Photofocus

Education and inspiration for visual storytellers

Scott Wyden Kivowitz

Scott Wyden Kivowitz is the Chief Community Officer at Imagely, a father, photographer blogger, and educator. Scott is also the author of multiple photography ebooks including the topics of long exposures, panoramics, and street photography. Get his free Lightroom video series, Fundamentally Lightroom, to help you simplify your Lightroom workflow, and also receive his free photography guides collection as a thank you.

Latest posts by Scott Wyden Kivowitz (see all)

$10,000 in photography grant open for submissions

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(Editor's Note: Scott Wyden Kivowitz is the Chief Community Officer at Imagely.) Although Imagely makes WordPress plugins and themes for photographers, their roots trace back to humanitarian work. It always has and will continue to be. One way that the company gives back is to support incredible environmental and humanitarian photography projects. For years this was called the Photocrati Fund until the company rebranded as Imagely. Now, in its seventh year, the Imagely Fund has raised its stakes from one $5,000 grant to two $5,000 grants. … [Read more...] about $10,000 in photography grant open for submissions

Taking Accent AI 2.0 out for a spin

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I have a client who buys distressed properties around New Jersey. They either fix them up and rent them, or they flip the properties. So I decided to use some of the recent photographs I made for my client to take Skylum's new Accent AI 2.0 filter out for a spin. To do so, I loaded up Luminar 3, connected a folder of property photos to the Luminar library and started browsing and testing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t96dZHRP4FA One of the things I love about the new filter is how it recognizes objects and performs edits based on those … [Read more...] about Taking Accent AI 2.0 out for a spin

What photographers should do when waiting for a long exposure to finish

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I've been there, you've been there, we've all been there. You're at the scene, camera set up, exposure time determined and you push the shutter button on the camera or your cable release. Now you wait ... And wait ... Still waiting ... The light is so perfect with the purples and pinks and oranges in the sky. You need the exposure to be on point. You want that photo to be the defining photo of your trip. But the exposure time is long. It's so long. It's crazy long. It's 20 minutes because your neutral density filter is so dark. So I … [Read more...] about What photographers should do when waiting for a long exposure to finish

Black and white vs. color: Which has more emotion?

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I feel like this topic is one that can be debated from here to eternity. It's a fun discussion where everyone is right. Which has more emotion, black and white photographs or color photographs? I wanted to bring this up because while testing ColouriseSG for a video (below) I chose to use a photograph with great meaning to our family and to many others around the world. The photo you see here was taken on the day that my wife's grandfather was liberated from the Allach concentration camp (a sub-camp of Dachau) in Germany. In fact, he's in this … [Read more...] about Black and white vs. color: Which has more emotion?

Two brand mistakes that are frustrating photographers

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You might have noticed two companies in the photography industry doing things that are frustrating you. It's possible one of these companies is even confusing you. Today I want to share two mistakes that I know are frustrating me, and could likely be frustrating you. My hope is that these companies notice some commentary here on Photofocus and respond to your frustrations. Nikon First up is Nikon, but before I dive in, know that I am a Nikon photographer. I have been forever and will continue as such. But when a company does something that … [Read more...] about Two brand mistakes that are frustrating photographers

My move to mirrorless

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Ever since Sony released their first full-frame mirrorless camera in 2013, I have been wanting to make the switch from DSLR to mirrorless. But I did not want to switch to Sony, for a handful of reasons. Some of which are: The camera is built on the Minolta system, which to me is a turnoff. (Here come the hater comments). You see, I used to work at a large camera warranty company and could see first hand how poorly made Minolta cameras were, how poorly made Sony cameras were. Yes, Sony has evolved over the years, and they’re much (much) … [Read more...] about My move to mirrorless

Nikon Z6 first impressions

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Before picking up the Nikon Z6, I had some doubts about the new Z system Nikon created. First and foremost is the elephant so obviously in the room. The single card slot that only accepts an XQD card, and soon a CFexpress card. Fortunately, CFexpress will make memory cards less expensive for the Z system. The new camera bodies also have a new lens mount to go with it. Which means you cannot use Nikon’s classic lens collection on the new bodies natively. Sure, they’ll work. But you have to use the Nikon FTZ adapter. That converts the F mount … [Read more...] about Nikon Z6 first impressions

The absolute best time to post on Facebook

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Let’s be honest, you’re slightly misled by the title of this. Kinda, sorta. OK, here is the truth. I am about to tell you the absolute best time to post on Facebook. But really, that time depends on you. There, I said it. There is no golden hour for Facebook posts. There is no shining star that works for everyone. There is no miracle worker. Facebook is a pay to play system now. Back in “the day” you could go on Facebook, post something, and all of your page followers would see it. But now you’re lucky if you can get a handful of people … [Read more...] about The absolute best time to post on Facebook

Business routines: Financials

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The first of every month is something I've become accustomed to ... My phone alert going off at 10 a.m. saying "Business Finances." This alert serves as a reminder for me to open my bank accounts online dedicated to my LLC (business) and download all the activity from the previous month. This act takes about 2-5 minutes depending on if my daughter lets me focus or not. Next, I open QuickBooks Online and go to the banking section. I then import the downloaded files into QuickBooks. From there I match the right categories to everything and … [Read more...] about Business routines: Financials

Call me impressed: A small change to a simple product

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Think Tank Photo recently made a tiny change (really a couple tiny changes) to a product that's so simple, and I'm impressed. For years I have used the Think Tank Photo memory card wallets, like the Pixel Pocket Rocket. I've used wallets that hold Compact Flash cards, Compact Flash and Secure Digital cards, and only Secure Digital cards. But recently Think Tank Photo announced their new Secure Pixel Pocket Rockets. These wallets are slightly larger than the previous versions for two reasons: They're meant to hold any memory card … [Read more...] about Call me impressed: A small change to a simple product

5 incredibly useful photography accessories

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As photographers, we often find ourselves faced with endless choices of gadgets and gizmos that could aid in our artwork. Today I want to share a few items that you could find useful in your camera bag, closet or drawer. These items might not be useful on a regular basis, but when you need it, having them could be a project saver. Hero Clip The first product I want to share is the Hero Clip. It's a carabiner unlock any you've used before. It's a carabiner with a hook. Yes, that simple! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpqGZDky5vw Having … [Read more...] about 5 incredibly useful photography accessories

5 steps to get out of Auto

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When just starting out in photography the typical person will begin their journey with the camera set to Auto. Using this mode tells the camera to choose the ISO, shutter speed, aperture, flash and focus. https://youtu.be/YUuwmeEhZu0 To be honest, the Auto mode has gotten much better over the years, and it can really lead to nice photographs. But the photographer still needs to think about composition and focal length. There is so much more to photography than simply clicking the shutter button and moving along. It’s an art and with … [Read more...] about 5 steps to get out of Auto

Don’t make this outdoor lighting mistake

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I made a mistake. It was one that I teach photographers not to make, but I still did it. You see, it was a scorching, sunny day. There was no wind, so I didn’t plan on bringing any sand or water bags to weigh my light stand down. But then, out of the blue came one strong gust of wind. For only the entire photo session. Down came my light sand. I was lucky, in a way, because my umbrella broke the fall, and took the effect of the impact. The umbrella’s rod snapped in half, but my strobe was in perfect … [Read more...] about Don’t make this outdoor lighting mistake

3 ways to use a ring light in photography

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At first glance, it might appear as though a ring light has only one purpose in photography. But really, you can think outside the circle (pun intended) to use a ring light in multiple ways. Today we’d like to share some of those with you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJketh_sOEI Standard method The standard method for using a ring light is to use it as a main light source with a camera inside of the circle. That enables the light to illuminate the subject’s face perfectly in a complete circle. With the camera inside of the circle, the … [Read more...] about 3 ways to use a ring light in photography

A simple and free content creation workflow

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Editor’s Note: We welcome Scott Wyden Kivowitz to the Photofocus team. Scott is a father and photographer whose dedication to teaching photographers comes through in a straightforward and no fluff style. Scott is also the Chief Community Officer at Imagely, the WordPress Photography People. Not all photographers feel comfortable with the idea of content creation. I’m not referring to photography content, of course. I’m talking about text or video and even audio content. In this article, I will be sharing two simple workflows that can help … [Read more...] about A simple and free content creation workflow

Using video for your photography business

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Editor’s Note: We welcome Scott Wyden Kivowitz to the Photofocus team. Scott is a father and photographer whose dedication to teaching photographers comes through in a straightforward and no fluff style. Scott is also the Chief Community Officer at Imagely, the WordPress Photography People. As photographers, we think photography is the only thing we should be showing on our websites. The mobile age is here and has been for a while. But it’s only still getting started as new apps and services are coming out every day for both iOS and Android. … [Read more...] about Using video for your photography business

Four ways to photograph a white background

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Editor's Note: We welcome Scott Wyden Kivowitz to the Photofocus team. Scott is a father and photographer whose dedication to teaching photographers comes through in a straightforward and no fluff style. Scott is also the Chief Community Officer at Imagely, the WordPress Photography People. Sometimes the simplest things can produce the most results. Sometimes the least expensive things can open up more doors than you ever thought was possible. Sometimes photography feels like magic. White backgrounds are such … [Read more...] about Four ways to photograph a white background