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Alex Cooke

Cleveland, OH
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Articles from Alex Cooke

How to Shoot Striking Body Silhouettes With Minimal Gear

Silhouette figure photography strips the human form down to pure outline, and the results can be surprisingly powerful. If you've been shooting bodyscapes with complex lighting setups and wondering whether there's a simpler approach that still produces striking images, this is worth your attention.

16 Signs You Are Ready to Go Full-Time as a Photographer

The question is not whether you are talented enough. Talent got you to the point where going full-time even feels possible. The question is whether the business infrastructure, the financial runway, and the personal support system are in place to survive the transition without collapsing under the weight of it.

Why Top Gun Still Looks Better Than Its Own Sequel

The original Top Gun was shot in 1986 with heavy film cameras, no drones, and a U.S. Navy that charged by the hour. Nearly four decades later, Top Gun: Maverick used six Sony Venice cameras and some of the most precisely engineered aerial photography ever put on film. The gap between those two productions tells you almost everything about why one of them still feels like lightning.

9 Things That Go Wrong on Every Landscape Photography Trip and What to Do About Each One

Landscape photography looks serene from the outside. A lone figure on a hillside, tripod silhouetted against a sunrise, communing with nature. What the Instagram post does not show is the two-hour predawn drive, the boots soaked through before the first frame, the sky that refused to cooperate, and the 200 exposures that produced three usable images. Landscape photography is not a passive activity. It is an ongoing negotiation with an environment that does not care about your shot list.

Stop Editing Photos Without Asking This First

Shooting in thick sulfur smoke with burning eyes and barely enough air to breathe, Mitchell Kanashkevich still managed to walk away with images that communicate something real. Most edits of a scene like that end up feeling like nothing, and the reason almost always comes down to one flawed habit that's remarkably easy to fix.

Spot Metering Is the Most Misunderstood Mode on Your Camera

Exposure metering is one of those fundamentals that separates guesswork from consistently well-exposed images. Even with today's sophisticated camera systems, knowing how your camera reads a scene and when it gets it wrong changes how you shoot.

One Desert Location, Three Different Days, Completely Different Images

Shooting the same desert location across multiple days and radically different conditions is one of the best ways to push your landscape work forward. This Arizona desert shoot is a masterclass in staying adaptable, and the images prove that preparation and flexibility matter far more than waiting for the perfect moment.

10 Summer Photography Projects You Can Finish Before September

Summer is the easiest season to photograph and the hardest season to use well. The light is long, the weather cooperates, and the subjects are everywhere. But without a specific project to anchor your shooting, those three months dissolve into a scatter of random images that do not add up to anything.

The Real Reason Your Travel Photos Don't Match the Moment

Most travel photos disappoint not because of bad gear, but because of bad decisions made before or during the trip. If you've ever come back from a trip with hundreds of images and only a handful that actually capture how it felt to be there, the problem is almost certainly in the planning, or the lack of it.

10 Lightroom Secrets That Will Change How You Edit Photos

Lightroom has more depth than most people ever tap into, and after 15 years of using it, Serge Ramelli has a clear sense of which techniques actually move the needle. These aren't beginner tips about sliders; several of them involve AI-powered masking tricks and a dodge-and-burn workflow that can fundamentally change the way a finished image looks.

The Camera Gear Beginners Keep Buying That They'll Regret

Buying the wrong camera gear early on is one of the fastest ways to waste money in photography. Five specific categories trip up beginners more than almost anything else, and most of them are things you'd never think to question.

10 Things That Go Wrong During a Client Consultation and How to Redirect Each One

The consultation is supposed to be the easy part. The client reaches out, you meet (in person, by phone, or over video), you discuss what they want, you explain what you offer, and you both walk away aligned on the vision, the scope, and the price. That is the theory. In practice, the consultation is where every mismatched expectation, unrealistic budget, and conflicting creative vision reveals itself, and your ability to navigate those reveals determines whether the conversation ends with a booking or a polite "I'll think about it" that means no.

The Canon EOS R6 Mark III vs. Sony a7 V: Real-World Performance Tested Side by Side

Choosing between the Canon EOS R6 Mark III and the Sony a7 V at the same price point is genuinely difficult, and the spec sheets don't tell the whole story. Both cameras launched within a month of each other in late 2025, making a direct comparison not just useful but necessary before you hand over that kind of money.

This Photographer Says The Fujifilm X100VI Is Too Cheap

Compact cameras have exploded in popularity over the past few years, and the Fujifilm X100VI sits at the center of that conversation. It's one of the most talked-about point-and-shoots on the market right now, and the hype has pushed used prices close to retail.

Full Frame vs. APS-C: The Size Advantage Isn't What You Think

The full frame vs. APS-C debate has been running for years, and most people land in the same place: full frame is better, APS-C is smaller, end of story. But that conclusion skips over some real nuance that changes how you should think about both systems.

"Fix It in Post" Is Costing You Money: A Mathematical Case for Getting It Right in Camera

You are standing on location. The light is good, the client looks great, and you are in the zone. Then you notice it: an orange traffic cone lurking at the edge of the frame. Your assistant is nowhere to be found. The client is already in position. You could pause everything, walk over, and drag the cone out of shot. Or you could keep the momentum going and mutter those five dangerous words to yourself: "I'll fix it in post."

The Proper Camera Settings for Travel and Street Photography

Shooting in the wrong exposure mode or using the wrong autofocus setup can cost you the shot. For travel and street work especially, your camera settings aren't just technical preferences; they shape what's even possible in the moment.

Photoshop 2026's Dehaze Tool Is More Powerful Than You Think

Photoshop 2026 added a Clarity and Dehaze adjustment layer, and if you shoot landscapes or anything with atmospheric haze, it's worth knowing how to use it properly. The catch is that throwing dehaze on an entire image can look heavy-handed, so selecting only the hazy area before applying it makes a real difference.

Why Time Is a Landscape Photographer's Most Valuable Asset

Time might be the one thing standing between you and your best landscape images. Not gear, not skill, not vision: just the raw, uncontrollable factor of being somewhere when the light, weather, and landscape align in a way that only happens a handful of times a year.

12 Things That Go Wrong on Every Outdoor Portrait Session (and What to Do About Each One)

If you have shot outdoor portraits for any length of time, you already know that the session you planned and the session you got are never the same session. Something always goes sideways. The light shifts, the location changes, a variable you could not have predicted shows up and rearranges everything. The difference between a beginner and a working portrait photographer is not that the veteran avoids these problems. It is that the veteran has been ambushed by them so many times that the solutions are automatic.

Nikon Z6 III in 2026: Still Worth Buying or Outclassed by Sony and Canon?

The Nikon Z6 III sits in one of the most competitive camera segments right now, going up against the Canon EOS R6 Mark III and the Sony a7 V. Each of those newer models has leapfrogged the Z6 III in specific ways, and knowing exactly where the Z6 III holds its ground and where it doesn't could save you from a purchase you'll regret.