You can use photography as a wonderful way of getting rid of stress. If you enjoy taking photos or simply looking at beautiful photography, then you can discover the beauty of everyday life. Pictures can tell someone a whole story, with out the need for any words.
In the scene before you, frame a select part of it to create a good composition. Imagine a window through which you see only a selected portion of the subject. Don’t try and show too much within each picture. To give an overview of a subject, take multiple pictures, instead of a single shot that may not have all of the details.
Stand close to your subjects to take better pictures. Getting in nice and tight allows your subject to fill the frame, which minimizes distractions. It lets you zero in on facial expressions, important considerations for any photographer taking a portrait. Small details such as the unique colors in your model’s eyes, or an adorable dimple are often lost when you are too far away.
Experiment with the white balance feature manually. When taking shots inside, you generally have a yellow cast due to the light bulbs. If you adjust your camera’s white balance, you will have better results with indoor shots. This will give your pictures a professional appearance.
Be mindful of which and how many objects appear in your photos. A good photograph will be a small window that shows one view of your subject. Don’t attempt to include too much. Try taking a series of photos for a better impression of a subject than one without details and focus.
As you take different pictures, accompany each with a brief, written note. Just looking at all those pictures you took could be hard to recall your feelings about them or where they were even taken. Bring a notebook with you and write down a description of every photograph you take with the corresponding number.
Shutter Speeds
When you are taking photos, remember that sometimes less is more. Why would you want to clutter your shots? Know what the focus of your shot will be and maintain a simplicity of message, so that it can be fully understood by viewers.
Different locations and lighting situations call for varying shutter speeds to produce the best results. Photography lets you capture moments in a split-second and allows you to blur together time periods that are large. In general, fast shutter speed work best for action shots, whereas slow shutter speeds are ideal for shooting still-lifes, landscapes and other static images.
Look for opportunities to frame creative shots. This doesn’t mean framing a finished photo, but using the environment to frame the subject. Look for elements that you can use as natural frames to your main point of focus. This will improve your composition skills.
Do not make your camera settings too complicated. Master one feature, such as shutter speed or aperture, one at a time. Doing so enables you to concentrate on the photos themselves instead of wasting time messing around with camera settings during which time your subject bores and moves on.
Experiment with the focus on your camera to create interesting pictures. You can focus on your subject more by using a smaller depth-of-field to blur the background. This type of photography is great for portraits, because the subject is usually near the camera and is meant to be the main focus. The bigger the f-stop number, the bigger the depth of field. This means that if your depth of field is larger, then a larger portion of the picture will appear focused on. This would be fantastic for landscape shots.
When deciding on which shots to display, choose the best ones. Keep things fresh and not repetitive. Just because you took a photo does not mean you have to show it. It is very tedious to see this type of repetition. Always try to show new perspectives, and showcase various aspects of your talent with your photography.
Silhouettes are unique pictures. Most silhouettes are created using a sunset. There are so many other ways to do it too though. One way to have a silhouette appear is by choosing a background that is much brighter than your subject. Create a silhouette shot by putting your subject in front of a sunny window or by setting up a flash off-camera, behind the subject. Remember however, that this method can cause you to focus on unflattering features.
Blur the background of shots with people in them just a little bit. When your background is not blurred, it will take the attention from your subject, and you will have a harder time making the viewer focus on what you want. The easiest way to do this is to increase the distance between subject and background.
Shoot your subjects from a variety of angles to find a unique perspective. Anyone can look at a simple head-on photo and take a picture of it. Try looking at things from above, or look at them from below. Another angle is to shoot from the side for an interesting composition.
Detail some notes on your camera settings when you are taking photos. When sorting through mass amounts of pictures, remembering the exact context or setting of each photograph can be difficult. Eventually, you may want to create a scrapbook and include some of the descriptive information along with the pictures.
You can adjust the settings on your camera before taking a picture, or try a unique angle. Experiment with these techniques beforehand so you’ll be able to visualize how they’ll affect your planned shot.
If taking photos with fluorescent lighting as the only available light source, adjust the cameras white balance to the proper settings. Blue and green light is usually given off by fluorescent lights, so subjects of your photos might take a tone cooler than you intended, unless you compensate with the red tones.
Red eye may seem like a small flaw, but it can deem a photo un-frame worthy. To avoid red eye, do not use your flash. If you must, do not have your subject look directly at the camera lens. A red eye reduction feature is available on some cameras.
Whenever you travel some place new, you should have a general ideas of what you like to shoot. If you need some inspiration, check out the postcard racks. Many postcards feature attractions, sights of interest, and other relevant subjects that you can shoot while you’re in the area.
Remember that our camera is merely a tool that can be manipulated for capturing your creativity though photographic images. If you use a shorter depth field you can blur the backgrounds, and bring your subject matter into the foreground.
Snap the picture quickly. To capture good action shots, you need to have your shutter speed feature set to high. Don’t miss a golden opportunity before it leaves once more. Animals can run away, people will get tired of holding their smile, or that perfect candid moment will be lost. Do not attempt getting every single setting on your camera just perfect, because you will put yourself at risk of losing the shot that you want.
Some situations may have unavoidably bad lighting, such as photos of a landscape. This is especially true if there’s no good light anywhere in the landscape you want to photograph. What is the remedy to this dilemma? You can use a program, such as Photoshop, for creating a gradient filter that can counterbalance the contrasting light.
As the above article stated, although not everyone may enjoy taking pictures, almost everyone can find the beauty in a beautiful picture. By involving yourself in photography, you could make memories the world could have otherwise missed. Photography is a great hobby to get started with at any age. Sharing the photos you take is also a wonderful way to blow off some steam and take a break from life.
It is possible to use a cell phone camera in a pinch to get decent photos, but remember your lighting. There is no flash on most cellphone cameras, so you should always try to take shots where there is a good lighting source. If you zoom in close, you will eliminate excess shadows and sunspots.