Last week we featured a beginners guide to boudoir photography from an acclaimed pro who demonstrated how to capture sensuous images without flash by using window light as the primary source of illumination. Today Yuliya Panchenko is back with another eye-opening tutorial that delivers extremely dramatic effects

Panchenko is a world-class boudoir photographer and popular instructor with over 150K enthusiastic subscribers (and dozens of how-to videos) on her instructional YouTube channel. In this episode she explains how to employ low-key lighting to create dramatic and mysterious images that really grab attention.

This unique style of sensuous portraiture relies upon enhanced shadows and contrast to add drama, mystery, and intensity to intimate boudoir photographs, while accentuating a subject’s best features. Panchenko explains how this low-key technique “will also enhance the emotional depth and sensual quality of your boudoir photographs.”

Panchenko provides guidance for setting up a simple home studio for low-key lighting and describes the equipment she recommends. There’s also some great advice on directing and collaborating with your subject. She’s working with beautiful Scarlet Begonias, which makes the task easier, and it’s up to you to find a willing model.

While watching the episode you’ll pick up some great tips on composition, along with several great poses for accentuating a subject’s most flattering attributes whatever they may be. The technique you’ll learn here is more involved than the earlier lesson in last week’s beginners guide because supplemental light is required. Your efforts will be rewarded with evocative, moody, and powerful results that will make you and your model proud.

Now that you’ve begun to experiment with more involved techniques, we’ll periodically feature more intriguing and artistic boudoir photography lessons that take advantage of Panchenko’s expert insights and hands-on demonstrations, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, pay a visit to Panchenko’s YouTube channel and explore the previous lessons she’s already shared.

And don’t forget to watch the beginners guide mentioned above. It includes a few tips and tricks that will prove helpful when experimenting with today’s low-key technique.

So let’s say you come upon a spectacular landscape scene, have great gear in your bag, and nail focus and exposure. You still may end up with disappointing results if your composition skills aren’t up to spec. That’s why we encourage you to pay close attention to this tutorial from an acclaimed landscape photography specialist.

Instructor Dale Gribble is an accomplished Australian pro who regularly shares instructional videos of his exploits in the field that reveal the secrets to his beautiful imagery. This episode is all about the power of his approach to composition, with practical suggestions that are easy for photographers of all skill levels to emulate.

Gribble says that like many of us, “when first starting out I knew composition was super important but I didn’t know what the hell it was.” As his skills evolved so did his framing techniques and the impact of his photographs grew by leaps and bound. And yours can too by following his advice.

Gribble illustrates his favorite techniques with four striking images, while explaining the framing approach he employed for each of the shots. The photos are all quite different so his methods varied from one to another.

Composition can be described in general terms as “the act of making up something by combining parts.” In the context of landscape photography, Gribble puts it like this: “There can be a whole lot of things to consider, from shapes, framing, and light, to color harmony and more.”

In short, the key to impactful composition is understanding which of these important elements to apply, depending on the specific scene at hand. Gribble provides several reasons why it’s preferable to get things right in the camera, rather than attempting to correct photos with weak composition during the image-editing process.

While watching Gribble demonstrate why and how he composed the demonstration photos, think about images you’ve shot in the past that could have been far more interesting had you used the methods described.  Then proceed accordingly when you discover a great opportunity the next time you’re out in the field.

There’s much more to learn about shooting in the great outdoors on Gribble’s informative YouTube channel, so be sure to take a look.

And don’t miss the tutorial we featured a while back, explaining how to capture breathtaking landscape photographs with your smartphone.

The Nikon Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S is Nikon’s flagship mirrorless supertelephoto lens – a $15,500 piece of glass meant for demanding sports and wildlife photographers. It features professional-grade build quality, handling, and image quality. Few lenses command such a high price, but then again, few lenses are this impressive.

The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) aims to reimagine the region’s tourism landscape at the third annual Caribbean Travel Forum, taking place Monday, May 20 in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
Kicking off this year’s Caribbean Travel Marketplace, the annual event brings together leading regional and international thought leaders to discuss tourism business opportunities and strategies for success in the Caribbean, the heart of the global travel industry.