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10 Steps for Capturing and Creating Quality Videos

It's not unusual for still photographers to dabble in videography at some point in their career. With almost every high-end camera on the market capable of shooting HD video almost as well as it can capture stills, the potential is just teasing still photographers to jump into the motion picture realm.

Many of the compositional principles used in photography also apply, but motion picture adds an entirely new dimension to creating compelling work. To help ease that transition a bit, Filme von Draussen has shared a video called How to Make a Mountain Bike Film. And while the title sounds a bit specific, the 10 steps he shares in the video are universally applicable.

BTS: Using Four 400W Strobes to Outshine the Sun and Properly Light a Fighter Jet

Jay P. Morgan of The Slanted Lens was recently invited to shoot at Luke Air Force Base (again) and he didn't want to miss turning this into an educational opportunity. And so, in the behind the scenes video above, he shows you how he was able to dynamically light up a portrait that involved a fighter pilot and an entire fight jet using only four 400 Watt strobes.

Glass in the Path: Why Using Adapters May Hurt Your Image Quality

NOTE: This is a Geek Post. If you aren’t into geeky photo measurements, or into adapting lenses from one brand of camera to another, you’ll not be interested.

A year or two ago, I wrote a blog post where I basically showed lenses shot on adapters on other cameras aren’t acceptable for testing. If you run them through Imatest the results aren’t accurate. I suggested that reviewers shouldn’t test lenses on adapters, although obviously adapters are a great way to use interesting lenses to take pictures.

Infrared Photographs of Iceland Capture a Different Side of the Gorgeous Country

Between the landscape photos, aurora photos, waterfall photos and time-lapse project, Iceland probably ranks among the top most photographed countries in the world. And while all indications are that it, without a doubt, deserves that title, finding a photo series that offers a fresh perspective on the country can be tough.

Tough, but not impossible, as the photo series Blue Iceland and Iceland by Andy Lee go to show.

Nikon USA Moves the D300s to the Retired List: Ready, Set, Hope!

You Nikon APS-C shooters ready to get your hopes up? Almost 5 years after the Nikon D300s was announced, Nikon USA has officially moved it from the active camera list to its archived camera list, leading many to believe that the long-awaited followup is just around the corner.

Jim Goldstein Offers Invaluable Advice for Novice Photographers

The question, "how can I take better photographs" never goes away for the photographer who is constantly looking to improve and evolve, no matter how many years they've been doing it. But this question is particularly difficult to answer for beginners who don't yet have the foundation that years of looking through a viewfinder offers.

Thankfully for those people, there are professionals like Jim Goldstein who don't mind condensing years worth of experience into useful tips and advice.

Canon’s Latest Invite to Pro Dealers Hints at August Announcement of the 7DMII

Word on the street -- this particular street being Northlight Images -- is that Canon pro dealers in Germany are getting invites for events in July to prepare for a particular announcement in August. And while this isn’t anything out of the ordinary, the fact that pro dealers are involved at such a level means that some sort of prosumer DSLR announcement, as well as some possible lens updates, are very likely on the docket.

When you combine that with reports that the 7D will no longer be available from dealers starting in July, it’s easy to conclude that the long-awaited 7DMII might be making an August appearance.

Polaroids, Holgas & Medium Format: Matt Georges’ Different Approach to the Slopes

While most of the outdoor winter sports photography you see is as clean and crisp as the snow itself, photographer Matt Georges goes for a more moody feeling while out on the slopes. His work with the Polaroid, Holga, and medium format film creates a unique look at the life of the thrill seekers out there.

Although not a formally trained photographer, Matt has been in the photo world most of his adult life, photo-editing for ski magazines, and working his way up to senior in-house photographer. Read on to hear about his technique using these films, his background, and more.

AppCam Claims Leica Stole Its Software for the Leica T, Slams Them via Press Release

About a month ago, Leica debuted the touch-friendly, aluminum unibody Leica T: a hand-polished beauty that, despite the standard (read: REALLY!?) Leica price tag has been received pretty positively. Well, by some people at least.

There is one company that was less-than-thrilled when they saw the Leica T, however, and that company's name is AppCam. According to AppCam, the operating system on the Leica T is almost identical to the AppCam OS... the same OS that they tried to shop out to Leica two and a half years ago.

Video: DigitalRev Shows You that DSLRs Under $100 Can Still Get the Job Done

Photography can be an expensive hobby to get into. With most DSLRs nowadays coming in at around $400 for even the lowest of consumer level cameras. By the time you add in accessories, the financial aspect can be a bit demanding for a newbie.

But just because it can be financially demanding doesn’t mean it has to be, as our friendly neighborhood DRTV stars explain in the useful video above.

Irista: A Cloud-Based Storage Solution Built by Canon for Photographers

Following hot on the heels of a report that claimed Leica is looking to launch a cloud storage service, Canon has opened up Irista, a cloud-based photo storage solution of its own. Originally released in beta a few years ago under the unusual name Project 1709, the now-public service offers photographers a way to store, organize and share images in the cloud.

Photographer Takes Epic Selfie with Christ the Redeemer Statue, GoPros His Climb to the Top

If you're going to take a selfie -- and we won't judge you if you do... even though others certainly will -- you should probably follow photographer Lee Thompson's lead and do it in an awesome way.

Thompson's recent selfies, which happen to be going viral, aren't duckface selfies that show off his new outfit, or mirror selfies that show waaaay too much skin (I'm looking at you Geraldo Rivera). No, Thompson's viral selfies were captured at the top of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

How Joe McNally, Jeremy Cowart and Ami Vitale are Making the Next 6 Months Count

It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through 2014, right? But the good news is there’s still over 200 days left to bring in business, make more connections with potential photo clients, and end the year strong. To help you out and provide a little inspiration, we’ve also launched PhotoShelter’s Guide to Conquer the Rest of 2014 -- a compilation of our best business advice to help you make the next six months count.

On top of that, we also wanted to know what some of the most seasoned photographers are doing to rev up their businesses before the year is up. Are they focusing on marketing? Reworking their websites? New projects? To find out, we caught up with a few top photographers including Joe McNally, Jeremy Cowart, Ami Vitale, David duChemin, Stacy Pearsall, Dixie Dixon, and Gary Arndt to ask one question: How do you plan to grow your photo business over the next six months?

Surprisingly Captivating GoPro Vid Reveals What Goes On Inside Your Dishwasher

Three million, four hundred and sixty four thousand, eighty four. That's how many times what might be considered the most mundane GoPro video ever shot has been watched.

So, you might ask, what does this obviously captivating video show? What has enticed almost 3.5 million clicks of that play button over the course of a month and a half? It was a peek inside your standard dishwasher.

Purdue Football Team is Crowdsourcing Its Helmet Design Using Photos of Fans

Hey @LifeAtPurdue.. buy a VIP card by 6/10 and get a photo of yourself on the @BoilerFootball helmet next season! pic.twitter.com/LFjz0y5gCt

— Purdue Athletics (@PurdueSports) June 4, 2014

In an effort to increase ticket sales and get fans more involved, Purdue University has announced that they will be designing a new helmet for the football team that involves crowd-sourcing photos of fans to insert into the logo.

Award-Winning Photographer James Estrin On Capturing the Spiritual Experiences that Underlie Everyday Life

Throughout his career as a New York Times photographer, James Estrin has capture some in credibly powerful photography.

With assignments ranging from capturing the Ground Zero memorial being opened on the one-year anniversary of 9/11, to something as seemingly mundane as capturing photos of the elderly residents who use Meals On Wheels, Estrin takes a unique approach to his photos, attempting to capture a spiritual experience in every moment of life.

Bob Boyd’s Beautiful Photographs of NYC Will Draw You in and Keep You Scrolling

Sometimes, you want to take a break from all the gimmicky photography out there -- the expertly manipulated surreal self-portraits, interesting twists on old concepts and fun forced perspective photo sets -- and browse through some modern-day photography that is just plain good.

This is photography that rests, not upon heavy processing or viral potential, but great composition and a profound understanding of light. I reached that point recently, and it was Bob Boyd's photography that I found myself scrolling through.

Tutorial Shows You How to Make the Most of the Clone Stamp Tool

While the clone stamp tool is one of the most vital and frequently-used tools available within Photoshop, it’s also one that few know how to use most effectively. Here to help fix that is Aaron Nace of the Phlearn team, who graciously dedicated a quarter of an hour to showing you how to make the most of this tool.

Here, Look: An iOS App for Creating Quick, Disposable Photo Albums to Show Friends

There are those dreaded moments in everyone’s life when you hand your phone over to someone to show them a collection of images you’ve saved or captured on your phone, only to have them continue swiping well past what you intended them to, possibly wandering into dangerous territory.

This, however, could become an issue of the past thanks to a new iOS app called Here, Look.

Photographer Offered Baby for $50, Raises $50K to Fight Human Trafficking

What would you do if you were photographing people in Bulgaria, there as a volunteer for an anti-human trafficking nonprofit no less, and you were offered a baby for $50.

The interaction seems outright absurd, perhaps even unbelievable, to those of us who have never experienced such a thing first hand, but that's what happened to Seattle-based photographer Tanner Wendell Stewart in 2012. It was the moment that would forever alter his life.

Review: The Rokinon 12mm f/2.0 NCS CS

Can the new Rokinon 12mm f/2.0 NCS CS compete with the Zeiss Touit 12mm f/2.8? Here are my thoughts on this unique lens.

6 Clever Ways to Get Better Lighting from Your Camera’s Pop-Up Flash

Most entry- and enthusiast-level cameras come with a pop-up flash, which though not especially powerful, can come in very handy. In this tutorial we’ll show you six built-in flash techniques than can help you get the better results from this often overlooked and somewhat maligned feature.

DIY Hack: Add a 3-Stop ND Filter to Super Curved Fisheye Lenses

The Rokinon 8mm f/2.8 lens is one of the best options for photographers wanting to get in on the super-wide-angle action with as little of an investment as possible.

One problem with this lens, however -- and it's the same with most fisheye lenses -- is the curved front element. With such a dramatic curve, the use of filters on such a lens is almost impossible... almost.

Fingers Crossed: Sony Rumored to Have a $1,000 Full-Frame Camera in the Works

In a rumor that is either wishful thinking at its best, or a preview of a VERY exciting Photokina announcement from Sony, an anonymous source told sonyalpharumors that the massive electronics company -- which, by the way, has made a name for itself as an innovator in the world of photography -- is working on a $1,000 NEX-sized full-frame camera.

Scientists are Using the Nokia Lumia 1020 to Get a Better Look at Diseased Tissue

Do you know what Histopathology is? No, it’s not the study of histograms, it’s actually the study of changes in tissues caused by disease. And now, advances in photographic technology that you or I could go pick up at Best Buy are actually helping to study those changes like never before.

Using the Nokia Lumia 1020 smartphone, scientists are once again bringing together the worlds of Science and Photography to do some amazing work.

Photographer Marc Hauser Doles Out Sage Advice on Defining Your Style

“If you can’t do it right, do it big.” These are just a few of the wise words shared by renowned photographer Marc Hauser in the above mini documentary by Chris Cascarano.

He’s shot for the likes of Rolling Stones Magazine, Pepsi and Playboy (just to name a few) and the concise words of wisdom he shares in this video are worth writing down no matter where you are in your photography career.

5 Great Tips from Adobe On Keeping Your Lightroom Catalogs Organized & Efficient

Whether you’re just diving into Adobe Lightroom or have been using it for a while and are simply in need of some productivity tips, the above video on keeping your catalog as clean and structured as possible will likely come in very useful.

Created and narrated by Adobe Evangelist Terry White, the video runs through 5 things that you should know to get the most out of your Lightroom image catalogs.

Quick and Dirty Explanation of Color Depth: What It is and Why You Should Care

Whether it's photography or video quality we're talking about, the discussion almost always revolves around some aspect of resolution. The number of megapixels, or the pixel density, or the pixel size (last one doesn't necessarily have anything to do with resolution, but you get the gist).

One spec that doesn't get a lot of headline time is color depth, and so we were thrilled when we stumbled across this quick and straight-forward explanation of what exactly color depth is by Techquickie.