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Alex Cooke
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Articles written by Alex Cooke

A More Refined Approach to Choosing the Right Aperture in Landscape Photography

Aperture is one of the most fundamental and powerful tools you have at your disposal for controlling the look of your images. As such, understanding and mastering every property of it and consequence it has on your photos is crucial. This excellent video tutorial features an experienced landscape photographer giving a nuanced approach for choosing the right aperture for your images.

Canon Patents Another Extreme Lens

Canon has been quite aggressive in the development of RF mount lenses, releasing some extreme designs, such as the RF 28-70mm f/2 L USM and the RF 85mm f/1.2 L USM. They seem to have no intentions of slowing down, as another boundary-pushing design has emerged in a recent patent.

How These Lightroom Tools Can Improve Your Landscape Photos

While Photoshop is still the destination of choice for the most involved and detailed edits, Lightroom has evolved into a tremendously versatile and powerful tool that can tackle quite a few images on its own. Three of its most useful tools for landscape photography are texture, clarity, and dehaze, and this excellent video tutorial will show you how they are used and how to leverage them for better images.

How Good Is the Sony a7R V Mirrorless Camera?

The Sony a7R series of mirrorless cameras has long been popular for offering some of the highest levels of resolution and image quality available in a full frame camera, but now in the fifth iteration, the a7R V is far from a one trick pony. A range of new and improved capabilities make it a powerhouse camera capable of tackling a variety of scenarios and needs. This great video review takes a look at the camera and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.

A Review of the Canon EOS R6 Mark II Mirrorless Camera

The Canon EOS R5 signaled to the industry that Canon was deadly serious about the professional mirrorless space, but along with it came the EOS R6, which kept many of the former's most impressive capabilities without such a high-resolution sensor and features like 8K raw video, which the vast majority of professionals do not need. It was also significantly cheaper, making it quite the intriguing camera. Now, the second iteration, the EOS R6 Mark II, is here, and it brings with it a number of worthwhile improvements. This great video review takes a look at the performance you can expect from it.

13 Helpful Tips for Taking Better Smartphone Photos

Smartphones have built-in cameras that are more powerful than ever, and most of us have one in our pocket just about everywhere we go. And as the classic saying goes: "the best camera is the one that you have with you." So, what can you do to get the most from your smartphone's camera? This excellent video tutorial features 13 tips sure to help you maximize your results.

Impressive Canon Lens Patents Emerge

Canon has filled out the RF mount lens library at an aggressive pace, with many options that offer impressive performance and push the boundaries of lens design. Nonetheless, there are still some missing lenses. Some new patents have emerged that indicate Canon is working on filling those holes, and they might do so with some fairly extreme designs.

Canon Patents Vibrating Shutter Button

While features like lighted buttons have slowly become a bit more popular in the industry, haptic feedback has been largely ignored, despite being an extremely common feature in other technology. However, that might change eventually, as a Canon patent for a vibrating shutter button has appeared.

The Process of Switching to Medium Format

Cameras like the Fujifilm GFX 100S have revolutionized the paradigm of medium format gear in the last few years, bringing features and capabilities typically reserved for smaller systems and doing so at a price that competes with the upper levels of full frame. This has made medium format a viable alternative for many photographers, particularly landscape, portrait, and wedding shooters. So, what all can you expect from the switch? This great video features one photographer who made the switch discussing his experience.

The Allure of the All-in-One Lens for Landscape Photography

Traditionally, professional photographers have shied away from superzoom lenses, as the sacrifices it took to create such a large focal length range were simply too great to make them viable for their demands. On the other hand, they might be worth a second look, especially if you are a landscape photographer. This great video essay discusses why a superzoom lens can often be the ideal choice.

A Premium Canon Ultra-wide Angle Lens Is on the Way

The Canon RF lens lineup is growing nicely, though there is still a hole at the ultra-wide angle end of the lineup. Thankfully, however, that will likely change soon, with a premium ultra-wide angle lens on the way.

Helpful Tips for Photographing Snowy Landscapes

Many of us are stuck in the middle of winter right now, surrounded by snow, ice, and cold. And while we might want to avoid the cold, if you are willing to bundle up and head outside with your camera, you will often be rewarded with images that range from abstract to ethereal and entrancing. This helpful video tutorial features an experienced landscape photographer sharing three tips sure to improve your winter landscape images.

A Long-term Review of the Fujifilm XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR and XF 33mm f/1.4 R LM WR Lenses

For Fujifilm photographers, the XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR and XF 33mm f/1.4 R LM WR offer both a wide angle and a normal focal length in tandem with a wide maximum aperture, making them versatile options for a wide range of genres, including wedding work, street photography, portraiture, and much more. How do they hold up over time? This excellent video review takes a look at the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from them.

A Review of the Fujifilm X-T5 Mirrorless Camera

Fujifilm's latest entry in the X Series, the X-T5, brings with it some of the company's newest and most advanced features and capabilities in its most well-known design. Can it compete with the many powerful full frame options on the market? This excellent video review takes a look at the performance and image quality you will be able to expect from it.

How to Add Pets to Engagement and Couples Portraits

Pets are one of the most important presences in the lives of a lot of couples, and it is only natural that they might want to include them in engagement or couples portraits. Of course, adding a rambunctious dog or the like to the mix can make your job substantially more difficult. So, how do you satisfy the desires of your clients without pulling out your hair? This helpful video tutorial will give you some useful advice.

A Deep Look at the New Sigma 60-600mm f/4.5-6.3 DG DN OS Sports Lens

The new Sigma 60-600mm f/4.5-6.3 DG DN OS Sports lens is one of the company's most versatile lenses yet, covering everything from normal to supertelephoto focal lengths and promising to do so with great performance and image quality, making it a potentially fantastic option for sports photography, wildlife work, and more. Can it live up to its potential? This excellent video review takes a look at everything you can expect.

One of the Most Useful and Overlooked Camera Features

Modern cameras are impressively capable machines, full of a range of advanced features and capabilities. One of the most useful features has been around for much longer than mirrorless cameras, though; in fact, it goes back to the film era. This great video tutorial will show you where to find it and how to take advantage of it to make your workflow easier and to help you get more shots.