Advanced Photography Techniques

September 22, 2020

Modern Lighting Solutions

New technology has opened up portrait lighting possibilities

By Tom Bol

For this portrait, I used an ELB 500 in TTL mode with a 53-inch Rotalux Octabox. The flash was set for high-speed sync for 1/800 shutter speed. Nikon Z 7, 35mm F1.8 lens. Exposure 1/800 sec., ƒ/1.8, ISO 100. The photography industry has been rapidly transforming in recent years, and the major focus has been on camera systems. Every year, there are... Read more

July 31, 2019

Travel Portrait Techniques

Follow these valuable tips when traveling abroad

Text & Photography By Brian Matiash

Because I was prepared for some resistance to taking photos while visiting Morocco, I altered my approach and utilized a variety of compositional hacks to get some unique photos. I’ll just come out and say it: I love to travel with photography as my primary agenda. Everything from the decision-making process of where to visit to deciding which... Read more

June 19, 2019

Adobe Lightroom CC Mobile For Portraits And Candids

Make the most of the mobile version of Lightroom, connect with your subjects and make your potential clients see results in real time

Text & Photography By Brian Matiash

I’ve never been the most prolific practitioner of portrait photography. But I’ve admired those photographers who are as skilled at interacting with their subjects as they are interacting with their camera. So, if I’m working on shooting portraits or candids, as I often am when my wife and I visit family in Nebraska, especially my four adorable... Read more

November 28, 2018

Add Motion To Strobe-Lit Portraits By Dragging The Shutter

This slow-shutter-speed-with-flash technique adds a hint of motion and a lot of interest to portraits and fashion photographs

William Sawalich

Dragging the shutter works particularly well in settings with a bright background. In this case, the window light creates a silhouetted subject ready to be illuminated by a strobe—here softened by a large silk diffusion panel. That soft key light can sometimes look flat and plain, but the blur from dragging the shutter while handholding (visible particularly... Read more

October 31, 2018

Portrait Lighting With LEDs

Tips for using constant LED lighting in studio as well as mixing it with natural light (indoors and out)

By William Sawalich

With an Astra Bi-Color LED light as the key, I shifted the light’s output to tungsten while maintaining a daylight white balance in the camera. The result is a warm, glowing sunset look—and it was as easy as turning a dial. One of the biggest changes to occur in lighting technology in recent years has been the introduction—and rapid technological... Read more

October 1, 2018

Lighting Separation Anxiety

Keep the reproduction of your images in mind when shooting stock—or any images—for successful sales

Text & Photography By Mark Edward Harris

I collaborated with photographer Daihezi Ji on a lighting test to show movement yet freeze her in the same frame. I set my camera to rear sync to fire my Profoto B1s at the end of the ½-second exposure with the backdrop/hair light positioned camera right in a silver collapsible beauty dish to provide separation. The keylight, also in a collapsible... Read more

August 27, 2018

As Numerous As The Stars

Take your astrophotography to the next level with these techniques

Text & Photography By Adam Woodworth

With today’s cameras and lenses, it has never been easier to capture the stars and the Milky Way and get sharp, clean results. All it takes is some technical knowledge, patience and a good amount of practice. Before we start, I think it’s important to note that most of these images are the result of blending multiple exposures together in... Read more

August 7, 2018

Mission: Monochrome

Think and shoot in black-and-white to add depth and beauty to your black-and-white photography

Text & Photography By Anthony Thurston

Using natural sunlight coming in through a window, and the texture of the wall behind the subject, it’s possible to create a range of tonality and shape, perfect for monochrome photography. In the bright and vibrant digital world, we all find ourselves in today, it can sometimes be an exciting change of pace to choose to explore the world of black-and-white... Read more

July 9, 2018

Essential Flash

Five reasons why you should never leave your flash at home

Text & Photography By Tom Bol

A Nikon SB-5000 Speedlight and orange gel were used to simulate sunlight on the model’s back and shoulders. Nikon D850, AF-S NIKKOR 85mm ƒ/1.8G, 1/3200 sec., ƒ/1.8, ISO 31 In this day and age of going ultra-lightweight, photographers discriminately minimize their photo kits to the bare essentials. After all, who doesn’t like carrying less weight?... Read more

July 2, 2018

The Natural Beauty Of Open Shade

Understanding how to use the natural beauty of open shade will expand your creative options

Text & Photography By Mark Edward Harris

I did environmental portraits and reportage shots using open shade for part of my photo essay on the tequila-making process at the Hacienda del Patrón in the Jalisco highlands of Mexico. Noël Coward’s lyrics, only “Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun,” can be expanded to include photographers on location who want to increase... Read more

June 25, 2018

Intent To Shoot

How approaching street photography with a clear goal results in better images

Text & Photography By Brian Matiash

Of all the neighborhoods in New York City, Chinatown is one of my favorites. It’s so rich in culture while also offering a lot of visual diversity for photographers. This is doubly true once the sun goes down and the lights flicker on. I’ve long held the idea that one of the most important skills a photographer can gain is learning how to approach... Read more

April 23, 2018

Stacking The Deck

Quickly improve your landscapes with focus-stacking—a simple, but rarely used technique to increase depth of field and fix common imaging problems

Text & Photography By Adam Woodworth

A focus stack of two exposures. The foreground leaves and fence at ƒ/8 for 1/3 sec., the background at ƒ/11 for 0.6 sec., and blended manually in Photoshop. Nikon D810, NIKKOR 24-70mm ƒ/2.8, all shots at 36mm and ISO 80 Are you a landscape photographer suffering from out-of-focus foregrounds or backgrounds even when you shoot at ƒ/11? Or are you... Read more

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