Tips for Night Photography

          Night photography
Night photography

Night time photography produces some amazing results. It is fun capturing the night-time city shots and the bright lights of cars whizzing past.

Use a Tripod to Eliminate Camera Shake

If you are a serious night photographer a tripod is necessary to eliminate camera shake and get clear exposures with good depth of field.

When shooting sunsets and city scapes we normally just point and shoot. Try adding foreground to the photo to add depth. Something else to consider is the general rule of thirds so your photo has good perspective.

When you check the light levels using your camera, make sure it is not pointing directly at the sun. Take the reading based on the colors around the sun. If you don’t then your photo will be underexposed.

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Lenses and Macro Photography

Camera lens
Camera lens

Macro photography has become increasingly popular; so much so that most consumer digital cameras are equipped with a setting intended for such a purpose, and/or they arrive with built-in zoom lenses capable of focusing on the most minuscule or tiny detail of a subject.

The most common subjects for macro photography are flowers, insects and natural patterns in wood, stone, sand or even moss, but some photographers may take commercial images of jewelry, or other subjects as well. Macro photography is basically the capturing of clear details of very small or even microscopic subjects, and this requires special lenses.

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Creative Holiday Photos

Holiday Photography
Holiday Photography

Around the world there are millions of photo albums filled with holiday snap shots of children opening gifts, relatives seated around a table or living room and even some outdoor images. While these are treasured memories, they can become the “same old thing” year after year.

How do you capture creative holiday photos? There are many unique opportunities during the days and weeks leading up to the actual day (or days) of celebration, and these make for some excellent images.

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Tips for Developing Macro Photography Techniques

There are many ways of approaching macro digital photography. And, if you are new to macro photography, it is quite confusing for those learning how to take great macro shots. Here are some macro photography tips to give you a greater insight into the art of taking close-ups of small things. Exposure for Macro Photography … Read more

Macro Photography Equipment Tips

Macro lens and camera
Macro lens and camera

What is macro photography? Macro photography is the art of taking close-ups of small things and the subjects tend to become larger than life. It is the opposite of micro photography and often the subjects are things like a water droplet on the petal of a flower or a line of ladybirds as they go about their daily business.

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How to Get Photoshop Joy

Kiwi Mouse Photo by hongkiat.com
Kiwi Mouse Photo by hongkiat.com

Many amateur and professional photographers have discovered the almost limitless potential of Photoshop software – they can change textures, apply all kinds of artful filters, make additions or corrections to photographs, and even combine unlikely images into a single image. One area where Photoshop becomes an incredibly useful tool is in portrait photography.

For example, most professional photographers are now capturing all of their images in the RAW format because of its functionality in the Photoshop program. The larger file size captures a broader range of color and makes for a much better, less “noisier” print. The traditional JPG format that most people use for their photographs asks for certain camera settings and may eliminate a great deal of the control that photographers want when taking professional and portrait images.

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Mastering Composition

Wine in centered amongst diverse contrast
Wine centered amongst diverse contrast creating a swish affect

A photographer controls the composition of the photograph they are taking by deciding exactly what will be included in the photograph and what will not.  The photographer chooses a subject to shoot and makes decisions such as where to place the subject, as well as what to include in the background and the foreground of the photo.  Many quick, almost subconscious, decisions go into creating a photograph and composing something that catches the eye, captures the moment and draws the viewer into the scene once the photograph is printed.  This skill for most is developed over time.

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Understanding Exposure will help you get Quality Pictures

Daylight exposure table by photo.net
Daylight exposure table by photo.net

Taking good pictures is a great way to be able to share your experiences with other people and make a living. Time marches on very quickly, and those pictures are a great way to look back over what has occurred or indeed, help recommend a photographer. Many people are disappointed though at some of the pictures. They didn’t turn out the best.

This can be due to:

– Not enough exposure

– Too much exposure

– Double exposure

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Tips for Getting Your Backgrounds Right in Photographs

shooting backgrounds
shooting backgrounds

The first thing to remember about the background of any photograph is that it is indeed the background and ‘not the subject’. This means that the power of this part of the scene must be to a much lesser degree than the primary focus. While there is no easy tip or trick for knowing if you have allowed the background to overwhelm or distract from the subject, simply remembering that it isn’t to be any kind of competition to the attention of the viewer, is a good start.

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Photographer’s Secret Weapon – Vaseline

Vaseline effect #1 - Eva Polak
Vaseline effect #1 - Eva Polak

Quick note from Ray – Photography tips and tricks are welcomed here and if you feel you have something to offer other photographers, feel welcome to visit this page for the guidelines. Now on with this amazing tip….,

Vaseline does wonders, not only for your skin, but can also help you to create impressionist masterpieces. You can transform just about any subject into something interesting and exciting. If you like the soft, poetic look in your photographs this simple technique is for you.

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