A Photographer’s Guide to Light: Noticing Direct Reflections

If you’d like to know more about the essential role that light plays in photography, then you’ll love our course, A Photographer’s Guide to Light. In this lesson, you will learn about direct reflections and see how they work in lighting and photography. Direct Reflections Direct reflection—also known as specular reflection—is the mirror-like reflection of a… Continue reading A Photographer’s Guide to Light: Noticing Direct Reflections

Best monitors for graphic design for 2022

Stan Horaczek Best overall BenQ PD3220U Check Price Best for Mac LG 27MD5KB-B Ultrafine 27″ Check Price Best for graphic design and photography ViewSonic VP3268a Check Price Monitors for graphic design have some very specific requirements beyond the typical displays found in homes and offices. Graphic designers frequently work in fine detail, so sharpness and… Continue reading Best monitors for graphic design for 2022

Best monitors for eye strain in 2022

Stan Horaczek Best overall BenQ 27″ USB-C Photo Editing Monitor Check Price Best 32-inch ViewSonic VP3268a Check Price Best 4K LG 27UN850-W Check Price Many of us can thank our monitors for eye strain that lasts well after we have logged off of work for the day. We spend dozens of hours every week staring… Continue reading Best monitors for eye strain in 2022

Best touchscreen monitors of 2022

Stan Horaczek Best for business Dell P2418HT 24IN IPS Check Price Great features and good media delivery across the board. Best Budget ASUS VT168HR Check Price Stripped down TN touchscreen for controls and business applications. Best overall Wacom Cintiq Pro 16 Check Price Immaculate screen, and excellent drawing and design tools in a pen /… Continue reading Best touchscreen monitors of 2022

Best 3D printers under $1,000 in 2022

Stan Horaczek Best Overall R QIDI X-Plus Check Price Great prints with easy assembly. Best Budget Creality Ender-3 S1 Check Price An affordable hobbyists printer with some power-features. Best Resin ANYCUBIC Photon Mono X 6K Check Price Exceptional high-res resin prints. Load up the filament, transfer your slices … the best 3D printers under $1,000… Continue reading Best 3D printers under $1,000 in 2022

Tips from the pros: 3 keys to taking better bird pictures

A great grey owl. ISO 1600, 1/200 sec, f/5.6 @ 70mm. Michael Cummings/Getty Images This post on better bird pictures has been updated. It was originally published on June 3, 2015. At once challenging and wondrous subjects, birds are fast, elusive, biologically diverse, and can be stunningly beautiful. “There are about 10,000 species of birds… Continue reading Tips from the pros: 3 keys to taking better bird pictures

How Lighting Imparts Emotion in an Animated Scene

Lighting in animation is more than just making a scene look stunning—it’s also about choosing an aesthetic that can evoke a desired style, mood, or ambience. Lighting can be incredibly nuanced, and it’s often used to give audiences a better connection to the emotional levels of the animation. Lighting can help to convey the mood… Continue reading How Lighting Imparts Emotion in an Animated Scene

The first image from the James Webb Space Telescope is here, and it’s stunning

The portion of sky recorded in the image is akin to holding a grain of sand at arm’s length. NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI After much anticipation, today NASA unveiled the very first image from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), said to be the highest-resolution infrared image of the universe, ever. It features the… Continue reading The first image from the James Webb Space Telescope is here, and it’s stunning

Feast your eyes on these brilliant astronomy photos

“Radio Telescope” shortlisted for The Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer. © Liu Xuemei The Milky Way floats over the Oregon coast while rushing seawater plays a soothing song into the night. A compendium of nebulae in capricious colors. These are just some of the images shortlisted for the 14th annual Astronomy Photographer of… Continue reading Feast your eyes on these brilliant astronomy photos

Everything’s just beachy: Our favorite reader-submitted Photos of the Day

“Riding the wave”. Gordon Webster Photography There’s nothing quite like a trip to the seaside. It’s something about the way the saltwater air teases your hair and flavors your sandwich, how the sun reflects off pastel umbrellas, and how the waves rumble in and out, taking with them the occasional sandcastle. This week, we asked… Continue reading Everything’s just beachy: Our favorite reader-submitted Photos of the Day