Inspiration

$20 Work Light vs $900 Studio Strobe for a Food Photo

How does a $20 work light from a hardware store compare to a $900 studio strobe when it comes to food photography? Photographer Skyler Burt of We Eat Together recently decided to find out. He pitted a HDX 500w halogen work light against a $900 Elinchrom Pro HD 500W monolight.

Creative Applications of Color Theory in Landscape Photography

Discussions of many photography topics have the potential to veer deep into complex technical territory that may appeal more to scientists than to artists, and color theory is certainly one of those topics that can become rather arcane quite easily. What follows is a guide for landscape photographers who are more artistically inclined, those who are primarily interested in applying color theory to achieve creative goals.

How this Epic Volcano Photo Was Shot

While some may think that award-winning photos are simply snapshots created at the right place and right time, there's often a huge amount of time, effort, and dedication that goes into the process. For Mexican photographer Sergio Tapiro, it was over 15 years and over 300,000 photos.

How to Use a Phone Screen for Magical Portraits

Wedding photographers are always looking to take creative, novel portraits and a quick, simple trick is often sitting right in their pocket. By using a phone screen as a reflective surface, it is possible to cover up unsightly elements, add intrigue, and make an image that much more interesting.

Photographer Sees Mythical Creatures in Stormy Waves

Photographer Rachael Talibart spent a great deal of her childhood in southeast England staring at powerful ocean waves and imagining creatures in the sea. Through her ongoing photo project titled Sirens, Talibart is now sharing her imagination with the world.

I Biked Down the West Coast of the US for Coastal Landscape Photos

A year ago, I rode my bicycle from Banff to Jasper in the Canadian Rockies to prove that my lack of a car would not hold me back from pursuing my passion for landscape photography. This year, I took a gap semester and went and did it again, cycling 1,500 miles down the American West Coast, from Seattle to Los Angeles, to photograph the coastal landscapes.

No, I Didn’t Fake This Lava Photo

Yes, it’s possible. I did indeed capture what you see above in one shot. Although some of the Internet seem to disagree, it’s true. What you see above is the Milky Way, the moon, Mars, Saturn, an iridium flare, and lava from the Kilauea Volcano of Hawaii.

Etherial Images From A Broken Leica Camera

These days I spend most of my time living and traveling between Serbia, Hungary, Ukraine, and Finland, exploring and researching the global analog photography scene as best I can. I do this for my own personal endeavors such as my store, Cameraville.co, as well as my continuing journey with Camerarescue.org (formerly Cameraventures), headed by Juho Leppänen, which I will get into a bit later.

The Art of Knowing: Thoughts from a Photo Trip to China

For my recent trip to China, as I’ve done before, I planned and I planned… and I planned. I made detailed maps, took notes on locations and hints as to the best vantage points. I scoured everything to ensure that my time there was incredibly well-invested in capturing the best images I could manage within the time I had. And frankly, I feel that this was a great practice, for me.

How I Shot A Wedding With Just One 35mm Lens

I recently shot a wedding with just one lens, a Rokinon 35mm t/1.5 on a Sony a7S II body. This was completely unplanned and wasn’t done to prove any point.

This Eye-Popping Flyover of NYC Was Shot in 12K

Over the past several years, director Phil Holland has been specializing in high-res, large-format aerial cinematography. This gorgeous video titled "Above NYC" is a flyover of The Big Apple shot in 12K using a special rig comprising 3 RED Weapon Monstro 8K VV cameras.

This LEGO Kit is a Photographer’s Promo Mailer

Every year since 2010, photographer Clint Davis has put together a creative promotional mailer to send out to current and prospective clients. This year he got playful and created a custom LEGO kit promo mailer.

9 Portrait Location Ideas in 90 Seconds

Sometimes the strangest or most mundane locations can make for compelling portrait environments. Mango Street made this short and sweet video in which it presents 9 portrait location suggestions in just 90 seconds.

Picking the Brain of Renowned Sports Photographer Neil Leifer

Renowned sports photographer Neil Leifer has captured some of the most recognizable photos in the history of sports, particularly of Muhammad Ali, one of his long-term subjects. Here's a fantastic 17-minute video by The Art of Photography in which Leifer talks about his life, the stories behind his iconic photos, and his experience in the ever-evolving photo industry.

I Let Hundreds of Mosquitos Bite Me to Get the Perfect Photo

Like most good stories, this one is made of blood, sweat, and tears. Well, maybe just blood and sweat. And clicks -- lots of them. Blood, sweat, and clicks... If you have a fear of blood or find mosquitos disgusting, read on at your own risk.

This Guy Shot Formula 1 with a Game Boy Camera and Phone Lens

Photographer and Formula 1 fan Tim Binnion recently attended the 2018 Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. In addition to shooting the race with his Nikon DSLR, Binnion also decided to document it with a 0.016-megapixel Game Boy Camera from 1998... and the results are pretty awesome.

‘You Must Create’: This Spoken Word is Inspiration for Photographers

Photographers can easily become distracted by the pursuit of things like popularity and success, but one thing that many photographers find beneficial is going out and creating photos just for themselves rather than for others. Here's a 5-minute spoken word performance titled "You Must Create" that encourages photographers to do just that.

10 Tips to Up Your Street Photography Game

Kai Wong recently got together with street photographers Joshua K Jackson and Craig Whitehead (a.k.a. SixStreetUnder) to make this helpful 10.5-minute tips video containing 10 nuggets of wisdom for upping your street photography game.

What One Photographer Learned from Failing a Photo Shoot

Late last year, photographer Irene Rudnyk reached out to a model and makeup artist for a photo concept she had in mind that featured a woman illuminated by a lantern at blue hour. Rudnyk shares in the 7-minute video above how, after putting in considerable time and effort into putting the shoot together, she failed at the actual shoot.

Photos of Dutch Tulips from the Ground and Sky

As a travel and landscape photographer, being on the road for a lot of time is nice, but I always try to be home during the tulip season. This isn’t always easy as the exact timing of the blooming is always quite random.

Ego is the Enemy: Detach Your Ego From Social Media

Growth. Real, personal, soul-fulfilling, butterflies in the belly-inducing growth. That’s the key to my happiness; my personal metric for success. It doesn’t matter what I achieve or how much of it I attained. I define myself as successful simply in the process of progress.

Using a 140-Year-Old Lens on a $15,000 RED Camera

How does a 140-year-old lens perform on a modern $15,000 cinema camera? Photographer and filmmaker Mathieu Stern wanted to find out, so he paired his ancient (by photography standards) lens with a 5K RED camera to see what would result.

Cinematic Street Photos of Japan by Day and by Night

I fell in love with Japan. Deeply. The culture, the clean streets, the friendly and respectful people and the full spectrum of experience that it offers. From high rise cities to quaint, beautiful gardens and temples. All within walking distance of each other.

Your Camera is Better Than What Legendary Photographers Used

If you think that buying a better camera or lens will instantly make you a better photographer, consider this: it's likely that the camera you already have is better than what legendary photographers used to shoot history's most famous and beloved photos. That's the nugget of inspiration and encouragement that photographer Ted Forbes of The Art of Photography discusses in this 10-minute video.

How I Shot Fifteen Words to Celebrate My Friend’s Love

Last year, during my last months in Melbourne, I got a text from one of my closest and oldest friends from Italy. “We need to talk, I have some important news for you. Skype?” Minutes later, we were online.

Developing Your Photographic Style

Defining your style is one of the, if not the, most difficult and time-consuming aspects of photography. It takes many people years or even decades of shooting before they really start to narrow down their photographic style.

17 Lighting Recipes to Remember for Portrait Photos

At the WPPI wedding and portrait photography conference and expo this year, photographer Trevor Dayley taught this 1-hour class titled "17 Fast, Easy, Awesome Lighting Recipes." Dayley shares 17 lighting ideas you can keep in mind on any portrait shoot using a memorization story.

Rare Photos of a Shark Feeding Frenzy

National Geographic contributing photographer Laurent Ballesta was diving in the waters of French Polynesia when he finally saw a sight that he had been working for the last four years to capture: a shark feeding frenzy in the midst of breeding groupers.

Photos of Loneliness in New York City

Photographer Luc Kordas first moved from Europe to New York City in 2014 after living in six different countries in six different years. Since then, he has made his living as a photographer while doing street photography for himself. And one of the recurring subjects he has captured is the idea of loneliness in a big city.

The Photographer’s Travel Camera

Ever taken professional camera equipment on vacation and left with too many memories of setting up tripods or staring at screens? Well, I have. I've also traveled and taken no pictures at all - only to regret that as well.