A few years ago, photographer Ze Frank started an online photo concept called Young Me, Now Me where he took current versions of old photographs. The trend was huge on websites like Myspace and Facebook and was sure to put a smile on your face. Well Argentinian photographer Irina Werning has taken this concept even further by creating images that replicate the scene exactly from the location to the wardrobe and even down to the lighting. Irina's series called Back To The Future is a awesome example of pushing your work into the mainstream by thinking outside the box and creating something everyone will remember (and can partake in themselves). Click on the full post for a few examples of her work.
I'm always a bit cynical when people tell me they want to become a photographer so their images can change the world. Living in a post modern society where we are bombarded with images, it is easy to think we have become so desensitized to visuals that nothing can move us into action. Well after watching the latest video from [FRAMED] featuring the work of humanitarian photographer Benjamin Edwards, I have been quickly reminded that photography really can change the way we view the outside world and therefore change the how we interact with it. Benjamin's story and images are an inspiration, and through Emote360 and World Relief Benjamin has been able to inspire others around him to help those less fortunate and in need. What do you guys think; does photography inspire you to change the world?
When you first heard of GigaPan, it was probably from David Bergman's famous inauguration photograph. Years after David captured the first gigapixel images of crowds of people, scientists are now creating all sorts of images using the GigaPan technology. One new project recently announced is Time Machine. Essentially a video player with 100 megapixel frames, the Time Machine allows us to explore nature in both time and space with unbelievable amounts of information. Anyone can create these videos using any of the GigaPan Epic Mounts and upload them to the GigaPan website. It's pretty amazing what photos are now able to capture and reveal with super high resolution and timelapse. Check out more of these videos over at the Time Machine website.
After our half disastrous sailing trip in the Charleston Harbor today, it's only fitting to feature this really inspirational video on sailboat photography. Tim Wallace is an amazing auto and commercial photographer but today he is taking his Hasselblad out on the water. Shooting large boats like this with just natural light is always a challenge but Tim makes it look like a walk in the park. Equipped with helicopters, chase boats, models, and expensive cameras most people probably can't afford, Tim creates some spectacular images in Project Genevieve. I love this shoot because it's both commercial and editorial in nature and features spectacular shots of the sailboat as well as some lifestyle images with models that aren't hard on the eyes. Be sure to check out Tim's full portfolio especially if you like automotive photography.
Lately there has been a trend of showing super slow motion videos slowed beyond the native frames per second the original footage was shot on. We love the results of Twixter but nothing can compare to seeing the real thing especially when combined with an extreme sport. The BBC has a great DVD on the South Pacific which features some amazing underwater slomo camera work of waves crashin, and this short surfing clip was the highlight for me. Rudi Diesel shot this on a Typhoon HD4 which at the time could do 500fps at 7 seconds or 1000fps at 3.5 seconds. If you enjoy this segment, check out a longer clip from the documentary in the second clip below.
When Denis Smith found himself faced with a dark depression in his life, he found motivation and purpose through his newly found photography hobby. After moving to South Australia, Denis picked up a camera and began to explore the serendipitous world of night photography. After playing around with long exposures he realized he could bring his own creativity to his images in the form of light painting. Denis's images are really interesting because he mixes strong technical long exposure landscapes with his unique "ball of light" light painting technique. Skip to 5:20 on this video to see how he came up with the idea and check out many examples of his work over at Ball of Light.
Kelly Kline is a commercial and editorial photographer based out of NYC and Atlanta who has a fantastic portfolio full of top professional atheletes. In this behind the scenes video she has teamed up with MMA fighter Matthew Polly for his new book Tapped Out. This shoot is definitely a commercial for the Profoto Pro-8a Air Packs but also shows what is possible when you push not only your gear but your creativity to the limits. <
Dave Dugdale has been an Fstoppers reader for a while now but I had not come across his own useful site Learning DSLR Video until yesterday. He left a comment on one of our videos and I clicked on his site to check it out (yes we actually check out our reader's sites). When I saw one of his videos I immediately emailed him and asked if he would teach me how to colorkey footage in Premiere. Now Dave is not a photographer at all but rather an audio engineer, and what is so cool about his videos are that they document his progression into the field of videography. As a professional photographer myself, I feel like I'm in the same boat as Dave and I'm sure a lot of you guys feel that way too. Dave is filming on a Canon T2i and editing on Premiere CS5. If you are just getting into audio or video, stop by LearningDSLRVideo.com and check out some of his work. Hopefully you can use this information for your own BTS videos; I know we are going to do this soon on one of our FS Originals in the near future. <
Jay P. Morgan is a commercial and advertising photographer based out in Los Angeles, California. We have featured his work before and this time Jay is using a three light setup to make some portraits of a jazz player. If you are still uncomfortable with your lighting skills, Jay does a really good job explaining exactly what each light does and why he placed them where he did. Click on the full post for part two of this photoshoot where Jay adds some "special effects" in the form of an air canon firing at his subject.
The holiday season is almost behind us and if you've spent any time watching college football tv then you've probably seen the new holiday Victoria's Secret commercials. The creative team at VS always makes some of the most high intensity commercials year in and year out. This year they have at least three different themes and one of the directors is even Michael Bay (creator of the greatest movie of all time Transformers 2). Of course VS can't give away all their secrets so don't expect to be shooting Adriana Lima on a white horse anytime soon! Hopefully you can at least pass these videos off as educational should your gf or wife question this content :) Two more videos in the full post. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_4l_LpvL1M
Portrait photographer Platon is best known for his stylized wide angle photographs of political figures such as Bill Clinton, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Vladimir Putin, Hugo Chavez, and countless other iconic leaders throughout the world. His images have graced the covers of Time, The New York Times Magazine, Rolling Stone, and Esquire to name a few. For Platon, putting himself in a position to capture portraits of some of the most unapproachable and impenetrable political rulers has not only been stressful but also extremely dangerous. Such was the case when he set out to Burma, one of the most dangerous countries in the world, to photograph opposition politician Aung San Suu Kyi. In the video below Platon recaps his experience being chased by Burmese secret police in his effort to create the cover image of the January 2011 issue of Time.
It has come to our attention that one of the servers that hosts fstoppersforum.com has crashed and part of our database as been temporarily corrupt. We are working hard to resolve this problem and I apologize for any inconvenience it may have caused. If you have signed up for an account or posted to the forum in the last 10 days or so, sit tight and hopefully we can restore the database so everyone shows up again. All registrations and posts since Sept 22nd may not be showing up. We will let you know when everything has been resolved.
Fstoppers is a blog mainly geared towards videographers and photographers. However, sound engineering is another field that will soon be of interest to photographers who are jumping into film or video projects. In the case of full length features, many of the images we see on the screen would not have the same impact without the music and sound-effects that accompany them. I love all behind the scenes videos and this one really made me appreciate the guys behind the soundboards. Watch as Richard King and company unveil some of the sounds they used for the movie Inception. Check out Sound Works Collection for more videos on this sort of thing.
"Inception" Sound for Film Profile from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.
Mark Romanek is one of the all time greatest music video producers. His vision for Nine Inch Nail's Closer video created a lot of controversy back when it was released in 1994 but now lives on as one of the greatest music videos of all time. I can still recall the first time I saw this on MTv and how it made me feel. Check out this long behind the scenes video of Mark and Trent Reznor talking about the concept for the video as they work towards filming something that had really never been done at the time.
NIN: The Making of the "Closer" Video from Nine Inch Nails on Vimeo.
Earlier in the week we posted a quick video from Annie's photoshoot with Keith Richards. Today I thought I'd share an interview Time Magazine did with Leibovitz where she talks about some of her work, what it's like running a photoshoot, how she used to work with her assistants, and the whole Miley Cyrus controversy. There are no cameras or crazy lighting in this video but I think all of that stuff becomes secondary in comparison to being a confident photographer, having great ideas, and executing a productive photoshoot. Hope you enjoy <
