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TraffickCam: an app that helps fight human trafficking with a smartphone

Human trafficking is undoubtedly a huge problem on a global level. There are many organizations trying to solve it, and now there’s an app that helps all of us join this fight. TraffickCam is an app that allows users to contribute to the database of hotel rooms all over the world. All you need to do is snap a few photos of the hotel rooms in which you stay on your travels.

But how does this help? Well, sex traffickers make their victims pose in the hotel rooms for advertisements. The database of hotel rooms can help investigators determine where exactly the photos were taken. This way they can track down the traffickers, arrest them and save the victims.

Fujifilm launches Finepix Xp120 for outdoor adventures along with new versions of X-Pro2 and X-T2

 

Good news for all adventurers comes from Fujifilm. They have announced new FinePix XP120, a rugged compact camera for all sorts of outdoor adventures. It has a 16.4MP back-illuminated CMOS sensor and 28-140mm Fujinon lens. The camera is waterproof to 65 feet (20 meters), shockproof to 5.7 feet (1.75 meters), freeze proof to 14°F (-10°C) and sealed against dust and sand.

Why 365 project may not be good for you

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There are plenty of reasons to start a 365 project. It can develop your creativity and push it further, help you find your style and learn something new. It helps you meet new people and get feedback on your photos. Also, it can serve as a diary when you look back on it some time after it’s done. However, this type of project and this approach may not work for some people. And I seem to be among them. I tried doing a 365 project and it didn’t really turn out as I expected. So I decided to share my thoughts on its negative sides.

Photographers rock! These are 10 great musicians who are also great photographers

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Apart from being in love with photography, I am also completely enchanted by music. My photos are often inspired by music or song lyrics, and I love the way these two forms of art intertwine. Unfortunately, I can’t play any instrument, although I’ve tried. And I’m a terrible singer.

But, this made me think about people who are equally good at both these forms of art. So I started looking for musicians who are also photographers, and I made some fantastic discoveries. I made a list of ten awesome pop and rock musicians who are equally good at photography. Is your favorite musician among them?

What are the differences between selfies and self-portraits?

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I am a great fan of self-portraits. I am not the best photographer, but I’m my own best model, that’s for sure. At the same time, I don’t really like selfies and I rarely take them. When I tell this to people, they often ask me “What’s the difference?” I wasn’t sure how to explain at first. But I gave it a thought, and I came up with several essential differences between a self-portrait and a selfie.

How being poor actually improves your photography

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Photography is an expensive hobby and an even more expensive profession. As a person who started photography as a young student, out of pure love and passion, I was not really able to afford everything I needed wanted for this hobby. To be honest, ten years later I’m still unable to afford most of the stuff. This held me back in some aspects, I suppose. But when I look back, I realize that it has also helped me in many more ways. Believe it or not, being poor made me who I am as a photographer.

Prime lens in event photography– limitation or possibility?

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I had an interesting discussion in a photography group on Facebook some time ago. It started with my question about the 35mm prime lens, and somehow I ended up discussing zoom lenses with a member of the group. He said that, as an event photographer, he doesn’t have the luxury of moving around and focusing with his feet so he only uses zoom lenses. I support him and agree with him – up to some point.

I am not a professional event photographer, so I have the luxury to experiment. And a few months ago I was in a situation where I had to experiment. My prime lens was put to a test in event photography – and I believe it passed.

Mining company loses 9 surveillance drones – because of eagles

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Earlier this year, we were quite surprised (to say the least) by the information that Dutch police were training eagles to take down drones. And what’s more, it seems that the weird approach against UAVs worked. But it appears eagles in Australia require no training to do it. Because they started seeing surveillance drones as their prey, a mining giant Gold Fields has lost nine drones!

Friends invited photographer out for shooting – but they brought guns instead of cameras

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I really, really hate guns. If someone invited me out for some shooting, I would think he wants me to go taking photos with him. And this is exactly what happened to astrophotographer Marc Leatham. Some friends invited him to a bonfire shoot at Four Peaks Wilderness in Arizona. It was only when they got there that he realized they didn’t bring cameras – they brought guns instead.

YI announces a 4k 60 FPS action camera

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As we’re only days away from CES 2017, YI – who named themselves GoPro killers – has announced their plans for the a New action camera. It seems their YI 4K Action Camera (which we reviewed here) is about to get the update. This January in Las Vegas, YI is about to present their new 4K+ Action Camera, which will allow you shooting 4K videos at 60 fps. They’ve also revealed more details about their upcoming YI Erida drone and announced to fly it live for the first time.

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