Picture This

Whether it's adding light to shadows to create a good balance of tones, or brightening color on overcast days, fill flash provides an extra burst of light that can do the job. Close-up fill can be done with the built-in flash that comes with many cameras, or auxiliary flash that mounts on the camera's hot shoe. In either case, fill can be modified using the power...

Our Picture This! assignment this month was simply "Fog and Light," and readers responded with a host of gorgeous images that made the most of this very mysterious weather condition. As we looked through the pictures it became clear to us that readers responded to fog in the way it played with light and shadow and how it faded some colors and emboldened others. Many...

Our Picture This! assignment this month was for images made at flea markets and antique stores, where the sellers act as impromptu art directors and assemble their wares in often interesting ways. The assignment was to go on a kind of treasure hunt for those found still life photo ops, and to make framing and compositional decisions that created a cultural mix through juxtaposition of objects and...

Geological Wonders
Our Picture This! assignment this month was Geological Wonders, the amazing forms and patterns of the natural world. While we rightfully admire the design concepts and executions of engineers and artists, they are in many ways little match (indeed are often humble imitations) of what a walk in a canyon or valley will provide.

Our Picture This! assignment this month was “Graffiti: On the Wall,” and we asked readers to submit images that showed the best of a most decidedly urban and exterior art form. What we sought were mural artworks that by definition were mixed media, with the environment forming the canvas and the context often hinting at or defining content. We tried to avoid gang defacements and...

Our Picture This! assignment this month was High Contrast, in camera or in the darkroom (including digital). We received an overwhelming response from readers who used special effects on a wide range of subject matter. We were excited to see that this venerable form of expression has gotten new life thanks to digital techniques, and while quite a few of the images were first...