Inspiration

What Does Your Photography Mean to You?

At the end of my photo workshops, and during my seminars, I often ask the participants a simple question: “What does your photography mean to you?”

From Homeless to Pro Photographer: What it Actually Takes to Make it as a Photographer

Perhaps you have a dream of becoming a professional photographer or you have already started your professional photography business. If for you it’s still a dream what is it that’s holding you back? If you have already started how was it for you? Did you start part-time, nervous about taking that first step or did you, like me, jump straight in?

Spellbinding Super Slow Motion Macro Footage of Bubbling Hydrogen

Envisioning Chemistry—the collaboration between the Beauty of Science and the Chinese Chemical Society that seeks to “reveal the beauty of chemistry through special techniques such as macro and micro photography, high-speed photography, time-lapse photography, and infrared thermal imaging"—has released another fascinating entry.

Telephoto Street Photography in India

Before my recent trip to India, I had a lot of conflicting thoughts regarding the gear I wanted to take. My entire purpose for traveling was to make photographs, so I wanted to shape my kit into the most efficient setup possible.

Revisiting Old Ghosts: The Girl with the Sunglasses

The girl with the sunglasses has been one of my favorite images since the day I took it. It’s very photo 1 and is literally from my first semester of art school. Taken with my first camera a Canon EOS 630 I bought for class, I shot it on Kodak Tri-X and printed it on Ilford Multigrade Glossy Fiber Base paper.

This Inspiring Portrait Series Captures the Beauty and Wisdom of Women Over 50

Following the 2017 Women's March and the rise of the #metoo movement that saw so many women speaking truth to power, award-winning street, portrait, and fine art photographer Pedro Oliveira was inspired to start a project that would shine a light on some "equally fierce women." That's how Beyond the 60th Sense was born.

5 Awe-Inspiring Adventure Photos Win Top Prize at First Annual ROAM Awards

ROAM, the global adventure community founded by some of the best photographers and filmmakers in the world, has announced the winners of the first annual ROAM Awards: a wanderlust-inducing set of photos, videos, and essays that will have you reaching for your camera with one hand and booking a plane ticket with the other.

It’s Okay to Lose Interest in Photography

Quite often when I’m browsing my Facebook photographic communities I see posts from people who are depressed because they have lost interest in their hobby. They usually say that they can’t work up the enthusiasm to get out there and photograph anything and that they haven’t even picked up their cameras in weeks, months or even years. They have lost their ‘phojo’ and they wonder if they’ll ever get it back.

How to Get Better at Street Photography

It goes without saying that if you want to get better at something you have to practice. Simple, right? The thing is, that unlike more structured pursuits such as sports or music, the idea of practicing street photography seems a bit hard to wrap one’s head around.

Stunning Super Macro Photos of Minuscule Mushrooms and Fungi

If you've ever taken a walk in the woods, especially after a rain storm, you've definitely walked by one of photographer Alison Pollack's subjects. You may have even stepped on one. But unless you had a magnifying glass handy, you never even knew they were there.

Beyond Mere Composition: Getting Over the Rule of Thirds and Golden Ratio

There is a wealth of information on the internet about composition—endless blog posts about visual rules, geometric concepts, and photos with all kinds of lines and shapes drawn over them to the prove the point. But all of this information focuses on the "what" of composition rather than the "why." A photographer must stop and ask themselves: "why even bother following visual rules?"

Finding Photo Inspiration at the Hardware Store

Over the past year, I’ve been pushing my images into more abstract, painterly directions. As digital images seem to be moving into a realm of hyperrealism, I find myself longing for gritty tangibility. Since I have always more in the get-it-in-camera camp, I have been experimenting with a range of techniques and materials to try and achieve the look I’m after.

This Pro Tried to Shoot a Professional-Grade Timelapse on a Smartphone

Professional timelapse photographer Morten Rustad is used to chasing the ultimate image quality when he's working for clients like Sony or LG. He's used to working with the best cameras and the highest resolution files. His followers wanted to know if he could capture the same quality using only a phone.

A Chat with War Photographer Lynsey Addario

Lynsey Addario is an American photojournalist who's well known for her work on the front lines of conflict and human rights issues. In this 8-minute video interview, VICE sat down with Addario and talked to her about everything from life and death to journalistic truth.

Dad Captures Time-Lapse ‘Portrait’ of His Daughter from Birth to Age 20

Every couple of years for the past eight, Dutch artist and filmmaker Frans Hofmeester has released a time-lapse "portrait" of his daughter Lotte and his son Vince that contained one second of video captured every week of their life from birth until the present day. This year, Lotte turned 20, and Hofmeester once again updated his viral creation.

How I Shot, Funded and Published a Photo Book from Start to Finish

Today marks one year to the day that my book went on sale. It’s a very personal project that means a huge amount to me. I wanted to write a post that not only reflects on the past year since the book became available, but also on the project itself. It took a huge amount of work to get to that stage in the first place.

5 Common Mistakes to Avoid as a Landscape Photographer

Landscape photographer Mads Peter Iversen has put together a helpful video where he covers 5 "crucial" mistakes to avoid in landscape photography. Crucial might be an overstatement, but the video points out five of the most common mistakes you'll see from novice landscape shooters in particular.

Lessons Learned After 250 Documentary Photography Assignments

Recently I hit a milestone in my photographer's career: I've accomplished 250 paid assignments. It took me ten years and half a million frames to get there. I thought it's a decent reason to reflect a little bit on what has been done and what the journey feels like.

6 Shots Every Event Photographer Needs to Get

Photographer Mik Milman recently put together a helpful "shot list" video that any event photographer (especially beginners) will find valuable. In the video, he lists six shot "types" that you need to keep in mind, no matter what kind of event you're hired to shoot.

10 Tips I Wish I Knew 10 Years Ago as a Photographer

It has recently come to my attention that exactly 10 years ago, almost to the date, I took my very first step into the world of photography. I was fresh out of high school when I got conscripted to the army and later served as a military photographer. Whether it was to my liking or not, this is how I was set on this long path which has, since then, flourished and developed my passion for photography into my current career as a traveling, cultural and documentary photographer.

Film Photography Speeds Me Up

It’s been around a year since I switched to photographing on 35mm film for the majority of my work. Beyond a couple of false starts and some misconceptions, I think I’ve adjusted well, and I’m really happy to have made the change. Now that I have a good amount of work to reference, I’ve been thinking a lot about some of the adjustments I needed to make in order to adapt to a film mindset.

Take More Photos, Spend Less Money

Photography can be an expensive pursuit, and the cost of things (and the pressure to buy them all, buy them new, and buy them now) can get in the way of putting that money in better places.

Freediving to Photograph Humpback Whales

The ocean is fascinating in every way. We know so little about its mysteries and tend to ignore its importance for all living life. What is it about the underwater world that draws people from all over the world to explore its depths? For me, the allure of marine life welcoming me into their natural habitat rather than the other way around is beautiful.

Why I Hate Being Called a ‘Professional Photographer’

Yesterday, I was at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia shooting for Flashes of Hope, a wonderful non-profit organization that gets photographers like myself to volunteer their time and create portraits of kids who are literally fighting for their lives. These portraits are given to the families for free. Flashes of Hope is a truly wonderful group.

Filmmaker Tries 5 Creative and Crazy S*itty Rig Camera Hacks

Filmmaker and YouTuber Dan Mace is a big fan of the S*itty Rigs blog, where creatives share the crappiest DIY rigs they've ever used in order to get the shot on a budget. In his latest video, Mace tries out five of the rigs that he felt had the most potential... so you don't have to.

Macro Photography Trick: Create ‘Rainbow Flares’ with a CD

The glorious colors of summer are fading away, and the windy weather makes outdoor macro photography difficult. In other words, it’s the perfect time to take photography inside and stage creative photos with things around the house.

A Beginner’s Guide to Black and White Photography

Video journalist Logan Baker over at Shutterstock put together a handy primer for anybody who is looking to get into black-and-white photography for the first time. The tutorial amounts to an easy-to-follow beginner's guide that we highly recommend you check out if you're just getting started in this genre.

Layers of Being Human: A Tribute to Mexican Culture and Día de Muertos

A month ago I had the opportunity to visit my friends and colleagues in beautiful Mexico. After two colorful and unforgettable weeks touring Mexico, I swore that I would create a “tribute” image when I got home, trying to instill some of the visuals and feelings of the Mexican culture into it.

Beautiful Image of Turtle Embryo Wins Nikon Small World Photo Contest

Nikon has revealed the winners of the 45th annual Nikon Small World photomicrography competition. The photo contest features images that "showcase a spectacular blend of science and artistry under the microscope," and as usual, this year's winning images are just plain spectacular.

How Empathy Can Transform Your Work and Help You Connect with Clients

Talented creator Daniel DeArco—who goes by "Industrial Content Director & Creative Consultant" these days—recently dived into a topic that isn't often covered for creative business owners, freelancers, or just creators in general: empathy. Specifically, how empathy can transform the work you do and help you connect with clients.

This Photographer Uses Clever Tricks for Extraordinary Photos

Jordi Koalitic is a Barcelona-based photographer who has racked up over 1.3 million followers on his Instagram by specializing in "creative photography." Koalitic shares not only his finished photos but also behind-the-scenes photos showing the tricks he used to create them.

Shooting Portraits with a Rare Canon 50mm f/0.95 ‘Dream Lens’

While in Finland visiting The Camera Rescue Project, YouTuber and vintage lens enthusiast Mathieu Stern got to try out a rare Canon "dream lens": the Canon 50mm f/0.95. And like any good camera nerd, Stern immediately set it to f/0.95 and tried to shoot some portraits.