Photography Tutorials

Most studio photography is done on relatively small scales – a person or an object is lit, usually with between one and three lights that cover the breadth of the subject. Shooting something large is an entirely different story; there isn’t a soft box large enough to cover the size of legendary photographer Joe McNally’s (unpublished) project for National Geographic Magazine, which he discusses in this video from AdoramaTV.

Flying through the air at speeds exceeding 155 mph (250 km/h) in nothing more than a wingsuit is scary enough for most of us, but let’s take a minute and consider the photographers who are tasked with standing in the target area as this human bird, Alexander Polli, flies straight towards them like a heat-seeking missile! Take a look at Polli’s jaw-dropping feat and listen for the photographers:

We’ve discussed the concept of light painting before, but this video taken at the Orlando Watersports Complex brings the practice to a whole new level. Instead of premeditated shapes and patterns being drawn onto the image, photographer Patrick Rochon (in a project sponsored by Red Bull) attaches strip lights onto wakeboards and has athletes perform their manoeuvres in the dark.

We’re are becoming rather spoiled when it comes to all the stunning timelapse footage we come across and, without fail, we always make to sure to express how time consuming and laborious they are to take from a concept to a finished clip.

When it comes to protecting your online photography there are many ways to prevent people from copying or distributing your artwork.

We often look at the photos of some the of the best commercial photographers and think, if only I had the equipment they had… But the truth is that the photography is more in the photographer than in the camera. Take, for instance, this video of professional photograhper Douglas Sonders who uses a broken Holga film camera for the first time since he was in college.

Amateur photographer Alan Friedman combines his passions for astronomy and photography by capturing photos of the sun, moon, and other celestial bodies from his own backyard. At a TEDx event, Friedman explained how, with relatively simple equipment, he gets stunning photographic results that you might expect to see from NASA satellites or sophisticated observatories:

There are a lot of things that make for a great photographer. Understanding composition, light, and the technique required to make a great picture are only part of the puzzle. One of the most important aspects of being a really great photographer is being able to make your clients feel comfortable in front of the camera.

When shooting a portrait, the conventional wisdom involves using bright, evenly-coloured light to bring out the model’s sweet inner glow. Sometimes, though, you might desire an aesthetic that is a little bit more dramatic. In this video, Detroit photographer Paul Manoian uses coloured gels to shed light on the darker side of portrait photography:

The creative process can be stifled when others inject their thoughts and feelings into your work as a photographer. It’s easy to let these factors contribute to your own internal criticism. Brian Bowen Smith has shot photographs of numerous celebrities and has first-hand knowledge of the pressure a photographer faces.