Shutter speed unlocks creative potential in photography—learn five techniques like motion blur, panning, and light painting to transform your images with artistic flair.
the basics
F/Stops: An Essential Tool in Creative Photography
Dive into the world of f/stops and unlock the key to creative control in your photography. Experiment and watch your images transform before your eyes.
Cutting Film with Precision: A Guide to Stress-Free Slide Mounting
Struggling to cut film accurately? Discover how to achieve clean, precise cuts effortlessly with the Matin Multiple Slide Film Cutter and a lightbox.
Organizing Digital and Film Portfolios
In today’s digital world, proper organization of your photography work is essential, whether you shoot film, digital, or both. This article explores how to manage the storage of both film and digital work.
Framing the Shot: A Guide to Viewing Frames for Photographers
In this post, we’ll explore various options for viewing frames—from ready-made tools like the ViewCatcher, to repurposing materials you might already have, and even crafting your own custom viewing frame.
The Art of Pre-Visualization in Landscape Photography
In this article, I share the previsualization technique that guides me to where I need to set up the camera.
Shading and Enhancing: The Matte Box Advantage
I discovered that a matte box, typically used with DSLR and video cameras, can also be an excellent accessory for other camera types, like panoramic and large-format cameras.
Capturing Clarity: A Guide to MTF Charts and Lens Sharpness
Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) is used to describe how well a lens captures and reproduces details. This article explores the factors contributing to a high MTF.
Black & White Film Developing: Stand, Semi-Stand, Standard
This article is about how I process black-and-white films. I choose to hand process my 4×5, 120, and the occasional 135 films. Here, I will share the processing equipment I have used and what I have been using for the past decade.
Understanding the Exposure Triangle in Photography
Unravel the Exposure Triangle to master well-exposed images in photography. Learn how aperture, shutter speed, and ISO work together to create stunning visuals.
Shedding Light on Filter Factors: A Guide to Optimizing Exposure in Photography
This article explores filter factors, explaining their function and presenting three distinct methods for calculation.
Pinhole Photography: Perfect Exposure Without Gadgets
A pinhole camera, often called a “camera obscura,” is a lensless camera used for centuries to study light and optics. Today, it is popular in education and art. Photographers craft pinhole cameras from everyday items like cigar boxes and paint cans, or through CNC machining and woodworking. Others opt for ready-made pinholes compatible with existing cameras or those manufactured by others. This timeless device continues to inspire creativity and exploration in the photography world.
Lens Case Recycling: Updating Labels
In my prior article titled, Camera Bag Versatility, I explained how I use lens cases to stow most of my lenses and some smaller gear items. As time passes, we face gear upgrades and letting go of gear we ended up not using enough to justify keeping. Well when this happens to me, I like to recycle my lens cases when I can. I use a very simple method that works for me and may work for you. Below is the former case for my Fujifilm 23/2 lens that became available when I passed the lens on to another photographer because I found I never used it.
4×5 Film Holders: Care & Carry
In photography school, I was taught to use a pastry brush to clean the dust out of my film holders. I still use this technique today, and it works, or I would have changed it to something else long ago. Get a brush like this one and clean out your film holders periodically.
Panorama In Pieces
While away on a quick personal trip to Marietta, Georgia, I tried using my favorite point-and-shoot camera, the Fujifilm x100t for panorama making. Earlier in the week, I instructed my students to make a panorama using Lightroom (LR), vertical slice shots, and manual focus for their weekly shoot assignment. After a brief walk around Marietta Square, I thought I would try and photograph a beautiful church and challenge the software with vertical and horizontal slices to see if a tourist with a point-and-shoot camera could make a decent-looking panorama and then share the results with my students.