By checking out great photographers on YouTube, you can learn the stories behind the shots you admire. This is a fantastic way to truly understand the ins and outs of creating a scene and how to make the most of any given situation. What separates professionals is their ability to adapt and manage to create stunning imagery, even if things don’t go as planned. We have gathered top Sony shooters sharing the stories behind their shoots for various genres of photography. Be sure to check out their work, their setup, and their tips and tricks. And for more inspiring and aspirational content, be sure to subscribe to the Alpha Universe YouTube Channel.

See how these top Sony shooters are sharing the stories behind their shoots for various genres of photography.

Wedding Photography – Rebecca Carpenter

Rebecca Carpenter is a destination wedding and elopement photographer. She describes her photography style as warm and romantic. In this video she is shooting an engagement/couples shoot.

Rebecca does a great job showcasing how she preps for this type of shoot ahead of time, by creating a Pinterest board with poses and color pallet ideas. She then covers everything she does for the entire shoot. She covers how to pose, how to communicate with the couples, her camera settings, her camera gear, and more. For this shoot, Rebecca is shooting with the Sony Alpha 7 III and Sony 85mm f/1.8. If you want to be more comfortable working with couples, this is a great video to check out.

Landscape Photography – Brian Lackey

Brian Lackey is a professional photographer whose YouTube account acts as his travel vlog. His channel gives you a behind the scenes look into the day in the life of a travel photographer wherever he’s photographing at the time. It’s great fun to see where in the world Brian is at the moment and how he makes epic imagery using his Sony Alpha 7R IV. Check out what gear he takes with him in the video below.

In the video below, Brian takes his subscriber with him on a solo hike and camp trip in Olympic National Park. This is part adventure vlog, part behind the scenes landscape photography video. He talks through where the light is heading and how that plays into his composition and location for making images. It’s quite fun to see the full scene and then see Brian's images, how her hones in on certain elements in the landscape.

Seniors & Athletes – Matt Hernandez

Sports and Senior photographer Matt Hernandez is a true artist when it comes to lighting. He knows how to make a dynamic and interesting shot in any conditions. Hernandez shares this knowledge on YouTube. In his videos, he talks through his settings, gear, and his shooting techniques with the Sony Alpha 7R V, Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 G Master and Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 G Master. (Read more about his use of the Sony Alpha 7R V in How The Sony Alpha 7R V Has Changed The Game For This Sports Photographer.)

One of the reasons Matt’s videos are so popular is because he breaks everything down to the basics and he shows people how to make great images in any location. For example, in the video below, he makes a dynamic sports image in his driveway. Simply by using lights and great camera gear, he can make a simple place look epic. Learn more about Matt and his technique by checking out his recent “Ask Me Anything” on the Sony Alpha Community Forums.

Wildlife Photography – Olle Nilsson

Olle Nilsson is a Swedish nature and wildlife photographer. His YouTube videos go behind-the-scenes of his outdoors photography adventures to give an inside look at how he captures beautiful footage and photos of various wildlife and nature scenes.

In this video, Olle takes us behind the scenes on his journey to make a close up portrait of the Common Kingfisher. For his photography, Olle uses the Sony Alpha 7 III paired with the Sony 200–600mm f/5.6–6.3 G. And for his vlogging, Olle uses the Sony ZV-1. It's great fun to see his methods as well as his enthusiasm for making wildlife images. He ultimately gets fantastic results, so be sure to watch to the end to see for yourself.

Product Photography – Sophia Carey

Sophia Carey is a freelance photographer based in the U.K. She works in a number of genres including weddings and event photography, portrait photography, and client and product photography. She has grown quite a following on YouTube for her videos about her creative process and technical considerations in photography. 

Sophia uses the Sony 85mm f/1.8 for product photography. About a year before she shot this video, she had switched from Canon to Sony and had been using Canon lenses. The Sony 85mm f/1.8 is her first native Sony glass paired with her Sony Alpha 7 III. This video is a gear review and a behind the scenes look at product photography. Now she has grown her kit to also include the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 G Master and the Sony Alpha 7 IV.