crowdfunding

LAB-BOX Lets You Develop Your Film at Home Without a Darkroom

Developing your own 35mm or 120 film at home almost always requires a darkroom, but LAB-BOX wants to change all that. The new 'multi-format daylight-loading film tank' lets you develop your own film anywhere, even in bright sunlight if you'd like. No darkroom required.

GIMP Crowdfunding Critical Updates like High Bit Depth and Layer Effects

One of the most popular free alternatives to Photoshop out there is GIMP, an open source graphics editor that packs a lot of punch. But if you want GIMP to really improve—adding features like high bit depth and CMYK support—the folks behind it are asking that you support one of their most prolific developers.

Galaxy is Trying to Resurrect Dry Glass Plate Photography

After helping resurrect direct positive photo paper back and then making it available for 120 film cameras to boot, Galaxy is at it again. And this time, they're aiming their crowdfunding-powered resurrection ray at dry glass plate photography.

OOWA Smartphone Lenses Promise Top Quality Thanks to Special Design

There's no shortage of smartphone lenses out there to choose from, but these two from DynaOptics promise to be both special, and unique. Designed with their patented 'free-form' technology, the OOWA smartphone lenses claim they are "the highest-quality lens attachments ever created for mobile photography."

You Can Now Own a Piece of the British Journal of Photography

Founded in 1854, the British Journal of Photography is one of the world's oldest and most influential photography magazines. The 162-year-old publication was sold back in 2013, and now it's raising money through a crowdfunding campaign. Put in some money, and in exchange you get ownership shares in the magazine.

Galaxy’s Direct Positive Photo Paper is Coming to Medium Format Cameras

Direct positive photo paper is not typically the domain of 120 medium format film cameras. For those you usually use ... well ... film. But the folks at Galaxy Photography are changing the game with Galaxy Hyper Speed 120: rolls of direct positive photosensitive paper for medium format cameras.

The Perils of Crowdfunding Your Photo Project

I proudly ordered an Instacube in August 2012 amid significant press hype over a device that would display your Instagram feed with a large 6.5” screen. Finally... the digital picture frame that I actually wanted. The initial goal of $35,000 was quickly smashed, and the Kickstarter campaign ended up raising over $620,000.

OpEd: Don’t Fund My Life

Don't fund my life. Really, don't send anything.

I’m a photographer, a businessperson, an artist, an educator and a friend. Many tough things have happened to me over the years, but it has been suggested that I keep the negativity to a minimum. Lots of good things have happened to me as well. Mostly, good things happened because of planning and preparation and a little luck. Bad things have happened because life happens and sometimes we are unlucky.

Triggertrap Has ‘Failed’ After Raising Nearly $500K for the Ada Modular Camera Trigger

High-flying Kickstarter campaigns get a lot of glory, but they come with their fair share of risks: just ask Triggertrap. Back in 2013, the UK-based camera trigger maker launched a crowdfunding campaign for a new modular camera trigger it had developed, called the Ada (initially it was the "Redsnap"). With an initial goal of only £50K, the company successfully raised £290,386 (~$446K) from nearly 1,971 backers.

For the next year, things seemed to be going well, and the company posted regular status updates on progress. Yesterday, that all came to an abrupt end as the company announced that the project has been shuttered.

Gorigit iPhone Case Lets You Attach Your GoPro to your Smartphone for Point and Shoot Style Convenience

There are few gadgets as impressive and versatile as the GoPro. Small, lightweight, and capable, it packs a fairly mean punch into a very portable package. But small as the device is, there’s one notable thing missing: a viewfinder or LCD screen of some sort.

Fortunately, GoPro was wise enough allow you to use your smartphone as a live view for your camera, and now that feature is being taken to a more practical level by a new iPhone case/GoPro mount hybrid called Gorigit.

Why Lomography Loves Kickstarter

Last week, Lomography announced their first instant film camera: the Lomo'Instant (a quirky name to match a quirky camera). And rather than outright launching the product, or even just announcing a shipping date, they chose to introduce the new camera through a Kickstarter campaign.

This isn't Lomography's first attempt at crowdfunding. They did the same thing when launching their Petzval Lens and their Smartphone Film Scanner last year. Given the trend, we're likely to see more of their future launches taking the form of Kickstarter campaigns as well. But why?

The FlashQ System Shrinks Wireless Flash Triggering Tech for Mirrorless Cameras

When it comes to choosing wireless flash trigger systems, there’s no shortage of options. From PocketWizards to cheap, $20 systems on Amazon and Ebay, there seems to be one for each and every situation and price point. However, despite all of the options, there is one thing that every single one of them has in common: they're all pretty big.

Of course, when shooting in a studio with a DSLR a PocketWizard doesn't seem that beastly. But when you’re wanting to trigger a flash with a small mirrorless camera or compact camera, none of the options out there right now will allow you to do so without making your camera look like the attachment rather than the trigger. That’s where FlashQ comes in.

Photographer Takes to GoFundMe to Raise Money for a New D4s, Sparks Outrage

Is it okay for a professional photographer to try and crowdfund a new camera? It seems like the answer to that is No, if you go by the response to pro wedding photographer Stephen Yanni's recent GoFundMe campaign. A campaign that raised no money, but a whole lot of outrage, before being ultimately pulled.

Crowd Sourcing Innovation: The Polaroid Socialmatic Story

From a design concept to a crowd-funding campaign to a product backed by a major brand, the Polaroid Socialmatic represents an alternative to traditional product development methods. Is crowd-sourced innovation the shakeup that the photography industry needs?

Photographer Travels the World Taking Pictures of Abandoned Airplane Wrecks

For his project "Happy End," German photographer Dietmar Eckell has travelled all over the world to find and photograph abandoned airplane wreckages with positive endings. That last part may seem like a paradox, but all of the 15 wreckages Eckell has shot actually do have happy endings: no one on board died, and they were all rescued from the remote locations where they crash landed.

Now, after completing this mammoth project and producing some extraordinary pictures, he wants to put together a coffee table photo book that tells and (obviously) illustrates these stories, and he's turned to crowdfunding site Indiegogo for help.

Conflict Photog Leans on Crowdfunding to Replace Stolen DSLR Gear

While on assignment in the Middle East, war photographer Tracey Shelton had her gear stolen during an attempted kidnapping back in August 2011. As a freelance photojournalist, she didn't have a newspaper's funding to lean back on, and found herself out of several thousand dollars worth of camera gear.

Her work in the Middle East has been nothing short of an inspiration to photojournalists everywhere, but since the theft she's had to borrow gear and use sub par equipment to do her job. And so two recent journalism school graduates have decided to turn to crowdfunding to try and get her properly equipped to do what she does best.