The humble spud gun, which may or may not be illegal to actually use, own or even make where you live, is a wonderful thing. Packed into this potato launching barrel of fun, however is a lot of very cool looking science. A month or so ago, Destin Sandlin of YouTube’s Smarter Every Day, built one using clear pipes, so that we could see what was happening as he hurled potatoes towards some watermelons....
Nine times out of ten, I would rather shoot with natural light. But no matter how prepared I am or how keen I am on picking out the perfect moment, the reality is natural light sometimes needs a little assistance to capture the vision I have in my mind. It’s at times like these when I do my best to combine the best of both worlds: natural light and flash....
There has been a word lately about a bunch of new Canon RF lenses. Probably the most intriguing among them are the 600mm f/11 and 800mm f/11. Thanks to Nokishita, we now head a few leaked photos and specs ahead of the official announcement that should take place in a couple of days. Nokishita shared blurry product photos of the lenses alone. But there are two more images that show the lenses mounted onto a camera and used in real life, so to speak....
We live in the 21st century, technology is rapidly improving, and our digital cameras are becoming better and better. So does it still make sense to shoot expensive and outdated film? Well yes, it does. In this video from grainydays, Jason Kummerfeldt gives you three big reasons (and a bunch of small ones) why you should shoot film in 2021. 1.Aesthetic Every film geek will tell you that it’s impossible to recreate that delightful film grain in digital photos....
Hollyland’s Lark 150 dual wireless microphone kit has been quite popular since its release a few months ago. The original kit contains two transmitters and a single receiver that runs on 2.4Ghz wireless frequencies. A lot of users didn’t want to have to pay for a kit containing a pair of microphones, though when they only needed one. In response to those needs, Hollyland has now announced the Hollyland Lark 150 Solo Kit aimed towards lower budget users and vloggers....
My name is Steffen Jahn, I´m a seasoned car photographer based in Germany. With over 20 years in business and all the famous manufacturers like Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Mercedes and Audi on my client list, I have a basic understanding what professional car-photography is all about. I recently got the chance to shoot the Ferrari 488 Pista – a 2018 Geneva Motorshow novelty – secretly at Ferraris headquarter in Maranello / Italy for British Top Gear magazine....
What’s the most difficult thing you’ve ever had to photograph? A bicycle? A French horn? Silverware maybe? What those things all have in common is that they are all highly reflective objects, and often present some issues when photographing them. But what would be even more challenging than a shiny object? Have you ever had to photograph a mirror? That surely would be the ultimate in product photography challenges, and the internet of course has a hilarious collection of people trying and failing to photograph mirrors for sale....
The Nikon ES-2 Film Digitizing Adapter was announced way back in August 2017, along with the Nikon D850. It looks like somebody finally bought the $140 plastic tube, though, because a sort-of review and how-to has been posted to DPReview. The D850 came with a feature specifically designed for use with the ES-2, and so does the new Nikon D780, which is what’s used in the video. Although you don’t have to use one of these two cameras....
When creating images its always good to add some extra details just to keep things interesting. I recently shot a cover feature for alternative lifestyle magazine, Proper eye candy, with Madison Phoenix. The plan was to shoot some moody images using gels. I also wanted smoke, but alas, at the time I didn’t have a smoke machine. So my plan was to fake it afterwards in Photoshop. One of the images also featured Madison smoking a cigar....
A challenging location is not just one you’d call “ugly,” It may just not suitable for the project you’re working on. Your client will have their expectations from you, and the location can make it difficult to meet them. Marcin Lewandowski from Adorama discusses this problem and gives you some great tips for overcoming the challenges and getting the best out of your location. The location you shoot at can be dull and featureless....
Building up a proper rig for shooting video isn’t that difficult, it’s just expensive. Well, usually. Fully geared cinema rigs can run into the tens of thousands of dollars depending on what you’re putting into them. But what if you could build something for around $2,000, including the cost of the camera itself? In this video, Chadwin Smith takes a look at the humble Canon EOS M50. At its launch, the EOS M50 looked like a very promising camera except for the fact that there was a substantial crop when shooting 4K video, but if you can live with that, then it makes for an ideal inexpensive camera for shooting video....
I don’t shoot much in the studio anymore, but when I used to, I had quite a few different backdrops. They were a pain to store because if you just lie the rolls down on the ground or a shelf horizontally (the most convenient way to store them), they’ll typically develop a “flat side” which turns into obvious bumps and creases when you unroll it on your stand. So vertical storage is a must....
If you’re just starting out with strobes, there’s more choice than ever to overwhelm you with! In this guide, we will help you systematically narrow down which lights are going to work best for your type of photography. The world of strobes has changed quite a bit since we published our last article on the subject. While much of the information there remains relevant, we thought it was time for a fresh guide to highlight some of the technological improvements, particularly in power range which we will get to in a moment....
We recently spent some time skiing at Mont Tremblant in Quebec Canada. One of the highlights of skiing is, of course, the apres ski. For me that means sitting by the fire with a good book / coffee / scotch. In this post, I will share all of the details (technical and aesthetic) that went into creating this series of completely fake yet totally authentic ski chalet fire light photos…...
Halloween is just around the corner and you may want to shoot some spooky portraits in your home studio. I know I do! In this video from Adorama, Gavin Hoey will show you how to make a lighting setup and get some spo-o-o-oky portraits even if you shoot in a tiny home studio. Gavin went for a “chemist/alchemist” concept for this shoot. So, his model is sitting at the table, surrounded by all sorts of bottles....
B-roll adds value to your videos and makes them more dynamic, and there are plenty of ways to shoot an epic one. One of the most common tips is to stabilize your camera, be it with a gimbal, a steadicam, a slider, or even a tripod. However, you can get a pretty awesome B-roll sequence even handheld. Josh Yeo of MAKE. ART. NOW. teamed up with Tommy Callaway to do it, and they ended up with some interesting footage....
The city I live in boasts 300 days of sunshine a year. Except on days when I have a photoshoot booked and need sunshine, it seems! So what to do when you’ve got a client and you want beautiful golden hour light, but the weather just won’t cooperate? You fake it of course! That’s the beautiful thing about learning to shoot with any kind of light. You aren’t beholden to the whims of metrology....
Most of my shoots, whether for stills or video, are out on location. Often, those locations are out in the middle of nowhere. So, I rely on portable battery powered everything, including lights. This means we don’t always get the power we’re able to in the studio with mains powered lights, but it doesn’t mean we’re out of options. In this video from DSLRguide, filmmaker Simon Cade talks us through some different setups using portable battery powered lights....
It’s not often I get to shoot very simple, clean white light shots, but in a recent shoot the model asked if she could get some updated ‘Polaroids’. For those of you not familiar with the term when used in reference to a model shoot, it’s actually not the now obsolete and ludicrously expensive single-shot film, but a request for very basic portraits of the model for their agency. This ‘Polaroid’ term is a relic from the analogue film days and it essentially now means shots that are un-retouched and with the model wearing very little makeup....
Filming yourself presents a lot of challenges. Anybody who’s tried to vlog with a DSLR or mirrorless camera will tell you that. There are a few challenges to overcome from nailing your framing and exposure to adding movement and interest to your shots to make it look like it’s not just you and your camera. If you struggle with filming yourself, then this video from Moritz at Fenchel and Janish is for you....
