Digital Photography: Understanding Iso
ISO in digital photography is not complex, yet many new photographers have a hard time learning and understanding this fundamental aspect of photography.
I suspect this is because of the way it is being taught. You see, ISO started out as a property of film, and it was much easier to visualise it in terms of the old technology. So that’s where I want to start my explanation, before bringing you into the 21st century with ISO today.
ISO actually started out as ASA, which stands for American Standards Association. Decades ago, a commercial film manufacturer came up with a set of numbers to define the sensitivity of different types of film. That set of numbers was accepted by the American Standards Association, so all American manufacturers could use the same system. Later, the American standard was adopted by the International Standards Organization, so ASA became ISO.
What does all that mean? Well, it means that the letters ISO didn’t really stand for anything except for the name of an organization.
What is important is what ISO referred to, which was the sensitivity of the film. The emulsion on some films reacted quite slowly to light, and on other films much faster. Slower films had a smaller ISO number, like 25, 64, 100. Faster films had a higher number, like 200, 400, 800.
A slow film needed a relatively high level of light to create a well-exposed photo. That meant that to take a photo in darker conditions, you would need to use a fairly wide aperture and/or a fairly slow shutter speed to get a result. On the other hand, a faster film reacted to light a lot more quickly, so it needed much less exposure to light to take a photo.
Fast film sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? A chance to take a photo in any conditions without a tripod, and to freeze moving subjects with very fast shutter speeds. So why didn’t everyone just use fast films all the time?
The answer is that the advantages of fast films came with a trade-off; loss of image quality. The grains of emulsion on a fast film were larger, so a photo taken on a film with ISO 400 or 800 had a rougher, ‘grainier’ look. This may not have been a problem in a small print, but became quite apparent with big enlargements. Consequently, most professional photographers preferred to use slower films of 100 or 64 ISO for most of their work.
So is this just a lesson in ancient history? After all, you have a digital camera, so what does all this have to do with you. Well, it may surprise you to know that despite the huge revolution in technology, the essentials of ISO have not changed one bit.
Your camera should allow you the option of adjusting your ISO setting. Just like in the days of film, if you set your ISO to a low number like 100, you will need more light to create a correct exposure. That means that you may need to keep a tripod handy for cloudy days, and in certain low-light situations you may not always get the aperture and shutter speed settings you want. If you set your ISO to 400 or 800, your camera will become much more sensitive to light; you will be able to shoot in exactly the same conditions without a tripod, and with greater flexibility to choose the aperture and shutter speeds you want.
But here is the amazing part. Higher ISO settings still come with the same trade-off that once existed with film. Along with the speedier sensitivity to light, you can also expect the image to have a grainier finish. I don’t know if it is pixellation, or digital noise, or a combination of both, but it is generally understood that for all their advantages, high ISO photos come with a reduction of image quality that becomes more obvious the more you enlarge the image.
So there you have a quick introduction to what ISO is all about. Perhaps I am just showing my age, but I find this subject easier to explain in old-technology terms. For many people it is easier to visualise when related to something solid like film, rather than something that happens on a computer chip. Anyway, I hope this helps you if you have had trouble understanding what ISO is all about.
Written by Andrew Goodall our expert of the day.
Nature Photography: Five Low-tech Tips for Better Photos
Digital cameras offer so many functions and features, photography can seem way too complex for the beginner. In frustration many new photographers simply switch their digital camera to auto, and never learn how to use it properly.
If you read that and thought “That sounds like me!” read on; I have good news. There are some great ways to take better photos without having to learn the complexities of your camera. That’s right - leave your camera on auto and still learn to take great photos.
Of course I encourage anybody to learn and understand aperture and shutter speed, the settings you will need to understand to really improve as a photographer. However, the best encouragement is to start getting results quickly, so here are five easy tips to help you improve your photography…the low-tech way!
Better Photography Tip#1. Take your photo in the best possible light. You may have heard that the best light for most photography is very early or very late in the day, when the sun is low, and the light is soft and colourful. This is a good rule to follow most of the time. Not only is the light more attractive, you can also avoid the contrast and heavy shadows of midday.
Some subjects actually work better on cloudy days. For animals and people, cloudy weather softens the light and overcomes the problem of your subject squinting into the light. In the forest, overcast skies prevent the heavy contrast that is a problem on sunny days.
Better Photography Tip#2. Landscape photos: create a more interesting composition. Many photos can be made more interesting not by zooming right in on the subject, but by zooming out, or standing further back to capture more of the surroundings. The important thing is to use make sure you use the surroundings to add impact to the picture.
For example, let’s say you are photographing an old rustic farmhouse. You could add even more character by using a line of fence posts, or a gravel driveway, to lead the eye into the picture. Or when photographing a waterfall, you could try going a little further downstream, to shoot the creek with the waterfall in the background for a more interesting angle.
Better Photography Tip#3. Sunset and Sunrise. Everyone loves taking sunset (and sunrise) photos. A brilliant sunset sky can make a great photo, but you can make it even better by looking for a good subject in the foreground. The key is to find something that stands out against the sky, with a an outline people can recognize; a tree, a windmill, even a row of power poles. The subject does not have to dominate the photo; in fact it is probably best if it only takes up about ten percent of the composition so that the sky remains the starring attraction. But if you can create a striking silhouette, you will immediately add character to your sunset photograph.
Better Photography Tip#4. Animals (And People). Portrait style photos are usually spoiled by a distracting background. When you take a photo of a friend, a pet, or an animal, you don’t want the surroundings to take attention away from the subject.
So here’s the trick. Don’t stand close to your subject and take the photo with a regular or wide-angle lens. Stand further back and zoom in with your largest lens magnification. This will have two results. First, it will reduce the area behind and around the subject that is visible in the photo. Second, it will minimize the depth of field, which means only your subject should be in focus. Anything in front or behind the subject will be out of focus, and will not cause a distraction.
Better Photography Tip#5. Concentrate. Sometimes all it takes to make a photo a success is to move a little to the left or right, or zoom in or out just a little more. If you just point the camera in the general direction of the subject without thinking about what you are doing, your results will not improve. If you slow down and really examine what you can see in the viewfinder before you press the button, your success rate will impove.
Simple things to look out for include; trees and power-poles appearing to grow out of the head of the subject (move yourself or the subject to a better position); litter on the ground (pick it up); aircraft or distracting clouds in the sky (wait for them to pass by); blurry branches on a windy day (wait for conditions to settle for a moment). All these things and more can ruin a photo, and they can all be remedied by taking a good look to make sure your picture has captured everything you want, and nothing you don’t want.
So there you have some easy tips for good photography without getting hung up on technology. Above all, pay attention to tip #5 and slow down to concentrate on what you are doing. The other golden rule: keep practicing, take lots of photos whenever you can. You will learn a lot more from your own experience in the field, than by being told what to do. Remember with digital cameras it doesn’t cost you anything to keep on snapping. With patience and attention to detail, you will be taking better photos in no time - guaranteed!
Written by Andrew Goodall our expert of the day.
Better Photo Tips - Writing a Photo Article
By now you’ve probably heard that writing photo articles is a great way to get Qualified Traffic to your photography web site. By “Qualified Traffic” I mean people that are actually interested in photography to begin with. Let’s face it, 10,000 visitors a month to your site means nothing if only 10 of those people are actually interested in photography. I want to be up front with you. I have 30 years photography experience, 10 years web page design experience, but only two years of writing photography articles experience. So, you ask, why am I writing about writing if that’s what I have the least experience in? I write about 48 years of lifetime experiences and relate them to photography. In other words, all that we are as photographers or writers comes from ALL that we are. On my own website I currently have about 120 photo articles, 120 photo tips, 120 photo quotes, etc. The reason I choose 120 as the magic number was so that I could list 10 new photo articles, 10 new photo tips, 10 new photo quotes etc each month on my front page. This way my home page would have new and different information showing up each month for a whole year before anything was duplicated. That having been said, I ran into an interesting design problem. When I had to list an article with a title like: “Depth of Field - A Major Player in Creative Control”, it physically would not fit in the small space I had on the left hand side of the page. At first I shortened the link to something like: “DOF- A Major Player”. Keep in mind that web pages and articles have several things in common; one of the most obvious being that they do better when “Key Words” are included. Key words are those words people will type into Google or Yahoo to find your website or article to begin with. To give you an idea how important they are, my first photo website was called: “lordtedric.com”, simple, unique, easy to remember. The problem is: it said nothing about photography. Unless someone knew me personally, they had absolutely no reason to go there. I had learned that lesson when I designed my current website, but I still had not applied it to my articles yet. Maybe I get too focused in on one problem at a time. At the time I was thinking about web page design not articles, but I did realize I had a similar problem. Rather than using the short description “DOF- A Major Player” I went to “DOF in Your Photo”. Presto! Problem solved. Short, concise, to the point, and now my link had another Key Word on my home page. Sometimes one good idea leads to another, and another, and another, etc. I figured if it would work on my article, why don’t I change ALL the links to include a key word? This is where I got my education about article titles. I did NOT write most of the photo articles on my site. There are many photo articles written by very good photographers, but a surprising number of them never mentioned the words photo or photography in their title. I am not passing judgment, because I did the same exact thing. True, “Depth of Field” is a key phrase, but not as basic or as widely searched for as photography or photo. By changing the title of my photo article to: “Depth of Field - A Major Player in Your Photography”; my search engine response for that article increased dramatically. Notice the current article you are reading has the keyword “photo” in the title, twice. It is also no accident that I have started writing articles with my web site’s name in the title as well. This is something that has been learned over time. I had already written 60 photography articles, when it finally dawned on me that I REALLY needed to include key words in the main title. For me, having the word photo or photography in the title of a new article is not even an option any more. No matter how clever or catchy a title may appear if it does not include a key word, (like “photo”) then it defeats the purpose for having written the article to begin with. Like wise, it is possible to write a photography article and only use the key words two or three times. Yes, it is possible to do this; in fact it is amazing how many people do, but if the reason you are writing your photo article to begin with is to draw attention to your photo website, then you need to include those key words in the body of your text as well. The article you are reading has the words “photo or photography” in it at least 30 times. Is that over doing it? You tell me. Read this article again, does it feel like those key words were forced? As long as the key words are relative to what you are talking about, use them as often as possible. Personally; I believe photography is a gift from God, as is the ability to write clearly. Speaking as a parent (and as a grandparent), I also believe the best gifts are those that can be shared. A great photo can motivate, uplift and inspire. Do you know anybody who does NOT need a little more of those traits in their life? Go out and make the world a better place. Share the gifts you’ve been given with the world today!
Written by Tedric Garrison our expert of the day.
Landscape Photography Guide to Anglesey, North Wales - Benllech to Amlwch
The section of coastline between Benllech and Amlwch is probably the most contrasting section of the Anglesey Coastal Path and provides numerous possibilities for the landscape photographer. The coastal path climbs dramatically as it leaves Benllech and the view becomes expansive, with lots of interest. Again the Great Orme is in view, although a powerful telephoto lens is essential to successfully capture a photograph. The first main focus for the photographer on leaving Benllech however, is on the approach to Moelfre. It is a quaint place, with the appearance of a small Cornish fishing village, although as a consequence it can get very busy, so early hours photography provides the most tranquil shot. The only problem with Moelfre however, is finding the best location from which to take the shot as it’s located in a small corner of the coastline and doesn’t have many natural vantage points for the landscape photographer. The best option is to walk past the village on the coastal path and take a photograph looking backwards into the small harbour.
The coastline onwards from Moelfre becomes flatter and features include nicely located sandy coves with interesting detail and texture. The most notable amongst these is the beach at Lligwy, it can be reached by car too. The landscape photographer also finds added interest here in the form of Ynys Dulas, a small, rocky island on which is built a distinctive and particularly photogenic structure. It’s situated some distance from the beach so a powerful telephoto lens would be a good idea. If the coastal path is followed further however, the island does becomes closer in perspective, and as an added bonus the photographer will find the landscape provides increasingly strong foreground features, enhancing composition further.
Another special photography location, Dulas, soon becomes evident as the path continues. It is similar in nature to Red Wharf Bay, resembling an estuary. If crossed at low tide (without socks & shoes) another photographic opportunity is found in the form of a large wooden boat, long since abandoned and decaying but nonetheless an excellent subject, interestingly located.
On leaving Dulas the Anglesey Coastal Path again climbs above the coastline, the view again becoming more substantial, with the small island of Ynys Dulas constantly in view. Further interest soon appears in the form of the lighthouse at Point Lynas, an imposing structure sat high on the cliff top, seen from a good distance away. It provides the landscape photography with a variety of options, whilst the surrounding bracken and heather form excellent foreground features. Immediately below the lighthouse is Porth Eillan, a small bay enclosed by high cliffs, it provides the landscape photographer with further excellent opportunities. The beach itself, although small, has interesting features and sand detail and its location in particular provides scope for a good wide-angle seascape.
Continuing along the Anglesey Coastal Path from Porth Eillan, the landscape becomes rugged as it climbs further above the coastline, fewer photography opportunities exist however. The path soon reaches Amwlch, unfortunately now in decline. The old port however is still an excellent place for photography, particularly for those interested in maritime history or industrial landscapes and architecture. The old port has a small, very atmospheric harbour and interesting structures from its ancient industrial past remain.
Written by simonkit our expert of the day.
How to Deal With Wedding Photography
Wedding Photography is one of the most important things to consider on your wedding day. I personally find wedding photography sits at third on the priority list after reception venue & church (ceremony venue). Having said that, it also sits in the “You get what you pay for” category too. This doesn’t mean you have to spend an exorbitant amount of money if you don’t want to either. The best thing to do is find a few photographers, view their websites to see if you like their style, and arrange a meeting to see their work in person. I recommend having a look at Desiren as a good starting point. Wedding Photographers generally tend to take charge, and direct proceedings, to get the shots required, so you have to feel comfortable with the person taking on this role. Enjoying your day is just as important as your end result,so choose a photographer you can put your trust in and have fun. The end result can be as simple as getting all the photos of the day (proofs) in an album, or as elaborate as having a custom designed book bound album. The choice is yours, taking into consideration what you want and also budget. Another thing to remember is that most professional photographers get booked fairly quickly especially in peak wedding season (Sept – May), so make your appointments well in advance, and you can usually secure your chosen photographer with a booking deposit.
Once you have chosen and secured your photographer, be sure to ask lots of questions, and be sure to have a pre wedding meeting, to run through times and places. Time is critical on the wedding day. There is always something going on, and it’s very easy to lose track of it. For brides, try to get your hair and make up done first, or maybe second if there are quite a few bridesmaids. You would ideally love to have everyone ready when your photographer arrives, but if time is running out, at least your ready and the photographer can start with you. Depending on how many bridesmaids there are, how much family will be attending and distance to the ceremony, an hour to a hour and a half is what the photographer needs to get his shots. At the ceremony, make sure ushers or guests don’t walk in the aisle, obstructing the photographers view. Make sure you’re as close to being on time at the ceremony as possible, because there might be a wedding after you, and you might be hurried along. Family photos are usually taken straight after the ceremony. Your photographer will advise you of the best location, taking into consideration backgrounds, lighting, shade, etc. If a lot of families are getting their photo taken with you, a good idea would be to ask an assertive family member to read out a list you have prepared, calling out the families names that are having their photo taken next. This will cut the confusion and give you more time for location photos. If you are specific about a certain location, for e.g. a café, you might want to ask permission prior to meeting with your photographer. Some parks and sites require you to get a permit.
The day will go quick, I know through experience, so be sure to take in as much as you can, and every moment. Your memories will be relived time and time again through the photos and wedding video, so be sure to take your time and pick the perfect photographer and videographer. I hope this inforamtion helps you on your big day, good luck Sash.
Written by Sasha our expert of the day.
Great Nature Photography on a Cloudy Day
Nature photography relies on your sensitivity to the natural light above all else. You have surely heard that for good landscape photography, you generally want sunny conditions, early or late in the day when the light is low and soft. However, this does not apply to every situation, and busy lifestyles do not always allow us to choose the conditions in which we take our photos.
Have you ever planned and set aside a day to get out and practice your nature photography, only to wake up to grey, cloudy skies? You are not alone, this happens to us all; professional and beginner alike. And of course when you are traveling, you often only have one chance to take your photos before moving on, so you have to make the best of the situation as you find it.
Photographers, don’t despair. There are many situations that suit cloudy skies just fine; in fact, there are some situations when cloudy skies are the best option for a good nature photo. Here are just a few situations that you could explore when cloudy weather threatens to derail your photography outing.
#1. Rainforest Photography. When the sun shines through the trees in the forest, it creates a patchwork of light and shade that makes correct exposure almost impossible. You simply can’t manage the contrast in these conditions. Cloudy weather is actually the best way to take good rainforest photos. Some would say the cloudier the better, because if your rainforest is high enough to be in the clouds, you can capture some very atmospheric misty effects in the forest.
I live in South East Queensland, so I am close to both the beach and some fabulous rainforest. My rule is: If it’s sunny, go to the beach. If the weather is grey and cloudy, grab your camera and head for the rainforest.
#2. Wildlife Photography (Pets and People Too). Bright sunlight can be a problem when shooting wildlife. In the middle part of the day, the sun can create heavy shadows which make exposure difficult, and rob your photo of essential colour and detail that gives the subject its character. Worst of all, sunlight can create shadows on the face of your subject. As you know, the critical part of any good wildlife photo is the eyes. If the eyes in your photo are lost in shadow, the personal connection with the subject is lost.
Animals do not like looking into the sun any more than you do, so even early in the morning and late in the afternoon, when the light is softer, photography can be difficult. More often than not, you will probably find your subject turning away from the light.
If you take your photo on a cloudy day, you can capture your wildlife subject in soft, even light that allows perfect exposure without ugly shadows. There will also be less glare reflecting off shiny surfaces (a snake’s skin, a bird’s feathers etc.) so your picture can actually appear more colourful.
#3. Sunset Photography. Clouds create a much more interesting sunset photo than clear skies. All you need is for the sun to break through the clouds as they cross the horizon. A good nature photographer learns to read the sky and try to predict what is coming. Often on a grey, cloudy day you will notice that the only patch of clear sky is far away near the horizon. If that is the case, you can go looking for a good location and set up for your sunset photo.
With a bit of luck, there will be several breaks in the clouds before the sun goes down. If so, you could be on the spot to photograph spectacular sunbeams, a truly wonderful effect that every nature photography hopes to capture.
Like all things in nature photography, all the planning in the world means nothing without a bit of luck. You may get your photo all set up, only to see the gap in the clouds close and your chance of a good photo disappear. Persistence wins in the end, so keep trying and from time to time you will end up with some breathtaking sunset photos.
I hope these tips encourage you to get out and enjoy your photography, no matter what the weather is like. As your experience grows, you will find it easier to read the light and know what sort of photography suits the conditions. Until then, practice, practice, practice!
Written by Andrew Goodall our expert of the day.
Tips For Better Landscape Pictures
Landscape pictures capture the essense of beautiful landscapes. Landscape photography requires that you understand few basic principles of photography. Light is an important factor to be considered. Light has three main qualities namely intensity, direction and color. Intensity is the strength of the light which plays an important role during photography. Direction refers to the light placement. This can either be front, back or side-lighting. Side lighting can produce more textures between light and sun. Color refers to the color of sunlight. The color of sunlight is different at different times. During the morning and evening, the color of sunlight is warmer and hence can produce beautiful pictures.
Composition is another important factor to be considered while taking landscape pictures. Composition refers to how exactly you place the things in your picture. Some foreground objects add a lot of depth to the pictures. Use smaller aperture to cover a larger scene.Try to frame the picture with natural elements like trees. This gives a wonderful look to the pictures.
Here are some tips to give your landscape pictures that wow factor -
- Always get a tripod when shooting landscapes. When the camera is not stable in your hands camera shake is caused. A good tripod can help you avoid unclear pictures.
- Use a cable release instead of a timer function. This helps triggering the shutter at the right time.
- Use the right filters for taking landscape pictures. Polarizers and neutral density filters are good. Polarizers help to reduce the glare from water and neutral density filters help in stopping the specified amount of light by entering the camera.
- It is always good to know the background of the place before you take a landscape photo. This helps you cover the most attractive parts of the scene. Take a good look at the place before you begin to shoot so that you can capture the best scenes of the place.
- Take the photo on a day when the weather conditions are suitable. You can cancel your shoot the day when the weather is not good.
- Use a wide-angle lens for taking landscape photos. Wide angle lens when used with telephoto lens helps get some creative and zoomed-out shots.
- Always shoot at the right time. Avoid shooting during noon. You can choose to shoot in the mornings or evenings. The sunlight is bright during the afternoon and hence tends to spoil the look of the landscape picture.
Landscape pictures can develop brilliantly. People want unique pictures. Try and avoid the common scenaries in your landscape picture. Rather experiment with some different angles.
You can refer to various magazines and books to know more about landscape pictures. There are various resources available on the Internet. Your hobby in landscape photography can also lead to a career in landscape photography or landscape painting. If you are bitten by the travel bug, you can travel to some great locations to shoot. Landscape pictures are sold for good prices and hence can turn out to be a stable source of income.
Written by Peter Finch our expert of the day.
Digital Camera - Digitize Your Memories
Human beings always try to capture the funny and lovely moments of their lives. Memories are the part of our happy life. They help us to return to those blissful moments for some time. Further we always have the tendency to capture the fleeting moments of our lives to retrieve them for future use. However the advanced technologies have helped us a lot to facilitate all our unending wishes. The curiosity to explore the advanced gadgets that come loaded with high tech features would always strap the human beings.
The eagerness to capture the beautiful landscapes and sunset scenes while on the go is not unnatural. The digital cameras come to serve all our photographic needs. These cameras come in built with various sophisticated features that will help even a layman to enhance his photographic skills. The images that are captured by these cameras can be easily transported into the personal computers. The most exciting feature of these devices is that they help the users to eliminate the cost of developing the photographs to a great extent. As such, the people who have the passion for digital photography can easily capture clear and bright photographs with these advanced gadgets.
Photography is the most exciting activity as it enables the photographer to capture and reveal the hidden and unexplored aspects of life. These gadgets come to the users with multitude of options to facilitate all their storage and shooting needs.
Nowadays various new brands of digital cameras are available in the markets that come with enticing and high tech features. The users can purchase those cameras that come with high mega pixel resolution. It however depends on the users what features and mega pixel resolution they require. The clarity and sharpness of the captured images would perfectly depend on the resolution of the camera. Further the zoom in features would enable the photographers to capture far off images with vivid clarity. These gadgets even come with such exciting features such as video capabilities, 1GB expandable memory and many more.
This technological wonder would thrill you, always, anywhere and anytime. Various top leading brands have contributed in this arena of producing high resolution cameras. The Sony digital cameras have surpassed their leading contenders with sophisticated and high tech features. The gadgets of this brand would enable the users to capture high resolution photographs with perfect clarity and sharpness.
The image quality of the Olympus digital cameras is astounding. The 10x zoom feature of these gadgets have the capability to capture and save images with bright clarity. The Olympus SP-500 model comes with a manual control feature that would enable the user to experiment his/her creativity. It would also further enable the photographer to manipulate and enhance the captured images later on his personal computer. As such the users should explore the various models of cameras while purchasing one. These exciting features would surely enable them to excel their photographic passion.
To meet the increasing demand of these cameras in the markets, the manufactures are providing discounted digital cameras. This exciting package would enable every segment of people irrespective of age and income to own such stylish and advanced gadgets. As such you can now easily store the wonderful moments of your life whenever your heart desires.
However, while plunging yourself into the decision of purchasing this gadget you should compare the various features of various models that are available. The online shopping store would help you to narrow down your search. Nowadays, there are various online shopping stores that offer various latest gadgets at affordable prices. The consumers can easily browse these sites and avail the best gadgets that would perfectly suit their requirements. Comparing the features and surfing these sites would further enable the consumers to avail the latest digital cameras at affordable prices. The most exciting thing is that it would enable the buyer to purchase those gadgets that would perfectly her/his lifestyle. So give wings to your photographic passion and also enhance your skills at the same time with these high tech gadgets.
Written by Alden Jerry our expert of the day.
Wedding Photography Can Be A Pricey Affair
Run into any bride or groom after their wedding and chances are they will have a horror story about their photography. Wedding photography, through the years, has picked up a bad rap and has become the Achilles heal of wedding planning.
One of the main reasons for the bad rap is the high cost. Wedding photography is such an important part of the wedding planning process because it is the only way a bride and groom will be able to look back on one of the most important days of their lives. Unfortunately, many photographers have exploited this reality and jacked up their prices. But there are a few ways to cut your costs when it comes to wedding photography.
For one, know the difference between a professional photographer and a wedding photographer. The difference is really nothing. The only thing is that the person going by the title of wedding photographer usually charges more. The professional photographer probably does weddings and a whole bunch of other types of work. In most cases, he or she is just as good, but will be a lot cheaper. In some cases a professional photographer, because he or she is involved with other types of work, may have a creative flair that a standard wedding photographer may not have.
Wedding photography can get expensive, even if you find someone who is willing to do it for a reasonable price. In most cases, you are still going to pay at least $500 to $1,000 for them to show up. This is before ordering prints. Many photographers have even higher charges than that. But if you plan your event and are financially prepared for the expense of a wedding photographer, then you will likely be happy with the final outcome.
Things to look at when considering a wedding photographer are not only references, but also personality. Some photographers have really good social skills and can get difficult shots taken without disrupting situations or irritating anyone involved. This is key. Those photographers who are uptight and appear to be in a hurry, or are constantly hassling guests for a picture are the ones to avoid. You can usually tell this in a person’s personality right away. No matter how great of photos this person may shoot, their outlook can ruin other aspects of your wedding.
Another thing to consider when it comes to wedding photography is if you have a relative who has done some wedding photography or does other photography work, consider hiring them. Many times this familiar face will have easy access to photos because people see him or her as a part of the wedding, not just as a photographer. And if they are a trustworthy relative, then they may be the best for the budget and may still be able to turn out some great shots.
When choosing a wedding photographer please always remember to use common sense. Choose a package that is right for you. Do not get involved with purchasing packages that are not right for you.
Written by Joe Palladino our expert of the day.
Remembering the National Geographic Portrait
There are some portraits that will always haunt us. The National Geographic cover of a young cover staring vacantly ahead is one of portrait that people will remember for a long time to come.
Taking portrait pictures is not very interesting as the idea of the photograph is to bring out the character of the individual in the portrait. Some of the most basic portrait photography techniques include containing at least one element in the photograph that reveals the subject’s personality, attitude, unique mannerisms or other unique traits.
Portrait pictures in black and white make a very powerful impression. However, there are some digital photography techniques and lighting techniques that photographers need to be aware of while shooting in black and white. One of the most important aspects that they need to keep in mind is the lighting and shadows.
Photographers who want to create powerful portraits should consider using photography studio lighting. This way the photographer can control the lighting on the subject and the area around.
Amateur photographers need to keep in mind that the subject of the portrait is the most important aspect of the photograph and not the surroundings. This is one of the most important digital photography techniques that need to be kept in mind while shooting a portrait picture.
Another important digital photography technique to keep in mind while choosing a portrait is to refrain from forcing the subject to smile. Not all portraits require the subject to smile. The idea of the portrait photography is to bring out the personality of the individual.
For more resources about Photography tutorials or even about Digital photography tools and especially about Photography articles please review these links.
Written by Groshan Fabiola our expert of the day.
