Things are still a bit messy on the blog as I imported it from my old website. Links may be broken. I’m working on it! Thanks for your patience.
Sometimes it's okay to use Auto ISO
Four kinds of artificial light sources for photography
Three valuable tips to help you take better pictures
Event photography: Take better candids at your client's next event
What is the Best ISO to use?
Do you want some help with exposure compensation?
As you probably know, the back of your camera preview is not reliable for checking the brightness of your photo. It is better to use the histogram. My last post showed you the histogram in action, and this tutorial will show you how to correct the brightness in your photos using the exposure compensation feature that all digital cameras have.
Are you still struggling to understand the histogram?
When is the last time you used symmetry in your photo compositions?
I used to avoid symmetrical compositions myself, until my recent trip to the Netherlands. There I discovered that not only is symmetry common, it's rather expected.
Shoot in automatic mode and keep things simple
All too often when I'm teaching people photography, they take the little knowledge they have and then go out and shoot the hardest possible subjects. Then they come back to class defeated and disappointed and want to know why their photos didn't turn out so well.
The ONLY filter you need for digital photography
Digital cameras and editing have nearly eliminated the use of photography lens filters for me. I don't have a 'protection' filter on my lens as I feel it compromises the quality of my photos by adding a cheap flat piece of glass over my really good expensive curved glass. If I had small children who were prone to grabbing my camera or touching my lenses, I might consider putting on some protection. Even then, I'd remove it for the serious photos; the paying jobs.
Put your Photos on a Diet
This video tutorial shows you the file sizes and file types to use for quick loading web sites, web videos and screen presentations. Be a good steward of precious bandwidth. Speed up the content on your site. Don't make your audience wait ages for your slide pages to load. Alleviate the pain of an overloaded email server.
All you need to know about macro lenses
What is a really good but affordable macro lens for my camera to help me take clean, crisp macro pictures of flowers? Answer: There are three types of lenses you can use for close up photography: Fixed focal length macro lens, macro zoom lens, and close up filters.
Does your snow turn blue?
Do you have problems getting your snow scenes to look white in photos? I see a lot of blue snow photos, especially this week, since there is so much of North America still covered in snow! I guess blue snow is better than yellow snow, though.
Do your snow photos turn grey? Make the snow white with these tips.
Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop and Elements
I recently purchased a copy of Photoshop Elements v.9 to prepare to teach a course on shooting and editing raw files. In order to keep the course and required software affordable for those who don't want or need the full power of Photoshop CS5, I thought I'd use Elements instead. Reviewing Elements, I found vast differences in the Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) processor that is part of both programs. And to be honest, I was rather disappointed in the Elements version of ACR.
The Histogram is your Friend
To determine if you have good exposure on your digital camera images check your histogram after every shot. Sounds like a lot of work to do this, but trust me, if your exposure is correct, you will have less "fixing" to do to your photos afterward.
Camera shooting modes: Part 3 - Shutter and Aperture priority. Manual mode.
Brief explanations on when to use Shutter priority, Aperture priority and manual exposure modes with your dSLR camera.
Camera shooting modes: Part 2 - Program
The Program mode is the flexible version of the full auto (green square of death) mode. In full auto, the camera makes all of the decisions for you. In Program mode you can set your ISO, white balance, and flash. But, you won't have the stress of choosing f-stops and shutter speeds.
Camera shooting modes: Part 1 - Full Auto
If you have a dSLR, or an adjustable compact camera, your camera probably has an external shooting mode dial. There are a lot of symbols and letters on that dial. In this post you'll learn about the Green fully automatic mode.
My very un-scientific white balance card comparison
Being able to set your white balance in the camera is one of the greatest advantages of shooting digitally over shooting with film. If you are still struggling with how to get good colour in your photos, a white balance card, or digital grey card is one tool that can help you with this.