the evening around the predicted peak days, but luck always plays a major role in anyone’s success.
A lot of photographers seem to fall for promises that presets make, and sometimes, they are true. There are packs out there that give decent results. But the problem with presets is that they do the creative work for you instead of helping you be the creative you wish to be. And that is what is holding you back. But what if there's one unique preset that will distinguish your work from everyone else's? You can't buy it, but you can develop it. Here's how.
In the past few years, the growing number of wedding photographers and their vast range of prices have made finding your value as a photographer challenging. This series of articles will help you to navigate your prices to meet your goals and earn your worth as a wedding photographer.
The mania surrounding food photography is a pretty recent phenomenon. In the last decade, what used to be a niche in photography took social media by storm and ever since has been one of the favorite topics for a huge amount of accounts. It is supposedly the second most popular subject of photography fanatics on Instagram after the selfie tsunami. I sat down to talk with Hein van Tonder, a food photographer carving his way into the food royalty.
In the world of digital photography, our discussion topic has always revolved around equipment, software tricks, and tips for getting better images. But deep down, we should know that data management discipline after every shoot is also crucially important. After all, what is there to edit and publish if there is mishandling of our photo files?
Like any specialist occupation, photography is an expensive one. There are big savings that can make it affordable for the professional, some of which can help the amateur too.
When most think about maternity photography, the visual is light airy looks with flowers wrapping the soon to be mother. However there have been many changes in the way photographers are shooting this genre and many photographers want to break the stereotype.
I read articles on here all the time about wedding photographers losing all of their gear while traveling, break-ins at studios, and general destruction of camera gear. In spite of all of this, I decided to cancel my equipment insurance.
The latest M4 MacBook Pro marks another substantial upgrade in Apple’s pro laptop lineup, bringing a blend of powerful performance and practical new features. I've used it over the past week, and here are my thoughts.
Even if you take out the cameras on your smartphone, it can still play a huge role in making life easier for you when you shoot. In every step of your creative process, your phone can be a tool to make everything easier.
The crop tool might not be as fancy as many others in your editing suite, but its importance cannot be overstated. Here are two very important reasons you should always think about starting with the crop tool when you first sit down to work on your images.
Canon has announced the launch of the EOS M200, a small camera featuring a 24-megapixel APS-C sensor, Dual Pixel autofocus and 4K video. Canon has also packed in a few features that make it more accessible to those without a deep knowledge of photography who are looking to produce and share content quickly on social media. What’s more interesting, however is the marketing video itself.
New cameras deserve a bit of time for initial setup and customization. This guide should help you with your new Sony camera.
Artist Jason Shaltz explores the everyday lives of some of horror's biggest icons in his latest personal project, “Everyday Horrors.” Most of us know who Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and Michael Myers are, but outside of their gruesome yet successfully franchised acts, what do we really know about them? Well, like any good horror fan, Jason sat down and tried to capture what it might look like if they lived among us, had errands to run, or just enjoyed a nice day off.
We've teamed up with 49ers photographer Terrell Lloyd and Datacolor to talk about Lloyd's prolific career as a sports photographer and the importance of accurate colors in sports and action images.
We all know how highly respected the Pelican brand is when it comes to protecting your photography equipment. The case's waterproof qualities and seemingly indestructible nature make them the go to choice for many professionals. If you thought they were just for keeping your gear safe then think again, they actually have many more practical benefits than just the obvious.
While many have tips for keeping travel expenses low regionally, what happens when you start flying to landscape photography destinations? Things that work with regional travel don’t scale when limited on what you can bring. I have several tips for keeping travel costs low when flying to your destination.
Landscape photography is somewhat synonymous with shooting large scenes with a wide angle lens, but what about more intimate landscapes? On a recent trip through Colorado, I found myself using a telephoto lens almost exclusively and came up with five tips that might help your try one out for yourself.
We at Fstoppers do our best to keep the photography community informed of noteworthy holiday deals. Since Black Friday week is here, we wanted to let you know about some deals we've heard of from various photography and video companies. Some of these deals are only available for a very limited timeframe, so if there's something that piques your interest, make sure to act on it now!
Import and culling have always been two of the most time consuming and, frankly, annoying parts of Adobe Lightroom. Despite all of its improvements over the years, the process of getting files into Lightroom has remained a huge bottleneck in an otherwise swift workflow application. With Lightroom Classic CC, Adobe finally made a full attempt to address this by allowing us to use the embedded previews from our raw files as previews for culling within the app and improved the overall speed of adding files to the catalog. So, what’s changed, and just how useful are those changes?
Photography is often misunderstood as merely a way to document reality, but in truth, it is an art form as complex and expressive as painting or sculpture. For me, photography is not just a technical process—it is a creative pursuit that requires both artistic vision and craftsmanship.
Even if you aren’t the type of photographer to be interested in a cicada, let me tell you why this summer’s event will be an amazing photo opportunity. It might just not be what you expect.
In last week’s article, I introduced you to the inspiring work of Minnesota-based fine art photographer, R. J. Kern. This week, I connected with him again and was able to gain insight into what it took to create his most recent project, "The Unchosen Ones". If you were inspired by his work last week, I can assure you you'll be blown away by this one, too.
Through a matter of circumstance, I found myself working with multiple camera systems to fulfill a variety of assignments over the last month. Here are a few thoughts on why I chose each system and what I learned from the process.
Canon’s big announcement this week was the brand new EOS M50 Mark II, an upgrade to the insanely popular M50 that was released in 2018. But how “brand new” is it, and does it qualify as an upgrade if all of the new features could easily have been delivered through a firmware update?
Want to start the new year with a free tutorial from Fstoppers? All you have to do is help us choose our Photographer of the Year!
It’s a common belief to think that creativity is a skill that you either have or don’t. While in reality, all creativity truly is a process through which you perceive things and situations differently than others around you. Coming up with an alternative way of seeing requires hard work but it becomes easier with time. Sometimes, we get lost in our thoughts or simply don’t know how to find any new ideas. So in this article, I have laid out for you a straightforward process to come up with unique concepts for your shoots and turn them into great pictures.
I've bought expensive lenses I've barely used and a couple of value lenses that have become workhorses. This one, however, may be the best example of images taken per dollar spent.
Apple’s Photos app on MacOS has been through many changes. We’ve come quite far since its predecessor, iPhoto. This time around, Apple has its sights set on bridging the gap between a consumer app and something more professional. Where does it fit in, and is it worth using?
I love visiting the countryside. It's a great way to unwind, relax, and forget about the daily office hustle, the traffic, and whatever else is synonymous with a suburban lifestyle. As a photographer, the first thing I pack is my camera bag in the hopes that I'll get a chance to capture some landscape shots. What I did not expect is to get more than I bargained for. Especially this last weekend.
I own a ton of photo and video gear, but if I had to keep only what I could fit in a single backpack, this is what I would choose.
When we shoot photographs, we may or may not want to increase the appearance of depth in the image. Many more tools than depth of field are available to us. Here are some things we can do to add or decrease perspective.
As the discourse around Black Lives Matter and police reform grows ever coarser, racism is revealing itself through protests in all small corners of the country. And that means communities unfamiliar with the role of photojournalists are encountering firsthand the consequences of exercising free speech to spew hate in public spaces.
Some people are naturally very cluttered while others try to take a very minimalist approach. Does your workspace reflect your personality?
A key factor in the success of any photography business is the ability to produce technically sound images that stand out and differentiate your style from that of other photographers. As a pet photographer, one way to generate bold and professional-looking images from your outdoor sessions is to light your subjects with off-camera flash.
Photographing the landscape can be hard work, at times very hard work. It entails rising well before daylight in most cases and working in sometimes very harsh conditions. Most of the time, you will be out in the woods until well past dark, waiting for just the right moment, which may not come—even after your most valiant efforts. It makes sense, then, to do everything you can to stack the odds in your favor. Here are some thoughts on that.
Filters are some of the most transformational tools when it comes to creating possibilities in landscape photography. Aside from the intended exposure effects, there are some things you might need to learn about using them that will help you achieve better-quality images.
What is the key to growth as a photographer? Is it buying the best gear you can possibly afford? Nope. Or is it strategically curating your Instagram feed? Probably not.
Third party manufacturers have transformed the Sony full-frame ecosystem, giving the brand the most affordable and wide-ranging lens line-up of any mirrorless camera. Tamron has been at the center of this evolution, offering excellent lenses with intelligent compromises. The new 70-180mm f/2.8 Di III VXD is no exception.
It’s too easy to think about how photography has been democratized and how anyone today with a camera can call themselves a photographer. It’s an excuse in fact.
Infrared photography can reveal an eye-opening world of visual wonders, one that will continue to surprise you with its possibilities. And you might be surprised by its affordability.
Every photographer is different: we all have our own personalities and values. Even with all our differences, there are five key traits that every photographer needs to have no matter what they do.
Whether you know it or not, psychology plays a big role in successful pricing strategies for both products and services. Our brains are wired to pick up on subtle cues when it comes to weighing the value of something. So how do we successfully price our photography services? Here are a few tips to help you restructure your pricing for a successful year.
It’s often read and repeated: Micro Four Thirds is dead! Olympus’ camera department has been sold and full frame mirrorless is currently ruling the game. Am I the only one who doesn’t care?
I’ll admit that I’m in a creative rut. And like any photographer that feels frustrated, there’s only one thing to do: go in a different direction. For well over a year I’ve been shooting hardly anything besides studio portraits. While I love that genre and the work that I’ve created in that time, I feel like my work has hit a wall creatively. After watching several photographers and filmmakers doing these a-photo-a-day projects, I decided to give it a go in 2017.
![Win an Fstoppers Tutorial by Helping to Pick Our Photographer of the Year [NSFW]](https://cdn.fstoppers.com/styles/med-16-9/s3/lead/2019/12/f01e860fa231532fd9e4424668d4dcb8.jpg)
