Lighting How To

Natural light portrait photography is appealing because you don't need to bring complicated and cumbersome strobes and flashes to your shoot. Photographing portraits in natural light, however, is a lot more challenging than people realize, especially when the light doesn't cooperate.

Many photographers shy away from portraiture for a couple reasons: Either they lack an understanding of on-camera flash, or they don't own more complicated (and expensive) lighting gear. Today you'll learn an alternative approach that delivers beautiful people pictures without supplemental illumination.

Smartphone camera technology has advanced to the point that it's now long past time to stop looking down on photographers who pursue our craft with a mobile device in their hand. After all, with four billion smartphones capturing 73% of all images, it's time to embrace the power of your Apple or Android phone, and that’s the topic of today's tutorial from the My Photo Journey YouTube channel.

You don't need a lot of money to shoot dramatically colorful portraits. In fact, you can do it in your home studio or even just your home if you follow the photography tips of Tajreen&Co in the below video tutorial for photographers on a budget.

Independence day is right around the corner, and with it comes a great opportunity to capture spectacular images of fireworks—whether you’re shooting in a stadium, astride a lake or river, or in the comfort of your own backyard.

Environmental portraits are a lot of fun to make, even if people pictures aren't your thing. One reason is that you don't need any special gear, or even a simple flash, if you understand how to work with whatever illumination exists on location. And this holds true whether you're shooting during the day or after the sun drops below the horizon.

The art of capturing sensuous boudoir photographs needn’t be complicated, nor does it require a fancy studio outfitted with expensive gear. As you’ll see in the following video, all you really need—apart from your camera and a lens—is an attractive model, one continuous light, and a nearby window. Best yet, you can get the job done in the comfort of your home.