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 Basic Digital Camera Shooting Techniques II |
07 Oct 08 |
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Robin Nichols - betterphoto.com |
Basic Digital Camera Shooting Techniques II
Using the Correct 'Shooting Modes'...
Snapping PortraitsSet the controls to Portrait Mode if the camera has one. This ensures that, although the subject of the portrait remains clear, its immediate background and foreground becomes fuzzy. The idea is to 'isolate' the subject using sharpness.
For greater control over this fore- and background sharpness, set the camera to 'Aperture Priority', (usually denoted by an ‘A’ or an ‘Av’ icon).
This setting is usually located on the main command dial on the top of the camera. Dial in an aperture of f5.6 (or thereabouts) using the thumbwheel. This f-stop number gives a reasonable depth of focus so that the figure that’s focused on is sharp (clear) but the background will be of focus (blurry).
The lower this f-stop number is, the less you get in focus in the shot and the more careful you have to be when focusing! Note: Setting the camera to Portrait Mode does this for you without your having to think about it ...
Stuff to remember:Don’t go too close, it can be intimidating. Step back and zoom in with the lens zoom lever.
Never use the wide angle lens setting on the zoom for single people shots. It produces very unflattering results. (It’s OK for groups though).
Avoid using flash on the face, it can be very unflattering.
In fact, NEVER use flash in a portrait if it can be helped.
Landscape ModeTo make sure that your distant scenes (landscapes, cityscapes) look their best, set the focus button to 'Mountain Mode' or 'infinity' (the infinity symbol looks like the figure eight (‘oo’) lying on its side).
Do this either in the menu, or by pressing the mountain symbol button or the MF button. This should give you failsafe sharpness for all distant objects (especially when shooting at night because the camera can’t see), and in low light.
Remember, cameras have difficulty focusing on far away scenes and in low light.
You could also try setting the camera to Landscape Scene Mode, if there is one.
Use the wide angle setting ('W') on the zoom lens to get more of the scene in.
More Stuff to RememberAvoid shooting through glass (i.e. don’t be lazy, get out of the car!)
Don’t shoot within three hours of midday if it can be avoided (Early morning and late afternoon are the best times). The examples you see here were taken at 11am (way too bright) and again at 6:30 pm, one of the best times of the day for landscape photography.
Flash Off, Please & Format the Card!Never use flash, it’s a waste of good electricity!
Press the flash icon button till you see the symbol at right. This shuts off the flash. Once the camera is turned off, and then on again, the flash will revert to its default 'Auto mode' once more.
Get in the habit of always reviewing pictures so that bad shots can be deleted (usually by pressing the small Trash can icon). TIP: You can delete images one by one, all at once or, by far the best method for wiping everything off the card, is to use 'Format'. This deletes everything. Only do this if you are sure that everything has been transferred to the computer. Re-formatting will extend the life of your memory card.
Source
Article by Robin Nichols - BetterPhoto.com.
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