Tip! Kim Balsman is the owner of Balsman Photography, LLC, a small, professional photography studio in Longmont, Colorado.
Let’s begin with the concept of digital photography. Digital photography is not much different than the ordinary film photography. The main difference is that in digital photography the camera uses digital memory device much like in the computer. It could be a memory stick, flash memory or other media. Some camcorders even use DVDs to store the captured information.
No matter what memory media you have, the results depend on the quality of the camera itself and other things such as resolution, lenses, brand or technology. However if you want to take better pictures with your digital camera, you have to follow some basic rules of photography.
These rules are not well known by ordinary people, so I hope that this article will help you a lot in the progress of teaching yourself ‘How to improve your photos like the pros do.’
1) Use optical rather than digital zoom.
Digital zoom as opposed to optical zoom is just a technological simulation of optical zoom. That means the camera uses special software to enlarge the image, which is the same as if you use your digital software on your computer.
Tip! Taking the jump from amateur photography to professional or semi-professional photography isn’t easy and will seem like a daunting task at the best of times. The following is a guide to help you if you are ready to take the jump.
In optical zoom, camera uses the lenses to bring the image closer. And that is the one you should use. You should avoid using digital zoom at all. If you ever need to use digital zoom, better do it on your computer, with your favourite image editing software. At the end you’ll have much better results with your image.
2) Move in closer.
Almost any shot will look better if you take two or three steps closer to your subject. When you do that and fill the entire frame with your subject, it will make a terrific difference to your photos. Why does this work? With less clutter in the image, there’s less to draw the eye away from the main subject of your photo.
If you can’t get close enough when you’re taking the shot, you can zoom in later using photo editing software. Just crop out everything except the subject’s face and see what difference it makes.
3) Take much more shots than you need and erase them.
One of the best advantages of digital cameras is the ability to erase your photos. We’d be mad not to use this feature to the fullest extent. We all know how the professional photographers do their photo sessions. They make shot after shot without thinking and after that they choose the best ones. The average percent of the best shots is about 20% from a hundred shots taken.
And if you think about it, it makes perfect sense because you can’t expect to make a perfect shot from the first time. My advice is in every half an hour of shooting, review your most recent pictures and erase any that don’t make the grade, or you have better versions of.
4) To use a tripod or not?
When speaking of tripods many people don’t like it because they are heavy to care and are pretty big. But no doubt it will help sharpen your photos. When you use a tripod your camera stands still on the top of it. There are tripods with just one leg called monopods. They are not as good as tripods but they are much lither to carry and will improve your pictures much more than if you’re just using your hands.
Tip! If you’re passionate about photography and want to pursue this versatile career, it’s important that you take the time to learn from experienced professionals that can guide you in your efforts to pursue professional photography, motion picture and video photography, visual journalism, and thinks like visual communications. What’s great about attending photography schools nationwide is that you dont’ have to begin an expert, you begin a beginner! Many of you are pursuing this field because you have a natural eye for photography, and that’s great - but maybe you’re just developing one.
If you don’t like to carry with you anything except your camera, there is a simple trick that many people don’t know. Instead of a tripod you can use any other horizontal surface that is still. Surfaces like rocks, chairs, cars, anything could do the same work as a tripod. But be careful not to damage your camera, though as cameras have tendency to slip and brake when put on chairs, rocks etc.
5) Why should we use flash during the day?
It is a fact that professional photographers use flash much more often than amateurs. But why is that? Let’s imagine that you want to take a picture in a very sunny day. Most people never think of the flash in such conditions. The truth is they should. The reason is when you try to shoot a bird swimming in the water for example, the water is reflecting the sun. The camera is fooled by the bright surroundings and the subject appears very dark at the end.
Tip! People don’t buy the award winning prints that you see wearing many of the ribbons at professional photography conventions.
That is not the effect we want so by turning flash on you will reduce the shadow areas of the image and make it much more pleasing. You’ll see the difference for yourself, when you take two same shots with and without a flash.
If you are really interested in digital photography, you can visit author’s website, which is dedicated to hand over free information to amateur photographers. Visit http://www.digital-photo-secrets.net
Philip Krasteff - an expert author who dedicated his website http://www.digital-photo-secrets.net to teach ordinary people in the art of photography. You can dig deeply in to this area by going to the author’s website.
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