Educational

PetaPixel's editorials are in-depth stories, thought-pieces, and opinions on the photography industry led by the minds of our editorial team.

Sigma Shares Caveats for Using Its EF Lenses on the Canon EOS R5

Sigma has been looking into whether its EF lenses play nicely on Canon's R System of mirrorless cameras, specifically the R5, and the company has just reported its findings. While modern Sigma lenses generally play nicely with the R line, there are a few caveats customers may want to be aware of.

A Look at the Ginormous Gowlandflex Twin-Lens Reflex Camera

The Gowlandflex is a ginormous twin-lens reflex (TLR) camera invented by famous American glamour photographer Peter Gowland. The camera equipment shop Camera West got its hands on one through a trade-in and made this 3-minute video that offers a look at the unique camera.

The $4.5K Fuji XT-1 Forensics Package Doesn’t Really Create UV Photos

UV photography has many obstacles. Ultraviolet light, or light from 200nm – 400nm in wavelength, is notoriously difficult to image with normal camera equipment. A normal digital camera will record images in the visible light spectrum, or 400nm – 700nm in wavelength. To unlock sensitivity to those shorter wavelengths, a camera has to be physically modified to allow passage of light below 400nm.

The Market For Discontinued Photographic Film

My fridge was recently full of instant film. I mean that literally, it was not possible for me to put any more packets of the film into the fridge without risking damaging them.

A Scene Breakdown of a Marine Corps Ad Created by an Oscar-Winning Duo

The Marine Corps’ latest ad is a masterclass in cinematography, advertising, and visual allegory. It is the result of Oscar-winning talent and keen insight by a sophisticated advertising agency. Such mastery of the cinematic language warrants a deeper look.

Are You Still Chasing ‘Perfect’ Color?

It's my belief that color is actually one of the most subjective elements that we as humans all understand, yet we actually have no real way of enforcing or translating it to one another.

Bill Biggart: The Hero Photographer Who Died Capturing 9/11

September 11, 2001, was a sunny Tuesday morning. Bill Biggart and his wife Wendy Doremus were walking their dogs in downtown Manhattan. At about 8:45 a.m., the couple noticed clouds of grey smoke forming against the clear blue New York City skyline. A passing taxi driver informed the couple that an airplane had crashed into the World Trade Center.

Canon R5 and R6: Comparing the File Formats (RAW, CRAW, JPEG, and HEIF)

In my last article, I shot images with both the Canon R5 and Canon R6 to compare the ISO performance of both cameras. As always, this lead to a lot of comments, emails, and DMs asking me if I could also compare the different file formats of these cameras. While I still have both these cameras on loan from Canon, I decided that now would be a good time to tests these parameters for all of you (and me too).

A Primer on Collecting Photo Books

Revisiting my photography book collection has brought me much enjoyment during the lockdown. A dozen years ago, as the business of photography was good, I used the disposable income to start collecting. In this article, I summarize what I wished I knew back then, not only as a photographer and book collector but also from the perspective of a former art gallery owner and current publisher.

This Dead $10,000 Camera Shows the Danger of Salt Water

LensRentals recently got back a $10,000 Fujinon GFX100 medium format mirrorless camera from a customer who used it in dive housing and reported that it "suddenly died for no reason." After Fuji declared repair impossible and insurance claims were paid, LensRentals decided to take the camera apart and look inside.

The Problem with Using Large Format Lenses on a Digital Camera

Large format photography still enjoys the status of a noble branch in image-making. Legendary names like Planar, Dagor, Heliar, Symmar, and Angulon -- to mention just a few milestones in lens’ history -- bear an almost supernatural aura of excellence.

A Beginner’s Guide to Cleaning Your Camera Sensor

Yes, the beginning of this video was meant to be a funny, but shockingly extreme example of sensor dust. And it was removed very easily with the basic sensor cleaning technique described below.

What Camera Sensor Size Equivalence is All About

Today we are taking a look at equivalency. Not equivalent exposure, equivalency. What the heck is that? Equivalency is a very, very complicated subject matter, but one people have been screaming about because of the last format comparison we did.

This Full Astrophotography Workshop is Now Available for Free on YouTube

Ian Norman and Diana Southern over at Lonely Speck just uploaded their full 2016 astrophotography workshop to YouTube for free. This incredible resource covers everything from getting the shot, to basic editing, image stacking, and panorama stitching. They even included the Q&A from the end of the meetup!

These are the World’s First Photos of Lightning

In the 1880s, photographer William Jennings set out to prove that lightning was a far more varied and volatile thing than a simple zig zag in the sky. After some trial and error, he ultimately succeeded, capturing what is often shared online as "the world's first photograph of lightning."

Canon Lens Acronyms and What They Mean

If you've ever been Canon lens shopping, you've probably had to take a minute (or five) to figure out what the name of the lens actually means. With a string of seemingly random letters and numbers, these abbreviations have baffled photographers, beginners, and some professionals alike, for as long as they have been around.

The Business of Deepfakes, Cheapfakes, and Misleading Manipulated Media

Some speculate that overall fake news could cost the economy $39 billion a year. Quite a market to grab for a savvy tech startup, even at 1%! But while fake news and in particular deep fakes have been accused of wreaking havoc on minds and economy, there is surprisingly only a minimal amount of companies offering tools to combat them.

How Ansel Adams Revolutionized Landscape Photography

Billions of photos are being snapped and shared on the Internet every day. There are more cameras than people in the world nowadays. Photography is something we take for granted; something we can easily do whenever we want. But it wasn’t always like this.

This Video Explains Exactly How Lens IS and IBIS Work in Modern Cameras

Most photographers know the basics of lens-based image stabilization (Lens IS) and in-body image stabilization (IBIS), but if you've ever wanted a technical deep-dive that explains exactly how these systems work to generate 4, 5, or even 7 stops of stabilization, this video from Imaging Resource is here to answer that call.

RAW vs JPEG: Explaining the Difference with a Box of Cereal

In running my photography channel, I get a lot of questions about RAW files vs. JPEG, and some people not fully grasping exactly what RAW files really are. So, I figured a box of cereal may simplify things. Read on.

Using Water to Explain the Properties of Light and the Exposure Triangle

Photographer Robert Hall recently released a simple-yet-brilliant explainer that uses water to illustrate the properties of light and explain a few concepts that frequently confuse beginners, including: what is a "stop" of light, how do you use the exposure triangle, and how do various flashes and flash modifiers affect your image.

Take a 40-Minute Tour Through the History of Photography

Great Britain's Royal Institution has put together a fascinating "tour through the history of photography." Using his own camera collection as a jumping off point, chemist Andrew Szydlo takes you through a sort of "crash course" on the history of photography in 41 minutes.

Commercial Photographer Explains Why You Shouldn’t Use a Light Meter

Commercial photographer and educator Karl Taylor is a working pro with an impressive portfolio to his name and major brands on his CV. So it came as a surprise when he declared recently that he hasn't used a light meter in 15 years... and explained why you shouldn't be using one either.

Lasers Reveal How Well Different Types of Facemasks Work

With a supply crunch in medical-grade facemasks, the general public has been turning to homemade masks in order to slow the spread of COVID-19. Now researchers are using lasers to reveal how effective different kinds of DIY masks are at blocking tiny droplets from coughs and sneezes.

How Harry Gruyaert Makes You Fall in Love with Color in His Photography

Martin, the host of about photography, has put together a timely and inspiring ode to the work of photographer Harry Gruyaert—a master of his craft and Magnum photographer whose approach to using color, and his passion for photography in general, is worth studying, admiring, and emulating.

How Scratch-Proof is a Camera Sensor?

Photographer and YouTuber Arthur R recently received several comments from viewers about how he didn't use a body cap to protect his camera sensor from dust. In response, he decided to do some tests to find out how durable and scratch-proof sensors actually are.

An Introduction to Light in Outdoor Photography

Photography is all about light. To be more precise, photography is all about the quality of the light. This can be a particular challenge for outdoor/landscape photographers.

Calculating the Distance of Wildlife in a Telephoto Shot

While enjoying a calm and misty morning at the pier in Malibu, California, I spotted dolphins. After observing them for a while, I noticed that their swimming was synchronized. There was a natural explanation for their circling: a feast had begun, quickly attracting sea lions, pelicans, and seagulls.

4 Lens Filters That Are Still Relevant in Our Modern Digital Age

While digital photography and post-processing have done away with the need for certain types of lens filters, there are still a number of filters that can't be replaced by Photoshop. Here's a 8.5-minute video by DPReview on which filters you should still consider keeping in your camera bag.

Speedlights vs Strobes: A Guide for Beginners

Portrait photographer Miguel Quiles is tackling one of the most common beginner questions out there: should I invest in speedlights or strobes? In this video, he covers the pros and cons of both, and which you should go with depending on your needs and shooting style.

Diffraction Explained: Why Your Lens is Worse at f/22 than f/8

It's common knowledge that most lenses are at their best (i.e. sharpest) between f/5.6 and f/8, depending on the lens. But why is that? Why does stopping down further actually make the image softer? This is what YouTuber ZY Productions explains in the video above.