We all love a bargain, especially when the object of our desires performs far above its pay grade. And that hold true for cameras, lenses, and other photo gear. Today’s case in point is the TTArtisan 25mm f/2 APS-C manual focus lens that delivers remarkable results for less than the cost of a couple cheap ND filters.

Reviewer Mark Wiemels’ popular YouTube channel is devoted to budget gear that “delivers pro results,” and this episode may encourage you to pull out your wallet after watching the video. He puts it like this: “For me there’s almost no better experience than buying a cheap lens, spending a day shooting with it, and then coming home and being shocked at the quality of the photos I captured.”

That was exactly his experience with TTArtisan’s $64 dollar wide-angle lens. It’s available in various configurations, including Sony E-mount and Fuji-X and there’s links beneath the video where you can purchase it online.

The lens features a fast f/2 maximum aperture for shooting in low light with less noise and beautiful bokeh. Equivalent to 37.5mm in full-frame terms, the TTArtisan 25mm is light and small enough to fit in your pocket. And it’s a perfect choice for landscapes, street photography, and shooting small objects as lose as 9.8 inches.

Here’s how Wiemels summarizes his experience after putting the 25mm f/2 through its paces: “The images coming out of this cheap lens were honestly amazing and in some situations the photos were on par with lenses I have that cost $1,500 to $2,000.” He admits that the lens isn’t perfect but insists that its few flaws certainly aren’t a dealbreaker—especially for $64.

Weimels explains why he appreciates the versatility of this particular focal length for shooting still photos and video. He provides a number of practical example of images captured on the street and inside spectacular buildings that illustrate the “incredible” image quality you can expect.

For this purpose Wiemels loves the 25mm focal length because “you’ll be able to capture  photos of people that fill enough of the frame so that the viewer’s eye is drawn to that person.” At the same time, you’ll have enough context of the background to tell a story with your shots—a key aspect of great street photography.

Wiemels recommends the aperture settings he prefers when using this lens, depending upon the task at hand. And along the way you’ll pick up valuable tips on composition. He also discusses how the TTArtisan 25mm f/2 can be expected to perform as a general-purpose lens, while traveling, and shooting at night.

After watching the video, and before going shopping, be sure to take a look at Wiemels’ popular YouTube channel where there are reviews of other budget glass.

And speaking of new gear, don’t miss the recent tutorial we posted, explaining what you should do when getting a new camera before going out to shoot.

The first thing that often comes to mind when using Selections during the editing process is removing, and then replacing, a background. It’s true that Photoshop’s powerful Section tools work great for this purpose, but there’s a lot more they can do as you’ll see in the tutorial below.

Instructor Brendan Williams regularly posts tutorials on making the most of Lightroom, Photoshop, and Lightroom Mobile—designed to help photographers level up their skills in less time. In today’s eye-opening episode he puts aside background removal and reveals “three must-know ways to use Selections in Photoshop.”

The first technique Williams describes is used for selectively changing colors in a photo when it’s difficult to isolate a color range. This method works really well, for example, if you want to change the color of an object within the frame or the clothing of a portrait subject. As Williams says, “there’s an issue you may run into when modifying colors without selections.”

Williams demonstrates the conventional method for switching the color of a dog’s beanie to illustrate potential shortcomings of the common approach. He then illustrates how employing a Selection in Photoshop will deliver far superior results. It’s super simple to do, and any minor refinements are also a breeze.

The second example involves two photos; one is an environmental family portrait and the other is an empty frame. Williams’ goal is to place the first image into the matted frame. Each image has a different aspect ratio, and the trick here is to use a Selection to crop a layer so that the portrait is a perfect fit.

Most folks would simply grab Photoshop’s Crop tool, but you’ll see why this isn’t the best way to get the job done. Williams employs the Rectangular Marquee tool instead and demonstrates the step-by-step process while providing the necessary settings for Feathering and other key attributes.

You’ll also learn a non-destructive method that enables you to move the portrait within the selection area until you’re happy with what you see. Like with the other two methods described in this lesson, Williams includes keyboard shortcuts to speed up the process.

The lesson wraps up with an effective method of employing a Selection for precise object removal. This technique is especially helpful when the object you want to remove is partially covered by an edge that you want to retain. As you’ll see, this task can be extremely difficult to achieve with a manual approach.

There’s much more to learn about post processing on William’s instructional YouTube channel, so make it a point to take a look.

We also suggested watching a tutorial we posted with another image-editing expert who explains how to use Lens Corrections in Photoshop to eliminate distortion and chromatic aberration that can ruin a photo.

If you’re the type of photographer who like saving a few bucks here and there, you’ll love the premise of today’s Lightroom tutorial: “Do NOT buy presets. Make your own, it’s simple to do.” And believe it or not, even inexperienced users can quickly get the job done by following the straightforward advice.

This 14-minute lesson is episode #5 of the Lightroom Classic Beginners Guide from the Photos on the Bay YouTube channel—a popular site for editing tips that will take your photography to the next level. It’s true that Lightroom includes a bunch of built-in presets, but according to today’s unnamed instructor “some can be good but many aren’t great.”

Hence, the notion of creating your own presets that will work perfectly for the type of photography you enjoy most. The process begins by clicking on the Develop button at the top right of the screen, and then choosing the Presets option on the other side of the workspace. Once you do that you’ll see a dropdown panel with “a heap” of the presets available.

The “Adaptive” presets at the top of the list rely upon artificial intelligence (AI) to work their magic. So why wouldn’t you just use these or the other presets below? Simply put, it’s easier to “put your own spin on an image” by using custom presets you create yourself.

The quick process begins with a custom preset that our instructor calls “Seascape.” The idea is to personalize this so your images don’t have the same look as others created with pre-made presets with a similar name. Then. every time you pull up a seascape image this preset will automatically get most of the work out of the way.

Think of this as a solid starting point that you can manually adjust to suit the particular image at hand. This will prove to be a welcome timesaver because you won’t have to repeat the same preliminary enhancements time after time when editing these types of photos in the future. And gradually your image will have a recognizable look as compared to those created by everyone else.

You’ll see how to make various enhancements to create exactly the look you want for this preset and others you’ll make for different subjects. Then once the image looks great, you’ll learn the quick step-by-step method for turning an image into a preset.

One quick warning: The process of creating custom presets can be very addictive, so we recommend proceeding with caution. Otherwise you may spend all of your time sitting at the computer rather than looking through a viewfinder.

Once you’re done watching head over to the Photos on the Bay YouTube channel where you’ll find more great editing and shooting tips and tricks.

If you do a lot of traveling with your camera be sure to watch a tutorial we posted earlier, explaining how to use Lightroom Mobile to edit photographs on the road when your laptop is at home.

Most photographers love upgrading their gear, especially when the purchase is a new camera. The temptation is to charge the battery, mount a lens, and head out the door for a test spin, but there are a few things you should do first if you want to take advantage of everything your new toy can do.

The video below comes from our friends at the Photo Genius YouTube channel, a great source of basic tutorials, gear reviews, and editing tips and tricks. In this quick primer you’ll learn how to become familiar with your new camera and configure it properly to achieve the best possible results.

Instructor Paul Farris gets you started in barely nine minutes by describing features that may not have been available on your previous model, an explanation of how brands differ, and several great suggestions for the best camera settings to use for your particular style of photography. This lesson is primary designed for those new to our craft, but more experienced shooters will also pick a few tricks.

Farris uses a Canon R50 for this demonstration but he says, “the tips I’m sharing should apply to just about any new digital mirrorless or DSLR camera.” A camera’s Mode dial is the first place to start and Farris provides an overview of the various options available—some of which may be familiar while others may not. He then covers the why and how to make the proper choice for the specific task at hand.

You’ll then learn how to interpret the data appearing on the rear LCD and see why that information changes depending on the position of your Mode dial. Farris explains other key physical buttons on most modern cameras and describes how to use them or the camera’s touch screen to quickly change camera defaults and the settings he recommends.

Farris also illustrates the new features and buttons available with some modern lenses that factor into the equation. You’ll learn a few tricks for protecting a camera’s sensor, how the various camera modes affect the overall look of an image, and the importance of other camera features like Exposure Compensation and AF and Metering modes.

The few minutes you spend watching this lesson before heading out in the field will pay big dividends as  soon as you start and forever more. You can find more helpful tips and tricks by taking a look at the Photo Genius YouTube channel, so be sure to do that as soon as you have time.

And on a related note, we suggest you watch the earlier tutorial we posted with another pro’s take on the best camera settings to use; specifically for photographing landscapes, wildlife, and other outdoor subjects.