Behind the Scenes

I just wrapped up a fashion campaign shoot at Sarakiniko Beach in Milos, Greece. Here is how it went, what I learned from the experience, and how we approached getting the shots.

Take a peek behind the scenes at how I created several enormous, detailed night panoramas in Joshua Tree National Park. The surreal landscapes are perfect for this sort of work. Below, I'll walk through the process, gear, and a few discoveries that make panoramas better.

Most photographers do not get creatively stuck because they stop shooting. They get stuck because their process becomes too efficient.

Sam Abell has pursued a career in documentary photography, spending 33 years with National Geographic. He concurrently taught and authored numerous books, including The Life of a Photograph, Seeing Gardens, and The Photographic Life. In 2024, Sam received the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Photo Society and was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame. Here, he explains why he shoots in an automatic mode, sticks with shorter lenses, and why Dorothea Lange is his North Star.

Tamara Lackey, Nikon USA Ambassador, book author, PBS show host, and philanthropist, has used photography to establish Beautiful Together refuges for children and animals in need in Ethiopia and North Carolina. Here she weighs in on finding your voice, overcoming creative block, and camera bag essentials (don’t forget the candy).

We all know the feeling when a shoot is going perfectly, your model is nailing the poses, and then something goes wrong. Maybe a light fails, a cable gets unplugged, or your tether connection drops mid-shoot. Suddenly, the creative flow evaporates, and you’re scrambling to regroup.

Here are five podcasts you should be listening to right now. Hit play, grab your coffee, and get inspired. When I am walking or driving, I’ve got five that I always snare in my podcast catcher. You’ll love them no matter what kind of photography you do.

Adding a little set design to your studio photography can add huge value for your clients and really set your work apart. Today, I’m sharing three DIY sets you can create with simple materials from the hardware store—no power tools required.

I’m putting the Rose FX Filter by Prism Lens FX to the test to see how it changes the color and tone of an everyday outdoor portrait shoot. Is the World Better Through Rose-Colored Glass? That’s exactly what I wanted to find out when I got my hands on the Rose FX Filter.

Today, let’s chat about one of the toughest questions any artist must answer to succeed in business and in life.

How might you take a night photo of an observatory near the entrance of Joshua Tree National Park? We take you behind the scenes to discuss photographing this image for a local magazine and some quick problem-solving. And you'll learn more about how to create photos such as this.

Commercial filmmaking offers unique opportunities to sharpen your skills and potentially get your work in front of a massive audience. Many talented filmmakers wonder what it takes to actually succeed—not just to produce impressive work, but to also navigate the business side and effectively put themselves on the map.

In this video, you'll get a behind-the-scenes look at a real session and a real wedding day. But as the photographer being followed, I wanted to expand on a few things.

Today, I’d like to take a moment to focus on what has really mattered in my life as a photographer.

Death Valley is a vast expanse of landscape with varying terrains throughout the park. As a visitor, it is easy to find yourself rushing from place to place to take it all in and capture it in images. Is that the best way to photograph it? Or is being slow, patient, and deliberate a better approach?

The best part about creating personal projects is the opportunity to grow in a pressure-free environment. I just finished shooting such a project with a couple of friends, and the lessons I learned at “play” turned out to be the kind I’ll be sure to use in my work.

I had an incredibly important photoshoot recently, and I made a rookie mistake that could have spelled disaster.

Today, I’d like to share a bit about my own photo journey. Whether you are at the very beginning or nearing the end of your own, I’m guessing you’ll find a few similarities.

Some natural environments are filled with interesting and unique compositions for landscape photographers. It can be like being a kid on a playground. How do you make sense of it all and distill the scenes down to images for your portfolio?

Advertising photography isn’t just about taking nice pictures. Every shot needs to sell an experience, blending technical skill with storytelling. That’s why planning and execution are crucial.

I've been seeing spotlights used in shoots everywhere, so I wanted to jump on the trend and put my own twist on a spotlight shoot. Here’s how my creative partner, David, and I created a theatrical portrait session using a spotlight.

Whether you are still trying to find your footing or decades deep into a creative career, sooner or later a basic question comes for us all: Should you continue down the same path, or is it time to take a turn?

Today, I’ll try to break down the multitude of stages that every photographer is likely to go through over the course of their career.

As a professional photographer, you must face all sorts of obstacles. But the highest hurdles tend to be those you put in your own way.

Being an artist means keeping an open mind to all possibilities. But sometimes, limiting your scope can lead to a world of opportunities.

If I hadn't already written an article about it a couple of years back, it would be one of my best-kept photography secrets: I often use my monitor and some bokeh shots I've made over the years as a product photography background.

Woodland photography is hard enough for landscape photographers, but what about when there isn’t any fog? Fog is the cheat code for this type of photography, but do you just need to head home when there isn’t any fog? We find out in this video.

In today’s world of social media and YouTube, it is easy to think every time a photographer goes out, they come back home with portfolio-ready images. If you begin to believe this, it can impact your own landscape photography. This video looks at the real truth behind landscape photography.

Some people think great landscape photographers are just lucky, always at the right place at the right time. The reality is great landscape photographers are persistent. Making portfolio-worthy images often entails repeat visits to areas to find the ideal composition paired with stunning conditions.

Travel photography is one of the most enjoyable genres of the craft, and counterintuitively, it can sometimes be improved by limiting the amount of equipment you take with, particularly lenses.

All you need is a street! Here is a comprehensive guide to capturing stunning street portraits, emphasizing the accessibility of street photography.

Photographing a seascape with crashing waves along the shore and the movement of the water can be a challenge for a landscape photographer. This video provides several tips on capturing dramatic images from the seashore with an ultrawide lens.

In a world overwhelmed with photography advice on YouTube, Instagram, or even articles like this one, it can be hard to know whose guidance to trust when building your career. However, chances are, you may be overlooking the most valuable source of input that will always guide you in the right direction.

Landscape photographers often speak about the advantages of scouting locations, but a certain creative energy can be lost with too much pre-planning. In this video, we follow along as a landscape photographer explores an area which has some benefits and downsides.

Shooting interiors for real estate shouldn’t be that challenging if your goal is simply to photograph the entire space. However, if the goal is to come up with visually impactful images, then it’s very likely that you’ll have to solve some problems while shooting.