Advanced Camera Techniques & Tips

August 17, 2017

Paying Tribute To The Masters Of Painting
As photographers and filmmakers, most everything we try to achieve visually with lighting, a camera and storytelling through composition goes back to the Masters
Dan Brockett
the Masters of painting
“The Supper at Emmaus” by Caravaggio. The lighting is a wonderful example of chiaroscuro, translated from Italian meaning literally “light-dark,” but for those of us who create images, both filmmakers and photographers, this is a common method we use to create contrast, mood and, most significantly, depth and dimension. I recently visited a... Read more
June 21, 2017

Cooke Optics UK Factory Tour
How to get the Cooke Look
DL Byron
Cooke Optics lenses
A vintage Cooke Optics lens Cooke Optics has been making lenses for 130 years, and their coatings haven’t changed much since the ’60s—that’s what contributes to the Cooke Look cinematographers want on their digital bodies, like RED and ARRI. The coatings are like pixie dust and seen here (decades of them built up) on a flange. The flange holds... Read more
June 14, 2017

Self-Assigned Challenge: Cine Lenses
Manufacturers are responding to ever more capable cameras with cinema lenses, and Byron tries out two of them
DL Byron
cine lenses
“The Initial Mystery that attends any journey is: how did the traveler reach his starting point in the first place?” — Louise Bogan For this journey I’m on in London, it’s an initial mystery of shooting with cine lenses, but let’s back up to the starting point. If you’ve never heard of a cine lens, that’s shorthand for cinema, and what’s... Read more
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May 17, 2017

Telling A Story With Environmental Portraiture
On assignment with Jim Cornfield, as he uses a subject’s history to tell the story of an honored vet and the airplane that saved his life
Text & Photography By Jim Cornfield
portrait photography
For a recent photo assignment, Jim Cornfield chose to create an environmental portrait of Air Force Capt. Kenneth Curry, telling a story in images by connecting the pilot to his former military experience. The environmental portrait is one of photography’s simpler ideas: An image of a subject that includes his or her external life—some place or... Read more
April 5, 2017

The Power Of Portable Light
Using speedlights to tell a more compelling visual story
Text & Photography By Tom Bol
portable light
Moai Statue At Sunset. Nikon D3, 24-70mm ƒ/2.8 lens, shot at 1/50 sec. at ƒ/8, Nikon SB-800 used off-camera to light the statue. I have traveled 4,625 miles to get this image. I’m stumbling through the volcanic landscape in the murky predawn darkness trying to find the Moai statues. The salty breeze and crashing surf remind me of early-morning shoots... Read more
July 26, 2016

Stepping Up To Medium Format
A bigger platform opens up a world of possibilities
By Michael Clark
Stepping Up To Medium Format
Aaron Miller climbing on the Crystal Clear Arete (5.12c) in Diablo Canyon near Santa Fe, New Mexico. This image was shot with an 1,100 Watt seconds strobe mounted high on an adjacent cliff above my shooting position. Shooting Info: Hasselblad H5D 50c WiFi, HCD 24mm lens, F/7.1 at 1/80th second at ISO 800. © Michael Clark Michael Clark is an internationally... Read more
July 21, 2016

The Future Of Wireless Flash
Improvements in wireless flash give photographers an astounding amount of creative freedom
Tom Bol
Tom Bol Wireless Flash header
The year 2003 rocked my world as a photographer. It wasn’t the year I purchased my first digital camera. This was the year Nikon introduced the SB-800, which was the first flash I could trigger off-camera using my D70’s popup flash. Using Nikon’s i-TTL technology, flash exposure was calculated using TTL (through-the-lens) metering just like a... Read more
June 29, 2016

Strobe And Sun
How to bring studio-style lighting to the outdoors
Text & Photography By William Sawalich
Strobe And Sun
A strobe-illuminated subject really pops off of an underexposed ambient background. In this case, a cloudy day and tall tree coverage helped bring the ambient down naturally, making it easier to overpower the daylight with a portable strobe. Just because you’re working outdoors doesn’t mean you can’t take studio-style lighting control with you.... Read more
December 8, 2015

Thomas Boyd: Master Of Technique

Oregonian staffer Thomas Boyd knows that gaining access is key—and the veteran photographer knows how to get it and what gear to use once he has it

Text & Photography By Thomas Boyd
All of the great people photographers have the unique ability of gaining extraordinary access to events and people’s lives. This is doubly true of the best photojournalists, but it goes for everyone, from a portrait photographer to a wedding shooter. It’s this access that sets their images apart. There are two different kinds of access, of course.... Read more
September 14, 2015

DPP solutions: Preflight

The future of drones for professionals is becoming clearer

By The Editors
In February, the FAA issued the much anticipated proposed rules for drones titled "The Overview of Small UAS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking." Prior to the notice, there was a lot of speculation and more than a little apprehension about how the U.S. would handle drone usage. Short of plain outlawing unmanned aircraft in U.S. airspace, the biggest... Read more