You don’t need hours of free time or a photography trip every weekend to become a better photographer. Some of the best photography habits take only a few minutes. The key is keeping photography part of your normal routine rather than waiting for the perfect day to go shooting. 1. Take One Intentional Photo a […]
Nikon just announced an interesting new full-frame camera, and it isn’t really aimed at photographers who spend their time debating autofocus modes and custom button configurations. The new Nikon Z5IIC appears to be designed for people who have outgrown their smartphone camera but aren’t necessarily interested in immediately learning every technical aspect of photography. And […]
Modern smartphones might give you several camera choices: 0.5×, 1×, 2×, 3×, 5× and sometimes even more. It can be tempting to think of these simply as different zoom levels. But there’s something important happening behind those little numbers: You’re often switching between completely different cameras. And in many situations, 1× is the camera that […]
When photographers think about fall, the first thing that usually comes to mind is colorful foliage. Bright reds. Deep oranges. Golden leaves covering the landscape. But some of the best fall photography actually happens before peak color arrives. The transition into autumn changes much more than the trees. Light, weather, wildlife, and even familiar landscapes […]
Before summer officially comes to an end, here’s a quick photography challenge you can try today. I call it the End-of-Summer Sharpness Test. Find a stationary subject with plenty of fine detail—a tree, building, sign, fence, or anything else that will make sharpness easy to judge. Now photograph it handheld using the same focal length […]
If you’ve ever opened Lightroom’s Detail panel, you may have wondered why noise reduction isn’t just one slider. Instead, Lightroom separates it into Luminance and Color. That’s because digital noise actually comes in two different forms—and they look very different. Luminance Noise Looks Like Grain Luminance noise appears as random variations in brightness. Zoom into […]
Many photographers assume they need an incredible portfolio, expensive equipment, and years of experience before anyone will pay them. But plenty of clients aren’t looking for the best photographer in town. They’re looking for someone dependable who can solve a specific problem. Here are some of the easiest places to start. 1. Real Estate Photography […]
When I’m photographing close to home, getting the exposure slightly wrong isn’t always a disaster. I can often return another day. Travel photography is different. You may have one sunset, one afternoon, or even one minute to capture a scene you’ll never see under the same conditions again. That’s why I often bracket exposures while […]
You get home from a great trip, unload your memory cards, and start scrolling through hundreds—or maybe thousands—of photos. You captured the famous landmark, the sweeping landscape, the hotel, the beach, the skyline and all the places you planned to photograph. But as you look through everything, something feels strangely missing. You photographed the places […]
When a photo feels too dark, the obvious solution is to increase the Exposure slider. But here’s something worth knowing: Making a photo brighter and making it look brighter aren’t necessarily the same thing. In fact, simply increasing exposure can sometimes make an image look washed out without actually improving it. What the Exposure Slider […]
