This is an in-depth review of the Alien Skin Exposure X3 software for culling, managing and post-processing images. A couple of weeks ago, Spencer wrote the first article of our “Lightroom Classic vs. Other Software” series. In his article, he compared Lightroom to Alien Skin’s Exposure X3. I’m following his article up with a more detailed take on Exposure X3. Here I will dive a little bit deeper into the user experience I have had with the program while using it…
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Recommended Nikon D7500 Settings
The Nikon D7500 is a complex camera with more than 100 menu options, and it isn’t easy to know how to set everything properly. This guide covers the most important settings and how to pick them for your own photography. Keep in mind that these are personal preferences, and you may end up setting some of them differently, but this is a good place to start. The information below should help you understand how to use the D7500 to its…
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The Magic of Bali and the Travel Photography of David Lazar
Indonesia is of particular interest to renowned travel photographer David Lazar, having made multiple trips to various islands in recent years. He returns again in the fall, this time to lead his Bali photo tour workshop. Being one of the most artistically rich micro-climates in the world, Bali is an easy and natural choice for the amiable Australian snapper.
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How to Focus in Landscape Photography
Focusing is one of the pillars of photography. If you don’t focus in the right place, at best, your photos won’t be as sharp as possible – and, at worst, they could be completely unusable. There’s a lot that goes into focusing correctly, even in a genre like landscape photography, where your subject tends to stay relatively still. To get the best results, you’ll want to optimize your techniques as much as possible, and that’s what this article covers. So,…
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Nikon D7500 Review
This camera works. That was my thought after testing the Nikon D7500 for two days of sub-freezing photography in Rocky Mountain National Park – only taking breaks from the cold while driving from one location to the next – in conditions that are the very definition of a field review. We’ve now been testing the D7500 at Photography Life for several weeks, but the 48 hours of intense shooting at Rocky Mountain solidified things. This DSLR packs a serious punch,…
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What Are Shot Noise and Digital Noise in Photography?
Noise is a topic in photography that seems made to cause confusion. However, it is crucial to understand it if you want to maximize image quality. In this article, we will go into detail about the two types of noise that affect your photos, shot noise and digital noise, and what you can do to minimize them. We will also explain the connection between things like your camera’s ISO and the amount of noise in your photos. So, what is…
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Finding Good Light in Landscape Photography
There’s a reason why landscape photographers like waking up at 4AM and hiking out to the middle of nowhere. (Or, at the very least, there’s a reason why we tolerate it.) Are you a morning person? I’m not. But – countless times – I’ve stood by my tripod as the sun rises, watching the morning light illuminate a beautiful landscape. And that’s the reason. It’s all about the light. If you can get this one right, your photos will be…
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Genaray Escort Daylight LED Interview 3-Light Kit Review
Today I am going to review the Genaray Escort Daylight LED Interview 3-Light Kit. As the name implies, this kit contains three LED light panels. Two of the panels are flood lights, while one panel is a spot light. While I feel that these lights are mainly intended for use with video, I tested the lights for both photo and video.
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What Is Exposure? (A Beginner’s Guide)
Every advanced and professional photographer today absolutely needs to learn how to use exposure in photography. When you first start taking pictures, you might be confused by the countless buttons and menu options on your camera. However, there is no excuse for using a bad in-camera exposure. By understanding how to expose an image properly, you will be able to capture photographs of the ideal brightness, including high levels of detail in both the shadows and highlight areas. This article explains…
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New Sony Compatibility for Nine Sigma Art Lenses
Along with the two new Art lenses that Sigma just announced, they also introduced something that will make Sony users especially happy: native compatibility for nine prime lenses from Sigma’s Art lineup, including the two new lenses and seven older designs. Sony is really pushing things forward with their efforts to offer a large native lens lineup, and, with the excellent quality of Sigma’s Art lenses, this is an excellent step to take!
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Sigma Announces Two New Art Lenses
The CP+ Camera and Photo Imaging Show starts Thursday, which means it is announcement time across the photography world. Next on the list of new products is Sigma, and they’re debuting some very interesting gear – chief among them, two new lenses for Canon, Nikon, and now Sony mounts (more on that in another article). Introducing the Sigma 70mm f/2.8 Macro Art and the Sigma 105mm f/1.4 Art! The macro lens is Sigma’s first Art macro lens, going up to 1:1 (life-size)…
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Sony Announces the a7 III: Fully Featured at $2000
Sony just announced the newest camera in their a7 series: the a7 III. It has a 24.2 megapixel backside-illuminated sensor, a 693-point autofocus system, and the longest battery life of any Sony full-frame mirrorless camera. The rest of the specifications, which we will cover below, are equally impressive – especially considering the launch price of just $1998.
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Sigma 24mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art Review
This is an in-depth review of the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens that was announced in February of 2015. Being a professional-grade wide-angle lens, the Sigma 24mm f/1.4 Art was made to challenge similar offerings from both Nikon and Canon, but at a much lower price point. Previously, Sigma had a lot of success with its Art-series lenses such as the 35mm f/1.4 Art, so it made sense that the company would continue to make similar class lenses…
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Lightroom Classic vs Alien Skin Exposure X3
In the coming weeks, we are planning to review many Lightroom alternatives at Photography Life and figure out which ones are potential replacements. The first on our list is Alien Skin Exposure X3. This software, originally a film simulation plugin for Lightroom and Photoshop, has grown to a standalone software that mimics Lightroom’s post-processing and organization options in many ways. This article covers the differences and similarities between Adobe Lightroom CC Classic and Alien Skin Exposure X3, including which one…
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Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX VR AF-P Review
In this in-depth field review, we are going to have a look at the Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-P VR, the latest Nikon basic DX standard kit lens launched in September of 2016. It is an all-plastic lens featuring the newest stepping motor, which focuses faster and quieter than the traditional silent wave motor used on most standard Nikon lenses. The optical design features two aspherical elements for better sharpness and chromatic aberration control.
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Life is More Interesting with BAGS
There’s something about photography that can cause it to become deeply intertwined with our lives. Of course some folks are professional photographers and their image-creating skills, as well as their ability to market those skills, are fundamental contributors to their economic well-being. For many other people who’s livelihood does not depend on earning a living from their images, photography is still an integral part of their lives. The simple fact is that life is far more interesting with BAGS, and…
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Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x Review
This is an in-depth review of the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM with a built-in 1.4x extender, a telephoto zoom lens targeted at enthusiast and professional action photographers. For many years, Canon users shooting serious wildlife and sports photography had come to accept that the only telephoto lenses on offer by Canon that achieved top of the line performance were their prime lenses. At the time, the only Canon zoom lens in the telephoto range was the Canon EF…
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What Makes a Good Photo?
The simplest question in photography is also the most complex: What makes a good photo? It isn’t enough to say that a good photo comes from its lighting, composition, subject, and so on; this question has a deeper answer. Good images – as different as they may be from one another – all stem from the same roots: The photographer has a strong goal for the photo, then expresses that goal in the most effective possible way.
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Fuji XF 56mm f/1.2 R Review
This is an in-depth review of the Fujifilm XF 56mm f/1.2 R lens made for Fuji’s line of X-Series cameras. This short telephoto lens (85mm full-frame equivalent) was released in February of 2014 and quickly became known as one of the best prime portrait lenses on the market, mirrorless or otherwise. This lens is not to be confused with Fuji’s other 56mm, the XF 56mm f/1.2 R APD. The APD version incorporates a controllable apodizing filter into its design, for…
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Lightroom 6.14 vs CC 7.1 vs 7.2 Performance Comparison
Adobe Lightroom is known to be a disappointingly slow post-processing tool, especially when it comes to basic operations such as importing, preview generation and image culling, as well as more advanced operations that involve using features such as spot healing. Adobe’s development team is aware of these issues and the company says that it is committed in delivering updates that will make Lightroom faster. The latest version of Lightroom Classic CC 7.2 has been delivered a couple of days ago…
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