March 2014

Platon Tells the Story Behind His Portrait of Vladimir Putin

Back in 2007, world-renown visual storyteller Platon took on an assignment to capture a photograph of Russian president Vladimir Putin. In what would end up being one of the scariest assignments of his life (which is saying a lot given some of the stuff he's covered), his portrait session for TIME's person of the year award involved just a few more guns and guards than most.

Rumor: Photos and Full Specs for the Sony a3500 Leaked

Well that was quick... only seven months after the E-Mount a3000 made its debut, it looks like Sony already has a followup ready to release. And thank to sonyalpharumors we get to look at a few product shots of the camera and what looks to be a full official list of specs.

Terrifying GoPro Footage Captures Syrian Tanks Wreaking Destruction

Editor's Note: Although there is no direct footage of men dying, fighters on both sides lose their lives during this footage. It is not for the faint of heart.

Iconic conflict photographers are thought of as such because they do something that your standard news coverage just can't do: they show the realities of war. Statistics enumerating the number of people killed or displaced by conflict are just numbers on a page until someone captures the reality of these numbers on film... or sensor.

The video above was not shot by a conflict photographer, but it too captures that reality of war in a profound and shocking way. For an hour, you can spend time looking through the eyes of a Syrian tank column as it wreaks unimaginable havoc.

Breathtaking Microscope Photos of Moth & Butterfly Wings

The thing about nature is that, if you look close enough at just about anything, you're bound to find a beauty and symmetry that defies description. In the case of Linden Gledhill's microscope photos of butterfly wings, he simply discovered another level of beauty in something that already captures many of our imaginations.

Wedding Photographers Supposedly Using Fine Print to Sue Clients Over Bad Reviews

In the age of the Internet, with sites like Yelp often being the first stop for anybody looking for a service (say, photography) they've never used before, it's no surprise that pros are trying to keep their star ratings as high as possible.

What is surprising is the news that some photographers are keeping their reviews positive by threatening to sue anybody who writes something negative.

Krystle Wright on Telling Stories with Your Adventure Photography

Krystle Wright has documented her expeditions a little differently from some of her fellow adventure photographers. Using her breadth of knowledge of photojournalism from her Agence France-Presse and Sunday Telegraph newspaper days, Krystle’s images weave together, depicting the full experience of what it’s like to be exploring different lands, from Pakistan to Antarctica.

Here, we talk with Krystle about how she edits down her images for an essay, what kind of gear she takes with her on a journey, and how keeping close tabs on World Press Photo, POYi, NPPA winners helped shape her critical eye.

Phantom Drone Captures Some Incredible Footage of an Erupting Volcano

Drones (we're talking about the quadcopter kind, not the military kind) are pretty incredible devices... especially when you toss a camera on them. They tend to be a bit expensive though, starting at around $500 for a lower-level one and going all the way up to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Because of this, the drone footage we usually see is done in a semi-safe environment, where the risk of losing it is minimal. YouTuber Shaun O'Callaghan, however, is a bit more brave -- if that's the right word here -- than the rest of us.

Some Intriguing Trivia Tidbits on Shooting ‘The Shining’

There is little doubt that auteur Stanley Kubrick looms large as a director able to distinctively bring his films to life through his vision. He has left his mark across the motion picture landscape.

He also happens to be responsible for some very interesting technical results in the realm of photography as well (including owning 3 of the 10 Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/0.7 ever made).

Any words I write here about him will pale in comparison to the reams of scholarly works already published. And so, instead, I give you a couple of fascinating pieces of Shining/Kubrick trivia that you can whip out the next time there's a lull in conversation.

NASA Releases Clearest Infrared Milky Way Panorama Ever Made, Comes in at 20GP

20 gigapixels might not seem like a lot in the world of super-high-res images. After all, we shared a 681 gigapixel image of just the moon's north pole the other day. But when you're talking infrared images of the milky way, the 20-gigapixel panorama that NASA just released yesterday is the clearest ever captured, and took them TEN YEARS to shoot.

Samyang Broadens Its Mirrorless Support with New 12mm and Updated Older Models

If you believed the rumors, today was supposed to be the day Samyang debuted its first AutoFocus-capable lenses. But that, it seems, wasn't in the cards. What Samyang did announce today (and what they have apparently been teasing all week) was a new 12mm f/2 and several revamped older models that will now work with APS-C and MFT mirrorless cameras.

Hyperlapse Packs 14 Months Into 2 Minutes While Constantly Shifting Seasons

We've shared plenty of time-lapse videos before, and even some hyperlapse videos, but I don't think we've ever shared anything quite like this. Created by Piotr Wancerz, this incredible hyperlapse video captures various locations in Cracow, Poland over the course of 14 months in a way that sets it apart from anything else we've run across.

The Nikon 1 V3 Falls Short of Cheaper MFT Shooters in DxOMark Tests

DxOMark is certainly not the be-all-end-all of camera sensor testing outfits, but what it has going for it is consistency and a whole lot of experience. So while you might not put much stock in their sensor scores, DxO is a great resource for comparing sensor performance between models.

We say all this because there are some Nikon fanboys who will immediately be upset by the news that DxOMark claims the new Nikon 1 V3 might not live up to its price tag.

Incredible Portraits of Ornate Fowl Found at Chicken Beauty Pageants

Singapore-based photographer Ernest Goh, known best for his incredible work with animals, has just recently put another book out. This time, he's documenting the world of Chicken Beauty Pageants. Yes, Chicken Beauty Pageants. They exist... I guess.

Titled Cocks: The Chicken Book (you have no idea how difficult it is not to make jokes at this point...) this collection of work explores the beauty of some of the most debonaire fowl you have ever seen.

Chase Jarvis Puts Up New Essential Photo Gear Video

Years ago, well-known Seattle photographer Chase Jarvis went through a collection of the gear he takes on his photo and video shoots. But given the great deal of change in technology -- and capital on his side -- since then, he recently created a completely new and updated video showing, again, his must-have gear for photo and video shoots.

First Tweets of the Biggest Photography Names on Twitter

In celebration of their 8th anniversary, Twitter has launched a tool that lets you look up the first tweet of any and every account on their service (that isn't protected). We thought we'd put that tool to some photographic use and share what some of the biggest photography names on Twitter were sharing when they first hopped on the now-huge microblogging platform.

We're gonna break it down into three categories: Our favorite publications, our favorite brands, and our favorite photographers.

Great-Grandma Betty Inspires Instagram as She Battles a Terminal Cancer Diagnosis

Zach Belden's 80-year-old great-grandmother Betty was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer. Knowing that she would have to endure unimaginable hardship, both physical and emotional, Belden came up with an idea that would help keep her spirits high and make the remainder of her time on this planet as joyous as possible.

His solution turned out to be Instagram.

Student Breaks 19th Century Statue In an Attempt to Grab a #Selfie

Selfies. We can't seem to get enough of them. And while they're somewhat awkward and obnoxious at times, they're rather harmless, innocent and don't cause any damage, right? Wrong. Or at least it was in the case of a student who reportedly broke an early 19th century statue in a museum (see update) in Milan, Italy.

Tutorial Shows You How to Capture Quality Night Sky Time-Lapses

Five months after releasing his first tutorial video on shooting and processing time-lapse photography, Dustin Farrell is back at it again. This time he's gone more in depth, featuring some behind the scenes of his nighttime time-lapse workflow, from the gear he uses (and suggests) to the actual creation process of the video.

Deal Alert: Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II for Only $1,800 ($500 Off)

The Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II is a great lens, but with a normal price tag of $2,300 it can be hard to justify over some third-party alternatives. Once in a while, though, a great deal comes along that substantially narrows that gap, and such a deal is on at B&H Photo right now.

Raw Photos of Heroin Addiction by Former Addict and Photographer

The dark world of heroin addiction has been the subject of award-winning photography before -- LIFE magazine photographer Bill Eppridge's gripping photo essay about two heroin addicts is as enthralling now as it ever was -- but photographer Graham MacIndoe's series is different... because he was both the photographer and the subject.

Two Shooters, One Race: Photographing Sebring

Different approaches for different generations. Spectacular results all the same.

If you want my respect, show me an amazing racing photo. Show me that you can make art with a bunch of people telling you where you can and can’t go. Show me that you broke your back under the Florida sun, lugging 30 lbs of camera equipment while you walked the course all day long. Try it when you know that there are 120 people with exactly the same credentials and access who are just dying to take your job.

Show me that you can shoot amazing racing images, and you’ll have my respect.
Because I’ve tried it, and it crushed me.