Street photography documents contemporary life. If done well, it can be one of the most compelling genres for viewers. It is also a regularly debated genre of photography, and opinions differ on what exactly is street photography.
It is arguably the most famous street photograph ever taken. Shot in 1932, Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare embodies Henri Cartier-Bresson's mantra, the decisive moment. However, the iconic photographer had to break his own strict rules to make it happen.
Photographer Ann Hermes calls her project Local Newsrooms a love letter to community journalism, but it’s also an important documentation of a fast-disappearing industry.
There are so many fantastic, capable digital cameras available these days. Nearly every new camera from all the major manufacturers can take great photos, has reliable autofocus, and offers a competitive feature set. Ultimately, the biggest differentiator between most cameras is the experience of using them. 2025 delivered many new cameras that not only provide a great experience, but a different one that celebrates the act of photography itself and what it means to capture photos.
Didn’t quite unwrap the camera gear you were hoping for under the tree this year? The good news is that the best time to upgrade is often right after the holidays, when major discounts open up on serious photography equipment.
The Kodak Charmera keychain camera has been a smash hit. Sold in blind boxes, the 1.6-megapixel retro-styled toy camera was one of the biggest photo gifts of the holidays. However, straight out of the box, its capabilities are arguably a bit lacking, thanks in large part to its tiny built-in lens. That's where expert camera modifier James Warner, or Snappiness as he's known online, comes in. What would happen if you gave the Kodak Charmera a better, bigger lens?
These remarkable historic photos show Soviet Union soldiers hand-feeding polar bears on the Chukchi Peninsula in Far East Siberia.
Leica is working on developing its own image sensors again, an exciting and interesting development in an industry where there is not all that much diversity in image sensor technology.
Big Japanese photo retailer Map Camera revealed its best-selling digital cameras of 2025, and the results are a surprising mix of very popular, high-end cameras and cheaper compacts, including the best-selling camera of them all, the Kodak PixPro FZ55.
Newly-released photos by the European Space Agency have captured the oddly-shaped Martian moon of Phobos flying above a dust storm raging below on the Red Planet.
You can pick up a NASCAR disposable camera for less than $10, but that hasn't stopped motorsports photographer Jamey Price from shooting a series of compelling images on them.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri has shared some end-of-year thoughts on the state of photos on social media amid an avalanche of AI slop, and has said "camera companies are betting on the wrong aesthetic."
At the beginning of this week, PetaPixel reported that Elon Musk's X had rolled out a controversial new feature allowing users to edit any photo on the platform without asking permission. Within days, the new tool has been abused -- and it is women who are being targeted.
A new AI-powered photography app promises to coach users to frame their shots better, and it even helps out with the editing.
A wedding photographer in South Korea has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for taking payments from over 160 couples but never delivering the images.
I often refer to photography as a blend of art and science. However, our cameras' lack of adherence to scientific principles can lead to confusion. Both our photographer ancestors and the camera manufacturers are to blame.
VSCO has added an oft-requested feature to its VSCO Capture iPhone camera app launched in June: video recording. The new video recording capabilities work with the app's 50+ photo presets and arrive alongside a new film grain function.
I saved the best for last. Sigma had a truly remarkable year, launching a beautiful new camera and a diverse, large array of incredible lenses. There's a very good reason Sigma was PetaPixel's Photo Company of the Year for a second straight year. The company even rebranded! There's a lot to cover, so let's get right to it.
In National Geographic's latest documentary, "Cheetahs Up Close," Emmy Award-winning wildlife photographer and cinematographer Bertie Gregory travels to the Serengeti to capture jaw-dropping close-up footage of cheetahs as they rest, hunt, and of course, run. Gregory and fellow Emmy Award-winning wildlife cinematographer Tom Walker use long lenses, drones, and specialized equipment to capture remarkable shots, ensuring "Cheetahs Up Close" is as beautiful as it is exciting.
2025 has marked the passing of several influential photographers whose momentous work helped shape the visual history of the world.
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover used its black-and-white navigation cameras to capture a panorama made up of photos taken at two different times of day on November 18, 2025. Although on the Red Planet, that time period spanned both the 4,722nd and 4,723rd Martian days, or sols.
Firework displays are few and far between, making it hard to practice photographing them. Fortunately for Benjamin Sunkyong Kim, he lives in New York and every Friday night from July to September there is a fireworks display at Coney Island.
A singer has sued a photographer for selling pictures taken of her for Vogue magazine as "fine art prints" without her permission.
While looking at old British illustrations, a Redditor found a 1944 Ilford Selo Film ad based on a baby picture of his grandmother entirely by accident, not knowing it was his grandmother in the ad.
This year, Leica celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Leica I, the first 35mm camera. That alone makes it an excellent year for the legendary German company, but it was also jam-packed with new cameras, lenses, and, as always, special edition product launches.
Not long after President Richard Nixon signed the act creating the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, the EPA launched a 50-state effort to document pollution. Photographers hired by the federal government took more than 80,000 images.
From a rare big cat once thought extinct, to breathtaking images captured by remote cameras deep in the Congo rainforest, and footage from a trail camera left inside a grizzly bear den for ten years, trail cameras recorded some truly remarkable images in 2025.
The action camera market, once almost entirely owned by the American company GoPro, is now dominated by Chinese companies like DJI and Insta360, which together hold nearly 90% of the market share in Japan.
The global memory chip shortage, primarily driven by the increasing memory demands of AI data centers, has drastically affected the market, sending memory prices skyrocketing. It is widely expected to impact a wide range of products, including, per a press release from ProGrade Digital's Japanese operation, memory cards and SSDs.
Google Photos is coming to Samsung TVs in 2026, giving users a native way to view their photo and video libraries on the big screen for the first time.
Trail cameras have documented the presence of the endangered flat-headed cat in southern Thailand, marking the species’ first confirmed appearance in the country in nearly three decades.
We all want to become more successful at photography, don’t we? Of course, success is a personal thing and can be defined in many ways. If you want that as your New Year’s resolution, there are ways to go about it.
Photographer Chris Gorman tells PetaPixel that drones are the “biggest game changer since the advent of digital.” And it’s difficult to argue with his portfolio of pictures taken in the past 12 months.
I know the title says "Grading Ricoh Pentax," but spoiler alert, Pentax didn't release anything new this year, and even discontinued a camera in Japan. 2025 was all about Ricoh and the long-awaited GR IV premium compact camera.
A series of investigative reports sent shockwaves through the tech and privacy communities when it was revealed that dozens of Flock Safety’s AI‑powered surveillance cameras were left streaming live footage to the open internet, unprotected and accessible to anyone who knew where to look.
The concept of a time machine was first described by H.G. Wells in his book The Time Machine in the year 1895. That was 57 years after Louis Daguerre invented his photographic technique, the daguerreotype.
After hitting a record high of over $82 per ounce over the past few days, analog photographers may have cause to worry about the price of their film. Silver is an essential component of film production, and silver prices have more than doubled in 2025.
PGYTech is expanding its creator-focused gear lineup with the launch of the OneMo Tactical Backpack, a rugged camera and drone pack designed for photographers and filmmakers who work far beyond paved paths.
Olympic gold medal-winning gymnasts Suni Lee and Simone Biles traded uneven bars and balance beams for Sony Alpha cameras this past week to photograph NFL action, becoming the latest in a very long series of pro athletes who have picked up a camera to shoot sports.
The new manual focus Brightin Star 35mm f/1.4 is the Chinese company's latest affordable lens for full-frame mirrorless photographers. Launching at just $159.99, the fast 35mm prime delivers high-end image quality and a robust build.
AI is now able to generate images of faces that many people mistake for real photographs, but new research suggests that five minutes of training can improve detection.
An official webcam has captured clear footage of a muddy eruption at Black Diamond Pool -- one of the most active hydrothermal pools in Yellowstone National Park -- for the first time.
Elon Musk has announced a controversial new feature on his X platform, one that allows any user to edit any image without asking permission.
An understanding of colors and how they can transform our photography is a skill we photographers must master. Therefore, getting to grips with the strangeness of color is essential for understanding how to take better photos.
This one will be short and sweet, as Tamron released just two lenses this year. This output is not far off the three lenses the company launched in 2024 and matches Tamron's pair of new lenses in 2023.
Claims made about the golden ratio in nature are often overstated or romanticized. In fact, it is more often a useful model than it is a universal law,
While Panasonic ignored Micro Four Thirds in 2025, OM System thankfully didn't. And that's a good thing, too, because it's OM's entire business. OM System didn't entirely allay my fears about Micro Four Thirds's ultimate fate, but at least the company did release some nice products this year.
For wildlife photographers, distance has always been both a necessity and a limitation. Get too close, and the subject disappears. Stay too far away, and the image loses intimacy. SmallRig is attempting to rethink that balance with the launch of the Remote Wildlife Pro Wireless Repeater, a long-range Wi-Fi hub designed to give photographers control over cameras placed deep in the field while they remain hundreds of meters away.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001 to 2003) is often lauded as the greatest trilogy of all time. And some of the practical photography effects done in those films -- especially in the first film -- are still revered even to this day.
A new book investigates a single 19th-century photograph of an unnamed Native American girl surrounded by federal officials and explores what identifying her reveals about the historical context of the American West.
