Alex Cooke's picture
Average rating:
3.2 out of 5
3.2
Alex Cooke
Cleveland, OH

Articles written by Alex Cooke

Which Nikon Macro Lens Is Right for You?

Nikon mirrorless shooters have two new lenses at their disposal, the NIKKOR Z MC 50mm f/2.8 Macro and the NIKKOR Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S Macro. While both offer the 1:1 magnification of a true macro lens, there are some major differences between the two. This helpful video review compares both options to show you which is the proper one for your work.

Choosing Camera Settings and Compositions in Landscape Photography

Composition and camera settings reign above all in landscape photography, and a good image is made in the choices you make at that stage. This fantastic video tutorial follows a seasoned landscape photographer as he visits four different locations and discusses the light, his composition, lens choices, settings, and more that lead to his final images.

Comparing the Canon RF 800mm f/11 IS STM to the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L IS USM

Canon has been blazing full speed ahead with its RF lenses, with two of the new models being the RF 800mm f/11 IS STM and the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L IS USM. Both feature some of the company's latest designs and features, but offer vastly different capabilities and price points. Which one is right for you? This excellent video comparison takes a look at the image quality and experience of using both.

Mistakes Beginner Landscape Photographers Make With Camera Settings

In landscape photography, a single scene can yield vastly different images simply by how you choose your camera settings. As such, this is a place where a lot of things can go awry. If you are new to landscape work, this helpful video tutorial will show you some common mistakes beginner landscape photographers make with their camera settings and how to fix them to create more effective images.

Canon Will Beat Nikon to the Punch With the EOS R3

Now that the Sony a1 is out, a lot of the market's attention has been turned toward Canon and Nikon, who are readying the EOS R3 and Z 9, respectively, for announcement. It looks like Canon's EOS R3 will arrive first, in just a few months.

How to Fix Chromatic Aberrations Using Lightroom

Chromatic aberration is by far one of the most common lens issues you will have to deal with, particularly with cheaper lenses or wide-aperture primes, and it can be quite distracting if not addressed. Thankfully, most post-processing programs can handle it quite easily nowadays. This awesome video tutorial will show you how to quickly and easily remove chromatic aberrations with just a few clicks using Lightroom.

Here Comes the Nikon Z 9: More Specifications and Announcement Date Emerge

Now that all the major camera companies are heavily invested in mirrorless, a lot of attention has turned to the arms race of sorts between Sony, Nikon, and Canon at the upper tier of camera bodies. We have seen the Sony a1, we know the EOS R3 and R1 are coming, and now, it seems we know quite a bit more about the Nikon's upcoming flagship, the Z 9.

Creative Portrait Lighting Tips and Ideas

Once you have the basics of using artificial lighting down, you can start to really explore your creativity and develop a recognizable personal style by exploring more unique ways of using lighting. This quick and to-the-point video tutorial will give a few helpful tips and ideas for creative lighting for portraits.

How to Use Photoshop's Select and Mask Workspace

Photoshop offers a huge range of ways to make selections for extracting parts of a frame or creating layers masks, each appropriate for different situations. The Select and Mask workspace offers a very straightforward and powerful method for tackling a variety of tricky selection scenarios, and this helpful video tutorial will show you everything you need to know to get the most out of it.

8 Mistakes Beginners Make in Macro Photography

Macro photography has many challenges that are unique to it, but when you can overcome them, you can produce entrancing photos of seemingly mundane things right around you. The learning curve can be a bit steep, though, so if you are new to macro work, be sure to check out this fantastic video tutorial that shows eight mistakes beginners commonly make and how to fix them or avoid them altogether.

Getting the Most out of a Single Location in Landscape Photography

In landscape photography, some locations are just tricky to shoot, even if their photographic potential is plainly obvious. And while it is tempting to just pack it up and move to the next location, before you do that, try returning to the basic principles and working the scene to get as many compositions as possible. This great video tutorial discusses getting the most out of a location.

How to Save Time by Culling With Photo Mechanic

Depending on what genre you shoot in, you can often come home with literally thousands of images from a shoot, and culling them can be a tremendously tedious and annoying process. While you can cull in Lightroom, it is not always the fastest, particularly when it comes to rendering previews. Photo Mechanic is built with one purpose: to make culling large image sets and adding necessary info as efficient as possible. This excellent video tutorial will show you everything you need to get the most out of it.

Comparing the Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VXD to the Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Contemporary Lens

Both Tamron and Sigma have established themselves as creators of high-quality but affordable lenses that significantly undercut the prices of first-party manufacturers. For anyone looking for a super-telephoto zoom lens, the Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Contemporary and Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VXD are both affordable and offer impressive performance. This great video review compares the two to help you pick the right one for your work.

10 Common Astrophotography Questions Answered

Astrophotography is by far one of the most specialized genres out there, requiring quite a bit of specific equipment, software, and technique, but capturing things that are unfathomable distances away can be really rewarding. If you are new to the genre or looking to improve your work, check out this awesome video tutorial that answers 10 of the most common questions people have about astrophotography.

Can Tamron's 35mm f/1.4 Outperform the Canon 35mm f/1.4 at Half the Price?

Canon's 35mm f/1.4L II USM lens is known for being sharp, with a beautiful rendering and strong performance. Nonetheless, like most Canon L lenses, it is rather expensive. Tamron's SP 35mm f/1.4 Di USD undercuts the Canon's price significantly. However, can its image quality and performance match the more expensive option? This great video review compares both to see which is the best option for your own work.

Are Leica Cameras and Lenses Worth the Price?

Leica cameras and lenses are rather polarizing, with some seeing them as overpriced niche items that do not do anything special and some absolutely swearing by both the experience and images they offer. So, are they worth the price? This great video essay discusses the topic and why one photographer thinks they are worth their premium cost.

How to Take Better Bird Photos

Bird photography is a very challenging genre that requires a lot of specialized knowledge, top-tier technique, and patience, but when it all comes together, it can reward you with stunning photos. If you are looking to improve your own bird photography, this awesome video tutorial features two seasoned professionals discussing their background and a range of lessons and ways to improve your work.

Is This the Best Lens for New Wildlife Photographers?

Wildlife photography can be a tremendously fun and interesting genre, but it often requires very long focal lengths, and the lenses involved can be very expensive. Canon's RF 600mm f/11 IS STM offers the kind of focal length wildlife photographers need at a very affordable price, albeit with some compromises to get to that price level. Is it still worth it? This great video review takes a look at what you can expect.

A Review of the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS Lens

Supertelephoto prime lenses are often prohibitively expensive, but in the past few years, we have seen a big influx of much more affordable supertelephoto zoom lenses. For Sony shooters, there is the FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS, and this fantastic video review takes a look at how it performs in practice.

Why Photographers Are Unhappy

Photography is something we all choose to do willingly, and as such, it should be something that makes us happy. Nonetheless, a lot of photographers are not particularly happy, which is a shame. Why is that, though? This insightful video essay discusses some of the possible reasons.