Not everyone needs to hire a retoucher, right? Well, that may be true, but I’d like to make the case that most people probably do need one. Let’s dive into the complex world of post-production, understand the art of it, and the time it takes to do well.
Nikon has been rightly praised for the top end specifications of the recently announced Z9. It has taken the mirrorless space race to the next level, regaining lost ground to sit at the genetic top of the proverbial camera tree. While $5,500 is clearly a lot of money, is the Z9 the cheapest pro-spec camera the company has released?
"Don't you have enough fox pictures yet?" That's a question I get asked regularly. "Not by a long shot!" Those photos are just a great excuse to stalk these fantastic animals for over ten years. And no, I can't get enough.
I grew up in a world where photographs were produced and consumed in printed format. Digital technology was already brewing in the background back then, but it was still an analog world for the average person.
The Geminid meteor shower is set to be a one of the most consistent meteor displays of the year, so we will be taking you through the preparation, shooting, and editing tips you'll need to capture the Geminid meteor shower from start to finish.
Photography has been a medium of limitless possibilities since it was originally invented in the early 1800s. The use of cameras has allowed us to capture historical moments and reshape the way we see ourselves and the world around us. To celebrate the amazing history of photography and photographic science, we have assembled 32 photographic ‘firsts’ from over the past two centuries.
Although it’s tempting to believe that anyone and everyone is a potential customer for your photography, your actual target customer base is much more limited. Finding customers who are likely to buy your photos without spending exorbitantly to acquire them is the key to any successful marketing campaign.
If you do iPhone photography, common sense may say you pick up the iPhone, open the camera app and just start shooting. That’ll work, but there happen to be so many settings and features hidden within these phones that stump way too many people, even some of us pros sometimes.
Can you think back to a time you were taking photos in a dinner scene and they just look "flash-y"? Why does flash never look natural? Well, in order to make flash look natural, you have to make flash part of the natural lighting scenario. Here’s how.
We all know and love the Fujifilm film simulations. With the touch of a button, you can apply some wonderful looks to your photos. But which Fujifilm film simulation performs best in low light with high ISO values? Which ones perform the worst?
Using a digital X-ray detector, this video shows exactly what goes on inside a zoom lens as the ring is turned, revealing the mechanics that are responsible for moving the optical elements inside.
Professional sports photographer Paul Rutherford shares valuable advice on how to tackle fast-paced sports shoots in low-light situations.
I want to show you an iOS app called SCRL that I use to easily create those fun, swipe-able panoramic posts on Instagram using an iPhone.
In the 1960s and ‘70s, the town of Poliçan was one of the largest and most important armaments centers in Albania. For security reasons, most information about the site was top secret and the town itself was closed to foreigners.
Macro photography works well with conventional lenses and inexpensive extension tubes. The combination achieves 0.3x to 0.5x magnification. Depth of field is much greater with these moderate magnifications than at the 1x magnification possible with macro lenses.
Scientists have often invited the public to see what they see, using everything from engraved woodblocks to electron microscopes to explore the complexity of the scientific enterprise and the beauty of life. Sharing these visions through illustrations, photography, and videos has allowed laypeople to explore a range of discoveries, from new bird species to the inner workings of the human cell.
I've shot thousands of pics of insects without flash and tens of thousands with flash. When the lighting is bright and sunny, the results can be good without flash. But when I venture out in pursuit of photo ops, I often encounter poorly lighted situations which are better with flash. If you study the work of experienced insect photographers, you'll find that most of them use flash.
“Why are guns and cameras so closely connected?” This is what I set out to explore and investigate recently through my own experience in film. Between starting the production and finishing it, one major event made this connection a lot darker.
Colonial history overflows with commodities. From the early 1800s, wool generated extraordinary wealth for squatters and pastoralists and substantial investment in the Australian colonies. In the 1850s, gold motivated tens of thousands of people to work the earth or service the diggings. Coal, copper, tin, wheat, barley, and cotton all assumed importance at different times.
Think you know the inverse-square law? How much of a "law" is it actually in the practice of photography? We are taught that the inverse-square law is the holy grail of understanding the laws of light. Some condense all the wonderful knowledge about light concepts to the inverse square law only. In this article, I want to invite you to take a step back and see how the inverse square law is wrong. Sometimes.
Tonight, a lunar eclipse that coincides with the Beaver Moon will result in 97% coverage and will last around 3.5 hours, making it the longest-lasting in 580 years.
The Leica Freedom Train was not a physical coal or steam engine, but the monumental effort of the Leitz family. This is how they and the Leica camera company saved hundreds of Jews from persecution at the hands of the Nazis.
Although Photoshop has many tools to cover practically any post-processing desire, it is daunting to newcomers as a result. To help make the program easier to jump into, photographer PJ Pantelis has shared a brief tutorial that equips photographers with a handful of top tools to get started in Photoshop with ease.
The northern lights, otherwise known as aurora borealis, are the winter-time spectacle that sees northern skies filled with incredible dancing lights. Caused by the interaction of photons exciting the gas molecules in Earth’s atmosphere, they can appear as green, pink, or blue. Photographing them is near the top of almost all photographers’ wish lists, but getting a good shot is decidedly difficult.
When we think about websites, search engine optimization (SEO) is often top of mind. How is Google ranking you against other similar photographers? Are you showing up on the first page of search results? There’s no doubt SEO is important for every photographer to consider. However, there are some big misconceptions when it comes to SEO.
Right off the bat, I’m going to add the disclaimer that this tutorial will probably not be for every type of photographer out there. If you have no interest in exploring the creative opportunities that mobile photography offers, then this video may not be for you.
Just after the Christmas of 1904, a group of lucky children nestled into their seats at the Duke of York’s Theatre in London for a night of whimsy and wonder. There, they witnessed the first adventure of a boy who could never grow up, clad in autumn leaves and cobwebs. Their eyes expanded with delight as he entered the room of children just like them, on a mission to retrieve a friend.
Devastating photos and videos emerged from Afghanistan as the Taliban regained control of the country and U.S. troops prepared to withdraw in August 2021.
Fashion photography is about, well... fashion. As simple as that sounds, many photographers still get caught up in the technicalities of it without giving too much attention to the subject. In this article, I will go over some of the most common fashion terms that every photographer must know when working with fashion.
As a 20-year old concert photographer, one of the questions that I get the most is: “How did you manage to land a touring job so quickly and at a young age?” Here are a few tips that I used when navigating my way into the concert photography industry.
Freeman Patterson is a storied photographer, teacher, and author. After teaching seminars for groups as large as 4,000 and putting together a number of photography books, he shares some insights into the process he has been intimately close to for years.
One of the hardest things I experienced as a beginner was not knowing how to create a simple lighting setup. I’d always imagined elaborate lighting setups of three to six lights or more, and it’s why I began to shy away from working in a studio.
Let’s compare a basic camera to one of the best cameras out there and more toward the pricey side, let’s be honest. I always heard the best camera is the one you have on you so let’s find out if that is true!
How can you distinguish yourself from other photographers? That’s the essential question every photographer embarking on a marketing strategy should be asking. But when it comes to a dedicated marketing strategy, there are a lot of options: email newsletters, printed promos sent via snail mail, social media posts, networking at in-person or virtual events, even cold calling editors.
The world of photography is filled with abbreviations that allow longer words or phrases to be more easily communicated. If you're just starting out as a photographer, however, they could be more confusing than helpful, and this guide was put together just for you.
Photographer Michael Shainblum chose to capture photos with only his 16-35mm f/4 lens and shares how he composes his seascape images with such a wide angle and how he crops them for a polished finished photo.
It’s not often that a new Lightroom update or feature is as positively received by users as last week’s Masking improvements. And there is a good reason for the fanfare because these new tools really are amazing... as well as a bit confusing and inconsistent.
There’s a reason that 64% of small businesses use email marketing to reach customers. Email marketing is a valuable tool for photographers to promote their work to potential and existing clients. Virtually every person on the internet has an email address, and email marketing is an effective way to send messages directly to customers and gain prospective clients by reaching an already engaged audience.
Photography has always had a relationship to haunting as it shows not what is, but what once was.
When casting a model, several factors are at play. Some cast models based on how they look, others cast them based on who they know. But, what is a good model? Are there traits that good models share? Here are some that I have noticed.
In this tutorial, we share our lighting setup for a piece of glass stemware using minimal gear. To mimic this shot, you will need a black background, stripboxes, and speedlights.
Unless you’ve just emerged from a nuclear fallout bunker, you’ve likely already heard about Lightroom’s impressive new masking tools that Adobe announced at their annual Adobe Max conference. In fact, PetaPixel’s Ryan Mense wrote a wonderful hands-on article covering the expanse of these new masking tools.
Whether you are a working professional or a weekend hobbyist, the thrill of using truly exquisite gear is unmatched. We all work with what we have while salivating over what we cannot, and no matter how old we get, fancy toys never lose their luster. Do we need them? Probably not. Will we ever purchase them? Not likely. Will we spend hours staring at them? You bet. Nothing is as intoxicating to a photographer as good, outrageously expensive glass.
For years, Apple's iPhone Live Photos has offered the coolest camera trick. With one click and no tripod, I could easily transform a body of water into a long exposure like dreamy shot, with long flowing water.
Parabolic light has become increasingly popular among fashion and portrait photographers. With so many options to choose from, a photographer may get lost or not understand the modifiers at all.
The professional growth of a photographer, and therefore the maturity of his or her projects, passes through several phases. Different phases require different skills from the photographer. In each phase the work and the goal of photography change, the maturity of his or her work grows.
Blaine Harrington began his career in photography in the 1970s after a brief stint racing motocross. His connections to the racing world led to assignments covering races around the country and in Europe – piquing his curiosity about travel.
When it comes to headshots, there is perhaps no better source of information and guidance than the man who has made an empire out of the practice. In this five minute video on the, Peter Hurley quickly breaks down his favorite tips to light the perfect headshot.
Looking to improve your food photos ahead of this holiday season? If you stick to a few simple tips, there’s no reason why your photos shouldn’t go from no-go to "wow."
The European Space Agency (ESA) captured a video of a "violent mass of fast-moving plasma" that was spit out by the sun. This coronal mass ejection (CME) can cause interference with communications and GPS systems on Earth, but can also deliver some incredible light shows.