With another week winding its way down we find that Toad Hollow Photography has been looking in all corners of the internet for links to share here with everyone for tutorials, special features, and great photography. This weeks list contains a wide variety of subjects with something here sure to be of interest to everyone. We really hope you enjoy checking out these links as much as the Toad did in bringing his weekly list to you.
TUTORIALS
How To Achieve Visual Balance In Your Photography – compositional concepts are topics that can cover many books and articles, with a wide range of potential in terms of how and why certain compositions are explored photographically. This great article discusses the concept of balance in the context of composition, a very important concept that can subtly increase the quality of a shot. This terrific article, hosted right here on Light Stalking, also includes some great sample shots as each of the various nuances of the topic is explored.
Five Ways to Edit Skin Blemishes in Photoshop – retouching portraits is an artform in and of itself, and as always we find that Photoshop provides many different ways to accomplish the same goal. In this in-depth video tutorial, we follow along to see 5 different techniques on how to remove blemishes, ranging from simple and straightforward up to complex.
3 (More) Photo Styling Tips to Improve Your Food and Still Life Photography – taking great photographs of food is a style that can be easily mastered with just a few good tips and tricks. This brief video presentation shares 3 key points that can help you take your food shots from good to mouth-watering in just a few short minutes.
How to photograph a high-end cosmetics product shot with inexpensive equipment – this is a terrific step-by-step video tutorial that takes us through the process of shooting product photographs. A sample is used from beginning to end in this presentation, with each step shown in detail to really help you see why and how you’d apply some of these techniques to your own shots.
Camera Settings for Concert Photography Beginners – this is a great primer for getting started in shooting at concerts which are typically low-light environments with subjects that tend to move around a lot. These tips are covered in good detail and include sample shots so you can immediately see the effect they have on the finished product.
That Tab in Lightroom You Never Knew About: Camera Calibration – there are so many options available in modern post-production software, it’s common to not know about them all. This video tutorial takes us through one feature in Lightroom, Camera Calibration, and shows us how to fully take advantage of this built-in processing feature.
Top 18 tips for taking magnificent sunset photos – amazing shots are frequently captured during sunset, allowing for wonderful colors and a natural hue to create compelling light for any scene. This article covers this topic and includes some stellar shots to illustrate the points as they are addressed.
Tips From a Fashion Photographer to Improve Formal Bridal Photos for Wedding Photographers – fashion photography and wedding photographer share little in terms of how the shoots unfold, particularly in the context of a studio environment where everything is finely controlled versus an actual wedding where everything is quite dynamic. With that being said, this article comes to us from a professional fashion photographer who regularly photographs incredible wedding gowns and here he shares some awesome insights that can help the wedding photographer during the formal photography part of the event.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Behind the Scenes of the Maiden of Finland Ice Dress Shoot with Suvi Sievila – I always really enjoy seeing the vision of an artist come to life, going from concept to finished shot. This behind-the-scenes article gives us a brief look at what went into making a truly epic themed image that embodies the spirit of Finland.
NASA’s $1 Billion Juno Probe Sends Back Stunning Photos of Jupiter’s Poles – travel 415 million miles and join NASA in this special feature that showcases a set of photographs captured by the Juno probe as it explores the poles and surfaces of the planet Jupiter. Some of the shots take on a highly abstract feel to them, originating on an alien planet that exhibits it’s own unique features and details.
GREAT PHOTOGRAPHY
The Thousand Gates – Peter Stewart delivers a striking photograph, capturing the rows of gates that lead into a shrine in Japan and creating an abstract image in the process. The red gates add color to the shot and also serve as a frame to a terrific vanishing point as the path leads around a corner.
Glass-Like – Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming – Len Saltiel creates two images in one using the still reflections off of Jackson Lake to make a perfect mirror image of the dramatic landscape being showcased. Len finishes off this breathtaking piece as a panoramic, bringing all the inherent drama of this rugged landscape into focus for us, the viewer.
Burrowing Owl – Jon Albert shares a wonderful portrait of a Burrowing Owl as it peers up above the ground straight back at the camera. This tightly framed shot shows off the incredible character and spirit these tiny birds possess, also revealing great details in its face and feathers.
Austin Boardwalk – the contemporary and dramatic skyline of Austin city becomes the prime subject in this great shot from Michael Criswell. A river runs through the frame, creating a leading line, and in the left part of the shot, a park offsets the influence of man’s architecture.
Neverending Bridge – fans of long exposure imagery will love this shot that showcases a dramatic bridge crossing the silky cover of water that creates soft reflections of shapes and colors from the vibrant skies above. The bridge itself leads off into eternity, accented here perfectly by the amazing palette used by nature to paint the sky in this shot by Ricardo Mateus.
Black Bear Cub – Ron Niebrugge captures a heartwarming portrait of a small black bear cub who peers back at the camera with a quizzical look in its eye. The wee little cub is really adorable, and the tight portrait shows off its curious character in the context of a still frame perfectly.
The way to Fibonacci – Christophe Staelens’ stunning black-and-white shot features an upward looking perspective of a winding staircase that creates a strong vanishing point in the distance. The deep contrasts between the black and the white portions of the frame add to the overall abstract quality of this photograph.
The Skyline of Vancouver – epic skyscrapers reach for the heavens in this magnificent picture from Jim Nix, showing off the modern architecture of this bustling city that sits on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Off in the distance, the mountains that surround the city loom dramatically, adding a touch of nature this architectural study.
Catarina monastery – the wide dynamic range noted in this terrific photograph by Daniel Metz does a fabulous job of highlighting the textures and details of the old buildings that sit perched on the rock face overlooking a body of water. A lone traveler rows a boat in the frame, adding a great touch of artistic tension to this ancient architectural study.
Raptor’s Repast – mature bald eagles are not an uncommon sight out here on the west coast, and with their grandeur also comes a touch of harsh reality, which is shown in this great post from coastal photographer Laurie MacBride. Laurie captured this set of shots as an eagle perched on the railing of a pier enjoying a snack it recently acquired by plucking it out of the sky.
Line – this incredible photograph by Tiger Seo is created in a panoramic format to accent the natural drama of the landscape viewed here. Streams of light create ribbons of shadows from tall trees, mimicked in the curated farmlands below, making for a very dramatic and moody piece.
water to the river – the still mercury waters of a canal create a strong leading line in this shot from Frank King taken in Ottawa. On the right side of the frame, dramatic architecture lines the side of the canal, adding a perfect element to this shot that also features some terrific colors in the sky.
Bled in Blue – the power of the blue hour for capturing stunning images is fully realized in this great shot from Adnan Bubalo that features the ancient monastery on a tiny island in the middle of Lake Bled in Slovenia. The waters of the lake sit with minimal motion during the time of this shot, making wonderful reflections of the entire scene.
Bathed in Light – the front portion of this dramatic frame is bathed in sunlight while in the backdrop a fierce lightning storm unfolds on the landscape. Mike Olbinski does a terrific job of capturing this natural dichotomy in this shot, revealing two different sides of nature within one frame.
Fading Bridge… – a dramatic steel bridge cuts through the distant fog as it reaches out into the vast forever in this haunting shot by Ricardo Mateus. The bridge creates a strong leading line in this picture, with the fog making a natural vanishing point that adds to the overall artistic tension of this composition.
ONE – layer upon layer of rolling surf envelopes a lone soul who stands amidst the roiling waters of Tel Aviv, Israel. Edith Levy’s picture takes on a slightly abstract note to it by the use of a long exposure time considering the lighting conditions, adding a great element.
Dragon – we head back to Lake Bled with this eerie and moody shot from Jonathan Giovannini where we take in a very old stone castle sitting perched on the rocks high above the lake. Brooding clouds linger overhead as moonlight glows over the landscape below, adding to the overall feel of this terrific shot.
Little Red Corvette – Bob Lussier shows his compositional skills in this great car portrait of an American sports car, using light and shadow in the backdrop as a dramatic feature. Light dances off the polished rims and a corner of the fender as finishing features to create a great feel.
The Burning Falls – a beautiful landscape shot is presented here by Daniel F. who takes advantage of a rock opening to use as a frame into a magical outside world. Incredible colors in the sky highlight the natural beauty of this place as the waterfalls take on hues and tones from the ambient light to create something wonderful.
Shapes – LensScaper (Andy Hooker) shares four great architectural studies of a contemporary building, and by using tight compositions he creates a series of abstracts. Stark shadows play with the light as it hits the structure, creating depth and interest, and in doing so Andy delivers a terrific abstract study of strong architectural features.
