Photography Tutorials

Billowing black smoke, leaping flames, charred wreckage, explosions–it looks like a war zone. And it certainly is a battle. One that has become deadly in recent days. Violent protests have been spreading out from the Ukrainian capital of Kiev since November, when the government pulled out of a treaty with the European Union.

What the image, taken June 15, 2013, actually shows is the way the wind moves the water prominently southwest in the area. The Canary Islands actually block the wind movement, which changes the tint of the otherwise silvery ocean surface. Pretty impressive detail considering its 713-kilometer orbit height.

Whether you’re shooting in the city or out in a wide open space, getting the perfect exposure in manual mode might be a little tricky. But it doesn’t have to be. If you’re having trouble getting a perfect exposure, here’s a super easy 3-step process by Joshua Cripps that will help you get it right every time.

Selway and Kale travel six hours several times a week to photograph the wild beauty of volcanoes. The stunning images are backed by a profound appreciation and understanding for the task at hand. It’s a dangerous feat, as the volcanoes are constantly moving—spitting hot rocks, oozing molten lava, and creating extremely high water temperatures.

Typical corporate headshots are usually taken quickly, so, more often than not, they result in fake, uninspiring smiles. To get shots with relaxed, natural expressions, Nace gets out from behind the camera. He uses a Pocketwizard as a remote trigger for his camera so he can interact and connect with his client during the photo shoot.

The image was captured by Matt Hutton, an Australian landscape photographer who was testing out some new lenses on Kalbarri Beach near Perth. The surfer, Trent Sherborne, had never met Hutton before and was just as surprised when two dolphins began jumping up alongside him.

A lot of effort goes into the making of each miniature foodscape. After extensive planning, the team gets down to business, building the project on a Styrofoam base. The larger elements are mapped out with thin line paper and tape. Slowly, the team builds up the scene, piece by piece, vegetable by vegetable.

Bad weather should be looked at as an opportunity by photographers instead of as a nuisance that is avoided. Some of the best photos are in situations where there was rain, snow, or wind.

Built for the 1962 World’s Fair (just seven years before the first manned moon landing), the Space Needle’s sleek, mid-century-modern lines harken back to an era when people thought we’d be traveling in flying cars by the 2000s (just like The Jetsons). With a glowing full moon behind it, this photograph of the Space Needle—captured by Hai Nguyen—retains that futuristic feel even 50+ years later.

As she describes in the above quote, Meade creates a kind of living art by using people as her canvas—not painting something new on them, but painting what she sees in the scene already. She discovered this technique by accident, having originally wanted to paint shadows, capturing a certain configuration of light and darkness before it was gone. But in doing so, she realized: “I had turned my friend into a painting!”