The Secret To Digital Photography Part 3

Okay now I know you are wondering what the third secret to digital photography is....

I think I'll wait till next week to tell you....just kidding! I'll tell you now.

It’s technical ability. Is that all? You say. Well my friend, learning what things mean what on the camera feels like it can take a lifetime, so here are some simple ways to help you learn to refine your digital photography skills. Once you have the artistic side of digital photography covered, you can then fine tune the artist in you and work that camera.

Just before I explain the digital camera in more details, firstly I want to say this about digital photography; you need to learn the technical aspects of the digital camera so that you can become the master and controller, not the other way around. When you first start out in digital photography it feels like you are at the whim of the digital camera and it controls your digital photography. Once you start learning what does what on the camera, you'll find that you become the master and controller.

Lets look at the common terms in digital photography and simplify them into plain English. (God knows you will be forever looking at the camera manual thinking "what the heck does that mean?" So read this instead...)

Hey the only thing I knew when I started digital photography 6 years ago was what a lens cap was so if you don't know the basic stuff please don't feel bad. That's why I am here; to help you.

Firstly to be good at digital photography you must first understand how the camera works. Your digital camera is a brilliant device and is very much like the human eye. There is an "eye lid" and a "pupil". The eye lid blinks open and shut- this is how the shutter speed works. The pupil- how far the lens opens to let light in is the aperture. The flash works as a torch light. It is a direct source of light to provide more light where the camera needs it. You can use this anytime of day or night.

So with that basic analogy we can define some meanings. Don't get too stressed about trying to remember these things, just remember the basics of how the camera works to begin with, then eventually these things will become more and more attainable to you.

Exposure: This means, basically, the total amount of light falling onto the sensor in your digital camera. The way this is "measured" is by calling the level a "value." Or in shorter terms for digital photography its called an "E/V". The more E/V registered on your digital camera the more light is getting in. Think of it as a higher E/V means a higher concentration of light going in the camera.

On my Sony brick...sorry I mean my old Sony Cyber shot, if I take a sunset shot and need to have more light in the picture then I'll increase the E/V to +2.0. If it is a sunny day, like a bright summers day and I want to stop the picture from being overexposed and reduce the amount of light coming in to the digital camera, I'll reduce the E/V to -0.3 for example.

These numbers simply pertain to my camera, so don't worry too much about them, but just understand the principle. The lesser the E/V number the less light. In effect you are making the pupil smaller so less light comes in and vice versa.

Aperture: The aperture means the actual size of the opening of the lens. It's a lot like exposure but relates to size more than anything. Think of this as the opening itself and controls how much light gets into the cameras sensor.

Shutter speed: This is the eyelid, if you like. It’s the speed in which the eye lid blinks open and shut. A fast "blink" means you can freeze time and capture fast action shots such as a person running without blur, or cars racing without blur. So really it is the measurement of how long the shutter is open when the digital photo is taken.

You will see sometimes 1/125th or 125 for example. This means that the shutter is open for 125th of a second. The higher the amount of time, the longer the shutter stays open. So in digital photography picture-taking terms if you want a blurry effect then leave the shutter open for a second to ten seconds and see the difference in effect. The quicker the shutter is open, the more you will capture, such as race cars or peoples fast action suspended in time without blur.

Lag: I just know this as "pain in the butt". It’s the time delay between when you press the shutter button and when the camera actually takes the photo. It's been the problem with digital photography until recent years when the dlsr cameras have almost reduced this altogether. The higher priced cameras have very little lag.

Flash Fill: This is a saviour for day photos where there is over exposed and underexposed areas in a digital photo- in the same photo. Imagine a bright sunny day and you take a photo of someone on the beach with the sun behind them. The digital camera will actually "see" the bright sky and keep that in focus and reduce the light on the persons face. To combat this you can use the flash to compensate for the camera "forgetting" about the persons face. Its the best thing since sliced bread. This is how you get shots of people blowing out birthday candles and are able to see their faces clearly.

Rule Of Thirds: When I first started digital photography I thought ; "Gee I mustn't take that picture unless I abide by this principle." Well that didn't last long. Now I don't even think about it. But this principle in photography should be called a guideline, not a rule. However when you are just starting digital photography its great to learn- it really helps you.

This website describes it better than I can.
(www.digitalpostproduction.com/Htm/Features/
DigitalVideoGlossary.htm)

"This rule takes our rectangular shape and divides it into thirds. The key elements or objects in a composition should fall on one of these thirds lines. The one point on our photograph where the viewers' eye comes to rest should fall on one of these lines where both a horizontal and a vertical line come to rest."

Okay so that is about it for now. Just focus on those things in your digital photography and the rest will come with time and lots of practice. The best way to become good at digital photography is to let your heart take over, just relax and clear your mind and allow the artist within you to surface and then things will fall into place.

There is more in "Digital Photography Success" of course so if you want to have a look and learn more about how to become skilled in this highly addictive hobby then go to www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

My best to you,
Amy Renfrey

Next week I'll discuss the tricks and tips to getting clarity in your digital photography when you have a short depth of feild. :)

www.beautifuloutdoorphotography.com

To discover all the professional digital photography landscape secrets, click here.

The Secret To Digital Photography Part 2

Last week we discussed light as being the first secret to successful digital photography. This week we are going to examine the second secret to digital photography, and that my friend, is composition.

Composition in your digital photography, if you like, is really your shapes, lines and forms all working together in your digital photo. Its not just these working together, its really all your shapes working together, complimenting each other to create a visual balance. So what do I mean by this?

Example:

A seascape photo. The reason why this digital photo works is because the lines of the clouds work to compliment the horizon line of the ocean. The direction of the clouds creates lines and forms. These forms in this digital photo work together to create a balance of symmetrical shape with the line of the ocean. See how these things work to create symmetrical composition?

The key also is to keep your composition simple. Don't overcrowd your digital photo with unnecessary and irrelevant forms and images that have nothing to do with the story you are creating with your digital photography.

Its this simplicity of lines and forms that create good composition. You will notice that the best photos are simple. There is no clutter, no distraction, no irrelevance and everything works together. The outer parts of the digital photo all lead to a single point of focus- and this is GOOD photography.

So whenever you embark on digital photography just remember; make sure the light is evenly spread across your digital photo and make sure you keep the lines and forms really simple. The less clutter the better.

I took this digital photo to show you that you can create good photos using a basic digital camera if you apply the 3 secrets to digital photography. It’s just a simple one, but just because you don't ideally have the latest dlsr camera doesn't mean your shots can't turn out.

Now, on to secret number 3.....

Good luck.

Amy Renfrey

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com
www.beautifuloutdoorphotography.com

This picture is copyrighted to Amy Renfrey.

The Secret To Digital Photography Part 1

It’s very exciting starting digital photography. You might even invest in your first digital camera; it’s really a world unknown until you learn some digital photography tips and perhaps even go on a few day outings and take several digital photos.

But really, what does it take to get your digital photography from frustrating "why-won't-it-turn-out" to "wow-it-looks-like-a-professional-digital-photo" standard?

That's easy; there are three secrets to digital photography that you must know or you might be frustrated for a long time. So here is the first secret:

Digital photography secret 1; Light

It sounds pretty simple doesn't it, almost too simple to be a 'secret'. But I tell you its not. If you understand that in digital photography your light is one of the top three elements to success then you will be on your way to creating digital photos to be proud of.

Always aim for even light over your digital photo image. If you have the whole scene and the whole subject well light so there are no hard shadows making it difficult to focus on then you are on your way to success.

You may have heard that cloudy days are a key element to a digital photography- my response to this is "most definitely but do you know why?" The whole issue of light in digital photography is getting even light over the scene as I just mentioned. You see sun light during the day can either work as your best friend or a complete enemy. It can create huge patches and lines of hard light that create and cast shadow over your scene or subject making it impossible to create a good digital photo.

You can have sensational digital photography images if you just know how to work with the strong sunlight. Have your light/sunlight cast over the front of the your subject so your digital image has evenly spread light on it, so no hard shadows or lines are created. This is precisely why digital photography can be enjoyable on cloudy days; because the light is evenly cast for us, making our jobs as digital photographers easier.

So make sure that when you are outside doing digital photography that the light is evenly spread over your subject and don’t be afraid of cloudy days. And don't worry about the sun; it’s all in the positioning of the light and avoiding hard light that is a fundamental key element to successful digital photography.

Cheers,
Amy

You can go to my website to learn more about digital photography. www.digitalphotographysuccess.com.

(Please copy and paste this url into your broswer. Blogger seems to be having trouble with links today.)

The picture in this article is copyrighted to Amy Renfrey. If you want to use it, you must ask me first.

Why Some Digital Photography Images Work Really Well And Why Others Don't

Have you ever wondered what secrets professionals know about digital photography to make their digital photos look so good?

I used to find it really frustrating why some people seemed to posses a "look, point , shoot" process with their digital photography. What did they know that I didn't? How did they create digital photos, beautiful digital photos mind you, and for me it seemed really hard. And they never wanted to share any tips with me.

I can tell you one thing that’s so incredibly important with digital photography. And that's simple composition. At first my digital photos were too busy- they had things in the background that were distracting, over exposed and under exposed. There were some aspects of my digital photography that now, I would not even show you- the early photos were too bad.

Now of course going "pro" it’s a whole different story. I have to get it right otherwise I don't eat! It sounds dramatic but really when you are put under pressure you have to make sure your digital photos are right- in all aspects…..especially your composition.

Let’s imagine a professional photo of a landscape. You have seem them before so think back to the last time you saw a professional landscape photo and think what it was about the photograph that appealed to you.

I can tell you it was a series of things like light, lens, angle etc, but one main, important thing about it was probably the simplicity of the composition. Not too much in the photograph, things are in perspective with each other, the angles and lines compliment each other.

That's exactly what you need to aim for when doing your own digital photography. Keep what you are taking free of clutter, use good lines and angles and if necessary turn to the rule of thirds. All these things will enhance your digital photography and all make up your composition.
Simple composition is the most under estimated artistic influence in digital photography. You will find that the professional landscape picture has painfully simple composition as its fundamental artistic make up. And you can do the same. Keep it simple with your digital photography and you start to see amazing results.

Keep up the good work,
Amy Renfrey

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

This picture copyrighted by Amy Renfrey.

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

A Digital Photography Tip- The Secret Of Clear Digital Images

Recently I’ve been getting a lot of questions about clarity. This leads me to the answers about lenses. You know if you do not have a good lens you do not have a good photo- generally.

The reason I say that professional SLR is much better than a prosumer camera or a point and shoot is not because of my desire to look “pro” when I take photos its because of the amount of control you have over the photo. You can control the light so much more; you can control the exposure and the general aspects of the image. And with this freedom comes the choice of getting the clarity via the lens.

To gain the ultimate freedom in picture clarity first of all you need to know what lens does what.

Fixed focal length lenses

A fixed focal length lens is a lens that is on most point and shoot and prosumer cameras. They are normally an average wide angle lens. It’s kind of like a “mid range quality” lens. If you then take a zoom lens and compare the two, a fixed focal lens is smaller and often has a larger max aperture. This is good, because they work pretty well in low light situations. These lenses appear clearer than zoom lenses. The only problem here is that your person or subject can appear smaller than you would like unless you move in closer.

Zoom Lenses

And what of a zoom lens? Without going into overly technical details, zoom lenses often have more practical focal lengths for digital photography. They can give you a good angle perspective for filling the frame for example. These lenses are great if you need to take shots closer when it’s impossible to get closer to something.

Optical zooms lenses are the best. My advice to you would be to forget digital zoom altogether. Digital zoom is not a real zoom, in other words it’s not a true representation of what’s there. You’ll just get more noise on your image which can’t really be edited.

The problem with zooms is that they loose light the closer you get. They have lower apertures and this can be difficult in low light conditions. In some situations it’s possible to use the flash and have adequate lighting, but other times you use the zoom because you are far away from the subject and the flash is only effective a few meters away.

There is no general answer to “What lens should I get?” The answer is it depends on what your camera can do and what you want to do yourself. But the more you understand what lenses do what, the better off you are of making an informed decision and get the right lense for the job.

Best wishes,

Amy Renfrey

www.digitalphotographysuccess.com

This photo is copyrighted to www.amazon.com