Texture layers are photos that are normally blended with other images as part of a composite rather than being used on their own. They can be color, monochrome, detailed, or blurred. The idea is simply to add an extra level of interest to a picture. In this guide, we will look at various ways of collecting and using texture layers for your photography projects.
Adobe Photoshop contains a very broad and deep set of tools for making edits and adjustments to images. While there is little limitation to what can be achieved using the native tools available in Photoshop for more than two decades, they may not be as intuitive and user-friendly to photographers who have spent most of their time editing raw images in Lightroom.
Printing your photos at home can get complicated and confusing rather quickly. Between choosing a printer and paper and problem-solving why the colors don't look like what you see on your display, it can be overwhelming, especially if you are just getting started.
HDR photography may seem complex, but it is a surprisingly simple tool that can open new photographic doors. Most people have encountered HDR photography without thinking about it since smartphones automatically produce HDR images.
Drones are awesome. Much more than just being fun novelties you might see buzzing around your neighbor’s backyard piloted by a young child, they are amazing creative tools that allow for camera shots that you simply cannot get in any other way, and are used in everything from music videos to live sports to the biggest blockbuster films.
I recently made a ten-day timelapse video on two smartphone cameras of my hometown of Manhattan Beach, California, for multiple sunsets, moonrises, flowing clouds, and all sorts of stuff the naked eye rarely gets to see.
Videographers use a variety of camera movement techniques to capture dynamic motion. Underpinning many of the most visually interesting camera movements are dollies and sliders.
It’s never a bad day to capture landscape photography on the dunes. This day, in particular though, was truly one to remember and I share a variety of techniques for how I take photos of sand dunes.
One of the most exciting things to photograph is a live concert. Rock concerts in particular have an air of electricity about them that you can feel. When you are hired to photograph one you automatically feel like you are a part of that excitement.
If you shoot headshots and/or portraits, clamshell lighting is something you should definitely become familiar with. This versatile and easy-to-create lighting setup produces a very flattering look useful for a variety of portrait situations.
Growing up in the crowded European country of Belgium, few things symbolized the American Dream as much as the iconic Mustang. No, not the Ford muscle car. The wild horse!
The recording of the patterns made by static electricity date back to the invention of the technique in 1777 by Georg Lichtenberg. Since he was the first to observe the patterns they are referred to as Lichtenberg figures.
Using flash in your wedding photography can take your work to the next level. It can look more professional and dynamic. Additionally, there are a variety of scenarios when flash makes certain things possible that wouldn’t be if you’re relying on natural light.
One of the most common errors when using Adobe Photoshop has to do with Photoshop not being able to start or complete a command because “the scratch disks are full.”
Amazingly, in the age of AI image creation, film photography is not only popular but it's growing again after an initial decline. More and more, people are finding value in timeless, handcrafted imagery.
Just like most things in life, success can depend on location, location, location. I know that I’m coming from a state where there are a lot of beautiful backdrops so I’ll do my best to give tips that will apply to you wherever you happen to be. I’ve shot sessions in a variety of locations and while I have my locations and preferences, of course, I think it’s possible to make the best of whatever you have to work with.
Italian builder Giovanni Aggiustatutto built a mechanized pan-tilt system to capture smooth, stable video without requiring hand movements. The build uses 3D-printed parts, wood, aluminum, and an Arduino Uno.
Producing a decent print is not as easy as you might think. You might get lucky and get a great result the first time. But, more likely, when you start printing your work, you’ll find it might not look as good as you’d hoped. Don’t give up. With a bit of practice and a better understanding of the process, you can quickly improve your printing.
Milky Way season is the best time to learn how to plan and shoot an astrophotography timelapse, capturing the majestic galactic core in motion!
Snapchat is a popular social media app that makes it easy to keep in touch with friends and quickly share selfies, photos, and videos. With 382 million daily active users, it's also a great place to get brand exposure.
One of the greatest things about film photography is its friendliness toward do-it-yourself approaches. Want to hack together a working camera out of discount hardware store supplies? All the power to you! Want to shoot on art paper coated in a home-concocted emulsion, contact-printed using authentic techniques from the 1800s? Why not?
As a wildlife photographer, I'm always looking for ways to capture stunning images of animals in their natural habitats. One technique I've found to be incredibly effective is using a custom-made, DIY, DSLR camera trap, which is a camera setup that is triggered by the movement of an animal.
As a product photographer, I use paper in various different ways as a background for still-life photos to keep costs down for creative shooting. In this article, I'll show you how I do it and how you can do it too.
DALL-E is the AI image generation app that shocked the world by creating high-quality portraits and artistic paintings without using a camera, film, canvas, or brush.
Zone focusing (ZF) is a great way to pre-set your camera's focus and aperture, then use that setting for multiple shots. Street shooters love it. And it's also great for sports, pets, jumpy kids, parties, or any subjects in motion.
Great portrait photography is so much more than just about knowing how to work a camera. You can memorize your camera’s entire manual and still not be confident in a portrait shoot because most portraits require posing. Luckily, this is the right place to learn how to pose and become a better portrait photographer.
PictureThis is the most popular plant identifier app, and it works with the camera on your iPhone or Android phone. While the recognition of PictureThis isn't perfect, it generally proves to be remarkably accurate thanks to its well-trained AI.
We all know that headshot photography is all about capturing the essence of our subjects - their personality, character, and unique qualities that make them stand out. As headshot photographers, how do we really capture that magic?
Physical photographs can be scanned with an iPhone and it's easy to get good results with a little preparation and attention to detail. There are several apps that you can use to speed up and simplify the process, each with a different approach. The app that's best depends on your particular needs.
Reverse image search is an incredibly useful technology, allowing you to locate online photos that are an exact match or similar in some way to your own. It can also be used to search for products and places just by supplying a picture, even if it's an image that you found online. With the right app, it's possible to get a live result from your smartphone's camera.
Hidden or inconspicuous cameras are fairly common in businesses with security concerns. Those black balls you see in ceiling corners or hanging from stems near checkout are undoubtedly watching and recording shoppers to make sure merchandise is being paid for.
The film photography revival is going strong but these pictures don’t just magically appear out of thin air! Eventually you need to develop your film so I put together this step-by-step guide to process black and white negatives at home. It’s easier than you might think!
Light painting has become a popular technique in the age of digital photography. If you have always wondered how to do light painting photography yourself, you've come to the right place.
Your iPhone can nicely blur the background to enhance a photograph or video. A similar effect works well with video chat software, eliminating distractions and putting the focus on the subject. Whether you want to blur the background during a FaceTime call, snap a beautiful portrait photograph with your iPhone, or edit the background blur in pictures you've already captured, we'll explain how it works to help you get the blur you want from your iPhone.
It’s a beautiful, sunny day. You’re celebrating a special event with a photo session, getting your poses ready. You’ve posed countless times with family and friends, at parties, and for selfies. This should be a piece of cake, right? You say ‘cheese’ in your head and bring out the pearly whites. Then you check the camera to see the result.
You’ve been taking your camera everywhere, shooting photos of your experiences, and you love the way photography makes you see the world. Gradually, you’ve started to wonder what it would be like to turn your passion into a career. This guide will walk you through the process of how to become a photographer.
Most professional portrait photographers exclusively use strobes for a variety of reasons, but commercial photographer and director Isaac Alvarez explains that in some circumstances, there are still reasons to use constant lights.
Mood boards are more than a random collection of photos found online. If you want successful photoshoots that deliver what you, your client, or your team envisioned, mood boards can help you. All it takes is some brainstorming and curation.
As video becomes increasingly important, photographers may consider offering video services to their clients. It's a great goal, but there is a steep learning curve in order to successfully jump from photo to video.
With Apple's iCloud, it's easy to download photos from your online photo library to any device. If you own an iPhone, iPad, or Mac this can be set up to happen automatically. From a Windows computer, there are a few more steps required and the same is true for an Android phone or tablet.