“Photography brings the world together in a way that nothing else does.  You can travel to nearly anywhere on Earth, and if you pull out some photos people will want to see them and talk about them.” - Patrick Smith

His work has been featured in many magazines such as Nature’s best, What Digital Camera, American Photography, Popular Photography and others. Today we collected some of his most views photographs for you to appreciate. Please note that almost every single photo he takes, receives minimal post processing. Enjoy!

Golden Falls – Queen’s Bath, Kauai, Hawaii

45 Seconds at Hanalei, Kauai

Myst – Point Reyes National Seashore, California

Santa Monica – Evening at the pier

Tamalpais Glory – Marin County, California

Sausalito Morning #2 – Marin County California

The Monolith of Grey Whale Cove

Sunburst – Pfeiffer State Beach, California

Fog at the Gate #1 – San Francisco

Hapuna Light #1 – Hapuna Beach, Big Islan, Hawaii

Mango Skies – Hapuna Beach, Big Island, Hawaii

Isla Mujeres, Mexico

Yosemite National Park

Santa Monica Pier, California

Trade Winds – Isla Mujeres, Mexico

Kauai, Hawaii

Big Sur – Portal of the Sun

Vineyard Lane – Spring

Exposed – Isla Mujeres Mexico

The invention of the Polaroid camera was a big step in the advancement of photography. Aside from it being a nice and handy way of taking pictures, how much do we really know about the Polaroid camera?

The Man Behind the Polaroid

Edwin H. Land, American scientist and inventor, pioneered a breakthrough in photography when he devised an instant way of capturing images and printing them. When he discovered how polarization can be manipulated in photography, he created a camera that makes use of diffusion when transferring dye from negative to positive. Thus, the Polaroid camera was born.

Land’s first ‘baby’, the Polaroid Land Camera Model 95, was released commercially in 1948. Since then, people have been enjoying having their photos printed a minute after taking them.

Also known as Land Cameras, evidently named after their inventor, the first Polaroid camera was conceived under the partnership between Land and his physics professor George Wheelwright. They founded the Land-Wheelwright Laboratories in 1947, and later changed it to Polaroid Corporation when Land retired in 1982.

It was in 1963 when the company introduced the film pack called Polarcolor. This particular film had three layers of emulsion that responded quickly to red, green, and blue. It allowed Polaroid users to print the pictures they take in color by combining the complementary colors captured on film. On the other hand, the integral film, whose job was to print the photo minus the peeling of the negative from the positive, was launched in 1972 and built into the SX-70 camera.

Polaroid at Present

To date, Polaroid has given a wide range of products not limited to cameras. The company also offers matching equipment and accessories. What’s more noteworthy is that they’re still producing film even when everybody else is shifting to digital photography.

Even thou people are moving away, I still feel that Polaroid pictures are much more emotional. The entire process of taking the picture and seamlessly receiving in a few short seconds is blissful. I don’t look at it as receiving a picture, I look at it as receiving an instant memory. From then on every time you look at the photographs, your brain travels back in time and revisits the feeling/emotions you expressed.

Clearly, there are still a lot of people who patronize not just the brand but the uniqueness of its method of immortalizing something by taking a picture of it. And to prove just that, here are some stunning photos taken using the celebrated Polaroid camera. Oh, and for those of you whom are wondering you can still purchase an instant camera online. Enjoy!

Horrible Tip #1: Only take pictures when the light is perfect.

This also goes with the tip: you can only take beautiful pictures in a beautiful place. False! First of all, there is no such thing as “perfect” light. There are times when the light may be more suited for your picture, or easier to work with, but that does not make it perfect. If you have the skill, you can make an amazing picture out of just about any light. This also works for weather; you do not need perfect weather to take a perfect picture. Some of the best pictures have been in storms or other poor weather conditions.

You also do not need to be photographing the Eiffel Tower to get a beautiful picture. A place is just a place, “boring” or otherwise. What matters is what you do with the place. See the place from multiple perspectives, and capture that place in an interesting way. Even the most “exciting” places can be boring pictures, and the “boring” places can be the best pictures. What matters is what you do with the place you have.

Horrible Tip #2: You need to get an expensive camera to take great pictures.

Remember: it is not the camera that creates the picture; it is the photographer. It is still possible to take a poor picture even if you have the most expensive and “best” camera in the world, and yes, it is possible to take amazing picture with a small, inexpensive, point and shoot camera. Once your skills exceed the ability of your current camera, then it would be good to buy a more expensive one. The mistake is thinking that buying the more expensive camera is what will make you a good photographer. Use your camera to its full extent before you move on to another camera.

Horrible Tip #3: There is one perfect set of camera settings to make every picture perfect.

You see a picture from a professional photographer, and want to take the exact picture. The photographer shares the shutter speed, ISO, and f-stop they used, and you go to take the most amazing picture of your life. Guess what? It will not work. Even with the exact settings, it will not help your photo. Unless you have the exact light settings and other conditions, it will not turn out the same.

There is no perfect or correct setting for your camera. It all depends on what you are photographing, the conditions around the subject, and your preferences. What I think is perfect you may think looks horrible. The only time there is a perfect exposure is if you have an exact and firm vision of what you want your picture to look like. But that is between you and your camera. It does not need to be perfect for anyone else.

Horrible Tip #4: If your pictures are not “pro” quality, you should find a new hobby.

“Photography is too difficult” is a phrase you should never say! Many people look at pictures and say, “Hey I could do that,” and then they start taking pictures and realize how much actually goes into taking a picture, then give up when their starting pictures do not look like Ansel Adams’ photos.

Take photography one step at a time. Learn basic skills, simple tricks, then once you have mastered those, move on to more challenging skills. Of course you will not be a professional photographer on the first try, but be patient. Learn one trick at a time, and soon you could be.

Horrible Tip #5: Do not use Photoshop. If you do, you are not a real photographer.

Many people argue that photos should represent reality, and editing your pictures distorts reality. Now that is just silly. “Reality” takes in so much more than the picture: the area around the picture, the weather, the circumstances, and who you were with. You manipulate reality in choosing where to snap a picture, and how. You chose what part of reality to show, and that in itself creates something that is no longer “reality.”

Editing photos did not begin with Photoshop; many people were very good at editing photos in the darkroom. Ansel Adams was a master at this and manipulated his pictures like crazy. There are some people who have given Photoshop a bad name, but just about every single photographer edits their photos to some degree. When used artistically and tastefully, editing your photos can be used to present your version of reality to the world for all to enjoy.

Check out our previous articles!

• Eccentric City Silhouettes by Jasper James
• Dragon Ball Z-ing: Interesting Photo Trend Sweeping Japan
• Expressive Beauty: Exploded Flowers by Fong Qi Wei
• Cut Food Photography by Beth Galton
• Petheadz: Do Pets Really Look Like Their Owners?

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Dragon Ball is a long-running anime program with a massive fan base in Japan. Amongst the youth in Japan, a new photo trend called Dragon Ball Z-ing is gaining heavy traction. Numerous Japanese teens are uploading photos of themselves on Twitter replicating the Kamehameha attack in real life. This unique trend is actually very creative and certainly takes more aptitude than planking. It seems the trend is starting to make its way outside of Japan. We collected a few images to give you an idea of what it’s all about. Enjoy!

From commercial to personal projects, photography retouching is an art form. While some spectators might think it’s a walk in the park, it’s not as easy as it looks. Most celebrities actually hire their own digital artists to professionally retouch their images before they’re released to the public. While critics may argue that mainstream media promotes false visual and physical appearance, people should already realize that almost every single image you see is heavily edited.

The usual glamour and portrait type retouching techniques that simply soften, blur, or smudge the imperfections are something you should stay away from. Proper retouching techniques should be natural, clean and realistic. The overall goal, is for the viewer not to question what they’re perceiving. Today we’ve collected a few prominent retouching tutorials and photos. Enjoy!

Tutorials

1. Super Fast and Easy Facial Retouching
2. Professional Photo Retouching Bikini Model
3. Change Hair Color
4. Simple Facial Photo Retouching
5. Professional Photographic Retouching
6. How To Get Perfect Skin!
7. Glamour Model
8. Easy Digital Nose Job in Photoshop
9. How to Digitally Paint Lip Gloss with a Tablet
10. Remove Blemishes in Photoshop
11. Eye Color Change
12. Reducing 5 O’Clock Shadow And Beard Stubble In Photoshop
13. Increase Breast Size
14. Basic Retouch and Colorization
15. Applying Realistic Tattoo
16. Age Progression
17. Whiten Teeth to Improve a Smile in Photoshop
18. Intro to Advanced Skin Retouching

Inspiration