The other day, Russian users were almost banned. One of the employees of Roskomnadzor, who closely monitors illegal content and blocks it, ticked the box and included the IP address of the resource in the list. Some Far Eastern providers managed to react and, after which the IP address was nevertheless excluded from the register.

The news that Vkontakte could be blocked quickly spread around Runet, making many users nervous. Someone spends hours on social networks in toys, plowing beds on a virtual farm, someone chats there, someone watches movies and listens to music. All this can be done outside of Vkontakte, but users are used to a single entry point for various tasks and to what is next to them - friends to whom you can show off a photo of a new swimsuit on the beach or send them a virtual trophy in the form shovels in the game.

We remembered 5 social services that could replace Vkontakte. Not Facebook and Odnoklassniki, whose functionality largely coincides with Vk.com, but more niche products.

Vine - "gifs" in a new way

funky life

Thefancy.com is somewhat reminiscent of Pinterest, here we are also talking about beautiful things, and only, however, you can not only go to the source site, as in the previous network, but also buy something without leaving the site. The authors position the service as a blog, a magazine, a wish list and a store - all in one place. You can log in using your Facebook, Twitter or Vkontakte account.

You can add content to the site from other sites, from the device's memory or by e-mail. You can search for interesting items by price, color, and category, such as everything blue that is on the playground, or all the cool things for children, such as a huge baby sleeping bag or miniature sneakers for a newborn.

The best photos for inspiration

Many popular sites have special sections where photos of professionals are published. Here are some resources to help you find inspiration:

1. National Geographic Photography. Known for his stunning wildlife photography.
2. BBC News In Pictures. Maybe a little conservative, but very high quality.
3. Great Photojournalism. A community of professional photojournalists.
4. World Press Photo. Archive of photographs of participants in the annual competition, held since 1955.
5. file magazine. A magazine of extraordinary, challenging pictures and illustrations.
6. magnumphotos. Works of professional photographers of Magnum agency.
7. Royal Photography Society. Gallery of the community of British photographers.
8. phase. Magazine with interesting projects of photographers from different countries.
9. Flakphoto. A collection of individual shots and photo projects.
10. Unsplash. Gallery of high quality photos.
11. 500px . A popular resource for photographers.
12. Pinterest. A rather chaotic resource, but with a well-formulated request, it can be useful.
13. inspirationgrid. Huge collection of high quality photos.
14. planetpics. Photos of the most beautiful places on Earth.
15. weatherscapes. Website of amazing photos of weather phenomena.

Educational materials

As in any field, anyone who is willing to learn can become a professional in photography. You should also not be afraid of English-language resources: the meanings of most terms from this area are intuitive.

1. Fototips.ru. Councils for the selection of equipment, shooting, processing.
2. "Simple tricks". Daily articles on a wide variety of topics for photographers.
3. Photo monster. Photography tips from the pros.
4. "Cultural Enlightenment". Section on the website Photograher.ru with articles on theory and practice and inspiring interviews.
5. Russian Photo. Photography lessons categorized.
6. "The Photo Industry". Lessons of photography, processing, retouching.
7. Photomotion.ru. Inspirational Tips.
8. Prophotos. Large collection of lessons and instructions.
9. Digital Camera World. Useful tips for photographers.
10. MorgueFile Classroom . Ten photography lessons from freelance photographer Jody Koston.
11. Photonet learning. A section with lessons from one of the largest photo resources in English.
12. photomanual. Just about difficult things in photography.
13. "Photography for Beginners". Fundamentals of photography for beginners in the complete course at Coursera.
14. Fujifilmru. An educational project that will teach you common myths about composition. Also, learn how to choose the right lens.
15. Photo-monster. Video tutorials in different areas of photography: from portraits to landscapes.

Photoshop Photo Editing Tutorials

Clubs manufacturers

2. We shoot and process

Processing pictures on a smartphone

In fact, there are many alternative applications to the popular Instagram that allow you to process photos using built-in filters:

1. VSCO Camera ( , iOS).
2. Eye Em (Android, iOS).
3. Pixlr (Android, iOS, WP8).
4. PicsArt (Android, iOS, WP8).
5. Adobe Photoshop Express (Android, iOS, WP8).
6. Photo Editor by Aviary (Android, iOS).
7. Repix (Android, iOS).
8. Snapseed (Android, iOS).
9. Afterlight (Android, iOS,) - 35 rubles (Android), $0.99 (iOS, Windows Phone).
10. Mextures (iOS) - $1.99

Photo editing software for PC

Even perfect photos need a little retouching. For this purpose, there are various paid and free programs:

1. Photoshop. Needs no introduction.
2. Lightroom. Another Adobe product for photo editing. Less cumbersome than Photoshop.
3. GIMP. A free alternative to Photoshop available for all popular operating systems.
4. Paint.NET. A rather primitive, but quite suitable editor for Windows to perform basic operations.
5. PixelMator. Powerful photo editor for macOS.

Online processing

You can carry out many basic photo processing operations directly in your browser for free and without installing additional software. Resources differ only in the set of proposed tools.

3. We publish

Posting on your blog

Paid resources often allow you to create a real portfolio and attract viewers easily and quickly. But the free ones should not be neglected either.

1. Facebook. Why not just create an album. There are no restrictions on the number of shots, privacy settings are very flexible.
2. "In contact with ". Likewise.
3. livejournal. A well-known resource suitable for photoblogging.
4. deviantart. Huge multidisciplinary community, within which photography has a large section with many subcategories.
5. SmugMug. Here you can not only collect a portfolio of author's photographs, but also receive income from the use of photographs. Two weeks of free trial are offered.
6. Esposure. A great resource for creating photo stories.
7. Photoshelter. One of the most popular online portfolio platforms.
8. carbonmade. A very nice resource for publishing your portfolio with a limited number of free photos.
9. Flickr. You can upload photos in high resolution and unite in interest groups.
10. Google photos. Reliable storage for your pictures, it is possible to create albums and stories to share them with friends.
11. Adobe Spark. Another service that allows you to create web pages with your photo stories.
12. Behance. This service was chosen by designers, but here you can also talk about the creative process and share your best work.

Hello dear guests of my blog. I decided to open the “photo sites” section with this article, where I will review useful and interesting sites for people who are fond of photography.

So, the first in my review will be the site of the social network of photographers "FotoKto". I registered on it quite recently (about a week ago), but already during this time it “sucked” me close to itself and I became an avid visitor. Every day the site is gaining more and more popularity. This is because the network has a narrowly focused theme - photography. People associated with photography register and communicate here: professional photographers, amateur photographers, models, retouchers, fashion designers, assistants, designers, florists, videographers and others.

With the current development of digital photographic equipment and its availability, there are more and more amateur photographers every day, and, consequently, the popularity of the FotoKto social network will gain momentum every day.

So let's take a closer look at the site. After registration, you have the following options:

- you can create your own albums and add photos there, or you can just add your photos without albums (you can add no more than 5 photos per day). Your photos will be viewed by other users, rate and comment on them. There are many professional photographers on the site, their criticism will be useful. Well, if they praise, then it is also very pleasant;

- you can create your resume and offer your services;

— you can evaluate and comment on photos of other users yourself, and add the best ones to your favorites;

- you can immediately maintain your blog and leave your notes and thoughts in it;

- you can view all comments and ratings on your photos and blog entries in the "News" tab in your account, which is very convenient, you do not need to open each of your photos to read comments on it;

— on the “Competitions” page, everyone can participate in photography contests and win cash prizes and gifts from sponsors;

- if you want criticism of your photo, you can add it to the "I want criticism" section, where you will be criticized and given advice on the correct setting of the frame, lighting, and the like.

Everything on the site is so well done that even a child will figure it out.

True, I was heavily criticized there, and especially, but I still like this social network. Criticism spurs me on to get better and better. I would like to express my gratitude to all users

Any skill requires development, broadening of horizons and, often, public recognition. The art of photography is no exception. In addition to studying at a photography school and their own experience, a photographer of any level should pay attention to photography sites in order to gain important information, keep abreast of the latest in the field of photography and, of course, make money on their craft.

One of the best ways to understand any photographer's style of work is to study their blog.. It is also very interesting to follow the development of professionalism and events in a person's life.

Websites of professional photographers and photoblogs usually contain photo reports of one author in chronological order and a minimum of text, which is explained by the habit of photographers to speak to the world in the language of photography.

What does it take to create a great website?

Let's look at interesting and useful information for up-and-coming photographers who want to create professional creative projects. Access to the World Wide Web allows you to search for popular sites and sections where the works of leading experts in the art of photography are published. Here you can find inspiration materials, learning resources, design secrets. In the article we will briefly talk about what can be useful for implementing ideas:

1. Topic. There are resources with examples of photographs that can become the subject of a photographer's work. These are pictures of the mysterious and unique nature, the most beautiful wonders of the Earth, projects of photojournalists, photos from the archives of international competitions of photographers from different countries, author's works.
2. Materials for gaining knowledge and skills, new items in the photo industry, explanations of professional terminology, professional advice on choosing equipment, conducting a photo session, processing lessons in graphic editors.
3. Shops and websites of manufacturers.
4. Secrets of photo editing on a smartphone, software, online.
5. Publications in popular editions, official sites of photo contests.
6. Photo storage resources. The best backup is cloud storage.
7. The Art of Selling Works.

The best

1. pavel-kosenko.livejournal.com - Livejournal of a travel photographer, with a lot of useful articles about the work of a photographer
2. zyalt.livejournal.com — LiveJournal by Ilya Varlamov, owner of high-quality photo reports and materials on the subject of freedom of photography in Russia, and fighting for freedom of photography
3. podakuni.livejournal.com - LiveJournal of Anton Martynov - a well-known photographer who writes useful articles on the topic of processing
4. demiart.ru/forum/index.php - the best Runet forum discussing Photoshop in the work of a photographer
5. club.foto.ru/forum/ - one of the largest Russian-language forums on the web
6. fotoforge.livejournal.com - perhaps the best LJ community for photo editing
7. x-processed.ca — Adriy Zolotoy, a photographer from California, won the best photoblog competition back in 2006. The blog is gradually acquiring a commercial format, photos are reaching a very high level
8. www.lifeisphoto.ru - Photolife - a site for photographers to exchange information and showcase their work, with a community, announcements and contests for users
9. www.mywed.ru - the most popular site for wedding photographers
10. www.flickr.com - site of international photographers, including photo galleries and photo hosting
11. fotomanuals.ru - information on instructions for photographic equipment
12. fimpuls.ru - photography and photo editing tutorials containing step-by-step photos of the workflow
13. www.photorealm.ru - shooting tips, poses, glossary, online camera simulator and much more
14. bokeh.com.ua is a storehouse of useful information for a photographer: news, reviews, training videos, photo collections

Having trouble choosing lenses for your Canon? Find out what are good and your choice will stop on it!

Check out tips on how to choose a SLR camera in ours.

Inspiration

For creative inspiration, the photographer simply must visit beautiful photography sites:

1. www.earthshots.org - A selection of the best photographs from around the world.
2. photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography - National Geographic's best shots catalog.
3. www.weatherscapes.com is a site that specializes in capturing stunning weather events.

Blogs

The best blogs of Russian-speaking users living in the CIS, USA, New Zealand, Canada and other countries of the world are:

1. vladlenabdullin.ru is the best Russian photography blog in 2008. It was formed in direct chronology and is dedicated to original ideas, experiments and.
2. www.digitalphotoworld.ru - Igor Quentor's website containing useful information about unusual ways of photo processing.
3. kovenkin.com is a blog consisting mainly of black and white works, of which its creator, Rodion Kovenkin, is a fan.
4. www.mannii.com - photographer Katerina from Canada, on the contrary, loves lively and vibrant shots of nature and the city.
5. www.photo-news.net - Valery Pichko's resource about the history of photography and contemporary events in the world of photography.
6. dmitry.shamin.spb.ru - Shamin photographs everything from people to natural objects, reflecting the world around him through his consciousness.
7. piczone.info - Kolya Rykov works in medium format and shoots everything that seems interesting to him in the world around him.
8. klimin.com/photoblog - Andrey Klimin's page is perhaps the first Runet photoblog and contains serious professional photos.
9. photix.ru is an interesting project of a young photographer who captures genuine emotions of people and moments of their everyday life.
10. evtifeev.com is an excellent photo blog by Dmitry Evtifeev, containing a lot of useful information on testing photographic equipment and training materials.
11. profotoclub.ru - the blog contains materials about the work and tools of the photographer.
12. focused.ru is a blog of daily news from the world of photography: technology, photo processing programs.
13. alick.ru - regularly updated notes on photography and comics posts about "photo-ducks".
14. svetlyak.ru - training materials on shooting and processing photos.
15. toto-school.ru is a photoblog by Anton Marakhovsky, who has his own photography school, with articles and photographs.
16. www.photoindustria.ru is a blog of photographer Oleg Tityaev with photographs of various kinds.
17. www.photoscape.ru is a site for amateur photographers with useful articles for mastery of any level.

So that a photographer of any level can navigate a huge amount of information about photoblogs, there are ratings and catalogs of this type of resource:

1. www.photoblogs.org is the largest and most popular photoblogs directory. The site presents a rating of blogs, which is formed by photobloggers.
2. www.coolphotoblogs.com is a ranking of the best photoblogs around the world, divided by country.
3. www.photoblog-community.com is a resource for photo bloggers from all over the world.

The capital of Russia is a storehouse of talented photographers. Below are the sites of Moscow photographers, who occupy a leading position in the capital's photo services market:

1. gorbushina.ru is the site of Anna Gorbushina, a professional young photographer of wedding and love stories.
2. www.fotografmoskva.ru - Alex Maisky presents his photo studio, works and useful articles about photography on the site.
3. nicephotography.ru is a website of photographer Vadim Ratobylsky, who specializes in wedding, portrait and walking photography.
4. www.onlyphoto.ru is a resource of Elena Nizhegorodtseva, offering wedding, macrophotos of the author, as well as photo shoots of animals and landscapes.
5. www.blinovastudio.com — Olga Blinova is a highly professional photographer who prefers shooting human stories – weddings, holidays, corporate events, as well as children and studio portraits.

Forums

Even the best photography sites do not always provide users with the opportunity to exhibit and discuss their work. Forum of photographers - ideal option for beginners in this art to communicate with the masters of their craft, ask questions and consult about their photos. The best photo forums are:

1. www.photoforum.ru/forum/index.ru.html is a rather small but actively developing forum of photographers.
2. www.wlpclub.com is a meeting place for wildlife photographers.
3. forum.laini.ru is a photo forum for those who like to take pictures of animals.
4. macroclub.ru/club/index.php - a place where macro lovers communicate.
5. forum.znyata.com is the largest forum in Belarus with over ten thousand users.
6. forum.rudtp.ru is the best forum about the technical equipment of a photographer. Interesting information about the design, layout and printing of photos.
7. zastavkin.com/forum/ is one of the best and largest forums covering the work of a photographer with photobanks and stocks.
8. www.club-nikon.ru/forum/ is a forum for photographers who own Nikon cameras.
9. clubcanon.ru is the best place for professionals and amateurs to communicate with Canon cameras.
10. www.penta-club.ru/forum/ is a forum for the exchange of experience among photographers who have a Pentax camera.
11. oly43club.ru/forum/ — a photo forum for owners of Olympus cameras.

Foreign sites

As well as Russian-language, there are a lot of foreign sites for photographers containing useful information. Here are the websites of foreign photographers who simply must be in the arsenal of any photographer:

1. www.dpreview.com - a resource about testing and reviews of cameras and other new photographic equipment.
2. www.joemcnally.com/blog/ is an interesting blog by popular strobist photographer, Joey McNally.
3. www.kenrockwell.com is a world-famous photography tools review site from professional Ken Rockwell.
4. strobist.blogspot.com is the best site for flash photography.
5. scottkelby.com/blog/ is a diverse and useful blog by the famous Scott Kelby.
6. www.the-digital-picture.com is a site filled with reviews of all kinds of cameras and photo accessories.
7. nikonrumors.com is a site containing the latest news about Nikon's photography news.
8. www.canonrumors.com is a site with the latest news about Canon technology.
9. www.sportsshooter.com is a useful resource covering all aspects of sports photography.
10. www.lenstip.com - a site containing reviews, comparisons and characteristics of photographic equipment.

Learn

LiveJournal is another way for a photographer to present their masterpieces to the general public, get comments and advice from any network user. The most useful LJ to date are:

1. everyday-i-show.livejournal.com is a community containing works and links to the websites of the best photographers in the world.
2. dima-chatrov.livejournal.com is the magazine of Dmitry Shatrov, who loves portrait and landscape photography of exotic places on the planet.
3. lebedeff.livejournal.com is a photo resource for a lover of filming human nature, photographer Lebedeff.
4. sav-in.livejournal.com - excellent, mostly landscape shots by Krasnogorsk photographer Stanislav Savin.
5. ardmi.livejournal.com is a magazine with stunning, almost fabulous works by the Minsk photographer.
6. blastav.livejournal.com — Alexei Oleinikov prefers to shoot his wife in original and varied productions.
7. anagr.livejournal.com - Experimental photographer's LiveJournal with stories, lenses and color.

In fact, the authors managed to create a very democratic project, where even novice amateur photographers feel comfortable. Here you can feel free to show your work and find out how other participants rate your photos.

Main page

Most characteristic of Photokto.ru- section "I want criticism". Dozens of photos are posted here every day and receive comments, recommendations and friendly advice. Quick feedback from experienced craftsmen turns communication into Fotokto.ru into an effective learning process.

Works for the section "I want criticism"

Another plus site - contests. At any given time, there are between three and four contests on different topics. The competitive moment powerfully stimulates the learning process.

Works for the competition called "Smile"

In addition, on Photokto.ru The top 20 photographs submitted by readers are determined daily. All their authors receive a corporate diploma. So the opportunity to become a winner is present every day!

And let's not forget that Fotokto.ru is a social photo network. This means that here you can:

• create a portfolio;
• post a resume;
• keep a blog;
• add friends and chat with those participants whose work you liked and who have something to learn.

Photokto.ru will help amateur photographers with theory - there are many lessons on the most important subjects: choice of photographic equipment, secrets for great photos, how to edit them in photoshop. Lessons can be found in the "Blogs" section.

One note: on Fotokto.ru You can upload up to 5 photos per day. The fact is that each photo is moderated here. And since there are many participants, you yourself understand ... the input stream is limited.

From the TOP-20 photos for 19.08.2013 - "Praskovya"

From TOP-20 photos for 20.08.2013 - "Early morning"

And what can this social photo network give to experienced photographers? On the Photokto.ru there is a search engine (section "People"), which helps customers find good photographers, and those - to receive work orders. And, of course, do not forget about self-expression, about the desire to share experience with novice amateur photographers, about the joy of communicating with like-minded people.

Finally, about one more advantage of this project. Fotokto.ru cooperates with the New York Institute of Photography and organizes with it free online conferences on the art of photography.

They are held regularly, so it is easy to seize the moment and take part in such a conference. A lot of time is devoted to the analysis and evaluation of photos taken by the participants. Submit your work by the agreed deadline and you will have a chance to get it professionally reviewed.

From TOP-20 photos for 21.08.2013 - "Evening"

From TOP-20 photos for 22.08.2013 (no title)

There are several good sites on the web on the subject of "photography as art" - such as or. Photokto.ru helps to take the first serious steps towards mastering this level of skill.

It can be said that Fotokto.ru- a site that turns amateur photographers into photo artists. Two factors are excellent motivators for learning and improvement. This is an assessment of the photo by the project participants and the opportunity to constantly compete. See how others take pictures! Think about how you can do better! Participate and win!

Business blogs