beware

5 Signs You’re Over-Editing Landscape Photos

One of the more difficult aspects of post-processing is identifying when you’re starting to over edit a photo. It’s common knowledge what many of the characteristics of an over-edited image are, but determining when you’ve gone too far, that’s the challenging part. In this 14-minute video, I break down five tips that have helped me to understand and identify when I’m beginning to over process an image.

Man’s $1,998 Camera Fried by Self-Driving Car Laser

Self-driving cars widely use a technology called lidar (which stands for light detection and ranging) to "see" the world using laser pulses. These lasers are designed to be safe to human eyes, but it seems they may not always be safe for cameras. A man at CES in Las Vegas says that a car-mounted lidar permanently damaged the sensor in his new $1,998 Sony a7R II mirrorless camera.

What You Need to Know About Flickr Pro’s Adobe Discount

My name is Mattias Hedberg, and I'm a photographer based in Norrköping, Sweden. I was recently about to get the Flickr Pro upgrade and was hovering above the buy button when I decided to take a deeper look at the Adobe offer since it sounded a little too good. I was interested in other features of the plan also, but the Adobe one was very tempting.

Man’s $650 World Series Ticket Stolen Through Instagram Photo

Heads up: you should never post photos of modern event tickets online. A Boston Red Sox baseball fan just learned this lesson the hard way. After sharing a photo of his $650 ticket to Game 2 of the World Series on Instagram, he was later shocked to discover that someone had used it in his place.

Be Wary of the Wellcome Photography Prize

The Wellcome Trust is the world’s second largest charitable trust with an endowment of approximately £23.2 billion (~$30 billion). For the past 20 years, it has produced a photo contest called the Wellcome Image Awards, and this year, it rebranded the contest as the Wellcome Photography Prize.

How Caffeine Made Me Kill My $2,400 Sony RX1 Camera

Here's a warning to all the photographers out there: caffeine and complicated camera repairs do not mix well. I found out the hard way and killed my $2,400 Sony RX1 full frame compact camera.

I Opted Out at 500px But Getty Images is Selling My Photos Anyway

When Getty Images set up its contributor agreement with Flickr in 2008 to allow Flickr users to sell their photos, I enabled the feature. While not a professional photographer, I had been approached a couple of times in the past about licensing some of my shots and thought the opportunity to sell through Getty Images could formalize this process.

Why You Don’t Put a Cheap Filter on an Expensive Lens

I recently took my Sony A7 III and a rented $2,500 Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens to the 2018 Montreal GP. A friend of mine had recommended that I use a polarizer. I remembered that I had a pack of 77mm Vivitar Series 1 filters that came with my 24-105mm, so I threw that onto the 100-400mm and started shooting, completely zoomed at 400mm.

This DSLR Battery Burst Into Flames

It is often warned that lithium ion batteries can pose a safety risk by catching fire unexpectedly. Norwegian photographer Vidar A. Bøen recently experienced that first hand when one of the batteries used in his Nikon DSLR burst into flames.

This is Why You Need to Be Careful with Camera Clips

Modern quick-release camera clips are designed to hold your camera firmly when it's not needed while allowing it to detach easily when it is. But if there's any equipment or user failure in the system, that failure could be catastrophic for your gear... and that's what one photographer just found out the hard way.

Photo Contest Judges Raise Alarm: We Didn’t Judge Anything…

There's something strange going on with the International Photographer of the Year (IPOTY) photo contest. 11 of the 14 photographers listed as judges for the IPOTY 2017 contest say they weren't asked to judge a single thing before the winners were announced in February (and the other 3 couldn't be contacted).

How a Sigma Art Lens Messed Up My Ferrari Photo Shoot

My name is Steffen Jahn, and I'm a seasoned car photographer based in Germany. With over 20 years in the business and having worked with all the famous manufacturers like Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Mercedes and Audi, I have a basic understanding what professional car photography is all about.

Beware 500px’s (Very) ‘Flexible Pricing’

Are you a freelance photographer like myself? Have you already put up your masterpiece on 500px? Maybe you’re trying to share your photos and sell them at the same time in case some stranger admires your work? If you’ve answered YES to all these questions, I'd like to share the terrible experience I had with 500px.

Photographer: Beware ImageRights International

Notable American photographer Kalliope Amorphous has published a warning to other photographers who are considering protecting their copyright using ImageRights International. She accuses the company of an "egregious grab" that forces photographers to use the company's legal services.

How This Venmo Scammer Got Caught by the Photographers He Targeted

Scammers are increasingly using the payment service Venmo as a way to steal camera gear since Venmo doesn't allow sales and will cancel the transaction after you've already handed over your possessions to the scammer. But one Venmo scammer in NYC was just caught and identified by photographers after he stole a $3,800 DSLR camera.

Photographers, Beware These Fake Gig Scam Emails

Some of you are familiar with the “Family Reunion” scam email that floated around a couple of years ago. Well, I recently received an email and after some digging, I wasn’t the only one to have received it. Many other photographers have received this same new email.

I Almost Lost a Nikon D850 to a Scam on eBay

This is the story of how I recently almost lost a Nikon D850 DSLR to a scam on eBay. Scammers are now targeting higher value eBay sales with fake PayPal phishing emails.

Photographers: Beware Violent Antifa Protestors

This past Sunday, I photographed the "Rally against Hate" protests in Berkeley, California, which was organized to oppose a "Say No To Marxism" rally that had been planned. There was very little representation of the so-called alt-right at the park on Sunday. However, there were 100 to 200 Antifa (or anarchists, or whatever they are called) who showed up dressed in all black to the protest.

This is How Shooting the Sun Can Melt Your Camera

Planning to photograph the upcoming solar eclipse? You'd better make sure you have the right solar filter to protect your camera. Here's a 2-minute video that shows how shooting the sun without protection can completely melt your DSLR's guts.

I Fell Victim to a $1,500 Used Camera Lens Scam on Amazon

I’ve been ordering used lenses for years and have never had a problem with any purchases. That is, until now. I recently ordered a $1,500 used camera lens from Amazon. The lens never showed up, and Amazon is refusing to return my money because they claim the tracking number shows that it was delivered to my address.

Beware This New Free Drone Scam on Instagram

Beware. There's a new scam on Instagram that preys on people who would like a free camera drone. I was messaged by a scam account, and here's how it works.

Scammers Are Using Venmo to Steal Pricey Camera Gear

If you ever need to sell pricey camera equipment -- or anything else, for that matter -- stay away from buyers who want to pay you using the popular mobile payment service Venmo. A scammer in Los Angeles has reportedly bilked multiple people of up to $100,000 in camera gear in just two weeks.