For photographers who want to elevate their craft and become ARTIST WITH CAMERAS
Free lessons, honest gear recommendations and the fine art that comes out of both — from Laurence Balter, Leica photographer, physicist and flight instructor.
Learn the craft
All lessonsPlain-language photography lessons — how light, filters and cameras really work — from 25 years of professional work and a physics degree.
Long exposure, step by step
Neutral density, shutter-speed math and the tripod routine behind silky water and streaking clouds.
Read the lesson →
Infrared & black-and-white
Why foliage turns to white fire, how to choose a filter wavelength, and how to expose for it.
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Choosing filters
ND, variable ND, polarizers: what each one does, what to skip, and what to buy once.
Read the lesson →Gear I recommend
Buyer’s guide & reviewsThe bags, filters and labs I shoot with — and the discount codes that come with them.
Oberwerth
German camera bags. The Q Bag is the one I own, carry and film with.
Save 10% · code artist10
OwlKrown
A brand I represent as an ambassador. Use my link for 10% off your order.
Save 10% · code artist10
House of 35
A California film lab I represent as an ambassador, for anyone shooting film.
Freewell
Magnetic ND, variable ND and polarizing filters, plus lens hoods and add-on lenses for cameras, phones and drones. My newest partner; a hands-on review video is coming.
Affiliate linkDisclosure: I’m an ambassador or affiliate for the brands marked on this site and earn a commission when you buy through my links. It never costs you extra. I decide what to list by what fits the work, and I say so when I haven’t tested something yet.
Books
Both books
The Art and Science of Long Exposure
From your first 8-second frame to star trails and the sun. 129 pages, Kindle.
Get the guide on Amazon
Monochrom
Infrared and black-and-white work made on the Leica M11 Monochrom. Kindle.
Get the book on AmazonArtwork
All artworkThe pictures the lessons come from — five bodies of work, every one available as a print.
Infrared
Made on the M11 Monochrom with an infrared filter, mostly under the monkeypod and shower trees upcountry.
70 photographsColor & Film
Colour negative and slide, and digital frames profiled to behave like them.
100 photographsMonochrom
Black and white — long exposures at the edges of the day, Paris and Honolulu, and the sea cliffs of Molokai photographed from the air, from the cockpit of the plane I fly.
30 photographsStreet
One camera, one lens, no arrangement.
86 photographsPortrait
Portraits made two ways.
15 photographsSubscribers Photo Wall
Show your best frame. Submit a photograph and, once approved, it goes on the wall with your name and handle.
See the wall →Workshops
Small groups, slow days. Tokyo street photography in March 2027, plus talks and trips on film and long exposure.
See the dates →New lessons, by email
One short email when a new lesson, review or buying guide goes up. Nothing else, and never sold.