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9/6/2005 Photo Tip #4 Night Shots & Cross Screen FilterNight photos are primarily of city scapes. There's no light for landscapes! But you might take landscape photos at dusk. For these low light situations the best approach is to use a tripod because the shutter speed will be very slow. You'll need to use the widest aperture to get the most light available without a tripod and the shutter speeds will most likely be 1/8, 1/4, or 1/2 second or less. That's too slow for hand held shots for most cameras. A Minolta with "anti shake" or a Nikon with "vibration reduction" will allow a hand held shot at about 1/8 or so if you're careful and brace the camera and yourself. Using a wide aperture means you get less depth of field (basically the item focused on is clear while the fore and back grounds are out of focus) so be sure to focus on the most important subject in the shot. That's why a tripod is recommended. You can use a small aperture, get more depth of field, and the slower shutter doesn't matter. Even those with cameras that have "scene modes" such as dusk or night should consider a tripod.
A cross screen filter is good to use for night shots. This filter has lines etched in it that break points of light into the star effect. It's the type of night photo most often seen in print publications. A 4-point cross screen will make points of light look like x or + while a 6-point cross screen will make them appear as *. The cross screen doesn't affect indirect lighting, just points of light such as street lights, head lights or tail lights on vehicles. You'll have to choose the scene carefully. It it has a lot of light, you'll get a jumbled mass of stars and not much else. The cross screen also works on some fireworks shots. There are a few examples in my "Cincinnati" and "Labor Day Fireworks" photo galleries.
Finally, the cross screen can also be used as a diffusion filter for portraits, head & shoulder close ups, to soften the lighting. 9/1/2005 Photo Tip #3 Multimedia Photo AlbumsThere's a plentiful plethora and bountiful batch of digital photo album and slide creation programs, both on line internet services and software programs. How's a person to choose? Many of them offer a free trial; it's always a good thing to try before you buy whenever possible. A couple of products I use are DeskTop Author and Muvee AutoProducer. DTA is basically for creating e-books but it's also great for multimedia albums. The books have pages that turn like a print book, photos can be on the pages or pop up when you click a word or image. It can include audio clips and video clips so there's a good deal of variety that can be used to make an appealing multimedia album. There are nearly 500 templates for album covers and page designs and it's very simple to use. Muvee is pretty cool. Choose a bunch of photos & video clips, add music of your choice, pick from 24 different syles (music video, pro, etc.) and it quickly creates an MPEG movie with pan & zoom and transitions in sync to the music, not on timed intervals like other programs I've tried. I make brief videos with it and then insert them in DTA along with text and photos. You can find out more or download free trials of these at http://www.wilhitepublishing.com on the top navigation bar click on 2, 3 or 5. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Best, John W.
6/8/2005 Photo Tip # 2 Framing and FocusThere's no rule that says the subject of every photo has to be in the center. For variety, put some subjects off center, especially if what's on the right, left, top, or bottom leads the viewers eyes to your main subject. In several photo forums people commenting on posted pics refer to "perfect focus, great sharpness." There is also no rule that says every photo has to be pefectly focused and sharply detailed. Portraits and close ups of flowers, for example, can have a nice effect with a soft focus. Try focusing on the background and let your subject be slightly out of focus. If your camera is digital (these days most likely it is) and has a setting for image sharpness, set it to normal or low for certain shots. You can also use a diffusion filter (commonly used in portrait photos) to soften pics. People with wrinkles or blemishes will appreciate your using soft focus! Be good and stay snap happy. Regards, John W. 6/6/2005 Photo Tip #1 People PicsFree Tip #1 People Pics All my tips are always absolutely free and remember you get what you pay for. I'll also include idle chatter on photography and cameras as well as tips. People pics: Unless you want to show a person's outfit or something significant in the background, move in or zoom in and take a portrait framed shot, shoulders and head. Otherwise, the person in the photo could be anybody! You want to see the person in all their radiant glory, don't you? And don't use the "look at the camera and say cheese" routine all the time. Catch some close-up portraits that aren't posed. If you want to have the background (vacation snapshots, for example) to prove you really went to Niagara Falls, fine. You probably have a digital camera with the advantage that you can reel off a bunch of shots, unlike film where you try to be conservative. Take a photo of the background with no one in it (never can tell when you might want such a photo, trust me on this). Take another of Mom in front of the whatever. Since you won't be able to see her face closely, zoom in and take another shot, an unposed portrait--you want Mom's real, not posed,reaction. Capture that expression--"I'm having a grand old time" or perhaps "this is swell but just get me back to the hotel for a nap." Happy snappin'! John W. |
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