Photographers Matt Kloskowski and Scott Kelby have a new website which will air a weekly show about Nikon gear and Nikon related photography tips. This is a little strange, if only because it seems like one big advertisement for Nikon… and basically, that’s what it is – because the site is in fact sponsored by Nikon. Still, all information is good information, and these guys are giving it away. So what if they make me want to buy that D700 in the process? » MORE

A great picture is a record of light. Whether the picture is black and white or color, it’s the light in the picture that gets put to film (or memory card). A camera is generally pretty dumb when it comes to light. It relies on some automated sensors to tell it how much light and the quality of that light, but those sensors are part of a fluid system that can be easily fooled.

We can use that system to our advantage, however, if we take the time to really scrutinize the lighting in our picture. That means looking at shadows, evaluating hotspots, determining the best direction and measure of light, and checking for color casts in the light.

One of the easiest ways to improve the color in your picture is to understand White Balance. Let’s revisit the subject now, and I’ll explain why tinkering with your White Balance is good both in and out of the camera, and why ultimately, you may not want to settle on a “proper” white balance setting. » MORE

Sharpening is one of those terms that often makes photography purists shiver. After all, if a camera and the lens are doing their job properly, the picture should naturally be sharp and require no further processing, right?

Well, yes and no. Ideally this would always be the case. In a perfect digital world, the picture would be perfectly sharp, perfectly exposed, and the color levels would all be perfectly recorded by your camera.

Sadly, the world of the digital photographer is often times less than perfect. » MORE

If you’re a photographer and you follow the trends and fads of the business, you’re likely aware of the term HDR or High Dynamic Range photography. It’s sweeping the internet, and everyone wants to know how to do it. Why?

HDR photography creates a very surreal effect, where every part of the image is “properly” exposed and well defined. I think of it as hyper-realism, because a properly done HDR image (when done properly) is one that best reflects what I see with my eyes.

Technically, this is done by combining multiple versions of the same image, all of which have been exposed slightly differently. It’s easy to push the images too far, however, and ruin the effect – but if you’re good, you can create simply stunning photographs. » MORE

A picture is worth a thousand words, but even with such a verbose image, capturing the feeling of motion and freezing it in time is still tricky.

One of the best ways to do that is through the use of panning – by blurring out the background while keeping the moving subject in the foreground in focus. You’ve likely seen the technique in pictures a hundred times, but here’s how you do it. The first thing you need to realize is that this technique requires practice. You’ll find that about 1 in 10 pictures comes out looking right. This success ratio will improve over time, but it’s really hit or miss a lot of the time.

Set your camera to continuous shooting mode. If you’ve got an older or less expensive camera you’ll end up shooting two or three frames a second. With a higher end camera, you can shoot more than eight or ten frames per second. The idea is to shoot lots. The more you do, the better your chances of getting that 1 in 10 shot. » MORE

Depth of Field (DOF) refers to the distance between the farthest and nearest points which are in focus. It can also be identified as the zone of acceptable sharpness in front of and behind the subject. In the picture of Nemo, above, you’ll notice that in the left hand shot he’s totally in focus, from gills to tail fin. In the right hand shot, his tail fin is blurry.

When you take a picture, there are several factors which can control or impact your depth of field. Less depth of field is called “small” or “narrow” or “shallow”. Having great depth of field is called a “wide” or “large” depth of field.

There are lots of reasons why you may want to control the depth of field, and make it narrower or wider. Most of these are because of artistic decisions, when you want to force attention to one part of the picture, or when you want to obscure another. » MORE

A common misconception among photographers when shooting outdoors is that you’ll want a nice sunny, clear day to take pictures. If it’s not beautiful weather outside, you won’t get beautiful looking shots, right?

In fact, I find the opposite to be true, and you will too, once you try it out.

When you’re shooting outdoors in bright, sunny conditions, you’ll find it’s hard to control the lighting. Sunlight is harsh, and will create harsh shadows on your subject, not to mention a tough situation to balance out. There aren’t too many light sources which are brighter than direct sunlight. » MORE

I’m always looking for new and interesting ways to light a subject, and one of the best places to pick up inspiration when it comes to lighting with strobes is from Strobist blogger David Hobby. Apparently, DIYPhotography thinks so too, and they’ve built a cool new tool for our strobes to play in. » MORE