Yep, We Got Photography Links. Loads of Them.

We've had another terrific week in the world of photography, and here we find Toad Hollow Photography searching all over the internet for tutorials, special features and great photography to share with everyone. This week's list is full of great posts and pictures, created by some of the best artists working in the field today.  We truly hope you enjoy checking out these links as much as the Toad did in bringing this list to you.

Tutorials To Browse Through

Black & White. Street Photography, Improved – Federico Alegria shares some incredible insights into the application of black-and-white in the field of street photography.  All key facets of this style are briefly covered in this post, accompanied by some terrific examples of how to apply the concepts in embedded images.

Shooting Better Portraits With a Single Hot Shoe Flash – this article discusses how to effectively use a single speedlight in the creation of great portraits.  All the key concepts are covered in a simple-to-digest post that also included some really great sample shots to show you how these concepts translate into the finished product.

5 tips for nailing focus on every shot – if you are working with video on a DSLR platform, you will be well aware of the challenges of maintaining good focus on your subject as the scene unfolds in front of you.  This brief 5-minute video tutorial shares some great tips and insights on how to manage this important element, helping to create videos that take on a professional look and feel.

Three effective ways to use lens correction in Photoshop – lens correction, particularly for wide angle shots, can be an important transformation to apply to your images to help make them look and feel natural.  This video tutorial is just over 13 minutes in length and takes you quickly through some of the key ways of dealing with this using Photoshop.

How You Can Create Cinematic Lighting as a Photographer – it’s amazing what can be learned in a 3-minute video segment, in this case, we learn all about apply lighting to a composition in a purposeful manner.  The results are striking and cinematic in nature, and they truly compliment the subject being shot.

Some Special Feature Links

Discover One of the Most Beautiful Places on Earth in This Viral Timelapse – this is the perfect application of timelapse, capturing the raw and rugged essence of this UNESCO World Heritage Site in Africa in a way that only timelapse can.  Incredible scenes unfold and come to life on our screens as this simply stunning landscape changes over time.

Shooting One of the Most Beautiful Abandoned Buildings in the World – once an active and thriving facility on the coast of Romania, today this incredible structure sits idle as time and decay take hold.  This special feature takes us inside where we get a chance to study the intricate architectural features alongside the effects and ravages of time.

Just Great Photography Links

Bear Cub Cuteness! – you simply cannot beat little ones for delightful character and poses, as shown in this heartwarming shot from Ron Niebrugge.  As this cub stands in a meadow looking past Ron, it creates a terrific portrait opportunity to capture one of these amazing creatures in it’s natural habitat as it learns about life from the perspective of youth.

DONT JUMP!!!! ITS NOT WORTH IT – photographer Christopher Schlaf takes a terrific shot of a tiny owl wandering across a wooden fence with one foot over the edge.  Capturing this piece with it’s eyes closed adds a huge element of humor to the image which is finished off just perfectly with the title selected.

The Best Kind Of Gift – Jim Denham captures and shares an exquisite landscape shot that he then frames with some personal thoughts and insights that add so much to the picture.  By using a long exposure time, Jim turns the waters of the lake in the foreground of the shot into a silky covering that creates a soft and muted reflection of the vibrant colors and the lone tree that stands in the middle of the water feature.

d u b a i | m a r i n a – a crystal clear cityscape shot is presented by Emmanuel del Rosario, capturing the exciting city of Dubai as a thin fog dances among the buildings and roadways far below.  This shot is very sharp with many great features to it, including detailed architecture and patches of diffused light from the city as the fog rolls through.

Oxbow Bend – this epic landscape shot comes to us from Bob Lussier, showcasing the incredible natural beauty of this famous area as the sun begins to rise and greet a brand new day.  The jagged snow-capped peaks of the incredible mountains loom in the background as nature comes to life in the foreground, punctuated by a terrific reflection in the body of water that sits up front.

Climatise – the city of Dubai is featured in this cityscape shot captured and shared here by Dany Eid.  This rendition features terrific details in the city below as a brooding storm looms overhead, adding a perfect element of intense drama to a shot that shares more as you spend time checking out the fantastic details.

Superstition Mountain Lightning – if you love lightning photographs, you won’t want to miss this great post from Chris Frailey.  Chris captures a set of amazing shots taken in the middle of a wicked storm, each showcasing the incredible drama and power of nature as it flings electric bolts at the earth far below.

Into the darkness – a famous staircase and it’s incredible geometry in Vatican City is featured in this incredibly dramatic black-and-white shot from Aaron Choi.  The monochromatic aspect of the image really draws the eye into the frame where the sharp contrasts accent great textures and highlight the mood created by Aaron.

Derelict Buildings – unique architectural features pop out of these frames captured in Oman that showcase several perspectives of a derelict building there.  David A. Lockwood processes these shots as black-and-white, accenting the textures and details of eons of weathering, and sharing a set that is full of great artistic tension.

hoo-h’HOO-hoo-hoo – a beautiful owl prepares to take a big stretch, fanning it’s glorious wings and staring intently straight into the camera in this epic shot from Salah Baazizi.  The terrific character of these incredible creatures really comes through in this frame as those bright, piercing eyes look back at us.

The vast ocean… – Sherry Galey shares a great photo of pounding surf against a shore, dappled with wonderful natural light.  She frames the shot with terrific prose, adding a great dimension to the photo and accenting the feeling expressed within the frame.

Blue Porto – the blue hour reveals a wonderful cityscape in this shot that comes from Juan Pablo de Miguel.  Wonderful details in the architecture come to life in this picture as you follow a meandering river into the distance into a vanishing point.

the last gasp of light – Frank King visits our very own Vancouver Island and comes away with a wonderful series of images he has posted over time.  This shot showcases the rugged coastline we have here, with this picture taken at dusk and featuring the silhouettes of land and trees as they jut out into the ocean.

Little Chapel – a lovely little church sits on the shores of a still lake in this wonderful composition from guerel sahin.  A gentle reflection in the still green waters reflects a mirrored vision, adding to the context of the green forest that surrounds the building.

Cedar Waxwing – this shot is so beautifully composed and processed, it feels like a beautiful painting at first glance.  A further look reveals terrific details in this delicate bird, delivering a wonderful portrait image captured by Wayne Beauregard.

Amsterdam Windows 11.0 – the incredible character of Amsterdam pops to life in this details photograph that features a portrait of it’s buildings that line one of its famous canals.  The reflection of the fascinating structures adds a perfect feature to this shot from Juan Pablo de Miguel.

Rising Mist – Brad Truxell visits the heart of Pittsburgh in the morning as a thick mist dissipates over the city.  This natural ambience adds a great feel to this architectural feature, showing off this great city in a haunting light with a great feel.

Another year – this haunting black-and-white shot from Trevor Cotton focuses on the untold stories found in the remains of a wooden hull of a ship that sits half-submerged.  Tervor uses a long exposure technique in this shot which turns the waters that surround the boat into a silky surface that adds to the ethereal mood of the frame.

Sherrick Farm – Mark Summerfield’s post features a historic brick farmhouse in the United States with a great story behind it.  The terrific details of the house pop to life in these shots, showcasing the inherent beauty that can be found in heritage architecture.

Twisted Vertigo – renowned cityscape photographer Daniel Cheong shares another of his creations that captures the essence of Dubai from a high perspective.  This shot uses the lines of the building in the foreground that twist as an eye-catching leading line, guiding the viewer many stories down as the city emerges far below.

Comin’ For Ya – Jay Taylor captures a mesmerizing shot that features one of our Bald Eagles in flight.  In this composition we are lucky enough to see this amazing bird as it flies straight for Jay’s camera, creating a frame that is hard to pull away from at the same time it leaves you feeling sorry for whatever prey is in it’s sights.  Hopefully, that’s not Jay.

Grand Tetons Panorama – Mark Garbowski takes us to a well-known park in the United States where he captures and shares a dramatic wide panorama of the mountains.  This particular composition is very powerful, revealing the true scale of this majestic park, finished off perfectly with Mark’s black-and-white processing to bring all the natural drama out for all to enjoy.

GMC Pickup – local photographer Ehpem finds and photographs a classic GMC pickup truck in a community that sits by the ocean in Victoria.  Capturing these shots on film, he creates great images that look retro and really accent the subject of this gorgeous truck, taking us all back a handful of years.