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Photographer captures a day in the life of four African Omo Valley tribes (nsfw)

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One of the powers of photography is to teach us about the world and the places we may never see ourselves. Photographer Michele Zousmer traveled to Omo Valley in the southwest of Ethiopia. She brought back some striking photos, capturing daily lives of four tribes living in this area: Arbore, Konso, Hamer and Banna.

Michele captured the moments from their lives including the “everyday stuff” like going to a market, to one of the tribe’s rituals. Along with the images, there are the stories of the people in them, which give the whole project a new, more personal dimension.

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Shooting through prisms at home or in the studio

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In this tutorial we will be going over how to create gorgeous in-camera flared effects that can add a lot of depth and interest to a simple portrait image. To do this we will be using a glass prism which can be found on any number of online retail sites. The glass prisms are generally used for school science experiments so they’re readily available and very inexpensive.

25mm x 100mm glass prism on Amazon link here

The prisms are very easy to use out on location as you simply hold them in front of the lens and shoot away. If you’re looking to use them in a studio environment though there are a few key things to bear in mind to maximise the flared effect that creates that signature look.

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This is why you should use soft light for portraits and how to make it

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The choice for shooting hard vs soft light is quite an easy one for many people. But if you don’t understand what the difference is, what difference it makes to your subject, or how to create it, soft light can be a bit of a mystery. Soft light is fantastic for portraits, though. It’s particularly flattering, especially to ladies, and isn’t that difficult to understand.

This video from Caleb Pike at DSLR Video Shooter walks us through how to get it and why we need it. Caleb uses his lights for video, although the principles are exactly the same for photography, too.

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These artists connect portraiture with architecture photography to create a feast for your eyes

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Spanish duo Daniel Rueda and Anna Devis are creatives, explorers, architecture lovers, and photographers. They travel the world and capture what they see in a creative and incredibly pleasing set of images. They shoot interesting architecture, but act as subjects in these photos too. This adds a unique perspective and creates a story that makes their photos even more appealing.

Their photos are pleasing tot he eye and somehow even soothing. When I first saw them, I couldn’t help but smile. Other than being wonderfully and carefully composed, they’re fun and spread the positive vibes.

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Lensbaby launches Velvet 85mm f/1.8, a lens designed for soft portraits

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Lensbaby has announced Velvet 85mm f/1.8, a lens inspired by classic portrait lenses from the mid-20th century. With smooth and soft glow, it’s especially aimed at portrait photography. But, it’s good noting there’s the ability to reduce the softness by stopping the lens down. With 1:2 magnification and 9.5″ working distance, this lens can also be used for close-up shots.

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Photographer uses a 19th-century technique to capture haunting portraits of children

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In the age of digital images, Spanish photographer Jacqueline Roberts goes over 160 years into the past. She uses a 19th-century photographic process to create hauntingly beautiful portraits of children.

Her artwork is made by using wet plate collodion, the process introduced in 1851. So, her photos aren’t only tangible and immortal, but they also stand out from any modern photographic work. The kids in her images stare right into your soul, and each plate she creates is one of a kind.

Jacqueline has shared a few words about her work with us. She also shares some of her amazing photos, and you’ll find it hard to stop looking at them.

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How I photographed Comic Con portraits using only one light source

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Back in December my brother asked me if I would be interested in going to Comic Con in Indianapolis, IN, and I immediately said absolutely! In his mind, he was excited to see what comic books he could find or the hard to find vinyl POP figure or possibly a GI Joe collectible, but in my mind I knew I was going there to photograph people in their costumes.

These couldn’t be just any images though… I mean come on, the lighting at the event is going to be gross, the crowds will be huge, I’ll have to fight for space… This seems like 360 degrees of complexity. So, I start thinking to myself “how can I make the subjects stand out from the crowd?”, I got it! I’ll do one speedlight in my 26″ Westcott Rapid Box attached to my mono pod, I’ll expose for the environment to be dark and then have the light just kiss the top half of the subject. There was one issue though, I needed someone to hold the light. I was in luck! My younger brother who lives in the area was also attending Comic Con and he is a photographer too. I reached out to him, told him what I was thinking, and he was in.

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