September 2014

The Entrancing Cinemagraph Creations of Julien Douvier

The cinemagraph genre is one of the most exciting to follow because, unlike almost every other type of "photography" (in quotes since you they aren't photos in the traditional sense of the word), it's not yet oversaturated with phenomenal work.

Almost everywhere you turn you'll find a great street photographer, or landscape photographer, or fine art photographer. But when you stumble across a master at creating cinemagraphs, he or she is one of only a handful. Julien Douvier is one such photographer.

‘No Ad’ App Replaces NYC Subway Ads With Art From the International Center of Photography

In every facet of our lives, we’re bombarded by advertisements: online, while driving, on the radio, everywhere. So much so that they become more noise than anything else. So wouldn't you like to erase some of that noise and replace it with iconic photography? Well, soon you can.

For one month, starting in mid-October, No Ad, an augmented reality application will be overlaying pieces of art from the International Center of Photography over the commercial advertisements seen throughout the New York City subway system.

The Most Expensive Camera Kits Photographers Can Buy for Each Brand (in 2014)

What are the most expensive camera and lens combinations you can buy for each manufacturer? Of course you could spend $2.79 million on a historical 1923 Leica or $165,000 on an ultra-rare Canon 1200mm lens, but what about gear that any photographer can purchase through a normal retail outlet?

We decided to do some research into what the priciest camera kits (a body plus a lens) currently available to photographers are in 2014.

How I Built a Lightbox for $0

I'm 39 weeks into a 52 week project. Every week I go to this Art Prompt Generator for a random prompt and then spend a week taking a photo to match the prompt. This week was "Candy". I wasn't getting great results taking pictures of candy on plates, counters or other mundane surfaces so I thought I'd try a lightbox.

Out of This World Aerial Photographs of Purple Salt Ponds in San Francisco

The colorful pond you see in the above image is not the work of clever post–production; nor is it the result of an accidental leak of hazardous material. In fact, it's 100% natural. What you’re seeing are millions of colorful microorganisms that live and breed in the vibrant salt ponds of San Francisco.

The above image and its accompanying series, titled San Francisco Bay - Purple, was captured by photographer Julieanne Kost as she flew over the ponds, located south of San Francisco.

Behind the Scenes: Hanging Out of Moving Car Windows to Captured Doggy Euphoria

Photographer Lara Jo Regan's photo series/book/calendar Dogs in Cars is a fun, tongues-out survey of the euphoria dogs experience on car rides.

We shared the series with you last year, but if you've been wondering how she managed to get such multi-dimensional images from such unique perspectives, she's put together a great behind the scenes video that reveals both her lighting rig and how was she managed to safely hang out of moving car windows.

Rumor: Sony and Mamiya to Release Medium Format Rangefinder-Style Cameras in 2015

Earlier this year, rumors began spreading of an upcoming Sony Medium Format camera that would be unlike any digital medium format system on the market. The camera would be 'completely different' and reports claimed it would also be the cheapest digital medium format option out there.

Well, if you found that rumor far-fetched, hold on to your hats, because a 'very good source' is reporting that this rangefinder-styled camera is indeed real... and what's more, it will have some competition when it arrives.

A Breathtaking Motion Time-Lapse Tour of Norway

Five months of work, 10,000 miles travelled, several tens of thousands of photographs taken... all of that to create a measly 5 minutes worth of footage. And yet, we would argue it was worth every minute, mile and press of the shutter (or intervalometer, as it were).

Simply titled Norway, the time-lapse above was captured by Morten Rustad of Rustad Media, and it took almost a half-year to get all of the shots he was looking for.

#PictureBelfast Challenges You to Tell the Difference Between a Smartphone Filter and Analog Film

Online content studio Rubber Republic recently created something called #PictureBelfast, a photography-based viral campaign designed to showcase their city on behalf of Tourism Ireland.

But this isn't just a set of pretty pictures -- it's an interactive challenge that wants to see if you can tell the difference between a film photograph, and a filtered wannabe taken with a smartphone.

Adobe Brings Cloud-Based Photoshop Beta to Chromebooks

Adobe has been making moves into the cloud for some time now (it is called Creative Cloud after all), so it doesn't come as a surprise to hear that the long-awaited Chromebook Photoshop beta is finally live and ready for cloud computing early-adopters to start putting through the ringer.

Rumor: Samsung Working on a Black-and-White Only ‘NX Achromatic’

Black and white-only digital photography is, at this point, limited to those who own either a Leica M Monochrom or anybody brave enough to (literally) scrape the bayer array off of their digital sensor. But that might not be the case too much longer.

In July, we shared the rumor that Sony was working on a black-and-white sensor/camera, and now, rumors are beginning to swirl that Samsung is doing the same thing.

‘Where Are They Burning the Bodies’: Documenting the Ebola Outbreak in Liberia

Editor's Note: Be advised, some might find the following photographs disturbing.

On August 27, documentary photographer Kieran Kesner boarded Delta airlines flight 2608 for his first ever international assignment for the Wall Street Journal. Four layovers later, he arrived in Liberia, where he was now tasked with documenting the Ebola outbreak in all its unspeakable horror.

China Blocks Instagram as Hong Kong Protest Photos Roll In

In the wake of the pro-democracy Occupy Central protests rocking Hong Kong, the Chinese government has tightened its already short censorship leash, adding photo sharing site Instagram to the list of sites now unusable in mainland China.

Dream Creatures: Reflected Images of Tree Bark Reveal the Faces Hiding in the Forest

Italian photographer Elido Turco spent four years between 2004 and 2008 exploring a mirrored photography world that remains invisible to most of us. By taking photographs of tree bark and then mirroring the photographs he captured, he discovered a whole society of "Dream Creatures" were watching him each time he would take a stroll through the mountain paths.

GoPro Goes 4K with HERO4 Black, Adds Touchscreen to HERO4 Silver, and Debuts $130 Entry-Level HERO

Late last week, we broke the first full leak of the GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions, followed by a rundown of what you could expect from the new entry-level GoPro HERO. But the time for rumors officially ended this morning when GoPro unveiled the official details themselves.

So say hello to what the company is calling "nothing short of the ultimate GoPro": The GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions.

These Majestic Photographs of African Animals Were All Shot During Visits to Zoos

Photographer Manuela Kulpa has a portfolio full of gorgeous wildlife photographs. Unlike other wildlife photographers, however, she doesn't have the opportunity to travel to the natural environments of the animals she wishes to photograph. Instead of shooting in the African safari, she visits zoos.

African Souls is a series by Kulpa that attempts to capture the soul and beauty of African wildlife.

This Handy Little Web App Helps You Visualize DOF Across Various Formats and Focal Lengths

When it comes to understanding how depth of field, focal length and other variables are affected by different film/sensor formats, it can get confusing. Fortunately, Reddit user redblue has created an incredibly useful interactive resource that will help you better visualize the factors at play by letting you change variables while swapping sensors sizes and seeing the effect in real time.

Your Future Smartphone Camera May Be Able to See Cancer Thanks to the Mantis Shrimp

Mimicking animal and bug vision to create unique and interesting cameras is nothing new. Bug vision cameras with, for example, infinite depth of field, have been made in the lab before. But researchers at University of Queensland in Australia are developing a camera that can do something pretty unique: it can see cancer.

The idea came after the scientists discovered that mantis shrimp have this incredibly useful ability.

Extreme Weather and Your Camera: How to Get the Shot and Protect Your Gear

If all outdoor photographers only shot on mild days, photography as an art would be shockingly boring. The best outdoor photography brings nature to life by capturing its extremes. Unfortunately, cameras and equipment are sensitive to those extremes.

To create stunning outdoor photography, you'll need to be prepared for the worst that nature can throw at you and your equipment.

Portraits of Birds Bursting with Personality

As a child photographer, Leila Jeffreys was taught to take in wounded animals, particularly birds, and nurse them back to a healthy state. It was through experiences like this that Jeffreys grew a personal fascination and even greater appreciation for the intricacies of these creatures.

And now she’s paying a tribute of sorts to her knowledge and love for those animals, by bringing owls, eagles, budgies, cockatiels and more into her studio to showcase their varied personalities.

Little Planet Photos That Feature Rocket Launches, Air Shows, and Mars

Estonian photographer Andrew Bodrov of 360Pano has been shooting panoramic photographs for over a decade in countries around the world. His work even spans planets: last year he released an interactive panorama created using photos shot on Mars.

One of his interesting side projects is his Little Planets series, which features stereographic projections created using some pretty interesting source panoramas.

7 Questions with Adam Panczuk About His Portraits of the ‘Karczeby’ in Poland

Adam Panczuk (1978) lives in Warsaw. In his work he travels to wherever he finds an interesting subject. He studied photography at the Multimedia Communication Department of Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan.

With his projects Panczuk seems to be asking questions, both directly and metaphorically, about identity, consciousness and attitude towards the lives of the people he meets along his way. Adam is a member of Sputnik Photos.

Nixie: A Tiny Flying Camera Drone You Wear On Your Wrist

If the idea of a wearable camera drone seems downright strange to you, you're probably not alone, but a new wrist-mounted flying concept camera called the Nixie makes this strange idea seem both possible and completely logical.

M-Magazine: A New Publication that Only Features Photos Taken with Leica M-Series Cameras

It’s been sixty years since the launch of the Leica M3, Leica’s first M-series rangefinder camera. Since then, an unimaginable number of images have been taken with the M-series lineup, many of which are among the most iconic in history.

To honor the impact this camera has had (and will continue to have) on the world of photography, Leica has launched a new magazine that's available in both digital and print formats. It’s called M-Magazine and, as the name suggests, the entirety of its artwork features images captured with Leica M-Series cameras.