ShootSmarter

02/17/2024

Hey photographers! I’d like to ask for your help please. One of my all-time best buddies, Jesus Garcia donates a lot of his time and resources to Rotary International. He’s working on a project in Guatemala again and has asked for basic photography equipment that they can give to the locals there to inspire professional photography. Here’s a chance to really make an impact where it counts.
This is a great organization whom my trust and have had supported for years. If you have anything you would like to share, please send it to:

Jesus Garcia
Newman Garcia Photo
323 Heinlen street
Lemoore CA 93245

Thank you very much! 

08/16/2021

I'm surprised Walmart did this. I LOVE Walmart but this is just wrong.

A picture is worth a thousand words, and thousand bucks is about how much a west suburban photographer's camera cost, but the equipment is worthless now, and no one will fix it.

08/13/2021

New video!
The old masters of the ƒ64 Group called it "pre-visualization", I call it "PreProcessing" but it's the main reason why I find mirrorless to be the best choice for my portrait work. Let me know if you agree?

Can one type of camera really produce a portrait better than another one can? Yes, it can actually make a huge difference and I'm glad to share it with you....

07/25/2021

Hey Fuji Shooters! We have a fun new video just for you...

The standard color setting in your Fuji camera is far from standard, and it's sure not neutral. Ever notice the unique "look" of the standard color's skin to...

07/17/2021

Variable neutral density filters are tricky little buggers to use even for professional photographers. Here's a simple and easy process for calibrating your VND for 1/10th stop exposure accuracy along with real, unbiased info from a life-long commercial pro including:

Which VND brands test out as best,
How to see and neutralize VND color shift,
How to correctly choose and shoot a grey card,
How to correctly use a flashmeter,
Which VND's to avoid at all costs,
Is the PolarPro brand worth the high price tag?

Variable neutral density filters are tricky tools to use even for professional photographers. Here's a simple and easy process for calibrating your VND for 1...

06/20/2021

I'm posting some of the mountains of new info on choosing and using ND filters on the HybridPhoto page this week. The ND video will be ready at the end of this week on my YouTube channel.

We are just finishing the testing of 15 Neutral Density filters for an upcoming pair of videos and have learned just about everything you need to know about ND's and VND's - Variable Neutral Density filters. It's funny that VND's have the word "neutral" in their names because none of the VND's are in fact neutral. Every one of them has a color shift, some a little some a lot. And the eBay cheapie VND's - what a joke. NEVER use them. I'll fill you in on my new data in the videos. We should have the first one ready at the end of this week. More info here over the next few days.

06/10/2021

Interesting test results on a $14 variable neutral density filter on our sister page.😎

I'm doing testing and research for my new video on Neutral Density Filters and learned something that I've always wanted to know today.
I've always bought the best quality filters for my lenses over the years and important filters like polarizers and ND filters for large lenses come with large price tags. These days, I'm shooting Fuji X cameras and need a 77mm filter for my set of Fuji glass. So while I'm testing top end variable ND filters (aka VND's) from Heliopan, Singh Ray and B+W, I thought I would toss in a few of the "budget" VND's. Ooooh baby did I find a good one!
The "Ultimaxx Variable ND Filter ND2-ND400" is new on eBay for $13.95 so you KNOW it's gotta be good right? hehehehe
The image here shows the reduction of sharpness to be about 18%, the color shift is 3.2 points GREEN plus 2.7 points RED. Remember this is a NEUTRAL density filter meaning it is not supposed to change color / contrast at all which is why it's called a NEUTRAL density filter.
This filter maker claims it covers ND2 to ND400 which would equate to 1 stop to 13 1/3 stops (hahaha) and in reality it covers 1.8 stops to 7.5 stops.
Never have I seen a more destructive filter.
So, I've reached out to the importer to see if he's up for telling the truth on his tech specs. I cannot ask him to post about the color shift, but I think he needs to come clean on the range.
Am I being a jerk by calling this guy out? I kinda feel bad for the people on Amazon and BH who buy this in good faith not knowing it does not live up to the advertised claim.

05/26/2021

So how do you really KNOW if you have a correct exposure?
How do you know your flashmeter or your cameras internal meter is correct?
You're not just looking at the cameras display screen and guessing at exposure are you? (yikes!) Spend 10 minutes to learn the FaceMask Histogram technique and see how quickly your exposure problems disappear.

Professional photo and video shooters understand the importance of recording perfect exposures on every shot they make. Fixing exposure problems can be tric...

05/06/2021

Brand new Will Crockett ShootSmarter video:
How to make BIG money from just ONE PHOTO.

Can one photo really generate over $30,000? Yep. Will Crockett did it and so can you by following these five tips. ShootSmarter presents top commercial shooter and noted photo educator Will Crockett as he shares the story of:

* How this shot was created using simple tools,
* Then sold as an advertising image for a global campaign,
* How still today generates money today as a stock image.
* And the secret to creating great (not just good) portrait photos.
Learn what do you can do to become a smarter, more profitable, successful professional photographer.

Can one photo really generate over $30,000? Yep. Will Crockett did it and so can you by following these five tips. ShootSmarter presents top commercial sh...

04/13/2021

We are moving many of our pay-per-view videos on photo + video lighting and shooting tips over to YouTube where they are all streamed for free. Just added today is our popular "ABC's of LED's" video that shares all the info you need to know about using LED lighting for portraits.
Please feel free to enjoy, learn and make fun of how chubby I was back then? hahaha
https://www.youtube.com/user/DiscoverMirrorless