2022-05-22 20:31
The famous war photographer Robert Capa once said, "If your pictures aren't good enough, you aren't close enough." I often find myself trying to squeeze more of the subject into an… Read More
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Photography Life Blog
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Photography Life provides various digital photography reviews, articles, tips, tutorials and guides to photographers of all levels
2022-05-21 22:47
One of the great challenges of wildlife photography is that there are so many things to consider in such a short amount of time. Even if you do everything right, the uncontrollable stuff can… Read More
2022-05-19 15:32
Real estate photography can be quite gear-intensive, especially compared to some other photographic genres. Finding the best camera equipment for your real estate workflow can make the diffe… Read More
2022-05-15 21:26
If you’re reading this Weekly News, it means you made it through Friday the 13th. By the way, did you know that in Latin America, the unlucky day is Tuesday the 13th? So watch out for… Read More
2022-05-13 22:24
A few times a year, Nikon tends to go wild and put nearly all their current products on sale. Now is one of those times, with a big sale that lasts until May 29. Which deals are worthwhile a… Read More
2022-05-12 00:03
The bigger your film size, the harder it is to find lenses that work well. For 8x10, the largest common film size, that rings especially true. So, what should you look for in an 8x10 lens? T… Read More
2022-05-10 13:01
DJI has officially launched the Mini 3 Pro, a drone that features high-end and novel capabilities, like 4K60 video, up to 47 minutes of flight time, and APAS 4.0 obstacle detection and avoid… Read More
2022-05-08 23:31
Happy Mother's Day Sunday to our Photography Life readers! Starting this week, instead of a roundup of just the sales and deals in the photography world, I'll share the biggest photography n… Read More
2022-05-07 05:00
The lens that I’ve been using the longest as a photographer is the Nikon 105mm f/2.8G Macro - the F-mount lens, that is. Nikon has been selling it since 2006, and in that time it's gai… Read More
2022-05-04 01:36
Composition, as it’s usually explained, is the way you arrange the visual elements within a photo. But that definition misses something. A large portion of what’s important when… Read More
2022-05-03 04:15
I remember when I was starting out in photography how I looked upon the Nikon D3X in wonder. I could never afford it, but 24 megapixels! Can you imagine? Of course, some medium format camera… Read More
2022-05-02 04:29
It’s May Day, the celebration of spring! The snow has remained here only on the highest mountain peaks and where it managed to hide from the sun’s rays. For the last time today… Read More
2022-05-01 03:13
Quick question: what’s more complicated, buying a house or getting married? Answer: neither, it’s buying a camera! That’s right, and I wrote this guide because if you don&r&hell…Read More
2022-04-28 04:37
Dynamic range is the ratio between the strongest and weakest signal measured in a given context. For example, the dynamic range of a camera sensor is the ratio between the brightest and dark… Read More
2022-04-26 04:32
It’s early morning and I’m sitting in the shelter to photograph the love story of… but why to reveal it now? Can you tell from the attached photo at the end of this articl… Read More
2022-04-25 05:43
I’ve loved SmallRig’s camera support gear for years. While I most associated their brand with the high quality cages and L-plates that I’ve put on each of my last few camer… Read More
2022-04-21 05:35
It’s impossible to read about cameras and not encounter the terms “pixels” and “megapixels.” Nowadays most cameras have 20 megapixels (MP) or more, and there ar… Read More
2022-04-17 20:26
Happy Easter Sunday, everyone. It’s early in the morning and I’m sitting in my “field office” in the middle of the woods to see what interesting deals our partners at… Read More
2022-04-15 03:49
Any time you consider buying new lighting equipment, it can be a daunting decision. There are more choices in the lighting world than almost anywhere else in photography. One of the simplest… Read More
2022-04-12 23:52
Recently, you learned on Photography Life what the best camera settings are when photographing birds. Today's article takes a more detailed look at bird behavior, biology, and environme… Read More
2022-04-11 18:24
Drone photography has grown to become an essential offering for real estate photography, but between a complex regulatory environment, a whole new set of gear considerations for both photo a… Read More
2022-04-09 18:13
Outside my window, snow turns to rain. Occasionally the sun breaks through the clouds, bathes the landscape in a bright light, then ten seconds later goes behind clouds so dark that you feel… Read More
2022-04-08 05:47
When I shoot large format film, one of the great challenges is being picky with the photos I ultimately expose. Certainly there are benefits to shooting this way, namely that the rate of &ld&hell…Read More
2022-04-07 05:00
Manually focusing your camera lens can seem tricky. Compared to the ease of autofocus, you may wonder why you even still have manual focus as an option. It still has a number of important us… Read More
2022-04-06 04:39
The consensus seems to be that Nikon’s newly-announced Z 800mm f/6.3 is selling for a good price at $6500. But that assessment only scratches the surface. In fact, for the focal length… Read More
2022-04-06 03:41
Today, Nikon announced its longest and perhaps most exciting Z-series lens to date with the 800mm f/6.3 VR S. Two things make this lens especially stand out: the unusually low weight of 2.4… Read More
2022-04-03 15:26
ISO adaptive presets are one of my favorite ways to customize Lightroom. They can help you get better image quality out of your files at both low and high ISOs, and they are so easy to use… Read More
2022-04-02 14:06
Spring is definitely here! If you don’t believe it, just open your windows in the morning and listen to the birds singing. At least on the latitude where I am writing this text, spring… Read More
2022-03-31 13:43
"Bokeh" is a term to describe the quality of out-of-focus areas in a photograph, both in the foreground and background. Although some aspects of bokeh are subjective, everyone seems to like… Read More
2022-03-30 13:39
I have two of the most gullible friends in the world. When I floated the questionable idea of visiting Iceland together for a week in February - using the line, I remember, “Iceland ac… Read More
2022-03-25 03:34
Lightroom presets are powerful tools that can drastically speed up your editing process. Whether you want to quickly set a baseline edit or easily replicate the signature look of your favori… Read More
2022-03-16 10:43
I’m excited to introduce another new writer from our expanding team at Photography Life. Please give a warm welcome to Alex Coleman! Alex impressed us with his wide range of high-quali… Read More
2022-03-16 10:26
Camera lenses can be divided into two broad groups: prime lenses and zoom lenses. Prime lenses, which offer a single focal length and can’t zoom in or out, may seem to be inherently le… Read More
2022-03-15 11:14
Today, we’d like you to offer a warm welcome to Photography Life’s newest writer, Jason Polak! Jason is a wildlife photographer and mathematician from Canada whose great articles… Read More
2022-03-14 08:56
What’s better: micro four thirds or APS-C? Are these two sensor formats at odds? Could any question spark an internet argument more quickly than comparing sensor sizes? There is no dou… Read More
2022-03-12 19:57
Last year, I wrote an article about finding subjects to photograph when there isn't anything obvious to shoot. That's a common situation in photography: not enough good subjects. Sometimes… Read More
2022-03-03 04:28
Samsung continues to push for newer and faster storage for photographers. Its most recent release in the form of the Samsung PRO Plus SD cards is specifically designed for professional photo… Read More
2022-02-28 13:07
As I began better exploring the woodlands of Eastern Pennsylvania, I came to realize that photographing grand vistas which would stop people in their tracks, in the same manner as is found i… Read More
2022-02-22 05:30
Megadap is a name you might not immediately recognize, with their product lineup consisting entirely of adapters. These adapters aren’t just your basic mounting rings, however. In the… Read More
2022-02-18 20:26
I just published a new video on our YouTube channel! And wow, I've wanted to say that for a while. Last year, I took a break from making videos to help run Photography Life, and now I finall… Read More
2022-02-15 07:19
There is no doubt that the best gear for bird photography is shockingly expensive. For example, the latest generation 600mm f/4 comes in at about $13,000 US dollars whether you look at Nikon… Read More
2022-02-12 06:58
Blurring the background is one of the many ways to isolate or emphasize your subject. Do you need a special lens to do so? Absolutely not! In this article, we look at some of the ways you ca… Read More
2022-02-10 06:58
Winter can be a struggle for me. I long for idyllic, colorful autumn to continue unabated, but instead the land has taken on a stark barrenness. The joy and fun of the holidays is a distant… Read More
2022-02-08 05:05
Real estate photography can be much more than just snapping some photos of interiors. Successfully capturing a property's unique elements can challenge your skills as a photographer and as a… Read More
2022-02-05 06:00
Since my earliest years as a photographer, I have been using accessories to trip the camera’s shutter without causing sharpness-robbing vibrations. In the film era, it was a threaded c… Read More
2022-02-02 19:18
Every once in a great while, a company ‘invents the wheel’ with a product. What do I mean by that? I mean that the invented product is so functionally appropriate that it becomes… Read More
2022-01-31 06:39
It was May of 2018 when my girlfriend, Melanie, and I made the decision to use my family’s cabin in northern Pennsylvania as a basecamp and travel to various state parks in New York fo… Read More
2022-01-27 08:20
Even if cell phone cameras keep improving and reach unimaginable levels of image quality, I’ll always carry around a larger, heavier, and more complex camera. Why is that? One word: le… Read More
2022-01-25 20:55
Night photography, particularly as a beginner, can present both the opportunity to create compelling images, as well as some of the most difficult technical challenges you might face. Fortun… Read More
2022-01-24 05:54
As the Nikon Z9 gradually makes its way into the hands of more and more photographers, I’m sure that some of you are weighing whether to buy it or Nikon’s previous flagship mirro… Read More
2022-01-20 18:14
Imagine that you’re on a beautiful beach and you see an unusual bird fly towards you. The sun is low in the sky and golden light washes over delicately patterned wings. You raise your… Read More
2022-01-19 09:02
“Rain, rain, go away, come again another day.” This line from an old nursery rhyme has popped into my head many times over the years growing up in the soggy Pacific Northwest. It… Read More
2022-01-19 05:05
Today Nikon officially unveiled its first super telephoto prime for the Z mount system, the Nikon Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S. Although we’ve known about this lens through a development anno… Read More
2022-01-17 09:18
Long lens users arguably have an easier time selecting camera bags, simply because there are fewer bags that will fit a long lens in the first place. Today, I will review one such bag, the T… Read More
2022-01-15 08:23
"If I did what has already been done, I would be a plagiarist and would consider myself unworthy; so I do something different and people call me a scoundrel. I'd rather be a scoundrel than a… Read More
2022-01-14 00:28
Today, Leica announced the M11, a 60-megapixel successor to the M10 and M10-P. The M11’s high resolution is a bit unexpected: It's the highest resolution Leica camera ever, even more t… Read More
2022-01-12 05:16
In this article, I'll share the basics on how to film a timelapse video, no matter whether you're a beginner or an experienced photographer. Time lapses are a very popular type of cinem… Read More
2022-01-09 21:05
Cameras usually aren't specced to shoot in very cold conditions. A small handful have a negative operating temperature (in Celsius at least), like the Nikon Z9 at -10° C / 14° F. Mos… Read More
2022-01-06 20:27
If you’ve spent time around wedding photographers, you've probably seen the camera straps I'm going to discuss in this article. HoldFast is a small company that makes a variety of… Read More
2022-01-04 00:40
For the past year or so, my main camera for landscape photography hasn't been one of the newest high-resolution mirrorless cameras that I spend so much time writing about. Nor has it been an… Read More
2022-01-02 20:56
One of the quieter revolutions in digital image quality has been dynamic range. The days of picking between highlight detail and shadow detail are gone; almost any modern camera can capture… Read More
2021-12-26 08:20
Photographing a wedding can feel overwhelming. There are must-capture moments with no option for a re-do. There are clients who may be extremely stressed, other vendors who are trying to do… Read More
2021-12-20 18:36
One of our readers, Libor Vaicenbacher, tested perhaps the first copy of the Nikon Z9 shipped to the Czech Republic and has sent us his initial impressions! We hope you enjoy this first look… Read More
2021-12-18 21:44
The recent, unexpected announcement of the Nikon Z 28-75mm f/2.8 - with identical optics as the Tamron G1 28-75mm f/2.8 - makes me wonder what’s next. Will Nikon and Tamron work togeth… Read More
2021-12-14 05:33
Today, Nikon announced the development of the roadmap's 800mm f/6.3 prime as well as an unexpected 28-75mm f/2.8 Z-series zoom lens. Of the two, the 28-75mm f/2.8 is the big surprise and not… Read More
2021-12-06 09:12
I never want to stop picking up new techniques in photography. If you’re constantly learning, you’re constantly improving. Now that 2021 is coming to a close, I'd like to share s… Read More
2021-12-02 11:17
Trees and forests are deceptively difficult subjects to photograph. It seems that something is often lost in the process - maybe their scale, maybe their tranquility. Photos of a forest scen… Read More
2021-11-28 12:09
Some of the most common advice in photography, especially for landscapes and architectural work, is to use a tripod. But the story doesn’t end there. Even if you have a top-of-the-line… Read More
2021-11-27 04:01
There are lots of great Black Friday deals still left for photographers, and almost all of them carry over to Cyber Monday. Here are some of the ones that stand out to me Read More
2021-11-24 17:47
We have had a couple of cancellations for the Death Valley Workshop that’s taking place in early January of 2022. If you would like to join us in this adventure, I recommend signing up… Read More
2021-11-21 16:36
Even though I’m usually a mountain person, I’ve always found it fun to photograph beach scenes, too. But I’ve also wondered why a beach scene can look terrific to my eyes w… Read More
2021-11-17 13:32
It's easy to look at the impressive slate of cameras today and wonder what more they could possibly do. But there's always room for improvement, which is why I'd like to go through some of t… Read More
2021-11-15 17:13
I’m happy to announce that Photography Life is hiring part-time and full-time writers to join our growing team! All the details, along with the submission form links are provided below… Read More
2021-11-11 06:05
What are the best walk-around settings for wildlife photography? Perhaps you just bought your first camera and want to photograph some wildlife. Or, maybe you've been struggling with capturi… Read More
2021-11-09 00:34
I'm in the process of updating Photography Life's full-length, multi-article tutorial about composition. This article is Chapter 2 of the guide, where I'm introducing and defining compositio… Read More
2021-11-05 07:00
The recently-announced Nikon Z9 immediately drew comparisons with Canon's high-end EOS R3, another mirrorless camera geared toward sports and wildlife photography. While the two cameras have… Read More
2021-11-03 19:20
Caves are some of the most challenging places on earth to explore – and if exploration alone is so tricky, you can imagine how difficult it can be to photograph them. I recently made a… Read More
2021-11-01 10:07
This is a reference article with all of Nikon's current lens discounts, plus my thoughts on which deals are the best! Nikon just announced some major sales covering both Z-mount and F-mount… Read More
2021-10-28 13:52
As the dust settles on Nikon's huge spate of announcements this morning - two lenses, a developed lens, a new FTZ adapter, a new roadmap, and their highest-end camera ever - I'd like to put… Read More
2021-10-28 13:50
Now that Nikon's Z9 has launched into the mirrorless world, the biggest question is how it stacks up against the competition. And while it's a seriously impressive camera, the same can be sa… Read More
2021-10-28 13:45
The Nikon Z9 has just been announced, and it's nearly certain that it will be backordered and out of stock for a while - especially since the $5500 price is lower than expected. You can alwa… Read More
2021-10-28 13:23
Now that Nikon has formally announced the Nikon Z9, let's take a look at how its specifications stack up against those of the Nikon D6, the previous flagship camera in Nikon's lineup Read More
2021-10-28 13:21
It wouldn't be a Nikon announcement day without at least one development announcement! This time it's for the long-awaited 400mm f/2.8 telephoto prime. Nikon says this lens will have a built… Read More
2021-10-28 13:02
Alongside the years-in-the-making announcement of Nikon's flagship Z9 mirrorless camera, the company also unveiled two lenses from the Z-series roadmap: a Nikon Z 24-120mm f/4 S and a Nikon… Read More
2021-10-28 12:05
On March 10, 2021, Nikon announced they were developing a flagship mirrorless camera. More than seven months later - after wild speculation, occasional leaks, and a handful of official tease… Read More
2021-10-24 06:06
Now that Sony has announced the A7 IV, a lot of photographers are wondering what it brings to the table compared to the previous generation A7 III. Sony is still selling the A7 III new ($200… Read More
2021-10-22 05:30
This morning, Sony announced the newest camera in their venerable A7 series, the A7 IV. Positioned near the middle of Sony’s camera lineup, the A7 IV tells us a lot about where Sony se… Read More
2021-10-18 22:21
Macro photography is about capturing the smaller world around you. A little adjustment to the aperture and there you are, zooming into the subject to reveal its inherent brilliance. The popu… Read More
2021-10-17 05:30
Traditional glass filters are useful tools for landscape photography, but you need to pack them carefully to avoid breaking or scratching them. Many of the filter cases I’ve tried befo… Read More
2021-10-16 22:02
When you're building a PC for photo editing purposes, you may think it's critical to go with a top-of-the-line configuration. After all, most photographers are using complex post-processing… Read More
2021-10-12 16:31
As an amateur bird photographer, I often asked myself what is so special in birds, and why many people are so attracted by them. The answers to these questions are not unique and likely invo… Read More
2021-10-11 05:41
If you frequently return to the same location for photography, how do your photos change over time? Do you gain a better understanding of the scene in front of you? These questions have been… Read More
2021-10-08 02:37
With its “ProArt” series, ASUS has been targeting the creative field with all kinds of high-quality computer parts and accessories. Its monitor line-up is quite well-known by now… Read More
2021-10-05 02:13
Arca Swiss’s “Quick Link Set” is a duo of lightweight plates that go between your tripod and your tripod head, letting you attach and detach the head quickly. I’ve be… Read More
2021-10-01 02:59
I’m on the annual Photography Life fall colors workshop with Nasim, and our group ran into a tricky photographic situation this morning. A beautiful mountain overlook was completely bl… Read More
2021-09-26 03:20
There’s no real upper limit to how large a camera sensor or film can be. “Full frame” cameras are smaller than medium format digital, which itself falls behind most medium… Read More
2021-09-23 19:53
I recently covered how to take better photographs indoors when dealing with low light conditions. Today, I'll focus on the opposite situation: outdoor photography, where the light… Read More
2021-09-21 04:42
For years, Lightroom’s tools for selective adjustments left something to be desired. The “detect edges” feature often adds noise to soft areas like clouds, whereas the stan… Read More
2021-09-14 10:09
Canon just announced its highest-end mirrorless camera ever, the $6000 EOS R3 (shipping November). The R3 has a 24 megapixel stacked BSI sensor and is capable of capturing blackout-free 30 F… Read More
2021-09-14 10:05
Today, alongside the big EOS R3 announcement, Canon announced two new lenses for their RF mirrorless mount: a 16mm f/2.8 and a 100-400mm f/5.6-8. Both aim to be lightweight and portable (at… Read More
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