Photo How To

Shutterbug reader Kathleen Finnerty confesses that she “loves the drama of incoming summer storm clouds, especially over bodies of water,” so we can imagine her excitement when she spotted this scene on the horizon. 

Temperatures are dropping and the first day of winter is barely around the corner, with all the great photo opportunities the chilly new season will present. One way to best capture the essence of winter is to include falling snow in your images.

There's a four-word motto that pretty much sums up the art of photography: Get the light right. Unfortunately that's easier said than done—especially when shooting outdoors under dull or uneven illumination. If you're willing to spend a few minute in Photoshop, however, it's not difficult to enhance what's there or introduce additional light of your own,.

The lowly camera strap is something most photographers probably take for granted. You put it on your camera and sling it over shoulder, right?

Last week we presented a quick solution for eliminating ugly color fringing from photographs captured outdoors in high-contrast situations. Today we're tackling another unsightly problem; namely, color banding and gradient banding that can also ruin an otherwise great shot.

While branding might not be as sexy a topic as fashion or travel photography, it’s a critical element to making your photography business a success. Fortunately, we have a good group of educated and experienced photographers to help bring us up to date on what branding is, how to create it, mistakes to avoid, and why it’s so important to your business. Bottom line? Marketing your photography with a strong brand message will give you a competitive edge and get you paid what you are worth. I want to thank my patient contributors for sharing their knowledge and lessons with us: Casey Bevington, Matthew Dutile, Andrew Fingerman at PhotoShelter, Karen Hirsch, Giulio Sciorio, Beth Taubner at Mercurylab, and Daniel Waters at Get Pro Photo. They gave so many good ideas and tips that you will want to take notes!

For the legions of photographers who used film cameras in the past, a screw-in type photo filter is as normal as fingerprints on an iPhone. But for those who started their photographic journey with a digital, even the word filter can be confusing. Does it plug into Photoshop or screw into a lens? Are they like the AA filter that covers an imaging sensor, or do they fit in a Mister Coffee? If you don’t own any filters, you’re missing some fun. Here’s a quick guide to buying one for your DSLR camera.