In my nine years as a wedding photographer, it was commonplace for other wedding vendors to request access to the entire wedding gallery. They often wanted to use my photos to showcase their work at the wedding. This practice has left me with mixed feelings, and I'm eager to hear your opinions.
Panasonic has released some mightily impressive cameras in the last few years, and the S5 II and S5 IIX offers photographers and filmmakers alike a nice array of capabilities suitable for many applications. This excellent video review takes a look at the cameras and how they have held up after a year of usage.
Generally, you can expect relative stability in the amount of couples needing wedding photography services, at least across short to medium periods of time. However, the COVID pandemic was an unprecedented hit to the industry that resulted in less couples getting engaged in subsequent years, meaning that a few years later, we are seeing a drop in those couples getting married, placing strain on wedding photographers. What can wedding shooters do to weather the lull? This helpful video tutorial offers a range of great ideas and advice.
Spring is upon us, which means it's the perfect time for engagement season. As wedding photographers gear up for the busy fall season, it's important to focus on capturing the best engagement photos possible.
Venus Optics is known for making some of the neatest lenses out there, and the new Laowa 10mm f/2.8 Zero-D FF Autofocus is no exception to that rule. With that wide focal length and wide aperture, it is quite a unique optical instrument. Can it provide the sort of performance and image quality pros need in practice, though? This great video review takes a look at what you can expect.
Backlighting in portraiture offers a huge range of creative possibilities, whether adding a bit of shimmer to your subject's hair, including a dramatic sunset in the frame, or one of many other options. However, the use of backlighting takes some special considerations to ensure you get the results you have in mind. This helpful video tutorial will show you what you need to know to maximize your image quality.
Growing as a photographer is not an easy or obvious thing to do. This particularly insightful video is here to help, though, offering practical advice for photographers seeking to elevate their craft, regardless of whether they are beginners or long-time enthusiasts.
Recently I was hired to film a marketing video for a $12 million dollar yacht. Initially, I thought my professional Sony cameras would do the heavy lifting but to my surprise, the GoPro Hero 11 Black became my main camera. Today I break down some of my favorite accessories and the shots they helped me capture.
Choosing the right focal length for portraits is more than a technical decision; it's a creative choice that significantly impacts the aesthetic and emotional tone of an image. This choice dictates not just how subjects are framed within their environment but also influences perspective, distortion, and the relationship between subject and background, making it a critical consideration for photographers aiming to craft impactful visual narratives.
In an era where technological advancements have revolutionized the way we capture and manipulate images, the question of the histogram's relevance in today's photography is a pertinent one.
For both artistic and commercial work, a mid-range zoom is virtually an essential piece of kit. Sony’s 20-70mm f/4 puts a new spin on the traditional mid-range formula, but is it really that good? In this review, I look back on the last year of using this lens and consider whether it truly has a place in the E-mount ecosystem.
I’d like to show you a video. For different reasons than its title tells you to, though.
As a working photographer, I often receive messages from beginners who need camera-buying advice. While I do write for a photography outlet, I am not as updated with the latest camera tech as you might first assume.
Perhaps no trend has a tighter grip on the photo industry (and arguably, tech as a whole) right now than AI. While it has caused a lot of uncertainty and worry over how it will affect the careers of creatives going forward, it has also brought with it a lot of highly valuable tools that can make your job easier and more efficient. This fantastic video tutorial discusses seven such tools and how you can use them to improve your work.
Creating an effective staging plan for property photography involves careful planning, attention to detail, and a focus on highlighting the property's best features. Here's a comprehensive staging plan that I use that includes the use of props and emphasizes cleanliness.
Over the years Sigma has established itself as a reliable manufacturer of high-quality lenses, known for their performance, quality, and affordability, and this new lens for the Fuji X-mount is no different. With this telephoto addition, the current Sigma lineup consists of 4 prime lenses, and a zoom, giving us 6 lenses in total with a rumored 7th in the very near future.
There is a lot to love about Sigma’s new 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN Contemporary lens for Fujifilm X mount cameras, including superb image quality, a compact design, and image stabilization – all at an affordable price.
We catch up with photographer Simon Murphy who currently has a major exhibition of his work, having cast his lens on the Govanhill area of Glasgow over the last 20 years. Learn key insights into his methods, how he connected with members of this diverse community, and what advice he would pass on to photographers seeking to embark on long-form documentary projects.
When manufacturers give specifications of lenses, there is a lot of detail that is meaningless to many consumers of their products. When we writers review them, we tend to give the same information. Here’s a method I think would be much more helpful to most photographers.
It's time for great photography savings with some of the biggest deals of the year. If you happen to be looking for new gear, a faster or easier way to edit your photos, or a more efficient shooting workflow, here are offers that will help.
Have you ever cut out an object in Photoshop, put it on a new background, added a “drop shadow” effect, and sat in front of your monitor thinking, “This just looks so Photoshopped”? I’m here to help! Here are five easy steps to creating realistic drop shadows in Photoshop.
It has been five years since we first saw the EOS R, Canon’s first full frame mirrorless camera. Though we have seen several newer models since its release, it is still a perfectly serviceable camera that can be had for a bargain now. This excellent video review takes a look at how the EOS R holds up in 2023.
What are the things you should look for when shopping for your next camera purchase? Here are a handful of things I consider before placing my order.
We often find ourselves chasing perfection, striving for flawless compositions and technically impeccable images. But what if there's more to capturing a moment than achieving technical mastery? What if embracing imperfection is the key to creating truly compelling photographs?
As new technology emerges, file formats like JPEG, PNG, and TIFF may no longer be the best options for photographers. Let's take a look at some potential replacements.
As we all know, livestreaming can be a very expensive adventure. If you want to go beyond streaming from mobile phones, which are great, by the way, you will need to spend money on some higher-end equipment. This is why we put together a list of the top eight cameras for livestreaming that will deliver high quality at low cost.
At just 5.9 oz (167 g), the Sony FE 28-60mm f/4-5.6 is an extremely portable lens, making it an intriguing choice for people like landscape and travel photographers who want a versatile set of focal lengths without a lot of bulk. This excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of performance and image quality you can expect from it in practice.
As a photographer, you understand the delicate balance between enhancing an image and overdoing it. Too much editing can quickly make a photo appear unnatural and detract from its original beauty. Fortunately, Photoshop offers several tools and techniques to help you maintain control and achieve subtle, realistic edits.
Reflections can be some of the trickiest things to deal with as a photographer, particularly when you are working with rounded objects that can reflect light from almost any angle. Nonetheless, learning how to read and control reflections is one of the best exercises to improve your lighting technique, no matter what you shoot. This fantastic video tutorial features an experienced studio photographer showing you how to manage reflections in your images.
The Sony a6700 mirrorless camera is a compact powerhouse blending cutting-edge technology and exceptional image quality. Can it give the kind of real-world performance and image quality professionals demand? This excellent video review takes a look.
The Canon RF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens takes the place of a fantastic option from the old EF-S lineup, and it offers APS-C shooters an affordable and portable wide angle zoom lens that is perfert for a wide range of needs. This excellent video review takes a look at the lens and the sort of performance and image quality one can expect from it in practice.
Mastering Lightroom's masking tools can significantly elevate a photographer's post-processing workflow, allowing for precise adjustments that bring creative visions to life without much work. This helpful video tutorial will put you on the right path.
Is it really necessary to have your own photo studio? Here's why I let go of my own photo studio and use PeerSpace instead.
I wish we’d all just move on. The format that used to be a compromise between image quality and price in the film days is nowadays being taken as the sole possibility for a serious photographer, and if you are not part of the gang, you apparently deserve to be ridiculed.
Recently, a few photographers I know have been raving about Neewer’s gear. So, when given the opportunity to review their new Q4 Strobe Flash and its QPro wireless trigger, I jumped at the chance. Here’s why it far exceeded my expectations.
The Sony a7R series of mirrorless cameras has consistently been celebrated for delivering among the highest resolution figures seen in full-frame cameras, complemented by a diverse array of functionalities catering to various photographic styles and uses. The a7R V stands as the latest and greatest in the series, and this detailed video review explores the camera, offering insights into the kind of image quality and performance you can expect from it in usage.
Every computer company charges more for extra features, but Apple has created the perfect pricing scheme with the new M3 Macbook Pros to fool all of us into paying even more for a new laptop.
Landscape photography can be a bit of a start and stop genre, with hours of waiting punctuated by fleeting moments of opportunity. That can lead to some difficult decisions about how to maximize your chances of coming home with worthwhile shots. This great video follows an experienced landscape photographer as he grapples with such decisions and discusses how he moves forward.
Micro four thirds is enjoying a bit of resurgence right now, with its lighter and smaller size, lower cost, and array of excellent lenses making it a fantastic choice for a wide number of genres and applications. Is it the ideal system for street photography? This great video makes a case for why that might be so.
In the heart of Las Vegas at the 2024 Wedding and Portrait Photographers International, I had the opportunity to dive into the minds of talented winners from the Portrait Masters' January competition, unveiling their creative processes and inspiration.
Canon has filled out their APS-C mirrorless line quite nicely with an array of models that offer everything from highly affordable options to professional-level models capable of tackling just about anything you can throw at them. So, which model is right for your budget and needs? This helpful video gives an overview of every option to help you choose.
Since its origins in the 19th century, photography has proven to be a powerful medium for documenting human life and bringing awareness to social issues. When a photograph captures an injustice or iconic moment, it can resonate around the world and galvanize people to take action. Photography's unique ability to convey visual information makes it an unparalleled tool for social change.
As photographers, we often find ourselves at exciting places such as concerts, parties, and sporting events. Many photographers spend hours of their day working with other people. It is common to see photographers interacting with people and asking the people they are photographing to move a bit to the left or to position their hands differently. On the surface, it might seem that photographers are extroverts who love being out and about.
It sounds too good to be true, but the TTArtisans AF 32mm f/2.8 lens offers full frame coverage, autofocus, and the promise of good image quality for $148. Can it actually deliver good performance and image quality at such a low price? This excellent video review takes a look at everything you can expect.
There is a war going on in the lighting community: To dome or not to dome? Does the recessed front make a difference? Are the flat-front lights not usable anymore? Well, having had the privilege of owning a number of lighting variants, I did rigorous testing to settle the debate once and for all.
