Photo copyright by Amy Renfrey
There are a lot of ways to discover how to use your camera, but do these things make you a superior photographer? The answer to that is “maybe”. You see, the digital camera is just a tool to generate inventive photographs. It is dependent on the way that tool is ultilised that determines the best and most beautiful photos.
Basic Digital Photography Techniques
To get spectacular images we first need to look at some basic photography principles. The first one I am able to share with you is learn about lighting. Anytime you learn about light and how it forms a relationship with with the direct environment then your shots will get better.
Check out shape and form- Where you place things in the photo is next. Continually consider the vantage points and structures of the things you are photographing. Do they generate a symmetrical shot that is pleasant to the eye? One method to master the techniques linked to photographing ideal composition is to see where these objects guide our eye.
Each time you shoot, try to look for a balance and simpleness. Put into practice these things by shooting uncomplicated things that have nice straight lines, or curved lines and proportioned patterns. Don’t have anything else in the rest of the scene. A nice way to get started with this artistic technique is taking photos of architecture. Architecture is filled with lines. Take shots of walls, angles in the walls, look at how these lines direct us and the way it looks as a photograph. This is great practice. This technique of seeking symmetry will greatly progress your photography, ten fold in fact.
Easy Photography Techniques
Investigating light- One of the simplest techniques I know is to examine and scrutinize light. Try this: every time you have a look at something, note how bright the light is, what direction it is coming from, how much darks and lights it produces and the colour of that light. For the next week, each time you photograph something, write down what you noticed and then how it appeared as a photo.
Once you have effectively mastered this technique start shooting your lines and curves. If you begin shooting in this manner you will see that a) your technical capability increases and b) your photos begin to look creative and a whole lot more appealing. It’s not just easy to do, but a lot of enjoyment.
You will start to feel like you are experiencing a bond with light. Your comprehension of light improves. As your understanding improves, so do your shots. You will start to know what will work as a photo just by looking at the scene in front of you. It’s a fantastically positive and empowering feeling.
Better Photography Techniques
Better photography techniques come with training. Training takes time. Time takes dedication and a motivation to learn. One of the things that helped me to become skilled at photography was the exploration of light and shape.
Another useful thing you can do is to write everything down on paper. Before you shoot write down notes about the light. Ask yourself and write down the answer to: What is the light doing? How does it make your scene appear? How does the light change the mood of your scene
Next, write down:
• Notice the quantity of light
• What direction it is coming from
• How much differences between light and dark it creates
• The colour of that light.
Then, if you are shooting in auto mode, write down what the internal light meter is saying as you point the digital camera to that scene. note the shutter speed and f stop it requests to shoot at. (It will be mistaken and generally underexposed, but more about that another time.)
Then, change your cameras mode to the manual setting and modify the adjustments to what the auto setting just said. It will be incorrect, so make sure you put the dial in the center, or slightly to the right of the middle.
Subsequently, look at the lines and shape of the subjects in your photograph. Where do they direct your eyes? Are there any irrelevant elements in the scene that you really don’t want? Imagine that shot as a two dimensional medium and look again. Is there someone in the way? A tree that doesn’t really look like it fits? A lot of cars whizzing by that detracts from the intensity and authority of the building?
Always ask yourself these things before photographing.
Digital Photography Specialist Techniques
One of the greatest ways to become skilled at photography is becoming good at a photo editing program. Photoshop is an incredibly wonderful application to have but it needs time to gain knowledge of it's finer points for better photos. It’s very complicated to the starter so take some formal lessons if you need to. You can also learn Lightroom, which is a simpler version of Photoshop. It’s easier to learn and you may not always need official instruction.
Whichever way you decide to go, specialist methods come from not only nice photography and shooting techniques but tactics in post processing. Post processing is a term given to editing, increasing colour and vibrancy and fine tuning your photos in a software program.
There are so many extremely extraordinary things you can apply in both Photoshop and Lightroom. Softening the outer areas of a photograph and improving colour and contrast are just some of the basic features within both programs. You can also include items that were not there prior. You also have the ability to remove irrelevant subjects in the environment. These programs are dynamic for wedding and portrait photography because you can add depth to colour, create smoothness for skin tones, make facial features glow and the eyes sparkle. A whole new world opens up to you as you realise what Photoshop and Lightroom can give you, and, how much improved your images can appear.
You can become absorbed for hours when you are post processing, so gain knowledge of good techniques. The last thing you want to do is spend 1 hour taking pictures and 6 hours retouching all your photos. The faster your post processing methods are the better photographer you turn into.
On-Camera Flash Techniques for Digital Wedding and Portrait Photography
The most horrible way to use your flash in wedding and portrait photography is front on. Firstly, others hate the flash being blasted in their eyes. Also, the direct flash is not really meant for front on work (unless it’s a special circumstance, in which case it would be turned to its lowest intensity.)
The flash is made for brightening shadows. Professionals usually have an external flash and face it up in the direction of the ceiling, to the wall or place something over it to reduce its intense, white effects.
I never ever use flash front-on for weddings and portraits because the light is too bright. When we have light that’s strong and white on someone's skin, we lose a lot of the smaller and softer details of a persons face. It makes people look horrible in photographs!
Digital Black and White Photography Techniques
Techniques for photographing in black and white are no different to shooting in colour. Still, on saying that, you may want to photograph black and white things with the aim of generating a black and white photo. That’s okay too.
If you would like some really striking black and white photos then strive to photograph items that have a naturally brilliant contrast. For example a white sign with deep black letters next to a silver building may appear really nice. A person’s face with cherry lipstick and deep eye make up looks great in black and white.
Digital Photography Lighting Techniques
I have covered how to assess light and how to use the flash properly, but what about ambient light? Ambient light is the light that exists within the environment we are photographing in. Light from a window that fills up a room is regarded as ambient light for instance. It’s imperative to take note of ambient light just as much as extra light sources.
Ambient light is reflected light. It’s light that arrives from a light source and fills up the environment without a distinct angle. This is quite critical to take note of since it determines how you take the photo. If you have a lot of ambient light you may have light evenly spread all the way through your photograph. This is nice. But what if that’s not the effect you require? What if you want a moody and sombre photo instead? In that case, you would try and shoot anytime the intense light source is at an angle. Using a hard directional light that generates deep shadows can really create a dramatic photograph. The way light is within a scene has an effect on the way you take the shot and the create the mood of the photo. This is very important, do not underestimate this.
Canon Photography Techniques
I got asked yesterday what camera I owned. I replied a “5D Mark Two”. It delighted the person I was talking too. The fact is that no matter what digital camera you shoot with you will still need to get behind the methods of good photography and master them. There is in truth no such thing as exact photography principles for a Canon and a set of different methods for a Nikon camera. It’s still photography and light is one of your main concerns.
Digital SLR Photography Techniques
You have better opportunity to control the digital camera if it is a dslr. There are extra controls and more approaches to get the specific effects you care for. I am not saying that it’s dreadful to have a point and shoot camera. I am simply saying that you have greater influence over the way your images turn out. I have looked at some spectacular images come out of small compact cameras because the photographer understood how to scrutinize and work with light and composition.
The main reason I use a Dslr is because I want more management over my image making. I want to be able to amend my focal length and have various kinds of lenses on the camera if I choose. I also need the chance for high speed camera work if the occasion calls for it.
I also want a very fast shutter speed from time to time. A really fast shutter speed takes place when you use a fast lens. This will mean that the maximum aperture of the lens is quite wide. A lot of light can come in to the lens and you have more light to work with. You may get a fast shutter speed this way.
Dslr cameras have more various controls such as a high ISO, multiple frames per second, the capability for exchangeable lenses, the ability to have an external flash and much more. You will still be able to get lovely shots with a point and shoot camera, but after a while you will start feeling restricted in what you can do.
To really master photography it’s most ideal to be trained by someone who is experienced at it. This comprehension can save you years of mistakes and disappointments. Learn to control light, composition, your compact and you will have the structure to be an incredible photographer.
Want to learn more about photography? Come and visit me and learn better photography techniques to make your photos look stunning. You can also talk to me personally on Facebook.
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