Nature Photography How To

Photographer and writer, Jaymi Heimbuch has a profound interest in wildlife and nature. Her goal is to create images that trigger an emotional connection with viewers, and which spur us all to be stewards of nature. Through her work, Heimbuch hopes to spark wonder, respect and appreciation for animals.

After almost 40 years of making platinum prints, chemical fumes had harmed Tom Millea’s lungs to a point where he could no longer go into the darkroom. He says, “Closing my studio was traumatic in the extreme.” He didn’t believe that anyone else was capable of printing his work as he envisioned it. He liked computers but had no desire to try to make digital prints look like his platinum prints. “One technique could not replace the other,” he says. He selected prints from his inventory to sell in gallery shows and considered himself retired.

But by 2004, when the color palette of digital inks had changed, Millea thought his prints were beautiful, and comparable with his darkroom images. He began making digital color photographs full-time using an Epson 2200 printer. Over the next five years, he says, “By myself, step by step, I learned to use the computer to make images I felt were uniquely my own.” He eventually put together a complete digital studio with Apple computers and two Epson printers, the 4800 and the 9800. He could then make his own prints up to 40x60”.

Long lenses are exciting to use because they enable us to view and capture images with far greater magnification than what we can see with our eyes. They also deliver dramatic, compressed perspectives and enable photographers to isolate subjects from busy backgrounds.

Arriving at a proper exposure can often be a challenge, especially when shooting under difficult lighting conditions outdoors. In this helpful video, Romanian pro photographer Toma Bonciu explains how to read a camera’s histogram and use the information to nail perfect exposures with ease.

Adding a subtle vignette to an image is a great way to finish up an edit and an effective method for focusing a viewer's attention on the central portion of your scene. But here's the rub: While most processing software includes sliders that allow you to easily apply this effect, the results you achieve by taking this approach are often disappointing.

Photographers have long been challenged when attempting to capture the splendor of big mountain ranges, both in terms of equipment and geography. In his quest to document Italy’s Dolomites, Kurt Moser decided to go really big, by converting a 45-year-old Russian military truck into a giant camera.

Photographing Waterdrops is a beautifully illustrated how-to photography guide that serves as both a technical tutorial and visual photography inspiration. Its collection of imagery explores the world within the tiniest droplets of water. Written by award-winning photographer Harold Davis, author of more than 30 books including the bestselling title, Photographing Flowers: Exploring Macro Worlds with Harold Davis, this photography book is intended to offer a fresh, creative perspective into the dynamic possibilities of natural waterdrop photography. Davis draws from his professional expertise and artistic perspective to offer advice on capturing extraordinary waterdrop compositions. Readers learn how to use light and reflections to their advantage, which tools and equipment work best for macro photography, and how to perfect their waterdrop shots both before and after shooting.