All photos by Chris Clor. Used with Creative Commons permission.
If you’re into conceptual photography, you often have to keep an open mind and a playful imagination to come up with the best ideas for a project. A perfect case in point is London-based photographer, retoucher, and CGI artist Chris Clor. Clor came up with an interesting and humorous take on the imagined scenario of Jesus Christ and some of his disciples finding themselves in the modern world.
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Bayard Wootten deserves a spot on your list of remarkable female photographers to look up to and recognize.
This month is about recognizing and honoring the works of women in all fields and industries, photography included. We already got started with 20 contemporary women photographers to inspire you this year. But we’d love to add one more, an important yet mostly unheard of photographer at that: Mary Bayard Wooten, one of the most important photographers of the early 1900s. She was way ahead of her time, rising above the challenges she faced as a single, divorced mother, an entrepreneur, and a creative in a male-dominated society.
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You’re probably looking for a round-up of some of the best places to get your photography fix this year.
Over the years, I’ve accumulated a ton of places where I search for news and inspiration within the photography space. I’m positive my list is different than yours. As an Editor in Chief, I admit I’m not listing competing websites here. But, I’m listing some of my personal favorites that I have a true attachment to. So, without further adieu, here are some of the best.
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Cameron Mosier painstakingly worked with Kodak Tri-X to create a beautiful portrait.
“I like the look of seeing the numbers from the film and the entire strip because it brings more depth to the image,” relates photographer Cameron Mosier about his unique portrait shot on film. “A fun thing about the image is the imperfections.” What Cameron tried isn’t new per se, but it’s always fun to see projects like this. They’re intensive and require the photographer to really think ahead to the production stage. The idea is similar to the Brenizer method, which applies this idea more to the digital world but also gets rid of the imperfections that make these photos really special.
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Photographer Melissa Stemmer has a sense of magic about her photos that translates very well.
“The conversation is everything,” says Photographer Melissa Stemmer when working with models for portraits. “So I talk a lot with my models. Saying what is good and what can be improved.” Ms. Stemmer is pretty new to photography and has that Je ne sais quoi many of us have when we just start out. In fact, she got into the craft from watching a lot of YouTube videos. After a while, she knew this was the creative medium for her. The spark is brighter than ever with her as she finds inspiration all around her. Based in Germany, Ms. Stemmer works a lot with people, and that’s the basis behind a lot of her work.
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If you plan on participating in a TFP project, this Reddit thread contains some valuable advice that photographers and models should keep in mind.
Shooting trade work (commonly referred to as TFP or Time For Prints/Trade For Photo) can be a great way for photographers and models to collaborate on personal projects. They are also excellent ways for those just starting out to gain experience and experiment with new techniques. TFP shoots are collaborative endeavors, and everyone involved should walk away having benefited from it in some way. Before embarking on collaborative projects of any kind, it’s important for all parties involved to openly communicate their intentions and expectations with one another. This ensures everyone involved is on the same page and helps to avoid misunderstandings down the line. Despite our best efforts, issues can still arise from time to time due to miscommunication. Join us after the break as we explore a Redditor’s experience in one such situation.
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Modern cameras are capable of so much, but will there ever be a simple modern camera?
One of the simple joys in life is loading a roll of film into a camera, and going about shooting pictures with no beeps, boops, screens, complicated menus, or error messages flashing in your eyeballs. Modern cameras are fantastic and can do so much, but one photographer, Mike Johnson, posed a question that generated quite a response on his blog. Mike asked if there will ever be an easy to use, modern camera that can bring back the simple joys of shooting. Let’s talk about this after the break.
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Sean Corcoran shares what it was like putting together the Museum of the City of New York’s latest exhibit of photographs from Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb.
“The exhibition endeavors to create a dialog between the two photographers’ work,” says Sean Corcoran, the Curator of Prints and Photographs at the Museum of the City of New York. Integrating Magnum Photographer Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb’s images into the same exhibit has been Mr. Corcoran’s latest endeavor. “Hopefully, the visitor will bounce back and forth between the work and see the visual and conceptual connections.” The two photographers are the focus of The City Within–an exhibit which promises to present a more integral look at Brooklyn’s communities not often shown in the glamorous series’ one might find on HBO. Opening on March 11, 2020, the exhibit is undoubtedly a reason to get excited as it presents a side of Brooklyn rarely conveyed in more mainstream channels.
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Your camera takes great pictures: and your hands take the trash out very well.
Every photographer and every person has heard this before. Perhaps it’s changed these days to “Your phone shoots better photos than mine does,” but the truth is that it’s a 50/50 split. I’m not at all saying gear doesn’t matter. It does. But your phone or your camera is simply an extension of yourself in the same way that yarn and needles are an extension of your friend’s ability to knit a nice scarf. Now, this statement is something most commonly said by folks who just don’t think of photography as anything more important than taking photos. It’s never said with bad intent, but out of purely not knowing any better.
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Can digital Medium Format cameras capture the magic the platform is known for, or are the old school Medium Format cameras just better?
It has only been in the last few years that digital Medium Format cameras have really come into the photography mainstream. For years, digital Medium Format cameras cost tens of thousands of dollars and were simply out of reach, but now, thanks to camera manufacturers like Fujifilm (and even Hasselblad with their X1D II), digital Medium Format cameras aren’t much more expensive than top tier Full Frame cameras. How do the new digital MF cameras stack up against old school film versions, though? After the break, we have a video for you that explores just that.
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If you’re in the mood for some photography inspiration, you might want Patagonia staff photographer Jeff Johnson in this quick photo walk around Manhattan.
Feeling a little lost and uninspired in your photography and think you can use some motivation? You might want to sit down and follow around Patagonia Staff Photographer Jeff Johnson in this quick photo walk video recently shared by Gear Patrol. Ten blocks, roughly eleven minutes, and an insightful interview may just give you the inspiration and sense of adventure to get your photography going again.
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Now that you’re curious about shooting 120 film in 6×7 format, allow us to inspire you further with these awesome photography projects.
If you’ve been wanting to get into medium format film photography and have done enough research, you must have come across the fact that 120 film comes in several frame sizes, including 6×7. This format was popular because, as Wikipedia mentions, it enlarges almost exactly to 8×10 inch paper, leading its proponents — especially those who print — to hail it as the “ideal format.” You may even have stumbled upon our round-up of fantastic cameras for 6×7 format. We can only hope that’s enough to help you either make up your mind about shooting in this frame size or which camera to get you started. But in case not, these awesome projects we’ve featured in the past will inspire you. This format is great if you’re not a fan of shooting squares, but don’t take our word for it — let these photographers and their works serve as proof!
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A study suggests photography can help with depression – it certainly helped me with mine.
Feature Shoot recently ran a story that highlighted a study published by researchers from Lancaster University and the University of Sheffield. First published in the spring of 2018, the study noted that participants involved noticed an improvement in their mental health after taking a photo every day for two months. Studies are not always the best way to get a real-world understanding of theory, but I feel my own experience may be able to unwrap why the practice of photography can have such a positive impact on a person’s mental health.
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Whether you’re a Steve McCurry fan or want to get into documentary photography, these virtual exhibits will surely inspire you.
Steve McCurry is a photographer that often needs no introduction. But, chances are photography enthusiasts and beginners have only ever heard about him from his iconic “Afghan Girl” photo. The portrait of a girl with piercing green eyes, however, isn’t his only masterpiece. Today, we bring a couple of slideshows — or virtual exhibits, as they are called in the videos — showcasing some of his most outstanding works that depict food and reading. If you’re craving some photography inspiration, you’ve come to the right post!
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Smartphones like the LG V60 ThinQ 5G with its 64 Megapixel camera and Sony’s Xperia 1 lineup are putting pressure on dedicated cameras, and camera manufacturers.
There’s simply no denying that smartphones and the cameras which they house are altering the photography landscape. Many camera manufacturers have changed their business strategies to deal with the rise of mobile photography, and honestly, it’s needed because of new phones like the LG V60 ThinQ. This new smartphone is another example of how huge mobile photography is becoming, but what would it take for you to ditch your camera for a smartphone?
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All photos by Tadao Cern. Used with Creative Commons permission.
Humor is one of those things that opens us up to many creative ideas, regardless of the craft or field we’re involved with. We see it in a lot of conceptual photography, but sometimes, it can make a difference even in simple portraits. Such is the case in the collection of funny faces captured by Lithuanian architect turned artist-photographer Tadao Cern. If you’re looking for something to inspire you to add humor into your work, this project may give you some ideas.
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I was photographing one of the most beautiful women I’d ever seen.
And she was into me… I could feel it. She was laughing at all my jokes, playing with her hair, biting her lip, and making nonstop eye contact. So I said “hey, we should grab a drink later on.” And she gave me a look I’ll never forget — the look of a woman that maybe just threw up in her mouth a little.
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Connor M Matherne is probably the first amateur astrophotographer to photograph this occurrence at a black hole.
“This jet, in particular, was not discovered until 2017, so at the very least the window of time for someone else to image this is relatively small,” explains Connor M. Matherne to the Phoblographer in an interview. He’s an amateur astrophotographer with a Masters of Science in Geology and based at Louisana State University. If he’s correct, he could also be the first amateur astrophotographer to capture the relativistic jet from the Centaurus A black hole. “In the 2017 paper published b McKinley et al., they had the help of amateur astrophotographer Rolf Wahl Olsen who shot the same target and recently updated his total exposure time to 130 hours for it. Still no C jet sadly.” Connor states that an astrophotographer needs access to both great equipment and even better skies to pull off what he did. The breathtaking image above cannot be done easily–at least not by amateur photographers. And this isn’t the only masterpiece Connor has done.
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Format has gone through a rebranding in 2020, let’s see what’s new and how you can use it to your advantage.
Unlike the other website building platforms, Format holds the photographer at the center of their core values and vision. As the platform has evolved and the company listens more to photographers on the ground, the features keep getting better and better. But this isn’t a hard sell on their product. Although we will cover what’s new, I’m also going to show you how you can utilize the tools to get the most out of your Format account.
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Roger Cicala started LensRentals in a spare bedroom and after buying an expensive lens that he didn’t plan to use often.
Today, LensRentals is officially announcing that they’ve shipped their 1 millionth order. The company was started years ago by Roger Cicala and has grown since then. Roger credits their growth to the domain name in addition to his blogging efforts that have been part of their marketing. To celebrate, they’re thanking customers by giving away a drone, camera and lots of other items starting today on March 2nd. Since its founding in 2006 Lensrentals, headquartered in Cordova, has grown to 160 employees in three locations, and still serving the 48 contiguous states. As a fellow entrepreneur, I asked Roger a few questions about what it’s like to start a business and how he grew it.
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If Canon releases a trio of f2 zoom lenses, then their system will be just that much better.
I’m perhaps fantasizing here, but I think that the idea of Canon changing up the traditional zoom lens trio would make things even more fun in the photography world. Arguably, the most significant redeeming factor of the Canon RF system so far is their lenses. We have yet to see how the Canon R5 will perform. But it would make Sony rethink their system of already excellent lenses, and it would put Canon in a much better position. So what lenses am I talking about?
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