Mike Kelley Photography Tutorials

About Mike Kelley

Michael Kelley (mpkelley.com) is a Los Angeles-based architectural and fine art photographer with a background in digital art and sculpture. Using his backgrounds in the arts, he creates images that are surreal and otherworldly, yet lifelike and believable. A frequent traveler, Michael's personal work focuses on the built environment of unique

Popular Articles from Mike Kelley
[BTSV] Fighting G-Forces For An Air & Space Cover

This has to be one of the most awesome opportunities that could be granted to a photographer. Last fall, Ed Darack was asked to shoot a cover for Air & Space Magazine, and decided to show the world how he did it. Check out the video in the full post.
Fstoppers Reviews The CamRanger: The Best Thing To Happen To Shooting Tethered...Ever.

For the longest time, I've been using a 17" Macbook Pro for tethering. The big screen is great. Everything else, however, was a nightmare. I recently saw some colleagues of mine raving about a new product called the CamRanger, which allows you to tether to your Android device (April 2013), iPad or iPhone to your camera and had to try it out, as any solution that would resolve my near-daily tethering headaches would be fantastic.

Fstoppers Reviews The Rokinon 35mm F/1.4 Aspherical Lens: A Fantastic Value For The Money

Rokinon recently released a new offering in the 35mm lens range, and I was super excited to get my hands on it for a number of reasons. The great price, wide aperture, and popular focal length of 35mm makes for a great combo, but never having used a Rokinon product before I wasn't quite sure what to expect. After an extensive review covering nearly two months (thank you Rokinon, for lending it to me for that long!)

My Photo Went Viral, And Nothing Could Have Prepared Me For What Happened After

A little bit over a week ago, I went to Los Angeles International Airport to make a photo. It was a clear day, and I didn't want to waste it sitting inside. Being an aviation fan myself, as well as an occasional pilot and aerial photographer, watching planes, to me, is hardly the worst way to pass the time. As it turns out, making this photo would lead to one of the craziest weeks of my entire life.

The Story Of The Most Successful Photographer You've Never Heard Of

In under five years, Andy Frame went from being a photography nobody to running one of the most successful photography operations that I'm aware of. I had a chance to catch up with him and hear all of his absolutely inspirational story so that I can share it with our readers, and so that I can motivate my own self to do better on a regular basis.

A Fantastic Glimpse Into The Tricky World Of Photographer Agents And Representation

Disclaimer: This post isn't riddled with eye candy, nor will it be the next viral hit of the month. What it does contain, however, may be far more valuable to any working or aspiring commercial photographer than any viral video or cutesy photo series. Norman Maslov is a well-known artist's and photographer's agent who recently performed a great interview with PhotoPolitic, a website specializing in promoting photographers

Fstoppers Wants Your Help To Improve Our Picture Of The Day Feature

As most of you know, we have a POTD feature which uses a single image for a 24 hour span and then archives them for later viewing in a month/day/year format. While it's pretty neat, to be sure, I know that we could improve on it quite a bit to make it both more interesting for viewers and more beneficial for the photographers we feature.

Fstoppers Rapid-Fire Q&A Session With Fine Art Photographer Vinny Picardi

Vinny Picardi is a successful fine art and advertising photographer based in Los Angeles, CA, who has exhibited work all over the country and around the world. I recently came across Vinny's work and I have to say that I'm a pretty big fan, so I thought it would be interesting to share not only just a photo series with our readers, but also to take some time to ask a few questions to get inside the head of a successful fine art photographer.

Smoking Hot Deal On 5d Mark II Kit With 24-105 and Printer At B&H: Only $2199!

B&H just announced this incredible deal: $2199.00 after mail-in-rebate for a Canon 5d Mark II, 24-105mm f:4 L lens, and Pixma Pro9000 Mark II Printer Kit. On top of all this, they're also throwing in a LowePro AW 170 Shoulder Bag, a wireless IR shutter release, and a bundle of glossy photo paper. For those who have been waiting for prices to fall on the 5d Mark II, you simply can't beat this. Need I remind you that the original MSRP of the 5d Mark II kit was $3,499?

Paris In Motion: A Tour de Force of Various Timelapse Techniques Set in the City of Light

Check out this way-cool timelapse video by Mayeul Akpovi. Set in Paris, Mayeul used a number of interesting techniques to add an incredible range of motion to a timelapse video. Add in a variety of twilight and dusk scenes, and the city comes to life in a way that I haven't seen before. This video reminds me of one of our most popular posts of all time, "Can Anyone Figure Out How This Timelapse Was Filmed?" Let us know how you think Mayeul did it!

Justin de Reuck Hangs Out Of An Aerobatic Plane With No Seatbelt To Get The Shot

What have you done to get the shot today? Parked your car, walked into a studio? Plunked down a tripod on a sandy, tropical beach? Fiddled with some macro rails? South African aviation photographer Justin de Reuck unstrapped a good deal of his harness, slid open the canopy, and took photos at what I'm guessing is 100 knots, mere feet from the ground. I'm not sure how that plane actually took off with Justin's balls of steel on board, because man, they must be huge.

[Review] FlashBender Diffusion Panel, FlashBender, and Rogue Universal Lighting Filter Kit

For the photographer who likes to travel light, it has always been a challenge to find flash modifiers that are both effective and easy to use on the go. ExpoImaging has long been making accessories, but their recently released Rogue diffusion panels for their popular FlashBenders will be a welcome addition to any strobist’s kit.

[BTSV] Behind The Scenes At The Winter X-Games

In this behind the scenes video from Vimeo (say that five times fast!), we get a look at the wide variety of gear that is used to capture the action at Winter X. From freelance photographers and videographers to full-scale production efforts, this video has a little bit of everything. See the video, which displays a staggering amount of gear, in the full post.
[BTS] The Anatomy of a Luxury Interior Shot

When it comes to interior and architectural photography, there is often much more involved than what meets the eye at first glance. In order to create a photograph that is realistic and enticing, careful planning, staging, lighting and a healthy dose of patience is imperative. In this Fstoppers Original, we dive into a luxury interior shot and see what it takes to construct a mouth-watering interior photo from the ground up.