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How to build DIY color-changing LED wand light for $30

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Ice lights give nice and soft light for photography and video, but they can cost quite a lot and only come in one color. Their cheaper version called wand light changes colors, but there’s a catch. Out of 360 LEDs on the wand, only 40 of them can change to various colors. So, Jordan Thornsburg from Macroscope Pictures shows you how to bring cheap, versatile and powerful together in this great DIY project.

In this video, you’ll learn how to build your own DIY wand light, which gives out powerful lighting and changes colors as well. You can use it both in photography and video, as a light source or for special effects. I imagine light painting with this would be quite awesome, too. The components cost around $30 altogether, but you can make it extra fancy for 15 more bucks and add a Wi-Fi enabled LED controller so you can control the light with your phone.

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How to photograph wine and give it bold look using only one speedlight

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Photographer Dustin Dolby is known for his tutorials where he shows how to take professional-looking product shots with minimal gear. He guided us through taking fantastic cosmetic products shots, and photos of wine bottles that make you want to drink a glass of it (or the whole bottle). This time, he guides us through another way of photographing wine.  Instead of giving it bright and soft look, he goes for something darker and bold. Personally, I prefer this style, and it’s the kind of look that would go perfectly with strong-tasting red wines. This kind of photo almost makes you feel the taste of wine – and it’s created using only one speedlight and 4 photos blended together with some Photoshop magic.

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Phase One announces IQ3 100MP Achromatic, a 100MP B&W medium format digital back

Phase One has announced IQ3 100MP Achromatic, their new achromatic medium format digital back. It’s produced without Bayer color filter, which means it captures no color information. It produces monochromatic images in high resolution and details, without the distraction of colors. It provides 101 MP resolution and ISO range from 200 to 51,200, which makes it the most light-sensitive camera of its kind. It’s

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DIY hacks for stabilizing video when you don’t have the right gear

It’s hard to get smooth video without stabilizer, that’s for sure. But unfortunately, sometimes you’ll be stuck without it and you’ll have to improvise. There are various tricks for stabilization, and Ted Sim from Apurture shares six DIY hacks each of us can use. They involve readily available items, and some of them even involve relying only on your body and don’t require any props. So whichever situation you find yourself in, you will find at least one of these tricks handy for getting smoother footage.

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Action camera captures bear chasing a cyclist

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With the expansion and increased availability of action cameras, we’ve seen tons of different videos. Many of them are really epic, fun or so stupid that they cause some kind of a reaction. Because of this, our criteria rise and it’s not that easy to get impressed and amused anymore. But then, something like this comes up.

Dušan Vižnik was filming a bicycle ride through the woods in Slovakia when suddenly, a bear showed up running towards the cyclist in front of him. It’s scary as hell, and definitely an action cam video that will grab your attention.

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Photographer takes engagement photos, turns out it was the wrong couple

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It’s 6 in the morning. After hours of driving and over an hour of hiking, the photographer takes his position near Hawksbill Crag in Arkansas. He is supposed to photograph an engagement, and the couple shows up as planned. The guy proposes, the girl says “yes,” and the photographer has some great shots of the moment. But there’s a catch – it’s the wrong couple!

What are the odds, you may ask? Well, for photographer Jacob Peters this seems to have been “one of those days” when life decides to show you all the weird tricks up its sleeve.

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What are the best and the worst ways to carry your gear

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No matter if you only have a point and shoot camera or three tons of gear – you need something to carry it in, right? Chris from The Camera Store TV guides you through eleven different ways of carrying your photographic gear. From free manufacturer’s camera strap to pricey stylish bags, you’ll see all sorts of ways to carry your gear and their good and bad sides. Which one is your choice?

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How to create “orange and teal“ and many other looks using only two adjustment layers

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The “orange and teal” look is quite a popular style of color grading, both in movies and photography. In this video, Denny Tang will show you how to create this look using only two adjustment layers in Photoshop.

Those of you who are annoyed by the popularity of the “orange and teal”, this video is for you, too. With this technique, you can get plenty of different color grading styles, so if this popular look isn’t really your cup of tea, you can still learn this technique and apply it to get the look you like.

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This amazing timelapse of blooming flowers took 3 years to make

There are timelapse videos you just can’t stop watching. Filmmaker Jamie Scott has created one of these, and it’s named simply “Spring.” It features all kinds of blooming flowers, in most amazing transitions and even accompanying the music. Regardless of the fact I really love flowers and spring, I believe even those of you who aren’t exactly flower lovers will watch this timelapse in awe.

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Here’s how to take awesome night portraits with off camera flash

Recently, we published an article on overpowering the sun and shooting portraits in bright sunlight. But this time, we’re going to a completely different extreme. After daylight comes the dark, and Francisco Joel Hernandez will help you take portraits at night using off camera flash. If you’re new to this kind of portraits, you’ll find it really useful, and even the more experienced photographers can use it as a checklist.

Francisco shares advice for getting enough ambient light without ending up with overexposed subjects. He also provides some sample images and BTS shots to get you inspired and illustrate what he’s talking about.

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