Long Distance Working Objectives (LDW) are specially designed lenses intended to provide high-resolution imaging and a greater working distance when compared to conventional lenses. The benefit to using these in a macro or micro range is that the configuration provides more room to illuminate the subject and also to image at a more convenient distance for focus stacking techniques. LDW lenses are readily available from a number of sources, such as Edmund Optics, Mitutoyo, Newport Corporation and Olympus, and they come in a variety of focal lengths, each designed for a specific magnification....

Anybody getting into video soon realises that camera movement is the key to getting more interesting shots. Often the first investment made to get that movement is in some kind of inexpensive camera slider. Sliders can be amazing, but sometimes you just need more. Especially on location, sliders aren’t always the best option, sometimes you need a track dolly. In this video, Logan at Premium Beat shows us how we can make a simple track dolly for under $50....

As you probably know, I am a bit obsessed with colors lately. While I was obsessively looking around and searching and asking people until they didn’t answer my requests anymore, something popped up and I have to share it because it’s simple and brilliant: Color Grading using luminosity masks. Zoë Noble just released a 10-minutes tutorial on Youtube, explaining the process on a very nice beauty-image. In the Video, Zoë explains the basics of luminosity masking....

The “flat design” style drop shadows seem to have become a big thing lately. Whenever I check out my YouTube feed, I always seem to see a new tutorial on how to do it in Photoshop, Illustrator or After Effects. It’s easy to see why. It’s a pleasing look. It complements a flat design with a sense of realism, depth and context. This is the first time, though, that I’ve seen it done for real, with actual objects....

In an ideal world, studio floors and walls would all be pristine and perfect. But in the real world, even freshly painted and cleaned ones don’t stay that way for very long. They pick up dust and dirt, get smudges, scuffs and scratches, and we end up having to either clean and repaint them more often or just deal with it in post. And if it’s a rented studio, forget about it....