Shorter days have one definite advantage for photographers: an abundance of time for exterior photoshoots in the dark. Dark alleyways, brick walls lit by streetlamps, reflections of light on a river’s surface, or the elongated shadow of a black cat crossing your path. This type of atmosphere and abundance of time make for the perfect conditions for low key photography in the moody, cinematic style of Film Noir. Take a look at how it’s done...if you dare. 

Black-and-white photography can truly evoke a special mood and atmosphere. That’s one reason why it has so many devotees. But black-and-white pictures don’t always turn out how you expect. And yet you just have to respect a few simple rules to get black-and-white photos with a lot more magic.

You can get some of the most interestingly lighted photos by shooting against the light. But you also have to keep in mind that this light will expose every imperfection of your lens. Strong chromatic aberration will appear, details will soften, and reflections will appear due to light bouncing off your lens’s optics. Fortunately, you can tone down all of these defects on a computer.

Zoner Photo Studio offers lots of ways to fine-tune exposure, brightness, and contrast in your photos. And here we’ll be looking at contrast, because nobody’s got time to look at washed-out photos.

Practically every digital photographer has to do edits sometimes. And meanwhile, you only need a few simple edits to take your pictures to the next level. Below we’ll be showing you several of them.

We all often examine the work of other photographers, professionals, and the best in our field so as to capture and absorb at least a part of their skill, so we can apply it later in our own pictures. Let’s try extending our study of the great works one step farther outwards, to painting. What can painters’ great works offer photographers?

Some colors perfectly match, while others strongly clash. But color contrasts are often precisely the way to give photos striking composition.

What do you do if you’ve brought back beautiful photographic memories from your vacation, but they don’t look at all as lively and colorful on your computer as you remember them? If you need to add some shine to washed-out photos, try these four easy techniques for enlivening colors that are too pale.

One very simple and effective way to emphasize your subject is to find a high-contrast background. You can contrast your subject against the background not only visually, but also in terms of its meaning. These contrasts are especially strong when a picture contains two elements that seem dissimilar, but join together to form a surprising composition with a powerful message.

The sky is among the most interesting and rewarding photographic subjects. There’s something new to discover every time—a unique sunset, fluffy clouds, or stormy thunderheads and thunderbolts. There’s always something to see and something to snap. And editing sky photos on a computer can be fun as well. Be creative and try for example editing a red summer sky in Zoner Photo Studio.