Fstoppers Original Articles

I was on Instagram the other day when an ad for one of Canon’s two-lens kits popped up. The kits package together a couple of interesting options for photographers looking to step up from a kit lens, but the real question is: are the lenses a good value for photographers or should the money be spent elsewhere?

Despite a photographer’s best efforts, there will come a time when a client is unhappy with some part of their experience, whether it’s customer service or the finished images. Since it’s bound to happen, how should a photographer handle unhappy customers? The answer is: catch them before they can be disappointed.

On a multi-day assignment in Portland last week, I took advantage of my day off between assignments to experiment with the Sony a7R III and try it out in my normal workflow.

A free update to ON1 Photo RAW 2018 made sweeping improvements to performance and image quality and also introduced new features. From importing and cataloging to editing, layer-based compositing, and printing, the new Photo RAW 2018.1 is a powerhouse for every photographer's workflow.

Beauty photography can be a lot of fun to shoot, and that is what keeps me eager to keep progressing in my craft. But it does come with its own set of problems!

Once a year over a million people head to the tidal basin area of Washington D.C. in hopes of catching a glimpse of the thousands of beautiful cherry blossoms lining the streets. This year you may need to adjust your schedule to catch the peak bloom.

I’m a big believer that you don’t need expensive equipment and a complicated lighting set up to create beautiful images. Some of my favorite images were captured with a really simple lighting setup and with little or no lighting equipment at all. Sometimes too much emphasis is often put on equipment and we can easily get caught up in complicated lighting and expensive gear.

March Madness is almost here! For the players, that means a lot of press and hype both on and off the court. For photographers tasked with showing them off, it means doing our best to make it all run smoothly.

You may be familiar with portrait photography, but have you ever had the pleasure of experiencing the fine art form? If you haven’t, it’s time you did. Fine art portrait photography has exploded in the luxury portraiture photography market in recent years. The results are superbly evocative and make simply stunning wall art.

Until recently, you might expect the iPhone to be the phone of choice for product shots. However I’ve done some digging, and found that Apple’s latest and greatest is being put aside.

Have you ever had an incredible idea, but couldn't find a model to help you? Learn how to bring your vision to life through the art of self portraits.

Most clients today look at a digital portfolio rather than a printed book. Granted, the higher up the ladder you go, the more it leads toward print, but for the vast majority of us trying to make a living from photography, digital is king. Here are some tips on how to get bookings from your website.

Canon is king, but they sure aren’t getting that level of respect from photographers. What does this mean for their future?

If you haven’t taken the time to create presets for editing your photos, you need to. Here is a complete guide to creating and organizing your own presets in Lightroom.

We have seen various projects appear that celebrate and normalize humanity's oldest and most natural action: breastfeeding. However, while some photographers try to focus on how the public perceives a woman who breastfeeds in public, Emma Shardlow Hudson from Hudson & Rose Photography does something quite unique.

Photographing in the jungle is difficult. Heavy moisture and low light are tough obstacles for a camera and photographer to overcome. But what makes the idea exciting? Meeting with, observing, and documenting a traditional - almost ancient - culture.

The end of this color trifecta of themes is another great one featuring a precious metal in a number of different forms. The wide variety and quality of submissions in this list make it easily worth its weight in gold.

In the first year or so of learning how to edit images, photographers are completely bombarded by information regarding the dos and don’ts for what makes a good photo. This is one area of post-processing that continues to be misinterpreted.

Nikon released a trio of new cameras at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show, all under a new umbrella called “KeyMission.” While two of them were mostly GoPro clones, the third was arguably the most interesting, and not just for its strange name and looks: The KeyMission360. This camera was the most forward-looking product that Nikon has put out, more so than any potential mirrorless camera or DSLR that’s come out in the past few years. And then it let its 360 ambitions wither and die.

When New Hampshire-based photographer Ron Risman posted an image he captured March 3rd of waves crashing against Whaleback Lighthouse off the coast of New Castle, N.H., he had no idea who Eric Gendron was. But after a local meteorologist shared the photo, an incredible coincidence brought the two together as fast as social media could spread the word of what some people thought had to be a case of thievery.

Let me admit something: I'm not a technical photographer. Bless those that fuss with all of the specs and have an analytical approach to photography, I suppose that I rely on my own method. As a self-taught photographer, I acquired knowledge by watching other photographers create. Each had their distinct style, some were technical and others instinctual but each was equally an artist.

Instagram may be changing the way you see images in your feed once again. The surprising thing is that this new change might actually be for the better.

Last week photographers from around the world came together for the annual WPPI conference in Las Vegas. It is common to hear many photographers talk about their plans to hit the desert for incredible landscapes or portrait sessions in between classes and workshops. A few tips from pro boudoir photographers can help you the next time you are able to take the trip.

Who knows how many new videos and articles are put on the line each day talking about the gear you should own as a photographer? And, more importantly, when was the last time that you read an article about gear that promised to get you closer to the action, help make you more energetic, and it can charge all of your batteries too?

When I spoke with photographer Anthony Manieri, he was sitting at home in the middle of editing images from a routine event before preparing to fly to Los Angeles to do another shoot for a personal project that has been more successful than he ever anticipated. He didn’t expect a one-off shoot to turn into a personal project taking him around the world creating portraits of diverse, mostly gay men to promote positive body imagery.

When it comes to working with models (whether it be aspiring or established), there is one trait that I value above all others. If you're thinking that I'm going to say cheek bones, freckles, or a specific hair color you're way, way off.

Almost a year and a half ago, I undertook the most technically challenging photo shoot of my career. I was fairly proud of the results and the community rallied around it but Lee and Patrick have publicly criticized the image. This will hopefully settle the debate between us.

What started as an innocuous trip to the craft store ended with myself and a model sitting in my studio with tears running down our faces. I shouldn’t say that it ended there, though, because the first session of A Woman’s Soul was only the beginning of a month-long process of emotional vulnerability, bravery, and change.

There are several different methods for tethering during a photo session and there are multiple methods for organizing one’s archives. But my gradual progression to a Capture One driven universe has immensely streamlined my photography process and boosted my business.

At some point, all creatives fall into ruts where it’s difficult to imagine new concepts. Unfortunately, inspiration doesn't always present itself. Sometimes we have to create it. Below is a list of practices I follow.

If you’re in a place right now where you’re unsure of your pricing, and you’re not booking as many clients as you’d like, it may be time to consider raising your pricing. Here’s why raising your photo package prices may help book more clients and make you love being a photographer more.

In my switch from Mac to Windows, most things have worked smoothly while running Windows 10. I have always been very much into all the fine nuances and details of any workflow or program you are working within and I am a huge ambassador for really learning all the small details that can make your life easier and more efficient.

The Internet is full of articles and videos telling you what technique will revolutionize the way you add sharpness to your images, but almost none of them tell you the most crucial step to take before sharpening, no matter the technique. In this article, I’ll show you this simple yet essential action to make your sharpening genuinely efficient.

We now know that the Sony a7R III and a7 III have sorted out many of the major complaints with mirrorless cameras, such as battery life, overheating, and autofocus, but there are still so many more features that we didn’t get. What does the next generation of Sony mirrorless cameras have in store for us?

Piracy is a major issue among all types of creatives. Regardless of if you make handbags, design websites, create beautiful paintings, produce movies, or craft amazing photographs, at some point or another, someone is going to steal and rip off your work. Recently, we decided to run a social experiment; we actually pirated one of our own tutorials and put it online for free before it was even released to the public. What happened next was pretty interesting.

Getting ready for your next trip? Travel is hard enough as a tourist, but as a nomadic photographer, a lot can go wrong. Whether the plane runs out of overhead storage or you’re in a car crash, solid packing will help you to comfortably face the unexpected so you can shoot from dawn till twilight, then change plans last minute with as little inconvenience as possible. Here are some techniques that have helped me nail ultralight packing to travel indefinitely as a nomadic photographer—or skip to the end for my one bag packing list!

Manfred Baumann is a highly regarded portrait photographer specializing in working with the biggest names in Hollywood. Baumann has spent years developing a timeless style to his work that continues to be in high demand. Fstoppers chats with Baumann to get the low down on what drives both his creative process and how he built a strong business in a very tight niche.

What would you do if one of the proudest photographs in your archive suddenly took on a very dark association? In 2004 I sold an image of a parkour athlete to Adidas to launch a new line of trainers. That athlete is now a convicted sex offender.

Have you ever wondered when, and why you should crop a photo? In this post I'll explain how using the crop tool effectively can hugely improve the storytelling abilities in your photography. I'll also show you how cropping a photo can take your shot from average to great by allowing you to follow some key rules of composition.

Episode 27 of Critique the Community took one of the most popular genres here on Fstoppers and added a twist. We asked the community to submit any landscape or cityscape shot taken above 50mm.

You are about to embark on a magnificent afternoon of fishing, under a sun-soaked sky. Do you simply drive around town till you see running water, hastily place the car in park, and cast out, or instead carefully plan out a spot on the water that nets you the greatest chance of success.

It has been just over a year since the release of Fujifilm’s entry into the digital medium format market, the Fujifilm GFX 50s. Fstoppers reviewed the camera a few months later, and I talked about it as a travel and portrait camera a while later. It’s an exceptional machine, there’s no doubting that. But after a few solid months of using it, how do I feel about it? The initial “wow” that comes with the honeymoon phase is over now, so what’s left?

I don’t use Adobe Lightroom. I use Bridge and Photoshop to retouch my client’s and my own images. Here are some tips and advice on how to use certain tools in Photoshop to get the best out of your work.

Two years ago I featured a macro videographer who was creating incredible visuals using chemicals and substances. Roman De Giuli has done it again, this time for the Winter Olympics.

I had originally been using a simple program called NameChanger to rename all my files before importing them to Lightroom, but ever since I realized that Lightroom had all the controls that I needed for setting up custom naming sequences for my files, this is all I use anymore. Here's how you find and use it. It's pretty simple.

Go behind the scenes and witness what it felt like to have a lung collapse through this striking and intimate photo series called "Admitted." The last week in March is one that I will never forget.

Most sports photographers dream of photographing the Olympics. In a global event filled with such high intensity, drama, and action, it's difficult to imagine not capturing a jaw-dropping moment. But what distinguishes the best Olympic photographs from the great?

Lighting can be a major pain in the ass and that is especially the case if you're not a technical person, like me. After picking up the camera 7 years ago I am still constantly learning about the many different aspects of lighting.

I see it daily with newbies on Instagram: "like-for-like", "please follow me", "validate my existence, please". The fact that I see it daily also says something about me: Hi, my name is Mike, and I'm addicted to likes.

If you are anything like me, the latest and constant changing Instagram and Facebook algorithm is on your last nerve. Do you recall the last time you said, "Oh cool, a new Instagram algorithm!" or anticipated positive changes coming from the social media giant?