After almost a year of hard work, John and I are excited to finally release our first photography course “Level 1: Photography Basics“. It has been an awesome experience creating this video and I can proudly say that we have done our best to produce truly educational material for our readers to learn from. Compressing years of photography knowledge and experience into a 5 hour course was not easy, but we managed to do it! Although this is our first…
Read This News
Shooting In The Rain
We don’t really get much choice here in the rain capital of the Universe (well, ok, it’s not quite Cherrapunji but it feels like it sometimes). But rather than avoiding the wet and water one can see it as … wait for it … yep, an opportunity to do some shooting.
Read This Article
Read This Article
The Myth of the Rule of Thirds
I have never liked the phrase “rules of composition.” To me, it seems too formal, suggesting that such a complex topic as composition can be boiled down to a few quick tips. So, in a blatant attempt to out-do John Sherman’s provocative “Is Nikon’s New 500mm FL Too Sharp?” title, I have aimed this article at the heart of photography school’s most basic lesson in composition: the rule of thirds.
Read This Article
Read This Article
Visualization and Film Photography: Part III
In this third installment to this series on visualization and film photography, I have selected a sample of photographs (mostly made in the 35mm format) to share and discuss. Although I heavily focused on technical aspects in film photography in Part I and Part II of this series, my goal with this article is to provide a more aesthetic description and simplified approach to the construction of photographs. I thought it would be of interest to beginning 35mm photographers to…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Does Focal Length Distort Subjects?
One of the common misunderstandings in photography has to do with the focal length of a lens, or its optical distortion properties. Many photographers claim that a wider angle lens will distort facial features either because of the lens distortion, or the focal length of the lens being too short. In this article and the accompanying video (which is extracted from our upcoming Photography Life Basics Video), we will prove that focal length has nothing to do with distorting a…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Zenfolio vs SmugMug
Both Zenfolio and SmugMug are giants in the world of photography hosting websites, and each has its fair share of loyal supporters. I have used each website for more than a year – first Zenfolio, then SmugMug – and the differences between the two became clear over time. In this review, I want to share my experiences and help other photographers choose which site is better for their needs.
Read This Article
Read This Article
Using Scale in Landscape Photography
A landscape photographer’s goal, especially in the most dramatic and massive locations, is to demonstrate the size and scope of the landscape in a photo. However, it is quite difficult to translate the three-dimensional world into a flat rectangle — certain aspects of a scene, including the scale of the landscape, can get lost along the way. In this article, I’ll go over some common ways to put the size of a scene into perspective.
Read This Article
Read This Article
Super Telephoto Wildlife Photography – The Good and the Bad
If you have read any of my previous articles, then you would know I have two Nikkor super telephoto lenses and I often use them in wildlife photography. I also often mention that reach is important in wildlife photography and getting highly detailed and crisp images. Two of the super telephoto lenses I have are the 600mm f/4 prime and the 800mm f/5.6 prime and they are amazing lenses that give me amazing reach for wildlife, but this reach can also be…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Visualization and Film Photography: Part II
In this second installment to this series on visualization and film photography, I have selected two photographs, “Gravida” and “Pyramis” (both architecture), to share and discuss. As in Part I to this series, I will provide a detailed description of the thought process behind the construction of the photographs, the choice of tools, and the technical considerations involved.
Read This Article
Read This Article
How to Photograph Jokulsarlon
One of the most amazing landscapes in the world is Iceland’s Jokulsarlon lagoon — famous for its massive and beautiful icebergs. And if the lagoon isn’t enough, these glass-like icebergs routinely wash ashore on a nearby black-sand beach. This crazy combination is enough to attract photographers from across the globe. In this article, I will share some tips for photographing Jokulsarlon that will help you make the most of your trip to Iceland.
Read This Article
Read This Article
Visualization and Film Photography: Part I
As a follow-up to my previous essays on visualization, in this article I will share select photographs made on film with a detailed description of the thought process, the choice of tools, and technical considerations that were involved. I have chosen two starkly different photographs (both landscapes) to discuss. I hope that these photos with the accompanying narrative will prove interesting and helpful to beginning film photographers and perhaps guide more experienced photographers in advanced techniques and approaches. Of note,…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Taking Good Photos in Bad Light
Landscape photographers work primarily in natural light, which presents a few problems – for starters, the most beautiful lighting conditions each day last for no more than a few hours. Other times, sunsets will be lost behind cloudy skies, making it impossible to see a landscape at its best. When the sky is gray or the sun is directly overhead, it can be tough to find inspiration for high-quality photography. My hope with this article is to share some tips that…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Long Exposures In The City
Quite a few people have emailed me in the past to write about shooting cityscapes with a long exposure and I have repeatedly asserted that while it is not especially complicated, I am certainly no expert on the subject. In fact, finding the time to write an article about it was a much greater challenge!
Read This Article
Read This Article
HDR Panoramic Photography Tutorial
In this post the value of using high dynamic range (HDR) photography for landscape and particularly panorama photography will be examined. This combination of two fairly widely used photographic techniques, the making of panoramas with HDR photographs is described in books dedicated to HDR techniques. This discussion will provide the reader with some methodological starting points and provide examples showing why the extra effort is worthwhile. Previous Photography Life posts are excellent reference primers for landscape photography and should definitely…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Smartphone Photography Tips
The 21st century is also known as “the era of smartphones”. Smartphones evolved rapidly in this decade and became a huge success, and so did cell phone photography. Today’s smartphones are well-equipped and loaded with features and specifications, from fast processors to high resolutions displays. And these smartphones are also quite powerful when it comes to photography, featuring wonderful built-in cameras. Despite having tiny sensors, most smartphones are integrated with small and compact lenses capable of delivering crisp images that…
Read This Article
Read This Article
A Practical Approach to Landscape Photography on Vacation
My name is Ori Cohen, I am a semi-serious photographer, and a computer science PhD student. Last year my wife and I traveled to Switzerland, so I packed a Sony NEX-7, a Sony 16mm f/2.8, a Minolta 24mm f/2.8 attached to an LA-EA4, and a Haida ND1000 filter.
Read This Article
Read This Article
What is Reciprocal Rule in Photography?
One of the biggest challenges that many photographers face is yielding sharp photos when hand-holding a camera. Many end up with blurry images without understanding the source of the problem, which is usually camera shake. Unfortunately, camera shake can come from a variety of different sources – from basic improper hand-holding techniques to mirror and shutter-induced vibrations that can be truly challenging and sometimes even impossible to deal with. While I will go over the latter topics in a separate…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Tips on Photographing Hand-Held with Telephoto Lenses
With the introduction of lenses like the Tamron 150-600mm f/5-6.3 VC, more people than ever before are using long telephoto zoom lenses. Sometimes they are disappointed with their initial results when using these lenses hand-held, especially at slower shutter speeds. This short article provides some tips that can help improve hand-holding technique.
Read This Article
Read This Article
Art, Not Furniture
It’s supposed to move you; to generate an emotional response. It’s about how it makes you feel, not just about how it looks. Anything from a single plain colour to highly complex dendritic patterns will have an effect of some kind. As photographers our judgement is sometimes so clouded by adherence to the strict parameters of good composition that we forget to see the subject and think about why we shot it. Was it really just about neatly filling a…
Read This Article
Read This Article
Exposing to the Right Explained
Exposing to the right, or ETTR, is an approach to photography that is as helpful as it is controversial. On one hand, exposing to the right is yet another technique to remember while shooting, and it can potentially ruin your exposure if utilized incorrectly. On the other hand, at least in theory, ETTR is the epitome of digital exposure. With proper ETTR, your images have as much detail in the shadows as they possibly can, without any of the highlights losing information…
Read This Article
Read This Article