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Fred van Leeuwen
Cheltenham, GB
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Articles written by Fred van Leeuwen

The Trials and Tribulations of Experimenting With Infrared Photography
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A few months ago, I explored a new photography challenge and invested in an infrared filter for landscape photography. I could've bought an already converted used camera, but after looking at what was available on the used market and specialist conversion services, investing in a filter seemed to be at a more appealing price point and the best of both worlds. After several trials and tribulations, I became hooked on this newly discovered world of infrared photography.

5 Reasons Why Filters Matter: A Review of NiSi's Long-Exposure Circular Filter Kit
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When it comes to photography, there are a few fundamental basics one needs to cover before shooting. Besides needing a camera, decent battery life, and a reliable and solid support system, you need filters to combat the daylight sun's harshness, introduce contrast, remove the annoying infrared noise, and polarize the sky or any reflections. Some filters also allow you to create those beautiful, abstract, long-exposure, misty seascapes with streaky clouds overhead.

Anamorphic on a Budget? A Review of Sirui's 50mm f/1.8 Anamorphic Lens
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During World War I, French astronomer Henri Chrétien developed a wide-angle viewer for tank operators, enabling the crew members to see a 180-degree view of the battleground. His invention wasn't used in the cinema until after the war in 1927 when director Claude Autant-Lara decided to use it for his film, "To Build a Fire." Sadly, this invention was only picked up again over twenty years later when Twentieth Century-Fox purchased the rights to the Cinemascope Widescreen Aspect Ratio technique.

What I've Learned From Starting a YouTube Channel
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As photographers, it's vital not to keep all our eggs in one basket, but to expand our means of income by setting up different revenue streams, one of the most popular of those streams being YouTube. But is it still possible to make money from it in 2020?

How to Feel Fulfilled by Your Work: Shoot for Yourself First
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Around four months ago, amidst a harsh lockdown here in South Africa, I moved from the big city to a small coastal town, Betty's Bay, nestled between the Overberg mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. There was no work coming in, and there was no budget to rent additional gear for any shoots. It was worrying, but on the upside, I had to do something to occupy my mind and pass the time, and luckily, I had my camera to shoot while I wait. What followed was two months of intense filming and editing for my first narrative short film.

Learn to Tell a Story Through the Use of Color
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Since the introduction of color in film, photographers and filmmakers have been using it to subconsciously tell a story, to make the viewer of a photographer or film feel a certain way, or to further elaborate on a story. How do we, as photographers and filmmakers, use color to our advantage and utilize the full potential without going overboard?

Save Time by Creating a Time-Lapse in Photoshop
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Creating a time-lapse can be one of the most time-consuming practices in photography. Due to the nature of time-lapse, you spend a while finding a suitable composition, set up your camera and wait.

Filmmaker Creates Inspiring Shortfilm by Himself During Quarantine
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This year has forced many photographers and filmmakers to take an extended break from their day jobs and stay home. The newfound stresses that come with quarantine have left a lot of us uninspired, while others have used this time to pursue projects they couldn't find time for before. One professional filmmaker used his time during quarantine to create a beautiful Sci-Fi short film, from the comfort of his own home.

Getting Started With Macro Photography
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The world of macro photography can become endless once you venture down that path. There are so many new textures, creatures, and plants to discover. You can quickly lose hours by photographing the miniature world, but how do you get started?

How to Edit Your First Video in Da Vinci Resolve 16
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Da Vinci Resolve is a complete video editor with a full set of tools for editors of any level, which means you can build your videos for YouTube, or a feature film, right here in Resolve.

How to Shoot and Stitch a Panoramic Image
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I know a lot of us can't go outside right now to shoot panoramas due to quarantines and self-isolation, but perhaps you have some panoramic shots you took months back on a trip somewhere, buried away on a hard drive in the cupboard. Now's a good time to dust them off and get to work!

The Photographer's Guide to Buying Your First Dedicated Video Camera
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If you're a photographer interested in exploring video, there is a plethora of options available for you right now. Since the launch of the Canon 5D Mark II around a decade ago, video functionality has been a growing part of every DSLR and mirrorless camera to date. But there's always a trade-off when it comes to hybrid cameras. Here's why you should consider buying a dedicated video camera if you want to diversify your work and make video a dedicated service along with your photography.

Using Lockdown to Improve Your Photography in Five Simple Steps
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By now, most of the countries around the world are under full lockdown or about to undergo lockdown. At the time of writing, my country (South Africa) would be one of the latest to undergo lockdown. Tensions seem to increase the day before the actual event, as people question what they'll be doing with themselves while locked in a house for three weeks or longer. Luckily, it doesn't need to be as scary as you think, especially if you're a photographer.

Goodbye Adobe Premiere, Hello Da Vinci Resolve
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If you’re a video editor working on Adobe’s Premiere Pro, you’re probably well aware of all the frustrations that come with using Adobe’s answer to video editing daily. The sluggish playback, the generic error issues, random crashes, and in some cases corrupted project files. We’re all well aware of how bloated and buggy this once prized piece of software had become, especially as of late.

How to Shoot and Edit Your Concert Photos
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Concerts and events can either be exciting and fun or quite challenging for us photographers due to the low-lit environment and having to share the space with other photographers, all while being crammed into a tight space. Luckily, a little bit of planning and preparation can go a long way to avoid any disasters while shooting.

Is This The Ultimate Portable LED Light?
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Light. We see it all around us as billions of photons pass right by us, bouncing against objects like "Punch-Me-Clowns." As photographers, we're obsessed and spend our lives figuring out how to manipulate them, and it could be an exhausting task to pursue, but that's about to change.

Build and Photograph Your Own Miniature Set Using Only Household Items
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With the holiday season in full swing during December, I decided to put my camera down and focus on coming up with new ideas and concepts rather than just shooting straight away. Being a big fan of Felix Hernandez Rodriguez and the miniatures he brings to life through his photography, I decided to build my own set and photograph it.

Make Your Instagram Photos Pop Using Adjustment Layers in Photoshop
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Adjustment Layers are probably one of the most useful, and most used tools in Photoshop. It's one of the best ways to keep a non-destructive editing workflow in place and offers additional features such as blending modes to add exciting effects to your images. With all this in mind, why don't we see how we can use it to make our Instagram images stand out more?