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These photos were taken by two little girls in 1917, and they are gorgeous

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I recently watched a movie with my kids about the Cottingley Fairies.  The film was a bit of a snoozer but it was my introduction to the true story of two little girls who, between 1917 and 1920 took beautiful b&w glass plate photographs of one another interacting with fairies in the forest behind their home in Cottingley, England.

A century later, we don’t give a second thought to any notion that what these children photographed were real elfin creatures.  Yet in the early 20th century, with photography and scientific culture in its infancy, the five photographs that the young girls took were under serious investigation by the entire world.  The case would become a fulcrum on which questions of science and faith were levered.

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An in-depth look at the best macro photography light modifiers you can buy, or make yourself

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Even though speedlights are incredibly useful for macro photography, they’re light does not always look flattering. Harsh shadows in unwanted places, blown-out highlights and strong aberrations are common issues. And even though strong, directed light can look good in many cases, diffused light looks more natural and generally more pleasing to the eye too.

The two following photos illustrate that effect:

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My Facebook photography page was hacked and used to scam hundreds of people out of their money

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August 5th

I received a message via facebook messenger in my johnwilhelmisaphotoholic-fb-page inbox. A man introducing himself as Adam Torres told me he would like to buy my fb page. I clearly remember how I was laughing about it with my wife (who is actually my girlfriend but it confuses people all the time to have 4 kids with a girlfriend so I call her my wife) and how I wrote him back that I was not interested in money.

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How nature photography brought me back from the brink of suicide

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Photography offers an escape unlike any other. It allows us to capture moments, create moments, and interpret the worlds we see through a lens. We document, we study, we create art, and for me, this was lifesaving.

Several years ago, in my early twenties, I suffered a huge mental breakdown. It was unexpected, out of control, and hard. Truth be told, I’d been suffering for many years before this but as we all do from time to time, I just pretended my problems weren’t there. I wasn’t pleasant to be around, my head was a very busy place, and I was struggling to cope.

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How sharing your photos on Unsplash may (not) help you grow your photography career

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It is now exactly 2 years since I started uploading stock photos to Unsplash -the slightly controversial stock photo platform where everything is FREE for everyone.

And I thought this is a good occasion to review what I gained from my presence on Unsplash.

In this article I want to answer the question if giving away one’s photographs for free on Unsplash has benefits for photographers.

Of course, these are just my own experiences. Your mileage may vary…

Let me give you the short conclusion first. For me as a professional photographer publishing photos on Unsplash was (almost) completely useless and had no tangible benefits.

Yet I am not negative towards Unsplash and I am going to tell you why.

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Here are some ideas on how to use a variable ND filter for shooting landscapes

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Attaching the NiSi Vario filter to a lens basically means that we have added a fourth dimension to our camera. The exposure triangle; aperture, iso, shutter speed, has been expanded with a fourth variable with which we can play to achieve a desired effect or outcome. This of course opens up for new creative opportunities in our photography, and also adds a lot of flexibility to our shooting.

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The Clash of Palladium and Silver

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September 21st, 1979. Forty years ago, British rock photographer, Pennie Smith immortalized the destruction of a Fender P-Bass guitar by Paul Simonon of The Clash on the stage of The Palladium in New York City, on gorgeous B&W 35mm film.

Her soft-focus, grainy image with its blown-out highlights and development stains has been dubbed by numerous publications and music fans, “the Greatest Rock ‘n’ Roll Photograph of All-Time.”

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I build miniatures and shoot them with real Milky Way to create realistic scenes

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Breaking the rules and thinking outside the box is something a photographer should always consider.

You start your journey with photography capturing everything you see interesting, jumping from one genre to the other until you find your favorite style.

I was passionate about Astronomy since I was a child, and Astrophotography was for me a perfect match, it combined my love for astronomy, my love for nature and landscapes with adventures, travel and camping. This beautiful recipe is just perfect for me.

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How to shoot awesome dance floor photos at weddings

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I love dancing shots at weddings! Nothing like getting stuck into the middle of a party and capturing everyone having an awesome time. But invariably the lighting for the party isn’t great, what’s fantastic for a party atmosphere isn’t always good for a photographer. So if you want to capture some incredible dancing shots, you’re going to need to add your own light.

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