[Photography] dPS Bi-Weekly Photo Challenge – Night Architecture

The post dPS Bi-Weekly Photo Challenge – Night Architecture appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Sime.

Night Architecture! Architecture at night… after the sun’s gone, before the sun’s up?

I’ve run off a few pointers for you below the image, they’re going to help with the architecture side of things and then, just do it at night – It doesn’t need to be in a city, find something appealing about your house at night. A detail or a well lit tile – see how you go.

Remember to tag your post with #dpsweeklychallenge and #dpsnightarchitecture so we can see / find your images on the internet!

What constitutes ‘architecture photography’

Architecture photography is a specialized genre of photography that focuses on capturing the design, aesthetics, and functionality of buildings and other structures. Here are the key elements that constitute architecture photography:

1. Subject Matter

• Buildings and Structures: This includes residential buildings, commercial properties, public buildings, monuments, and bridges.
• Details: Architectural elements such as doors, windows, staircases, and other design details.
• Interior and Exterior: Both the inside and outside of buildings are important, showcasing different aspects of the architecture.

2. Composition

• Angles and Perspectives: Unique angles and perspectives highlight the design and scale of the architecture. Shooting from high or low angles, or straight-on, can dramatically affect the presentation.
• Lines and Shapes: Emphasizing the geometric forms, lines, and curves present in the architecture.
• Symmetry and Asymmetry: Using symmetry to create a sense of balance or asymmetry for a more dynamic composition.
• Framing: Utilizing natural or architectural elements to frame the subject.

3. Lighting

• Natural Light: The quality, direction, and intensity of natural light play a crucial role. Morning and evening light (the golden hour) often provide soft, warm tones.
• Artificial Light: Interior lighting, streetlights, and other artificial sources can create interesting effects, especially in night photography.
• Shadows and Highlights: Using shadows to add depth and contrast, highlighting textures and details.

4. Technical Considerations

• Lens Choice: Wide-angle lenses are commonly used to capture the full scope of a structure, while tilt-shift lenses help correct perspective distortions.
• Camera Settings: Optimal aperture, shutter speed, and ISO settings to ensure sharpness and correct exposure.
• Post-Processing: Enhancing the image through editing software to correct distortions, adjust lighting, and bring out details.

5. Artistic Elements

• Storytelling: Conveying a narrative about the building’s history, purpose, or the architect’s vision.
• Mood and Atmosphere: Creating a certain mood through the choice of lighting, weather conditions, and composition.
• Color and Texture: Highlighting the materials used in the architecture, the colors, and the textures to add depth to the image.

6. Context

• Environment: Showing the building in its surrounding environment, whether urban, rural, or natural.
• Human Element: Including people to give a sense of scale or to show how the space is used.

By focusing on these elements, architecture photography not only documents buildings but also captures the essence of their design, purpose, and impact on their surroundings.

The post dPS Bi-Weekly Photo Challenge – Night Architecture appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Sime.

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[Photography] PortraitPro 24 Review: Retouch Your Photos in Seconds (With the Power of AI)

The post PortraitPro 24 Review: Retouch Your Photos in Seconds (With the Power of AI) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

If you take portrait photos, and you want your images to have the kind of polished, refined look worthy of a professional portfolio, then retouching is an art that you must learn. This is true whether you’re an expert or beginner, a hobbyist or a seasoned pro. 

Here’s the bad news: Retouching, when done with conventional editing software, comes with a significant learning curve. To make matters worse, it’s time-consuming and tedious. It often involves carefully masking your subject’s face and various features, brushing in subtle exposure adjustments, smoothing skin, healing blemishes, and more – and with all that complete, you’ll restart the process with the next image, and the next, and the next. 

Fortunately, Anthropics’ PortraitPro software is far from conventional. As I explained in my review of PortraitPro 23, the editor is designed to help photographers do pro-level retouching at astonishingly high speeds while remaining accessible to portraitists of all levels. In other words, it’s the type of editor that every portrait shooter should try, simply to understand just how effectively it can shortcut a standard retouching workflow. 

I was (and still remain!) a big fan of PortraitPro 23. However, in March of this year, Anthropics launched PortraitPro 24 – a dramatically upgraded program that promises to revolutionize portrait retouching workflows yet again thanks to a slew of powerful additions, some of which incorporate cutting-edge generative AI technology.

I recently got my hands on the new program, and I’ve spent the last couple of weeks putting it through its paces. In this article, I offer my thoughts on PortraitPro 24; I walk you through the new features, explain why the program is so useful for portrait shooters, and close with a discussion of whether the latest version is worth the price.

So if you’re ready to discover the transformative power of PortraitPro 24, then let’s dive right in!

What’s new in PortraitPro 24?

Anthropics PortraitPro 24 contains all the time-saving portrait-editing features of its predecessor, such as the intelligent face masking, Lighting & Coloring tools, the Skin Smoothing tools, the Makeup tools (the list goes on). 

But PortraitPro 24 also boasts an impressive list of upgrades, including several new tools that draw on generative AI to take portrait retouching to the next level. Let’s take a closer look: 

Mouth and teeth inpainting 

As pretty much every portrait photographer knows, mouths and teeth rarely look ideal straight out of camera, yet they’re a real struggle to edit effectively. 

Past versions of PortraitPro have offered tools for whitening teeth, adjusting lip shape, and the like, and those certainly helped address the problem. But PortraitPro 24’s new AI-powered Mouth & Teeth inpainting tool goes above and beyond by using targeted generative AI to enhance your subject’s lips and teeth.   

Here’s how it works: 

First, you make sure that your subject’s mouth is accurately masked by the program’s auto-masking software. 

Next, you open the Mouth & Teeth tool in the Inpainting panel. 

Finally, you can then click through the dropdown menu and watch as PortraitPro 24 generates realistic new teeth and lips to eliminate any problematic areas.

What really sells the tool, at least for me, is the control and finesse that it offers. In addition to generating five new AI mouth “versions” for each subject, you get a series of sliders that target each mouth feature separately, which you can adjust to create a realistic blend of the subject’s original mouth with the new mouth.  

For photographers that do a lot of tighter portraits – headshots, half-body shots, etc – this is bound to be a game-changer. Instead of fiddling around with brushes, masks, and teeth whitening presets, you can use the Mouth & Teeth Inpainting tool to rapidly generate an improved mouth, then blend it with the original in a couple of seconds. And it’s so easy to work with; just activate the tool, scroll through your options, and then move the sliders until you like the result.   

Obviously, as with any generative AI tool, the results won’t be perfect one-hundred percent of the time. But you have five AI options to choose from, plus you have the sliders to ensure the final image looks natural. 

Glasses reflection reducer 

For most of my life, I’ve worn glasses. Same with everyone in my family. So trust me when I say that dealing with glasses reflections has been a thorn in my side for a long time. Sure, you can ask your subject to take their glasses off, but that’s not always desirable or practical. And yes, you can adjust your lighting to minimize reflections, but when you’re shooting fast-paced events or candid photos, there’s not a whole lot you can do. 

Therefore, when I heard that PortraitPro 24 included a new tool designed to automatically reduce glasses glare using generative AI, I was extremely excited to try it out – and I’m happy to share that it didn’t disappoint!

Like the Mouth & Teeth tool discussed above, you can find the reflection reducer in the Inpainting panel (it’s labeled as Reduce Reflections in Glasses).

Open the tool, then click the View/Edit Reflections Mask and use the brush to paint over any pesky glasses reflections while avoiding the frames and the subject’s face. (You can also use the Automatic Reflections Mask slider to tell PortraitPro to mask the reflections on its own; however, if you go this route, I recommend manually checking the mask to make sure it matches the reflections exactly.)

All that’s left to do is scroll through the different generative AI options and then – if needed – use the Strength sliders to refine the result.

I was impressed by the ease and speed with which I was able to dial back reflections in my tests, and it really is fantastic to finally have a tool that can dramatically reduce glasses reflections in a couple of clicks. I can imagine a wide variety of use cases here – after all, most portrait and event photographers point their camera at glasses-wearers on the regular – but I expect that headshot photographers, especially those that do fast-paced corporate portraits, will constantly take advantage of this tool.   

Face recovery

Face Recovery is the third tool in the generative AI trio added in PortraitPro 24, but instead of targeting specific portrait features – such as mouths or glasses – the Face Recovery tool works more broadly. It’s designed for those scenarios where you snap a photo of your subject, only to find that it suffers from image-quality issues, such as motion blur or missed focus. 

Normally, blurry portraits are (and should be) relegated to the recycling bin. After all, a bit of blur will ruin a portrait, and there’s no way to fix image blur…right? 

With PortraitPro’s Face Recovery tool, there is! Simply open your portrait for editing, choose Inpainting>Face Recovery, then check the Enable box. PortraitPro’s generative AI model will get to work recovering the details on your subject’s face, and after a few seconds, you’ll have an improved result. 

Truthfully, out of all the new generative AI tools, I found this one’s results to be the most mixed. While the “recovered” faces in my tests were sharper than before, they weren’t quite as realistic as I’d want for personal printing or delivery to clients – but different photographers have different needs and preferences, and after trying the tool, you may find yourself completely satisfied.  

Regardless, what I like about the Face Recovery tool, as with the other PortraitPro generative AI tools, is the customizability. You’re not just stuck with one AI-generated face; instead, you can choose from a variety of recovery options across a variety of features. When using Face Recovery, the eyes, nose, and mouth can each be regenerated five different times, and you can also apply the Unsharp Mask slider for a more seamless blend. 

Workflow enhancements and other improvements

Each new version of PortraitPro seems more streamlined and just all-around usable than the last, and PortraitPro 24 is no exception. Once again, the developers have included a list of handy workflow improvements, and the resulting program is a joy to use, both for beginners and professionals.

For instance, retouching individuals in group shots is far smoother thanks to a set of features that let you move back and forth between selected faces without missing a beat. 

Previous versions of PortraitPro offer great collections of built-in retouching presets, but actually finding the presets you’re after can take a frustrating amount of digging. For PortraitPro 24, that won’t be an issue; you now have a preset search bar, which you can use to quickly locate the preset you need. 

In fact, when it comes to preset upgrades, Anthropics pulled out all the stops; not only do you get a search bar, but you also have the option to export presets for easy sharing, and – if you purchase the most advanced version of the program, Studio Max – you can apply several presets in conjunction for an even more sophisticated edit (and an even faster workflow!)

PortraitPro 24 also boasts other noteworthy enhancements, including upgraded gender and age detection (which ensures more effective, realistic edits from the get-go), expanded options for saving image files, as well as the option to save skin and hair masks as separate TIFF channels (which you can then use for additional editing in Photoshop). 

And Studio Max subscribers gain access to an upgraded Batch Mode, which offers even faster editing of multiple photos at once.   

Ease of use and performance

As I’ve emphasized throughout this article, PortraitPro 24 is a highly accessible program. That holds true even for absolute beginners, so even if you’re intimidated by the phrase “portrait-retouching software,” you shouldn’t have much trouble diving into – and developing a full-fledged workflow in – PortraitPro 24. 

To get started with PortraitPro 24, head over to the Anthropics website, follow the prompts to download and install the program. Launch the software, then choose Open Single Image on the home screen. (If you purchased the Studio Max version, you can also select the Open Image Batch option, which will give you a batch processing dialog instead.)

Once you select an image, you’ll be taken to the main PortraitPro interface, which looks like this: 

As you can see, the interface layout is easy to understand. You have your image at the center and a couple of tools and view options along the top menu, but the bulk of your retouching work will take place in the set of panels on the right-hand side: 

That’s where you’ll find your various editing controls:

An array of customizable presets: 

And tools for “snapshotting” specific edits and reverting your photos back to their original state: 

When you load an image in PortraitPro 24, the software automatically detects faces and identifies specific features:

In my experience, PortraitPro 24’s facial-feature detection is pretty accurate, but you do have the option to manually tweak the overlay lines.  

This overlay will then be used for targeted edits. For instance, if you wish to adjust the saturation of your subject’s lips, all you have to do is open the Mouth & Nose panel, then boost the Lip Darken slider. 

Most PortraitPro 24 adjustments proceed this way; you simply find the relevant tools panel, then boost the corresponding sliders, which is both quick and intuitive. At first, you might find yourself searching through the panels to find the exact slider that you’re after, but the tools are well-categorized, and you’ll get the hang of it after a few minutes.

Occasionally, you’ll have the option to use a different type of tool, such as the lighting positioner in the Lighting & Coloring panel: 

But even these more unusual tools are easy to grasp, even for beginners. 

In terms of software performance, I have no complaints. The sliders are responsive and the corresponding edits were visible in real time. In fact, the only time I noticed any lag was when running the processor-intensive generative AI tools, and the delay was still insignificant. 

Editing capabilities

When it comes to portrait retouching, PortraitPro 24 excels. 

I wish I could give you a rundown of the various editing features available, but that would require a whole book; the program boasts literally hundreds of different portrait-editing tools, each offering its own handy adjustment capabilities. 

For instance, there’s the Shape panel, which is filled with sliders dedicated solely to adjusting the shape of different facial features: eyes, nose, mouth, expression, hair volume, neck & shoulders, and more. And the Skin Smoothing panel (located just below it), lets you retouch skin with extreme precision by separately targeting eye bags, wrinkles, pores, grease, mouth-adjacent skin, and more. 

Then there are effect-specific panels, such as Lighting & Coloring (where you can relight your subject with astonishing precision) and Inpainting (where you can find the new generative AI tools I discussed above). There are even feature-specific panels, such as Eye and Hair, which offer fine-grained control over colors, texture, catchlights, and more. 

All these panels contain the tools for subtle adjustments to ensure your subject looks their best, but in contrast to a program such as Photoshop, you don’t have to spend annoying amounts of time carefully masking specific features. Just identify the adjustment that the image needs, find the right tool, tweak the sliders, and – voila! – you’re done. 

One of PortraitPro 24’s main strengths is the speed with which you can retouch an image. If you were to only use the editing controls, you would undoubtedly save a lot of time. But the software also offers two features for speeding up your workflow even more. 

First, PortraitPro 24 is packed with presets that allow for high-quality editing with a single click. Unlike conventional presets, however, PortraitPro’s presets take into account the initial analysis of your subject’s face. That way, a skin smoothing preset isn’t applied uniformly from image to image but is instead customized to fit each new subject for a seamless result. 

For portrait and wedding photographers who handle a large volume of images with different poses and/or subjects, this is a huge deal. If you find a preset you like – or if you make a preset of your own – you can apply it across poses and subjects, and you won’t need to make frequent (or even occasional) tweaks.  

The second feature for turbocharging your retouching workflow is arguably even more useful: batch mode. With batch mode, you can select multiple images, and then quickly apply presets to the entire set. Not only are these presets applied to your files intelligently so that the result is tailored to each individual image, but you can designate in advance whether you want different presets to be applied to males, females, and children, even within the same photo. And if you don’t love the results, the batch mode interface lets you tweak individual photos in the set with incredible ease. 

I’m a huge fan of editing in batch mode, myself; it just makes the retouching process so fast, especially once you get a sense of the different presets and how they affect your images. As with the preset options discussed above, batch mode is a must-have feature for any portrait or wedding shooters who need to edit a lot of photos in a short amount of time. Just bear in mind that you can only access the full-fledged batch mode if you purchase the Studio Max version of PortraitPro 24.   

Price

PortraitPro 24 is available in three editions, each with its own lifetime license. 

PortraitPro 24 Standard is the most basic of the three editions and is usually available for $120, though you can currently buy it for just $59.95. Note the Standard edition offers all the PortraitPro 24 core features, though it lacks RAW support, and it cannot be used as a Photoshop plugin. Additionally, PortraitPro 24 Standard doesn’t offer batch processing in any form. 

Next is PortraitPro 24 Studio, which includes all the Standard edition features as well as RAW support, Photoshop/Lightroom integration, and some batch editing capabilities. You can normally purchase PortraitPro 24 Studio for around $160, though the current sale price is just $89.95.

Finally, we have the PortraitPro 24 Studio Max, which boasts everything I’ve discussed throughout this article: full batch mode, RAW support, integration with Photoshop as a plugin, and more. The price reflects these extra capabilities; you can grab PortraitPro 24 Studio Max for $179.95 (though the program usually goes for around $360). 

The PortraitPro 24 list prices are pretty reasonable, especially when you consider what you get. And when you add the 50% discount, even the Studio Max version starts to seem like a bargain! 

(I’ll also note here that dPS readers can enter the code DPS10424 at checkout for an extra 15% off their purchase!)

Is Anthropics PortraitPro 24 right for you? 

To my mind, it’s tough to overstate the value of PortraitPro 24 for portrait-focused photographers. Whether you shoot weddings, engagement sessions, senior portraits, family portraits, or something else, you’ll benefit from the software’s time-saving features, and you’ll love how easy it is to produce a good final edit. 

Even if you’re delving into portraiture for the first time, a bit of tweaking with PortraitPro will dramatically elevate your results and give your photos a polished, professional look. 

The program offers a nice balance of basic and advanced retouching tools, which means that beginners have plenty of room to grow, while experts can complete an entire retouching workflow without ever leaving the PortraitPro 24 interface. (Though, for those who need it, PortraitPro 24 works great as a Photoshop plugin!)

So assuming that you are indeed a portrait photographer, the real question is which edition of PortraitPro 24 you should buy.

The lack of RAW support in the Standard version is a major drawback, so unless you already use a RAW editor and simply want to incorporate PortraitPro 24 into your broader workflow, I’d recommend at least purchasing the Studio version. Plus, the Studio version includes easy integration with Lightroom and Photoshop, which can come in handy for those of you who already enjoy working with these programs. 

And what about the Studio Max version? Here’s what I’d say: If you do a lot of portrait editing, then the full batch mode in PortraitPro 24 Studio Max will save you significant time and is likely worth the cost. Otherwise, the Studio version is probably the better choice!

So go ahead and purchase your copy of PortraitPro 24 right here. (Remember to use your code DPS10424 at checkout for an exclusive 15% dPS discount!) And if you’re unsure about which version to buy or you’re still on the fence about the software, you can download a free trial (with printing and saving disabled).

PortraitPro 24 is a one-of-a-kind program – and given the current 50%-off sale, you should take advantage while you still can!

Anthropics is a paid partner of dPS.

The post PortraitPro 24 Review: Retouch Your Photos in Seconds (With the Power of AI) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.

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[Photography] How to Use Old Film Lenses With New Digital Cameras (A Guide)

The post How to Use Old Film Lenses With New Digital Cameras (A Guide) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Adam Welch.

Do you want a sharp, well-built lens? Of course you do! Everyone does. As many photographers already know, the lens makes a huge difference to your photos (even more than the camera, in fact!).

But if you’re like me, browsing through the latest high-end lenses can be a little depressing. The cost of luxury-grade glass can easily peak in the thousands of dollars, which is prohibitive for most folks and means that it’ll probably be a long time before you get your hands on brand-new class-leading lenses.

However…

What if I told you that you could have excellent lenses without breaking the bank?

You see, I recently discovered a method for retrofitting older film lenses to function with our modern cameras, and that is what I plan to share with you today! Take a look:

The value of old lenses

The great news is that the majority of lenses designed for film cameras are built like photographic tanks and possess extremely capable optics. These lenses are also readily available and affordable on almost any budget. You won’t find them new, but there are some great used copies to choose from.

The bad news is that these lenses are mostly manual-focus prime lenses. As a result, your autofocus won’t work, and you’ll need to develop your manual focusing skills in order to capture sharp photos. Also note that metering won’t work with these old film lenses (with at least one exception; we’ll talk about it later).

Of course, old lenses come with another major downside: they’re rarely natively compatible with newer camera equipment. A modern mirrorless camera and a 30-year-old film lens aren’t designed to fit together – and if you force the fit, you risk damaging both pieces of equipment.

So how is it done? How can you make a twenty-, thirty-, or even forty-year-old piece of gear work with today’s advanced camera bodies?

Adapting your old lenses to new cameras

Believe it or not, the answer is deceptively simple. For virtually every lens and camera combination, there is an adapter that will enable you to use the lens with the camera, regardless of manufacturer. Here’s an example:

I have an old analog Nikon F3 that was given to me by my father along with a couple of lenses: a Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 and a Nikkor 50mm f/1.8.

The entire kit remained mostly forgotten in a camera bag, and I kept it in storage for years. One day I stumbled across some information about how a few photographers were using old M42 Zeiss screw-mount lenses with their DSLRs using adapter rings.

They were producing outstanding photographs, and that got me thinking – if it was possible to find adapters for these old M42 lenses, could there also be manufacturers who produced similar adapters for other lens types?

Almost instantly, the old Nikon F3 leaped from some distant corner of my memory. My main shooting body (at the time) was a Canon 7D MkI. Could I possibly use my thirty-year-old Nikkor film, Canon 7D? Shockingly, the answer was “yes!” All I needed were these unassuming aluminum adapter rings, which I sourced on eBay for about $12 USD each.

The side of the ring matches the Nikkor mount:

My other ring mates with Canon camera bodies:

The entire process is very simple; the adapter simply snaps onto the lens:

And here’s another image, this time without the adapter in place:

Then it’s business as usual when attaching the adapted lens to the camera. Just line up the indicator dot with the mounting dot on your camera body, apply a slight twist, and wait for the lens and camera to lock together.

You’re done!

Tips for adapting old lenses

If you decide to switch adapters for whatever reason, don’t worry; the adapters should be removable! You simply need to depress a small spring catch. (Most brands have these.)

And remember, as I said earlier, old film lenses are completely manual models. This means that you’ll need to focus the lens by hand (i.e., using the focus ring on the lens barrel). It also means that you’ll need to adjust the aperture by hand (using the aperture ring on the lens barrel) instead of letting your camera do this for you.

At first, manual focus and manual aperture adjustments might seem like a pain. But that might change over time! Personally, I enjoy the deliberateness this action forces. You have to think about your composition so much more, and you get to experience the effects of the aperture adjustment literally firsthand.

(It might seem trivial, but the latter point is a big one! When you’re shooting with a particular window of sharpness in mind, you don’t have to constantly press the depth of field preview button. You can instead just turn the manual aperture ring, then watch as the plane of focus changes in real-time.)

Don’t worry if this manual operation doesn’t appeal to you. Like I said, it takes some getting used to, but pretty soon, you’ll be using various manual settings like a pro.

Additionally, for those who are really against manual focus, manual metering, and the like, the exception concerning the adapter rings I spoke of is that some are now being made with focus indicator chips built into the adapter. While this chip doesn’t enable you to use autofocus, it does allow the lens to communicate with the camera when the selected point of focus has been obtained. This is completely personal preference. I opted for the non-autofocus indication adapters because I wasn’t comfortable using aftermarket electronics of that type with my camera. Again, this is completely subjective.

Please Note: Neither the author nor Digital Photography School are responsible for any damages to your camera or lens as a result of using aftermarket devices. Please be an informed photographer prior to attempting any modifications to your precious gear!

Now, here are some images produced through a little Frankensteinish innovation.

Adapt some amazing film lenses!

Well, there you have it:

An effective way to use amazing film lenses to create beautiful photos – with a little help from an adapter or two.

If you have any old film lenses lying around that you think could make a good candidate for adaptation, go for it! And if you can’t find any suitable equipment, you can always go to your nearest camera store (or head over to a site such as eBay) and purchase some inexpensive new versions. Have fun working with your cheap and high-quality lenses.

The post How to Use Old Film Lenses With New Digital Cameras (A Guide) appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Adam Welch.

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[Photography] Photography Aspect Ratio: What Is It and Why Does It Matter?

The post Photography Aspect Ratio: What Is It and Why Does It Matter? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Andrew S. Gibson.

This article was updated in May 2024 with contributions from Andrew S Gibson, Tim Gilbreath, Jeff Guyer, and Jaymes Dempsey.

What are aspect ratios in photography? How does an aspect ratio affect your images? And how can you change the aspect ratio once you’ve taken a photo?

In this article, I’m going to give you a quick introduction to photography aspect ratios – so that, by the time you’ve finished, you’ll understand what they are and how you can use them to improve your own images.

Let’s get started.

What is a photography aspect ratio?

An aspect ratio is the dimensions of an image expressed in a ratio form. You determine the aspect ratio by comparing an image’s width and height, then writing it as a width:height ratio (such as 3:2 or 4:5).

You’ve likely seen these numbers before, such as 16:9, which is commonly known as widescreen format and is used to describe many TVs and computer monitors.

16:9 would be an image (or in the case of a TV or monitor, a screen) that is 16 units wide and 9 units tall. Aspect ratio doesn’t describe actual size, as a 16:9 ratio could be 16 inches wide by 9 inches tall, or 16 feet wide and 9 feet tall. The numbers only describe the proportions.

Image by Tim Gilbreath

Now, the aspect ratio of your images is initially determined by the dimensions of your camera’s sensor. Because sensor dimensions are fixed, it’s easy to take the aspect ratio of your images for granted.

But it is important to think about the aspect ratio when taking photos. Your camera aspect ratio has compositional implications – and I highly recommend you consider this when out with your camera.

Also, a quick note: While your camera aspect ratio is technically fixed, many newer digital cameras allow you to change the aspect ratio in the camera’s menu. Plus, you have the option of adjusting an image’s aspect ratio in post-processing, so it’s more flexible than you might think!

Why does aspect ratio matter?

Aspect ratios are primarily important because every image we shoot, as well as every camera we shoot with, has a base aspect ratio. Our camera bases the aspect ratio on the proportions of the sensor, which you cannot change.

However, you can change the resulting image’s aspect ratio, and most importantly, you can change it for creative reasons.

There are actually two types of aspect ratio in photography we need to familiarize ourselves with; the aspect ratio of the camera we’re shooting with, and more importantly, the final aspect ratio we will present our image in.

We, of course, can change the latter in post-processing, for whatever reason we decide.

Note: Many cameras have settings that allow you to change the aspect ratio in-camera before shooting, but this is made possible by the camera software cropping. In my experience, it’s generally better to use your camera’s base aspect ratio and crop later in post-processing.

Why would you want to change the aspect ratio of a photo?

Different aspect ratios will produce different compositional effects. A wide, sweeping shot of a beach and sky will not look as wide and sweeping in a standard 3:2 presentation as it would in a 16:9 widescreen format. Composing the image in widescreen proportions gives the scene a more open, cinematic feel.

And specific aspect ratios tend to have fairly consistent benefits and drawbacks that you should be aware of.

For instance, a square, 1:1 aspect ratio tends to produce very balanced, often confined images.

A 4:5 or a 3:2 aspect ratio offers a bit more space within the frame.

And a 16:9 aspect ratio gives a lot of room for expansion along the image edges.

Of course, the effect of the aspect ratio depends somewhat on the type of scene you’re photographing, and certain scenes naturally lend themselves to certain aspect ratios. That’s why it’s essential to think carefully about the aspect ratio before pressing the shutter button; different aspect ratio choices can dramatically affect the composition.

Common camera aspect ratios

Virtually every camera sensor offers one of two aspect ratios:

3:2 aspect ratio

The 3:2 ratio is probably the most common aspect ratio in photography. It’s used by 35mm crop-sensor and full-frame DSLRs, some Leica medium format cameras, most mirrorless cameras, high-end compact cameras, and most 35mm film cameras. This aspect ratio has been with us ever since Leica made the first 35mm film cameras in the early 20th century.

Now, a full-frame 35mm sensor measures 36 mm x 24 mm. You can express this figure as a ratio: 36:24. Mathematicians always like to simplify ratios so the relationship between the two numbers is easy to visualize, and in this case, you can divide both dimensions by twelve.

That gives you 3:2.

As you’re likely aware, crop-sensor cameras have smaller sensors, measuring approximately 22.5 mm x 15 mm (though the exact measurements vary depending on the brand and model). Despite the different sensor sizes, the ratio between the width and the height remains the same, conforming to a 3:2 aspect ratio.

An image captured with a DSLR in native 3:2 format. Modern DSLR cameras usually capture images in this format. (Image by Tim Gilbreath)

4:3 aspect ratio

The 4:3 ratio is a classic format that has its roots in digital point and shoot cameras, which were developed to basically match the proportions of video monitors of the time. You’ll find the 4:3 aspect ratio in Four Thirds cameras, many compact cameras, some medium format digital cameras, as well as medium format film cameras using the 6 cm x 4.5 cm format.

Just as with old TV and video monitors, the 4:3 format has a taller, slimmer look that appears more square to the eye. It is a good creative choice when you need to capture vertical elements of a scene.

The 4:3 format allows for more vertical space and can better focus attention in on a specific area of a scene. Here I’ve used the 4:3 ratio to remove distracting portions of the scene and isolating the flower and mushroom. (Image by Tim Gilbreath)

16:9 aspect ratio

The 16:9 ratio is more commonly known as the “widescreen” format.

It was developed as a replacement for the old 4:3 ratio during the advent and implementation of HDTV. Most TV’s and monitors now are created with this format in mind.

The longer, more horizontal format is great for displaying landscapes and other vistas, and creates a cinematic look and feel when used in photography.

This image is expansive in native 3:2 format, and contains too much empty space.
(Image by Tim Gilbreath)

Adjusting the aspect ratio to 16:9 allows for a much more flowing, cinematic look and feel. This format is especially good for displaying wide fields of view.
(Image by Tim Gilbreath)

1:1 ratio

The 1:1 ratio, or square format, might be mistaken as a newer format, as it is well-known for its use on the Instagram platform (although photos are no longer forced in that format with the service). However, square images are also the usual ratio for medium-format cameras, as well as a few toy cameras.

This format is a good choice for cropping close and isolating a subject or a scene that doesn’t involve an expansive landscape.

Returning to our mushroom photo, the 1:1 (or square) format lets us crop in close to a particular subject and remove any distracting elements. Here, we are focusing on the mushroom itself, and nothing else.
(Image by Tim Gilbreath)

5:4 ratio

The 5:4 ratio formatted images are primarily used in large-format photography, as many of those cameras use sheet film with dimensions of 5×4 inches.

From a creative standpoint, images using this ratio are almost as tall as they are wide, and are great for capturing vertical elements of a scene.

The 5:4 ratio is very similar to the 4:3. Again, we can use it to remove distracting elements on the sides of a scene.
(Image by Tim Gilbreath)

2:3 ratio

Finally, the 2:3 ratio is a specialty aspect ratio that is used for images in vertical or portrait orientation.

It is primarily used for portraiture, when elements of the scene (in most cases, a person), align in a vertical orientation.

You can also use vertical formats like 2:3 for landscape photography to capture tall elements within the frame, such as trees and mountains.

This image was framed and captured vertically, and later cropped in post-production to 2:3 format, to accentuate the height of the trees and the vertical expansiveness in the scene.
(Image by Tim Gilbreath)

3:2 vs 4:3 aspect ratio

Now let’s compare the two common camera aspect ratios. In the diagram below, you can see the 4:2 aspect ratio (left), plus the additional space included by a 3:2 sensor:

Clearly, the 3:2 aspect ratio used by most DSLRs and mirrorless cameras is slightly longer than the 4:3 aspect ratio used by Micro Four Thirds cameras. The difference may not seem like much, but it has a major effect on the composition. Take a look at the following images to see why.

Here’s the original shot, taken with a 3:2 aspect ratio:

And here’s the same image, but cropped to the 4:3 aspect ratio, as if it had been taken with a Micro Four Thirds camera:

Do you see the difference? It’s subtle, but it’s there. The 35mm frame is longer.

And that can be challenging when it comes to composition because you have to find a way to effectively fill that length.

Landscape photography, in particular, often benefits from a compressed frame, and that’s one of the reasons for the popularity of 7:6 medium format cameras and 5:4 view cameras among landscape film photographers.

Here’s what the same landscape would look like cropped to these formats:

For me, the 7:6 aspect ratio is too short, but 5:4 is a very pleasing aspect ratio to work in.

More aspect ratio examples

Now, after seeing the photos above, you might be thinking that the difference between aspect ratios is not a big deal. And often, when you are shooting in the landscape format (i.e., with the camera positioned so that the frame is horizontal), the difference is minimal. It’s not so difficult to work with any of the aspect ratios I’ve presented above.

But if you switch to the portrait format (i.e., with a vertical frame), it’s a different story. A 3:2 frame suddenly becomes a lot harder to fill effectively, and the composition often benefits from cropping to a shorter rectangle. Here are some examples to show you what I mean:

The difficulty I had with the landscape above is that there was too much empty sky in the original image. I solved the problem by cropping off the top, and the final 4:5 aspect ratio seems to work nicely.

Of course, not all images will benefit from this type of crop. But if you find yourself struggling to fill the frame, especially if you have a 35mm camera with a 3:2 frame, you may want to try a different aspect ratio.

By the way, here is the first image cropped to a couple more common aspect ratios.

The panoramic format (16:9):

And the square format (1:1):

Adjusting the aspect ratio in-camera

As I mentioned above, many digital cameras let you adjust the aspect ratio in the camera menu. And if you have a camera with an electronic viewfinder, you may see the cropped image in the viewfinder itself.

If your camera doesn’t have an electronic viewfinder, you’ll need to use Live View to take advantage of the aspect ratio function. The camera will display the cropped image on the rear LCD screen.

But there’s a major caveat:

If you use a non-native aspect ratio while shooting in JPEG, your camera will crop the image when you take the photo, and there’s no way to resurrect the edges of the frame. So if you later decide that you want a 3:2 aspect ratio instead of a 1:1 aspect ratio, you’re out of luck.

However, if you use a non-native aspect ratio while shooting in RAW, the camera will save the entire image in the original aspect ratio, and you can change your mind about the crop in post-processing.

Cropping in post-processing

It’s often easier to crop in post-processing than in the field. Plus, if your camera doesn’t have an aspect ratio function, cropping during editing is the only way to adjust the aspect ratio.

In pretty much every dedicated editing program, cropping is easy.

For instance, in Lightroom, just click the Crop icon, then select an aspect ratio from the Aspect menu:

Photography aspect ratio: conclusion

As you now know, aspect ratio is a big deal. It’s always a good idea to think about aspect ratios while shooting – and then, if necessary, adjust the aspect ratio in post-processing.

Now over to you:

What’s your favorite aspect ratio? And do you think about aspect ratios while taking photos? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Aspect ratio FAQ

Which aspect ratio is best?

There is no one best aspect ratio – it all depends on the look you’re after! Some scenes benefit from square (1:1) aspect ratios, whereas others look great with a 4:3 or a 5:4 aspect ratio. I’d recommend playing around in a program like Adobe Lightroom.

What aspect ratio do professional photographers use?

That depends on the photo. As discussed in the article, landscape shooters tend to favor more square aspect ratios such as 4:5, though if you’re a panorama photographer, a 16:9 frame (or wider!) might be preferable. Portrait photographers tend to avoid narrow aspect ratios, but there are times when a portrait looks good as a 9:16 composition.

What is the aspect ratio of 8×10 photos?

8×10 photos have a 4:5 aspect ratio.

The post Photography Aspect Ratio: What Is It and Why Does It Matter? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Andrew S. Gibson.

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