Scammer steals $25,000 in photography gear, Google’s AI photography, how to spot retouched pictures… read about all this and more in our weekly roundup of photography news.
1. Scammer steals $25,000 in photography gear
Four photographers have been victims of a scam over a two-week span, where a total of $25,000 worth of gear was stolen. The scammer took advantage of Venmo’s policy that forbids sales in exchange for goods. The payments were sent to the buyers in about 50 smaller transactions and, before all transfers were complete, Venmo banned the buyers’ accounts for violating their policies and cancelled all transactions. One way to avoid issues of this sort would be to use a gear tracking service, such as Lenstag.
Source: The Verge
2. Silent Killers: a critique of ocean pollution in pictures
A photo series by photographers Jose G Cano and Christine Ren titled “Silent Killers” addresses the issue of ocean pollution through photography. Their most recent photoshoot explores the dangers of ghost fishing nets. Learn more in the video below.
Silent Killers from Christine Ren on Vimeo.
Source: The Phoblographer
3. How does Google’s AI photography measure up?
Google developed an AI feature that searches for great shots in the Google street view database. The software uses a database of professional photos and is able to adjust for composition and color adjustment of specific areas of the picture. Though it isn’t exactly a “computer photographer” yet, it is definitely an impressive advancement.
Picture from FStoppers
Source: FStoppers
4. 6 giveaways of retouched pictures
The Guardian Photography prepared a guide on how to identify pictures that were edited in Photoshop. Among the features to watch out for, they listed light and shade correspondence, repetition of patterns, the likelihood of the photo happening in real life, the absence of reflections of items in the picture, variation of quality, and the relative size of elements. Read the full guide on The Guardian.
Source: The Guardian Photography
5. What it takes to be a photographer’s assistant
Rodrigo Daguerre, photographer and photo editor at 500px, talks about his experiences working as a photographer’s assistant. One of the key learnings from his experience was to always be prepared to face obstacles in the shoot, as he states that “You can’t not get the shot.” Read more on 500px ISO.
Source: ISO
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The photos we’re currently loving, curated by 500px photo editors.
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