Photo How To

If the used camera lens you see online is packaged with a leash and a bone, odds are very good that it’s a dog. But in the absence of obvious evidence, how can you tell a bargain from a bagel? It’s impossible to physically examine the merchandise before purchase. And you can’t always trust what you see in the listing photos. However, you can conduct a thorough inspection upon receipt. Here are 10 things to check the minute the used lens is delivered. 

The Cooperative of Photography (COOPH) is a unique web magazine and online store, and they just shared the video below with some gorgeous and vibrant images.

In commenting on an obscenity case back in 1964 Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously quipped, “Hardcore pornography is hard to define, but I know it when I see it.” The same can be said of bokeh, a Japanese term for the perceived quality of the out-of-focus areas in a photograph. 

Ira Block can best be described as a cultural documentary photographer. He uses his camera to document cultures around the world, recording how lives are impacted by changing norms, practices, and traditions. The changes are most often gradual, which is why he returns to a location time after time after time. He captures the shifting sands, one grain at a time, helping us see these changes and appreciate them through his eyes—and through social media.

If you were befuddled by a description of the “Exposure Triangle” in your first photography class, you’re not alone. This relatively simple concept can be a bit difficult to explain; unless, that is, the instructor has some red Kool-Aid and a few glasses handy.

Longer story short: With a high-flying imagination and no shortage of necessary technical skills, Ali Jardine turned a creative hobby into a creative business by networking the new-fashioned way—with Instagram, Snapchat, Flickr, Facebook, and probably some other social sites she didn’t have time to list or mention.

Swiss photographer and digital artist John Wilhelm has a unique, whimsical style all his own, and in the visual Q&A below he uses his photographs to explain the essence of his stunning work.