Lighting How To

This tutorial is the first installment of an eye-opening series describing conditions under which you shouldn't trust a camera's meter to deliver accurate exposures when shooting images in certain situations. Today you'll learn how much to underexpose a photo when faced with a low light, high contrast scene.

There are numerous “rules” of photography and some are meant to be broken—including a few of the most familiar. But as you’ll see in the eye-opening video below from a trusted pro, you can avoid sabotaging images by using an oft-ignored trick.

Some photographers shy away from shooting portraits because they don’t own supplemental lighting equipment or they’re intimidated by the complexity involved. But today we’ll show you how easy it is to make beautiful people pictures outdoors under available light.

Whether the holidays bring out your “Humbug!” or your “Ho, ho, ho!” there’s one thing you must admit: it’s the most colorful season of the year. And all of those colorful lights are just begging to be zoomed, blurred and pleasantly smeared. Here are two common techniques that are easy to try.

There I was, 20 years old behind the sideline barricade of an arena football game clutching to my now outdated Canon EOS 20D with a 200mm lens slapped on it. I raced back and forth behind the separating wall with a cluster of other photographers—feverishly snapping off images as the players sprinted up and down the field and crashed into one another and off the barriers. It was my first sporting photo assignment.

Maybe you're already a boudoir photographer and your images look like everything else out there. Or perhaps you want to get started with an easy technique that doesn't require a studio or complicated lighting setups. In either case, the video below is for you.

You've probably heard the term "Expose to the Right" (ETTR) but do you understand the benefits of this somewhat controversial technique and know how to put it to use? Today's tutorial from the Hoffman Photography YouTube channel will get you up to speed so you can begin using ETTR today.