Educational

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

The Exposure Triangle Sucks, Here’s Why

"The Exposure Triangle" is a catchy phrase meant to encompass the three factors which affect the exposure of a photograph of a scene with a given amount of light. It's often given to new photographers as a learning aid.

Is a Full Frame Camera Really Worth It? D610 vs D7100 Real World Test

Since I got my Nikon D7000 camera 6 years ago I’ve used it almost everyday. That is a lot of shutter clicks, 148,558 to be exact. It looks like I will be in the market for a new camera soon as the D7000 is only factory tested to 150,000 clicks. My dilemma is should I go full frame, or stick with my cropped frame?

Comparing the Sensor Noise of Top Cameras

Cameras are often pitted each other in the area of image quality, but long exposure sensor noise generally isn't something that you can easily compare online. So photographer Brendan Davey took it upon himself to create such a resource, and the Sensor Noise DB is what resulted.

Using Vintage Nikon Super-Telephoto Lenses on a Sony NEX-5

A rare Nikon 1200mm f/11 lens recently appeared on eBay. The earliest Nikon non-refractive long lenses were the Nikkor-Q 400mm f/4.5, Nikkor-P 600mm f/5.6, Nikkor-P 800mm f/8, and Nikkor-P 1200mm f/11. All of them were on the market around 1964 and withdrawn in the mid-1970. These lenses are actually lens heads and require a focus unit to be functional.

A Beginner’s Guide to Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO in Photography

This guide to photographic exposure aims to help you take full control of your camera. I often tell my students that I want them to move away from the idea “taking a photograph” and towards the idea of "making a photograph." I teach them how to take the camera off auto mode and take full control of the settings themselves in order to create the photograph they want.

Walker Evans’ Reflections on His Great Depression Photos

The great American photographer Walker Evans is best known for his stark photos that document the years of the Great Depression in the US. In the 4.5-minute video above, produced many years afterwards, Evans looks back on his photography and offers a glimpse into his mindset at the time he shot it.

The World’s First ‘Fully’ Digital Camera was Created by Fuji

Ask a photo nerd and they'll tell you that the world's first digital camera was invented in the 70s by Steve Sasson while working at Kodak (oh, the irony). But did you know that it's Fuji, not Kodak, who claims they invented the world's first "fully" or "truly" digital camera? It's true.

Natural Light vs Off-Camera Flash: An Eye-Opening Demonstration

Even a single off-camera flash can make a massive difference in an outdoor portrait shoot, giving you a look that is simply impossible to capture with natural light alone. Photographer Manuel Ortiz demonstrates this beautifully in a quick, eye-opening comparison video.

Understanding the Inverse-Square Law of Light

In this blog post, I would like to share some insights with you regarding the connection between aperture and the inverse-square law of light, as well as their effects on light fall-off.

Astronaut Tweets Photo of the Nikon DSLRs on the ISS

British ESA astronaut Tim Peake has been regularly sharing photos of Earth he's shooting during his 6 month stay on the International Space Station. He's often asked about the gear he uses up there, so he decided to Tweet the above photo to show everyone.

Analog vs Digital: A Look at the Same Photo Taken 15 Years Apart

I was editing some images that I took last week in New York City, including some taken from the observation deck of the Empire State Building. Then I remembered that I had taken some shots of the same view from the same location, 15 years ago.

Exploring the Work of Irving Penn with a Museum Curator

The Dallas Museum of Art is currently running an exhibition titled "Irving Penn: Beyond Beauty," the first retrospective of Penn's work in nearly two decades. If you're unable to see the show, which contains over 140 of the late photographer's photos, check out the fantastic 13-minute video above by The Art of Photography.

Basic Tutorial Clears Up a Fundamental Confusion About Lightroom

This short little tutorial by photographer and educator Phil Steele might be too basic for most advanced and even intermediate photographers, but you might find it useful all the same. That's because it tackles what Steele calls "the biggest confusion about Lightroom."

Composition Tips from a Man Who Studied with Ansel Adams

There are only a few people alive as qualified to give photography and composition advice as Huntington Witherill. A former "artist of the year," he studied under the great Ansel Adams and in this video he describes his approach to composing eye-catching images.

Depth of Field Explained

When you focus your camera, the area around the focal distance will also be in focus. But this can fall off to blur quickly or slowly. The acceptable amount of in-focus area around what's you are focusing on is called depth of field.

This is What Different Light Modifiers Do for Studio Portraits

Starting out in studio portraiture and not sure what light modifier to choose to achieve the photo you want? In the post, we'll take a look at the differences between the main modifiers in order to help you make a good choice.

Infographic: The Difference Between CMOS and CCD Sensors

Over the past couple of decades, CMOS sensors have come to dominate the digital photography landscape thanks to their increasing quality and falling costs. If you're unfamiliar with the differences between CMOS and CCD sensors, CEI-Europe has created a helpful infographic that compares the two technologies.

6 Reasons You Should Get a Photo Mentor, and 5 Ways to Get One

In a world filled with tutorials and workshops and webinars and so much free educational content it could make your head spin, the mentor-mentee relationship is too-often relegated to the "unnecessary" bin. But getting a photography mentor can be one of the most important steps you ever take in your career.

Useful Tips for Combining Flash and Ambient Light

You may swear by natural light, but sometimes available light just doesn't cooperate. So for those times when you're faced with an overcast sky but need a sunset, or the ambient light is harsh and direct, these tips from photographer Adam Angelides will help you capture natural looking images by combining ambient light with flash.

The Anatomy of a Newspaper Feature Portrait Shoot

I had a great opportunity to do a “behind the scenes” of a recent portrait feature shoot which my very good friend Daniel Hambury was doing for the London Evening Standard. In fact I was mainly assisting, but couldn’t pass up the opportunity to document what happens as it’s something I’ve always been intensely interested in.

D800 vs D3100: Can You Actually See a Difference?

As a photographer I always get asked for advice on buying cameras and what is the least amount needs to be spent to achieve professional results. It usually happens when I'm photographing a wedding, which also means I rarely have time to properly address the question.

Composition Tips: How to Capture that ‘National Geographic Style’

Renowned travel photographer Bob Holmes says he shoots in a "National Geographic style." A style that he describes as not about the photographer, but about the subject; a style that is graphic, and features a strong use of color. And in this video, he shares some composition tips that will help you capture some of that iconic style in your photos as well.

A Guide to Taking Travel Portraits Like the Pros

You’re hitting the road and your camera is at the top of the old checklist. Your goal is to make photographs that will be memorable and bring back the feelings of being there. So how can you do that?

Furs and Fake Blood: How I Planned and Shot an Epic Viking Shoot

One of the most luring aspects of photography, for me, is storytelling. Whether it's weddings, photojournalism, or creative portraiture, the opportunity to engage the viewer and pull them into another world is an incredible thing.

Zero Optik: High-End Pinhole Lenses Designed for Pros

When you think pinhole lenses, you probably think cheap, low-fi lenses created by hand for DIY photography projects. Zero Optik takes things in the opposite direction: it's a new line of high-quality pinhole lenses that are designed for professionals.

What if Digital Camera Sensors Were Circular?

I'm a photographer who is in no way wedded to any particular aspect ratio. I will trim my images to whatever I consider suits them best, whether or not they fall to one of the recognized ratios or some non-integer ratio.

8 Common Autofocus Problems and Their Solutions

Having trouble nailing tack-sharp autofocus with your camera? Aside from technical proficiency, there are a number of other issues that could be causing you AF grief. Here's a 14-minute video on 8 common AF problems and their solutions.

Nikon D5 vs Sony a7R II… at ISO 3,276,800

The $6,500 Nikon D5 DSLR and $3,200 Sony a7R II mirrorless camera are two of the current leaders in low-light, high-ISO shooting, but how do they stack up against each other? This 1.5-minute comparison video will show you.

Here’s the Pentax K-1 Owner’s Manual

Back in February, Pentax announced its first full-frame DSLR, the K-1. The camera, which has some pretty nifty and novel features and fantastic weathersealing, won't start shipping until late April. If you want a look at what the camera can do, the operating manual has appeared online.