Articles from Douglas Turney

With so much depressing news about Covid-19 circulating these days, any good news is much welcomed. The other day, I was greeted by some needed good news when I opened my email. I’m a firm believer that humanity is more good than bad, though sometimes, it is hard to keep the faith. CamRanger helped to re-enforce my belief. CamRanger is stepping up to help the medical community protect themselves from infection by Covid-19. Yes, a company that produces remote controls for your camera is fighting Covid-19.

Portrait photography requires studio strobes, softboxes, along with grip equipment like light stands, and C-stands, not to mention lots of money to acquire all the required equipment. Without this equipment, your images are going to look like your local police department’s Saturday night mugshots. Do you really need to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars to get good portrait shots?

Opinions on which camera backpack a photographer should use are probably only second to which camera system they should use. With so many brands of packs out there, and not to mention multiple versions by each of the manufactures, it can be challenging to pick a backpack. To help the readers of Fstoppers, I took a look at four backpacks to see how they stack up.

Are you a DSLR person, or are you a mirrorless person? What if you could be a DSLR/mirrorless person? Yes, a camera that acts as both a DSLR and a mirrorless. Would this be the best of both worlds or the worst of each system hacked together?

As small business owners ourselves, why do we instantly head to the internet when we need new photography gear? You would think we would understand why it is essential to support the local businesses whenever we can, yet most of us don’t. I can already envision the responses to this article, like the internet provides better prices, more prominent selection, easy purchasing, and many more reasons. Some of these may be true, but some aren’t, and there are other reasons to shop at your local photography store.

Earlier this year, I wrote a review of the CamRanger Mini. As I mentioned in my article, I was looking for a way to remotely trigger my camera when I can't be located in a particular area for the action sports I shoot. I found the CamRanger Mini was a terrific device for remotely controlling a camera, but for me, I needed a little faster reaction time. So, now that the CamRanger2 has been released, will it satisfy my demanding needs?

Every year, there seems to be a holiday commercial that captures the minds and hearts of the viewers. Ads like Coca-Cola's polar bears or the Budweiser Clydesdales in a New England winter come to mind. But this holiday season, a little YouTube video is capturing the hearts of the public, and it only cost $130 to produce.

We’ve had a great run together, and you served us well, but the time has come that we move on. You didn’t do anything wrong, even though others preached that we, photographers, should always use raw instead of you, JPEG. Those who preached only raw and nothing but raw didn’t understand how you, JPEG, were needed and helped digital photography to explode. Yet all good things must come to an end.

The tripod is often overlooked in today’s photography community, and it is a shame that it is. Perhaps photographers today think that a tripod is old school or that modern cameras have image stabilization, and therefore, a tripod isn’t needed. I disagree, and if you aren’t using a tripod for some of your photography work, you are missing out.

Are you looking to buy a new camera this year? Perhaps you are hoping that the holiday season will bring you a fantastic new camera as a gift. I bet you already know which camera you would like to have next. But what is wrong with your current camera?

You can improve your photography dramatically by merely practicing a little product photography. And no, you don’t have to be a product photographer to benefit from this practice. Portrait, architecture, macro, and even landscape photographers can all benefit from a little product photography practice.

So, what did you photograph in the last seven days? What, you didn’t shoot anything in the previous week? Nothing? Too many times, I hear: “there is nothing interesting to photograph” or “I’ve already photographed everything around me.” Well, to me, that means you just aren’t trying hard enough.

Are you using a tablet for your Photoshop and Lightroom editing? Yes? But are you getting the most out of your Wacom tablet? Probably not if you are like most photographers. You probably set it up on the first day and haven’t gone back to activate all those remaining features.

The death of the DSLR has been predicted for years. With each new mirrorless camera model brought to market someone on the internet is playing TAPS for the DSLR camera format. But what is meant by DSLRs are dead?

Do you like to plan your location shots? Will you be visiting a location and want to know where the sun is going to be at a particular time of the day? Will the building or mountain block the sun right before sunset? Well, if you're like me, you want to know these answers before you get to the location, and that's why you need this app.

I admit it: I like easy, especially when it comes to photography. That's why I've come to embrace these 10 tips that I have learned over the years. And most of them won't cost you a penny to incorporate.

Are you like me? Do you look for entertainment with some elements related to photography and is more than merely "behind the scenes" or "how to type" of videos? Something that provides a different insight into photography and the photographers who create world-class images? If so then perhaps, or maybe not, the documentary "Jay Myself" is for you.

I mostly shoot non-ball type of sports like surfing, sailing, skate, motocross, and of course, my favorite the Monster Energy Supercross series.

Let’s face it: photography can be an isolated activity, and it's a part of my photography career that I don’t much care for. I don’t live in a major metropolitan area, so my regular interaction with other photographers is limited to when I’m shooting on assignments. While this is usually enjoyable, it isn’t the same as just hanging out and shooting.

Want to know a secret? You know those images that look like they’re all natural light? Well, lots of the images are produced using some sort of flash or second light source. The flash isn’t used to replace the natural light, but rather to complement the natural light and fill in where that natural light just can’t pull its weight.

Canon, Nikon, and Sony are all now seriously committed to the mirrorless camera market, so what does that really mean? As each manufacturer pursues a slightly different path in the mirrorless market, and Sony having several years head start compared to Canon and Nikon, where will each system be in one to two years? Just importantly where does each manufacturer stand today?

I own the Canon PIXMA Pro 100 printer. In fact I purchased mine under a similar deal that B&H is offering right now which is $250 off the normal price of $399.  That’s just $149 for one of the most dependable photo printers on the market. I love my printer and enjoy adding printing as another part of my photography experience. The prints I’m able to produce are fantastic and it gives me another means to thank a client, by giving them a print they can hang.

I’m always on the lookout for new ideas for unique backgrounds, especially ones that work in small spaces. If the background is easy to set up and can be configured from material or gear I already have, well sign me up. So when I saw the title to Gavin Hoey’s latest video, I knew I had to watch it and if you are also looking for something small and easy, I suggest you watch this video.

When shooting action sports I’m always looking for ways to get shots that the other photographers aren’t, but lots of times due to safety concerns by the promoters, I can’t get to places I want to shoot from during the event. This is where the CamRanger Mini comes into the picture, by giving me the ability to remotely place a camera before the event starts and then triggering the camera remotely from a safe location. 

Skin retouching is an art form in itself, and there are thousands of different ways to retouch skin in Photoshop. Skin retouching is such an essential part of creating the final image in the beauty and fashion industry that there is a whole industry of artists who only specialize in skin retouching.

While the rage may be LED lights and very portable strobes, it is still hard to beat the ease and simplicity of good old speedlights. Most of us have at least one, if not more in our camera bag, and I always carry two of them with me whenever I’m shooting. So, why not dust off those speedlights and brush up on some great ways to use them with this great video?

Now that Canon has recently announced the EOS RP, is the next Nikon Z camera on its way? And if it is, where will it fall in the Nikon Z lineup of cameras? If rumors are correct, the next Nikon Z camera will most likely be aimed at an entry-level full-frame user. Perhaps called the Nikon Z5?

When was the last time you can remember having fun with your photography? Not the joy of landing a photography job or the excitement of nailing that one photo, but rather childlike fun while shooting.

Are you looking for a video from a successful photographer willing to share their one secret to having a successful photography business? Then don’t watch this video. But if you want some straight and honest advice, then this video is well worth 15 minutes of your time.

Are you tired of your images looking flat? Of course, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of ways to add a little punch to flat photos. Some techniques are complicated and require lots of time in Photoshop or Lightroom, and some are easy to learn and quick to execute like this one from PiXimperfect.

For many photographers, photography can be a solitary pursuit. Many of us run a single person business where the majority of our time is spent by ourselves. Sure there are times when we collaborate with clients, talent, and assistants, but this isn’t the same as socializing with our photography peers. I’ve been fortunate enough to find an excellent solution for my isolation and highly recommend it to all photographers.

Composition can be one of the hardest aspects of photography to master. Rule of thirds, leading lines, rule of odds, and frame within the frame are just a few of the many composition techniques. Some are easy to understand and comprehend while others are a bit more difficult. This video from The Bite Shot provides an excellent, straightforward introduction to composition.

Does winter have you climbing the walls looking for something to do? Do you need some new or more interesting backgrounds for your food or product photography? Well then perhaps this DIY project is just the thing for you.

Are you looking for a quick setup to photograph a group of individuals? Perhaps you only have a few minutes to set up and need a consistent look across all your subjects. Well, then this single light high key setup should be part of your lighting library.

Not all photography how-tos have to come from photography websites or YouTube photography channels. This video that addresses basic light-painting of a car comes to us from an automobile YouTube channel. If you are new to light-painting or want to give it a try, this video provides an excellent introduction.