A Secret Way To Improve Your Digital Photography

I want to share something with you about digital photography.

Digital photography is an art form....this you know. But did you know what one of the secrets I use in my photography? And use this if you are stumped for ideas on how to take that all-important photograph.

That is this: Forget about photography altogether. Sometimes this will be the best thing you can do in digital photography is to forget you are taking a photo and just absorb the scene.

Okay I know I am sounding obscure... I'll explain.

Its easy to get caught up with all aspects of digital photography. So caught up in fact that you can forget how the heck to take that picture. You can experience 'brain overload' and not end up getting any good photographs at all. You try too hard.

You know what I did when I first started learning digital photography? Instead of trying to perfect the scene I forgot about it and just sat and looked at it. I let the beauty of the scene inspire me and quite my mind. I stop thinking for a minute and became absorbed in the moment of the scene.

I would just look and look and breathe out saying "oh wow, isn't that beautiful?"

Only then would I take the photo, not before. I would get into that meditative frame of mind and let THAT dictate my digital photographs.

You see my good friend, your ability in digital photography is not only the technical, its about the heart. It’s about letting the heart and mind come together, applying some sound techniques and creating art with that camera of yours.

Artistic first, technical second.

Don't be too caught up in what camera to buy etc. Really all you need is a damn good lens and a camera that will give you as many different exposures as possible. To take good, professional standard digital photos you need the lens first, then the camera controls after. The lens is king.
No good lens, no good photos. Its simple.

Just relax, and look at why you were drawn to the scene or subject in the first place. Then free your mind of what you "should" do, and then take a few shots. See what you come up with.

It will be a better digital photo if you free your mind of clutter and relax and focus on the artistic side first.

Best of luck,

Amy Renfrey

All pictures are copyrighted to Amy Renfrey. If you want to use them commercially, do the right thing and just go to my website and email me.

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

To learn how to take beautiful digital landscape photos: www.beautifuloutdoorphotography.com

How To Take Sensational Photos Of Your Pets

How boring and uninteresting would life be without an animal to love? There have been studies done in the US about how having a pet reduces blood pressure, stress levels, increases all the other good hormones in our body. Lets face it, pets rock!

So how on earth do we photograph them? I'm not talking about snapping Fido any old way. I mean a classy digital photo where Fido looks exactly the way YOU see him...cute, loveable and gorgeous. The only way to take really great photos of pets is a few things. And take heed, because these things really work.

1. Take them at their eye level.

The problem I see ALL THE TIME with bad pet photos is that they are taking from your perspective, not at Fidos perspective. You see Fido from a height, and thats okay, but the trouble is that taking a shot with this angle doesn't give him the charm or appeal he really has in real life. If you got down on your hands and knees and took the photo from his angle, rather then yours, you'd seriously add a whole other dimension to the photo. Why? Because you are capturing his personality. And this is so important to do because people can't see his personality any other way in the photo other than getting suberb composition.

2. Turn the light on!

Too many times people ask me what they can do to improve their photo of Fido. I look at the picture and so often the pet snaps are quick ones inside. These are too dark and as a result you loose the beautiful personality Fido has and because of this perpetual "indoor snapping" people suffer from, you loose definition too.

3. Spontenaity is the key

Try to wait and have rock solid patience when you are taking your photograph of Fido. Don't take the photo when he is lying down like he always does. People won't ever get to know him through your photography, like you do. So perhaps you can take him outside, or to the park when there is a good amount of light and throw a ball to him and take a picture of him catching it. Or perhaps when he is running around madly outside, or even if you can, get him in a still moment. Or perhaps, if you wait long enough, he migt just look straight into the lens with those big, beautiful eyes that you love so very much and give you that photo you have always wanted. You know "that" ideal photo I mean. The one where people say "awww, isn't he beautiful." And they will finally see the side of Fido that you see; the beautiful pet that he is.

Now get going! Where was the lead and the ball again....


Best wishes,
Amy Renfrey


P.S This is Paddy, my beautiful cat. He's not actually about to eat anything, or attack anything, this is him yawning. Same cat, two different photos.

This picture is copyrighted to Amy Renfrey.

http://www.digitalphotographysuccess.com/

Taking Black and White Landscapes

Taking photos of landscapes in black and white can look superb, especially deserted landscapes, or with clouds. Rain clouds in black and white over a mountain would look fabulous. You will see this when you examine closely how nature looks in black and white. A great way to do this is to start looking at the shade of the blue in the sky and switch the mode to black and white; take this shot then take another in color. Compare the two and see how that shade of blue looks in black and white. This will give you an idea of how natural colour turn into black and white, from nature. This may also give you a photo which captures more of the intensity of being there, than colour can.

I don'’t see many landscape pictures done in black and white and IÂ’m not sure why this is because black and white softens a picture , and can have the same effect on your landscape shots. Many people prefer colour when taking nature shots, and this is fine, but I do urge you to experiment with this medium too. It just gives you another creative edge and a way to break outside our comfort zones as photographers and become a "photographic artist".

A great way to get out of this comfort zone and embrace black and white landscapes is to find your preferences while taking the shots. Compare a colour landscape photo to a black and white landscape photo and just see what feelings are generated. You will notice that you donÂ’t always loose something as our minds would have us believe, we can actually gain a new insight into this scene.

To start, take two shots, one in colour and one in black and white. This is the only way you really truly learn about black and whites beauty and get away from colour all the time. Vivid colour is definitely incredibly stimulating and beautiful but so is black and white. Colour invokes energy which is why we like it. However black and white invokes a sense of calm, gentleness and can even surreal feeling depending on the scene.

My last tip I can give you is that sometimes when taking black and white subjects, like landscapes, you may have to increase the exposure to give you a little more light in the photo. Black and white can make things darker because your camera lessens the effect of color light reflection from normal color photos. So just remember that might be the case with some black and white landscapes you are taking.

Best wishes,
Amy Renfrey

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

If you want to know how to take powerful landscape photos just visit www.beautifuloutdoorphotography.com

Starting Black And White Photography

Photo ©Amy Renfrey www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

Have you ever noticed how some black and white photos just stand out? And when you go to try and take the same kind of photo it just doesn’t do the same thing?

There are a couple of starting pointers that I want to share with you about black and white photography with a digital camera. The first thing I can tell you is that to make a good black and white photo you must have good texture. Texture, or what something is made of, seems to be enhanced with grey scale.

Certain textures, such as natural textures seem to respond well in black and white. Black and white is all about capturing a sense of the dramatic, so if your subject has texture that is naturally dramatic, then you have the first step to a good b&w photo. Textures such as wood grain, stark metal, repeated patterns in nature such as waves or spirals seem to work well in black and white.

With black and white, try to keep some symmetry in your texture. Its easier to create stunning black and white photos when you have symmetry in your texture because it can sometimes be lost in color. Symmetrical textures in black and white are consistently beautiful and offer something the eye cannot capture as well when working in color.

Grey scale is not just the absence of color, or everything taken in shades of grey. To understand and master black and white photography with your digital you must understand the concept of grey scale.

Grey scale is a spectrum of black, lots of grey and white, like the colours of a rainbow but in a series of black and white and grey tones. You see a black and white photo is not really only black and white; it is actually lots of different shades and different depths of grey. So when we talk about grey scale it just means the way we measure tones of grey. Included in the grey scale is of course black and white.

This sounds odd to say, but when finding what looks good in black and white you can start with high contrasting colors in your every day subjects at home. Stark colours such as red, deep purples and bright yellows can make a really good starting point. With bold colours such as these, your camera will interpret them differently. It’s almost as if the camera leaves out what the eye distinguishes as that particular color and keeps the intensity there. I won’t go into the technical jargon now, but for now, just try experimenting on those colors. If you can’t find these colors around your home, try going out into the garden and taking flowers that have these colors, or go to a nursery, plant store or public gardens.

You see black and white is not just ‘no colour’. Its so much more, so much deeper then that. The purpose of black and white nowadays (as opposed to when it was the standard and people had no choice) is that it creates a sense of stillness in time, and with the right perspective, a great story.

Best wishes,
Amy Renfrey
www.digitalphotographysuccess.com
www.beautifuloutdoorphotography.com