Photo How To

While the meaning of the term “shutter speed” may seem obvious, there’s actually more to this concept than meets the eye. In the quick video below, time-lapse photographer Vincent Ledvina puts his animation skills to good use demonstrating the finer points behind this basic photographic principle.

Time-lapse videos are all the rage these days but there’s much that separates a decent time-lapse from a great one. One thing that can help set your time-lapse apart is to feature some type of movement in the video to give it a more dynamic look. And one way to add movement is by using some type of camera slider.

Today's image-editing tutorial is for those of you who overlook the power of Photoshop filters when processing your work. Whether you're a beginner ofr more experience photographer, this comprehensive lesson from the PIX Imperfect YouTube channel will quickly get you up to speed.

Polarizing filters make pictures look like they were taken at either the North Pole or the South Pole. Rotating the Polarizing filter shifts the appearance from North Pole to South Pole and back again. They are not always used to photograph Polar Bears; it’s easy to understand the confusion, but there are no Polar Bears at the South Pole. Polarizers are important because our ice masses are disappearing, melting away and raising the sea level around Miami. When the ice caps are gone, the only way we’ll have to recreate them—or Miami, for that matter—is with Photoshop.

Okay, I made some of this up. But I do know how Polarizers work and why you should use one. Please read on…

The first time I came across a reference to bokeh in a lens review I found it a bit pretentious. Bokeh may sound like a Japanese dessert, but it’s actually the out-of-focus behavior of your lens. The term is said to come from the Japanese word “boke,” which translates as “blur” or, in some cases, “senility.” Confused? It’s understandable.

Today, we’re going to do a quick overview of shutter speed, the second corner in the exposure triangle, and how it will alter your images.

The Rule of Thirds is a very helpful compositional guideline that is a great reference point for beginner photographers or seasoned professionals. As with any photography rule, they really are meant to be broken, so take this as more of a general guideline than a defined rule.