Photodoto | 2006

Why is it called “unsharp mask” when it sharpens?

A brief history lesson about an image sharpening method called "unsharp mask." Photoshop and other image manipulation software all have a feature with this name that will sharpen an image. So, why is it called unsharp mask? The name comes from the original photographic procedure used to increase the apparent sharpness [...]

Essays

What gear should I buy to take great photographs?

A reader asks, Dear Photodoto, I want to take great photographs. What gear should I buy to improve my photography? Dear reader, to take great photographs you only need one piece of gear in addition to any camera: a photographer. Haha. No, seriously. One of my favorite stories on this topic is about a [...]

Reader Photos

Reader Photo: pocket guide

pocket guide, originally uploaded by Ed Fladung.

Photos posted in this category are selected from the contributions of members of the Photodoto discussion group at Flickr.com.

Reviews

Flickr photo uploads by camera model

Over the past several months, I've been sampling the EXIF data of Flickr photo uploads. The Flickr API provides access to the EXIF data of all public photos uploaded to Flickr. Throughout the day, the EXIF data of recent uploads was sampled at a rate of about 9,600 photos per [...]

Essays

Canon vs. Nikon

I've seen this debate come up a lot. Of course, it's been rearing its head for a long time and will continue to do so far into the future, but it seems like I've been seeing more of it lately. Most people are pretty light-hearted when they talk about it. [...]