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4. Look for the Light
Many of the best photographs are taken early in the morning, late in the afternoon, and at twilight. At these times the lighting is most dramatic.
Many photographs are shot in bright or moderately bright sunlight. This type of light produces photos that closely match the way we remember seeing the scene. That is part of the reason we respond to them with a positive sense of familiarity.
However, colors photographed in the cooler light at twilight or in overcast conditions, or in the warmer light of sunrise and sunset, offer a new perspective on familiar colors and subjects, and provide a more creative backdrop for photographs. Overcast and after-the-rain conditions, in particular, produce richer, more saturated colors. For example, red leaves photographed against a twilight backdrop, instead of in daylight, create a moody interpretation that suggests a sense of mystery or drama.
In the dim light of a rainy day, the red leaves in this photo look especially vivid.
For interior photographs, look for strong sources of natural light, as from a window or a skylight. The glow of light coming from one direction can illuminate your subject dramatically.
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Recomposing a photo with Digital
Image
After a photo has been transferred to your computer, use the crop tool in Digital
Image to change the composition. By clipping away the edges of the photo, you can reposition your subject to comply with the rule of thirds.
5. Follow the Rule of Thirds
When composing a photograph, many beginning photographers always center their subject directly in the middle of the frame. While this technique may be the easiest way to get the subject in focus with a point-and-shoot camera, it is not always the most interesting way to present the subject.
Most advanced photographers follow the rule of thirds when composing the space inside a picture frame. The rule of thirds divides the frame into thirds both horizontally and vertically, and places the point of interest on one of the four spots where these dividing lines intersect. The rule of thirds is used throughout the graphic design world, because it helps to create balance between the subject and the background.
To apply the rule of thirds, divide your scene into three sections horizontally and vertically.
Place the focal point of your photo on one of the intersections of the dividing lines.
Following the rule of thirds, the bicycle in this photo lies right on the of the points where the dividing lines intersect. The top of the dock also roughly follows the horizontal line that runs one-third down from the top of the frame.
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If you have a person or animal in your photo, you can place the subject’s face on one of the four points, looking toward the center of the scene. If the horizon is in a photo, it should run about one-third from the top or one-third from the bottom, depending on whether the terrain or the sky is the center of focus.
The rule of thirds is not an absolute law, and there have been many great photographs taken that don’t abide by it. But the rule can be a great way to add balance and interest to your photos.
6. Find a Unique Perspective
You can challenge yourself to take original photos that convey unique perspectives. Rather than just pressing your shutter button as soon as you have the urge to capture a scene, take some time to assess your shooting angle, proximity to your subject, and background elements. You may transform your composition by taking one or more of the following simple steps:
• Get closer to your subject, to show more detail and eliminate distractions in the background.
• Include just a portion of your subject in the frame.
• Take your original subject and place it in the background. Find a new subject that adds context to the object in the background.
• Get lower to the ground, and point the camera up toward your subject.
• Move to a higher location, above your subject, so you are pointing down when you take the photo.
For example, if you are traveling, your natural instinct might be to take straightforward photos of local monuments. But with this approach, you might wind up with the same lackluster photos taken by scores of other tourists before you. And there would be a good chance that a nearby souvenir shop would sell superior, professionally photographed prints and slides of the same monuments.
For that matter, you could have just stayed home and ordered the professional photos from a catalog.
Use your imagination to compose some original, creative photos that you won’t find anywhere else. Capture some of the local color by photographing a lively food vendor stationed near the monument, and the monument can be the backdrop in your frame. Or use the self-timer to capture you and your companion sampling the local fare that you’ve bought from the food vendor in front of the monument.
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7. Bracket
The term bracket means to create exposures that are both lighter and darker than the camera or light meter indicates. The idea is to second guess the purely mechanical exposure meter, so that you get the right exposure.
If you’re taking photos of a sunset, a scenic vista, or a plant, you have the time to bracket. With these subjects, you’re also likely to have a wider range of tones to record than your camera can handle, especially if your subject is brightly lit.
So how do you bracket with an automatic camera? Most digital cameras, and many automatic cameras, have an exposure compensation feature, sometimes called the EV setting. If you set the exposure compensation for -1, the shot is one stop underexposed (darker than normal). If you set the camera for +1, the shot is one stop overexposed (lighter than normal). So you can bracket by taking three photos, one each at the -1, 0, and +1 settings.
Some cameras offer an automatic feature, which takes a range of photos, each with a different exposure setting.
Even if your camera doesn’t permit you that much control (or if you don’t want to take the time to change the exposure settings), another technique will give you results similar to bracketing. To get a lighter exposure, aim your camera at a darker portion of the subject, and then press the shutter button partway down
(until you begin to feel a little resistance). Next, without releasing pressure on the shutter button, reframe your photo to include what you want, and then push the shutter button all the way down to take the photo.
Depending on your camera, pressing the shutter button halfway down may lock in the exposure and the focus. If this is the case, you need to set the exposure on an object that is exactly the same distance away from the camera as the subject.
Otherwise, your subject will not be in focus when you take the photo.
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8. Analyze and Shoot Again
Photography takes practice. And you will progress at a faster rate if some of your practice time is focused on developing specific skills. One way to do that is to analyze your photos, and then go shoot them again.
When you get a chance to look at your photos on a computer or as prints, you can assess their quality of composition, lighting, exposure, and white balance.
Upon close inspection, you might realize that you placed your subject too close to the center of the frame, or that incandescent lights caused an orange glow.
On your next shoot, go out and take this same photo again, and make adjustments for the problems you encountered before.
When you look at the results of your second round of photos, you may find that you got excellent results, or you may find that one of your adjustments disrupted something else in the photo. Or maybe the different lighting conditions of the different day made it more difficult to nail the exposure.
To continue the exercise, shoot the same subject or scene on a regular basis.
You must always compensate for the differences in lighting each day, but you can try new approaches to the composition. Learning to shoot the same subject under different conditions or with a different approach gives you valuable experience and ideas when you encounter new situations.
9. Shoot Every Single Day
To become a talented and confident photographer, make photography part of your daily routine. Fortunately, digital cameras have made it much more convenient and inexpensive to shoot lots and lots of photos. Once you’ve purchased your digital camera, you can take as many photos as you want. The only cost is for batteries and storage for your photos.
The more you practice, the more confident you’ll become in your skills and in your equipment. You’ll also develop the habit of keeping your camera close by, and having it ready for photo opportunities. Train yourself to look for these opportunities, and take advantage of them when they come to you. Some of the world’s most memorable photos were taken by amateur photographers who happened to be in the right place at the right time. So to be ready to take that once-in-a-lifetime shot, know how to use your gear, have your equipment handy, and be on the lookout for great photo material.
A quick check with the LCD
One of the benefits of digital photography is that you can get a look at your photos on the
LCD preview screen right after you’ve taken the shot. This feature is great for a quick analysis of the photo’s composition, exposure, and color tone. Just be aware that since the preview screen is so small, it often does not reveal problems with focus.
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10. Show Your Photos to Other People
Even when you are making great progress with your photography skills, it’s easy to overlook the shortcomings in your own work. To continue improving your abilities, show your photos to other people. Getting others’ opinions is an invaluable learning experience.
Good photos should be visually exciting to people, eliciting a "Wow, this is great!" response. If you find that people are not very excited by your photos, ask them what they think is missing, and what you could do to make them better.
You’ll be surprised what some people like and do not like about your photos.
Find other photographers in your community. You can look at each others’ work and give feedback. This kind of mutually beneficial arrangement also helps you to develop your critical eye.
While it’s important to show your photos to others, remember that you are the ultimate judge of your own work. Photography is an art, and as an artist you should establish your own voice and style. You don’t have to listen to every piece of advice, and you may produce your best work by taking chances and following your own instincts.
That said, photographs are made to be seen! As you improve you photography skills, showing off your photos can be the best part.
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A scanner is a useful tool for your digital photography projects. A scanner generates a digital image from any kind of flat object—a document, a photo, pages from a book, a leaf—which allows you to manipulate the image on your computer. Even if you take all of your photos in digital format, scanners allow you to digitize things such as old photos, pages from books, negatives, and slides. Once scanned, the digital images are rich raw material that can be edited, incorporated into composites, printed, or posted on the Web.
Types of Scanners
If you’re thinking about buying a scanner, consider the two primary types that are available for working with photographs. Flatbed scanners convert photographic prints or other flat opaque objects into digital files. Film scanners convert film negatives or 35mm slides into digital files.
Flatbed Scanners
For general-purpose scanning, a flatbed scanner gives you the most flexibility.
You can scan virtually any two-dimensional object: photographic prints, text documents, kids’ crayon drawings, even leaves or feathers. If you have a flatbed scanner, you can buy a transparency adapter, an accessory that allows you to scan slides, negatives, and transparencies with your flatbed scanner.
Flatbed scanners with transparency adapters scan at lower resolutions than dedicated film scanners. However, flatbed scanners are usually adequate for occasional scanning of snapshots or amateur photos. If you plan to scan only prints and other flat artwork, a 1200-dpi (dots per inch) flatbed scanner should meet your needs. More information about scanner resolution and dpi is available in the section later in this chapter titled "Setting Resolution and Bit Depth."
Scanning with
Digital Image
For information on using your scanner with
Digital Image, see the scanner section in the
"Opening and Importing
Pictures" chapter.
Quick multi-page scanning
If you plan on scanning multi-page documents, look for a scanner with an automatic document feeder (ADF), which can save you a lot of time on bigger scanning jobs.
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Automatic dust and scratch removal
Some high-end film scanners include automatic dust- and scratch-removal software. This option can save a great deal of time later, eliminating the need to fix most defects.
Film Scanners
If you need to scan negatives or slides on a regular basis, a film scanner is the best option for the sharpest high-resolution results. Film scanners generally have higher resolutions than flatbed scanners, producing images at 2,000 or more dpi. Since slides and negatives are so much smaller than photographic prints, it’s crucial to be able to scan at a high resolution, especially if you plan to make larger-size prints from the scans. If you scan a slide at low resolution, you’ll have relatively few pixels to work with, limiting you to making small prints of the scans.
If you don’t have a scanner that accepts film, you can pay a photo lab to scan your best negatives or slides onto a CD-ROM. Negatives and slides can be scanned to sizes suitable for making large, high-quality prints. Paying for scanning services can be expensive, so if you have a lot of slides or negatives, you’ll save money by buying a suitable scanner.
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