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Creative Props and Accessories for Indoor Portrait Photography
Indoor Portrait Photography Indoor portrait photography allows you to capture striking images of your subject in a setting that is free from the distractions of the outdoor world. However, taking beautiful and creative indoor portraits requires a little more than just...
5 Easy Tips for Captivating Candid Couples Photography
Candid Couples Photography The art of candid couples photography requires more than just technical knowledge. It requires stepping outside of the box and getting creative - think about when you were a kid. Albert Einstein once said, “To stimulate creativity, one must...
10 Reasons Why Photography is Beneficial for Mental Health
Mental Health Benefits of Photography Note by Karin van Mierlo on the updated version. This article was first published in the first year of the Covid pandemic. Now that we seem to have entered a post-Covid world, I have adjusted the article slightly to bring it up...
Splendid Tree Photography | 10 Inspiring Tips & Ideas
Tree Photography Trees are wonderful subjects and often combine time spend in nature with photography, making it a mindful activity. You can take all the time in the world to blatantly look the tree in the eye and discover its essence. They’re not going anywhere,...
Top 8 Candid Photography Tips for Natural Photos
We all know how to make a selfie or to pose in front of a landmark. Smile when told to and jump when prompted. And it’s great to have those posed pics from the one and only time you did that awesome hike with your newly found friends. Nothing wrong with that. But having authentic shots from your friends and family while you’re traveling is …….. well I would say even greater.
15 Fantastic Summer Photography Ideas For Happy Sunny Shots
Summer Photography Ideas The summer season is here! The ideal time to try out new things and get creative. I compiled a list of summer photography ideas because we all know sometimes we need a little inspiration to get started. Just a tiny nudge that will get your...
Prime vs Zoom Lens: The Ultimate Guide to Help You Decide
Prime vs Zoom Lens Do you know that your lens choice actually has a much more significant influence on how your photos turn out than the camera you’re mounting them on? Yep, that’s a fact! This is why the prime vs zoom lens debate never seems to end. The lens you’re...
5 Easy & Captivating Ideas to Create Photos With Depth
Photos With Depth It is one of the bigger conundrums in photography, being a fully flat medium that tries to capture a three-dimensional world. You see, a funny thing happens when you press the shutter, all that depth you see in the real world is turned into a flat...
7 Amazing Tips to Capture Commercial Photography
Commercial Photography Tips The domain of photography is fascinating, and there is always something new to discover. The vital purpose of any picture is to tell a story and set a mood. But, commercial photography serves an important role; in publicizing products and...
Negative Space Photography – The Essential Guide
Negative Space Photography Did you ever look at your photos not knowing what it was you were actually trying to capture? You’re asking yourself, what is this photo about? There’s so much going on, I can’t even see a clear subject. If this sounds familiar to you, you...
How To Watermark Your Photos in Lightroom – The Ultimate Guide
How to Watermark Photos Have you ever wondered how to make sure your photos are safe when they’re circulating the web? Afraid to even share your photos because you don’t want them to get ‘stolen’? Well, you’re in for a treat. This in-depth article walks you through...
8 Great Flat Lay Photography Tips For New Photographers
Photo by George MiltonFlat Lay Photography Tips Flat lay photography has gone so popular on social media posts. It’s widely used for so many purposes, such as food photography or any kind of product photography. Its usage and significance are also increasing day by...
How to Choose the Right Niche for Stock Photography
Niche for Stock Photography Many photographers firmly believe that setting up their stock photography portfolio doesn’t require a lot of resources, time, or effort. While they aren’t entirely wrong, it’s not that simple. Setting up your stock photography business can...
How to Sell Photography on Etsy – A Complete Guide
How To Sell Photography on Etsy With over 82 million active buyers, Etsy is quickly growing as one of the largest eCommerce marketplaces in the world. People who are looking to sell photography may not find stock photography websites beneficial because of their fees...
5 Awesome Travel Photography Tips for Beginners
Travel Photography for Beginners Travelling is one of the greater joys in life. The pictures we take during our trips are oftentimes the only tangible memories we have of that unique experience. Knowing just a little more than where the button to push is can make...
7 Surprising Ideas to Make Money with Photography
Make Money with Photography You started your photography journey because you just really love photography. Because it makes you happy, because it’s fun, because it connects you to the world around you or because it helps you to cope with the challenges in your life. ...
4 Steps to Creating a Beautiful Blurry Bokeh Background
What is a Bokeh Background? The meaning of the word bokeh (pronounced boh-kay) is blur. It comes from the word Boke in Japanese. It describes the buttery quality of the soft, out-of-focus areas usually in the background. It adds an aesthetic, visual element to the...
5 Essential and Creative Photography Tips for Beginners
Photography Tips for Beginners Most articles with photography tips for beginners start with complicated drawings of the exposure triangle and intricate explanations of white balance. I think that’s the perfect way to take the fun right out of learning photography....
10 Best Night Photography Tips for Magnificent Night Skies
Night Photography Tips If you’re just getting into astrophotography and feel a little overwhelmed, don’t worry! At first, night photography can seem like a scary thing because it involves learning about photography… in the dark. You can’t see anything, there are...
6 Awesome Tips for Making Better Smartphone Photos
Smartphone Photography Tips Smartphone photography is often associated with quick and easy snapping away. Because you can just walk around, point at something, click and Hello! there’s your photo. I’d like to take a different approach to smartphone photography. It’s...
4 Ways to Creatively Embrace the Blur in Photography
Guest blogger Stacey Hill encourages you to embrace the blur in photography. When asked why I enjoy photography, my reply is always “It’s the perfect blend of technology and art.” For those who want to geek out about focal lengths, f-stops, and the other technical aspects, photography has plenty of space for that. However, if you want to explore more creative ways to use your camera, then there are lots of ways to do that.
5 Simple Mindful Photography Tips to Be Present in the Now
Mindfulness is about slowing down, being fully present in the moment, and receiving that moment. The exact same words apply to the process of making photographs. For me, to photograph is to be fully present in the moment. Because when I photograph nothing else enters my mind. I’m in a state of flow where worries, the past, and the future have disappeared.
5 Easy Steps to Quick & Safe Camera Sensor Cleaning
Understandably, diy sensor cleaning can feel a little intimidating because your sensor is such a fragile part of the camera. And I get it. But I also think it’s good to get to know the insides of your beloved camera and be able to take care of it outside and in. When you follow these steps and guidelines you have a solid plan for how to clean your camera sensor.
8 Top Tips for Expressive Portrait Photography in the Outdoor
Outdoor portrait photography brings more of a candid vibe into the process of photographing. But they are not the same. The biggest difference is that with portrait photography outdoor people are aware they’re being photographed. Sometimes that awareness turns into a little roadblock because people don’t feel comfortable being photographed.
7 Surprising Tips On How To Learn Photography The Right Way
Did you just buy yourself a brand new DSLR? Or you’ve had one for some time now but it’s collecting dust? Are you’re wondering how to learn photography as a beginner? I’m gonna be honest with you. There’s no fast track to learning photography. It takes a lot more than reading a blog with photography tips or watching a video about the exposure triangle.
How To Choose A Camera: 8 Steps to Buying Your First Camera
Buying a digital camera for the first time can be an overwhelming experience. But it doesn’t have to be. It should be a joyous occasion. After all, you’re finally ready to take your love for photography seriously and wanna invest in an equally serious camera. This guide will help you to make the right decision in choosing the camera that is the perfect fit for you.
25 Lightroom Hacks That Will Save You Loads of Time
With this list of awesome Lightroom Hacks, I want to dive deeper into Lightroom and reveal some features you’re probably not aware of. These Lightroom tips are gonna make your editing life so much easier. They range from simple keyboard shortcuts you really should be using every time you edit to more advanced features that will save you time and frustration while keeping your edits consistent.
7 Fantastic At Home Photography Ideas to Ignite Your Creativity
I’ve compiled a list of 7 at home photography ideas designed to honor the mindful nature of the photographic process. All photo projects have one ingredient in common. They revolve around the art of seeing and will, therefore, develop your observation skills. Examining your outside and inside world allows you to get into that much-desired mindful state.
My 15 Favorite Photography Quotes from Master Photographers
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But sometimes we need words to give expression to what we think and feel around a single photograph or photography in its entirety. So I actually feel that pictures and words go hand in hand most of the time. When we see a photo there’s an infinite number of reactions to that single image. We need words to articulate our reaction.
Creative Photography Project: 9 Different Photos of the Same Object
Whenever I feel lost, I pick up my camera and start to photograph. The simple act of picking up my camera in the midst of what feels like chaos creates a little overwhelm free island of time. I’m focused on creating something and when I’m photographing there’s not much else that can enter my mind. It’s what I call the mindful nature of photography and it’s healing.
8 Critical Steps to Get Tack Sharp Photos
Don’t you just hate it when you think you’ve taken a great photo only to come home and discover it’s out of focus? Getting sharp focus depends on your skills to get it right in camera. There’s no second chance and no do-overs in Lightroom. Although the term Auto Focus implies it’s done automatically it is not. For razor-sharp photos, you need to take control.
10 Sure-Fire Tips for Stunning Sunset Photography
There’s a universal quality to sunrise and sunset. No matter where you are on this earth, no matter your circumstances as long as you live you can be sure of 2 things. The sun will rise and at the end of the day, the sun will go down. It’s one of the many things that bind us all together. No wonder we want to capture the sun come up or go down in all its glorious beauty.
The Ultimate Guide To Mastering Natural Light Photography
Light is one of the key ingredients in a photograph. In this natural light photography tutorial, you’re going to learn how to make the most of the natural light that is so abundantly available to you. And to discover natural lighting is all about embracing the light. Using natural light is exciting because you cannot control it. It is what it is. Yet another aspect you need to adapt to.
15 Badass Street Photography Ideas To Get You Started
Street photography is unpredictable and spontaneous at its core. You can prepare all you want good things start to happen when the surprise element introduces itself. Being present and ready to receive the unexpected is all we can do in street photography. That is what makes street photography so challenging and exciting! There are a lot of ideas and misconceptions about what is ………
7 Steps To A Powerful Self Portrait & A Confidence Boost
At the tail-end of 2019, some seemingly random events came together for me resulting in a power photo shoot and a breakthrough moment. It all started with an email I received a few months ago. The topic was the number one ‘posing for females’ mistake beginning photographers make. My curiosity was tickled. Are you ready? Apparently, the number one mistake is ……….
7 Powerful Tips for Photographing Children in a Natural and Candid Way
The defining element in kids photography in a documentary style is your mindset as the one who is photographing children. Sure a nice camera helps but it’s you that makes it fun for them or not. It’s you who is documenting life as it unfolds. And how you approach that is what makes the difference between lifeless photos and the ones you’ll treasure 20 years from now.
Photographing In Analog Gives Me So Much Satisfaction
Photography Project by Joaquim De Oliveira Gonçalves. Street photography is without a doubt his favorite approach to photography. Joaquim started to photograph at a young age already. “I was usually the designated photographer for family vacations.’ Later on, he started to be more interested and he read a lot of books about photography and photographers.
4 Essential Principles of Composition in Photography
Why learning a few rules of composition won’t make your pics any better and what to do instead. Composition is how you arrange all the elements in the outside world in your frame to make an interesting and appealing photograph. Photo composition is a very powerful tool. And the good news is you can improve your composition without even understanding anything about your camera.
Nature Encourages Me To Click
This month’s blog takes us into the wonderful world of India. More specifically, to a little village next to the Mahanadi River, called Athmallik. This magical village is the source of inspiration and encouragement for Arpita to document the mesmerizing world around her. Arpita´s home town is surrounded by hills, deep forests, and water. “I have been surrounded and inspired by this since my childhood.”……
Are You Taking Or Are You Making?
So, a funny thing happens every time I write about photography which is like on a daily basis. I make it a point to write Make Photographs and not Take Photographs because well, that’s what it actually is. A photo is made. But the spelling checker on my laptop keeps highlighting the word Make wanting me to correct it to Take. It annoys me because it’s wrong on so many levels and I always ignore the suggestion.
9 Essential Tips For Capturing Motion in Photography With Confidence
Capturing motion in photography can be quite a challenge. When things are in motion you need to act quickly and go with the flow at the same time. But photographing movement can also be very fulfilling and exciting because it shows us aspects of life that are otherwise not seen by the human eye. There are basically 2 ways to go about capturing motion in photography. You can decide to …………..
Come A Little Bit Closer…..
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on Photography Playground. This month’s quote is by Robert Capa: “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough.” I’ve always believed this is true for the actual physical closeness to your subject. But there’s also a deeper level to his words. It’s about the connections you make with the people and the places you photograph.
How to Best Edit Your Photos in Lightroom
In the previous Lightroom photography tutorial, I walked you through the very important process of importing and selecting your files. If all is well by now you have a couple of pics selected that you wanna edit. In this Lightroom tutorial, I’m gonna show you how to edit photos in the Develop Module in Adobe Lightroom. Let’s first talk about why editing your photos is super important………..
Photography Fulfills Me
In our monthly blog about Obsessions & Fascinations Philine Bernard shares her fascination for nature, traveling and the outdoors. When she grabs her camera she can just shoot for hours. Photographing never bores her and she can lose herself in the moment completely. This creates calmness for her and she gets in a different headspace altogether.
10 Top Tips for Wonderful Low Light Photography
Don’t you just love a dark and moody scene out in the street or a low light landscape during sunset or a face illuminated by the warm light from a candle? It makes you wanna know how to photograph in the dark, doesn’t it? But shooting in low light without a flash comes with its own set of challenges. Like what are the best camera settings for low light? What’s the best camera ……….
How To Nurture Your Creativity Back To Life
This month’s quote is not by a photographer but by a writer. Oddly enough I never read anything by Maya Angelou but this quote has always had a special place in my heart. Because it’s so profoundly true. “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” The other day I was teaching a photography workshop with a deep focus on creativity. We talked about our relationship with creativity, memories ……
How to Navigate the Library Module in Lightroom With Ease
Lightroom fundamentally changed the way I post-process my images. When I started in digital photography there was only Photoshop. And yes I could do great things with my images in Photoshop. However, Lightroom is the game-changer. It saves me a ton of time, it doesn’t require huge amounts of memory and it runs a tight ship.
Photography Is My Life
This month’s interview is especially beautiful for me since the person being interviewed is not only an amazing, unique photographer, she is also my number one example in life. The person sharing her story today with you is Karin van Mierlo, an artist, a teacher but above all, my mom. She always had the feeling that she didn’t choose photography, photography chose her.
11 Travel Photography Mistakes and How to Easily Fix Them
Making mistakes is how we learn, right? Nothing wrong with making mistakes unless you’re not aware you’re making them. Which is why I thought it would be a great idea to approach improving your photography from the angle of the travel photography mistakes you might be making.
Shoot a Little Less, Think a Little More
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on Photography Playground. This month’s quote is by Henri Cartier-Bresson and is a shout out to think before you shoot. “We must avoid, however, snapping away, shooting quickly and without thought, overloading ourselves with unnecessary images that clutter our memory and diminish the clarity of the whole.”
Raw vs Jpeg: 9 Irresistible Reasons To Shoot in Raw
In the battle between raw vs JPEG, I’m a firm supporter of shooting in raw. I see absolutely no reason not to shoot in raw. Are you wondering what the difference is between raw and JPEG? You wanna know why shooting in raw is better? Keep reading and you’ll find out! Let’s start by talking about the differences between a raw and a JPEG file.
Looking at the World in a Different Way
A lot of times, in a lot of situations, seeing the world in a different way is a consequence of taking pictures in a specific way. In Björn’s case, it’s the other way around. He always tries to look at the world in a different way and sees the details that most people don’t see. Approaching life already in this unique way is the reason why he’s interested and intrigued by taking pictures from different perspectives.
9 Travel Photography Safety Tips: How to Keep Your Gear and Pixels Safe
We all love to travel. And we all want to bring our cameras to create lasting memories of the wonders we encounter. But when we’re traveling we’re usually more relaxed and carefree making us an easy target for people with bad intentions. With these travel photography safety tips, you can develop some safety habits and come home with your gear and precious pixels.
Do You Think We See The Same?
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on the Photography Playground. This months photography quote is by the American landscape photographer Ansel Adams. “A Good Photograph is Knowing Where to Stand.” There are many moving parts when you’re making a photograph. And one of them is your point of view, the place where you stand.
Manual Mode: 8 Good Reasons to Move Away from Auto Mode
What if you actually knew how to take your camera out of Auto Mode? Would your pictures become better? Or would you mess them up? The answer is yes, they will get better…eventually! And yes, you’ll probably mess it up from time to time. But there are a lot of reasons to take the plunge and take the first step in learning to shoot in Manual Mode. Let me share 7 of them.
Photography is a Way of Awakening Your Senses
For Tine Søby photography is not platonic but more so a way to awaken all her senses. To get impressions, to feel inspired, to see new perspectives. One of the most inspiring things Tine told me is that she gives space for the intuitive which does not necessarily come with logic. It rather comes with this cringing feeling of something that is hard to put into words but awakens your soul.
8 Essential Apps for the Best Travel Photos
For me, photography apps are my friendly little helpers and you can never have enough of those. Whether I’m traveling with my DSLR or I rely on my iPhone for my travel pics travel photography apps will help me to create the best images possible. I’ve put together a list of travel photography apps I’ve come to rely on when I’m traveling to help you do the same.
Shoot What You Love, Love What You Shoot
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on the Photography Playground. This months photography quote is by Burk Uzzle: “Photography is a Love Affair with Life.” There’s no other medium that’s so intricate and detailed in showing us the wonder of being human and alive on this planet. At its best, photography touches and connects us on a deeply human level.
Best 10 Tips for Authentic Instagram Photos of Your Travels
Instagram is the perfect way to share your travel adventures with your tribe around the world. The sharing part is not the most difficult aspect of Instagram. It’s the making of Instagrammable pictures that is. Because making inspiring Instagram photos is a little more complicated than just snapping around.
Pictures Are Like Books To Me
Pedro Baptista about his photography project in ‘Obsessions & Fascinations’: “As life progressed, I started to be more and more interested in what images convey. Pictures are like books to me – a way of looking at the world from other peoples eyes, perspectives, and experiences.”
How to Create the Perfect Black and White Photos in Snapseed
What is it about Black and White Photography that makes it sort of indestructible? It is as old as photography and although photography has been through many changes and developments Black and White Photography is still here. And it will never go away. By taking away color somehow the underlying qualities emerge. It stirs a feeling of timelessness and emphasizes the things we share over time and place.
You Think The Best Spot Is Behind Your Camera?
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on the Photography Playground. This months photography quote is by Alfred Eisenstaedt. “It’s more important to click with people than to click the shutter.” Because when the person in front and the person behind the camera are equally connected and at ease, you create the magic together.
Less Thinking, More Shooting
Linora Cloter about her photography project ‘Buttoned Time’ in Obsessions & Fascinations: “Every day is different. Sometimes I get inspiration right away from a specific moment and that makes me press the shutter. Right away I’m intrigued and I want to capture this specific moment.”
The Most Powerful Tool in a Photographer’s Toolbox
Photography Quotes to Inspire and Delight, a monthly series on the Photography Playground. I choose the quote for this month because it’s a belief that’s infused in my photographic blood. It’s the basis of everything I share and teach at the Photography Playground. “A camera didn’t make a great picture any more than a typewriter wrote a great novel.” by Peter Adams.
How to Create the Best Travel Photo Album in 8 Easy Steps
Why would you go through the trouble of creating a travel photo album when you have all the files safely stowed away on your computer? Well, for one thing, computers crash and phones get stolen. When you do not have a watertight backup system and most people don’t, you might lose your precious memories.
But that’s not the most important reason……….
7 Reasons Why Your Smartphone is the Best Camera for Travel
As a photographer, I welcomed the opportunities a smartphone camera gave me. I can still remember the first time vividly. It was more than ten years ago so it was a crappy camera of course. The images were pixelated and blurry. For most of the time, I still photographed with my DSLR. But there was something different about the images I took with my phone.
Are You Lost for Words? Photograph!
Every month I share a photography quote and my thoughts and feelings about the quote. A good quote surfaces an idea in a few well-chosen words. I love the fact that some people are that skilled with words. This month’s photography quote is by landscape photographer Destin Sparks “Photography is the story I fail to put into words.”
7 Wildlife Photography Tips: How to Take the Best Safari Pictures
Let me start off by saying that I’m by no means experienced in wildlife photography. I’m a people photographer. Yet, I have to admit that while doing the research my ambitious photography heart wanted to become a wildlife photographer. You know, no matter what field of photography I get into I want to be my best self. I was tempted to spend a fortune on the longest lens available.
The Ultimate Guide to Essential Photography Terms & Definitions
I remember very well from my own learning process that learning photography can feel a little overwhelming. Especially if it seems like you don’t even speak the language associated with photography! It’s something many professions have in common, the jargon. Photographers throw around words like DOF, histogram, MILC, Prime and you’re like WHAT?!
Snapseed Tutorial: How to Edit WOW Photos on Your Phone
Last year I made an amazing journey sailing from Colombia to Portugal on the Nomad Cruise. On the way, we made one stop on Saint Maarten Island in the Caribbean. The island itself is not the most interesting place but I did want to go to the beach where the planes fly over. I’m always trying to take photos of this kind of touristic hotspots a little bit different.
11 Clear Tips for Organizing Photos On the Go with Apple Photos
Keeping your photos organized can be quite the task, but if you have an iPhone and a little bit of downtime, it’s easier than you think. All photos taken on your iPhone end up on the camera roll. You’ve probably seen that. The camera roll is basically just a running list of all photos and videos that are saved to your device.
9 Powerful Phone Photography Apps for the Best Images
You have been using your smartphone camera to take pictures for quite some time now probably. If you have the desire to go beyond the regular smartphone snapshot it is time to invest in some smartphone photography apps! Because photography apps are essential tools for improving your smartphone photography.
Photo Organized: How to Keep your Smartphone Free of Megapixel Clutter
If your smartphone is anything like mine it’s up to its elbows in megapixel clutter! I’ve asked Caroline Guntur, a certified photo organizer to help us unclutter our phones. She has some wonderful and actionable tips for organizing photos on your phone and how to keep it safe from clogging up.
7 Super Easy Travel Photography Tips for Great Travel Pics
For me, it doesn’t get much better when I can travel and photograph at the same time. It combines my two greatest passions and is actually what I am devoting my life to right now. I know I am not alone in this desire. I know you all love to travel and bring home the beauty you encountered along your way.
5 Creative Ways to Find the Magic of Color
Whether I am traveling or living my everyday life in a gray Northern European city, one of the things I try to do is to stay open to the magic of color. True, I do admit that it is easier in the more exotic and colorful parts of the earth. So, when I travel, I completely lose myself in photographing the pale green of a wall, or the copious pink of a bougainvillea.