Fstoppers Original Articles

Chances are, you can't afford the latest and greatest thousand-dollar smartphone, and you'll have to make some compromises when it comes to the smartphone camera and features. Learn from my mistakes. Here are four modern features smartphone cameras have.

This month, I’ve gotten a chance to spend some time shooting with one of Nikon’s two new macro lenses, the NIKKOR Z MC 105mm f/2.8 Macro.

Capturing a great landscape photograph is extremely rewarding because a lot of things have to come together in order to nail it. But sometimes no matter how hard you try there's just a little something missing. In this walkthrough, I'll show you how to enhance your landscape images with a composite in Photoshop CC.

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.

Lens filters are useful for achieving a variety of photographic effects in camera, such as long exposures of moving subjects. But did you know you can achieve the same great results with Photoshop CC?

We call this the "environmental shutter drag portrait." A shutter drag portrait is a portrait that uses slow shutter speeds to capture the motion around the subject. This technique is best done in a big grand scene full of action and detail. The eye-catching nature of these shutter drag portraits makes them perfect for impressing clients and serving as the highlight photo for every album and event. Today, I'll be walking through 10 easy steps on how to photograph your own shutter drag portrait.

This week, it’s been reported from several news outlets that OnlyFans, the popular premium subscription service known mostly for explicit content will be banning explicit content from October 1, 2021 forward. Why would they do this? What are they planning for the future? Could OnlyFans now become a better option for artists and photographers?

Nikkei recent published a synopsis of Techno System Research's Market Share Survey for 2020, a detailed paywalled survey of camera shipment data from major manufacturers. The headline is a 5.0% drop for Nikon, decreasing its total market share. This isn't great news for Nikon, but is it all it seems?

Focus and sharp images are always at the top of the photographer's priority list. But you shouldn't just toss out a photo because it's not pin-sharp exactly where you want it to be. In fact, there are many reasons why you should covet that soft shot over the others.

With COVID-19 basically celebrating its 1.5-year reign of terror with new strain variants, how have you been holding up? How have all the restrictions kept you from pursuing the craft?

As a photojournalist, I often have subconscious blocks against excessive editing that seep even into other genres of photography. That’s why I often try my hand at toy photography when I want to flex my editing muscles.

There’s more to focusing than half-pressing the shutter release. Focus is one of the three most important technical variables in photography; it can make or break a photograph. Here are ten things, some basic, some more advanced, to help you shoot better photos.

Ask 100 photographers what started them to pursue the medium, and you will hear 100 different answers. Follow up that question with what drives each of them to keep pursuing photography, and you again will find 100 different responses.

Like many small businesses, I decided to use the very popular restaurant recommendation site Yelp to advertise my business after seeing they automatically created a page for me. Here’s how you can avoid the disasters that come with making that same mistake.

If you're not exploring all the possibilities that modern digital editing software offers you then you're letting potential earning opportunities pass you by. This article explores how you exploit different markets with single images.

If you’re a wedding or event photographer, it’s likely you’ve come across mixed lighting situations, and understanding how to work with or around it is crucial. If done right, mixed lighting can have a flattering effect and can add visual interest and depth to your photos.

There’s always that one photographer who says they’ve got 40 years of experience, and their photos are at the high school photography level. Truth is, this happens quite often. Assuming they are telling the truth, how come someone’s pictures with so much experience look so much like a beginner's? Let’s dive deep.

Self-improvement is paramount to success and a well-rounded, happy life, at least in my eyes. I am always looking for ways I can change for the better and learn, but the older I get, the more I realize that one change mattered more than most.

Social media is the place for photographers to show their work and discuss photography. It is great looking at those photos, but there are also some things that keep annoying me. I have identified 5 things photographers should stop doing.

Earning a degree in photography is not a necessity for becoming a professional, working photographer. However, there are still some good reasons to seek out more formal training in the medium.

Few people outside of ex-Soviet territories know that there was a booming camera industry there. In this article, I will shed light on some unusual cameras that came from the Soviet era.

Social media has the most confusing and arbitrary policies on what constitutes adult content. If you don’t want to have your account deleted for posting fully clothed people, you need to understand these rules.

If you're a photographer constantly on the go, the gear you carry with you plays a crucial role. In addition, as technology improves and the demand for quality content increases, we continue to consolidate our gear and fit everything we need into a small backpack.

Aside from the Perseid meteor shower, the summer hype is on for viewing Saturn. Indeed, Saturn is a great target for visual observers, especially if it’s your very first view through a telescope. But for astrophotographers, it’s a tough target. A bit of an easier target is Jupiter, which is “following” Saturn across the summer sky.

If you are a photographer in any capacity, chances are you deal with the same repetitive questions and comments from non-photographers when your photography comes up in discussions. It gets old, and despite it usually being well-meaning, I wish people would stop asking these five things.

Each camera calibrates color differently. So, why not take control of your own colors using Lightroom's Calibration tool?

Making a living in an oversaturated marketplace can be a challenge even without a global pandemic present to further shrink the marketplace. It takes a lot of tools, even some unexpected ones, to make it the distance.

The recent press about an upcoming Nikon camera — denoted the "N2014" — highlighted a government registration filing that suggests it will be "equipped with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)." This has been a positive media development for Nikon as, if correct, it would make them the first camera manufacturer to integrate GNSS into one of their products. Is the camera industry being disingenuous by their slow adoption of existing technologies?

Sometimes, you don’t have to stray too far to find what you’re looking for. After traveling the coast and sharing our journey with you, our Pacific Northwest Escape has come to an end with a stop in our own backyard, where Mother Nature’s beauty is on full display.

Focussed on the sharp, perfectly composed, and exposed shot? Why not try Intentional Camera Movement or multiple exposures to create something unique. You may quite like it.

For any photographer who enjoys traveling, finding the ideal balance between utility, image quality, and size and weight can be tricky. This lens offers a great choice to condense it all into one.

What will you be doing for World Photography Day? There’s good reason to get on board. Some exciting happenings are going on, including some free live presentations from top-notch photographers.

Photography rules are among some of the most frequently disputed ones. Of course, there is a reason for their existence. Our eyes find it more logical to look at a scene that follows the rule of thirds. Color theory dictates that red and blue are colors that contrast really well. Every tutorial on gels will prove this right.

There are endless articles and videos discussing the pros and cons of shooting in raw versus shooting in JPEG. I’ve long been a proponent of raw for the editing capabilities, but what's more important than file sizes and editing? Longevity.

Apple has announced this week that it is going to start rolling out new child safety features. These features are coming later this year in updates to iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, and macOS Monterey. Apple says that this program is ambitious and protecting children is an important responsibility.

There are a million reasons to buy a new camera. Some are more valid than others. In this article, I take a look at some of the silliest rationales for buying new cameras.

Eventually, as we progress in our commercial photography careers, we will become a part of sizable shoots with producers attached. Your first shoot with an experienced producer will feel like flying first class for the first time; you will never want to go back.

Over the last year and a half, we’ve all realized the importance of connections. And as the world grapples with how to connect at a time when we’ve become increasingly isolated, there’s nothing better than finding symbols of hope in the real world.

Nikon recently posted its first quarter financial report which shows improved sales but still leaves many questions unanswered about its post-COVID recovery. Is it making or — indeed — losing ground to its competitors?

If you're a wedding or event photographer, chances are, you've encountered mixed lighting situations. Though mixed lighting can be used creatively, there are times when it just isn't ideal. Today, I'll be walking through several examples of mixed lighting conditions with solutions on how you can work around it on location or fix it in post-production.

I think that it’s often difficult for people to understand or see the real struggles that female and nonbinary creatives face in the photography industry. If you’ve been keeping up with current news, Canon has faced some criticism recently. They aren't the first and won't be the last to make a huge diversity misstep.

Small, affordable cameras with small sensors and small lenses are doomed to produce images with deep depth of field, but what if you could add shallow depth of field in post?

If you want to buy some items for your photography, prices are often high. It feels like the manufacturer has increased the price just because it is for photography. Sometimes, it is possible to make that item yourself. But is the DIY solution just as good?

How do you rate success in photography? Maybe, it’s earning a living from it. That isn’t a goal for everyone, but valuable lessons about successful photography can be learned from the business of professionals.

Optical snoots are inexpensive attachments that can open up a world of possibilities for precise light placement. Here is a detailed description of how to use them and what you need to start creating with them.

Modern cameras and lenses are small marvels of consumer technology, and over the years, we have seen all sorts of features come and go along the journey to today's products. Here are three features that never quite caught on that I wish would come back.

Things are still topsy-turvy with certain restrictions around the world, but in New York City, clients are bringing me into their offices again for headshots, so I wanted to share what I bring and why.

Landscape photographers usually want stunning detail and excellent image quality, so why would you shoot landscape photos on a cheap lens that rarely delivers sharp images?

Baber Afzal is the soft-spoken talent who only found his way to photography after picking up his sister’s Sony point-and-shoot nearly over a decade ago. That twist of fate has led him to work for some very well-established clients in the UAE, including the Porsche UAE’s new Panamera campaign.

When we capture a 3D environment in 2D, the perceived depth can be lost due to the colors in the scene. In this short tutorial, I'll show you one way of bringing back the depth in your image.