Photography is an art form that blends creativity with technical skill and constantly evolves with new techniques and technologies. For those eager to refine their craft, understanding that the journey of learning and growth in photography is anything but quick and straight is essential. It’s not just about capturing the perfect shot, but also about the process and the personal development that comes with it.

Coming to you from The Photographic Eye, this thoughtful video delves into the heart of what it means to be a photographer. It challenges the modern obsession with learning quickly, highlighting the deeper satisfaction found in gradual progress and overcoming challenges. The video emphasizes the value of patience and persistence in photography, drawing on historical figures like Ansel Adams and Harry Callahan to illustrate the point. It argues that real growth in photography comes not from shortcuts, but from the ongoing process of learning, experimenting, and adapting.

The discussion extends to the contrast between instant gratification and the rewarding journey of developing skills over time. The video criticizes the notion of learning photography “fast,” pointing out that true mastery comes from understanding and experiencing the process. It’s about celebrating small victories and the incremental progress that leads to genuine skill and artistic expression. This approach to photography not only enhances technical abilities but also deepens the personal connection to the art form. No matter where you are in your journey, it’s worth a watch.

Cities are filled with fantastic photographic opportunities, whether that’s focusing on the interesting characters going about their lives, or catching the brilliant details of architecture in buildings and skyscrapers.

The good news is that you can treat city scenes similar to landscapes, and the equipment needed is very similar. You can get great results with a DSLR or mirrorless camera with a kit lens, sturdy tripod, and a few filters. Cities have their own unique character, so wherever you are in the world you’ll be able to head into town to catch some top urban scenes and get creative with your Canon EOS.

• To shoot stunning cityscapes of your own, check out the best cameras for street photography

Reader of PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine, Kevin Moulds, is based in Glasgow and works in insurance. He’s an accomplished wedding photographer, comfortable shooting big crowds and in high-pressure situations, but would love to learn more about how to take better street shots. He turns to street photography to unwind and gets out and about with his camera to take urban shots after work and on his lunch breaks.

He’d like to know how to take better city photos so we’ve paired him up with city slicker Adam Bulley. Here’s some of the top tips Adam taught Kevin on their workshop together around Glasgow in Scotland.

Adam Bulley

Adam is a professional landscape and street photographer based in Edinburgh, Scotland where he runs photography tours. He’s always wanted to photograph more of Glasgow so he leapt at the idea, and in the run-up to our shoot, he went on multiple recces to Glasgow. We met up with him and Kevin to learn to shoot the city in the beautiful golden hour at sunset and watch the city transform from day to night in the magical blue hour.

1. Use Av mode

Kevin is a wedding photographer with plenty of experience shooting in Manual mode. To begin with Adam suggested he shoot in Aperture priority (Av) mode in the daytime and move into Manual later when the light levels drop. Adam also suggested Kevin should shoot with a middle aperture, around f/8 on his 24-70mm lens so that more of the street scene would be in sharp focus. Though he told Kevin not to be afraid to open the aperture all the way if he wanted to bring attention to a certain focal point.

2. Use the histogram

Adam showed Kevin why he always checks the histogram after any important shot. It displays all of your exposure information from the deepest blacks on the left of the graph to pure white on the right and all of the mid-tones in-between. Switch on the histogram to appear over your image when shooting in Live View, or you can press the Info button in playback mode to see it. It’s worth checking to make sure the tones are evenly spread and not all bunched up on the left or right sides as this means your picture is over or underexposed and you will have lost some detail in the highlights or the shadows.

3. Professional tripod

A tripod is essential for taking sharp shots at night and even in the day for long exposures. Adam has a Gitzo GT3532LS Series 3 carbon fibre model. He’s paired it with an Arca-Swiss D4 Quickset Classic geared head for maximum precision. Kevin uses an entry-level tripod that needed the centre column to be raised. This is the wobbliest part of any tripod, so Adam enabled his 10-sec self-timer to mitigate camera shake.

4. Telephoto zoom lens

Adam prefers to use telephoto lenses over wide-angles as they compress the perspective, so your focal point doesn’t become lost like it would in a composition that was too wide. He uses the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS II USM with his EOS DSLRs, although he also has a Canon RF 800mm F11 IS STM that he uses on his mirrorless EOS R5 when he needs the super-long telephoto reach.

5. Rule of thirds

Adam uses the rule-of-thirds grid overlay available on many Canon EOS cameras in the main menu by changing the Grid Display option. The 3×3 grid is overlaid on your scene when shooting in Live View and you can use it to place important points of interest and focal points or horizon on the grid lines, or two intersecting lines to give your images even more compositional clout.

6. Clear the streets

Some of the best places to take pictures in cities get heavy footfall and it can be hard to take a clean shot free from crowds. To make your tourists vanish you can set up on a tripod and either take several shots over a period of time and hope that the people move enough so that you can piece them together in Photoshop to create a totally clean scene. Another option is to attach a neutral density filter and extend the shutter speed to 30 secs, or even several minutes long. A long exposure will hopefully give you enough time to turn any moving people into invisible blurs!

7. Wide-angle zoom

Adam uses a wide-angle focal length on his Canon EOS 5DS R with his Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM and Sigma 14mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lenses. Anything wider than 50mm on a full-frame is considered wide angle, and focal lengths such as 14mm or 16mm are considered super wide-angle, enabling you to squeeze even more of the scene into your composition, although they can suffer from barrel distortion and make straight lines in buildings look curved.

8. Custom white balance

If the colours in your city images aren’t quite right, one thing you can do is set a custom white balance. Make sure you’re shooting in the RAW file format so you capture all of the white balance information, this way you can change it back at your computer if needed. To get the colours as accurate as possible in-camera go into the White Balance setting on your Canon’s Quick Menu and choose from one of the presets, such as Cloudy, or set a custom value until your scene looks right.

9. L-bracket for EOS bodies

Adam has attached Three Legged Thing L-brackets to both of his Canon EOS cameras. These screw into the tripod attachment mount and have metal Arca-Swiss mount on the base and side of the bracket. When used with a tripod head that can accept an Arca-Swiss quick release plate it means the camera can be switched from landscape to portrait orientation in rapid time so you don’t miss the moment, all while keeping the weight over the centre of the tripod to keep it balanced.

10. Shooting a panorama

Even with a super wide-angle lens you may struggle to fit everything inside of your composition, plus a wide-angle lens can also cause problems with distortion. The solution could be to shoot a panorama. These shots work best with a standard/short telephoto focal length of around 50-200mm and this helps keep buildings looking straight. You’ll want to focus on your main building and switch to MF to keep it fixed, then in Manual mode, lock the exposure in so it doesn’t change between frames. Start on the left-most side of your panorama and take a series of shots moving towards your right-most point, try to ensure each image overlaps by about 30% to make it easier for software to stitch the images together. You can also get a panoramic look shooting with a wide-angle lens and a 16:9 aspect ratio too.

If you’re really into city photography, you’ll want to check out the best street lenses. Adam uses a Canon EOS R5. To see his stunning portfolio check out his Instagram, or to book a workshop visit his website.

U.S. Rocker Photo Editor Gave Us More than Magnificent Images

By DONNA BALANCIA

Luis Moreno, photo editor and music reviewer for US Rocker, passed away after an 18-month battle with pancreatic cancer. Friends, family and acquaintances drew inspiration from his remarkable bravery and strength during the last year and a half.

During the last months, Luis bravely continued to enjoy his passions: Water polo, swimming, being with his family, and photographing and reviewing musical acts across Los Angeles and beyond. He did not complain, but instead focused on what he needed to do to make the lives of others more complete.

Luis was a gifted photographer and creative soul who enjoyed collaboration with an ever-cheerful disposition and respect for everyone, particularly those in the most need. He lived life with a robust enthusiasm that did not abate though he was fighting for his life against one of the deadliest cancers.

Luis was liked by everyone who came in contact with him, from the kids he coached in water polo in the South Bay and their parents, to the wildest of rock stars he photographed. He had a love of all kinds of music, from rock to jazz and the blues, to the most avant-garde and indie. If the music moved him he loved it and through his reviews and word of mouth he would let people know who to listen to.

Luis has won his share of accolades in sports, modeling and photography. He was comfortable in almost any situation, whether it be a party at Van Halen’s in Pasadena when he was a kid, or in Europe where he capitalized on his sports abilities and his modeling pursuits.

For US Rocker and its previous incarnation, California Rocker, Luis was dedicated on every assignment. He captured the essence of the event he attended. He had a way with the rockers and rebels as well as regular people in the crowd who often would be surprised to find themselves beautifully portrayed in his photos. Fellow photographers enjoyed sharing time and a laugh or two with him in the pit at concerts and festivals.

Luis was proud of his daughter Celina, and his wife Joan, both of whom he often spoke of adoringly and who he would bring along on assignment when he was able. He drew strength from the love of his family and set an example for younger as well as older people along his path on this Earth.

The staff at US Rocker today and forever celebrates the life and work of Luis Moreno, our colleague and friend.

Check out the great work of Luis Moreno below and here

A ‘Vinterview’ – The Vindys Give Luis Moreno of U.S. Rocker The Scoop

Review + Photos: Sparks and They Might Be Giants Light it Up at The Hollywood Bowl

Billy Idol and Gang of Four Rock the Crowds at Cruel World (Day One)

Photos: Moby Performs a Night of Covers for Charity at Ford Theatres Saturday Night

Meet Christine Ward, a talented artist based in Brisbane, Australia. With roots in the tattoo industry since 2011, Ward’s creative journey took a turn in 2019 when she decided to explore her role as a photographer. Specializing in bird and nature photography, Ward’s work reflects her deep connection with the great outdoors. 

Nature is Ward’s muse, and you can often find her wandering in forests, drawing inspiration from the colors, shapes, and textures around her. Her photographs aren’t just pictures; they’re a way to share the incredible feelings nature brings.

Explore Ward’s pictures below to see the magic of nature that keeps us hooked!

More info: Instagram | christinewardart.com | Etsy

Harness the power of ON1 Effects for free if you download it before January 31, 2024. The versatile editing tool gives users the freedom to explore a range of one-click presets, filters, backgrounds and, textures plus it includes intuitive AI tools such as Super select AI and Mask AI.

Sitting comfortably among the best photo editing software, ON1 Photo RAW offers powerful photo editing tools at a very affordable price. With non-destructive editing, support for layers and a great range of effects, you can transform your photos in just a few clicks. ON1 Effects is a plugin renowned for simplifying the photo editing process even more so by offering an extensive range of one-click presets, filters, LUTs and textures as well as several powerful AI tools.

Compatible with both Mac and Windows, the software can be used as a standalone application or seamlessly integrated as a plugin for popular photography applications like Adobe Lightroom Classic, Photoshop, Capture One, Affinity Photo, and Corel Paint Shop Pro. Users can select from presets such as Sun Glow, Golden Autumn or Vivid Landscape and multiple effects can be stacked or applied to specific areas of an image giving users complete creative control. 

One of the standout features of ON1 Effects is the intuitive Super Select AI tool which gives users the ability to select specific regions with a single click making it easier to make blue backgrounds, change something’s hue, or lighten an area. Users can also say goodbye to time-consuming brush selection thanks to Mask AI which uses advanced machine learning to create precise masks so users can quickly select objects, people or regions to edit. 

Dan Harlacher, the Vice President of Product at ON1 said, “We are excited to offer ON1 Effects for free until January 31st, allowing new photographers to explore its powerful features and have a lot of fun styling their photos. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a passionate photography enthusiast, this limited-time offer provides a unique opportunity to enhance your creative process at a tremendous value.”

To take advantage of this offer, head to the ON1 website here you can download ON1 Effects for free. After January 31, ON1 Effects will be available to buy at the regular price of $69.99/£68.52 so don’t miss out on your chance to explore everything ON1 Effects has to offer.