By Nick Devlin   READ . . . .

We have been trying some pretty cool new gear out over the last few weeks.  Michael has already shared his First Impressions of the Samsung NX1.  A lot of the products we are now working with and will report on soon were announced at Photokina.  One of these products was a new style ball head.  Just when you didn’t think you could improve on a ball head concept any further we see a new player from Hungary introduce a new style ball head.  Today, Nick Devlin gives us a look at the Uniqball, A Unique Approach To Leveling.  This ball head is available at B&H Photo.  I ordered one.

From Thanksgiving Until Christmas

A Special Opportunity For Giving And Receiving

We are announcing a Special Opportunity For Giving and Receiving starting today and running to Christmas Day. To help raise money for the Luminous-Endowment, to be used to finance future grants, The Luminous Endowment has created a special new and lower donation level of $200. The reward that you will receive for this tax-deductible donation is a copy of Michael Reichmann’s new book – A Twenty Year Retrospective. Normally this book requires a $350 donation to be received as a reward for your donation. This will be the price again after December, 25th.  

Michael’s beautiful book would make a great Holiday gift for the photographer in your life or maybe you want to hint to someone special that you would like this as a gift.  To learn more on how to Give and Receive – click here

Luminous Endowment Grant Winners – November, 2014

Today we announce the winners of the first round of grants. We are proud to announce that we have awarded $20,000 USD in grants this past week.

Luminous-Endowment Grant Winners

The amount of grant requests were incredible and we hope to see many more in our next round of grant requests.  This program would not be possible without donations from our readers as well as some very generous private and corporate donors.  Please take a look at our site and consider how you can be part of helping aspiring photographers make their dream projects come true.

Yellowstone In Winter

By Nigel Turner  READ . . . .

In the last week just about all parts of North America received a very early preview of winter.  In Buffalo they received nearly 6 feet of snow.  And that is before Thanksgiving.  So, in honor of a cold winter ahead we present Nigel Turner’s article on Yellowstone In The Winter.  Nigel who shared an article Symphony In Stone takes us deep into Yellowstone during the coldest part of winter.  Enjoy some beautiful photography and remember just because it is cold out doesn’t mean your cameras need to gather dust sitting on the shelf.

Samsung NX-1 First Impressions

By Michael Reichmann   READ …

It’s been an exciting week at LuLa.  All the cool new products that were announced at Photokina are finally shipping and arriving at our doorstep for testing and reviews.  Every Photokina has its surprises and this Photokina the buzz was all about the Samsung NX-1.  The specs of the NX-1 were certainly impressive.  Of course we were skeptics as the camera was made by Samsung, a relatively new player in the camera field.  So, does the NX-1 live up to its specs?  Read Michael Reichmann’s Samsung NX-1 First Impressions article to see

Antarctica 2015 Trip Winner

By Kevin Raber  READ . . . .

Earlier this year Luminous-Landscape announced a special promo for our video subscription services.  The offer was that if you purchased an annual subscription to our videos we would enter your name for a chance to win an all expense paid trip to our 2015 Antarctica Workshop Trip.  We are happy to today to announce the winner of this trip, Michele Sons from Roanoke, Virginia USA.

Vision 13 – Photographer’s Blocks

By Alain Briot   READ . . . .

I’m sure you have experienced what is commonly called writers block.  A time where you just can’t seem to get something on paper the way you want.  The same thing happens to photographers too.  It’s when you reach a point of not being able to creatively create an image the way you want.  It can be frustrating to say the least.  Today, Alain Briot dives into Photographers Block and how to get out of it.  His article Photographers Block will help you find ways out of the doldrum and back to your groove.

2015 Ultimate Iceland Adventure – New Locations – Helicopter Aerials  –  Spaces Going Fast  –  Register NOW

My Astrophotography Adventure

By Michael Reichmann   READ . . . .

Lately, as many readers know, Michael Reichmann has ventured into a new area of interest for himself – astrophotography, When Michael dives into something he dives into the deep end head-first.  Today’s article is a look into his journey – An Astrophotography Adventure.

Antarctica 2015 – 2 Trips  –  Top Instructors  –  A Few Spots Still Available – Register Today

Europe’s Landscape Photography Event of the Year – Streamed Live

 READ MORE And Register . . .

onLandscape magazine’s landscape photography conference takes place amongst some of Britain’s most dramatic countryside in the English Lake District on 22^nd and 23^rd November 2014.

Luminous-Landscape is happy to announce that our readers can stream the video from the conference or download segments all for a special price.

The streamed event will give internet viewers the opportunity to question the speakers in special internet only “Green Room” interviews after each of their presentations. Particular need to viewers who are in different time zones has also been taken into account with special DVR functions allowing viewers to tune in at any time and rewind to the start of the day.

READ MORE And Register . . . 

Antarctica 2015 – 2 Trips  –  Top Instructors  –  A Few Spots Still Available – Register Today

Scannerless Digital Capture and Processing of Negative Film Photographs

By Mark D Segal & Todd Shaner   READ . . .

Have you tried buying one of those legendary high-quality film scanners recently and been frustrated by their scarcity and high prices? Do you have countless slides and negatives (especially the latter) you would like to digitize but get turned-off by the time and boredom of scanning and the learning curve of scanning software? Using a camera instead of a scanner for photographing the film isn’t a new idea, but Mark Segal and Todd Shaner decided to revisit this approach with fresh thinking about equipment, techniques and novel processing approaches. They developed two very different workflows for “scanning” negatives that they found so successful they thought it worthwhile sharing them with those interested. Their research findings and recommended workflows are in a comprehensive PDF available in their article Scannerless Digital Capture and Processing of Negative Film Photographs.

2015 Ultimate Iceland Adventure – New Locations – Helicopter Aerials  –  Spaces Going Fast  –  Register NOW

Five Brief Audio Interviews From PhotoPlus 2014

The PhotoPlus 2014 show in New York in late October saw a few new products being announced, for the first time in North America at least. I had been at Photokina in Germany the month before, and frankly, with only a few exceptions, found the industry to be a bit in the doldrums, as well as in a transition state.  PhotoPlus, because it is a consumer show, was much more lively and the crowds seemed to looking at everything with enthusiasm.

Because I was at the show for only one day, I was traveling light, and so instead of the more extensive video interviews which Kevin and I did at Photokina in September, I did mostly audio interviews at PhotoPlus. I also focused my attention on some of the smaller companies exhibiting for the first time, but also with Epson who is just now announcing the SureColor P600 photo printer in North America, though it was shown at Photokina earlier.

The Optimum Digital Exposure

By Bob DiNatale  READ  . . . 

One of the most popular articles on Luminous-Landscape is by Michael Reichmann Expose (to the) Right from 2003.  It’s an article that has been referenced numerous times and even today makes total sense.  Today Bob DiNatale revisits this concept in his article The Optimum Digital Exposure.  It’s a different take on achieving a good exposure with today’s digital cameras.

Arches National Park – A Quick Photography Guide

By QT Luong  READ . . .

The National Parks in the US offer a wide variety of photographic opportunities for the landscape photographer.  There is so much to see and photograph, and all of these great parks have something unique to see.  This is the second of a continuing series of National Park Quick Guides by QT Luong.  In his previous guide QT described all the good locations in Acadia National Park.  Today QT takes us to Arches National Park, which is one of the most famous parks for photographers.

About Photographic Competitions

By Alain Briot  READ . . . 

Every now and then Alain Briot contributes an article that starts good discussions in the forum.  Today’s article About Print Competitions will be just that kind of article.  In his last article Alain did a very good essay about Critiquing Photographs.  Now he takes us into the area of judging prints entered into competitions.  Alain covers just about all aspects one could think of when it comes to judging prints in competitions.  For many photographers this is a part of learning as well as recognition.  You decide after reading the article. In my own experience over many years I have found it interesting to see how images are judged.  I also wonder many times how judges would react to some of the classics of photography. In many ways that images are judged, they would never had received an honorable mention in todays competitions.  This is a very enlightening essay and thank you Alain for this.

The Think Tank Navigator Bag

By Kevin Raber  READ . . .

Many of us do a lot of traveling to capture the special images that we enjoy so much.  Getting to these special locations is a challenge these days. We face weight and size limitations of the airlines not to mention our own as we do everything we can do to reduce size and weight of our kits.  Over the years I have collected way too many bags trying to accomplish the ultimate carry solution for my gear.  Today I share one of the newest and best bags I have owned as well as some other tips on how I travel with my gear.  Check out The Think Tank Navigator article as well as a short video and hopefully you’ll find some good information that will help you in your travels. 

Pentax 645z Astrophotography Using the iOptron SkyTracker

The night sky holds wonders for photographers. If you live near or have access to a site where there are dark skies; dark enough to see the Milky Way, it’s possible to explore our galaxy with your camera.

In Pentax 645z Astrophotography Using the iOptron SkyTracker I describe how to produce extreemly high quality deep-sky images. There are many approaches to this. I chose to use the new Pentax 645z with its very high image quality as well as extreemly clean high ISO capability. A moderately priced tracking accessory and a sold tripod and clear skies are otherwise all that’s needed.

Guide To The Fuji X-T1

By Kevin Raber  READ . . . 

Luminous-Landscape pioneered instructional videos years ago with the very successful Lightroom Tutorials.  Now, LuLa takes the same format and applies it to the operation of popular cameras.  Our first in a series of Camera Guide Tutorials we introduce today – Lu-La’s Guide To The Fuji X-T1.  This new tutorial is 3 hours in length and covers all aspects of the set-up and use of this popular camera.  Kevin Raber, LuLa’s publisher along with Jarrid Spicer of Roberts Camera in Indianapolis, Indiana walk you through the process. 

The LuLa Guide To The Fuji X-T1 is available now to LuLa Video Subscribers (FREE) as well as an individual download for $29.95.  There are 14 videos totaling three hours.  Each video has chapter markers to quickly access the control or menu item you may be interested in.  There is also a PDF available with all the chapters listed.

The Pentax 645Z – In Depth Review

By Michael Reichmann  READ  . . .

There has been a lot of talk about major camera companies possibly taking steps into the medium format digital marketplace.  Till now these have just been rumors. But this is a market segment that is not going away, regardless of what some people say.  One of the relative newcomers to this market is Pentax. Over the last few years the Pentax line has evolved and recently Pentax introduced the Pentax 645Z as a major upgrade to their previous 645D.  Did they get it right:? The Pentax 645Z – In Depth Review by Michael will try and answer these questions for you.

The Ultimate Iceland Workshop

By Kevin Raber   Find Out More  . . . 

Iceland, a landscape photographers heaven.  Luminous-Landscape was one of the first to explore and offer workshops in this magnificent country.  That was over 10 years ago and since then there are dozens of workshops being offered there and at times popular locations can be over run by photography workshops and photographers.  As a result we have avoided doing workshops in Iceland until now.

After lots of discussion and work we are ready to offer a workshop in Iceland again and it will be different than all others.  Teaming up with Daniel Bergmann one of (if not) the best guides and photographers in Iceland, LuLa is proud to offer the Ultimate Iceland Adventure.  This workshop will be held next June 22 – July 1st 2015.  

If you have been to Iceland before and now want to see a part that you haven’t seen before then this is the workshop for you.  It will have heavy focus on the beautiful highlands and includes aerial photography.  This 10 Day / 9 night adventure will sell out quickly so visit the Rockhopper Workshops site and register today.